NEARLY EVERY DAY there are new reports in the media regarding what we should eat, how we should eat, and when we should eat. I always listen because I’m interested in better health. I tend to have high cholesterol. It’s surprising because I eat a pretty healthy diet. I never eat junk food, but I do eat a lot of things like cheese, sausage, cold cuts, bread, and I do enjoy my beer. I should say I used to eat high cholesterol foods, but I quit about two months ago to stave off the medication my doctor wants to prescribe... Continue reading

IT'S PAINFUL TO SAY IT, but I've noticed, that as I get older, my brain function has gotten a little fuzzier than it used to be. Fatigue affects it. Stress affects it. Lack of sleep affects it quite a lot. I’ve known for years that exercise helps to maintain overall health, and I can feel how aerobic exercise truly does sharpen my thinking. But what's exciting to me is the idea of neurogenesis. Exercise augments adult neurogenesis, which is the creation of new brain cells in an already mature brain. (Now that's good news!) Here’s a brief article, written by... Continue reading

I want a new drug One that won't make me sick One that won't make me crash my car Or make me feel three feet thick Those lyrics are from a Huey Lewis and the News song from a few decades ago. I think we’d all like to find a new drug that would make us feel great without all the side effects. For the past 13-years I’ve been pitching a drug called cycling. Bicycle-type cycling. Butt in the saddle type cycling. Get on your two wheeler (or three wheeler) and ride. Then ride again. Keep doing that and I... Continue reading

A guest post by Melanie Nathan JUST OVER A YEAR AGO I QUIT MY JOB. I quit because I was tired. Tired of going to an office everyday. Tired of taking orders. Tired of a long commute. Tired of not seeing my family until 6 o’clock every night. Just plain tired. I’d been freelancing in my spare time and realized that with some time and effort, my freelancing could turn into an online business, one that allowed me to make my own hours and work from home. So after my husband and I sat down and made a plan, I... Continue reading

ASK A DOZEN CYCLISTS WHAT THEY LIKE most about cycling, and you will get a wide assortment of thoughtful answers. But, as time goes on, and their experience deepens, their answers will often change. That’s another great thing about cycling: It sort of evolves with you. As you become more seasoned, the act of riding a bicycle morphs into something different, that you often love even more. The more you ride, the more you love to ride. What is it about the ride that resonates for you? A friend of mine, who is a long-time cyclist in his 70s, once... Continue reading

I USED TO BE A RUNNER. But in my early 20s, after a bad motorcycle accident, I developed acute back problems. Many years later, after my second lumbar surgery, my "running career" had to be halted. It was just too painful (and dangerous). I sat on my butt for a few years wondering what I should do to stay fit. In middle-age, you don't have that luxury. I quickly gained an extra 30 pounds of flab. I considered mountain biking I was disgusted with myself, and started looking for a less jarring way to burn calories and get some exercise.... Continue reading

HERE ARE A FEW BRIEF TIPS for surviving the summer heat while riding your bike. There are dozens of articles by experts that will give you the deep science about body heat and fluids and other stuff. And if all those numbers and matrices make you feel more confident, then by all means read the articles. As for me, I’m not an expert in physiology, but I’ve survived some pretty stupid stunts in my time, and I can certainly share some wisdom from practical experience. I’ve ridden my bike in the 115+ degree heat of the parched Sonoran Desert of... Continue reading

THERE ARE MYRIAD CHOICES WHEN IT COMES TO BUYING PEDALS for your bike. Many brands. Many styles. Many mechanisms to attach your foot and become one with the bike, and of course, pedals with no method to attach your foot to the bike--often called flat pedals. Siquar Manufacturing, a Taiwanese manufacturer of metal products has made their first flat bike pedal. My Siquar Pedals installed easily with an 8mm hex wrench. The pedal body is a unique design made from an aluminum alloy. The axles are CR-MO steel, and employ sealed bearings for a smooth spin. The pedals are incredibly... Continue reading

LATE ONE AFTERNOON, ABOUT 10-YEARS AGO, when I was just getting started in serious road cycling, I was riding toward home when I noticed a group gathering at the local bike shop. I pulled in and quickly discovered that I was amid preparations for the Thursday evening shop ride. I watched as people were making final adjustments to their bikes and locking up their vehicles. At the last minute, I decided to join them. I already had about 15-miles in my legs, so I felt warmed up enough to ride with this younger-than-me group of about 20 cyclists. Plus, I... Continue reading

RIDING A BIKE MEANS SOMETHING DIFFERENT for anyone whose ever put their butt on a saddle. For some it’s a fresh look at the neighborhood. For others, it’s a race through the mud. For me, it’s often a way to clear my mind, reflect on the day’s offerings, relieve stress and improve my attitude. Last weekend was a difficult one. I traveled to Tampa for a memorial. There, I met with many other family members and friends to honor my 30-year old niece who had recently died from breast cancer. Saturday was a gut wrenching day of sadness for everyone.... Continue reading

ANYONE WHO KNOWS ME knows that cycling is a big part of my life. When friends think of me, they think of bikes. In fact, I take full responsibility for hurting the Nielson Ratings on many TV shows, because I’ve motivated numerous couch potatoes to turn off the tube and spend time riding a bicycle. But I must admit, there are times when I don’t ride In the interest of self-preservation, I try not to ride in severe weather. Living in Florida means that cycling is a year-round activity, however, we are the lightning capital of the world. Also, we... Continue reading

