First Ride in 50+ years: 2023 Update

[jerrykr]

Re: First Ride in 50+ years: The Brothers

^
+1

 

[MplsCoaster]

Re: First Ride in 50+ years: Shovel that walk!

Thanks Pick and Randy!
Youthgeye, if I can get it to happen, it will be pretty funny
Not printed up yet Kingfish :lol:

Thanks Ndaway and Jerry!
I appreciate everybody's input and support though out

Work has been crazy hard lately so I haven't had any energy until this morning
Sorry for the delay...

Last Sunday it warmed up to ~32F and dumped ~3" snow in a few hours
Not too bad, just winter in MN

FIL was saying more phrases in Japanese
He says them so fast, even if I knew what it meant, I've still have trouble hearing it :lol:
He likes being able to kinda trick or peak people's interest
Of course he has to then tell me the bad words he remembers :lol: , (several times :? )

We drove to Denny's to switch it up just about a mile away
FIL starts in on why the businesses didn't shovel,
I tried to say that it just happened in the last 2 hours but I don't think it helped...

We had a couple of cheeseburgers and FIL says "That's a lot of food"
That's code for "I want to have room for dessert" :lol:
Helped him out with his fries but he knew he would have to finish his burger

The group behind us was really funny
They must have been a high school study group
and they were tackling all the "problems of the world"
I overheard "Robots are sentient beings, now what rights should they have..."
Good for them as early philosophers, it was definitely entertaining :lol:

We were ready for dessert, now last week he didn't want the brownie bite
So this week I suggested a double scoop strawberry sundae, which he does like
When I got my hot brownie with Ice cream he says "I think I'd like yours better" :?
Oh well, he had no problem eating all his sundae :lol: (yes, that's the jokester posing to get a laugh)

I pointed out that people were still riding in the snow and FIL's like "Really?!"
I didn't take too much convincing to get this shot

We saw at least a dozen bikes tooling through the snow, I liked this one

Stopped at the LBS on the way home, FIL seemed relatively interested
He kept saying "I bet they are really busy in the summer"
Which might translate to "Why are we here in the dead of winter" :lol:
I liked the look of the red rimmed Masi (sorry for the blurry shot)

Since FIL wasn't bored and impersonating a shut down robot
I dug around in the Salvage Yard to look for bargains
Only left with a couple of new tubes for my Wife's Eliminator though

More complaints from FIL about the bike shop not shoveling as we left
As soon as we got home, FIL started shoveling instantly
I have to say, after complaining about others not shoveling, he "walks the walk"

My Wife asked him later what he did and he said he went riding with "that guy"
So she asked him if he was sure about that and he said I guess we didn't ride
But since FIL and me were talking a lot about riding, maybe that's what got him on that track
He did remember seeing "a bike that two people can ride" (see pic above)
So it's interesting what he remembers and what gets a bit confused

Think we both had a good time
Thanks for looking
Steve

 

[yoothgeye]

Re: First Ride in 50+ years: Shovel that walk!

Even FIL has LBSs! Glad y'all had fun once again.

 

[Skipton]

Re: First Ride in 50+ years: Shovel that walk!

Steve,
Looks like you guys are having lots of fun

The snowy shots look great... We got 3 inches over night here. The "biggest" snow all season :?

BTW. A few years ago the kids wanted to take a four wheel bike for a ride on the lake path...

There legs were to short to pedal....... MAN THAT WAS HARD WORK! :shock: :roll:

Thanks for sharing!
Keep it coming.

 

[aka_locojoe]

Re: First Ride in 50+ years: Shovel that walk!

Salvage Yard. That's a good idea. All bike shops should have them.
Like that pic of FIL with his dessert <------- take note youthgeye.

 

[yoothgeye]

Re: First Ride in 50+ years: Shovel that walk!

Like that pic of FIL with his dessert <------- take note youthgeye.

And you will *never* forget... especially if you ended up stranded in a desert.

 

[MplsCoaster]

Re: First Ride in 50+ years: Substitute Teacher Syndrome

Yeah Youthgeye, I was glad to see FIL get into the LBS stuff
Any exposure to different things that interest him is good

Skipton, we had some fun, think I'm going to drag to other ones
Thanks for the heads up on the 4 wheel bikes, they look heavy
I see some people way away from the park and think, they've got a long way back...

Yeah The Hub has a kinda more organized used area but the prices are kinda high
Once in a while I find something so I just keep looking

Thanks for calling me out for my misspelling you guys...
I wondered why the sunday (I mean sundae) was kinda gritty... :lol:
don't think I'm the only one

Last week was mind-bendingly hard again at work
so I didn't get this posted until I had some energy this morning

We went to Perkins to try something different to see what he likes and works best
He went for the Cheeseburger again and a really good Reuben for me
He said his standard line "That's a lot of food" but this time I called his bluff
I said he could eat just the burger and he'd have plenty of room left over for sweets
So he says, "Can I cut it in half?" I said sure (unknowingly)

So he eats half and sits back like he's done already
My Wife says he pulls the "substitute teacher" routine with me
She makes him eat everything before the sweets
So I held firm, "You have to eat all the burger to get dessert" ,
He moans and asks if he has to eat all the toppings
I caved and said he didn't have to :lol:

