Does anyone JUST ride for fun (and some exercise)?

[MyLitespeed]

I'm not competitive and don't want to be (I'm to old). I just enjoy getting on my bike and riding 25 - 30 miles around where I live.

About once a week I will get together with some friends and we will cycle somewhere (about the same mileage).

Sometimes I'm really hard on myself because I'm not competitive and can't (even if I wanted to), keep up with most riders. I find I'm in sort of a "no man's land" when it comes to cycling.

I can out climb some people but certainly can't keep up a fast pace with most people. I don't want to ride with people who are REALLY slow 8 - 9 mph and only ride for 5 miles. That leaves me with very few options when it comes to riding partners.

The ladies I do ride with are very tolerant of my slowness and will wait up for me at certain points in the ride. My average speed is usually around 11 mph. I find myself riding alone more and more, which most of the time I don't mind.

I try and remember that I should just tell myself "are you having a good time?"

[Karma007]

I ride quite a bit, just for fun. While I'm not overly competitive, I do enjoy pushing the limits sometimes of what I think I can do, if I'm feeling up to it. Other times I put on my cutoffs and converse sneakers,and cruise downtown for lunch, or something like that. I feel each kind of ride fits a need. I enjoy group riding, but haven't done much of it lately, it can be tricky to coordinate some times.

[Biciclista]

me, me, me.
I was talking to a coworker who also commutes to work and he was telling me how when he rides he always keeps his heart above a certain rate. Boy, that didn't sound fun to me at all!

There are lots of older people who ARE really competitive, but i'm not one of them. I like to ride and I do it for exercise. and you know, after you start bike commuting, it starts feeling like a hassle to get into your car instead of riding your bike!

[Kalidurga]

This was my problem last year. I read too many articles, and too many posts here , about training, speed, cadence, you name it. I began getting way too serious about my riding and didn't enjoy it enough. I haven't been on the bike since October, but I'm getting ready to do my annual Spring Cleaning of the bike in preparation for warm weather. One thing I'm going to do in order to get back into the right mind set--- remove my computer. It might drive me crazy to not know my speed and distance, but I'm gonna give it a try.

This is what inspired me:

[ny biker]

I ride for fun.

I average 13-16 mph depending on the hilliness of the route. I am ridiculously slow going up hills. If I'm riding with a group, I'm still usually riding alone for the most part, with the faster riders dropping me and hopefully at least one person back behind me somewhere. I stopped worrying about getting dropped a long time ago.

I do keep track of things like how far I've gone, average speed, cadence, etc., but that's mostly because I'm a geek and I like to keep track of things. I set certain goals, like finishing a ride with a certain average speed or within a certain time, but they're based on my own abilities, not anyone else's.

[redrhodie]

I've been working towards the goal of riding for life, too! Thanks so much for posting that article! I'm already doing almost everything on it. I got similar advice from a book I read a few months ago, I think it was called "Cycling Bliss".

My riding buddy is getting too fast for me. I told her today she's going to have to make our rides together her easy rides. They'll still be my hard rides, I'm sure!

So, you're not alone. Keep having a good time!

[Miranda]

One thing I'm going to do in order to get back into the right mind set--- remove my computer.

My bike computer wasn't working exactly right at the same time I started riding post some surgery recovery. Quite out of shape. It was so depressing thinking about where I was before, and what I could do upon return. So, I just ditched all of my tech toys. Computer, Polar HRM... went 'back to basics' as they say. I suddenly was no longer depressed. I just knew that if was sweating, pedaling out my best effort, and still got a fly by view of the cute baby goats on my favorite route... bike life was good. Being clean bar can be a really liberating thing.

[gingerale]

F&F rider...that's me! Fun and fitness, that is. I have participated in a few organized rides that I enjoyed and look forward to doing some more. But I'm not a member of any cycling group. I go out on my own...or when my parents come to visit (or I go there) then my dad and I ride together. My mom joins us, too, when they're here and my boys are in school. I enjoy riding at my own pace, pushing myself where I want or need to, and just enjoy being outdoors and getting in some exercise.

[tzvia]

Yep for fun and fitness! When nothing else worked, all those fitness DVD's and funky hardware (had that big ball thingie, the waist twisty thingie and all kinds of 'slim in 6' DVDs) and nothing takes weight and inches off faster than my bikes! And I get to be outside and take them on vacations too. Lost about 30lbs since last July without 'dieting' (evil word it is). Twenty more to go and I will weigh what I weighed 25 years ago! I now weigh what I weighed 10 years ago and smile while I do it! It's like a way-back machine (weigh-back?). . In Novenber I turn 50, and I look better than I did when I turned 40 (feel better too)!

[shootingstar]

I wouldn't even know what my heart rate is supposed to be within my training level. Though, I've read about this from other people's experiences. I'm still alive aren't I?

I've never used a heart monitor. And I've been cycling regularily since 1992.
Unless I am diagnosed with a heart problem, I don't think I will be using any heart monitor to improve myself.

I took off my cyclometer around..hmm...1998 or before. First few years, I kept a cycling journal that tracked my mileage. didn't make notes of my average speed. So this motivational technique did stoke my cycling passion when the mileage piled up annually.

But later, I just kept forgetting to look at the cyclometer after finishing a ride. Then forgetting to remove it regularily. That's when I decided to remove it...period.

I just ride...because it always feel better to ride..no matter what distance and regardless of my pace.

[luv'nAustin]

I ride for fun! Ok, I'll admit it, fitness too!! But I like to ride my pace and with people that ride my pace as well. Too slow and it's boring and tedious. Too fast and I lose confidence.

[tctrek]

I ride for fun... at my age it better be fun or I'll just quit I am also riding for fitness and to spend more time with my DH. I used to be a bike widow because he was gone all the time on his bike. Now I go with him. He's very patient with my slowness and coaches me up these nasty, nasty hills in Georgia. My kingdom for a flat road to ride on!

Here's a tip - if you ride with a friend who likes to go fast and you can't keep up, ask them to ride in a bigger gear and that will slow them down. They'll still get a workout, but you'll be able to keep up with them! That's what I do with my DH.

[melissam]

I admit it, I'm a Type A person when it comes to riding. Nothing motivates me to ride like having a cycling goal and a structured training program to reach my goal. And yes, I love my heart rate monitor! I also love my cycle-computer, cadence, and altimeter!

Nevertheless, I'm having a great time while I ride. I love the scenery, the challenge of getting up whatever hill it is I'm climbing, the funky conversations that come up with my riding partners, seeing someone else's confidence or ability improve on the bike.

Having the structure gets me out there so I can enjoy the ride. I'm the first to admit that the kind of structure I like would drive a lot of people crazy. But I do know that when I'm riding "just because it's fun," I tend to find other things that are fun and stay off the bike.

I guess the bottom line is that you need to figure out what works for you to keep cycling a fun hobby. Please, please, please don't read about the exploits of us Type A's and think that it's what you need to do to be a "real" cyclist.

[OakLeaf]

I ride for fun.

I won't worry about you being "too slow for me" if you don't worry about me being "too fast for you." I'm way too slow for other people.

[ASammy1]

Ooh, Ooh! Me too. I just ride for fun and fitness. No racing for me!