Wobbly

[mydodgyfeet]

Evening all, hope you can help.

By way of an introduction, I'm in my late 30s, my legs have packed in (and so has the running) so I've decided to get out and pedal a bit. I'm reasonably fit through the former running and a bit of time in the gym. The thing is, I learnt to ride a bike only in my twenties and then it got shoved in the shed and forgotten about.

I've since bought a new bike (an Apollo from Halfords, sadly - before I knew any better) and new found motivation. The thing is, I'm very wobbly. On the bike, I mean. I'm very fortunate to have good NCR paths within a few miles of me. Is it wise, early tomorrow with little traffic about, to cycle to the path OR do I drive it like a numpty with a bike rack and bike on the back for all of five minutes?

I know it's a daft question but you've all been "round the block" longer than me. What would you do?

Thanks guys. I've been loitering for a while but with pre-ride-anxiety-wine, I thought I'd ask.

 

[ianrauk]

What would I do? Keep riding the bike that's what I would do. As often as one can. It all soon clicks into place.

I have been in a similar situation as I have recently taken up riding a Recumbent. It's like learning to ride a bike all over again. It was very intimidating at first but many rides and many miles later I can jump on it and go no worries.

 

[jim55]

early tomo??id cycle there if the roads are quiet and practice ,,but rem u will have to cycle back later on when the roads are (potentially) busier

 

[mydodgyfeet]

Thanks chap. I'm aware of my limitations which is why I am avoiding a morning commute just now. I thought with it being Sunday it would be quite dead on the roads. I have been out since my last post in August but not covered any distance. Now I think about it, driving two miles with a bike on the back is a bit silly isnt it?

 

[derrick]

+1

 

[mydodgyfeet]

wow. Thanks chaps. I didn't expect such a response so soon. It's downhill to the path which makes it doubly nerve-wracking coming home.

 

[redcard]

Thanks chap. I'm aware of my limitations which is why I am avoiding a morning commute just now. I thought with it being Sunday it would be quite dead on the roads. I have been out since my last post in August but not covered any distance. Now I think about it, driving two miles with a bike on the back is a bit silly isnt it?

Where do you commute?

 

[Dave 123]

If you don't do it, you won't do it!
If you do do it you've every chance of getting it right.
If and when you get wobbly make sure you get your head up and look to where you want to go, looking down will only make you wobble more.
And don't forget to smile!

 

[mydodgyfeet]

only when I was on placement at the hospital. By "commute" I meant town centre or local roads at busy times.

 

[mydodgyfeet]

top lad, Dave. Thank you

 

[Steve H]

No shame in using a cycle rack to get there if your confidence is not there yet. Key is to keep practicing. After a few trips you will get more confident. Then pick a day that is quiet on the roads. Early on a weekend is good, but look out for ice at the moment

 

[Nebulous]

Loading the bike up is not silly at all. I've always cycled though some years it may have only been about 200 miles. Up until last year I very rarely ventured onto the roads. With 4 bikes it can take me a while to load/unload, but we used to regularly put the bikes on the back or the roof of the car and go to a converted railway line, with the nearest point only being about 2 miles away. I now wonder why I did it, but at the time it seemed emminently sensible.

 

[mydodgyfeet]

Thank you all so much for your support and encouragement. At the risk of this sounding like a "look what I did in my potty" post, I drove to the cycle path, biked 6 miles and felt fantastic. You (cyclists) are a lovely lot - lots of "Morning"s as others went speeding past like a bullet from a gun. Rookie error in wearing shorts, only two layers and a rubbish choice of gloves in what I found out later to be -2C. I concentrated on trying not to wobble and even looked behind me a few times to try and build up my confidence. A cracking morning, cut short by what felt like hypothermia. Thank you for booting me up the backside.

 

[timmyeatchips]

Nice one. I was very nervous about riding on busy roads when I started cycling again after years out of the saddle and having never ridden in city traffic, and I'll admit I'm still very cautious, but if you pick some nice quiet roads to start with you'll have your confidence in no time

 

[Paulus]

Well done for getting going. Keep at it and it will all fall into place. Confidence is everything.