What got you started into bikes/riding, ?

[William]

Now that everyone has been thinking back and reminiscing about his or her first real road bikes, lets take another step back.a little bit further this time.

What was it that got you interested in bikes, racing, touring, or long distance riding? Was it watching a particular race? A friend or a relative? Or just having that urge to pedal to the horizon and see what's there, and just keep going, under your own power (to loosely quote a gentleman for the crazyguyonabike website)?

PS: Boston Drunk, I know you don't like to read long-winded paragraphs. So, as an incentive, I have inserted the word "BEER" in various places in the paragraph below. Happy reading.

I have always had a competitive streak in me. When I was a kid, we would always find ways to set up race courses with all kinds of obstacles to jump off of, go around, over, and under on our bikes. We set up drag strips in a street version of match sprints to a designated street sign. Dead starts or rolling starts, we did both. And of course we had the demolition derbies that really put your young riding skills to the test (man those Schwinn Scramblers were tough bikes). Later on in organized training camps under the watchful eye of a coach we did a more civilized version of it called Death bike. A meaner name, with much nicer rules. In rural Washington state, distances to friends houses, schools and stores could be quite a few miles so riding my bike was transportation as well a fun thing to do. I got into BMX racing for a few years but when I hit High school I took off into skateboarding and got involved in organized sports. Other than transportation, I wasn't riding. I took a few years off from school after HS and during that time I caught one of the first RAAM's on the Wide World of Sports one Saturday afternoon. I got all excited and thought man, that would be great! I want to do that some day! It really stirred up the old bike riding flame that had died down during my HS years. I was in the process of going back to college so once I had "BEER" moved to Oregon in 89 and got settled, I picked up a nice MTB bike and started riding. I found that I really wasn't going off road all that much. Instead I found myself sprinting from stoplight to stop light, chasing down other riders (nicely no jumping on people's wheels), and drafting cars and trucks & going to and from classes and practice. I had been recruited onto the Crew team and was doing extremely well so again, other than transportation, riding was taking a back seat (but the images from the RAAM were still floating around in my head). After almost three very successful years in crew, I had been "BEER" invited to attend an Olympic rowing camp but blew out my back about three weeks before I was supposed to leave.
After I recovered from my back injury, and with much thought, I decided not to continue rowing. I already had reoccurring back problems due to a skateboard crash when I was younger, and I knew that competitive rowing was going to make it worse in the long run. I started lifting, running, and biking regularly.
The owner of the gym where I was training walked up to me one day a said that I should give triathlons a try. He seemed to feel that I would be good at it. Now, I'm not a swimmer, I can swim, but you won't get me out in open water (I saw JAWS at an impressionable age). With RAAM images coming back into my mind, I decided that it was time "BEER" to sell the MTB bike and get a road bike. That's where the Fuji Robaix comes in to my life. I found out where the OSU cycling team would meet for their ride and just showed up one afternoon. Everyone was nice, but I got some eye rolls and looks. I'm sure I was quite the sight; unshaven legs, t-shirt, crew shorts and parka, sneakers, and my cheap drug store bike helmet. I didn't know about "BEER" pace lines, and pointing out obstacles etc. On our way back in, I had gotten the hang of riding in a pace line and they were starting to ramp things up. About ten miles out on Peoria Rd we were flying, I got to the front of the pace line and just went. After a couple of miles no one had come around and I looked back, I had ridden everyone off my wheel. I just kept going until I hit HWY 30 and waited for everyone to catch up. After that they asked me to come out for the team and I haven't looked back. I've stuck with cycling since 93 and will continue as long as I can.
Will I ever compete in a RAAM? I don't know? Shorter power events are my specialty, but I still harbor visions of doing it someday. It's those images that kept bringing me back to cycling.


William

[bulliedawg]

Tore my the acl in my left knee playing basketball in college. After surgery, Doc told me the best thing I could do to recover was something low impact like swimming or cycling. I have a problem with getting water in my ears, so started riding and never looked back.

Now I look at friends and relatives my age (only 37, but still) and I can't believe how they've let themselves fall out of shape.

[bostondrunk]

Lemond, 1989, seeing him on the news on that funky looking bike, winning the final tt.

