Allow Me To Introduce Myself



EL34

New Member
Mar 12, 2005
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Hi everyone :)

My name is Tom and I live in New Mexico in the beautifull high desert of southwest US. Please forgive me for the cycling life story but I feel like typing and I need to let my breakfast digest before going out on my Sunday ride.

I'm 47 and returning to cycling to recover my health and fitness and to improve my life. It's not an exaggeration to say that the bike is going to help save my life for reasons you shall see.

In my 20s I ran and I loved it. I loved sweating and being fit and having more energy than everyone else. At 27 in 1985 I thought I wanted to be a triathlete and bought a racing bike - a Centurion with Suntour Superbe components. Pretty soon I forgot about Triathlons and, after a year, I even quit running. I rode the bike everywhere including to work and did a 100 miler almost every Sunday when I could. I got very fit. I saw LeMond win the Tour De France in 1986 and was incredibly inspired.

In 1987 I finally got a USCF license and won 3 of my first 4 races in category 4. 1988 started well winning a race and placing second in another. In April of that year I was struck by a car which broke my left leg. I was back on the bike in a few months but, of course, my year was over.

In 1989 I moved to New Mexico to take a job here and found it to be a cycling paradise with mild weather and an abundance of road and off-road places to ride. By this time I had started drinking more than I should and my training slipped and I won no races. I did complete a 100 miler in less than 4 hours in 1989 and 1990 but that was about it. In 1991 I moved to Missouri for job and family reasons. I entered one 100 race and took third. In 1992 I trained all summer and entered the same 100 race and won it. That was the last time I raced.

Over the years I gradually drifited away from cycling and focused on job and drinking. The last 100 miler I did was 1990. I gained 30 pounds and felt like ****. I understood what I was doing - becomming an alchoholic - but put off doing something about it. For years I had wanted to return to New Mexico to again pedal my beloved moutains. But my parents were in the last stages of life and I knew I had to stay near them. My mother passed away in 2002 and my father died last year.

In January of this year I quit drinking and began the task of losing weight and getting fit again. I'm back in New Mexico now settling in and looking for a job. I've lost 15 of the 30 pounds already and things are going well. While I know I'll never be as fit as I was in my 20s, I'm looking forward to doing the best I can with the time I have left.

It's time for my 25 miler now. Thank you for indulging me with my boring story. And I look forward to some good bike talk. I'll be taking my little 4 mega pixel Fuji into the moutains with me and hopefully I'll have some good pictures to share and show off what a great place New Mexico is for bike riders.

By the way, If you're wondering what an EL34 is, it's the vacuum tube used in Marshall guitar amplifiers from 1966 to the present. Starting with Cream and Hendrix right up to present rock and roll, when you hear electric guitar, much of what you hear is the distinctive tone of that tube when overdriven into distortion. I like tubes. It's an old rock guitarist thing :p

Tom
 
From an Aussie HiWatt playing cyclist. Welcome.

Cycling's a great way to get fit and stay in shape nomatter how one chooses to pursue the hobby/sport. That's what I like about it, you can race and go hard, or just cruise about and enjoy it as relaxation. I do both competative road racing and the 'cruising about'. I see guys in their 70s still competing in club races.
Running up and down flights of stairs with a quadbox and the hiwatt gives me all the cross training I need too. ;)
 
We dont allow anyone to introduce themselves here. You'd think its a cycling forum or something. j/k. ;)

Welcome back to more cycling. I watched LeMond in 86 too. Very inspiring, but at the time, I unfortunately didnt get the cycling bug. My college roommate was a Cat 3 rider and got me into cycling, but I still treated it for some reason for myself as a means to get from point A to point B and not much else. Went through my 20's that way and didnt rediscover cycling until my 30's. Suffice it to say, it stuck this time. :rolleyes:
 
EL34 said:
Hi everyone :)

My name is Tom and I live in New Mexico in the beautifull high desert of southwest US. Please forgive me for the cycling life story but I feel like typing and I need to let my breakfast digest before going out on my Sunday ride.

