Biking, anyone?

[NYCGirl]

Just wondering if there is anyone else on here who is into biking? I bought my first "real" bike (as in sized for adults without the pink streamers on the handle bars) two years ago. Since then I've gotten into doing long distance touring events (50-100 miles). I absolutely love it. I'm doing my first multi-day event for charity in August (7 days, 560 miles), hence the need to really get my drinking under control because it's seriously interfering with my training.

Just wondering if anyone else bikes out there? Road cycling, mountain biking, riding around the block with the kids?

[Kitty]

Hi NYC girl,

I love cycling and am hoping to do more now I have moved to Wales where there are some terrific trails.

I cycle quite often just for fun (been out to the shops today) and will probably be cycling to my new job as there is no direct bus route.

Oh and I did the London Bikeathon a couple of years ago in aid of Leukemia, going from Chelsea to Richmond and back again. Only 26 miles, nothing to compared to your distances but great fun!!

Good luck for your event in August.

Kitty

[Saint Jude]

Sometimes I do a bike shuttle back to my truck from the kayak, along the river. It's kind of a nice way to get a well rounded work-out after a nice paddle..sitting on my butt!
We live in the perfect place for it. I can take the kayak out here @ the house after putting in upstream & ride the bike back up to get the truck. Big plus, there's not much traffic up here on this side of the river...

[Determinator]

love to mountain bike round the block and on the occasional trail...nothing serious but would like to get more serious with it. I'm getting DX a new bike next week even.

[bassgirl]

Go, you! 560 miles is some serious distance. The best thing you can possibly do for yourself is to splurge on a professional bike fit. Change your crank length if you need to - many women do.

Don't force yourself to push big gears, especially when you're climbing hills. Take it easy. Pushing big gears at low cadences won't make you faster and it won't make you stronger.
You'll just get injured.

And remember that most of the people who participate in charity rides are rank novices. They're so enthused that they'll push themselves to injury, and they don't have the experience to know when to back off and rest for a few days. Don't try to compete against the hard-chargers - they're the ones who are going to be hanging out at the orthopedist's office on race day because they tried to go too far, too fast. At this point in the game, you should be concerned with building up your base miles, troubleshooting your bike, and paying close attention to form.

I love the forums at teamestrogen.com. They're a great, supportive group of women from all levels of the sport. It's such a great resource that I don't feel guilty for spending way too much money on bikey clothes.