Your Doctor was in love with the movie "Breaking Away" in the 7th grade. Two of his snotty private-school pals had real road bikes, and your Doofus started tagging along with them on his Sears Free Spirit. A year later in 1980, he started showing up to juniors races on that god awful thing. A basketball knee injury, two operations, and ten months later, his folks sprung for a lugged Trek and, despite a brief but intense affair with swimming in high school and college, your Doofus has been a cyclist ever since.

[bostondrunk]

Hey Doofus, did you decide on a career yet?
Professional Male dancer? Follow your heart, baby!!!

[Sandy]

Wasn't the real reason you got started cycling so that you could get to the liquor store quicker???


Sober Somber Serotta Sandy

In late 2000, my church sponsored a group of riders to do the August 2001 Alaska AIDS Vaccine Ride. I bought a bike, started training, and was hooked. The rest, as they say, is (expensive) history.

[TimB]

What got me started riding more seriously as a adult was a visit to my doctor when I was 29. I am about 5'9" and weighed 205lbs. My cholesterol was 339, with LDL of about 190. Yikes! Time to get back on the exercise bandwagon. Lingering shoulder problems kept me from getting back in the pool (I swam competitively through HS and college) and I'd never been much for running. I'd also just moved to DC and was hating it with a passion. I started out (slightly embarrassing) riding on a trainer on the balcony of my apartment, with occasional rides on some local trails. The real breakthrough came a couple years later, when I joined a local cycling club and started doing some scheduled rides. I met some fantastic folks, and started hating DC less. Now - almost all my friends are cyclists...and those that aren't are no longer surprised by my tales of 100-mile rides on my fixie...it's Who I Am now.

Drunk:

Your <<femme>> is paying me to come kick your arse, daily.

And limit your beer intake.

Get ready.


Doofus

[pale scotsman]

My Gran in Scotland got me started. She rode until the early 1970's when a hip injury, and eventual replacement sidelined her. My grandfather, who died before I was born, was quite a cyclist as well. My mother was into it until she married my dad.

Gran has some great stories. Oscar Egg was one of her favorites. Whenever she visits she still asks to see what my latest bike is, and what's changed technology wise. On one trip to France with my grandfather their group had to be turned while on the ferry because of Hitler invading.

I've always ridden. Started in BMX, then road, then ATB for 16 years, and back to road.

[bostondrunk]

Hahahaha, bring it prof!!
William, will you please reserve the octagon for us? Time to take Doofus back to school...

Originally Posted by Dr. Doofus

Drunk:

Your <<femme>> is paying me to come kick your arse, daily.

And limit your beer intake.

Get ready.


Doofus

[bostondrunk]

Sandy,
You are smarter than you appear...

Originally Posted by Sandy

Wasn't the real reason you got started cycling so that you could get to the liquor store quicker???


Sober Somber Serotta Sandy

[pbbob]

took out a couple of small books on cycling back in the 70's. from the library. one on racing[sprinting in a 52x16 was a big deal] and one on touring and general riding.
returned the racing book after immediately realizing there was no future in it for me and kept the other. still have it. I figure the overdue charges must be at least worth a new frame by now.

[67-59]

Running injury. I was a fairly serious distance runner for over 20 years (a couple dozen marathons and half-marathons). I wasn't out front or anything like that, but I was usually good enough to finish in the top 10% or 15%. Never had any significant injury problems, until I started to have lower back pain about 2 years ago. Finally got an MRI, learned that I had 2 bulging discs in the lower back, and was told by the doc to find something lower impact.

In a year and a half, I have gone from an entry level Douglas aluminum, to a used Serotta Hors Categorie (actually, it is in transit right now). If I know myself at all, it probably won't be much more than another year before I get the custom fitted Legend or Ottrott.

[Tom]

When I was seven years old I had this cool red bike from Sears that had a headlight and everything. One day I rode down the hill, out on the Brownsville-Hartland road and before you knew it I was five miles from home. I thought that was great.

Then I strayed. After dropping (drinking) out of college I started running. Finally my left hip said enough was enough. I suspect the number 6 Eagle Claw hook I cut off in it when I was about 10 finally got into the joint. I started riding and fell in with the delinquent crowd I hang around with now.