First Ride in 50+ years: 2023 Update

[MplsCoaster]

Re: First Ride in 50+ years: Slowly We Go...

Thanks J, it was fun having you there!
Thanks Mazda Flyer!
Thanks Kevin! It's cool that you're making yours ont eh other end now with your thread
viewtopic.php?f=1&t=73294

Yeah Randy, your are so right! Hope you get yours (and post pics) soon too
Alaska?! That's probably a cool adventure for them


It was still plenty hot last Sunday (21Jul) so we took off for a short DQ ride

FIL says "Harley", and I look to see this nice full dress one
He gives his standard line that he used to own a HD and Square 4
But the fact that he initiated the "sighting" this time was good

Thought I'd post FIL on his HD again for old time sake, I know he misses it

FIL has been having a lot more DQ with my SIL in town but he still loves it every time

We headed directly back because I almost blow out my knee on Saturday
(Heavy strain on the tendon, trying not repeat the right knee injury)
It's awesome that even with all my knee issues, the best thing I can do is ride
I used the Giant and geared down and had to keep asking FIL to slow down a bit :lol:

We hung out in the back yard
Finally got a picture of the elusive albino squirrel that hangs out in there
(and tortures the FIL's dog Poppy :lol: )

Even though it was a short and slow ride, we both enjoyed it (and the DQ)
Thanks for looking
Steve

 

[MplsCoaster]

Re: First Ride in 50+ years: Cool Riding

Cooled off a lot last Sunday (28Jul) so great "fall" riding weather
FIL and me took off for the DQ

Took the Eliminator now that I've got the shifter finally installed
FIL got going a few times and I had to upshift

The skies were picture perfect

DQs hit the spot, FIL was happy

Finished up with our River path 5 miler and headed home

Another nice ride to remember when the snow starts to fly
Thanks for looking
Steve

 

[jerrykr]

Re: First Ride in 50+ years: Cool Riding

You guys are so lucky - 104F here today - yuck!
Nice additional pictures to a great thread!

 

[MplsCoaster]

Re: First Ride in 50+ years: "Shift It into Gear"

Yeah Jerry, it's been cool and is continuing for the foreseeable future :roll:
With our cold winters, I like to have my summers hot but maybe not 104F...

We haven't had to worry about rain outs lately so did our Sunday afternoon ride (4Jul)
FIL seemed jazzed to ride, think with the visitors gone, he's a bit bored

Thought we'd be okay in shorts and T shirt but we were a bit cool
FIL kept saying, "When is it going to warmup?!"
Told him we'd have to get riding to keep warm or maybe it was too cold for DQ
He didn't think so :lol:

FIL devoured his strawberry sundae and I switched it up with a Banana Cream pie Blizzard, Yum!
Can't believe he doesn't get an ice cream headache, just lucky I guess :lol:

After DQ we took off for our river ride, it seems better for him with directions if we stick to the plan
I might have to switch it up a bit though just for a change of pace
Eliminator Slick Cam shot (didn't realize he looks so focused behind me)

Think FIL likes the Eliminator's stick shift because he said "Shift it into gear!" and laughs

We finished up our ride and I had to kinda take off quicker this week
So he says, well I hang outside with Poppy then go in and have an IC sandwich :roll:
I mentioned that we just had IC and i thought that was enough for now, the scam didn't work, today :lol:

We'll ride tomorrow (11Jul) but my wife and me are going to Chicago this week (Yeah!)
My Step Son is going to take care of FIL while we're gone and probably take him to DQ for his "fix"

Still enjoying our rides and IC while we can
Thanks for looking
Steve

 

[Onewheelsqueel]

Re: First Ride in 50+ years: "Shift It into Gear"

Nice update. What ya comin out here for? Let me know if ya got som free time, if I do as well maybe we can get together.

 

[aka_locojoe]

Re: First Ride in 50+ years: "Shift It into Gear"

It can be too cold for a lot of things but never too cold for ice cream.
Have fun in Chicago.