So now it was about what type of dessert, go through the long menu
Finally he decided on cookies, I had some mega peanut butter pie
I've never eaten something so rich and so slow...
I think this is his "he made me eat my whole burger to get these" face :lol:

So it was starting to snow again so we headed home right away
When I have more energy, we'll maybe start checking out some of the other LBS in the area
for some extra input for him

Pretty sure he enjoyed his cookies and getting out of the house
Glad we could to it, it's "cabin fever" season so we're all a bit restless
Thanks for looking
Steve

 

[LukeTheJoker]

Re: First Ride in 50+ years: Substitute Teacher Syndrome

Awesome job Steve! I dont know why I hadn't found this thread earlier, but just read it start to finish and am very thankful for you sharing it with us.

Luke.

 

[yoothgeye]

Re: First Ride in 50+ years: Substitute Teacher Syndrome

This burger cutting "action shot" with the blurred arm (as if he is furiously cutting away) makes me laugh.

 

[5speed]

Re: First Ride in 50+ years: Substitute Teacher Syndrome

i have stopped going to the hub,tere attitude twards customers is below par found at least 4 or for other shops who appriciate your bussiness,AJ

 

[MplsCoaster]

Re: First Ride in 50+ years: Called due to weather

Thanks Luke!

Peatbog, those cookies were huge!
They had a great deal: buy 3 (for $4.17) and get 3 free!
Had to hide the others or he would have just inhaled them :lol:

I would have ate that half of the sammich for him if I were there. It looks pretty good. He could have slipped it through that little curtain behind him, and right to me, when you weren't watching and you would have never known. I would have the sandwich and he would have been sitting there grinning knowing that he pulled a fast one on you. He could have slipped me a few fries too.

So next time, if you see a suspicious-looking hungry character who orders nothing and demands to sit in the booth right next to you, just beware. I am not above snaring a cookie given the chance either.

I've been Peatbogged!! :lol: :lol:

Glad you got a Laugh Youthgeye
He was motivated by the thought of getting sweets with only eating half his burger

Understand the way you feel 5 speed
Like going to Sunrise Cyclery for used parts the best
Had another incident with the Hub yesterday :?
But it's so close and there is one very cool and good mech that I try to talk with mostly

Sorry to say that we had to call it off last Sunday
My Wife and me went on our run that morning
It had been sleeting already for a half hour
and was like running in wet sand...
It proceed to sleet for another 1.5 hours then heavy snow for 2 hours
Was worried about him slipping on the ice underneath the snow

My Sister In Law (SIL) is in town this week so that will be some very good interaction for him
The weather looks reasonable (for a Minnesota winter) for next Sunday
We'll be back...

 

[LukeTheJoker]

Re: First Ride in 50+ years: Called due to weather

Man, that looks cold! :shock:

Luke.

 

[MplsCoaster]

Re: First Ride in 50+ years: The Right Combo

Yeah, you're right Luke and especially icy/slippery ...

We got a window of warmer weather so we were good to go last Sunday
I tried something different and think my plan worked
We went to Wendy's so supper so FIL could have both ice cream and burger at the same time :wink:
He only once (and half-heated) said " That's a lot of food"
Just got him burger and frosty, he was in heaven to start eating his ice cream first :lol:

Been seeing a lot of this for the last few years, out of state plates in the winter :lol:
But was a bit surprised to a Texas, Kansas, Missouri, and Virgina plates in two days :shock:

(Don't know if there is a right way to post that last pic but should I blur out the numbers?)

Thought I'd take FIL to another Bike shop and see some different bikes
I wanted to order some Bontrager Solanas for my Wife's Spaceliner
Went to Free Wheel bike not far away (Trek and Surley dealer and cool mural)
For some reason he wasn't "hamming it up" :?

One of FIL's favorite lines about riders in the winter is "Does he got snow tires on"
And we both laugh becasue I say "Yes" :lol:
So his reaction was really funny when I showed him a Pugsley with 4" wide "snow tires"
His eyes got kinda glazed over when he saw all "Fat Bikes" (he thought the name was funny)

We ordered the tires and I told the person that FIL started riding last year
She thought that was great and FIL piped in with "Used to ride a HD and Square 4"
He got a smile out of her so that was cool for him

Showed FIL a Titanium road bike for $4200 and he says "Should just buy a car" :lol:
Found him staring a a tandem again so I think it must be interesting for him
Maybe I should have him help me build one....

So we headed home, both of us had some ice cream and some fun
Thanks for Looking
Steve

 

[yoothgeye]

Re: First Ride in 50+ years: The Right Combo

Looks like a great bike shop, maybe that's why the person from VA was up in the area... wish I could've caught a ride.

(don't worry about blurring the plate, no big deal, anyone could see it out on the road unblurred, you're not saying anything about the vehicle or person in it)

 

[RetroSpeed]

Re: First Ride in 50+ years: The Right Combo

MplsCoaster,

Thank you for recording and sharing the bike rides and day trips with your father in law. Although he may not always express it, he looks like he is thoroughly enjoying the time you two spend together. Should I live to be his age, I hope to also enjoy bike rides, burgers and jumbo sized cookies.

