Getting to Know You!

[PrincessAna]

Real name: Anastasia
Where do you live? Western PA, sorta near Pittsburgh

Explanation of your handle: It's kind of an inside joke. Manymany people ask me if I'm related to Grand Duchess Anastasia Nikolaevna of Russia. I'm not. I'm not even Russian, or of Russian descent. (I'm also not of Greek descent.) I figured that never stopped me from being a princess though, at least not in my own mind

Explanation of your avatar: Missing in action. Hehe. Will add one as soon as I get me+the new bike pics.

Age (general or specific) 31. I'm a Libra and Year of the Dragon.

Occupation: Computer Science Professor

Favorite bike: The Bike Friday I just got

What's in your stable? Bike Friday Pocket Llama, in power raspberry Also have a Gary Fisher Napa comfort bike from 2002 or 2003.

Fastest speed on a road bike? where? when? I've never been on a road bike... ever.

Another picture of yourself or your ride? Forthcoming.

What is the biggest lie you've ever told: You look like a turtle.

Most memorable moment on my bike: When I was in grad school I shared an office with a student from Algeria. He had never ridden a bike before. He bought a bike from someone who was graduating for all of $20. The bike was a real mess, rust everywhere leaky tires, etc. I pumped up the tires for him (and left my pump in the office for a few weeks), showed him how to adjust the seat, and he taught himself to ride over spring break. When we got back from break, he and I went on a ride on the bike path across the street from us. He rode so slowly I could barely keep my balance! Under 4mph most of the time. Runners were passing us up! But we finished the 2 mile path and made it back. That was the first of many rides together. When people ask what I miss about New Orleans, I always think of that bike path and all the riding I did on it. (Both solo and with friends )

Most fun ever had on a bike? When I was a kid I rode with some friends to a park. On the way we passed by this little scrap of yard, which we determined probably did not belong to anyone. It happened to have a wonderful hill on it, as it went down to a storm drain. The hill was perfect. We had almost enough momentum to carry us in a loop back to the top so we could go down over and over

[spotlightmama]

Real name: Angie
Where do you live? Orlando, FL

Explanation of your handle: My mom used to sing me the song "Spotlight Kid" by Captain Beefheart. Now that I have two kiddos, I'm the Spotlight Mama.

Explanation of your avatar: [will soon be back with an avatar]

Age (general or specific) 28

Occupation: Professional Resume Writer

Favorite bike: my bike! (Terry Symmetry)

What's in your stable? A Terry Symmetry (my first and only "real" bike)

Fastest speed on a road bike? where? when? 23 MPH, last week, on the road

Another picture of yourself or your ride? Note to self...get picture "looking cool" next to bike. Hmmm...maybe that can solve the avatar issue!


What is the biggest lie you've ever told: I've never lied.

Most memorable moment on my bike: Well, I'm *very* new to biking, so I don't have many. I'd have to say totally smoking my DH a couple of weeks ago while out biking. That was nice!

Most fun ever had on a bike? Probably getting dear old dad to join me on the bike trail...it was payback for all the hiking he made me do as a kid.

[TxDoc]

Real name: I'll pass on this one.

Where do you live? Texas.

Explanation of your handle: I guess you already figured that out

Explanation of your avatar: I just searched "Bianchi" on Yahoo images and picked one that was small enough for an avatar.

Age (general or specific) 37

Occupation: see "explanation of your handle"...

Favorite bike: my Bianchi

What's in your stable? Bianchi forever!!! well, there's also a Lapierre, but just one

Fastest speed on a road bike? where? when? 34mph, downhill of course, North Hollywood.

Another picture of yourself or your ride? I'll try to find a picture to post!

What is the biggest lie you've ever told: "You are a dead dog". I say that to my dog every time he has a 'bad-dog-day', and that happens about once every six months. Well, he is six years old and still alive and happier than ever!

Most memorable moment on my bike: Hey, two weeks ago at one point I was able to catch up with my fiance -and he is fast!!!

