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No thanks, I’m in training

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By Barb Ickes | Saturday, March 29, 2008 10:02 PM CDT | () comments

How big, exactly, do they make bicycle seats?

In the next few weeks, I’ll be in the market for a new bike. The last time I got one it had a banana seat, a basket with a plastic flower on it and a bell.

In other words, it’s been a while.

I put out the call a couple of weeks ago for readers’ ideas about where I might go and what I might do to get out of the office for a week or two and find something worth writing about. The ever-helpful Susan McPeters pointed out that it “took guts” for me to ask people to tell me where to go.

But she also pointed out that “bible” precedes “bicycle” in the Yellow Pages, so I figured she was just looking out for me.

I got some cool ideas, dozens of them. Here are a few:

-- Spend time talking to people at nursing homes. Old folks have the best stories.

-- Go to the Davenport Yacht Club for lessons, and sail or windsurf the Mississippi River.

-- Do other people’s jobs, such as street cleaner, garbage collector, waitress, veterinarian’s assistant.

-- Spend a week at summer camp, such as Camp Courageous and Grace Lutheran Camp.

-- Ride to all the regional farmers markets and/or check out local and regional farms that are growing organic foods.

There were dozens of ideas for specific places to visit and many generous invitations.

In the end, I stuck with my first instinct: Get on a bicycle and ride from Rock Island to Savanna. Stop in at a campground and see what people are doing. Visit out-of-the-way cafes and stop by strangers’ homes to see what’s in the garden.

You get the idea — a low-key, two-wheeled stroll along the riverside bike path.

But there’s a twist this year: I’m taking people with me. I’m not sure who’s going yet, but I’ll set up somebody different for each day. I had one friend who’s really more of an acquaintance offer to come along on a leg. I thought it was a great idea. It’ll be a good chance to get to know her better, and I can introduce you to her, too. Unless, of course, she turns out to be a total bore (just kidding, Joan).

I’m figuring a week to 10 days of riding. It won’t take that long to get to Savanna, but it’s not a race. And I say that largely to comfort myself.

I go into high-gear walking training this week, which means a few miles a day after work. Walking is the best way to work off the winter stiffness that has settled into my sissy of a back. In a couple of weeks, I’ll graduate to pedaling.

I’ve done some preliminary bike shopping and have to admit to a little sticker shock.

I considered a semi-recumbent, but it wasn’t made right. There were no holes in the handles for the tassels.

Barb Ickes can be contacted at (563) 383-2316 or bickes@qctimes.com.