EVERYONE MAKES POOR CHOICES IN LIFE from time-to-time. If we’re smart, when we see the err of our ways, we make corrections. For most things, the world is forgiving. We try not to worry too much about the past, and we move forward with little regret. Cycling, or bike riding in any form is often less forgiving of poor choices. You can’t make poor choices on a bike for long before something life-changing happens, and you may never be able to recover from it or live-on without regret. Here are just a few poor choices (that I’ve witnessed repeatedly) that... Continue reading

Book Review: Cycling Sojourner A Guide to the Best Multi-Day Tours in Washington IF YOU’RE LOOKING FOR ADVENTURE. If you’d like to plan a fantastic get-away. Or if you want to get back to basics and experience the countryside and a renewed sense of freedom, I can think of no better way than on a bicycle. And one of the best, most pristine locations in the US to do just that is Washington State. I’ve ridden my bike in 13 states, and have 37 to go to reach item #1 on my Bucket List. I’ve not ridden in Washington yet,... Continue reading

SOMETIMES A RIDE IS NOT JUST A RIDE, IT’S BETTER. I started to ride into the One Spark festival this past Sunday morning, but it was so dense with pedestrians that I decided not to enter the zone. (It consumed 20 square blocks right behind that tallest building in the photo, and had 260,000 visitors by its end. More on One Spark. So, my ride turned random. I rode around town, from the South Bank to the North Bank, trying to avoid all the construction zones in this city, which is no easy task. As I was going through one... Continue reading

WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME YOU THOUGHT about that big road trip? I've been wanting to ride the Southern Tier for some time now, but I've been denied either for health reasons or finances. Big trips are expensive, and there's a lot of leg work (no pun intended) to be done before the rubber ever meets the road. And considering it's a 30-day tour--well, that's a big deal in more ways than one. The solution for many is the over-nighter ride. They're cheaper, less planning is required, and by staying reasonably close to home, you can't get into too much... Continue reading

WHEN YOU RIDE A BIKE THERE ARE MANY interesting sounds that seep into your ears if you’re paying attention. Sounds that you normally never hear while motoring in a car or even taking a short walk. Take a nice long ride on your bike and pay attention to the symphony of life that is all around you. Here are a few things I hear while riding my bike Nature. I ride on several rural or tree lined roads in NE Florida that are teeming with wildlife. I get to experience squirrels chattering, birds singing, the screech of a hawk flying... Continue reading

Click here for Part 1. MOAB, UTAH IS VISITED EVERYDAY BY PEOPLE FROM around the world. The Moab Century Tour is no different. There were riders from lots of interesting places, making it a great experience. We met several of them the night before the ride at Moab Brewery. We talked it up, got ourselves psyched for the event, then turned-in early -- sort of. We didn’t really sleep well, and were awake and getting prepared for the ride before dawn. As I said earlier (in Part 1) I’m “Mr. Prepared”, most of the time. For this ride I had... Continue reading

(I had hoped to get this story out sooner, but the Universe conspired against me. The trip was during the last week of September.) I’D BEEN PLANNING A TRIP TO MOAB for several months. It was complicated by the fact that I was meeting one son from San Clemente, and another son from Denver. There were grandkid visits involved, and brief pauses of family renewal. Also, Moab is not the easiest place to reach without spending my entire budget on airfare. Then, to complicate the plan even more, heavy rains that poured in the region for weeks put the red... Continue reading

STUDIES HAVE SHOWN THAT THE MAJORITY OF ACCIDENTS between motorists and cyclists are caused because the motorist “didn’t see the cyclist”. As preoccupied as motorists are these days, with all the non-driving activites that take place behind the wheel -- texting, talking on the phone, eating, reading the newspaper, flossing the teeth, removing rollers from the hair, brushing the hair, drinking a beer and reprimanding the children -- it’s no wonder that cyclists get knocked down, banged up or killed everyday. Yes, I’ve seen every one of the activities mentioned above being done while the driver is, by law, supposed... Continue reading

Maintain your machine It’s always important to keep your bike in clean, working order. Lubrication, good tires and routine adjustments will keep it rolling along for years. But the real machine is you. Cycling goes a long way toward maintaining your body, the real engine that puts power to the pedals. It will help you eat better, sleep well, and stay fit. Riding a bike will help you keep your blood pressure in range, and stay youthful and energized. Build endurance We all need endurance to keep going everyday. Most of us have numerous activities and chores that must be... Continue reading

A guest post by Pearson Constantino Growing up the bike was everything for me. It was my entertainment, it helped fuel my imagination, it took me to school, to my friends’ houses, and was my escape. As I got older and more experienced, with a 400 mile bike tour to Cape Cod under my belt, the bike became true unbridled adolescent freedom. I would ride for the sake of riding. Without destination, I rode to feel the wind in my hair. After college, living in New York I rode everywhere, to work, for exercise, for fun, I felt great, until... Continue reading

I’M ONE OF THOSE CYCLISTS WHO LIKE NUMBERS. When I ride, I monitor my heart rate, I know my speed and cadence, and I track my mileage and calorie burn. There’s nothing wrong with that, I just happen to enjoy keeping the numerical values of each ride. But I also know the importance of riding for the shear enjoyment of it. It’s easy to fall into the trap of over-analyzing each ride, a habit that has the potential of reducing the fun and making your ride seem more like a duty. I think about this often, and offer you a... Continue reading