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sittingbull

Veteran
Location
South Liverpool
Well done :thumbsup: Enjoy.
 
OP
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dharma66

dharma66

Regular
Location
Manchester, UK
Well. Here it is!

I moved the seat back because it felt a bit cramped (nothing more scientific), adjusted my helmet, selected the middle gear front and back, and set off!

Honestly, it's like riding a bike! Actually, it's only a bit like that...

The gear changing formula one flappy paddle things are great. I was expecting to be groping around the downtube, and wondered how I'd reach from a hybrid riding position.

Bizarrely turning right needs some attention, but turning left is easy! So far I've cycled the 200 yards along our cul-de-sac to reach the school car park, pootled round there a while, then came back. Did that for about ten minutes, practising turning at varying degrees of tightness and various speeds, and also practised changing gears. Came home and was amazed how much my hands hurt! They were absolutely throbbing with exertion recovery, and were shaking tremendously.

So I gave myself ten minutes recovery and went out again, doing it all again, but focussing on staying relaxed. Stayed out about half an hour this time, round the car park again, and then out and a bit further round our estate (which has no through routes).

Had a few cars pass me in the opposite direction, but none pass me from behind. Which I'm glad about, because I'm not going too straight just yet, and I'm still riding like I did as a kid, down the middle of the road. Very bad, even on a very quiet estate. So the next few days will be spent very close to home, as much off public roads as possible, until I've remastered the basic skills. Proper road position, fully controlled turns, looking round whilst going straight (where's my rear view mirror? I looked for it half a dozen times!), stopping quickly...anything else?

What I had forgotten, though, entirely, is how amazing it feels to be on a bike!
 

helston90

Eat, sleep, ride, repeat.
Location
Cornwall
Sounds good, hope you keep on enjoying it.
Just a point is to say it's easier to balance when you are moving faster so your low speed tight turns can be genuinely tricky but you'll find this out soon enough- trust me!
 
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dharma66

dharma66

Regular
Location
Manchester, UK
Thanks Heston, yeah. There kind of a trade off in turns at the moment. Slow is easier to turn tight, but is a bit wobbly, fast is steady, but scary getting tight.

It's all about practice of course, and my 'faster' (relatively - probably all of 8mph if someone measured :smile: ) turns are getting there. The school car park has seemingly random bits of pavement/curb, so I can practice going round in different ways. Even after half an hour, turns that I was worried about at first seem simple now.

I just remember as a kid, not even thinking about turning, and being able to throw the bike around with abandon, and it came as a bit of a surprise to realise that's actually a skill, and not something hard wired. I'm looking forward to getting the skills back, and also now coupling them with road awareness. 30 years ago, there was a lot less traffic, cars were smaller and people drove slower. I suspect my biggest skills challenges will come when I venture out at rush hour...
 
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dharma66

dharma66

Regular
Location
Manchester, UK
Thanks Terry, I'll check that one out!
 
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dharma66

dharma66

Regular
Location
Manchester, UK
So. Day off yesterday. It was busy, and I was surprisingly achy. Being 46 and 280lb, I want to make sure it don't overdo it.

This morning, though, I was up at 7:30, and on the bike by 7:40. There's a little unodapted road that runs from the school car park, parallel to the main road. I set off down this, thinking I was quite familiar with it, as I often walk this way to get the weekend morning papers.

I hadn't previously noticed the small but high speed bumps, installed by the farmer! I also hadn't noticed that the first section climbs. Not anything anyone on here would call a climb, you understand, but upwards, nonetheless.

Secondly, I hadn't noticed that it then drops away and heads quite significantly downhill. Strange how when you drive everywhere, you assume that the roads are all flat...

Lastly, I hadn't noticed that at the bottom of the drop off, where I'm now going way faster then I have been previously, the Tarmac ends, and the surface becomes packed dirt and gravel, quite badly rutted by the farm traffic. How could I have never noticed that, when I've walked this way perhaps a hundred times!?

That bit was scary. I had to slow down to a stop, whilst trying to pick a route. I had to stop because it was very worrying indeed, and whilst I managed to stay upright and stable, I can't really say I was in control the whole time. After a couple of deep breaths, I completed the road out at a more sedentary pace.

From there, the loop back is up a dual carriage way with a cycle lane. That went well, and I felt very much in control, keeping the bike nice and straight. After all that descent, thou, it was uphill all the way back, and it was hard. By the time I'd got back to the turn off to our estate, I'd realised that if I was on a gym bike machine, the saddle would be at least two inches higher than mine was. So on the return, it was out with the Alan key. I haven't tried any of the fancy techniques for getting a proper saddle height, I just put it two inches up, tried it for ten minutes, put it up another inch and tried it for ten minutes again.

Now it's three inches higher, and pedalling feels so much easier, it's really quite amazing. At this height, I still have bend in my knees at the bottom of the stroke when I have my heel raised, and can still drop my heel at the bottom of the stroke, so I don't think I've gone too high. I can also just about touch down with toe on one side whist still in the saddle, as long the bike is tilted just slightly to that side, I can also then set off comfortably from that position.

So, I'm going to let my wobbly legs recover a bit more (cycled about two miles out and back, and legs feeling just that!) and then I'll try another ride this afternoon and see how I feel about the saddle adjustment.

Still a buzz to be back on a bike!
 

Mo1959

Legendary Member
So. Day off yesterday. It was busy, and I was surprisingly achy. Being 46 and 280lb, I want to make sure it don't overdo it.

This morning, though, I was up at 7:30, and on the bike by 7:40.

Still a buzz to be back on a bike!

Well done you. Just trying to get into cycling again myself. Went out for just over an hour this morning. Beautiful morning and lovely quiet roads. Makes it all worthwhile.

My problem is lack of consistency and making excuses not to ride, especially using the weather as an excuse. I now have two bikes though, a decent road bike and a second hand Dawes hybrid so I am trying to convince myself that it doesn't really matter if the Dawes gets wet and mucky and that I should just get out whether it is wet or not, otherwise I am never going to gain any fitness.

Good luck with your cycling and hope you continue to enjoy it and make improvements too.
 
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