Somebody in my family is against me buying a bicycle

[Gerontius]

The right front-fork geometry makes suspension unnecessary on rough roads. I had good results with the suspension on mine (literally nothing) but North Road handlebars do better for the wrists and upper body. However, it's a more upright, relaxed posture so that's not good for a racing bicycle. The frame is rigid but the body stays relaxed.

I don't own cycling gloves, a lock, or a helmet.

Never bought gel saddles either. The old leather kind with a spring in it is fine; I've only had problems with the one that I had dry-rot. It was about 60 years old & split itself in half. Oh well. Replaced it with something that was OK but not great; I'm going to eventually put a Brooks on there and hope I can make it last for about 40 years or so.

For grips I just used heavyweight rubber grips bought from Rideable Bicycle Replicas. RBR is out of California & they have a bunch of old bike parts (as in early stuff, highwheelers & other things I wouldn't be caught dead on.) The heavy English grips are copies of the old Britannia handgrip and those are an adequate shock absorber on North Road bars.

 

[Owliet]

That somebody is (not surprisingly) my mother, and her reason for not wanting me to have a bicycle was because she almost saw me get hit by a car when I was riding my bike when I was eight and she never really forgave me over it. She is convinced that if I buy a bike, I will die on that bike.

I want some of the drugs she is taking.

Get a bike. If you want one, have the money for one. Get it. My sibling was extremely difficult with me wanting to get a bike. I’m not sure entirely why it was such a big deal , but the argument that was used against it was that “I cant remember you ever going out on your old one” which was a complete lie as I used mine as a main transport. The argument almost persuaded me to not get one, but I did. Get your bike. Forget your mom.

 

[maycontainthunder]

I had a Raleigh Chico that was full rigid. The brakes were awful and you could forget stopping if it was wet. That thing was truly terrible on rough roads. I got my first full suspension bike in 1999 and replaced with something disk braked in 2006 while I was ill. It was like riding a sofa it was that comfortable!

 

[Metalhead]

If I really want to piss my mother off, I would learn how to ride a motorcycle and go around Pierce and King County that way. Yeah, that would freak her out even more.

 

[maycontainthunder]

If I really want to piss my mother off, I would learn how to ride a motorcycle and go around Pierce and King County that way. Yeah, that would freak her out even more.

Words of wisdom; do all your braking before you enter a corner especially if it's wet. Also don't try accelerating hard out a corner. The back end may lose traction and you'll be on the ground in a heartbeat.

 

[Yeshuasdaughter]

I thought it sounded weird, until I saw the word "mother". I think we have to face it, in our mothers eyes we will never be older than 10. Never.

My daughter is an adult. She is very capable. But every morning, when my daughter goes to work, as she walks out the door, one of the things that I call out to her is: "Don't forget to look both ways when crossing the street!"

You can imagine the eye rolls I am met with.

I also call out "God bless you! Be careful! Have a wonderful day!"

Maybe your mom just loves you a lot and even though you are an adult, she is a worry wort, and just wants her little man to come home safe to her.

 

[Judge]

I'd probably have told my mother I got a motorcycle only after calling from a hospital.

 

[Forest Cat]

If you feel brave, you could get one of these;

 

[Thinx]

You seem in 2 minds yourself about this, you've not taken action on it over a long time now. Your mum can't get you committed for riding a bike. Maybe stop telling your sister stuff, if she tells it to your mum.

I'm a bit dyspraxic and I can do it. Used to love cycling, and maybe I'll start now we are in a quieter place. Traffic wise.

 

[Metalhead]

You seem in 2 minds yourself about this, you've not taken action on it over a long time now. Your mum can't get you committed for riding a bike. Maybe stop telling your sister stuff, if she tells it to your mum.

I'm a bit dyspraxic and I can do it. Used to love cycling, and maybe I'll start now we are in a quieter place. Traffic wise.

I visited a bike shop yesterday and saw a couple of decent options. Now I have to save my cash for a month or two, and a bike will be mine.

 

[Thinx]

That's great. I bet you will love it. That's all that matters, plus it is good exercise. Good advice there from others too about various possible pitfalls. I'd add, I tried cycling over part of a fallen branch once. It jumped up and stopped my wheel and I fell off. Don't try that...

 

[Crossbreed]

But every morning, when my daughter goes to work, as she walks out the door, one of the things that I call out to her is: "Don't forget to look both ways when crossing the street!"

You can imagine the eye rolls I am met with.

We mix up our safety advice, just to keep it interesting.
"If you see a car approaching, STOP, DROP & ROLL...!"

 

[Owliet]

My daughter is an adult. She is very capable. But every morning, when my daughter goes to work, as she walks out the door, one of the things that I call out to her is: "Don't forget to look both ways when crossing the street!"

My dad says similar things to remind me of things. I get it that he cares.

If you feel brave, you could get one of these;View attachment 83766

I’ve seen someone who lives around here on one of these Before, but then again my village has a cat as a mayor so it’s pretty much a given that it’s a crazy place to live.

Used to love cycling, and maybe I'll start now we are in a quieter place. Traffic wise.

I ride on the country roads rather that a main road with traffic. I will often get off And push it a long the road to my destination but maybe I’ll get confident enough to ride it on the road. You have to build confidence.

I visited a bike shop yesterday and saw a couple of decent options. Now I have to save my cash for a month or two, and a bike will be mine.

That’s good. I hope that you find a bike that you like. When I got my bike, I had two options, and was fortunate enough to save 400 chf on an electric bike, so I was pretty happy with that.