Shopping – Bicycling the beauty around us

Presque Isle State Park Bicycle Ride

Bob and I went to Erie on Saturday, September 7th. We went to Sam’s Club, where I purchased four 3-ring binders for my genealogy research. Bob purchased a pair of clip-on sunglasses for his new work glasses. We stopped at Dick’s Sporting Goods, where I looked for a pair of cycling pants (with padded bottoms). They had a very small collection of cycling clothes, and I didn’t care for what I saw.

After we were done shopping we drove to Presque Isle State Park, arriving there around noon. We rode our bicycles on the 13.4 mile Karl Boyes Multi-Purpose National Recreation Trail. Yes, we do ride this trail often. It is one of our favorite bicycle trails! If you click on the tag “Karl Boyes Multi-Purpose National Recreation Trail” at the bottom of this post, you can revisit the other times that we have ridden our bicycles on this trail.

I took this picture near Perry Monument. This is the location from where ‘Lady Kate’ (a sightseeing boat) departs.

We stopped briefly at the Presque Isle Lighthouse.

We still haven’t toured the lighthouse…

Lots of seagulls hanging out on the rocks at Beach #8

During our bicycle ride we saw some of the 1,500 competitors who came out to tackle the 7th annual Barber Beast on the Bay. According to an Erie News Now article, the Barber Beast on the Bay is “a wild, demanding and creative obstacle course that stretches across 10 miles of Presque Isle State Park…[Participants] run, jump, climb and crawl across more than 30 obstacles on the shores of Lake Erie…The most important thing about the race is it raises money to help the children and adults with autism, intellectual disabilities and behavioral health challenges at the Barber National Institute…”

A few of the many Barber Beast on the Bay competitors

After riding our bicycles, we needed nourishment. We stopped for an early dinner (3:00 pm) at IHOP. Bob ordered a fish entree; I ordered chicken. Both meals were delicious. On our way home we stopped at Mr. Shivers for custard ice cream desserts.

We purchased a GoPro 7 camera on Amazon that evening. Happy early anniversary to us! (Our 21st wedding anniversary is on September 26th.) Expected delivery date of the camera is this coming Monday. We plan to use the GoPro on some of our bicycling adventures.

Bob’s New Bicycle

Bob transported his bicycle to Hollyloft Bike & Ski today. He wanted to obtain an estimate to get his bicycle tuned up and find out how much the shop would give him for a trade-in. The end result of the tune-up vs. trade-in discussion was that Bob became an owner of a new Specialized “Crossover” bicycle. He accessorized the bicycle with fenders, rack, mirror, and computer. He also purchased a bike helmet. Bob’s new bicycle replaces a 30+-year-old Univega Rover Sport.

New Bicycle

This past Saturday Bob suggested that we go look at bicycles. My current bicycle is a 26″ Huffy ladies bicycle that we purchased in July 2006. My agility is not the same as it was 10+ years ago (or even the same as it was a year or two ago!). I can’t step easily into my bicycle. I have to swing my leg over the seat to mount and dismount. Doing so causes me hip pain, as I mount and dismount. I had been looking at low-step step-through bicycles online. I didn’t want to purchase a bicycle on line, though, as I felt it necessary to ride the bicycle to determine whether or not it met my physical limitations and was comfortable to ride.

Our first stop was at Walmart to see what, if any, step through bicycles were available. We found one step through bicycle. The step through portion of the bicycle was still too high off the ground. I couldn’t lift my leg high enough to step through.

Our next stop would be in Jamestown, but we were hungry. We stopped at Sheetz for a light lunch. We each purchased a meat and cheese package with beverage. We ate our lunch, at Sheetz, at an outside table.

After lunch we drove to Hollyloft Ski & Bike, located in Jamestown NY.

Upon arrival at the bike shop, I asked if they had any step-through bicycles. The salesman, whose name was Tom, showed us a bicycle manufactured by Specialized. In the showroom I determined that I could comfortably step through and mount / dismount the bicycle. The salesman suggested that I take the bicycle for a test drive. Tom fitted me for a helmet. I have never worn a helmet, while riding a bicycle. I rode the bicycle, first, in the parking lot. Tom watched. When I completed my ride around the parking lot, Tom adjusted the seat to fit me.

