“When Riding Tandem, Somebody Has to be Second!”

This was the topic of our “illustrated message” Sept. 6 at our First Saturdays kick-off –”Medley of Mentoring” — sponsored by Open Book Ministries. We gather in an open forum of dynamic interchange among women once a month in different womens’ homes. This Saturday will be #2. (All women are welcome to come to these meetings in the Denver area).

 

In September, I dressed up in bikers shorts and stood in front of my mountain bike (with a clip art of tandem riders taped to the crossbar.) Here are excerpts of what I said:

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Let me see a show of hands – how many of you have ridden either a road bike or a mountain bike? Good! How many people does it take to maneuver one of those?

[Audience said, "One!"]

As most of you know, tandem bicycles are specially built for two riders and include two seats, two sets of pedals and two handlebars. The more experienced tandem cyclist or the one with the greatest upper body strength is best suited to ride in the front seat as “captain” of the bicycle. The captain is responsible for controlling the bike’s direction and speed while warning the back seat rider of upcoming obstacles, bumps and gear shifts.

The rear rider or “stoker” is mainly a source of extra cruising power for the bike. Stokers must be very careful to keep their weight centrally balanced while cruising, and lean to one side only on turns.

Learning to ride tandem with another person is different than riding a single person bike by yourself. It takes a little getting used to, a little bit of practice. But you CAN learn, and when you do, tandem riders will tell you what a thrill and rewarding experience it is.

When you decide to take your life’s journey for a season with a human mentor, you want to ride with someone who has tried and tested the road of life, over the potholes, through rough terrain, winding paths and up difficult mountains. But most of all, you want to ride with someone who has been learning to ride tandem with her Captain, our Lord Jesus.

What I share with you about tandem riding will apply not only to riding tandem with a human mentor, but also riding together with Jesus, getting into a rhythm with His plan for your life as you let Him steer you through the challenges and joys of life.

Today I will share with you FIVE RULES for riding a tandem bike. READY TO HOP ABOARD? 

more…

Cycling Heaven, Part 2 – Tooling around Frisco, CO!

I remember only about three years ago when Dillon lake was a pitiful sight – half the water was drained leaving ugly brown scrub and mud. The Colorado drought dried up our tourist-loving waterways and lakes. It warmed my heart to see the clear blue water lapping up all the way to the edge of the Marina during my bike ride.

 

 

Of course I have to include this photo of the lighthouse at the Frisco Marina. Don’t laugh, those of you who know me! Since I collect lighthouse replicas, it is only proper that I collect one on my blog!

The women’s mentoring group that I have been participating in for over three years (seven of us on the leadership team at this time – you’ll learn more about this crazy group as time goes on) has acquired quite an affinity for tandem bikes; it is a wonderful metaphor for us. We ride Tandem with Jesus – let Him take the Captain, or front seat, in our lives. We also ride the tandem journey with some awesome younger women.

Sept 6 Open Book Ministries had our very first fall First Saturday gathering and I was given the role of sharing our “illustrated message.” Vicki Bustos and I called all over town trying to find a tandem bike to use as a demonstration. We could not find one anywhere! We came very close to strapping a brand new one on top of Vic’s SUV – but didn’t. You can read the essence of my message, titled “When Riding Tandem, Somebody Has to Be Second!” HERE – in which I faked it in Marsha Dunn’s back yard using my regular mountain bike and a clip art of a tandem bike with its two riders atop taped to the cross bar!

So, you can imagine how thrilled I was when I saw this bicycle shop in Frisco that was actually selling its rentals from last year. One of the salesguys (he may have been the owner, for all I know) enthusiastically answered every question I had about tandem bikes. They had two different kinds. The one pictured here is  a model that has been on the market for only three years. It is a new concept in tandem riding: it is designed for an adult and a child, and the child sits in the front. That almost blows the concept of having the Captain in front, as I talked about in my presentation at First Saturday – except for the fact that the child has no control over the steering or brakes. It makes a lot of sense to allow the child to be in front so he or she can actually enjoy the view.

So now we know, ladies, where we can rent a tandem bike!

CUTE ALERT!!! As I was leaving the bike shop, a cart of 3-year-olds rolled by! One adult was pushing this darling custom-made wagon while another walked alongside.

“How did you get so many little ones?” I asked.

“These are kids from our day care,” one of the proud adults answered. They agreed to pose for a quick photo before rolling on down the street, probably for lunch and a nappy.   

This is a typical creature carving you’ll find in these mountain town resorts.
Mr. Moose here is perhaps larger than most.

It was getting close to 4 p.m. and I needed to head back to Copper Mountain to turn in my bike rental. But before I did, I saw this hilarious sign posted in one of the retail shops:

Do you notice the fine print? They even have a web site: www.TheEvilPineBeetle.com! My family has had its share of warding off Evil Pine Beetles at our small historic cabin in Allenspark! See the post about Tree Dudes, dear husband Chet and Steve Nuss as they cut over 125 trees one weekend last spring. (Only a few of them were actually beetle-infested. We were working with the local and state forest service to prevent the problems that have occurred on this side of the mountain.)

Finally, it was time to head back to Copper Mountain. I did not realize that my 25-minute journey downhill to Frisco would become an hour-and-a-half huffing and puffing bike trek back! Needless to say, I did not make it in time to turn the bike in before the shop closed at 5 p.m.

 

 

 

CYCLING SISSY, Part 3 – Gripped By A Heroic Inspiration

 

She sat in the circle of around 12 women in the grass, legs crossed casually, smiling. Her talk would be the catalyst that would propel me into signing up for Rev (cycling or Spinning) classes only 6 weeks after my knee surgery.

The women’s mentoring group I serve with had several “real life parable enactments” as a part of the Fall 2007 Determined Pursuit Bible studies. One of those enactments occurred at a park in Broomfield.

And we sat in the lush grass listening to Marianne Svec tell us about her positive experience as a first time athlete in the Tri For the Cure Triathalon, just a few weeks before, first weekend in August. Three thousand women swam, biked and ran for “Susan G Komen for the Cure.”

Marianne truly inspired me. The fact that she is 50-something and said “YES!” to an opportunity way beyond her comfort zone touched a spot in my heart. Her supervisor at work, an experienced triathelete, mentored her. They trained throughout the year, logging in about four days a week at the nearby rec center in swimming and Spinning classes. They also ran together quite a bit. Marianne ended up swimming the 750 meters (1/2 mile), biking 20k (a little over 12 miles), and running the 5k (3.1 miles) in an hour and fifty-five minutes, including transition time.

She read Philippians 4:13 to us: “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me,” and II Timothy 4:7-8: “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Finally, there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord…will give to me on that day…” (New King James Version) 

She concluded by saying: “You can train together the whole time with someone who’s been through it before. But in the end, you’ll have to run your own race.”

Something in my heart leapt that day: I wanted to take indoor cycling classes like she did and ride my bike in some long rides, maybe in the summer. Marianne inspired me.