Thanks again for the narrative and pictures.

 

[Jimmy the Gent]

Re: First Ride in 50+ years: The Right Combo

MplsCoaster/ Steve..

I've just finished catching up on this thread; and I just wanted to tell you it's great on so many levels.

It's funny, entertaining, informative....and inspiring.

My Dad is 73; and he's still in fairly good health, but he has said on a few occasions that "things are starting to break down". He still works; and walks often, but at one point he considered riding a bike again for the first time in 60 years, because he knew that riding is easier on the knees.

I immediately thought of this thread.

He doesn't have any issues with dementia; but I think he thinks about it a lot because that's what his mother passed from.

I'd love to get him back on a bike again; considering he was the one that got me my first one - or at least provided the money for my Mom to get it. 8)

He hasn't mentioned the bike recently; but this thread has inspired me to bring it up and at least see where it goes.

Maybe we could reconnect.

Thanks again for a great thread.

 

[MplsCoaster]

Re: First Ride in 50+ years: Cabin Fever

Thanks for the input about the plate Youthgeye, I wasn't thinking the same thing :wink:
It is a active bike shop with group rides and stuff but geared more a little more high end
I usually end up ordering Bontrager medium price stuff from them and they have a great selection of tubes
They also built the first shop on the Greenway bike trail which is pretty awesome
http://freewheelbike.com/

Hey Retrospeed, Thanks a lot for the comments!
I'm hoping FIL is enjoying it. My wife says he's in a better mood so that helps everybody out

Retrospeed wrote: Should I live to be his age, I hope to also enjoy bike rides, burgers and jumbo sized cookies.

ME Too!!

Thanks Jimmy! I sure glad you're enjoying the thread and shared your story
Sounds like your Dad is a great candidate for bike! It IS so much easier on your knees (said from a man with arthritis)
I hope that you are able to not only get him riding but riding in Rat Rod style, how cool would that be!
I've used talking about bike types, styles,customizing, and riding as an "in" to connecting with FIL, hope it works for you
Update us on how things go

BTW: You tagline is awesome "You don't need reflectors if you've got enough chrome" or shiny aluminum :lol:

Well FIL has been showing signs of Cabin Fever recently
Forgot to mention last time that he said,"when I was driving I could get out more in the winter"
And after going to Freewheel bikes he saw downtown Mpls that he said he remembers when the Foshay tower was the tallest building
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foshay_Tower
So we took a drive to find it and explore downtown a bit
Show him how they converted the old Milwaukee Road train terminal into a very cool year round ice skating rink
http://www.thedepotminneapolis.com/ice-rink.php 8)
We ended up taking the river road home to get out a bit more (which usually he isn't so interested but now more so)

Last Sunday, I went with the new strategy of Wendy's burger and shake and it worked out again

Glad we found the right combo (and it worked again :lol: )

He mentioned again used to liking winter when he would ski and skate but now just stuck in the house
So I suggested a ride along the river where I had seen a bald eagle flying during my ride
viewtopic.php?f=21&t=65550&start=90
And he was all in Went through the University of MN and cruised down the St. Paul side of the river
He seemed to enjoy it and I decided to take a shot of the light coming in the car just right

We were over by the good grocery store so I asked him if he minded getting a few things, he said "Okay"
It was the first time I'd taken him into a store so it was interesting
While grabbing my massive apple purchase for the week, he asked if he could have one too
I hadn't even considered it (he's more into ice cream) so I was pleasantly surprise and said "sure"
I almost went down the candy isle but thought better of it :lol:
He scoped out the shortest checkout line for us and was making some jokes
Think it was good for him to be in that environment again, my Wife does most the shopping for FIL and MIL
We headed home and he seemed in a good mood

Well we are coming up on almost a year of Sundays with FIL
Because of the drought last winter, we didn't have much snow so it was a lot warmer by last March 18th 2012
First ride last spring

No T shirt riding this year (more normal) with 4" of snow still on the ground but the DQ is now open
We made it through most of the winter now and am looking forward to getting back out and riding together again
FIL has come a long way since last March and it's been great to find a way to connect with him
I might still be "The DQ guy" but that's okay and I think we've had some fun along the way...

The one thing about this thread that I've enjoyed so much is all the comments from you guys
I really appreciate it, Thanks!!

Thanks for looking
Steve

 

[kingfish254]

Re: First Ride in 50+ years: Cabin Fever

Happy FIL-aversary!!!!
What a long strange trip it's been!

 

[LukeTheJoker]

Re: First Ride in 50+ years: Cabin Fever

I think it is us who should be thanking you for sharing this with us!

Looking forward to when he gets back on the bike, when it is safe that is, no rush, but just to me, reading the posts, he does seem to do better riding than driving. Maybe it is the physical exercise or just being in control of his own machine but he does seem cheeky after the rides! :mrgreen:

Luke.

 

[yoothgeye]

Re: First Ride in 50+ years: Cabin Fever

These updates are always a treat, I always read and feel as if I'm right there with you and "FIL."