Beach Cruising

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I've been anxious to take my new bike on the bike paths of some of our local beaches.  It's a beach cruiser and it's not designed for the hilly roads of the canyon I live in.  Saturday afternoon Briefcase loaded up his mountain bike (with it's 22 gears), and my new cruiser (with it's 3 gears), on the back of my car and we drove to Huntington Beach.  

 

It was a beautiful day.  The weather was a very comfortable 70F/21C.

I realized very quickly I can't get my bike on (or off) a bike rack with just my left arm.  So much for all my ambitious plans!  Because of my bum arm, I'll have to rely on others to help me with the bike rack.  I was disappointed but I'm certain, in the future, total strangers won't mind me begging asking them for help.  (We had to take the basket off to make the bike fit on the bike rack, but it easily went back on once the bike was off the rack.)

There was almost no one on the beach.  I realize it's November, but the weather was nice and I found the empty beach shocking.

Those are fire-pits for bonfires you see situated along the beach.  And ... a lot of empty sand.  Huntington Beach has big, wide, beaches.

We rode for close to an hour and a half.  I really enjoyed it.  Briefcase wore his iPod ear-buds so he wouldn't have to listen to me talk could enjoy some music.  I just took in the sights and realized how sore my ass was getting from the bike seat.  (Very, very sore - clearly I don't have buns of steel!)

After we rode for a few miles we approached, and passed, the Huntington Beach pier.  There were more people on the beach near the pier than we saw anywhere else during our ride.

I even found excuses to use the bell on my bike along the way.  It's amazing how happy little things like that make me.  All I need now is a big floppy old-lady hat with a scarf to make my eccentric-self happy.

The downtown/tourist area of Huntington Beach has been spruced up in recent years.  It almost looks like a California postcard.

Overall, the first outing with my beach cruiser was a success.  Once I toughen up my soft ass, I should be able to ride for hours and hours.  (I ride mainly with just my left arm on the handlebars, but I can reach the right handlebar if I need to.)

Did I mention my bike has a coaster brake - meaning I brake with the foot pedal?  Riding this bike makes me feel like I'm five years old again.  It's so much fun!  

The disadvantage of a cruiser is the weight of the bike and the lack of/or shortage of gears.  Cruisers are big sturdy bikes which makes them heavy.  People with "real" bikes were zipping past me all afternoon long.

I didn't care.  I couldn't have been happier!

I would show you the pictures Briefcase took of me actually riding my new bike, but ... um, there was a bit of a problem with those photos.  I'm not exactly a well-groomed Money Town woman.  Instead, I had unbrushed hair blowing in my face, my sports bra flattened my boobs into unattractive blobs, and ... I was sporting some very visible bionic nipples.

Maybe next time?

© Twenty Four At Heart

Comments

[Deidre]

That is so awesome, 24! I am so happy for you and your biking ways ;)

[di]

Sounds like a great way to bike. Slow and steady she goes. And I bet with a hat and scarf you would look just like Katharine Hepburn. No?

Di
The Blue Ridge Gal

[Beth]

Sounds like a great day! What is the deal with sports bras and the nipplage that they show? I sometimes where a cotton pad in mine to keep mine from looking so darn perky.

[Jan]

But I *want* to see pics of you and your bionic nipples taking a cruise along the beach!

[Maureen@IslandRoar]

Have you gotten a padded seat cover? My daughter at college just got one of those for her new bike and it's helped her butt.
Gorgeous photos. It sounds like such a good day.
And glad to hear the nipples are still bionic; haven't heard about them in a while.

[Lori]

What a beautiful bike ride! I'm jealous!

[Kelly]

All that open beach looks like it's begging for an enormous sand castle to be built. Sounds like a fun day with beautiful scenery! Jealous!

[LPC]

I remember that when I was pregnant I loved to ride a bike. I could finally be mobile. Does your arm cause you mobility issues? Does the bike free you?

[Michelle Pixie]

I am jealous too! Sounds like it was a lovely bike riding afternoon.

[Joanne]

how can you continue to deny us, your faithful fans a shot of the bionic duo??? haven't we been here for you through thick and thin? through pain and meds? through torture and denial? and bad bikini experiences?? dont we deserve a glimps of the magnipplecence ??? DONT WE???? hahaha

[Sandra]

How fun! I'm so happy for you!!!! What a glorious day for a bike ride. My butt gets sore pretty fast too when I ride my bike. Even the bike shorts with the chamois doesn't help alleviate the pain.

[michele]

24 promise me you wear a helmet!!!!!

[Allyson/@HBMomof2]

So happy your first outing with your bike went well. I'll tell you why the locals weren't at the beach, we were all at soccer games! I want my Saturdays back already. If you ever feel like riding and Briefcase isn't around, you can always email me. My beach cruiser looks a lot like yours, just with a toddler seat in the back and we are only a few blocks from there.

Thought of you this morning when I started a fight with my hubby regarding our red cup issue. (We were the ones with the bathroom lights in the morning.) He thought he was doing me a favor rather than pissing me off. We will see if it changes and if the fight was worth it. You were right to blog it and not confront it. I speak from a very all-day-silently-treated experience. Hopefully the cookies I baked to smooth it over will work.

Totally didn't mean to hijack comments. Sorry.

[Briefcases]

Awesome stuff, thank you for sharing the pictures I am totally impressed!