But, this time, it’s sort of a bicycling journal. I want to accomplish a couple of things:

1. I want to be able to look back over the years and see trends in my journey as a cyclist.
2. I want to be able to share my experiences as a cyclist, and hopefully connect with other more experienced cyclists and learn from them.
3. I hope that in some way I can encourage others who are interested in using cycling as either a commuting method, exercise or lifestyle change by sharing my own experiences.
4. I hope to be able to help educate cyclists and non-cyclists about the real dangers of cycling, and how to properly handle, and hopefully completely avoid, those dangers.

Frankly, I’m an odd duck. And not just when it comes to cycling…ask anyone who knows me. As far as cycling goes, I’m not your typical racing/exercise enthusiast. I’m what I like to think of as a “lifestyle cyclist”. By that, I mean I ride a bicycle as a means of transportation, including everything from going to my parents for Christmas, babysitting my sisters kids and picking up the groceries. If I can’t use my bicycle to accomplish it, then I seriously consider whether it’s even worth doing. I also like to ride my bike as an exercise tool, and I enjoy racing with some of the guys in our local bike club.

I live in Northeast Indiana, so I have had the opportunity to try to incorporate a bicycle into my life in a variety of seasonal weather, including rain, hail, snow and suffocating humidity. And, most of the time I do this in street clothes…i.e. heavy blue jeans and a button up shirt (It really sucks when it’s humid!).

It’s been interesting. There have been days that have been so miserable, I wonder what drug I must have been taking when I thought this lifestyle change was a good idea. On the other hand, there are days that are so much fun, and such a blast, that I can ever imagine how I could ever get frustrated. All in all, it has been great, and I wouldn’t go back and change a thing. I’m looking forward to many more years having a blast on a bicycle in Indiana!

I don’t really have a schedule for posting…I’m kind of thinking that every time I do a long exercise ride, I’m going to journal the ride with statistics and things I noticed throughout the ride. Outside of that, I want to try to publish something about once a week…but no guarantees. Most of the weekly posts will be about the everyday cycling: what to wear when it gets cold, how to deal with the sweat during the summer, are helmets important…things along those lines. I might, if there is anyone out there reading this other than me, consider fielding questions, or having comment driven discussions…because, frankly, I’m still learning about bicycling too.

Well, so much for a boring first post. I guess I’ll just have to see where this thing goes!