Too Fat to Ride??? (Gear shifting problem)

[Biciclista]

and she hasn't returned.

[AutumnBreez]

You may also get some relief if your seat gets positioned correctly? Purhaps it is positioned all the way forward and needs to be slid back?

[pardes]

and she hasn't returned.

Apparently not. Maybe we scared her with so many answers! You guys scared me a little in the beginning. A community of "problem solvers" is something to behold and a little awesome at times.

[malkin]

Maybe she's just out riding her bike!

[planetluvver]

I will update my e-mail address to my current one, so I actually see the subscription notifications! But a new post caught my attention. (I use this address for mostly low priority things. However, I intend cycling to be a high priority for me.

Yes, my shifters are like those in the picture Xeney posted, that she called stem shifters. A cycling friend suggested that I switch them to be mounted on my tube. I do not want to buy a new bike right now, unless I luck into a bargain at the thrift store. But I guess it can't hurt to browse at bike shops, and see what is out there.

My next purchases will likely be rain gear and baskets or bags. ( I am getting tired of strapping my backpack onto the rack with bungee cords.) I have slowed down my expectations of riding quite a bit, and so I am paying more attention to what I am doing. I am dismounting and walking across the street more often, and just trying to feel more comfortable with my bike. (Though, I guess I haven't ridden in about a week, Oops!)

THank you all for your supportive remarks. I am glad that I am not the only woman who has had this problem. I think the bike fits me pretty well, though I am not really sure.

[wackyjacky1]

Yay, she came back!

Count me as another vote for bar-end shifters. I absolutely love mine.

Good luck, keep ridin', and let us know how it's going.

[Biciclista]

Yay! she's back!

And did I hear you say you are cruising thrift shops for bikes? This stuff is addictive you know

[planetluvver]

Thanks, gals for thinking about me!

I was thinking of moving the shifters lower down, onto the bike frame. (I think this was a popular spot to place the shifters. But noone has suggested that placement, so perhaps I need to look into the bar-end shifters. I will probably rejoin the PSU (Portland State University) Bike Coop, so I can have some hand-holding. I do not understand WHY I am such a wimp when it comes to working on my bike.

Though, maybe I shouldn't be so hard on myself, I remember as a kid, that all the guys who worked on their cars would have a bunch of other people hanging around, in fact, working on the car was probably an excuse for hanging out in the garage, and drinking beer.

What I REALLY need is to clean out the garage. There is still some automobile related clutter in the garage, as well as general clutter. And I haven't owned a car for several years now!