Apart from questions about gear and the mechanics of cycling, there is this question I have had to answer many times. The question is multi-layered: it begins with why or when you started riding, then moves to your level of enjoyment. This common question serves as a great introduction to who I am and what velobanter.com will be.
My first experience on a bicycle was quite unconventional. The first bike I rode was not what most people would expect. I know many of you are thinking of a tricycle or one equipped with training wheels, but that wasn’t the case for me. I vividly remember a friend showing up at school on a large black bicycle that was far too big for him. The bike was so oversized that he couldn’t sit on the saddle and reach the pedals. His clever solution was to thread one leg through the diamond frame ( the triangle formed by the down tube, seat tube, and top tube) to reach the pedals. It was a spectacle!
Astonished, I cheered and ran after him. I lost it when he stopped to offer me a ride. Shaking, I climbed into the luggage carrier and, like a drunken man trying to ride home, we wobbled our way down the street. That was just the beginning. Next, he gave me the bicycle to ride on my own. Trembling, I tried to thread myself just as he did, but I couldn’t reach the pedals and handlebars at the same time. Still quivering, he held the bike upright while I perched myself on the seat. Legs dangling, barely touching the handlebars, he pushed. I wobbled and fell. He enticed me to try it one more time, but the result was the same. That was my introduction and the conclusion of my cycling career. The bruises were just too painful for me to ride a bicycle.
It took years, until my late teen years, for me to gather the courage to ride a bicycle. I then began to enjoy riding, and over the years, I became a casual cyclist, someone who pays no attention to the bicycle or how it fits. The idea was to find a bike which moves and stops, maybe adjust the saddle, but the whole point was to jump on it and pedal. I never knew what kind it was, and for that matter, the primary function of the bicycle I was riding.
My serious riding came during the pandemic. Like most of us, the pandemic presented us with an opportunity to slow down and explore our lives. Most tried new hobbies and, like me, developed a passion for new things. For me, it was cycling. I was exploring ways to stay fit not only because of the sedentary pandemic life, but also for health issues.
My blood pressure has always been an issue, a thorn in my side, so to speak. My doctor encouraged me to incorporate exercise in my life, which I did. But my choice of sport created more health issues. Because of the years of playing soccer, straining my joints and countless injuries, which never healed properly, I developed joint pain. The joint pain limited the types of exercise I could do to prevent further joint damage. Cycling was the only sport that wouldn’t put a lot of strain on my joints, and at the same time, work out my cardiovascular system.
Therefore, I decided to take it seriously, and the first thing was to invest in a bicycle. My knowledge of cycling was limited, and that, combined with my zeal and lack of bicycle inventory during the pandemic, led me to a department store where I purchased a road bicycle. I was happy, but at the same time was aware that purchasing that bicycle was not ideal. It nevertheless saved me for some time, and I did some long rides on it, the longest of which was 65 kilometres, my first long ride. I was proud of it.
Since then, I have invested in new all-road cycling gear (shorts, shirts, and clipless shoes) and sensors ( cadence and power meter). Because of my love for stats, I decided to subscribe to Strava, which prompted me to buy a chest heart rate strap to monitor my heart rate. And finally, after using a ‘cheap’ bicycle computer, I invested in a Garmin cycling computer Edge 1040 (I upgraded just before the new 1050 came out; bummer, but it still serves the purpose better than my cheapo computer)
There are still many more accessories and upgrades I want to add, but for now, I am content with what I have. I have had epic long rides (for my standard) and hope to do more awesome ones in the near future. Cycling was a perfect choice for me; not only am I enjoying it, but it is also helping my health. My high blood pressure is manageable now, and my knee pain is gone. So, why did I start cycling? It was for health reasons, but I continued for the fun of it.
I suggest adding an intuitive question: why velobanter.com? Well, I have made many cycling mistakes, some of which I didn’t even realize. It usually took another cyclist on the road to show me the right way of doing things. This is why I started velobanter.com. It is a place where we can share stories, thoughts, ideas, and tips about cycling. This is a place to help make the cycling experience easier and safer.
Let the banter begin.