I'm 47 and returning to cycling to recover my health and fitness and to improve my life. It's not an exaggeration to say that the bike is going to help save my life for reasons you shall see.

In my 20s I ran and I loved it. I loved sweating and being fit and having more energy than everyone else. At 27 in 1985 I thought I wanted to be a triathlete and bought a racing bike - a Centurion with Suntour Superbe components. Pretty soon I forgot about Triathlons and, after a year, I even quit running. I rode the bike everywhere including to work and did a 100 miler almost every Sunday when I could. I got very fit. I saw LeMond win the Tour De France in 1986 and was incredibly inspired.

In 1987 I finally got a USCF license and won 3 of my first 4 races in category 4. 1988 started well winning a race and placing second in another. In April of that year I was struck by a car which broke my left leg. I was back on the bike in a few months but, of course, my year was over.

In 1989 I moved to New Mexico to take a job here and found it to be a cycling paradise with mild weather and an abundance of road and off-road places to ride. By this time I had started drinking more than I should and my training slipped and I won no races. I did complete a 100 miler in less than 4 hours in 1989 and 1990 but that was about it. In 1991 I moved to Missouri for job and family reasons. I entered one 100 race and took third. In 1992 I trained all summer and entered the same 100 race and won it. That was the last time I raced.

Over the years I gradually drifited away from cycling and focused on job and drinking. The last 100 miler I did was 1990. I gained 30 pounds and felt like ****. I understood what I was doing - becomming an alchoholic - but put off doing something about it. For years I had wanted to return to New Mexico to again pedal my beloved moutains. But my parents were in the last stages of life and I knew I had to stay near them. My mother passed away in 2002 and my father died last year.

In January of this year I quit drinking and began the task of losing weight and getting fit again. I'm back in New Mexico now settling in and looking for a job. I've lost 15 of the 30 pounds already and things are going well. While I know I'll never be as fit as I was in my 20s, I'm looking forward to doing the best I can with the time I have left.

It's time for my 25 miler now. Thank you for indulging me with my boring story. And I look forward to some good bike talk. I'll be taking my little 4 mega pixel Fuji into the moutains with me and hopefully I'll have some good pictures to share and show off what a great place New Mexico is for bike riders.

By the way, If you're wondering what an EL34 is, it's the vacuum tube used in Marshall guitar amplifiers from 1966 to the present. Starting with Cream and Hendrix right up to present rock and roll, when you hear electric guitar, much of what you hear is the distinctive tone of that tube when overdriven into distortion. I like tubes. It's an old rock guitarist thing :p

Tom

Great story,I lost my fitness and had health problems for different personal reasons but understand the come back deal.
Sometimes I wish I still had my 27 year old legs..... but the temperature went up to 70 degrees this past weekend and although the wind was gusting at 35 mph + I had a glorious warm weather ride.
I certainly have missed riding in warm weather.
Keep up the training I intend to die on my bike or while having sex at 95. it's a toss up.
Both good ways to go...if you gotta go.
 
EL34 said:
Hi everyone :)
By the way, If you're wondering what an EL34 is, it's the vacuum tube used in Marshall guitar amplifiers from 1966 to the present. Starting with Cream and Hendrix right up to present rock and roll, when you hear electric guitar, much of what you hear is the distinctive tone of that tube when overdriven into distortion. I like tubes. It's an old rock guitarist thing :p

Tom


Howdy Tom...like your narrative. Also play guitar....mine's a Les Paul 'Standard' with hand wound Fralin's and a custom neck from the good people in Nashville....my Tele has a new tommy iommi by Gibson in the neck just for kicks and can split the coils all 5 ways...my amp is a Mesa Boogie DC5 that I got as a prototype and never found a better sound...I'm on my second speaker for it--celestion all the way.

