Perfect Weather, Perfect rides

I am so happy to have my bikes out of storage and to be able to ride the roads and trails again. The weather for the past 2 weeks has been absolutely ideal--in the 70s during the day, and most nights not even dropping to freezing. (For those of you who don't live in the north country, that may not seem that thrilling, but for Vermont it is absolutely awesome!)

I live in a rural area where dirt roads are the norm. My street is one long dirt road filled with pot holes and hills.

There are bike paths near by, but I have to drive to them, so I try to arrange rides when I have to go into town on other business. I drive an 8 year old van that, in the spring, summer, and fall, always has one or two bikes in the back. I keep my helmet and gloves in the car, too, because I don't want to be caught without. I digress--back to riding near home.

To get at least a little exercise every day, which I try to do and which I am usually loathe to initiate, even when it's doing something I love, I have started riding my electric assist bike on my road.

I have to tell you, as much as I love my traditional bikes, electric assists are a godsend for a big person like me who lives in the hills of a place like Vermont. here's what's amazing--I can ride up hills on my bike! If it's a steep one I will huff and puff a bit, but I can do it. I'm just not in good enough shape to ride a traditional bike up hills--I usually collapse about half way up. Understand that I firmly believe that there is absolutely nothing wrong with walking your bike up a hill, it's just that I don't like to do it. I love the speed and weight-relief of a bike, and I'd much rather ride it than walk it, thank you very much.

My electric assist feels like a dirty little secret to me. At www.SuperSizedCyles.com I sell traditional bikes as well as electric assists, and I love them all. But really, for a person of size, the electric assist is just so much easier. It's a little bit of insurance in the big, bad world of hills!

Speaking of which, I"m off for a ride......