The best ride I have ever had

[Elefantino]

It lasted 4.62 miles.

I averaged 11.6 miles an hour.

It was with my wife, who after a long time thinking about it has decided to take up this wonderful sport. We test-rode a Bianchi Brava. She loved it and said it rode much, much better than the Specialized Dolce we test-rode on Saturday.

I've always wanted a Bianchi. Now I have one. And a riding partner I can wake up with.

I look forward to many slow, then somewhat faster, then faster still, rides in the near future. It may not do much for my fitness, but at this moment my heart has never been in better shape!

:banana: x 1,000,000!

[soulspinner]

I envy you brother.

[David Kirk]

Very very cool.

Enjoy.

Dave

[PBWrench]

Lucky boy!

[H.Frank Beshear]

:D Have fun

[darylb]

Most excellent!

I recently had a similar ride with my wife. She says she really wants to ride but havent talked her into going to the shop yet. We are having a hard time trying to figure out what to do with our daughter so we can go for early weekend rides. She hasnt approved of the tandem idea yet either.

Again, congrats on the ride. I know how sweet it is.
:beer:

[Karin Kirk]

Yay! Three cheers for husbands and wives riding happily together!

One thing that might be useful down the road is to see if there are some other gals she can ride with. As much as I enjoy riding with my #1 cycling partner Dave, sometimes I like to just ride with the girls. It adds another element to the routine and keeps things fresher.

Congrats on the new bike and riding partner!

[Avispa]

Yo big "E"... Thanks for letting us know!

Now don't do anything bad to discourage her, ok? If she wants to stop, you stop, if she wants to go slow, you go slow... Think that you are her coach now, but she is the star athlete and you have to pamper her on and off the bike!

Good luck!

A.

[ericspin]

Post a pic of the new bike, what color? I too am a closet Bianchi lover. My first high quality road bike was a Bianchi and now I think every bike should be Celeste.

Be patient with your wife....she will appreciate it. I know mine does and she absolutely despises when I try to get her to ride _my way_. I know I will learn one day, sometimes i get it and sometimes i don't.

Eric

[CNY rider]

It lasted 4.62 miles.

I averaged 11.6 miles an hour.

It was with my wife, who after a long time thinking about it has decided to take up this wonderful sport. We test-rode a Bianchi Brava. She loved it and said it rode much, much better than the Specialized Dolce we test-rode on Saturday.

I've always wanted a Bianchi. Now I have one. And a riding partner I can wake up with.

I look forward to many slow, then somewhat faster, then faster still, rides in the near future. It may not do much for my fitness, but at this moment my heart has never been in better shape!

:banana: x 1,000,000!


Yeah, but did the bike plane????????

[scooter01]

Funny thing happened this week my wife asked me to get her Bianchi cleaned up and ready to go, after 10 years of sitting still.

We have not ridden road bikes together for many many years.

So Spoke took her bike this past week and got it all ready. Today she got up early to try it out. Now i know she is excited! maybe I will have a riding partner again too.

[93legendti]

It lasted 4.62 miles.

I averaged 11.6 miles an hour.

It was with my wife, who after a long time thinking about it has decided to take up this wonderful sport. We test-rode a Bianchi Brava. She loved it and said it rode much, much better than the Specialized Dolce we test-rode on Saturday.

I've always wanted a Bianchi. Now I have one. And a riding partner I can wake up with.

I look forward to many slow, then somewhat faster, then faster still, rides in the near future. It may not do much for my fitness, but at this moment my heart has never been in better shape!

:banana: x 1,000,000!

Riding is riding. Riding with a loved one? Priceless!

(I just spent the last 2 days riding our tandem with my 4 1/2 yr. old daughter as the stoker. Each ride lasted 1 hour. My daughter couldn't stop thanking me and telling me how much fun she was having. I guess it proves you don't have to race around a block for an hour to be a cyclist.)

[RABikes2]

How exciting for you Mike! I'll look forward to meeting your wife on a future ride!

You guys do "get" it. Be patient, encouraging, and tell your sweetie how sexy she looks with a bike between her legs. ;)

RA

[vaxn8r]

Now on to the tandem. It's in an entirely different league of marital bike bliss.

[BURCH]

Awesome.

I got my wife got into cycling a few years ago and she enjoys it a lot. Not as much as running, but she still gets out for a spin here and there. We used to have an issue where she thought she was holding me back from getting in a good ride. I tried to convince her I didn't care. One way that I handled the problem was that I would sometimes go out for a really fast 15 or 20 miles before meeting her for a ride. It put her mind at ease and it did calm me down from attacking hills too aggressively while we were out.

I hope you have a good time on four wheels!

[erikbrooks]

Good report, big E! Congrats!

I tend to get a little impatient with the pace when I ride with my wife. I find the narrow seat and low bars far less comfortable at 10mph. I solved it by getting an old heavy but classy looking 1980 Centurion Super LeMans for a song and outfitting it with Shimano 600 pantograph groupo, wider seat, and a tall stem - a Nitto deluxe. I call this my 'social bike'. It's just the ticket for slow rides.

http://i16.tinypic.com/4xwv0qa.jpg

[tv_vt]

Treasure the rides with your wife. Consider not training but time to talk and visit while moving. Listen for any fit issues she may have. You're the coach and the bike mechanic... Have fun.

Here's my love: