Pretty cool... 74 year old rides the Katy Trail on a Wal-Mart bike
Last Post 12/30/2016 06:48 PM by Frederick Jones. 7 Replies.
Author Messages
Dale

Posts:1767

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12/05/2016 10:27 AM
Sell your bikes, kids, we've been upstaged

http://www.news-leader.com/story/news/local/ozarks/2016/12/04/springfield-woman-74-rides-238-mile-katy-trail-89-wal-mart-bike/94748634/
longslowdistance

Posts:2881

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12/06/2016 01:13 AM
Love it!

Maybe 15 years ago I participated in a multiday tour in Colorado, average about 80 miles/day, not epic, but not trivial either. Long climbs and thin air, etc.
A kid did the entire tour on a Schwinn Stingray with bad brakes, wearing jeans and sneakers. The sneakers were part of the braking system (like Fred Flintstone, he'd drag them on the ground). Put us lycra and ti guys to shame, and put a smile on my face.
79pmooney

Posts:3180

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12/06/2016 12:26 PM
My mom finally put away her bikes last year, at 85. She fears the traffic on her street (which is far worse than when I grew up; it is a 300 yo New England street, windy and narrow). She did her first century in her 60s, alone and unsupported.

She complains of having lost 30 pounds of muscle mass since she stopped and that walking is far from an adequate substitute.

You heard it here. Keep riding.

Ben
longslowdistance

Posts:2881

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12/06/2016 12:49 PM
like. thanks.

PS: for your mom?:
http://www.linusbike.com/products/dutchi-8
Red Tornado

Posts:159

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12/06/2016 01:57 PM
Cool story. I will be a happy man if I can ride my bike at that age.
zootracer

Posts:833

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12/28/2016 12:20 PM
70 is the new 50
smokey52

Posts:493

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12/28/2016 07:23 PM
In 2001, when my mom was 78 and my dad 75, we did BikeNY - the Five-Boros ride. 42 miles through New York City. It's the first Sunday in May, but that year the temperature went over 80 F. We had a blast. My dad was a bridge enthusiast. He really enjoyed riding over the Queensboro and Veranzanno-Narrows bridges. When we got home, we put my mom into a bathtub of cool water to help recover from the heat. I have a picture of my dad at a rest stop by the Brooklyn Bridge. The Twin Towers are in the background. They fell later that year.
longslowdistance

Posts:2881

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12/30/2016 06:48 PM
We had something similar, but much more modest here in Richmond. Then mayor Tim Kaine (yes that Tim Kaine) ran the "Mayor's Tour of Richmond" a couple of years, I think 2001 was first. Great fun to ride around the city with rolling road closures and a police escort. My then 7 year old daughter was with me on an insta-tandem. The next year the grandparents rode with us, too. Happy memories, thanks Tim Kaine.


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