Seeking Advice
- Thread starter swinney20
- Start date
[COLOR= #0000ff]Thanks, BHOFM![/COLOR]
[COLOR= #0000ff]I know you and I are older, but... um.... didn't those guys die a long time ago? /img/vbsmilies/smilies/wink.gif LOL![/COLOR]
[COLOR= #0000ff]Seriously, I'll google them and check it out. I think REI does too, here. And I know I need to learn.... There won't always be a cab to call, I guess, or a chivalrous guy to help me out. I remember getting on a bus in Texas decades ago, and literally every single guy on the bus stood up simultaneously to offer me his seat. These days they'd knock me down to get one. I miss the good ol' days, sigh.... [/COLOR]
[COLOR= #0000ff]Sierra[/COLOR]
[COLOR= #0000ff]I know you and I are older, but... um.... didn't those guys die a long time ago? /img/vbsmilies/smilies/wink.gif LOL![/COLOR]
[COLOR= #0000ff]Seriously, I'll google them and check it out. I think REI does too, here. And I know I need to learn.... There won't always be a cab to call, I guess, or a chivalrous guy to help me out. I remember getting on a bus in Texas decades ago, and literally every single guy on the bus stood up simultaneously to offer me his seat. These days they'd knock me down to get one. I miss the good ol' days, sigh.... [/COLOR]
[COLOR= #0000ff]Sierra[/COLOR]
I miss the good old days as well. People in general were more polite. Now people have to wear profane T shirts, our vice president and president thinks it's no big deal to use profanity while on camera; the TV I use to know is now a source for PG13 programs on the main networks and it's all about sex, or murders committed in some sick sexual way, and the more we watch the more perverse they get and it only gets worse on cable networks, and these are channels children watch. Our society is sick, it's been sick for so long that we think it's well.
. . . and that is the very reason why women need to learn how to change a flat on the road! No woman wants to be stranded on the side of the road with a mechanical, having to "trust" the first guy who comes along.
I help lead a "women only" ride, and it is scary how many show up with no spare tubes, CO2, etc. When they flat, I am always glad it was with the group, because I would hate for them to get stuck somewhere all alone. Like Froze, I never help someone change a flat without talking them through the process. It often starts with my asking if they know how to remove their rear wheel and them responding that they do not!
[COLOR= #0000ff]Froze, you could not be more right, And ok, Calico, I'm convinced![/COLOR]
[COLOR= #0000ff]Even as paranoid as I am about strangers -- and I'm VERY paranoid -- it had somehow not occured to me that the 'chivalrous' guy offering to fix my flat might have something in his tool kit and van besides a wrench! So now I'm totally freaked out, lol -- and suddenly very anxious to learn to fix my own darn bike, thank you very much. (You can't even imagine how much I dread it at the same time; can't STAND greasy, dirty things.) Truly between a rock and a hard place. /img/vbsmilies/smilies/rolleyes.gif[/COLOR]
[COLOR= #0000ff]Nevertheless, tomorrow yours truly will try to get her hubby to show her how to change a tire. Omg! I think a very hot place just froze over. (Froze -- didja catch that?)[/COLOR]
[COLOR= #0000ff]I'm actually almost phobic about such things, any efforts in that direction always having ended in disaster. But if I can change in 3 months from a 30-year certified 'recliner potato' to somebody actually looking forward to a bike tour where I'll try to ride 54 miles in one day, who KNOWS what other miracles could occur??[/COLOR]
[COLOR= #0000ff]I really should videotape this tomorrow... it should be priceless. /img/vbsmilies/smilies/tongue.gif[/COLOR]
[COLOR= #0000ff]Thanks for the eye-opener, you two.[/COLOR]
[COLOR= #0000ff]Sierra[/COLOR]
[COLOR= #0000ff]Even as paranoid as I am about strangers -- and I'm VERY paranoid -- it had somehow not occured to me that the 'chivalrous' guy offering to fix my flat might have something in his tool kit and van besides a wrench! So now I'm totally freaked out, lol -- and suddenly very anxious to learn to fix my own darn bike, thank you very much. (You can't even imagine how much I dread it at the same time; can't STAND greasy, dirty things.) Truly between a rock and a hard place. /img/vbsmilies/smilies/rolleyes.gif[/COLOR]
[COLOR= #0000ff]Nevertheless, tomorrow yours truly will try to get her hubby to show her how to change a tire. Omg! I think a very hot place just froze over. (Froze -- didja catch that?)[/COLOR]
[COLOR= #0000ff]I'm actually almost phobic about such things, any efforts in that direction always having ended in disaster. But if I can change in 3 months from a 30-year certified 'recliner potato' to somebody actually looking forward to a bike tour where I'll try to ride 54 miles in one day, who KNOWS what other miracles could occur??[/COLOR]
[COLOR= #0000ff]I really should videotape this tomorrow... it should be priceless. /img/vbsmilies/smilies/tongue.gif[/COLOR]
[COLOR= #0000ff]Thanks for the eye-opener, you two.[/COLOR]
[COLOR= #0000ff]Sierra[/COLOR]
Sierra; when your riding and you have a flat or a chain comes off your going to greasy, sorry, but its the nature of the hobby. GoJo makes hand cleaner for mechanics, in addition to hand cleaner in a bottle they also make wipes that come in small packets that fit real nice inside saddle bags. I carry 4 in my bag on every ride. Most auto parts store sell them.