It was time for a longer test drive. There is a dead end street next to the bike shop. I rode the bicycle to the end of that street, changing gears along the way. The bicycle has seven gears, with gear 1 being easier than gear 1 on my current bicycle. I liked how I sat upright on this bicycle, how the gears operated by the click of a lever, and the big tires that seemed to give me more balance.

You guessed it. We purchased a Specialized Low Roll bicycle. We accessorized the bicycle with fenders, rack, mirror and a computer. The computer is about the size of a watch. It records trip statistics–average and maximum speed, time spent on trip, and miles ridden. I now have a clock in front of me, while riding. I can erase each trip’s statistics. The odometer, however, maintains the total miles ridden. Oh, I purchased a bike helmet as well. We had to return to Warren for the bike carrier. While we were gone, the bike shop installed the accessories and tuned up the bike. Great service all around!

We returned to Hollyloft and picked up the bicycle around 3:30 pm. We transported Bob’s bicycle with us from Warren.

Why did we bring Bob’s bicycle with us to Hollyloft? We wanted to take my new bicycle for a ride; that’s why! See my next blog post for where we went for a bicycle ride.

New Bicycle Carrier

We drove to Erie today to look at (and possibly purchase) a bicycle carrier. Bob was looking for a certain brand and model , Saris “Bones”. We stopped first at Dick’s Sporting Goods. They carry Saris carriers but didn’t have the “Bones” model.

From Dick’s Sporting Goods, we drove to Competitive Gear, where we found the bicycle carrier that Bob was looking for. We purchased that carrier.

The salesman put the carrier on our car.

We were impressed with Competitive Gear. The prices were similar to Amazon’s pricing; the salesman was personable and helpful.

Our two folding bicycles are now for sale. We will be going to places and riding our full-size bicycles. I can ride my full-size bicycle much better than the folding one. I wish we would have bought the carrier in the first place and not the folding bicycles. We would have saved some money!

New Bicycles

We didn’t get much use out of the trailer hitch bike carrier that we purchased in late August 2016, as we traded in the Nissan Xterra for a Subaru Legacy in March 2017. Less than a month later we became interested in folding bicycles, as our new car had no mechanism for hauling bicycles.

Bob ordered a folding bicycle from Walmart on April 5th. The bicycle arrived on April 11th. We went for a ride on the Warren to North Warren Bike Trail, which we can access easily from our neighborhood.

Bob has a new bicycle, a 20-inch FOLDING bicycle.

I took the folding bicycle for a test ride as well. We both liked the feel of the new bicycle.

We picked up my folding bicycle at Walmart today.

Bob and I now both have folding bicycles. We need to plan a day trip to make use of our new bicycles.

New Handlebar Basket

This is the first time that I have been able to ride my bicycle since Sunday’s ride around Presque Isle.

Apparently I overdid Sunday’s bicycle ride. About 4 hours after coming home from Presque Isle, a muscle spasm in my left inner thigh hit me hard, as I began to stand up from a sitting position. I felt good when bicycling Sunday and afterward, while on our way home. The bicycle trail was flat for the most part. It was a low-impact, not a strenuous, ride. We made a few rest stops during our ride. I drank plenty of water before, during and after bicycling. I don’t feel I lack potassium. A banana is a frequent snack.

Why do I get these “muscle spasms”? I want to be active. My body seems to want something different. This muscle spasm was the second one I had in a week’s time. The first one was in my left inner thigh, after walking almost 15,000 steps. The spasm, then, happened about 4 hours after coming home too. I was sleeping, when that spasm hit.

After a muscle spasms, it takes several days before I am able to relax (to not fear another muscle spasm will hit) and get back to my “normal”.

It feels good to ride again, with less pain.

I wanted to show you my new bicycle accessory.

I can carry my camera with me now.