Quote Originally Posted by margo49 View Post
The first thing to remember is that whatever road or distance you ride on your bike has already been ridden by a woman on a Raleigh Sports with 3-speed Sturmey-Archer gearing in the 1930's. If she could do it, so can we. There is also a story here on the boards somewhere of a TE girl riding up a steep hill in Pennsylvania being overtaken by a traditionally-dressed Amish lass on a Dutch bike!
Heh. That was me in Strasburg, PA on my new-to-me road bike and she blew my doors in like I was sitting still. She had a rusted out little single speed bike that was probably handed down across generations. I know it had to weigh more than 35 lbs or so but there she went, right up that hill and I was struggling to catch my breath. It just made me more determined to get out and ride. I bought my bike from a doctor I worked with when I was an xray student last year. It was a fantastic bargain compared to new and she had only taken it out a few times before she got bored. (she is easily bored so many of us students got great stuff from her) My helmet I got on Ebay as well as my shoes. All of my shorts/shirts/gear are from there or various sales at local/online stores. I hate paying full price.

The question was raised above... where do you live? We have TE ladies from all over who could give you specific places to check in your area. Craig's list is a great resource as well as your local re-use-it or pawn shop. As for the shorts and jerseys, clipless pedals, computers... those can wait if you are doing shorter rides. The safety gear can't. Get a spare tube, a pump that mounts on the bike, small tool kit, a water bottle, helmet and gloves and some blinky lights so you will be seen. Also, wear the brightest colors you can. And the most overlooked safety precaution is to check your local bike traffic laws to make sure you are riding in a proper/safe/legal manner before you get out there.

Good luck and let us know how you make out. If you need anything, the TE ladies are here for you.

~X.