When I was younger... a lot younger! (I'm now 51) I was a very keen cyclist. I was in the CTC & besides going for a club ride every Sunday I also rode my bike to & from work & did lots of extra miles in the evenings too.
Sadly, when I was about 18 I discovered beer, cars & women (not necessarily in that order) & suddenly I had no time for cycling, I duly sold my bike to fund the purchase of my 1st car & never looked back... well actually I've often looked back at the great times I had on my bike.
So, about 14 years ago, I decided to purchase a bike again, I wasn't planning anything to adventurous but just wanted the opportunity to get back in the saddle & do some pottering around when the mood took me.
With this in mind I purchased a Brompton folding bike... a far cry from what I had been used to all those years ago, but it offered me what I wanted & also the convenience of being able to put the new bike in the boot, drive somewhere interesting, pleasant, safe... & relatively flat! to ride my new steed.
Since owning the Brompton I have used it spasmodically, a few times initially, but then I went a few years without touching it. 3 years ago I started up again & have used the bike a few times, in summer, ever since.
This year though I have really got the flavour for cycling again, so much so that I'm thinking of getting a proper bike. The Brompton is fine for short journeys (e.g. less than 15 miles) & flat routes but the small wheels & Sturmey Archer gears make it less than ideal for distance & hills.... I've never trusted Sturmey Archer's on hills!
I went to my local cycle shop last week for a browse & was amazed how much the tehnology has advanced since I owned my trusty Mercian. This has wetted my apetite even more & I plan to do so more research to find the best bike to buy (for me) before taking the plunge.
So far a Scott road bike & a Giant Audax have taken my eye. I'm hoping to get into cycling on a regular basis again, not as heavily as when I was younger but enough to make me much fitter & able to enjoy rides of 50+ miles, if I enjoy it as much as I'm hoping I even have a dream of training & getting fit enough to cycle from Lands End to John o Groats! (Summer of 2011 or 2012)... but we'll see... one rotation at a time!
Anyway, that's me... looking forward to visitng some more cycle shops this weekend to focus in on the bike I should get.
Mike.
Sadly, when I was about 18 I discovered beer, cars & women (not necessarily in that order) & suddenly I had no time for cycling, I duly sold my bike to fund the purchase of my 1st car & never looked back... well actually I've often looked back at the great times I had on my bike.
So, about 14 years ago, I decided to purchase a bike again, I wasn't planning anything to adventurous but just wanted the opportunity to get back in the saddle & do some pottering around when the mood took me.
With this in mind I purchased a Brompton folding bike... a far cry from what I had been used to all those years ago, but it offered me what I wanted & also the convenience of being able to put the new bike in the boot, drive somewhere interesting, pleasant, safe... & relatively flat! to ride my new steed.
Since owning the Brompton I have used it spasmodically, a few times initially, but then I went a few years without touching it. 3 years ago I started up again & have used the bike a few times, in summer, ever since.
This year though I have really got the flavour for cycling again, so much so that I'm thinking of getting a proper bike. The Brompton is fine for short journeys (e.g. less than 15 miles) & flat routes but the small wheels & Sturmey Archer gears make it less than ideal for distance & hills.... I've never trusted Sturmey Archer's on hills!
I went to my local cycle shop last week for a browse & was amazed how much the tehnology has advanced since I owned my trusty Mercian. This has wetted my apetite even more & I plan to do so more research to find the best bike to buy (for me) before taking the plunge.
So far a Scott road bike & a Giant Audax have taken my eye. I'm hoping to get into cycling on a regular basis again, not as heavily as when I was younger but enough to make me much fitter & able to enjoy rides of 50+ miles, if I enjoy it as much as I'm hoping I even have a dream of training & getting fit enough to cycle from Lands End to John o Groats! (Summer of 2011 or 2012)... but we'll see... one rotation at a time!
Anyway, that's me... looking forward to visitng some more cycle shops this weekend to focus in on the bike I should get.
Mike.