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Three months into cycling

I've been on a bit of a cycling kick lately. In the three months or so of constant cycling (coincidentally, that is most of Vancouver's summer), I've amassed nearly 1000km in the saddle on three different bikes. I've watched most of the highlights to the grand Tour, and find myself looking up broadcast schedules for the Vuelta which started this weekend. Along the way, I have learned a lot. The hardest bits likely were the things I had to un-learn. 

Probably the hardest of the stuff to adhere to while cycling are the rules. Some of these are funny, but most have at least a grain of truth in them. For years, I thought people who wore spandex and rode their bikes around were, well, similar to what Clarkson calls Audi drivers. Turns out, they are onto something. Ride on your saddle for a couple of hours without those things and try it with them and you will see the difference. They are vastly more comfortable than anything else you could ride in. The same goes for jerseys. I've fixed a couple of flats, got some painful blisters in the process and over all, cannot believe how much fun it is.

Cycling, like my winter sport of choice (skiing), isn't without its expenses. I bought a bike, a fair bit of clothing and gear. I've found a lot of gear online, my favourite retailers being Wiggle and ProBikeKit. They both ship to Canada (usually free at a certain price point), they both charge in Canadian dollars and for the most part, the stuff they sell is a fair bit cheaper than the local cycle shops. I would love to buy more stuff locally, but when you charge me 3 times as much as the online store for clothing, I am not going to buy stuff from you. Having said that, my most expensive purchases have been local; like the pair of Sidis I picked up. Those are really nice shoes. Again, something I thought only idiots wore around. Once you're clipped in, and figure out how not to fall (I fell a fair number of times now, including one where I bruised my rib by slamming quite hard into the handlebar), you will do much better at riding.

What is the lesson in all of this? I suppose the lesson for me is that there were lots of things I thought were not possible. I never thought I would be comfortable riding the drops, I never thought I would be comfy in spandex and I never thought I would look forward to more riding! I'm fairly comfortable riding in traffic, though I have no idea how these guys do it in India! I don't know if it is because I am more involved in riding or if there is a sort of renaissance in the mindset of the public here, but cycling seems to be gaining more mainstream coverage in the city with new dedicated bike lanes and lots of heated debate on the pros and cons of doing so. 

If you haven't been on a saddle for a while, go ahead and get on. Get some exercise while you're at it and enjoy a fun sport. Oh, and this is my ride... say hello if you see me on the road somewhere. 

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