Rediscovering One's Inner Child

While on vacay this summer, hubster and I rode bikes all over an exotic island, mostly while inebriated, riding from bar to bar. This was the perfectly normal and socially acceptable thing to do, as all the bars had bike racks out front. We had so much fun that when we came home, I decided I needed to get back into bike riding. I rode a bike as a child and well into my teens/young adulthood- traveling far and wide, country and city. Then I became a working mom and got too busy and forgot about it somehow.

I spent a lot of time researching which bike was the best one for me  - I highly recommend Lance Armstrong's website, (regardless of whether or not you think he was a doper and should have his Tour de France medals stripped from him; it's not a website about him. It's about cycling as a hobby.) His website has tabs that discuss all kinds of bikes, riding styles/locales/preferences matched with suitable bike choices, what features to look for and why, many different brands considered and discussed. It's a great starting point for the novice; I'm sure advanced cyclists have other sources of info. In my case, I looked up beach cruiser bikes, comfort bikes, best bikes for old farts - all criteria that applies to me. I compared features, brands, models and settled on the one I wanted : The Electra "Townie" model 7D ( bc I need hand brakes not coaster brakes) .Then all I had to do was find a local dealer. More internet research, as the make/model I settled on is from California, and was not easy to find locally. But eventually I did, and soon came home with a bike eerily similar to one I had as a kid, only new and improved with better construction and features. Once, a few years back, I did buy a cheap no-name bike at Walmart, but never rode it bc it was so poorly constructed that it hurt to ride it. Made me feel clumsy and sore. This new bike rides like a dream, plus it's cute to boot.

 http://www.livestrong.com/article/227657-the-best-cruiser-bikes-for-women/

The most amazing thing about this to me is that, in spite of my many health problems that make it difficult for me to exercise and get around most days, getting back on a bike has been remarkably easy. My legs have "muscle memory" that, even though they have not been used for this purpose or in this way in over 25 years, instantly picked right up and knew what to do. It all felt reassuringly familiar. (That's why I need hand brakes bc I kept instinctively squeezing the handle bars to stop.....could never remember to pedal stop.) Hubster and I have been going on bike rides around the neighborhood....now all we need is to find a bar with a bike rack out front !

Where I bought my bike:
 http://planocycling.com/