On 20 Feb 2004 10:26:39 -0800,
[email protected]
(
[email protected]) wrote:
>I am a new rider. I have never had a bicycle. I am bicycling 40 - 70 miles a week on a stationary
>bike. How much should I be doing to bicycle that much on the roads? Is there a ratio between
>mileage on a stationary bike and mileage on the roads?
Stationary cycling is emphatically *not* real cycling. See my despairing thread on it ("I know why
the caged bird sings")
You might be putting out an awful lot of energy on the stationary bike, but on the stationary, you
don't have to worry about other traffic, road conditions, where you're going, or, indeed, staying
upright. In terms of total effort and exhaustion, I am pretty much empty after 45 minutes on the
stationary trainer. I can ride on real roads for hours and hours--but real riding requires
concentration.
If you have never ridden a real bicycle before, I *strongly* suggest you get one and try it out
somewhere where you won't be a danger to yourself or others. A deserted parking lot, an empty
suburban street, a little-used bike trail (make sure the surface is good: having traction is good,
not having it is very bad).
I learned to ride as a little kid, so it's hard for me to describe how to ride a bicycle. You ride a
bicycle! In seriousness, you will be spending a lot of time learning to balance the bicycle (BTW,
you cant' balance it when it's standing still--it's got to be moving, even if only a little....).
Once you've learned how to balance, then there's the question of traffic. On the bicycle you are
a vehicle, and all the laws that apply to vehicles in your state apply to you. That means riding
in the roadway, following all the signs, signaling, etc. Not to mention getting used to the
feeling of being overtaken at very close quarters by traffic that might be moving quite a bit
faster than yourself.
Be bold, but prudent. Gain confidence slowly. Ride a little, then a little farther, then a little
faster, then a little farther again. And remember that riding is not the same as cranking 200 Watts
of effort for 45 minutes.
-Luigi
"Whoever wants to know a thing has no way of doing so except by coming into contact with it, that
is, by living (practising) in its environment. ... If you want knowledge, you must take part in the
practice of changing reality. If you want to know the taste of a pear, you must change the pear by
eating it yourself.... If you want to know the theory and methods of revolution, you must take part
in revolution. All genuine knowledge originates in direct experience."
- Mao Tse-tung
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