This season, I tried to start biking around April 1. You may recall Mother Nature responded by throwing up the most absurdly-cold two weeks I can recall in early April; snowstorms, howling winds, brutal cold. Thanks, Ma.
But I finally got on the road, making my first bike commute to work around April 15ish. I think I’ve missed three days since then; I’ve also taken to biking out to the station on Saturdays, and often getting some kind of ride in on Sundays. Between all of that, I’m up to about 100 miles a week or so. Nothing major, but not bad for a 45 year old guy who hasn’t biked a lot in the last couple decades.
Upsides? I got my legs back, I think. Biking (as I was taught it) is about rhythm; your legs are like diesel engines; they do better if you can just get them running and never stop. The key (or so I was taught) is to find the pace you’re comfortable at, and use your gears so that you can keep that rhythm as consistently as possible on whatever terrain you encounter (high on the flats, low on the hills, etc). Ideally, you’re not straining (steep hills aside) or pushing as much as just reinforcing momentum, for the most part. And as it turns out my natural pace has always been pretty fast. I get passed by those obnoxious Lycra-clad 20-30somethings on their $4,000 racing bikes, and the occasional freak of nature on an oval-racing bike (single speed, no coaster gear; you have to pedal every inch of the way) – but not many others. It’s not a competitive thing (much), so much as being just how I ride.
So yes – after three months, I’ve got my legs back.
The other upside? For the first time in probably a decade or more, I can fit into (as the kids say these days, “rock”) size 38 pants. That’s down a notch or two (depending on where you buy the pants).
The downside? None.
Well, yeah, there is one. I do get antsy if I can’t get a ride in every day. Jitters, almost.
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