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“Hey, Ray!”

09.04.2012 by Ray Niekamp // 5 Comments

Pat and I were out for a short Labor Day ride. The weather was still nice in the morning, with a slight cooling breeze, and lots of cyclists were out and about in our area.

Whenever I encounter cyclists heading in the opposite direction, I give them a wave. Sometimes, they beat me to it. I was doing a lot of waving this morning.

But as two riders passed me heading the other way and I waved, one of them called out, “Hey, Ray!”

Huh? Who was that? I didn’t recognize the jersey. (Ever notice how that’s how you can pick out riders you know — because you know them by their jersey?) It was a black and white jersey. Not familiar to me at all. Of course, that really means nothing. I wear jerseys during the week that never see the weekends, and I’m sure other people have similar jersey-wearing patterns. After all, just a mile later I called back to Pat, “There’s Jerry and Maggie!” I could tell by their matching green jerseys. And their big blue tandem. No mistaking them.

It bothered me though, that I couldn’t recognize the other two guys. And it occurred to me that this kind of thing has been happening more often. Just a couple of weekends ago, I was riding southeast of town by myself when I waved at an oncoming rider. Sure enough, he called “Hey, Ray!” Who was that? Ah, that one I figured out. It was Ralph. He rides with the club occasionally. But by the time I figured out who he was, we were far apart.

I like to think I pay pretty good attention when I’m out riding, but lately it would seem that’s not the case. I mean, if I were paying attention, I would recognize these guys, wouldn’t I? Not necessarily. Mostly, I’m looking straight ahead while I’m riding, and when I wave, I’m not usually looking at the other rider. Maybe I should start. Here’s a new experiment: I’ll eyeball oncoming riders and try to recognize them. That way, maybe I’ll be the guy who’s calling out, “Hey —!”

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Categories // Odds 'n ends, Uncategorized Tags // cyclist

What kind of cyclist are you?

05.06.2010 by Ray Niekamp // 7 Comments

A little bit ago, I ran a post here called “Are You a Cyclist or a Biker?”  It got lots of response, but some folks thought that applying labels to ourselves is counter productive.

One reader answered the biker-cyclist question, but then posed one of his own — a better one, to my mind:

Better yet, what kind of cyclist are you? Over the holidays, I found that I had become a “care-taker” cyclist. I was going through the motions of a 30 mile ride without putting a whole lot of effort into it. Fortunately I snapped out of the lull and now enjoy “working” at it.

The serious cyclist.

That got me thinking. I hadn’t considered what kind of cyclist I am, because I always took it for granted. I ride a road bike, therefore I am a road biker.

But there are different kinds of road bikers. And I’ve got road biker friends who can’t wait to get dirty on mountain bikes. I’ve described myself as a “B” rider here — a charter member of the 15 mph club — but even that doesn’t answer the whole question.

Tweedy cyclists.

I’ve been a “caretaker” cyclist before. That’s not a lot of fun. I don’t race, except for the occasional time trial, when I’m racing against myself (Oh, all right, I do pay attention to certain guys’ times). I enjoy riding for distances, but I’m beginning to think that 100 miles is over doing it, and 100 kilometers might be just right. I’m not the most gregarious guy you’ll ever meet, but I do enjoy the social aspect of cycling, which is one reason I joined a club.

Mostly, I ride for fun and exercise. Notice I didn’t say fitness. I’d have to push myself harder to lose weight through cycling, but a one-hour ride can get me to sleep longer and deeper at night, can curb my appetite so I’m not eating so much, can slow my resting heart rate and lower my blood pressure.

The "oh my goodness" cyclist. (Liz Hatch.)

The fun of riding comes when I go places I haven’t been before, or when I’m with a group of like-minded congenial people, or when I push myself a little bit, and find that I’m up to the challenge.

I guess I’d call myself a “recreational” cyclist. If someone can provide a more descriptive term for the kind of riding I do, I’m open to your suggestion.

How about you? How would you describe your riding?

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Categories // Odds 'n ends Tags // cyclist

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