My Beautiful New Townie Electra Bike

My brand new coral Townie

 My new bike finally arrived at the bike store today!  I went to pick it up and had to leave it in the truck for a few hours because it was so hot and humid, with an extreme heat warning.  But just before 8, when the heat had lowered to 95 degrees (from 100 with the humidex), I couldn't wait any longer. I took my ventolin, grabbed my keys, camera, and an ice cold bottle of water, and pulled my new bike out of the truck.  I put my little blue bike purse on the handle bars, facing me so I could easily take my camera, puffer, and water out, and away we (the bike and I) went.

Map of first bike ride route

 I started just by going up my street, then turned around and went the other way down the street, and over to Connaught, which is a long quiet neighbourhood street.

 The apartments at the end of Connaught freaked me out because I recently dreamed about them.  I haven't been to the end of this street since I was a little girl, so I either forgot this building existed or it's never and I never knew; not sure, but i was shocked to see it.  Even the weird pavement on the street was the same as my dream.  The only difference was, in the dream, there was a river or lake next to the building, instead of this field. 

 I walked my bike across the path because I was worried about falling. It was my fist time out.  This is the only portion that I walked.

My beautiful new bike

Graffiti on the bridge

My beautiful coral Townie

More graffiti

 From there i biked to my cousin Jeffrey's old neighborhood, past his old childhood home, and the creek where we used to play.

East Balfour, Jeffrey's old street

Sun starting to set

 I passed this school, where Jeff and I, and later Laurie, Maria, and I, used to walk in and do arts and crafts and play in the gym in summers when we were kids.  I don't know what kind of program it was, but they welcomed kids off the street. It was amazing.  The sun was starting to set at this point, but I decided to keep going, as it doesn't get dark until 10 PM at this time of year.

Beautiful clouds

 I really enjoyed biking in this area. It is so cute and quaint, and like being in the country, even though it's city.  I've always wanted to live in that neighbourhood.

The end of the street, where I turned around and went back

I would have liked to have gone farther but I knew I had to get home before dark as I don't have lights on my bike, or reflectors even, yet.  I have them; just didn't put them on the bike yet.  So I turned around at this point and headed toward home.

I smiled the whole way til this point, but the ride home was not as comfortable because the breeze went away and it was so hot and muggy that sweat was pouring down my face, my body, and even my hands were wet. I had to keep stopping to dry my hands because they were slipping off the handle bars.  The seat was making itself known as well, lol, and i must have been gripping the handle bars too tightly because my left hand kept getting pins and needles, and needed to be shaken out.

I did almost 4 miles (6.02 km) and I loved it but perhaps that was too much for the first time out, especially given the heat.

The bike though, rode like a dream, and I wasn't scared every time I had to stop like I was on the bike my uncle gave us.  The Townie is a crank forward bike, which means the pedals are set forward and not directly under the seat, which allows the seat to be low enough to touch the pavement with my feet while seated, but still leaves enough room to extend the legs for pedaling.  It reminded me of riding my banana seat bike, when I used to sit far back on the seat and lean against the sissy bar (I leaned against my basket on my Townie, lol).  I haven't experienced such a nice bike ride since I was a kid.  It was such an enjoyable experience.  If it wasn't midnight right now, I'd take it out again.

I am so grateful to my best friend, Laurie, for giving me the money to buy this bike. She said she has owed me the money for years now, and was happy to basically buy the bike for me.  I don't even remember loaning her the money.

This bike is the best thing that has happened to me for a very long time.  I love it so much.  I can't wait to take it out again.  I burned 576 calories in 75 minutes today, according to the tracker on Sparkpeople!  And i had a blast doing it!

Bikes

I have been walking regularly for over 2 months, and can push Mac in his stroller for an hour now.  That's the good news. The bad news is that I am in pain, a lot.  Mostly my legs, but also my neck and back.  My doctor suggested I ride a bike, which should build up my leg muscles without putting stress on my joints.

My old mountain bike, which I used to ride for 30 km per trip is way to uncomfortable for me.  I can't bend over and ride any more, not with my neck issues.

My uncle Buck gave this cool upright bike to my Mom and I.

Jeep bike

 Isn't it a great looking bike?  It's an older Jeep Cruiser, 8 speeds.  I cleaned it up, took it for a few rides, and find it better than my mountain bike, but very difficult to pedal and balance on.

 It has lovely balloon tires which should make for a nice ride, but somehow it doesn't help.  When I ride, the entire bike shakes and wobbles and makes so much noise. 

The seat is uncomfortable, and the hand grips hurt, but the worst thing is my balance.  I have to put the seat up so I can extend my leg to pedal, but then I'm so high up that I can't reach the ground.  I hoped I'd get used to it; that it was just a matter of being out of practice, but in the meantime I googled balance and bikes and found out there's a bike called the Townie by electra, that has the pedal crank pushed forward so that you can sit on the seat, with your feet reaching the ground, and still pedal and extend your legs.

It sounded too good to be true, but I found one at our local bike shop and went for a test drive and OMG, what a huge difference.  It was soooo very comfortable, but even better, felt safe and secure and stable. 

I've been trying to get used to this Jeep bike for 3 weeks now, while thinking about the Electra Townie, and dreaming about it.  The price was the only problem; I"m on a fixed income and the bike is expensive.

Then I told my best friend about it and she told me to buy it.  One of her friends just died from cancer; she was at the funeral yesterday.  Two more of her friends were just diagnosed.  She said life is too short; she would definitely buy the bike.  Then she reminded me that she owes me money; enough to buy the bike with some left over for a helmet and light and accessories.

So, I'm going to get a brand new bike, one that I can ride and feel safe and comfortable on.  One that will allow me to build up the muscles in my legs and hopefully help me to lose weight.

This is the one I hope to get; either in this color, or in powder blue:

Townie Electra

I really love this coral color.

My Mom is screaming and swearing and life here is unbearable, so it will be nice to have a bike so I can get out and about and get some exercise to boot.