Most fun ever had on a bike? I always have fun on a bike

[toaoemerald]

Real name: Mary

Where do you live? Cortland, NY

Explanation of your handle: Well...the "toao" part = "the one and only" which is the name of a gaming clan that I am in, and the "emerald" part is just my online nick name that have I always used...

Explanation of your avatar: I don't have one yet

Age (general or specific) 17. I know, quite young

Occupation: High school student?

Favorite bike: I'm jealous of my sisters carbon fiber Fuji Team...

What's in your stable? Fuji Roubaix

Fastest speed on a road bike? Fastest speed on a flat was about 28 when I was in a pack with about 15 other bikers(most of them where from the local college cycling team)

Another picture of yourself or your ride? This picture is from last fall. It's not that great...
http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/v5...72787_3876.jpg

What is the biggest lie you've ever told: Hmm...It's hard to choose

Most memorable moment on my bike: Speeding down steep hills dangerously fast with lots of other bikes closely surrounding me.

Most fun ever had on a bike? Probably on those weekly rides with the group...

[toaoemerald]

Real name: Mary

Where do you live? Cortland, NY

Explanation of your handle: Well...the "toao" part = "the one and only" which is the name of a gaming clan that I am in, and the "emerald" part is just my online nick name that have I always used...

Explanation of your avatar: I don't have one yet

Age (general or specific) 17. I know, quite young

Occupation: High school student?

Favorite bike: I'm jealous of my sisters carbon fiber Fuji Team...

What's in your stable? Fuji Roubaix

Fastest speed on a road bike? Fastest speed on a flat was about 28 when I was in a pack with about 15 other bikers(most of them where from the local college cycling team)

Another picture of yourself or your ride? This picture is from last fall. It's not that great...
http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/v5...72787_3876.jpg

What is the biggest lie you've ever told: Hmm...It's hard to choose

Most memorable moment on my bike: Speeding down steep hills dangerously fast with lots of other bikes closely surrounding me.

Most fun ever had on a bike? Probably on those weekly rides with the group...

[quiltingmick]

Real name: Michelle

Where do you live? Canberra, Australia

Explanation of your handle: I'm a quilter.

Explanation of your avatar: I'm lazy and don't have one yet!

Age (general or specific) 39 on September 27.

Occupation: IT Programme Coordinator

Favourite bike: Electra Townie.

What's in your stable? My favourite bike!

Fastest speed on a road bike? where? when? You're kidding aren't you? I'm SLOW!

Another picture of yourself or your ride? Nope.

What is the biggest lie you've ever told: I once told a snooty shop assistant that I was married (before I was) just so I could get better attention from her. Snooty.

Most memorable moment on my bike: Besides the first day I rode it home from the shop, it was probably the morning about a month ago. It was a beautiful bright clear blue-skied morning when I left home, but by the time I got two suburbs away, it was foggy. I rode through the autumn leaves into a dense wall of fog. It was beautiful.

Most fun ever had on a bike? Probably the ride I just had, coming home from work. Tonight I discovered a road adjacent to the major road, with hardly any cars using it, and heaps of cyclists. I like to think that the cyclists chased all the cars away. I think I may have giggled for at least 50% of the ride.

[hipersons]

Real name: Shawnna (not sha-wan-na, but shaw-na)
Where do you live? Watertown Mass

Explanation of your handle: I chose this screen name on Prodigy 10 years ago and it just stuck. Other than that, no idea why I thought of it.

Explanation of your avatar: my kitty, she's beautiful!

Age (general or specific): 25

Occupation: Graphic Designer and SAT Teacher/Tutor

Favorite bike: Um, still too new to decide. But I love my Dolce.

What's in your stable? 08 Specialized Dolce

What is the biggest lie you've ever told: "No, I didn't wear this dress just to return it the day after the event..."

Most memorable moment on my bike: My first ride into work. It was terrifying and awesome.

Most fun ever had on a bike? The past few weeks with my new bike have been a lot of fun because I'v been learning so much.

