This page is going to be about my adventures as an over-the-hill cyclist. After 40+ years of sitting on my butt, I decided this year (2009) that I was going to get some exercise. A night in Holy Cross Hospital with a heart monitor attached (it was NOT the big one) did not hurt. The question was HOW?

I had several options available to me:

  1. I could go to a gym
  2. I could take up jogging
  3. I could take up walking
  4. I could take up roller-blading
  5. I could take up biking

So what to do. There were so many choices. So I evaluated them, and eliminated all but one them:

  1. I could go to a gym, but I did that in High School and hated it then (sorry Mr. Lassiter).
  2. I could take up jogging, but I have never been able to run, even when I HAD or WANTED to.
  3. I could take up roller-blading - yeah, right!?!
  4. I could take up walking - but while I enjoy walking, I am at the point in my life where most of the things I have to move while walking hurt when I move them.
  5. I could take up biking - this, as it turned out, was a most viable option.

So why cycling?

In 2008, while researching the Virginia Creeper Trail for an up coming attempt at a book, I had the opportunity to ride a bike for the first time in 40 years - and I enjoyed it. So after much thought and consultation with friends who ride, I made the decision to buy a bike.

After shopping around for a while, I opted to buy a Schwinn Searcher hybrid.

A hybrid is a cross between a road bike (what we used to call an "English Racer" in the old days (only with more gears), and a mountain bike (knobby tires and a knobby head to match).

And - well it WAS made in America for decades. Now like everything else, it is made in China. But, it has been a good bike so far.

My Bike

So what has been the result? I started to write these pages in April, 2009. I started off struggling to ride 5 miles, but now I am able to do 20-30 miles with no problem. So far my longest ride is 39.6 miles! As of July 21, 2013, I have ridden over 4,000 miles!

I have come to enjoy riding so much that over time I will add information to my Trails page, to show others some of my favorite trails and events.

If you want more information, e-mail the author at:

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