Also I a firm believer in Park brand Glueless patches (don't buy cheap ones like Walmart etc). I've been using glueless patches for at least 15 years and never had a patch failure, and the patch last as long as the tube last. I bring this up because with a glueless patch you don't have to worry about gluing the tube, letting it dry, then applying the patch, and the bonus is-there's no mess! If your husband has never used them it's the same series of steps taken with glue patches except you don't apply the glue. Clean your hands first if greasy or dirty, then you have to lightly rough up the area of the tube where the hole is just a bit larger then the patch size with the included buffer square, peel the patch off the backing like a sticker being careful to touch just a tad of the corner of the patch so as not to get oil from your finger on too much of the patch, place the patch centered over the hole and press real hard for about 30 seconds and it's done.
Speaking of "miracles". 4 or 5 years ago I saw an older woman in her 60's at a Walmart who had just came out of the store buying some supplies. I could tell immediately she was riding bike with obviously the way she was dressed, and she walked over to a bike with large panners. So I had to talk to her. I found out she was travelling alone but no one had bothered her on her trip. The furthest she had ever rode a bike prior to retiring as a school teacher was 3 miles. She got, what she called-a weird itch, bought a touring bike and the gear after about 6 months of research. Last day of school for her was June 6th of that year, she trained for the remainder of June, on July 1st she left Portland Oregon, her home. I saw her in Fort Wayne Indiana the first week of August, she was on her way to someplace, can't remember the town in N Carolina!! If a 65 year old woman can tour across the USA by herself with very little preparation as far as training, I think you can more then handle a touring trip with your husband; and yes, I believe you will have your second "miracle" in cycling!!
Also I a firm believer in Park brand Glueless patches (don't buy cheap ones like Walmart etc). I've been using glueless patches for at least 15 years and never had a patch failure, and the patch last as long as the tube last. I bring this up because with a glueless patch you don't have to worry about gluing the tube, letting it dry, then applying the patch, and the bonus is-there's no mess! If your husband has never used them it's the same series of steps taken with glue patches except you don't apply the glue. Clean your hands first if greasy or dirty, then you have to lightly rough up the area of the tube where the hole is just a bit larger then the patch size with the included buffer square, peel the patch off the backing like a sticker being careful to touch just a tad of the corner of the patch so as not to get oil from your finger on too much of the patch, place the patch centered over the hole and press real hard for about 30 seconds and it's done.
Speaking of "miracles". 4 or 5 years ago I saw an older woman in her 60's at a Walmart who had just came out of the store buying some supplies. I could tell immediately she was riding bike with obviously the way she was dressed, and she walked over to a bike with large panners. So I had to talk to her. I found out she was travelling alone but no one had bothered her on her trip. The furthest she had ever rode a bike prior to retiring as a school teacher was 3 miles. She got, what she called-a weird itch, bought a touring bike and the gear after about 6 months of research. Last day of school for her was June 6th of that year, she trained for the remainder of June, on July 1st she left Portland Oregon, her home. I saw her in Fort Wayne Indiana the first week of August, she was on her way to someplace, can't remember the town in N Carolina!! If a 65 year old woman can tour across the USA by herself with very little preparation as far as training, I think you can more then handle a touring trip with your husband; and yes, I believe you will have your second "miracle" in cycling!!