[callmecrazy]

Real name: Abby

Where do you live? Pittsburgh, PA

Explanation of your handle: People often do, in fact, call me "crazy" because of my "far-fetched" ideas (most recently happened last night when I told hubby that I want to do a tri even though I just got on a bike this week for the first time in a decade)

Explanation of your avatar: I'll have to get around to that, but it will likely end up being some combination of myself and my first bike

Age (general or specific): 23

Occupation: Cardiovascular research tech by week, jewelry sales gal by weekend

Favorite bike: only bike, Trek7200

What's in your stable? just my 4 day-old Trek

Fastest speed on a road bike? where? when? I'm such a newbie that I'm almost from the future, but since the supposed steepest street in the world is just down the road (as I just learned on here yesterday), perhaps I will just lift my feet and hold on tight. If I survive it, I'll let you know how fast I went.

Another picture of yourself or your ride? I'm sure I'll have lots to share later

What is the biggest lie you've ever told: It wasn't my fault.

Most memorable moment on my bike: When I was about 12 I decided to borrow my older brother's mtb, but I had no idea what I was doing and ran myself down a hill and directly into a pine tree as a result, ouch.

Most fun ever had on a bike? An relaxing evening ride around the neighborhood with hubby last week... though hopefully there will be more adventurous fun to come!

[2Gowans]

Real name: If I were going to tell you that, I'd have used it as part of my username.

Where do you live? South London. No underground, a bit rough, a bit expensive, few tourists, but no risk of flooding because this bit's on the ridge of a hill.

Explanation of your handle: Gowan = daisy, it's a short reach to a music hall song vaguely related to cycling.

Explanation of your avatar: it's similar to the bike I'm working on - a 1967 Hercules

Age (general or specific): Old enough to have learnt from a few mistakes, young enough that I haven't made every mistake yet.

Occupation: 24/7 carer (unpaid)

Favorite bike: A lightweight tourer I had (for commuting) was close to favourite, except for the uncomfortably long reach.

What's in your stable? One bike in pieces at the moment in front of the airing cupbpard. Hope to have it rideable before the end of summer.

Fastest speed on a road bike? Don't know. Too many hills and traffic lights. Probably not very fast.

Another picture of yourself or your ride? Not yet

What is the biggest lie you've ever told: It doesn't matter.

Most memorable moment on my bike: Going down Mount Pleasant in v heavy rain and heavy traffic, with the brakes just not working at all.

Most fun ever had on a bike? Possibly the time that the dual carriageway I commuted along was bumper to bumper. Passed every car, bus, and lorry (on one of those shopper bikes with small wheels) and there was nothing they could do.

[MsTerra]

Real name: Terra

Where do you live? metro Boston

Explanation of your handle: Someone has always already taken the username "Terra" by the time I'm registering for a new forum these days, but I find "MsTerra" still works more often than not. In fact, Terra is a nickname that started out as a computer username in college 21 years ago.

Explanation of your avatar: haven't posted one yet - avatars are not my forte

Age (general or specific) early 40s

Occupation: administrative assistant at a well-known local engineering school

Favorite bike: not yet knowledgeable enough to say

What's in your stable? Specialized Sirrus hybrid - I think it's a good starter bike that can be a trusty commuter for a long time, but as I ride more and get better I'll be putting more thought into road bikes....

Fastest speed on a road bike? where? when? I've never had a speedometer/bike computer and will probably resist that trend for a while. I've already been accused of being a geek because I'm reading about cycling and looking at online cycling forums.

Another picture of yourself or your ride? Not until my bum gets a little smaller....

What is the biggest lie you've ever told: I want to be just like you, R---....

Most memorable moment on my bike: Learning clipless pedals, the Arte Johnson phase. Seems to be a common memorable moment around here. (On the other hand, my rotten husband just started riding clipless today - a few minutes in a parking lot, and then we were off on a ride, and he didn't fall once. B@st*rd...)

Most fun ever had on a bike? When I was cycling a decade ago, I would get up early on Sunday mornings and go out on the local rail trail. It was less congested at those times and I could get up some good speed for nice stretches.

[Trek420]

wow, lots of new faces. Welcome all the new TE'ers who haven't been officially welcomed yet.

