OY! Mothers!! (Yes this IS cycling related)...

[cosc]

Many tour-group rides have a majority of older folks that participate and have a grand time. Mabe show some pics of the great fun their peers have while riding.

[tangentgirl]

It's really cool that your folks went out and got bikes. Ok, Fred Meyers, I know, not the kind of care you're going to get from your local bike shop - but there's probably a decent return policy, too. If you get up there and the fit is completely awful, they could take them back and get something that won't cause injuries later. Alternately, you could buy your parents professional fittings at a bike store in OR, in case you won't be there for a while.

As for motivation, you could call your mom, tell her you're really glad that she's doing something proactive - getting bikes - and that you just worry. Then launch into a conversation about all the fun of cycling. Make sure she feels good about this step. Compare notes on your bike routes. You could maybe send them some cool jerseys (or maybe just nice wicking tops, if they don't want to look too super-cycle-y). Try to bring (or borrow) a bike when you go up there and then ride with your folks. I'm sure they'll be tickled to go out with you.

[Zen]

You can't change someone if they don't really want to change.

Take your bike with you and ride with them. Depending on how that goes, take them to a bike shop and show them what a good fit, lighter ride and better shifting feel like.

[farrellcollie]

I know you might not want to hear this - but my 70 yr old father is happy as a clam on the target bike he bought a couple of years ago. He rides a few times a week for about an hour in regular clothes in a relatively hilly area - he only rides on paved trails - not the road. He has never changed the saddle and I have found we are both happier if I don't tell him how to do it. Actually - he would ignore me if I tried to get him to change - so I guess it just saves me the stress. I doubt if he has ever shifted the gears since he got it - it is just in some middle gear - I don't know what would happen if he tried to shift.

[Jones]

"Her Sports" magazine has an article about Sister Madonna Buder (sorry not sure of the last name), she didn't start to exercise until she was 48 and now she is the oldest competing female ironman.
Jones

[Running Mommy]

I am going to be up there this week, so it isn't like she would have had to wait long.
I guess it just frustrates me because she lives her life in regret. And I can't tell you how many times she has failed to consider my opinion and then regretted it. I've heard her say " I know, You were right" more times than I can count. Mostly it's in financial things. But I guess as a parent you never want to consider the fact that your kid may just have a valid point. I'm not saying that I'm always right, and I know as Lisa said- the table could be turned. I guess it could be said that as a kid I haven't always listened to her either. But I was just hoping for once that she would wait for me so that I could have helped her pick out a bike that is suitable.
I hope I'm wrong and that when I get up there the bike is fine. I also hope that she likes riding as much as I do. And god knows that after 38 years I know there is no way I can change her. Heck I've given up trying. The bike thing was her idea.

[tangentgirl]

RM, I hear ya, parents can be frustrating. Sometimes you have to step back and say, well, as long as they haven't joined a cult or gotten into a pyramid scheme...

I can totally picture my mom doing the same thing. And me having the same reaction, which makes reading this interesting. On the level of snafus, though, this one's probably pretty low-risk.

[tjf9]

I've had very similar conversations with my mom too. With my mom, I always get annoyed because she asks my opinion and then ignores it. If she didn't want my opinion, why did she bring it up?

Hopefully your mom will decide that she likes the bike and actually starts to use it. As a formerly unfit person, I don't think there's anything you can do to get her going other than be supportive and encouraging. She'll do it if she's ready. Good luck!