[COLOR= #0000ff]Awwww, Froze....[/COLOR]
[COLOR= #0000ff]Your post actually made me cry! /img/vbsmilies/smilies/redface.gif That kind of encouragement is the only thing that keeps me going through this minefield of trying to find the right bike and use it to get healthy. I'm so thrilled about my upcoming tour, I can hardly stand it. (And by the way, it's not with my hubby -- it's with a women's only group, and my SISTER -- who is newer to biking than I am, even -- and I are going! What FUN!!!) [/COLOR]
[COLOR= #0000ff]I will never forget your story about the retired school teacher; in fact, I think I'm going to print it out and hang it somewhere here so I can see it every day.[/COLOR]
[COLOR= #0000ff]Thank you sooooooo much![/COLOR]
[COLOR= #0000ff]Sierra[/COLOR]
[COLOR= #0000ff]P.S. I will definitely tell Hubby about the glueless patches!!! And that's a wonderful thing to know about for ME, too. /img/vbsmilies/smilies/tongue.gif [/COLOR]
[COLOR= #0000ff]Your post actually made me cry! /img/vbsmilies/smilies/redface.gif That kind of encouragement is the only thing that keeps me going through this minefield of trying to find the right bike and use it to get healthy. I'm so thrilled about my upcoming tour, I can hardly stand it. (And by the way, it's not with my hubby -- it's with a women's only group, and my SISTER -- who is newer to biking than I am, even -- and I are going! What FUN!!!) [/COLOR]
[COLOR= #0000ff]I will never forget your story about the retired school teacher; in fact, I think I'm going to print it out and hang it somewhere here so I can see it every day.[/COLOR]
[COLOR= #0000ff]Thank you sooooooo much![/COLOR]
[COLOR= #0000ff]Sierra[/COLOR]
[COLOR= #0000ff]P.S. I will definitely tell Hubby about the glueless patches!!! And that's a wonderful thing to know about for ME, too. /img/vbsmilies/smilies/tongue.gif [/COLOR]
Slim, maybe you need to take a self defense course??
All my Grand daughters have taken them, the youngest, ten,
was being picked on by a bully in the lunch line at school and
he tried to grab her lunch bag, well he was on the floor screaming
in pain before the teachers could get there. Her statement later was,
"I kicked his butt" but that was not what got kicked!
He is no longer allowed to attend public schools and there is a good
chance he will not be able to reproduce. No one picks on her any more.
Self defense course are great, but you have to remember to kick and run, don't wait to see if the guy is going to chase you, just run towards other people and scream FIRE...scream for help doesn't work, scream for fire and everyone wants to see the fire. Most women don't have the upper body strength that most men have so their at an extreme disadvantage tight out of the gate, also most men outweigh most women and physics in hand to hand combat plays a big role that why you don't have pro heavyweight boxers taking on pro fly weights! Now for the story; I had a close friend who was the American Taekwondo Assn.'s top ranked female lightweight competitor, Veronica Estrada, who weighed 131 pound was killed while jogging at age 29. Her assailant, a male who was later caught, took her on with hand to hand combat evidenced by bruise and cut marks on her hands. Though she made contact, her mistake was she stayed and fought, the man overpowered her, strangled her and sexually assaulted her, not sure if the sexual assault took place before or after he killed her. Point is, you have a woman who knows how to fight and fight well could not over power a man who did not know how to fight as well but was somewhat trained in martial arts. Veronica was out jogging alone at night in a sparsely populated area and didn't run, bunch of mistakes that cost her her life.
I kind of worried about the 65 year old lady I met touring, I would not recommend a woman to be alone like that; she said she stayed in public areas like camp grounds and motels but when your touring by yourself you are alone for periods of time, but she wasn't worried...neither was Veronica.
I kind of worried about the 65 year old lady I met touring, I would not recommend a woman to be alone like that; she said she stayed in public areas like camp grounds and motels but when your touring by yourself you are alone for periods of time, but she wasn't worried...neither was Veronica.