[CarbonCandy]

Real name: Chelsea

Where do you live? Northern Illinois

Explanation of your handle: I've got a carbon road bike, and it's my rideable hard candy LOL :]

Explanation of your avatar: See above explanation

Age (general or specific) 19, such a youngin

Occupation: Art student, and bicycle retail

Favorite bike: Ehhhh, Trek Wasabi

What's in your stable? Trek 5000 and "no name frame" bike my dad built up for me

Fastest speed on a road bike? where? when? Perhaps 37ish? Country roads by mi casa

Another picture of yourself or your ride? Dont have any of those....

What is the biggest lie you've ever told: "No, Officer...."

Most memorable moment on my bike: Riding the Trails at Elroy Sparta, wi with my parents. I must have been no older that 6, and they brought the bike trailer along, and my dad put custom hooks on the back to carry my bike on when I was too tired to ride :]

Most fun ever had on a bike? The L.A.T.E Ride in Chicago. It gets better every year. This July will be my 11th time

[newridder]

Real name:
Where do you live? orlando, fl

Explanation of your handle: i am very new to ridding. wanted others on list to know i was new to ridding in case i did not use understandable language in my posts.

Explanation of your avatar: avatar??....thinking...

Age (general or specific) let's just say, i was thrilled to see that there were others born in the 50s

Occupation: professor

Favorite bike: my pink jamis

What's in your stable? jamis venturer

Fastest speed on a road bike? where? when? just learning, haven't clocked a speed

Another picture of yourself or your ride? I don't have very many pixs of myself - I hate having my pix taken


What is the biggest lie you've ever told: umm...

Most memorable moment on my bike: riding with my grand daughter, son, (son and grand daughter = 2 years difference in age) future mother-in-law, future step-son, fiance. it was a wonderful day, although my future mother-in-law never rode again after that day

Most fun ever had on a bike? riding

[newridder]

Real name:
Where do you live? orlando, fl

Explanation of your handle: i am very new to ridding. wanted others on list to know i was new to ridding in case i did not use understandable language in my posts.

Explanation of your avatar: avatar??....thinking...

Age (general or specific) let's just say, i was thrilled to see that there were others born in the 50s

Occupation: professor

Favorite bike: my pink jamis

What's in your stable? jamis venturer

Fastest speed on a road bike? where? when? just learning, haven't clocked a speed

Another picture of yourself or your ride? I don't have very many pixs of myself - I hate having my pix taken


What is the biggest lie you've ever told: umm...

Most memorable moment on my bike: riding with my grand daughter, son, (son and grand daughter = 2 years difference in age) future mother-in-law, future step-son, fiance. it was a wonderful day, although my future mother-in-law never rode again after that day

Most fun ever had on a bike? riding

[littlegrasshopp]

Real name: Meri
Where do you live? Cary, North Carolina

Explanation of your handle: I was a martial artist for much of my first 25 years and the guys I use to work with called me little grasshopper...the "er" wouldn't fit.

Explanation of your avatar: avatar??....you mean I could have an avatar??

Age (general or specific) 35

Occupation: Massage Therapist

Favorite bike: Cove Handjob.

What's in your stable? Handjob, Orbea Valata, and DH's 5 bikes

Fastest speed on a road bike? where? when? 36.5, NC, following DH down a hill! I didn't look at the time. When we rested, he asked how fast I'd gone. I was quite surprised!

Another picture of yourself or your ride? new ride - no pics yet. I have mtb pictures I will have to dig out from our honeymoon.


What is the biggest lie you've ever told: it doesn't matter, I'm just fine.

Most memorable moment on my bike: the day after a hydraulic break failure in the mountains I was talked into riding again by our entire camping/riding group. I was scared silly. I followed a beginner all day long and reminded her to look up, pedal, relax, and all the other advice I could think of. I said all the things to her that I needed to hear. It got me back on my bike and really helped my own feelings of security. It was a very important day!!

Most fun ever had on a bike? DH and I took my little nephew to Bald head Island. Only bikes and golf carts there. nephew was in a trailer that DH pulled. The little guy kept begging DH and I to race. We were exhausted by the end of the day!!! Our nephew is riding his own bike now, so it's time to take him back!
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