My summer alternative to skiing

So I guess sub-consciously I signed off from skiing the day I came back from my last trip, mid March, although it goes without saying until the resorts in Europe fully close I think I still have some kind of desire to keep looking at whats going on!

Anyway, as part of my more recent fitness campaign which has been going on around 3 years now, I took up Spinning in February, really enjoyed it, and have felt fitter through doing it for 3 months. Needless to say, a lot of people who spin also cycle, and I have had my interest aroused, especially by a long standing friend who has cycled quite seriously for the past 11 years. He has expensive equipment and enters closed roads events and sportives etc. Anyway, he has persuaded me to buy a road bike and take it up if I like it.

I bought the bike 2 weeks ago, and have since done three 25 mile rides (1 with my friend, 2 solo) and a 35 mile ride on Tuesday solo. Thoroughly enjoyed it, it feels great, and at this time of year with reasonable weather its enjoyable just being outside. Anyway, I believe I have now caught another bug in addition to the skiing, as I have ordered pedals, cycling shoes, and some decent clothing as well (in addition to the bargains Aldi were selling recently to get me started with the basics such as shorts, bibs, socks and a couple of tops).

I can see a connection with my love for skiing - being outdoors, having a sense of freedom, there being a technical aspect to the sport in terms of the equipment, and obviously keeping in decent shape.

I only ever had a cheap mountain bike before, and really didn't use it enough, so now I intend to give road biking a real go, and there are already some events I am being asked to enter, and lots of people locally are inviting me along for rides and group sportive. Its been a real eye opener.

Anyone else into this cycling lark???

Tony_H wrote:Anyone else into this cycling lark???

Ha! Just stepped in from loading bikes into the car for my good lady and mini-Admin, as it happens. Hoping to do more cycling now he's a bit bigger but prefer to get away from the roads myself.

I daren't look at road bikes as I know what some of my mates have spent on them in recent years... :shock:

They're all bloody fit now though, so definitely a good move on your part. A word of warning... triathlons will be next!

Windsurfing's my summer distraction, with the frustrating parallel to skiing in that it's dependent on the vagaries of the weather. :roll:

Nice one, Dave.
I live in flat lands, ish, so Mountain Biking is kind of, well, not really happening! I do get the MTB out though and ride round Rutland Water or on some of the trails in Ferry Meadows over this way sometimes.

Triathlons - not a chance. I used to swim a lot, don't really enjoy it nowadays, and I am absolutely NOT running anywhere with my broken knees, so you can forget all that you just said there!!!!

i'm not keen on road biking due to the number of idiot drivers out there. However, I do try to get out on my mountain bike at least once a week. We can cycle directly from our house and have 3 or 4 circular routes from 10 to 25 miles. It's surprisingly hilly for Lincolnshire around here so it's always a good lung buster! I bought myself a lightweight hardtail a few years ago (Kona Kula Deluxe) along with all the gear. It's a pretty cheap pastime once you've got the kit and I think keeps me reasonably fit. More of an upper body workout than people might think especially when bouncing down a downhill section trying not to wipe out! i tried proper downhill biking in Tignes 2 years ago. Scared me to death. Biking blue run equivalent to a skiing black run. Biking black run equivalent to skiing off a cliff!

BB - as a driver I also think there are a lot of idiot cyclists out there!
But, my husband does a lot of cycling and he would share your sentiment. They've had a lot of situations with drivers who've given them abuse out of the window as they cowardly hide behind the glass gesturing. One bloke did get out, but backed down when confronted by 10 blokes, most over 6 foot!
He says they rarely encounter issues in France though and they've done thousands of miles out there.
I just wish cyclists would acknowledge drivers who have patiently driven behind them at 20 miles an hours until they can get past.
At least horse riders (who have a bad name) do their best to get out of the way asap and I rarely have a horse rider not raise their hand to say thanks.

With ref to skiing - I reckon cycling is a brilliant way to strengthen legs. I wished I had done it this year!

I mountain bike all year long and find that it's the closest feeling I can get skiing.
Apart from the obvious fitness benefits from cycling up a mountain it really is the nest best thing to skiing.
A bit like skiing, every run is different, some are harder and more dangerous than others, the sense of achievement at getting it right is brilliant and it's so much more interesting than road cycling. Believe it or not, it's a lot safer too!
Every fall on a road bike hurts no mater the speed. On a mountain bike the speeds are usually lower and more often than not you just land on mud or a bush.
If you don't have any mountains nearby just find a forest and there will always be suitable trails.

One big benefit I have noticed in the last four or five years is that my core strength and balance has improved which helps me stay upright in the skis too.

Nice to hear others sharing the experience, albeit mountain biking which is quite a different ting altogether.

Have to agree with both sides of the coin re idiot drivers. I have always been careful with cyclists, don't pass unless the other way is clear, but do across the odd commuter or recreational cyclist who thinks he is the law of the road! Simple rule - give them room and only pass when its clear to do so. Having said that, cyclists need to think hard about riding on busy main roads-near me its quite rural with lots of country lanes and one track roads so hardly ever any traffic.

I have developed much better core strength and leg power in the 4 months I have been spinning, so hope to feel the benefit next time I ski.

Ive been using GPS to track distances, speeds, etc and surprised myself . I only bought the bike 3 weeks ago but already have done 2 x 22 milers, a 25 miler, a 31 miler and this weekend a 41 miler, so gradually building up stamina and endurance. Now to work on same routes and increasing speeds!

Averaging around 16.4mph over each run which I am told is good as a beginner. Top speed so far 36.5mph, but that was downhill!

Still got my old mountain bike in the ski shack in the back garden which will get used when I fancy a blast around Rutland Water sometime in the summer. Might be easier now with padded shorts and the right gear, and a lot more knowledge!!!!

Have a good summer, people.

Good stuff, Tony. 16.4mph on a 2-3 hour run cycling on your own is a good speed if you are just starting out. You will learn to love:
(i) padded shorts for shorter rides;
(ii) bib shorts - if you haven't got any, get a pair - they look ridiculous, but they are sooo comfortable compared to normal shorts, especially on a long ride;
(iii) cycling in France if you ever get the chance - the drivers are wonderful to cyclists;
(iv) clip-in pedals - far better than normal pedals or those daft cage things;
(v) getting on the drops when going down a hill (gives you far more control over the bike, but takes some getting used to);
(vi) sodding off out the house for 5 hours and just cycling wherever you fancy
(vii) eating shed loads of food because you have just burnt off 2500 calories on your ride.

You will learn not to love:
(i) crappy cyclists who give cyclists a bad name;
(ii) rubbish drivers (there are not many of them and some just don't know better, but there are a few idiots);
(iii) potholes (he says taking a wheel to the fixers tomorrow)
(iv) the pack of dogs that the travellers let out of their camp last week - ta v much.

Cycle safely and enjoy.