What got you into biking?

[MartianDestiny]

I've been a cyclist for 5 years. Can't say I had the purest of reasons for getting into it. Quite simply cycling (specifically mountain biking) was a replacement for the horses that I could no longer afford while in college.

I now road bike as well and have 4 bikes. I will say they do eat less and their "vet bills" aren't quite as expensive as the horse's. Still more than I bargained for when I traded one set of saddles for the other!

[Zen]

I live on a popular cycling route and thought "hey, I want to do that"
And here I am.

[sarahspins]

I live on a popular cycling route and thought "hey, I want to do that"
And here I am.

Yeah, that's kind of where I am.. lol I live in the middle of nowhere I could see myself cycling a LOT more just to run regular errands.

I biked a LOT in my teens following rehab on my right knee. I used to regularly commute to work (6 miles each way) before I had a car. I still occasionally commuted on my bike when the weather was good... I have no idea how many miles I put on my bike during those years, but it was just a department store bike... and after her boyfriend took the shifters completely apart and "rebuilt" them, I gave it to my roommate when I was 18 - she didn't have a car and needed it sooo much more than I did. I really missed it though... but by the time I really started to think about another bike (maybe a year or so later?), I was pregnant with my oldest kid and money was tight, so it was just not a priority. When he was about 5 months old I bought a Kelty and we hiked a lot though.. so I definitely didn't feel like all I did was sit around all day on the sofa. We bought him his first bike just before he turned 3, and within 6 months, he was riding it all over the house, so we took the training wheels off to stop him. Exactly one week later he was still riding it all over the house.. with NO training wheels. He was just 3 years and, 4 months old.

A few months after that I bought myself another department store bike and rode it a few times.. never really quite got the bug then, but I got pregnant shortly after, and the bike really wasn't suited for what I wanted to do, so it pretty much sat in our barn unused... by the time I was interested in riding it again I got pregnant with our 3rd child, so it sat still. When I pulled it out a few months ago, nothing on it worked, and I realized how unhappy I had been with it anyways..so I started thinking about buying another bike. I rode DH's department store MTB a few times.. and it was enough to let me know that his bike definitely wouldn't work for me, so I googled bike fit, and opened pandora's box..... I instantly doubled my bike budget, and set out to learn more about what I was getting into... and that was that.. lol

I already want to either get my DH a better bike, or by myself a road bike and give him my hybrid.... his bike sucks, and I think he'd enjoy himself more if he wasn't struggling on a bike that doesn't really fit and makes it more work to ride than it should be.

[jodz1984]

for me it started when i was riding to tin-pin bowling and a teenager and my husband was trying to beat me and they couldn't. so i went into the two LBS that we have in town and enquired about road bikes, then got on ebay and bought myself a nice full carbon fibe bike that had hardly been ridden for the basically the same price as they said they'd sell me a decent road bike. so a week went after i got them to check over it for me to learn how to change gears and ride the thing and then i went on a easy "beginner" 30km bike ride with the shop's group, 47kms later i got home, stuffed of course, and i was hooked. i haven't looked back since, although it has only been about 4 months. i am extremely suprised what 4 months can do for someone cycling. i am constantly been asked by ppl i haven't ridden with before if i race. next year i will be starting to do road racing and in september i'll be doing track cycling. amazing the transformation just from beating a couple of guys while riding somewhere on my mountain bike.

[leathela]

I've recently (in the past several months) gotten back into riding. I used to love riding when I was younger (especially mountain biking...living in a *very* hilly and wooded area of Upstate New York, I had the optimal location), but gradually allowed it to fall by the wayside when I became more interested in cross-country running. Ten years later, I'm an avid runner who has unfortunately been sidelined by a recurring hamstring injury. My sports physician has made it very clear that, for the next year, I cannot run my typical mileage, at my typical pace. At first this news was extremely disheartening, as I've always identified myself as a runner. One very good thing came out of my doctor's prescription, though: I've rediscovered my love of cycling. I haven't owned a bike in years (I stuck pretty much exclusively to spinning), and recently bought a Specialized Myka Pro, which I love. I think I may want to get a dedicated road bike at some point, too--I'm looking at Dolce. In any event, what got me (back) into biking was a mandatory hiatus from running. And in some very strange, completely unanticipated way, I'm happier than I've been in a long time! Biking is not only a wonderful means of maintaining and increasing your fitness, it's also incredibly fun. I see myself staying with it for the rest of my life.