As far as bikes go, I was on this board for a while and got tired of the people...thought I'd step back in for a spell just to see how things are and to get ready for riding season this spring and summer.

I understand about your battle with demons...my crutch has always been smokin'. It's a musician thing...but I am quitting (again) as the season starts and I hit the streets....I also ride motorcycles, mountain bikes (fisher), and road (the handle...SAECO)...

As for the weight thing, I am a little chunky myself...you'll find a lot of people on this board who like to pat themselves (all over) for being skinny, but having been there and back...it ain't no 'big' deal...I'll drop the water weight this spring and hopefully have a great season.

Sounds like you need some time on the bike to clear the head and some time on the axe to fill it again!

-PEACE-
 
EL34 said:
Hi everyone :)
By the way, If you're wondering what an EL34 is, it's the vacuum tube used in Marshall guitar amplifiers from 1966 to the present. Starting with Cream and Hendrix right up to present rock and roll, when you hear electric guitar, much of what you hear is the distinctive tone of that tube when overdriven into distortion. I like tubes. It's an old rock guitarist thing :p
Tom

Funny Tom when I saw that I busted up, I also use a el34 for for an avitar at another forum I belong to. Problem is trying to locate matched pairs anywhere.
 
Welcome to the forums. Being an electronics engineer I'm familar with the EL34. Nice tube. Being an engineer and a geek I ride a recumbent. I used to live in New Mexico and I enjoyed every minute of it. We have our house up for sale and are planning on moving back. Fortunately we didn't sell our place down there when we moved to Ohio. I can't wait to get back there. Keep those pedals turning. It sounds like you ahve a handle on your priorities and are on the right path back to health.
 
Stick to it, good story. Where in NM are you? I live in Placitas, and have been here ~12 years...we have the best weather in the US don't we? And beaches everywhere you look. I'm drooling over the bosque trail extension project...placitas/bernallilo into ABQ so I can do the ~20mi ride to work occasionally.

At any rate, I knew the tube connection. I have a 1960 reissue LP and a PRS, and a Marshall JCM900 100W 2x12 (12AX7's). Going to sell the LP and Marshall as I'm spending a lot more time playing accoustically, Taylor 814ce and Martin HD28, my babies.
 
Thanks for all the nice respones :)

Bikelux - The first time I saw the inside of a Hiwatt years ago it literally took my breath away because of the meticulous hand wiring. They were all wired in England in the late 60s by the same guy who learned his trade making tube electronics for the British military back in the 50s. Man, those things can move some air.

graf zeppelin - The 85 and 86 tours were both incredibly dramatic. It's still fun to watch the old CBS broadcasts after all these years and I still get chills from that aweful John Tesh soundtrack - laugh. I have some of the old tours on homemade DVDs (don't ask where I got them). I wonder if it would be appropriate to swap these around on bittorrent or something since they are just old tv programs you cannot buy anywhere?

jhuskey - For us old guys this isn't just a sport - it's our ticket to a better quality of life. I see people my age obese and already riding the electric scooter in the supermarket because they are too fat to walk even short distances. And I saw 76 year old Federico Bahamontes in Cycle Sport magazine who won six King of the Mountains jerseys back in the 50s and 60s. Today he still rides and looks incrediby fit and lean for his age. He's full of energy and his mind is sharp as a razor. That's how I want to be when I'm 76.

