26 things to do on a bike before you die
26 things to do on a bike before you die is the title of an interesting article that I read on Cycling Weekly. I thought it might be fun to have a look at the list to see what I’ve achieved so far:
- Learn to ride a unicycle – this might be quite fun, but I’m not sure when I’d find the time!
-
Buy a piece of cycling memorabilia – not quite sure why I’d want to do this… I’m desperately trying to declutter my house!
-
Ride on tubs – anyone want to send me some? 😉
-
Ride with a pro I rode with Jack Bauer at this year’s Garmin Sharp Ride Out!
-
Ride as many hills from the 100 Greatest Climbs book as you can – I think I need to improve my cycling ability before I start to tackle this one.
-
Ride 100 miles in a day – I’m confident that I’ll do this at some stage… but I’ll postpone it until the weather is better.
-
Race – hmm. Not sure I have the confidence to do this yet… unless the bike part of a triathlon counts.
-
Ride a long distance trail – This could be fun.
-
Go cycle touring – this is planned for next year when I’ll go cycling in Japan.
-
Meet Eddy Merckx – as I’ve not been a lifelong cycling fan, this is perhaps a less-meaningful goal for me.
-
Go on a training camp – I reckon that an Embrace Sports camp, such as the one I did in the Pyrenees counts.
-
Join a cycling club – Unfortunately, with being in a running club and two tri clubs, I just don’t have time to join a cycling club at the moment!
-
Sprint down the Champs-Elysées – not sure that’ll ever happen.
-
Watch the Tour de France, French style – I’d like to do this.
-
Do a big cycling ‘do’ – sounds expensive!
-
Ride a tandem – I’d LOVE to do this.
-
Watch a cobbled classic – from a safe distance!
-
Ride with your kids – this one could take some time!!!
-
Get 50 people into cycling – I’d like to inspire others to ride. Hopefully, being a Breeze Champion will help this to happen.
-
Grab a ride in a team car – I’d rather not have a mechanical to necessitate this.
-
Win a sprint – how long do I have to train?
-
Ride on a velodrome – I don’t think I’ve got the bike-handling skills for this yet.
-
Ride a big British sportive – I’ve got my fingers crossed that I’ll get a place in Ride 100.
-
Ride on another continent – this is planned for next year when I’ll go cycling in Japan.
-
Find, buy and restore the bike you wanted as a kid – There weren’t any bikes that I wanted as a kid, so I’ll cover this one by restoring my dad’s old bike.
-
Ride up Alpe d’Huez and Mont Ventoux – OK… as long as I don’t have to cycle down them as well!
So, I’ve only completed 2/26, so far. How many have you done?
Share this:
5 Responses
I'd love to hear your thoughts...
This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.
Managed a few but not enough:
21 Few centuries done
18 Cycle tour from London to Paris
14 Cycled up Champs d’Elysees but not really sprinting
13 Watched TdF several times – incl time trial and final day in Paris
11 Rode tandem in Vancouver
9 Ridden several sportives with son including Ride 100
5 Several sessions at Calshot velodrome – try it, it’s fun
4 Ridden many sportives including Ride 100 twice.
Hope you get into Ride100 for 2015 Tamsyn
Well done, Malcolm. I bet cycling in Canada was fun – I’ve heard the roads and trails are generally well-maintained there and that drivers are usually courteous. I was unlucky with Ride 100 this year, so I’m definitely hoping 2015 will be my year, but it feels like it’s the cycling equivalent of the London Marathon!
Great list – Here’s how I do. I hope I can provide a bit of inspiration too!
26. Learn to ride a unicycle – Not managed that!
25. Buy a piece of cycling memorabilia – Got a cycling cap signed by Thor Hushovd whilst he was world champion!
24. Ride on tubs – Oh yes!
23. Ride with a pro – Raced some pros!
22. Ride as many hills from the 100 Greatest Climbs book as you can – Check out the blog entry https://thingswhatihavedone.wordpress.com/2015/11/29/4-cyclists-in-a-van-100-greatest-climbs-wales-edition/
21. Ride 100 miles in a day – I’ve managed 171 in the rain!
20. Race – This is the easiest one! Club 10 mile tt are really easy to get into. The hill climbs are even easy. Over before you know it – https://thingswhatihavedone.wordpress.com/2015/10/17/the-hill-climb-an-odd-autumn-tradition/
19. Ride a long distance trail – 1,500 miles in 15 days! Amazing fun.
18. Go cycle touring – I’ve done many – https://thingswhatihavedone.wordpress.com/2015/09/13/the-scottish-highlands-shafts-of-sunlight-and-blizzards/ https://thingswhatihavedone.wordpress.com/2015/08/14/ireland-by-bicycle/.
17. Meet Eddy Merckx – I’ve love to!
16. Go on a training camp – Mallorca is my recommendation!
15. Join a cycling club – Just do it! I’m in Nottingham Clarion. It’s a socialist thing.
14. Sprint down the Champs-Elysées – Not done that – there’s a lot of traffic there!
13. Watch the Tour de France – Saw it in Yorkshire !
12. Do a big cycling ‘do’ – sounds expensive :-S
11. Ride a tandem – I’ve raced one!
10. Watch a cobbled classic – Not managed that but have ridden some flandrian cobbles on a tour.
9. Ride with your kids – Don’t have any (yet!)
8. Get 50 people into cycling – Couldn’t claim 50 but I reckon a few!
7. Grab a ride in a team car – I’ve love to.
6. Win a sprint – Only managed to come second. You have to train for a long time!
5. Ride on a velodrome – This is excellent – you pick it up really quickly.
4. Ride a big British sportive – I’d rather just ride the route for free without the crowds!
3. Ride on another continent – India!
2. Find, buy and restore the bike you wanted as a kid – I’ve got a LoPro TT bike!
1. Ride up Alpe d’Huez and Mont Ventoux – Only done Ventoux!
https://thingswhatihavedone.wordpress.com/cycling/
Awesome – well done 🙂 Thanks for sharing your blog link – I’m now following.
I’ve made a bit of progress in the last year, but still haven’t joined a cycling club. There aren’t really any female-friendly ones in this area and as I still only average 25km/h, I’m a bit slow.
I have managed to get a few more people into cycling. I took a friend out for her first ever bike ride today – a 35 mile loop into the New Forest with a cake stop. There was only one unplanned dismount, so it was pretty successful.
I’m planning to do a duathlon with a visually impaired friend next year, so we’ll be going out on a tandem soon.
Superb!
There’s a few female friendly clubs that cater for all abilities in my area. I’d try searching Facebook before British cycling. There are plenty of informal clubs that are still worth trying. It’s more about who you meet rather than what you do!
Also do bear in mind time trials for when the summer comes. Nothing is more motivating than beating last week’s time!
Happy cycling!