Riding bicycle at an advanced age (1) - some background

I don't remember when I rode for the first time on my bike - I was just too young. But I remember my father mounted a pair of support wheels, and I took my first pedal strokes with them. A few weeks later, I could ride my kiddy bike without them. Even though this sounds like a baby step in the development of each child, it felt like a huge step toward my independence. I started to ride in front of my house, but as soon as I could, I tried to explore my surroundings and caused my parents some serious headaches.

Throughout my teenage years, various bicycles served as my main mode of transportation for exploring my neighborhoods and visiting friends and family, such as my grandmother. Occasionally, I would ride further to see my dad at his trucking company. When I was 15, I took over the paper route from our neighbor upstairs and became quite skilled at cycling, earning money with my bicycle for the first time!

When I was 16, I successfully completed a written exam for a small motorcycle license for vehicles up to 50cc. Using half of my savings and the other half from my parents, I purchased a brand new Hercules Supra 4 mokick, or a 'moped with a kick-starter,' in Irish green. Consequently, my orange Didi Thurau road bike was relegated to the basement to collect dust.

This tiny motorcycle offered me new possibilities, allowing me to escape from my irreparably fractured family. It was clear that my alcoholic Catholic father and my Nazi Christian mother had vastly different personalities and were too obstinate to forgive each other. Instead of seeking common ground, they repeatedly fell into the same selfish errors and exchanged insults. Rather than getting involved in my parents' issues, I chose to concentrate on my newfound freedom with my small motorcycle, finding escape simply by twisting the throttle. But, looking back, I lost my interest in moving my body, the small motorbike was too convenient.

In 1980, after graduating from secondary school, I began working at a Volkswagen dealership, spending three days a week at the company and two days studying at a vocational school. I owned a white Peugeot racing bicycle for daily errands, which I sold to a colleague. Despite earning a low salary, I managed to upgrade to a used blue Yamaha XS360 motorcycle and move out of my parents' apartment, as they were in the process of divorcing. My new apartment came with a parking spot, where I eventually parked my 'new' second-hand Suzuki GS550 Katana, named after the sword of a Japanese samurai. For some beers, a friend painted my silver bike into a dark purple one, the other refurbished the seat with a white cover.

But I found myself riding less and less motorcycle - the German weather was not very biker-friendly and the power of my Katana was sometimes very frightening. I sold it to a neighbor right before I got my draft papers to serve my German mandatory military service for 15 months.

After my military service, I planned to travel the world. For this plan, I had three different jobs working from Monday to Sunday, 7 days a week. When I thought the time was ripe, I sold everything and started a new travel life. Unfortunately, I ran into some problems and had to return. But on the road, I met my future wife in Taiwan while traveling, and, without hesitation, I moved to this 'beautiful Island' in 1989.

View from LaLa Mountain in Northern Taiwan

I found a job in a trading company and got cheated by a Taiwanese boss and his wife after some initial success as an international salesman. I was so stupid and agreed not to take a basic salary but only the commission, and, as I had some good customers, I become obsolete by the company! At that time I was already married and could legally not be kicked out of the country - as both of my bosses demanded. Instead of complaining, I'd instead focus on my wife, our new baby, and my future life in Taiwan - and opened my own trading company with the help of some family members.

With all these things in my life, It took me around 20 years to re-discovered cycling - I bought a bicycle but the environment plus the air pollution was not very biker-friendly at that time in Taiwan. A few years ago, the Taipei City government started to see cycling as an outdoor activity and recreational sport and invested in new cycling routes. And indeed, every weekend crowded bike paths are a sign that the efforts paid off and other Taiwanese cities and towns started to build their own bike-friendly system of roads.

In 2016 my wife bought me some jogging shoes. I still don't understand why, because at that time I did not have any interest in sports. I focused on my trading company, wanted to be a good family guy, and enjoyed Chinese food. Usually, I am the photographer and take pictures of others until one day when I lent my camera to my daughter. She took a photo on which my belly showed under a jacket - and was shocked about me. I went back home, got on the scale and it showed 114kgs (251.32 lbs.) by 183 cm (6.0 ft.). Suddenly, I understood what to do with those jogging shoes.

While my daughter and wife watched TV, I started to jog along a nearby newly built road, a roundtrip of 8 km. The first few times I nearly died - could not jog for even two minutes! I ran slowly until I was done and walked until I could breathe again. I started to jog again until I ran out of gas. It took me 45 minutes to finish my 1. roundtrip of 8 km. I started to lose some weight until I came to a point where I seemingly hit a wall. I was sweating but my weight stayed the same. Later, I realized that I should weigh myself without a sweaty T-shirt - an astonishing weight difference of 2 kgs.

As my jogging time improved from 45 to 23 minutes for the same 8km, a friend asked me if I would like to join a triathlon event. I knew that I could run and ride a bike, and with some training, I could survive the swimming part of the shortest triathlon distance somehow. So I started to run three evenings and swim 2 evenings per week.

My wife and daughter attended the Yilan Meihua Lake National Triathlon challenge as visitors in 2017 as part of spectators, cheering me on whenever I passed them during the swimming, cycling, and running competitions. Seriously, I was not our to break some records but I wanted to challenge myself - see if and how I could do it. I was surprised about the 50-plus-year-old of mine.

Swimming was the first, and, as expected, my weakest point. I had fun on the bike and the running part was ok. A few corners before the finish I literally ran into a much younger female out of breath, full of sweat, and very pale. I stopped and asked her how she felt. She did not feel good, wanted to vomit, and felt no power to continue. I told her that the finish is very close and I would like to run with her, that she can follow my short but steady footsteps. She agreed and together we, slowly but steadily, came closer to the finish line and passed it together. After I hugged my family and friends the out-of-breath competitor was lost in the crowd. I felt great about myself - about the challenge went but mostly about my encouragement for this person in need during the race.

Later, as we went through the videos and photos of this challenge, my wife remarked, 'You look happiest on the bike.' And she was right! During the competition, I felt like I could ride all day. On my converted, inexpensive alloy mountain bike, I overtook many competitors on their much pricier triathlon and carbon road bikes. During the ride, I felt as I should have during my swim—like a fish in its natural habitat.

This one picture of me, a smiling and overweighted rider during my short triathlon challenge marked the beginning of a journey on which I re-discovered my 'new' old passion for cycling. Since that moment, numerous bike-specific components have been upgraded, enhancing my ride. I've made mistakes, learned from them, formed friendships, and gained experiences I never could have imagined before.

Looking back, I realize that I should have returned to cycling much sooner. I've raised my family, and both my wife and daughter are independent in their own ways.

I've gained a lot of knowledge about bicycles, which has taught me much about life in general. Instead of simply purchasing bikes, I assemble them by selecting and buying components online, even importing some parts from Europe. This interest in bicycles led to a fascination with accessories like clothing, shoes, and nutrition, including gels, powders, bars, and recovery drinks - and ultimately, this homepage where I share my experiences.

(to be continued)

Ride carefully, Gerhard