[COLOR= #0000ff]Hey, you two!!![/COLOR]
[COLOR= #0000ff]BHOFM, I have thought for many years I should take a self-defense course. Not any judo-karate-type martial arts, but just how to fight hard and dirty under attack. I'm paranoid because we grew up in a really bad neighborhood, and there were always muggers and prowlers and rapists around, and you learn to keep your eyes and ears open. [/COLOR]
[COLOR= #0000ff]And Froze, I totally agree with you that you have to remember to kick and run, don't wait to see if the guy is going to chase you, just run towards other people and scream FIRE [/COLOR]. Men just have too much of an advantage over women, even trained ones like you knew. And while I really admire the retired school teacher you met, I would never go on a long tour alone for that very reason. There are just too many Ted Bundys and Jack The Ripper types around, and their body-mass physics ratio to ours is just unfair.
[COLOR= #0000ff]I could never outrun anybody, with my bad knees and bad ankle. So at most I could hope to outbike them, lol. But I try to avoid dangerous situations in the first place by not taking chances and always being very aware of my surroundings. I don't bike at night or even past sunset, alone. I don't go through risky neighborhoods. And I keep my 'antennae' up for anything odd. There have been a couple times when unsavory-looking men I passed on the bike path stopped and stared a little too intently and too long. When they were still there on my return trip, I took a different route home. They may have been perfectly harmless, I don't know. (Though why were they still standing in the same spot half an hour later?) But they may have been lying in wait for me to come back, hoping to steal my bike/whatever, and I simply made sure they didn't get the chance. A lot of people might call me paranoid. My instant response is "Just because you're paranoid doesn't mean they're not really after you!" Trite but TRUE. I know; I've been the victim of an assault. [/COLOR]
[COLOR= #0000ff]I do plan to start carrying pepper spray or something like it in my bike bag. It will do for an up-close assault, assuming I have time to get to it. It's no help against a gun, but I figure if they have a gun I'm doomed anyway. All I could is run and hope they're a bad shot, lol.[/COLOR]
[COLOR= #0000ff]Lovely conversation I started, isn't it??? /img/vbsmilies/smilies/tongue.gif[/COLOR]
[COLOR= #0000ff]Thanks for the chat, y'all. [/COLOR]
[COLOR= #0000ff]Sierra[/COLOR]
[COLOR= #0000ff]BHOFM, I have thought for many years I should take a self-defense course. Not any judo-karate-type martial arts, but just how to fight hard and dirty under attack. I'm paranoid because we grew up in a really bad neighborhood, and there were always muggers and prowlers and rapists around, and you learn to keep your eyes and ears open. [/COLOR]
[COLOR= #0000ff]And Froze, I totally agree with you that you have to remember to kick and run, don't wait to see if the guy is going to chase you, just run towards other people and scream FIRE [/COLOR]. Men just have too much of an advantage over women, even trained ones like you knew. And while I really admire the retired school teacher you met, I would never go on a long tour alone for that very reason. There are just too many Ted Bundys and Jack The Ripper types around, and their body-mass physics ratio to ours is just unfair.
[COLOR= #0000ff]I could never outrun anybody, with my bad knees and bad ankle. So at most I could hope to outbike them, lol. But I try to avoid dangerous situations in the first place by not taking chances and always being very aware of my surroundings. I don't bike at night or even past sunset, alone. I don't go through risky neighborhoods. And I keep my 'antennae' up for anything odd. There have been a couple times when unsavory-looking men I passed on the bike path stopped and stared a little too intently and too long. When they were still there on my return trip, I took a different route home. They may have been perfectly harmless, I don't know. (Though why were they still standing in the same spot half an hour later?) But they may have been lying in wait for me to come back, hoping to steal my bike/whatever, and I simply made sure they didn't get the chance. A lot of people might call me paranoid. My instant response is "Just because you're paranoid doesn't mean they're not really after you!" Trite but TRUE. I know; I've been the victim of an assault. [/COLOR]
[COLOR= #0000ff]I do plan to start carrying pepper spray or something like it in my bike bag. It will do for an up-close assault, assuming I have time to get to it. It's no help against a gun, but I figure if they have a gun I'm doomed anyway. All I could is run and hope they're a bad shot, lol.[/COLOR]
[COLOR= #0000ff]Lovely conversation I started, isn't it??? /img/vbsmilies/smilies/tongue.gif[/COLOR]
[COLOR= #0000ff]Thanks for the chat, y'all. [/COLOR]
[COLOR= #0000ff]Sierra[/COLOR]
[COLOR= #0000ff]Hey, BH![/COLOR]
[COLOR= #0000ff]I hadn't thought of a belt clip or on the frame, but that's a really good idea. Because you're right -- if some guy's grabbing at me, I won't have time to unzip the bike bag, lol.[/COLOR]
[COLOR= #0000ff]And thanks for the link to the pepper spray, too![/COLOR]
[COLOR= #0000ff]Happy pedaling![/COLOR]
[COLOR= #0000ff]Sierra[/COLOR]
[COLOR= #0000ff]I hadn't thought of a belt clip or on the frame, but that's a really good idea. Because you're right -- if some guy's grabbing at me, I won't have time to unzip the bike bag, lol.[/COLOR]
[COLOR= #0000ff]And thanks for the link to the pepper spray, too![/COLOR]
[COLOR= #0000ff]Happy pedaling![/COLOR]
[COLOR= #0000ff]Sierra[/COLOR]
Here is how I have mine. It is just a pocket clip with plastic ties to the stem. Cheap and quick, my style.....
