Bicycle Fun Fact
Thursday, April 8th, 2010The cost of operating a bicycle is only 2.5% of the cost of operating a car
Archive for the ‘General Cycling’ Category
Most Bicycle friendly State
Thursday, May 14th, 2009The League of American Bicyclists just named Maine the the 3rd most biccyle friendly state in Amercia. Summer is a great time to see why, a Maine Bicycle Tour is the perfect way to see the best of Maine. For for information or to see how your state ranked visit the league website at http://www.bikeleague.org.
TREK Travel’s Idea of a bargin
Wednesday, March 25th, 2009Into my inbox today came an exciting offer from TREK travel a 3 day/ 2 night wine country weekend for the bargin price of $1595.00 pp. I do not see the bargain. Summer Feet Cycling offers 3 day/2 night trips on the coast of Maine for $725.00 pp ($625.00 pp when booked by 4/30/2009) and POMG Bike Tours of Vermont offers 3 day/ 2 night trips for $465. 00 to $525.00 granted you will not get to ride the latest and greatest TREK bikes but think about it this way. With the money you save you can either invite an friend, take a week-long trip with a company like Summer Feet or you have almost saved enough to upgrade to a full dura ace group.
Bicycle buying advice for a path rider
Tuesday, March 24th, 2009Question
i am a female 5ft 4, 150 lbs 57 yrs old and have riden bikes since i was five. we have lots of bike paths, scenic routes in our neighbourhood. terrain mostly flat with slight inclines.
my husband and i love to spend an afternoon enjoying the local sights on our bikes and now that i am completely recovered from total knee surgery and can still comfortably ride, i am interested in treating myself to a new bike.
my current one is a typical local dept store bike that has served me well for years but i would love to ride more with my upper torso in a more UPRIGHT position rather than leaning over towards the straight handle bars. we do travel to other communities in our car with a bike rack so weight has to be considered. picking it up and off the rack which is on the hatchback of the car.
Answer
What you are looking for is called a comfort bike. They are good path bikes with upright riding positions. Weight will probably directly correlate to price. Three bikes that might fit your needs are;
TREK Pure
Marin Redwod
Giant Cypress
My best advice is find a good bike shop. If you can go in a little off hours weekends are the busiest. Mid week day time is the best shops are usually a little slower and you have better chance of getting the owner rather than some 20 year old cycling rat. Tell them how you ride and that you are looking for a good quality comfort bike with an upright riding position, given your height a WSD (woman specific design) makes sense. My guess is that you are looking at between $550 to $700 for a good quality comfort bike. If you are planning on riding the bike for the next ten to 20 years and getting on and off the bike is starting to be an issue consider a step through bike with a lower top tube.
So in summary visit a couple of shops and say you want a:
Comfort bike, with an upright ridding position preferably a Woman Specific Design frame and see where that gets you. A good shop should be able to steer you to the right bike based on that information. Each shop will carry different brands. If you get a couple options at one shop and they seem focused on helping you find a bike that fits your needs try them all. If you need to go to multiple shops to try different bikes do that, each manufacturer will be a little different. Also remember when buying a bicycle you get what you pay for. Three comfort bikes in the same price range will be very similar in regards to weight and components (the parts of the bike gears, brakes, etc) and a bicycle that is much cheaper is exactly that cheaper.
Try this approach out and let me know how you make out
Spring Fever Specials from Summer Feet Cycling
Sunday, March 22nd, 2009
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Videos from the National Bike Summit
Wednesday, March 18th, 2009Someone was kind enough to send videos from the Summit. Ray LaHood is inspirational as he talks about transforming America’s view of transportation and as always The God Father of Cycling Rep. Earl Blumenauer makes me want to jump on my bike.
Here are videos of the morning speakers at the National Bike Summit on Wednesday, March 11.
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-5323865082882842828
US Representative Earl Blumenauer (OR-3rd)
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-5527072340327644893
US Representative Daniel Lipinski (IL-3rd)
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-2784701150857668849
US Representative Doris Matsui (CA-5th)
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=5225171971519783674
National Bike Summit
Tuesday, March 17th, 2009I just returned from the National Bike Summit in Washington DC. The summit is the annual gathering of bicycle advocates from across the country. The 1stday was dedicated to speeches and seminars. We were fortunate to hear from the new Secretary of Transportation Ray La Hood who offered a very optimistic speech about the Obama administration’s embracing a more bicycle friendly transportation policy. Day 2 was the dedicated advocacy day where by state we all descended on Capitol Hill to lobby our elected officials to support bicycling friendly initiatives. We met with aides of all 4 members of Maine’s delegation, both Senators Olympia Snow and Susan Collins, as well Representative Chellie Pingree. Despite some long held cynicisms about the effectiveness of the government it is quite refreshing and uplifting to realize that our elected officials are accesible and willing to listen to concerns of constituents.
Bicycling is Life Quote
Wednesday, December 24th, 2008“Consider a man rding a bicycle. Whoever he is, we can say three things about him. We know he got on the bicycle and started to move. we know that is at any point between the beginning and the end of his journey he stops moving and does not get off the biccyle he will fall off. That is a metaphor for the journey through life of any living thing, and I think of any society of living things” Willaim Golding
Cycling Florida
Sunday, November 30th, 2008Thanksgiving provided an opportunity for some November cycling, for this Mainiac. A visit to my girlfriends parents in Vero Baech created some pleasant cycling. Florida proved much flater than I had ever imagined but it was easy to get in vacation mode on or multi-speed cruisers. Our rental bikes left something to be desired with gears in definite need of adjustment, I am always amazed at how many companies in the bike rental business neglect there equipment. I imagine we will be back in Florida and would love to dsicover some riding opportunities in Vero Beach
Now is the time to book a tour
Saturday, November 22nd, 2008Most bicycle tour companies offer great delas to gather early season bookings. Summer Feet Cycling www.summerfeet.net offers $200.00 pp off week-long trips and $100.00 off 3 day trips booked before 12/31/2008. many other companies are also offering deals. Now is the time for the budget minded cyclist to book for 2009