What a bike
Sometime in the distant past most of us learned to ride a bicycle. It’s one of those things that you learn once and it is with you forever. We rode bikes all over the place and for no other reason than it was fun. Kids seem to just enjoy riding, even with the occasional crash. Everyone crashes sooner or later. We had races, leisurely rides from here to there, rode to school, and then, for some of us, to work. Not everyone got to have a car, and even if you had access to one it didn’t mean that you actually got to drive it when you wanted to. We rode them at college and university. I even bought an old clunker and rode it around while I was in the army. It is safe to say that somewhere between graduating from college or trade school that our riding days became fewer. Marriage and children, if that’s the route you took, changed everything. Simply having the time to ride, even if you and your lovely spouse both rode, became more difficult. Not till the kids were old enough to ride without the training wheels were you able to go out with the family. Mostly we went to the local school, or bike path. You’ve got to be nuts to take a youngster out on the open road with you. Depending on the road, you have to be nuts to take yourself out on it. The occasional ride became the non-existent ride for many of us.
As we rolled through the years the children grew up, moved out and went off to college, trade school or the military, sometimes all three. Some bit of time was freed up in our lives. Now, all along the way, some of us did attempt to stay in shape. Exercise didn’t rule our lives, but was at least a part of it. We ran, biked, walked, skied, took up karate, jumped rope, or some combination of things, all with an eye toward being fit. Some of us rode the couch most of the time, ignoring the steady decline of any level of fitness. It doesn’t matter which group you were in. One day, with great expectations and a realization that time was not actually your best friend anymore, gaining some ground on being fit and healthy took on more importance. On the way to this realization some things crept up on us. It took some years, but that why it’s called “creeping up” as opposed to “look out, it’s here!” Any exercise that required a pounding of the joints, say running or jumping rope, had to be shared with a bottle of aspirin, and the thought that this just may not be worth it.
That’s when the bike came back to mind as a way to exercise without beating our joints to bits. Bikes have come a long way over the years. They are much better than they used to be, and there are more types to choose from. The basic choice is between a mountain bike or a road bike. Both types have multiple gears, great brakes, and can be cheap, reasonable, or very, very, expensive. One of the reasons you see so many of the more mature folks out on bikes is due to simple economics. Good bikes aren’t cheap. The Boomer generation may be a bit gray and grumpy, but we do tend to have a bigger chunk of disposable income. If the old bike is just a bit too rusted to ride after all these years, invest in a new one.
It’s best to go to a good bike shop when shopping for your new bike. The people who work in the shop, most of them anyway, actually ride bikes. After carefully questioning you, they will be able to advise you about what kind of bike you need. They will want to know a lot about you and what kind of riding you think you will be doing. They do attempt to keep from laughing most of the time, but the occasional guffaw does burst out. Think nothing of it. They just have vivid imaginations. Their goal is to fit you with a bike that will serve you best. I have a mountain bike, one with a lot of gears. I love those gears. No gears, no ride for me. While I don’t actually ride off trail through the woods, or plummet down old flume trails that hang on the side of mountains, I do ride off the pavement quite a lot. A road bike wouldn’t last doing this. If you will be riding exclusively on paved trails or roads, a road bike may be what you end up with. For those of us on mountain bikes, road bikes are the ones that always pass you, no matter where you are riding or how fast you think you are going, and more often than not they come in groups. The wheels are bigger, the tires skinnier (less friction on the road), the bike itself is skinnier, weighs less, and has just as many gears. You ride it hunched over and there is less wind resistance, so, pedal for pedal, you go faster.
If you are over 50 and have been riding the couch for a long time, have a chat with your doctor before you leap into exercising. Launching into a 50 mile ride as your first round of riding will make you wish you hadn’t. Start with a reasonable amount of time, maybe a 30 minute ride, on gentle terrain. Once that becomes somewhat easy, and you are able to breathe normally at the end of it, add 10 minutes or so. If you are gasping for breath and feeling like you are hauling a blimp behind you as you ride, slow down. Remember that you are riding for better health, fun, and a good lunch when you’re done. You will gradually be able to stretch your ride out to an hour, even if you are riding on hills. Once you are able to comfortably ride for an hour, you will be able to add some time that as well. Above all, just get out and ride. Stay active. We deserve to be healthy, and we know that it takes a bit of work. It’s worth it. Do it. Ride, ride, ride.
Leipheimer kept the yellow jersey, Astana worked well. What a show. The 
