Is the biking bug conagious?

[Bike Chick]

How wonderful, skhill! I would love it if my brother would catch the biking bug so we could spend time together enjoying a common interest. I can only imagine how tempting it would be to drop him--especially if he picked on you when you were growing up! Enjoy

[sgtiger]

That's really great!

[korora]

Yes, it's contagious, but the incubation period can be very long. DH and I commuted on our bikes in the Bay Area for years, mostly to the bafflement of his family. We left the country; now both his brothers are commuting by bike at least a couple of days a week, and both their spouses have recently acquired bikes.

The bug comes and goes, too. Until recently, I hadn't biked for months. Now I seem to be in some sort of acute phase of the affliction.

[tzvia]

Yes my brother saw me in the throws of this terrible illness, displaying it's worst symptoms, buying two bikes, back in 08. Well he started out dusting off his old Faggin road bike (old Columbus tubed Italian made bike) and riding with me. Then he got really sick, and bought a Specialized Tarmac and a Trek Fuel EX8. Now he is working on restoring the old Faggin (pronounced Fah-zhine). So not only am I dealing with the weight loss, not 'being out of breath' climbing stairs, better sleep, more energy, better mental clarity, lower heart rate, lower blood pressure and better muscle definition, but he is too. We are both doomed .

[runningcyclist]

Good stories there. Unfortunately I've not managed to infect anyone in my family but I live in hope

[buffybike]

I actually liked having my "illness" all to myself (is that selfish?). I guess my DH got jealous of all the fun I was having and now he has the bug, too. I wouldn't mind so much except that he feels that he must have all the BEST equipment and has recently begun giving me training advice. Grrr.

[skhill]

An update on the progress of my brother's biking infection: he just got his first pair of bike shorts... and he's already lusting after a new bike. So far, he's resisting, keeping in mind the expense and the lack of storage space in his apartment, but that won't last long...

And he decided he wanted to see what a proper road bike felt like, so I let him try out my beloved old cannondale. I wish I'd had my camera handy-- the bike verges on being a bit small for me, and my brother's about 9 inches taller than me. No wonder he thought it felt twitchy and uncomfortable!

We have gone out on a ride together, btw. I rode my own fx to even things out, and didn't drop him. Except on a couple climbs (being so much smaller than him was such an advantage I just *had* to sprint on up)...

[esmorin]

I actually liked having my "illness" all to myself (is that selfish?).

This. I was enjoying it too. I wanted it to be 'my thing' that he couldn't have. but then my husband started getting into it too. I don't mind him having a bike (I encourage everyone to have one!!), but he started talking like a 'cool' mountain biker (whatever that is, I just know you 'bomb' down stuff, and 'fly'...you don't ever 'ride'..haha) and like he knew everything about bikes...and has put only a fraction of my time investment into it. It really bugs me. And I am so glad that you said this...it validates my feelings. So, thank you.