[VeganBikeChick]

I had a 10 speed when I was a kid but barely rode it, my neighborhood was very hilly and even then didn't want to expend energy ;P.

However, when my dream of moving to Australia came true in February 2010, I wanted a way to get back and forth to work without walking long distances (and not having a car/not knowing public transit), so I bought a bike in the States and brought it with me. That really got me into cycling, although I only did short distances there.

I moved back to the US in August 2010 and have been craving a bike ever since (sold my old bike in Oz), so finally got one at the beginning of last month. And the continuous rain has done nothing to motivate me to get out there. Maybe if there's some sun in August?

[Velocivixen]

I was the last of 5 much older siblings and I wanted a bike for a long time. But we were poor. One day in the 5th grade I came home and my parent had purchased a "boys" used bike which was dark purple with a black banana seat and a lot of big silver handle bars and a rear "slick" racing tire. I LOVED it! It was my excape, my freedom, my entertainment, my adventure to neighborhoods far away from where I was from. At age 13 my older sister had purchased a brand new Schwinn Le Tour 10 speed road bike and didn't like it, so my mother bought it from her for me to have. I rode it to and from school every day for about 6 years! No lights, no fenders, no helmet or waterproof clothes (this was in 1977). I rode that bike until my early 20's when it was stolen. I then bought a used 1960's era Schwinn that weighed a ton and only one speed with coaster brakes. I rode that until I was 25 or so. I got a car so riding was no longer needed for transportation. Three inappropriate (for me) bikes later I now have a 6 month old Trek FX 7.3 WSD and I LOVE it! I've ridden my current bike more in the past 6 months than I rode my last 3 bikes all together. I'm already hankering for a road bike. Riding makes me feel free and alive. It takes me away from everything and I can breathe...and smell...and see with a different clarity. Hard to explain. It's my fun and my adventure.

[redrhodie]

Heh, this is funny. I thought cycling would be cheaper than joining a gym. I thought I'd buy a $500 used bike and be set forever. I know, it can be done, but not by me! I had no idea I'd end up with a bike for every occasion.

[Bike Writer]

Riding makes me feel free and alive. It takes me away from everything and I can breathe...and smell...and see with a different clarity. Hard to explain. It's my fun and my adventure.

This is exactly why I keep riding, but why I started is because I needed something physical to do to replace things like waterskiing and excessive golf when I began to have knee problems. I used to be a rider years ago and as a kid, so I knew it would be ok with my knee issues.

[Lesley_x]

I got diagnosed with an autoimmune condition a couple of years ago causing fatigue + joint pain. One day I got fed up and decided I needed to take up some form of exercise to combat it, as it was getting the better of me. I tried running but my knees and feet couldn't handle it, so I figured cycling was a good low impact sport to try.

A very expensive venture but very worthwhile.

I also want to get fit and lose weight, but these are secondary to improving my health.

[irrealised]

Quite simply cycling (specifically mountain biking) was a replacement for the horses that I could no longer afford while in college.

Me too, sorta. I managed to hang onto my horse through college, it was after graduation when I had to choose which one of us I would support. Luckily I found my horse a great home, and took a break from all sports. That didn't last too long before I decided I really needed a sport/hobby, and thought that mountain biking might be fun.

Really that was it - I like going out on trails (by horse, hiking, however), so mountain biking seemed like a natural thing to try, and I loved it from the beginning. I'm still not sure how I feel about road riding though. Commuting and running errands by bike is great, but one of the the things I love about MTBing is how dynamic it is - uphill, downhill, over stuff, and under stuff! Road riding is just so different... if I ever really get into it, it will definitely be because I started out MTBing though!