Houston_Biker

I started road cycling on January 29th, 2006. My original goal was to get in shape, ride with friends and try a new sport. I bought a new road bike, a 2005 Fuji Team SL. I had never ridden in clipless pedals and probably had never ridden over 10 miles during any one ride. I was over 230 lbs and very out of shape

My first ride was a local Houston charity ride called the Frost 50, a 30, 45 or 55 miles ride. Needless to say, I finished the 55 mile ride but it was very tough. I still remember most people passing me along the way, and thinking I would never finish.

Since then, it has been an amazing "ride". I did about 10 charity rides leading up the to Houston to Austin BP MS 150. I did the MS 150 and have also other "centuries", the Houston Space Race and the Shiner BASH, a South Texas century ride from Houston to Shiner Texas, home of Shiner BOCK beer.

I have lost 35 lbs during this time. I am now riding consistently at or above 22 MPH (on flat terrain) during my weekly 50+ mile rides. I have also signed up for a triathlon in early July.

With this said, I though I would list the top 10 things I love about road cycling:

1. The endorphin "rush" following a long, challenging ride -- much better than taking drugs!
2. The great people you meet on rides (club, charity, etc.).
3. An occasional trip to Austin, TX to challenge myself on the hills and to remind me that I am not really THAT good!
4. The pounds just melt off...better than running or any other sport.
5. Spending most of my free, disposable income on bikes and biking gear.
6. Effort = Performance. It's the one sport where, what you put in is what you get out.
7. Bike Forum
8. Cyclism Sundays on Outdoor Life Network
9. Waking up a 5:00am on weekends for the long ride (yawn...)
10. My new shaved legs!

What does cycling do for YOU?

msheron

Cycling has lost 30 lbs. on my body and I get to wear tight spandex with a padded front section that makes me feel happy!

I am in better shape for cycling and running is no longer an option unless a big dog is chasing me or someone with a superior weapon when I have none.

Plus, I get to see countryside I would never had noticed riding in a car.

maximum01

For me, cycling makes me feel like I'm not wasting away my life indoors or in front of a computer screen at work. Although I do other sports, no other activity puts me in touch with the outdoors as much as cycling does.

KevinF

Cycling allows me to keep what little sanity I still have. Cycling is relaxing to me. Just you, the bike, the road (preferabbly an uphill one). No offense to the MTB'ers on the forum, but MTB's are too complicated with all their suspension. A road bike is pure simplicity. They are relaxing to look at, even more relaxing to ride.

pedex

puts food on my table, clothes on my back, keeps a roof over my head, and keeps me a lean mean biking machine

zimbo

I do it to get laid.

--Steve

gordyt

I went from 20% body fat to 11% body fat in 6 weeks with a combination of weight training, sensible eating, and LOTS of time on my road bicycle!

--gordy

derath

I haven't lost any weight yet, but I just love riding. great escape.

And I will never shave my legs!!!!


-D

khuon

These are the things I've taken advantage of most from cycling.

• Improved mental health. Riding a bike is therapuetic for me.
• Improved physical health. I'm not a health nut but I find that I feel better when I'm keeping up my physical health. Riding a bike helps keep me in shape and allows me to eat all sorts of "unhealthy" stuff... such as beer, pizza and ice cream (although not at the same time).
• I like mechanical things and technology. The bicycle represents the first vehicle of the industrial age. And even today, it marries high-tech with old-world and the power of the human body.
• I like seeing new things, visiting new places, meeting new people... I like to travel both in the physical and experiential sense. The world doesn't always come to you. Many times you have to go to it. Sitting in front of the TV watching the Travel Channel just doesn't do it for me. While I like car roadtrips, there are a lot of things that you miss while sitting in a car confined to only roads cars are allowed on. Flying is great but at altitude a lot of details can be missed. Walking and hiking places too great a time limit vs distance. You can go three times as far on a bike with one-half the effort. A bicycle can convert human energy into mechanical energy with an efficiency of anywhere between 95% to 98%.
• I consider myself an adventure cyclist. It's plain fun. You can make up all sorts of adventures while riding a bike.

