rob214

while i've ridden bikes all my life i'm new to the road cycling sport / hobby. what is has done for me in this short time is to bring my brother an i closer, we were never really close at all but now that he got me into road cycling we have been hanging out and riding together, today we just hung out and went to some local shops and just talked about everything in general. the weather here is real bad so that's about all we could do. but it was a really nice day and i'm looking forward to the next time we can ride.
so apart from the heath fitness stuff what has it done for you?
rob

10 Wheels

Met some very neat people. Paid to tour across The USA when I was 67 y/o

https://www.bikeforums.net/hosted-tra...e-ends-la.html

Not so much fun crashing in Jan 2012 w brain, eye damage and surgery's to correct both areas.

canklecat

Gets me out of the house. I've met some great folks in local casual group rides. That's good for my overall sense of well being. I'm around mostly older sick folks all the time (well, olderer and sickerer than myself), so it's good to get another perspective. And not everything revolves around cycling. In some cases it's just a good way to meet folks and discover other common interests.

texaspandj

Don't discount the "health fitness stuff". I've lost 20 pounds after a weight gain of 30 pounds over three years ago. I'm still hoping to lose 10 more pounds by years end. Now I feel better and look better. I may not live longer but I'm definitely living better, which in turn allows me to enjoy my family so much more.
Beyond health and fitness? (not much) But to me that's everything.

up on two

I ride Mtb's and that has opened up a whole new world for me, introduced me to a new set of close friends and keeps me active and in shape.

Retro Grouch 

Probably a longer story than you want to hear but bicycling has pulled our whole family together and made our whole life simply wonderful.

B. Carfree

In college, a small group of friends hung out and rode together. My future wife joined us. We've been riding together for thirty-three years now.

SammyJ 

I have a “demon” of Depression hounding and oppressing me. I can out run him on my Bicycle; takes about 45 minutes.

Then it take 2 days or so for him to catch up.

The more I ride, the better I do!

DaveQ24

The benefits are too many to name, really. My primary goal is fitness. There are some pretty obese people in my family, and it's rather tragic that they can't seem to help themselves.

It also has cost a small fortune ... But so worth it.

OldsCOOL

Apart from health and fitness I have the joy of summer like in the days of my teens when owning my first 10-speed (Motobecane Mirage). The freedom of riding town to town and seeing new sights was such a thrill. The only real difference is being able to ride on bikes I only dreamed of owning back then. I still get a bit loopy, giddy riding the '77 Colnago Super.

Oh and I still live in the area I grew up in.

Jlkonn

Our Golden Retriever Sadie passed away 2 months ago. The sadness I felt was overwhelming. 17 days ago I bought a bike and have ridden the O&E towpaths everyday. Now up to 15 miles a day. The sadness is still with me but the bike has allowed me to deal with it.
I owe this bike so much.
JLK

rydabent

I had to ride my bikes to school when I was young. Then work and getting married pretty much got in the way for a few years. However when my sons got old enough to ride, I got back into cycling and have been doing so ever since. I am now nearly 78 and ride about 30 miles every other day. I just went to my 60th HS class reunion. There was no doubt that I was in far better shape than anyone there. I consider my bent and trike to be my fountain of youth machines. Right now there seems to be no reason that I should not be riding well into my 80s.

bruce19

After a lifetime of being a football and baseball player through college, it allows me to be an athlete again. It has also caused me to learn more about my body including diet and activity and how those things contribute to my life.

DaveQ24

That is really great. I see a lot of the horrible side of aging in my job, I often have to go to nursing homes and hospitals. Nursing homes are a horrible fate. You should be commended for your achievement and your attitude.

If I make it to a good age and am still riding, I honestly would choose to end up going out on my bike in an accident than languish in miserable conditions suffering. Maybe that is over the top, but it's honest.

rydabent

I fully subscribe to the saying-------------if you set you rust. It happened to my father.

Biker395 

Wow. A lot really. On the bike:

1. I've seen the world. You know how it is. In a car, you zoom by everything in your environmentally controlled shell, isolated from the world around you. On a bike, you're immersed in the world while you're going through it. You smell the world, you feel the wind, the temperature. If it's a place you go often, you get to know it intimately. If it's a place you go to but once, you remember all kinds of details about it you'd never remember if you were in a car. By now, I've ridden enough miles to make it to the moon, and my life has been enriched for every one of them.

2. I live in the South Bay of Los Angeles. Traffic ... how do I say it ... it SUCKS. And it's getting suckier every year. I look out my office window and see all the resigned frustration, hear all the accidents and near accidents, and I'm glad I have nothing to do with them. Instead, I ride the 17 miles from my home to the office on a dedicated bike path on the beach. I've seen amazing sunrises and sunsets. I've smelled coffee and bacon rolling by restaurants about to open. I've chatted with the homeless. I've made new friends. And I've even talked my daughter into it (her work commute is right on the way of mine), so I get father-daughter time.

3. Probably most of all, I've made a lot of friends. A life well lived is a life of adventures. On those adventures, you meet others, similarly inclined. And you strike up some amazing friendships. We ride together, we chat about our fears, challenges and triumphs. We help each other out. These aren't just acquaintances ... they are people you've suffered with, and as everyone knows, the best friendships are forged in fire. One of the greatest pleasures is watching others get assimilated into the fellowship.

So anyway ... the answer for me is "a lot." I guess that's because I didn't start cycling for my health. lol

miya310

Cycling makes me forget my age. Talking with friends my age, the talk is all about getting old and how things used to be. Get on a bike and you'll feel young again.

rydabent

You are most certainly right about friends our age. The talk is pretty much centered around aches and pains, drugs, doctors, operations, and what they cant do anymore. I try to steer the conversation back to things to do, my cycling etc. But soon the conversation goes back to old age ills.

NYMXer

Good thread. For me, cycling has taken me from borderline high blood pressure and my Dr suggesting medication (for the rest of my life) to 118/72 for almost a year now. So, thankfully, there is no more talk about medication to treat hypertension. Of course, getting a divorce could have something to do with that too, lol

PaulH

A few years ago, there was a big ice storm. Traffic was immobilized and thousands of people were trapped in their cars overnight. I rode happily home from work on my studded tires.

indyfabz

Given me awesome looking legs.

fietsbob

Not Diabetic type 2 like My father was.

I toured Europe several times on my Bicycle and met people there & saw Stuff.

NewATBikeComute

Improved my marriage. Because I come home in a better attitude, my wife is happier. Because she is happier, we are happier.


It doesn't take much (for me). Maybe one day I will do something dramatic, but for today even 5-10 miles is showing big benefits.

osco53

And I have It, feels like It anyways

Dropped almost 30 pounds, I am at my perfect weight now.
No medications,,was on two and being told I needed a third,, I am DRUG FREE !

Got a flat stomach,
I sleep like a baby,
Other things work as they did 27 years ago,,,,nuff said ~
I can pedal my **s off and really love to get in the hurt locker on my mtb and ride like a crazy teenager.

Am adding a gravel grinder to my stable. N+1 must end at 4...

Slowhead

My condolences, losing a pet is a tough time.


What has cycling done for me ? I have more patience now that I started cycling regularly again.