And you need a horn! Mine was two dollars at Wally Wally.
The unit has pepper spray, tear gas and dye. Kind of a tag and release../img/vbsmilies/smilies/biggrin.gif
What are you doing up at this hours? I did sixty five miles on my mountain bike yesterday and
went to bed at 8pm and slept like a rock! I have had breakfast, and done a load of cloths. Now
I am getting the boat read as we are going sailing today, it may be our last chance this season!
Boat!
And you need a horn! Mine was two dollars at Wally Wally.
The unit has pepper spray, tear gas and dye. Kind of a tag and release../img/vbsmilies/smilies/biggrin.gif
What are you doing up at this hours? I did sixty five miles on my mountain bike yesterday and
went to bed at 8pm and slept like a rock! I have had breakfast, and done a load of cloths. Now
I am getting the boat read as we are going sailing today, it may be our last chance this season!
Boat!
[COLOR= #0000ff]Hey, BH![/COLOR]
[COLOR= #0000ff]LOL at 'tag and release'! /img/vbsmilies/smilies/biggrin.gif Thanks for the idea.[/COLOR]
[COLOR= #0000ff]You went 65 miles??? I'd have had to go to bed before I got there, lol. Way to go![/COLOR]
[COLOR= #0000ff]I'm one of those people who's never sleepy until about 2 or 3 a.m.,which is why I was up prowling the forums. If I ride hard and long, I'm sleepy immediately afterward and take a nap, but about 8 p.m. every day I get some kind of second wind, and can't stand the thought of sleeping yet. Then, when other people are bright-eyed and bushy-tailed early in the a.m., I'm more "Oh, gawwwwwd, just leave me alone for a while," lol. My inner clock is all messed up, I guess. [/COLOR]
[COLOR= #0000ff]Great-looking boat. Have a great day out there on the water![/COLOR]
[COLOR= #0000ff]Sierra[/COLOR]
[COLOR= #0000ff]LOL at 'tag and release'! /img/vbsmilies/smilies/biggrin.gif Thanks for the idea.[/COLOR]
[COLOR= #0000ff]You went 65 miles??? I'd have had to go to bed before I got there, lol. Way to go![/COLOR]
[COLOR= #0000ff]I'm one of those people who's never sleepy until about 2 or 3 a.m.,which is why I was up prowling the forums. If I ride hard and long, I'm sleepy immediately afterward and take a nap, but about 8 p.m. every day I get some kind of second wind, and can't stand the thought of sleeping yet. Then, when other people are bright-eyed and bushy-tailed early in the a.m., I'm more "Oh, gawwwwwd, just leave me alone for a while," lol. My inner clock is all messed up, I guess. [/COLOR]
[COLOR= #0000ff]Great-looking boat. Have a great day out there on the water![/COLOR]
[COLOR= #0000ff]Sierra[/COLOR]
I can't tell you how many times I had to stop on the road and help someone respoke their wheel...god it's irritating the complete lack of mechanical ability some people have.
Both my siter and I were in Ms. Estradas class and I was trying to find out if they ever convicted the other intructor in her case. Just by chance your thread popped up.It would be great to hear back from you.
Jesse
Jesse
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