 

[jerrykr]

Re: First Ride in 50+ years: "Shift It into Gear"

still watching. still enjoying your adventures. Have a great trip to second city.

 

[OddJob]

Re: First Ride in 50+ years: "Shift It into Gear"

My dad had one request a few years back, a new bike for his 83 rd birthday. We got him a flat foot Electra Townie. He loved it for the last 4 years of his life. Sold it this spring to another adult kid getting his father a bike to ride with his grandchildren ....and the cycle keeps on.

 

[MplsCoaster]

Re: First Ride in 50+ years: Awesome Skid!

It was sure fun hanging with you, Kevin, and your family,
Hopefully Evan gets a make up when he's feeling better

You are so right Randy ! I knew it wouldn't really work :lol:
Still have to post more pics of Chicago...

Thanks Jerry! We DID have a great time

That's so cool, OddJob, that you got your Dad a bike on his 83rd B Day!!
And he had 4 great years of riding. "Recycling" bikes is an awesome thing too

So this ride is our trip on the 11Aug so there is a bit a lag on posting, sorry
The weather was pretty nice so we took off, Shifter shot:

FIL just couldn't wait to dig in :lol:

As we went on our 5 mile ride after DQ, we hit a bit of a snag
One of the intersections was kinda blind and I motioned for to stop FIL quickly

He laid on the coaster hard and skidded for a least a 1 ft
He had is other foot down and was riding it out 8)
Other than being a bit of a goof up on me, he looked great!

I said "That was an AWESOME skid!!" And just started grinning
2 women were walking across the street. They said "And we saw it too!" (Both with big smiles)
It was really nice of them for giving him an "Attaboy", and he loved it

The rest of the ride was less dramatic and we wrapped it up early because of my trip
Thanks for looking
Steve

 

[MazdaFlyer]

Re: First Ride in 50+ years: Awesome Skid!

You need to bring FIL down to Randy's Bike Fest and have him compete in the Skid Contest.

 

[MplsCoaster]

Re: First Ride in 50+ years: Hot Weather and DQ-perfect

That would be pretty fun for FIL, MazdaFlyer
But it's about a 9 hour drive down though
and that wouldn't be fun for either of us :lol:

So the heat has been kicking in hard lately
Mid 90s for our DQ ride so I had to watch FIL a bit
FIL was game, of course for a DQ so off we went

He had his usual strawberry sundae and I had FOM: triple berry brownie, not bad...

Asked FIL if he wanted to go back or go for a ride. He wanted to ride
I think he likes getting out of the house, especially when it's not cold out side
The bike traffic was very light (suppose most on last vaca's) so I let FIL lead out
I kinda want to not go faster than he wanted to too, He did great and I think enjoyed it

When we got back he looked pretty hot so got him some ice cold water
We hung out in the shade with Poppy and talked about how we didn't need to cut the grass yet
FIL has figured it's easier to ride the bike to the garage then walk it so that's how it goes...

Think we both had a good time because our DQs really hit the spot
Thanks for looking
Steve

 

[Onewheelsqueel]

Re: First Ride in 50+ years: Hot Weather and DQ-perfect

Nice

 

[LukeTheJoker]

Re: First Ride in 50+ years: Hot Weather and DQ-perfect

Sounds like he looks forward to your outings Steve!

Luke.

 

[kingfish254]

Re: First Ride in 50+ years: Hot Weather and DQ-perfect

It's always fun to catch up on your exploits with FIL. I can picture the smile on his face after the skid stop. Very cool!

 

[yoothgeye]

Re: First Ride in 50+ years: Hot Weather and DQ-perfect

I too find it easier to ride my bikes back into the garage, it only becomes more difficult when I reach the garage door and realize I forgot to hook up the brakes.

 

[MplsCoaster]

Re: First Ride in 50+ years: The Big Chill

Thanks Kevin, Luke, Kingfish, and Justin!

