Bmach

Congrats and welcome

33yearslate

Yea, this is kinda how I taught myself. I lowered the seat all the way, sat on it, and used my legs on the ground to scoot myself forward rather than pedals for the first hour. Then kept attempting to have that same balance with the pedals until I got it. I think it took about 3 hours altogether... but it was another few days before I got comfortable.

Today, I took the bike out and left the cul de sac! Got lost in some side streets (in a good way) and then found a hill. Biked all the way up on a lower gear and then zoomed down the other side. It was awesome. Hills are fun. And I felt confidant taking turns even at higher speeds.

It's a great feeling.

amishboy51

Thank you for the explanation. I’ve seen my grandson, in pix, posing on a pedal-less bike, and wondered about the learning process.

amishboy51

Congrats on learning to ride; clearly, contrary to your screen name, it’s never too late, if you’re determined to learn!

JanMM

You are now prepared, when the opportunity arises, to say "It's just like riding a bike."

308jerry

Awesome story. Thanks for sharing.

rollagain

Congrats, and thanks for sharing this. Good choice of bikes, too; you've got the gears for those hills. Now you have a new sport you can enjoy for the rest of your life.

Clyde1820

Congrats on the newfound skill, and freedom.

Cycling can be a lot of fun. Frees you from the automobile, for one. Can be quite healthful. Can definitely be relaxing (meditative, almost), above and beyond the physical exertion. And it's one thing you can do with others that doesn't require a huge investment (other than the bike itself).

As you point out, there's a lot going on with cycling. Balance, the terrain, handling impediments (ie, curbs, avoiding seams and potholes). Beware when you find dogs approaching rapidly, as it can be a bit tricky to avoid getting them caught between the wheel and frame since they're so speedy. If looking for more skill-building on a bike, consider heading up onto some hard-packed dirt trails. Grip and balance become much more tricky, and you learn all sorts of subtleties with navigating around.

If you haven't thought about it, already, consider how to effectively secure the bike's parts if you decide to lock it up somewhere while you head into a shop or whatever. (Those quick-release devices are convenient, but they also make it simple for someone to swipe your seatpost/saddle, or the wheels. Caution.

Anyway ...

Enjoy the rides, wherever you go.

If in a place with a local cycling club, might be worth checking them out. It's amazing how many nice folks one can meet in a group setting like that. (Not everyone's a "speed racer" type in full kit; many are likely just out for an afternoon modest ride with company.)

alo

I was hanging out with another traveller I met in S E Asia. Something came up about hiring a motorbike. He said, he cant ride a motorbike. I asked why. He said, when he was young, he never learnt to ride a bicycle. Maybe he should follow the OP, and learn to ride a bicycle.

Lehill66

That’s awesome, congrats!

Thomas15

My oldest sister taught me how to ride a bike in just a few hours one afternoon. I remember really wanting to ride a bike. I think I was 6 but no older than 7. We had a old JC Higgins from Sears that we all used to ride, it had small 20" wheels on a girls frame. My parents were against kids using training wheels and I remember a kid in my neighborhood that would not ride once the wheels were off. I have 3 sisters and two brothers, all of us rode that bike and then received new bikes at Christmas. Of my 3 sisters, even the oldest that taught me how to ride was never a lover of bikes, another would ride once in a while for social reasons and one of my sisters never learned how to ride at all although she was given a new bike for Christmas one year.

.............................

I have some hills on my street and in my township that if you were to try them you would not say it was "fun". A challenge maybe but in no way fun.

N00b_Cyclist

As others have said, congratulations! Really awesome to read your story. Here's to many years of fun and learning even more new things!

F308

What a great post!!
It made me remember the first time I was able to ride my "2-wheeler", some 60 years ago. The feeling of joy hasn't left me.

phughes

Awesome! Great to hear and congratulations. Thanks for posting this, and enjoy your bike!

33yearslate

Thanks again everyone! I just wanted to provide people in this thread with an update - not a day has gone by so far that I haven't been on the bike for at least 45 minutes. During the week, I ride 20 minutes in the morning before work, 20 minutes at lunch time, then, when possible, another 20-60 minutes after work with my significant other who just picked up her own Trek FX1 (hers came with rim brakes at a cheaper price).

Since getting the bike, my productivity while working remotely has increased dramatically. I think it's having a very positive impact on my mental health. I can feel my mind is somehow more focused after a quick 20 minute ride and I am procrastinating a lot less.

Soon, I want to plot out a nice route nearby that I can ride for more of a real workout.

Clyde1820

Funny how that all works, isn't it? Many have similar experiences. Myself included.

Years ago, I was a competitive distance runner and was completely different throughout the day if I couldn't get my hard, cardio-intensive morning workouts. But with a good hard bike ride and/or a solidly-challenging ~8-12mi run, I was "golden" to well beyond mid-day.

As you get stronger, which will take awhile of course, it'll be fun to see how much greater distances and challenges you end up doing, almost without even trying. Assuming you remain determined to carve out a good bit of time each day for you, you can begin squeezing as much as you can out of the time. Tougher rides get easier ... "bad" hills get easier to climb ... all those little skills you're learning now will begin to pay off as you get into more situations (different roads, different visibility, different weather conditions [ie, wind], and so on). Plus, as you suggest, it can be good for the mind and spirit as well. It's nicely one of the easy things to share with companions.

Enjoy the rides!