Midway

I've ordered a Specialized Sirrus Expert Carbon for my wife and would appreciate some input on the type or riding typical with a fitness bike. What type of rides do you take, how far, how fast?

The picture below is of my wife holding my new bike. I don't expect her to keep up with my serious rides but do want to find ways to schedule rides for the both of us. I ordered some clip less pedal adapters for my bike so I can join her for more casual rides but don't want to push her too hard. The bike is for her 60th birthday and she isn't in bad shape but also at 5' 4" and relatively petite, not the strongest rider in the pack.

What works for other mixed pair riding?

hokiefyd 

Would you be open to getting her an e-bike? That's what my dad did for mom -- she couldn't ride with him for more than 5 or 8 miles before wearing out. With an e-bike, she can go 50 miles. He liked the e-bike concept so much, he bought another couple, and that's all they have now (both factory e-bikes and e-bike conversions). They take them to places like Zion National Park and ride 20-30 miles with a picnic lunch. The e-bikes have been completely transformational in terms of how and where they can ride (especially mom).

SlinkyWizard

I ride solo most of the time, around 150km ( 93 miles ) a week , mostly to work, on flat bike paths, rarely on roads, I try and ride with the missus, but her limit is around 10km ( 6.2 miles ) at her leisurely pace of around 12 -15 km/h ( 8 mph ) She has a Specialized Roll Elite low entry .

We do ride together, but she often lacks the enthusiasm, it's either too hot , too cold, or she just can't be bothered.

The solution, we are going to get her an E bike, she rides with me to work, and uses battery power to get home, she has also happily agreed to ride with me under most conditions if I want to ride, and she is not busy, mostly for the benefits associated with riding.

the e bike, has a top speed of 25km/h battery assisted, so riding together will be challenging for me if she decides to max out her speed. We are nearing our 50"s, she won't use battery assisted unless necessary, but it's there in case of emergency ie more than a 10km ride .

katsup

When I had a fitness bike (Trek FX) I could ride 30-40 miles with the biggest fault being the lack of hand positions. My gf still rides a FX and we have done ~30 miles on bike paths, usually with a lunch break in the middle.

In my opinion, a fitness bike can go anywhere a road bike can, just slower as they usually have heavier wheels / tires and the rider isn't as aero dynamic.

ps249

With a fitness bike, I ride 80% rail trails and 20% around town. I typically ride 20 miles when I hit the rail trails. I pack my bike on the back of my car and travel as far as 40 miles to go riding. To me, its the perfect outdoor adventure.

DowneasTTer

My wife and I are in our late 60's and both have some health issues. We have been using flat bar road/fitness bikes for the past 10 years. Currently as you know we have Canyon Roadlites. We feel we can use these just as a full road bike. In fact we have been averaging between 8k and 12k miles/year. Our average ride is between 30 and 40 miles. But, have done a few 75 or so rides without any problems. They are ridden only on paved bike trails as we don't do roads anymore.... too many crazy drivers here in FL. We spend the 9 months a year here and 3 on the road with our motorhome going other places to ride. Oh btw Mrs. DowneasTTer is a faster rider than I am. Trust me the bike you bought your wife will not be limiting factor.... Just get out there and enjoy riding.. Good luck.

hokiefyd 

PM me for more info, or I'm sure there's lots of info in the e-bike section of BikeForums. You can get different classes of e-bikes with differing top speeds. You can get an e-bike that'll easily outrun most humans on flat ground (and pretty much ALL humans up hills).

My folks' e-bikes have 750W motors. It takes SIGNIFICANT strength to turn out 750 continuous W on pedals. :-)

Midway

We stopped at a Specialized dealer to pick up a skull cap, which they didn't have in a size that would fit, and causally looked at some Sirrus bikes. She got on a few and really liked them which is reassuring. We have a number of great paved riding trails in western Washington including a very nice flat one just a few miles from our house. I'm feeling better. Thanks everyone.

badger1

That is a very nice bike ('19 Sirrus Expert) you've ordered, and an excellent example of a true 'flat-bar road bike'. I wish the bike mfgs. would stop using unhelpful -- in this case almost meaningless -- marketing terms like 'fitness bike'.

Anyway, fwiw as far as I'm concerned one can do anything on a flat-bar road bike that one can do on a drop-bar one, except participate in races governed by UCI rules. Flat-bar road bikes are just road bikes designed for those (many) cyclists who either don't like or don't want drops for whatever reason. Pootling around, commutes, short intense rides, interval training, hill training, longer endurance rides, centuries, sportives, group rides (where flat bars are not frowned on by the group in question), doesn't matter. Excepting organized sportives, I've done and do all of these kinds of riding.

I'm 67, but still maintain a decent pace when I've a mind to -- my older Sirrus (pic below) certainly doesn't hold me back. I've just ordered a new Sirrus (X Comp) to replace it, mainly because for health-related reasons I want the Future Shock feature and a little more clearance for wider tires (versatility).

DorkDisk

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I treat riding with my wife as being with my wife. In my case, there are constant stops and then its all over after 30 minutes of pedaling. I'm building up her second bike now.

Delmarva

Typical riding for someone else should not have a bearing on what she would want to do. Only way to find out what she likes and is capable of is to work up on the distance. Try paved paths as well is light trails.

Best advice is to realize you will be riding at her speed and that you will undoubtedly be making several stops. She will get turned off biking quickly if she thinks you are being held back. So just relax, enjoy the time together and if you both ride with a pack make sure it's a fun casual group. Save the competition for speed and distance for your rides.

Jarrettsin

Does your wife like craft fairs or flea markets?
Find one's 10-15 miles away, ride there, enjoy the event, ride back!
You add in a lunch stop, and make it a day.
Bring back pack in case you find goodies to buy!

Midway

Jarrettsin, I found something similar that we both enjoy, a wine tasting ride through Cascade Bicycle Club. I spilled the beans on the bike, wanted to be sure she was excited about it and she is. Now she is looking forward to the Woodinville Wine Ride. 21 miles with a number of stops and a party at the end. We can do our own after we learn some of the routes. We belong to way too many wine clubs and Woodinville has hundreds more.

I'm sure she will find a group on her own and we will have plenty of family opportunities outside of my individual training and goals.

https://cascade.org/node/21146

Jarrettsin

Yeah i signed up for a food fondo. 35 mile ride with a few farm stop where they give you taste of farm to table cooking.
The event could be anything !
The idea is it takes the race or training mentality away and lets you build an enjoyment of just riding.