Kingfish, I wish I could have got a pic of FIL's face after the skid
but especially after the women complimented him

Just one more reason I like coaster brakes Justin :lol:

So after My wife and her friend went with me to the Mpls Messaround
I fed FIL supper and took him to DQ

It had cooled off into the low 70's that day (1Sep) and was cloudy
Felt a lot like fall (only to heat back up to the 90's this week :? )

FIL was able to wear both his Vikings jersey and Twins cap, both in season
And he was jazzed about DQ but he was a bit cool in his long sleeve shirt
But not too cold for ice cream, of course :lol:

Got one shot that he posed for while riding, usually he's pretty focused...

Memorial Day weekend and most people were probably out of town, We had the whole place to ourselves :shock:
Think he'd rather keep eating then pose this time :lol:

After he tossed the empty container he was rubbing his hands together and shivered
FIL said he was kinda chilly so I said we should get riding so we could warm up and he agreed

I let him lead out again (with the light bike traffic)
and he did pretty well though he did slow down once at an exit we normally went passed
I just said that we need to keep going and then I think he remembered the rest

So we go our 5 mile ride in again
and I reminded him that we rode about 60 miles in the last 3 months
He says "Really?!" and seemed pretty happy about it (me too!)

So we both had a good time and started getting used to the cooler weather
Thanks for looking
Steve

 

[yoothgeye]

Re: First Ride in 50+ years: The Big Chill

It's awesome that you have the bike lanes to accomplish the mileage with him safely. If I take my kids for a 5 miler around here we have many close calls and nerve racking intersections... at least for me. Alone it's pretty stressful, with my wife along it helps, I ride something with some "get-up-and-go" and I run block for the kids going from back of the pack to front putting myself in harm's way at intersections and crossings and such.

 

[jerrykr]

Re: First Ride in 50+ years: The Big Chill

I'm glad you saved that picture thru the handlebars, even tho its OOF it tells a good story.

Thanks for the update, jealous of your cool weather, and always watching.

 

[MplsCoaster]

Re: First Ride in 50+ years: 2 Fer

Wow Justin, that does sound nerve wracking!
At least getting a workout (front/back/repeat) and glad your Wife helps out

I definitely like the trails here but the side streets are usually kinda quiet too
We pay more in taxes to live in Mpls but the benefits out weigh them (for me)
I also run block just in case sometimes and single file on the trails help

Thanks a lot Jerry! I appreciate your viewing and responses (OOF?)

This is a 2 Fer One posting, 8 and 15 Sep

Well I forgot to post last Sat, I was busy feeding FIL and Poppy breakfast
My Wife is training for TC marathon so it helps a bit for me to help out
She's doing much better since the weather has cooled down
She ran a 22 miler without any problems ("just" hard work) I'm so proud

Anyway on the 8th, it warmed up so we could ride in T shirts again
Yes that's a 75 Maverick in the background, it has collector plates on it :wink:

A few more people at the DQ this time
The little kid was feeding his Dad every other spoonful
And then they both would laugh and smile, awesome

We took off for our ride and I let FIL take the lead again
Think he's getting more comfortable with it
Really thought he was going to pass the guy down the hill

Now for yesterday (15th), it only got to the lower 60's
So it's jeans and jacket fall weather now, and that's okay...
I have no idea what he was doing... :lol:

Trying to think some different angles/shots

Heading on down the path

So next Sunday (22nd) is FIL's 81rst BDay AND the MN antique and Classic Fall Ride
My Wife is trying to get a big group of people and make it a special thing for him
So stay tuned for that one...
Thanks for looking
Steve

 

[jerrykr]

Re: First Ride in 50+ years: 2 Fer

I'm staying tuned! Hope you make a big to-do on the birthday and ride!

OOF is a technical term.... Out Of Focus ... don't tell anybody!
(not all good pictures are in sharp focus!)