OK since half of us here are into cycling....
 

What kind of bike are you currently riding. I'm embarrassed to say this in front of Archaea because his bike probably cost about as much as my truck, but here goes:

I'm currently riding on a Lemond Alp d'huez. The componentry is Shimano 105's (Archaea just cringed, I know it). I actually sought out a steel frame as the roads here take you to beautiful places, but they also give you quite a beating. Overall, I love my bike. It has taken me safely through several century rides and I'll be doing one again on Sept. 10th. I do look forward to upgrading though but I'll probably wait at least one more season.

i have a question.....
 

about cycling.

so im a bigger dude, im not fat, im just big. i try to ride a bike and it just kills me, yet i can run like 4 miles easily....

it hurts my butt bad when i ride....

Re: i have a question.....
 

You have to ride for a couple of weeks before you get used to the saddle. That goes away.

i love getting....
 

out of the saddle....

ive been kind of going to a cycling class and the hot instructer tells me to get out of the saddle all the time....

this hot blond, sweaty, screaming at me, wearing tight spandex....

makes me get out of the saddle real quick.

more properly, it hurts your 'taint'. You need to build your taint up. Meaning that there are muscles in your perineum that will cushion the weight. Ride a little more each time, and you will not have pain.

If you tried to sit on a bike for 3 hours without having done it before, you would have severe pain.

Make sure you have a decent saddle. If you have sleepy peepee that's a bad thing.

This would make a hell of a t-shirt.

yo....
 

i didnt sign up for no sleepee peepee....

what does that mean?

Bikes
 

I am a cannondale loyalist. Not sure why. I think it's becasue I am what is not-so-affecitoanely known in biking circles as a 'Clydesdale" (you figure it out) and I fell in love with Cannondale's non-whippy stiff frames. SO, I ride:

a Cannondale Crit frame (from the 80s; Shimano 600 which is Ultegra before it was called Ultegra);

a Cannondale T2000, which is a touring frame and my favorite all-rounder, it is very stable, very conmfrotable, very versatile;

A cannondale Jekyll MtB, full suspension, headshock, xtr, lots of fun to bomb down a mountain with;

a Cannondale Mt2000 tandem, which my wife and I use both on and off road;

and a couple of leftover strays, such as an old univega mtb, which is my bad weather commuter, and an old Trek mtb frame that my son has inherited.

Our newest purchase is oging to be (it is almost completed) a Santana triple with S&S couplers and travel cases. This will allow my wife and I and our 7 year old to ride together and allow us to easily take the tandem (it is a Cabrio so it converts from triple to tandem) when we travel. Plus, the triple/tandem is a road bike, so it gives us a little more versatility than our Cannie tandem, which is an off-road frame.

This does not include the bikes for the other members of my family.

My garage looks like a used bike shop.

fuz: here's the key
 

Get a good set of biking shorts, don't get the cheapest.

Next get a good, narrow seat. Wider seats are for women, as their "taint" needs different support and it will impact your pedal stroke as well.

Finally, you need to build up your time in the saddle. Getting out of the saddle is more to gain power and to stretch the legs. Seated power riding is also good.

To answer what I ride, and it's 90% rider, 10% machine, I always half joke, I need a new engine on my bike.

Currently I ride as a roadie a Fondriest carbon bike, Durace Shimano componetry, Speedplay pedals. TriBike is a Quintana Roo, ty bike, Durace Componetry. and considering others, don't tell the wife.

As to Fusnik's inquiry
 

First, there is simply no substitute for time in the saddle. My wife is in great aerobic shape but before we ride centuries she always has to haveat least a few rides in the weeks before to build her, ahem, 'taint' endurance. This is true for everyone. It cannot be avoided.

Second, you must find a saddle that fits YOU. Narrow seats may be the naswer, although I think it depends a lot on what type of riding you are going to do and on your particulr bone structure.

On my touring frame I use a Brooks B17 which is wider than most racing saddles but narrower than most womnen's saddles. It is suspended hard leather (no padding) and it is, hands down, the most comfrtable saddle I have. If you are going to be in the saddle for hours at a time for days in a row, I strongly encourage you to look at the various Brooks models.

If you are going to race or at least ride like you are training to race, then a narrow saddle might do the trick. Go to a place like Perfromance Bike, which will let you buy a saddle, try it out and then exhcnage it for another one (paying only the price differnce), repeatedly, untill you find one you like.

Everybody is different. Saddle choice is as personal as underwear choice (perhaps a bad example on this forum). Try out different ones until you are happy.