Last year one of my co-workers expressed an interest in learning to ride after hearing about my exploits after every weekend. It just so happened it was pretty close to her wedding, so I bought her a bike as a wedding gift.
She was pretty nervous about getting on the bike because she had not ridden since she was a little girl, so we started off in a parking lot and practiced the basics; turning, braking, shifting, and of course curb hucking. After she felt comfortable with the bike we decided to take a spin along the bay on a one mile bike path in Coronado.
Enjoying the sunset on our bikes
Practicing riding with no hands
....and ending the ride with a big smile
After the ride at the bay she mentioned she would like to try riding on dirt. So I found a fireroad that was fairly level, with a couple small uphill climbs and that's when we hit a snag. The ride was about two miles long and my co-worker was a regular smoker, which meant her physical conditioning was not up to the task. She ended up walking away from the ride miserable. We decided to tackle one problem at a time, first focusing on getting her to quit smoking then get back to the biking.
Fast forward nine months.....my co-worker has been smoke free for seven and regular walks during lunch hours have helped her gain a small amount of physical conditioning. Two weeks ago she decided she was ready to get back on the bike. We started off with a two mile bike path ride along the San Diego River.
Going under the freeway...anyone need a washer and dryer?
The ride went well and she wanted to try dirt again, so we ended up going on a five mile ride in Lake Hodges and she had a great time!
Now she is begging me to go again and I'm excited about having a new after-work riding buddy. I'm not sure this post had any particular point, I'm just exicted about what she has been able to do in the last year and am grateful to now have someone else to ride with.
She was pretty nervous about getting on the bike because she had not ridden since she was a little girl, so we started off in a parking lot and practiced the basics; turning, braking, shifting, and of course curb hucking. After she felt comfortable with the bike we decided to take a spin along the bay on a one mile bike path in Coronado.
Enjoying the sunset on our bikes
Practicing riding with no hands
....and ending the ride with a big smile
After the ride at the bay she mentioned she would like to try riding on dirt. So I found a fireroad that was fairly level, with a couple small uphill climbs and that's when we hit a snag. The ride was about two miles long and my co-worker was a regular smoker, which meant her physical conditioning was not up to the task. She ended up walking away from the ride miserable. We decided to tackle one problem at a time, first focusing on getting her to quit smoking then get back to the biking.
Fast forward nine months.....my co-worker has been smoke free for seven and regular walks during lunch hours have helped her gain a small amount of physical conditioning. Two weeks ago she decided she was ready to get back on the bike. We started off with a two mile bike path ride along the San Diego River.
Going under the freeway...anyone need a washer and dryer?
The ride went well and she wanted to try dirt again, so we ended up going on a five mile ride in Lake Hodges and she had a great time!
Now she is begging me to go again and I'm excited about having a new after-work riding buddy. I'm not sure this post had any particular point, I'm just exicted about what she has been able to do in the last year and am grateful to now have someone else to ride with.
Awesome!!!