Perfect Virgo
Guru
After 130 posts (mostly in “The Chain”) it’s really time to introduce myself! While hanging out with the music aficianados I have been reading and picking up tips for a couple of months to help plot my return to cycling. But that’s not the only return I have been planning… I emigrated to Canada in 2006 and have lived on Prince Edward Island off the east coast for two years. A change in my personal life now beckons me back to my roots in Hampshire. While I will miss the grandeur of Canada, the refreshing weather, not to mention everything I am leaving behind, I am looking forward to being reunited with my two grown-up sons and their wives. I have just handed my 19 crates of possessions into the care of a shipping company so will be living out of two suitcases for a couple of months.
Although there are a couple of hot summer months it seems mostly winter here! Minus 20C often becomes minus 35C when the windchill is factored in and not surprisingly I only saw a handful of hardy cyclists on the island. However, runners are everywhere and this Englishman fitted right in, galloping along the sidewalks and trails.
Last month I ran the Prince Edward Island half marathon after 6 months of preparation but although I love the solitude and the fitness which goes with road running, I need to spare my aged joints from the impact pain. So, after a typical last minute, nail-biting bid on eBay there is now a late 1980s Raleigh road bike waiting for me on my return in two weeks time. Rides through the New Forest in Hampshire and the Isle of Purbeck in Dorset will soon be on the agenda as a welcome alternative to running.
I have cycled off and on for fun over the decades so am pretty familiar with bikes and maintenance but needed up-to-date information and to check whether the wheel had been reinvented! CC has been an amazing source of top quality, first-hand advice (as well as rib-tickling entertainment) and has been invaluable in helping me choose lights, clothing, pedals, shoes, tools etc. So I am eager to rummage through the growing box of goodies which also awaits me on my return.
Thanks for all the advice and information.
(Now, where did I put my plane ticket..?)
Although there are a couple of hot summer months it seems mostly winter here! Minus 20C often becomes minus 35C when the windchill is factored in and not surprisingly I only saw a handful of hardy cyclists on the island. However, runners are everywhere and this Englishman fitted right in, galloping along the sidewalks and trails.
Last month I ran the Prince Edward Island half marathon after 6 months of preparation but although I love the solitude and the fitness which goes with road running, I need to spare my aged joints from the impact pain. So, after a typical last minute, nail-biting bid on eBay there is now a late 1980s Raleigh road bike waiting for me on my return in two weeks time. Rides through the New Forest in Hampshire and the Isle of Purbeck in Dorset will soon be on the agenda as a welcome alternative to running.
I have cycled off and on for fun over the decades so am pretty familiar with bikes and maintenance but needed up-to-date information and to check whether the wheel had been reinvented! CC has been an amazing source of top quality, first-hand advice (as well as rib-tickling entertainment) and has been invaluable in helping me choose lights, clothing, pedals, shoes, tools etc. So I am eager to rummage through the growing box of goodies which also awaits me on my return.
Thanks for all the advice and information.
(Now, where did I put my plane ticket..?)
