Seven weeks from now I will be retired and I can start to realise some dreams. Or will they be nightmares? I have been made redundant but had planned to leave around now so the timing is good for me. At just 51 I am young enough to have a few years in me and I believe, hope, that I have sufficient funding. I should be fine. First really big target is the Great Divide a mountainbike route between Banff, Canada, to Antelope Wells on the Mexican / USA border. Race or tour? Not decided. Lets see how it goes.
Seven weeks
Wed, Aug 18, 2010 14:21
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1khannon 41 minutes ago
Believe it or not, Raleigh was a major cultural icon in the USA also - at least for serious cyclists of my age. My first geared bike was a Robin Hood three-speed. I longed for a Chopper, but it was never to be. Then, in 1970, my father bought himself a Raleigh Gran Sports. It was third in line of the racing bikes in the US catalog. Luckily for me, my father discovered that he was afraid of cars. So in 1974, when I was 13, he gave that bike to me. I became obsessed. It had 531 tubing. It was chrome. I was in love. I eventually ended up road racing from the late 1978-1982. Then I moved to NYC to be a junior "executive" (a YUPPIE). I left that bike with my parents in the suburbs where it would be safe and bought a series of NYC-safe bikes - two of which were stolen. That bike had legs. I eventually started riding it again in the 2000s once I was in the suburbs. Eventually it sat and rusted. Finally in 2017 I started a restoration project to resurrect it into a city bike. It took two years to complete. That bike is still with me today. My faithful Raleigh. When I ride it, I am in love.
Smoggysteve 3 hours ago
@Rendel Harris I watched him at the world champs in Glasgow and he was never going to win but he still kept going around waving to fans and has always been a top pro who appreciates the fans.
chrisonabike 7 hours ago
Absolutely. And cycle ball (Radball). One for fixie fans. Oh, sorry, that should be on cycleball.cc ...
kevgravelkev 7 hours ago
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ktache 8 hours ago
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60somethingcyclist 9 hours ago
Having experienced the near lunatic kind of driving that Italy has I think he'd be better off regulating cars. I would be surprised if there wasn't some way of over-ruling this measure, either through the local council or the regional government.
Rendel Harris 10 hours ago
@mdavidford And bicycle polo. Why isn't there more coverage of bicycle polo on here?
kevgravelkev 10 hours ago
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4 thoughts on “Seven weeks”
Best of luck Blackhound, a
Best of luck Blackhound, a world of riding awaits!
I am in the same situation
I am in the same situation Blackhound, although not quite retired, I was made redundant about 6 weeks ago, but I’m fairly financially stable (no mortgage or debts), so I’m aiming to get into the bike industry, but am finding it hard to be in a great rush.
We’ll have to get together for that ride we talked about last year, before I end up finding myself employment. Early retirement is calling me, but at 45 it may be just a bit too early.
My best mate is yearning to do the Great Divide too, he did the Cape Epic a few years ago (before they made it easy he likes to point out!), and thinks this is his next big one, so best of luck if you do decide to do it.
Kevin, is that you ?
If not
Kevin, is that you ?
If not then never mind :-0
if it is well
how much of a coincidence !
I’m being made redundant at some point in the next year and intending to take a year off, Great Divide is top of my list, followed by a very wiggly LEJOG, and then looking for work
If things work out I’m looking to go at the end of April next year, hopefully see you on the trail 🙂
I’m in exactly the opposite
I’m in exactly the opposite position. After being made redundant last year I took full advantage of the extra free time I had by riding at every opportunity – mainly to prepare for this summer’s Race Against Time LEJOG, which was one of the best experiences of my life.
Now, perhaps partly because I spent a little too much time cycling and not enough earning money, I’m contemplating a sheepish return to the job market and an almost inevitable falling away of cycling opportunities. Ah well, no regrets…I wouldn’t have swapped this last year for anything.