Dragging myself back to riding not just hoarding bikes and getting fat....

highlandsflyer said:
I'm lucky I'm able to cycle to and fro during work, as well as commuting a short distance, but making the effort to ditch driving as much as possible all year has really upped the ante. I am loathe to drive for any purpose now. Time constraints are usually self imposed, so ditching something in favour of riding time is the answer.
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I did this in covid and to some degree since, but as a petrolhead with several vehicles, time will come when i will have to split between any excuse to drive, and actually riding..! not one to make life easier on myself am I ?
Two of the vehicles are land rovers so I can see little change in the seasonal aspirations .. ride more in the summer will be the norm , just like riding to the pub, near or far..!
 
I realised a few years back my "hoard" was more a hinderance than a help. It diluted my focus and I felt rather trapped by it.

Spin on 5 or so years...its gone..im cycling far more....enjoying what i wanted to keep as it actually brought me joy....and have this year joined a touring club for weekly rides. Im now riding more than ever before, enjoying it more and am getting the benefits of health.

So look at your decision to get rid of dome kit as a huge positive start.

As fir the bikes not selling...its all down to price atm....so the question is " how much is your mental health worth"? For me, i happily let the stuff go cheap as then its done, gone, dusted....and im a bit further to my goal.

All the best and stick to the plan.....
 
PanoIgano said:
Nice reflections everyone!

Interesting to see how chaps approach what is certainly a junction for most us at some point or another: how many bikes are enough if you don't have time to ride (and enjoy) them as much as you wish?

Unintentionally (or maybe by accident) I was somehow conscious of this from the start. So the reason I got into retrobike restoration was to be able to try a few steeds and pick even less as keepers to ride. Also to meet like minded people that we can nerd about old MTBs.

I tried to stick to this association as much as I could and I must say it paid off to an extend. I work half day a week on the bikes I build / repair / maintain and for the rest I try to fit in as many lunch rides as I can the rest of the week. I don't beat myself if I can't make either of the two for a week or two.

Also, no matter how I like tinkering with the bikes I see that other interests outside bikes slowly take hold of me like carpentry, hiking and mountaineering so inevitably I have to keep a tab and only have what I use from parts and bikes.

I guess what I am saying is, this is just a hobby of the many that can be had so why put all your eggs in one basket?
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Ive many hobbies or interests but many are taken care of by holidays in the uk, walking etc.. woodworking by the house or present making, etc so they tick along more comfortably focused within life. I still see other bikes etc but if they were all being ridden I kinda have a bike for most things at this stage so dont see more mtb arriving..!
 
kingoffootball said:
Any nearby Retrobikers or other cycling friends? Once you get out the routine of going out riding it can be hard to get back into it, but the commitment of going with someone else is often helpful.
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Only one who is really ill, and another who is way fitter than me, and even less timerich. He is onboard, as we have a car mproject together and the ride to where its at, is a pleasant if hilly ride, mostly offroad so we have already discussed regualr seasonally appropriate riding out to work on it.. small steps... but good question / advice. thankyou
 
enigma said:
Ive many hobbies or interests but many are taken care of by holidays in the uk, walking etc.. woodworking by the house or present making, etc so they tick along more comfortably focused within life. I still see other bikes etc but if they were all being ridden I kinda have a bike for most things at this stage so dont see more mtb arriving..!
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Woodworking, walking and making presents, some of my other enjoyment!

It’s weird, I don’t ever stop to think about the planes and chisels I’ve got in the garage that I don’t really use but just like to have. They don’t take up as much space as the bikes but it’s still a few shelves and drawers of stuff that I accumulated and restored. Only ever really use a number 4 plane so not sure why I’ve got the rest! Definitely a similarity with the bikes.
 
Gtpulse said:
Yes I could have ridden in the dark after my work travels before this but for me the ride has to be an experience not just the pedals turning
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Riding in the dark is great, nobody else around, different animals come out, that determination to ride when most are relaxing just makes me feel like more of a proper cyclist.
enigma said:
Two of the vehicles are land rovers
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That's your life wasted, my one is bad enough. Us Landy folk do like to hoard though, I happen to have a diff in the garage, just in case, as well as a spare spare wheel in case my spare needs replacing, as you do 😊
Gtpulse said:
don’t really use but just like to have
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I think that about the engine crane in my garage that hasn't been used since I used it to lift my lathe (that is also mostly just a place to put stuff) out of above Land Rover and into the garage. But excess handlebars and wheels do bother me.
 
It's striking that so many of us have similar obsessions and issues! Good advice above -- all I'd add is, subscribe to the 'Today's Ride' thread on here -- it's quite motivating to see accounts of other posters' rides, especially now the weather's getting nicer.
 
When it comes to riding I don't even count the retro bikes. They can be ridden but it's not their primary purpose. I have a modern 12spd full sus that gets absolutely smashed up and down and rarely needs tinkering with. For me these things keep me riding:

A few local mates
Decent lights
A regular riding day/night
A modern bike
Riding locations from the doorstep or leaving a bike rack on the car permanently

I've got a colossal hoard of retro bikes, some decent some shite. They'll all be sold eventually bar one or two. It's definitely a hinderance rather than a help at the moment but I will get on top of it this year. I've sort of 'decided' to not let it stress me out.

I do get stressed when one falls over and dominos the rest...
 
Gtpulse said:
Woodworking, walking and making presents, some of my other enjoyment!

It’s weird, I don’t ever stop to think about the planes and chisels I’ve got in the garage that I don’t really use but just like to have. They don’t take up as much space as the bikes but it’s still a few shelves and drawers of stuff that I accumulated and restored. Only ever really use a number 4 plane so not sure why I’ve got the rest! Definitely a similarity with the bikes.
Click to expand...
I have full sets of marples all pattern chisels, a full set of old record planes... I keep them in cabinets, I use them regularly but not so often as when I didn't have three routers to choose from!

Thing is you can't find them, I won't ever let go of them i don't think as replacing them would be nigh on impossible now.
 
pictonroad said:
When it comes to riding I don't even count the retro bikes. They can be ridden but it's not their primary purpose. I have a modern 12spd full sus that gets absolutely smashed up and down and rarely needs tinkering with. For me these things keep me riding:

A few local mates
Decent lights
A regular riding day/night
A modern bike
Riding locations from the doorstep or leaving a bike rack on the car permanently

I've got a colossal hoard of retro bikes, some decent some shite. They'll all be sold eventually bar one or two. It's definitely a hinderance rather than a help at the moment but I will get on top of it this year. I've sort of 'decided' to not let it stress me out.

I do get stressed when one falls over and dominos the rest...
Click to expand...
I have considered a modern, but I don't like the ride on newer bikes I've tried, they are big, bloody expensive and it seems to me bloody expensive to maintain.

I have a local group if I was fit enough but they are all on bikes costing loads, lots fitter than me, it is a weekly no matter the weather group that stop in the pub on the way home.. maybe one day if I succumb to a modern steed.
I recognise the reasons for newer bikes the riding is very different hence I don't think joining them on my stuff would work.

I am central wiltshire and a lifetimes photographic memory of bridleways etc is at my doorstep.. minutes to solitude still so the terrain is ideal in all fairness.
 
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