MetalClydesdale

Cycling saved my life, quite literally. At the ripe old age of 19 I was a 300 pound pack-a-day smoker, and a borderline alcoholic who couldn't climb a flight of stairs without a break. My first 30-mile ride nearly did me in, I was hooked.I quit smoking, cut back on my drinking and started eating from all four food-groups.

Since then I've lost 100 pounds and found a real enjoyment in the physical challenges of trying to ride 100+ miles in a day over hilly terrain. It keeps me sane, it helps me think, it often cures my insomnia for brief periods of time and it makes my girlfriend more amorous than she might otherwise be.

55/Rad

Provides an outlet for my obsessive and compulsive personality.

HWS

Gets me out of the house and keeps me out of bars.

Plus, it's a lot of fun and I'm in better shape than I was 20 years ago.

cyclezealot

My last ride. Not just the joy of riding, but the scenery was incredible. Green hills with a sea in the distance. Truly worthy of many a photo stop. Plus , riding with friends you appreciate. And meeting those on tour, telling of their several months in pilgramage to Jerusaleum and their highlights in route.
Biking really expands your horizons. Plus, the physical accomplishment of looking at a Google map and realizing , i climbed all of that.

Ryleeryno

Relieves tension from working behind the computer for 8 hours.

Lost 20lbs so far on it.

Became my new, obsessive hobby.

Bike Forums - GREAT SITE, GREAT HELP, GOOD PEOPLE! If it wasn't for everyone's help here I'd still be a couch potato.

Katrogen

I'm associated with a good group of people, I've memorized the whole gridwork of Boise's roadways, I have a reliable activity I can enjoy with myself/others plus the classic being outdoors and staying active.

Boogs

1) gets me outside, so I can enjoy the nicer parts of Philly/burbs

2) keeps me in shape, feeling good, and looking much better than otherwise

3) gives me an excuse to shave body hair off

4) it's a major form of transportation around the city for me


David

SemperFi

It relieves the stress of day to day life while at the same time you are doing something positive for yourself...and by extension for your family as well.

I'm hooked!

spunky

Get's the ladies checking out my ripped, sexy, shaved legs.
Last night I had a car full of high school/college girls....,
I can't tell the difference anymore at my age.....,
pull up next to me at a light and start giggling while sneaking glances at me.
One of them rolled down the window and asked me how I was doing once I acknowledged her.
I said great and started to chuckle to myself and they started to giggle again.
Then again, maybe they were just laughing at what a Gomer I looked like.
Yeah....that must be it.
Man it's slow today.
Has it quit raining yet?

gtrspeed

The look on coworkers' faces when I tell them I ride a bike to work, the feeling of being on the open road and not stuck in a car, staying in shape and enjoying it!

Serpico

gives me energy, makes me happy, sleep better

Mariner Fan

morning rides give me peace. Great exercise and it isn't boring.

racingpain

1. It gets me outdoors
2. It allows me to build the bicycle up better
3. allows me to race
4. Allows me to vent my anger in life
5. keeps me more healthy both physically and mentally.

RacingPain

here and there

It gives me a huge amount of stress relief

It has helped make me a more confident person, heck...you have to have confidence in yourself and trust your abilities if you are going to riding amongst cars and not be afraid to take your place in traffic.

It has given me a way to enjoy the outdoors in ways I otherwise would not be able to. There are gorgeous views of the bay, the ocean that I would rarely see if it weren't for cycling. Now I see these beautiful sites many times a week.

It gives me a great way to exercise and stay in shape.

(Y(L|S+

For me it's all about escape and reflection. The health/fitness aspect is a nice byproduct but I absolutely love losing myself in my rides. The sounds eminating from your own little world that you created yourself seems to be amplified like the wind rushing by your ears, the clicking and whirring of the drivetrain and the hum of the tires on the pavement.

It lulls me to a place where I can think about what I've done and where I'm going in life. I think of things I don't understand though the answers are often irrelevant. I reflect on what matters most in my life. I don't ride to seek clarity but I do see things more clearly afterwards. It's almost meditative in nature. Stress just melts away. It's Zen-like.

LA_Rider

+1

I gotta go with that too (as I clean my bike for the fourth time this week).