First Ride 2024

[BobAin'tStoppin']

I know - Right?  Here it is the end of May and yesterday (5/25) was the first time I got to ride the bike.  I've been playing carpenter with my son on Martha's Vineyard every weekend of late, and finally we have a break.  So I rode to Shelburne Falls for breakfast at Baked (https://www.bakedshelburnefalls.com).  After some service work over the winter the bike is running like new (it ran great before too).  I got 47 mpg and also passed the 40,000 mile mark.  It was good to feel alive and in the world for a couple hundred miles.

Bob

   

[Lee]

Good to see you still have the RS. I was thinking you were planning on selling it.

[runnerhiker]

That looks great, it's great to get out. I'll often do even 100 mile loops, there is nothing better than being on the bike.

[Ray]

It was good to feel alive and in the world for a couple hundred miles.

Well done, my friend.
Thanks for the update.
Looks like even the weather is on your side. 
Wishes for many happy returns.

[Grumpy Goat]

Well done, my friend.
Thanks for the update.
Looks like even the weather is on your side. 
Wishes for many happy returns.

Couldn't have said it better, Bob. Good job!

[Motorhead1977]

Nicely done and said! Yesterday, 5/25 was my first ride of the season as well. For me the delay was due to having had open heart bypass graft surgery (quadruple grafts) at the beginning of March. Sure felt good to be back on my RS and riding the twisties. A++ Now get out there and ride some more.

[Ray]

...open heart bypass graft surgery (quadruple grafts) at the beginning of March. Sure felt good to be back on my RS and riding the twisties. A++  Now get out there and ride some more.

(A stress test every day - just what the doctor ordered. Stay fit.)

[BobAin'tStoppin']

Well, haven't had anything like open heart surgery. But I did have a discectomy (L4/5) 30 years ago. It's starting to act up again lately. Sciatic pain down the right side and at the lower back. Then on the left side it's the knee pain that comes and goes. That knee has cut short vacations when it gets bad and is now preventing me from going for a walk. Ray, maybe you could come live her for a bit and figure out what needs to be done? I have a doc appt tomorrow morning. Hoping to get pictures of both spots to see what's going on in there.

Neither of this issues are bothered by riding the bike, fortunately. I just have to be sure to straighten out that knee before getting to a stop. Otherwise I might fall over ?

[runnerhiker]

Neither of this issues are bothered by riding the bike, fortunately.  I just have to be sure to straighten out that knee before getting to a stop.  Otherwise I might fall over ?

Go ride, that beats playing carpenter
Don't fall over like the tricycle guy on the old Laugh In shows
It's good to "hear" from you.

[BobAin'tStoppin']

Well, I got X-rays on that knee yesterday. I have Chondrocalcinosis in there, which is a sort of arthritis. They are suggesting physical therapy. I don't get that, but will give it a try. Oddly, the doc wasn't interested to talk about my back issues.

[Grumpy Goat]

Well, I got X-rays on that knee yesterday.  I have Chondrocalcinosis in there, which is a sort of arthritis.  They are suggesting physical therapy.  I don't get that, but will give it a try.  Oddly, the doc wasn't interested to talk about my back issues.

This and other links for Chondrocalcinosis or Calcium pyrophosphate crystal deposition (CPPD) suggest that treatment could be corticosteroids but the tone of these articles suggest that it is not that serious and that some patients may not get any pain at all.   

This link appears to be a little more informative and probably more accurately describes your condition. I note that none of the articles I pulled up mentioned physiotherapy as a treatment. As I get older, I am starting to develop a hypothesis about the attitudes about doctors and their approach to treatment ... seems that they seem to be getting more "dismissive" and it may be tied to billing.   That is all I am going to say at this time ...

[36654]

I don't have knee pain, but sciatica can be a problem after a few weeks of winter confinement. Like Bob, riding the bike is my most comfortable seating position. I think, there's no pressure on the nerve in that position.

My suggestion........get one of those muscle vibrators (i.e., beaters). They seem to work.

[Grumpy Goat]

I don't have knee pain, but sciatica can be a problem after a few weeks of winter confinement.  Like Bob, riding the bike is my most comfortable seating position.  I think, there's no pressure on the nerve in that position.

It depends. I too have sciatica on the left side which flared up last December, again, due to a bulging disc between L4-L5. 

Long story short, it has calmed down a lot since then but, on my body, the nerve is such that it appears that I am sitting on it where the saddle contacts my left upper thigh just below the butt cheek. The discomfort is not great for shorter rides, and I am hoping that it does not progress to where longer rides (like 8 - 9 hours on the road) becomes a problem.

[darrell]

Keep in mind Chiropractors and Massage Therapists can be a tremendous help in alleviating some of the pain you are experiencing.  Couple times a month or every 3 weeks might make all the difference.  As well get yourself a good foam roller (5 - 6" diameter) and spend 10 minutes every evening rolling out the muscles in all parts of the body focusing on those parts where you are experiencing pain.  Do this every day.

[BobAin'tStoppin']

Well. Turning this into a medical thread, but I agree that the medical care business is simply turning in to a profit machine rather than real doctoring. I have received no follow up note from the doc about what the xray means or reveals. No prescription that I know of to give to the physical therapist. Strange.

But I do believe I'm a bit old for vibrators ?

A primary concern is that my L4/L5 issue can get to involve bladder control. When I had the rupture in 1994, the doc insisted I must be incontinent. Fortunately I wasn't. But my Mom wore a diaper for her last 15 years by neglecting this same issue before getting her stenosis operation.

[maxredline]

Wow, we all are getting on, holy smokes!
I would suggest most RS owners have grey hair or at least the start.
The grey factor could have something to do about sales of the RS.
I am so happy most of us here at this site can ride on a good day.
It will be a sad day when I have to let the RS go. In the end it will be the weight that compels me.
It it is such a great comprise between this and that .
When it comes to the RS delay the eventuality.

[36654]

Yes, vibrator isn't the correct term, but it does work for relaxing (loosening) contracted muscles. It's similar to the foam rollers with the tooth design.

It's not going to resolve any stenosis issues.

[Grumpy Goat]

...
The grey factor could have something to do about sales of the RS.
...
It will be a sad day when I have to let the RS go. In the end it will be the weight that compels me.
It it is such a great comprise between this and that .
When it comes to the RS delay the eventuality.

I think that the age factor is a huge part of the RS sales story. It shines in areas that are more important to older riders, e.g. sport touring. If one wants a pure bike or either focus - sport or touring - the general tendency is more than likely to a different demographic.

As for the weight issue ... ever since I got my Tracer 900GT the weight issue has been or greater significance. I don't have the luxury of garage space where I have my bikes in a nice line and I can pull whichever one I want to ride backwards and out, and be on my way. No - I have to move bikes around, and that means a lighter bike is appreciated. Not sure if any of you watch the Missenden Flyer on YouTube, but he and I have this garage dilemma and both of us appreciate a bike that can be handled easily in a garage. He has way more bikes and some are way heavier too.

[Lee]

I would suggest most RS owners have grey hair or at least the start.

No grey hair for me  

   

   

[Grumpy Goat]

Heheh ... where is your pitchfork, Lee?