| Re: Bloodied but Unbowed - My first bike ride!
Good job. Keep at it and you'll improve.
I want to say, though, that your weight, age and time off bike don't really
factor into the issues you mention regarding stability, etc. Perhaps you
just have an issue with balance, which you'd probably have even if you were
normal weight. Even hills are undoable for heavier riders, even though they
are more of a challenge than if you were normal weight. Moving slowly on
any bike is going to lead to instability, since as you approach zero mph you
get closer and closer to falling over. Keeping your speed up (not
necessarily fast) will help you remain stable. Don't be afraid to keep a
little speed, as that typically makes things on a bike work better (I'm
talking about > 3-5 mphs).
Since you're riding, why not just find a huge parking lot to ride in....with
few things to run into, you can zero in on your feel for the bike...
"The Historian" <Spamscone@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:1166988308.200720.223660@42g2000cwt.googlegro ups.com...
> My Trek and I went for a ride today. Other than practice in Bikesport's
> parking lot, this was my first real ride. It took me about ten minutes
> to get underway, and at first I could stay balanced for only a few feet
> at a time. The length of time I could spend underway grew, however, and
> by the end of my ride I could travel several hundred feet without
> stopping.
>
> I'm still far from saying I'm in control of my bike, however. A 275
> pound guy isn't going to be very stable under the best of
> circumstances. Add in his newness on a bike, hills on the route, and
> the high winds today and you are courting problems. And on the homeward
> leg, I ran into one. Or almost; I missed the mailbox, but in missing it
> I took a spill. Fortunately I was wearing jeans and lifting gloves, so
> I escaped with only a scraped and bruised left knee. I seem to be OK.
> The chain came off the bike in the spill, so I walked it home. It's
> fixed now, but I'm done with riding for today. :-)
>
> My total riding time was about an hour, including the time spent
> walking the bike back home. Total distance covered, excluding the
> walking, was about 1.5 miles.
>
> Neil
>
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