Saeco'ligious - Here's a picture of my gear http://www.flickr.com/photos/68175269@N00/6604417/ The Strat has Fralin pickups - very clear highs with the right twang on the bass strings. I've owned the Paul since about 1975 and you can see where the finish has worn away where my right picking rests on the wood. I don't know if booze was so much a demon. It's just one day my liver said to me "Hey, you're killing me". I'm feeling 1000% better though and I'm down 20 lbs now.

slider - You know, when you're a kid you're fascinated by things that are loud and awesome. For guys from previous generations it was stuff like locomotives. For me it was the Marshall amplifier. Hearing a pair of Marshall stacks at full roar about 1969 when I was 12 years old was so exciting that I wanted to jump out of my skin. It was so loud I couldn't stand it so I would walk around back and see that glow from the tubes in back begining a life-long fascination with tubes. A few years later in shop class I had an old brown-face Fender Bandmaster opened up with a load resister and a ancient Hewelet Packard oscilliscope watching the sine wave turn into a sawtooth as I cranked up the volume when I accidently touched the B1 at about 360 volts dc. Felt like getting whomped with a baseball bat, lol. Lucky it didn't kill me ;)

bentbrian - Yeah there's a lot of engineer types in New Mexico which makes for an interesting mix with the Spainards, Indians and Cowboys. New Mexico has an abundance of great mountain riding but it also has some of the best flat riding too which is awesome for a recumbant.

RC2 - Placitas! I haven't been there in 15 years but it's on my list to mountain bike from there up to Sandia Crest this summer. From what I remember it's a funky little mountainside community with a sort of bohemian, old hippy flavor. Looks like a neat place to live I live on Tramway so the city is all downhill for me.

I did get a job since the original post at AOL's call center in Albuquerque. Don't laugh, it pays good :) I can commute to work almost entirely on bike paths and it's downhill almost the whole way which is perfect. I'll set up the old Nishiki Alien with a 20 watt Nightsun light as the commuter. I also bought a mountain bike and I wrote a review of it here: http://www.cyclingforums.com/reviews/showproduct.php?product=333&sort=7&cat=3&page=1

Again, thanks for the all nice responses and I look forward to more good bike talk in the months ahead.
 
EL34 said:
I haven't been there in 15 years but it's on my list to mountain bike from there up to Sandia Crest this summer. From what I remember it's a funky little mountainside community with a sort of bohemian, old hippy flavor.

There still is the funkly hippie community closer to the mountains. Further out in the foot hills (we're just a couple mi from the Rio Grande) it's new developments, large lots and pretty spread out, we just built there a few years ago. Wild horses, lots coyote and misc. wildlife, pretty cool. If you haven't been there in 15 yrs you'd be surprised.
 
I haven't quite moved back there yet. We are in the process of selling the house here in Ohio. The move is planned for this fall/early winter. I've already lined up a cycling club to join when I get there (got to have those priorities straight). Our place is located between Moriarty and McIntosh. HMMM I wonder how fast the 'bent will go coming down the canyon once I get over Sedillo Hill?! You could call me a "Cowboy" too since we have a couple of saddle horses and about 30 miniature horses, and we are moving all of them down there.
 
bentbrian - Wow, what a coincidence! - I believe you live on this: http://www.recordchallenge.com/ Sorry, recumbants not allowed. It's, uh, cheating ;) Just look at the list of records se there. John Frey's record has stood since 1990. In 3 years when I'm 50 I get to race against these guys :eek:
 
Well, that's pretty impressive! Here are a couple more things for you to ponder. The bicycle speed record is just over 100MPH which was attained on a diamond frame bike behind a special wind breaking pace vehicle. But even more impressive is the fact that at Battle Mountain, on the flat, no winds, and no pace vehicle, recumbents exceed 85MPH. The bike used to capture the DuPont prize of the first bike to exceed 60MPH was a fully faired Easy Racers Gold Rush piloted by "Fast Freddy" Markham. This was done on level ground, no winds, and no draft inducing pace vehicle. But hey, any bike is cool in it's own right. The reason recumbents are banned is that they offer an aerodynamic advantage over a traditional DF bike. Of course by specifying a given bicycle configuration it does level the playing field so to speak. At any rate I prefer my 'bent for the comfort. And I'm just as fast on it as I was on my road bike without the aches and pains. Good luck in your races when it comes time for you to take on the big boys!
 

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