“You’ll look sweet upon the seat of a bicycle built for two.”
This lyric from the late 1800s folk song “Daisy Bell” refers to a vision that lately is becoming more common in New Albany: tandem bicycles.
Cyclists on the roads and paths in New Albany are as familiar to residents as white fences,
but the sight of a tandem bicycle can still turn heads. As local enthusiasm for tandem cycling grows, seeing a couple getting their exercise on a tandem bicycle may become more commonplace.
Tandem bicycles solve a problem that many couples face: They want to exercise together, but varying abilities or interests do not allow them to do so easily. New Albany resident Greg Huddle is a cycling enthusiast, and while his wife, Pat, works as a physical therapist and loves to exercise, cycling wasn’t something they shared until they tried a tandem bicycle.
“We wouldn’t be doing single biking together; this is the only way we can bike together,” Pat says.
Resident Christine Ginder and her husband, Don, started tandem cycling for a similar reason.
“With separate bikes, Don would have to keep slowing down waiting for me to catch up to him,” Christine says.
Despite their similar athletic pursuits and interests, residents Kasey and Rebecca Kist rarely
rode together before riding a tandem bicycle.
“We knew couples that would ride tandems and always thought that would be a blast. We borrowed a friend’s, took it out for a little 10-mile ride around town and loved it,” Kasey says.
The front rider on a tandem is known as the captain or pilot, and the rear rider is the stoker. Like in any relationship, communication between the two riders is key. Steering, braking and gear changes all require interaction between the riders, and the onus is primarily on the captain.
For her part, Rebecca prefers to ride as the stoker.
“It’s a lot easier for me overall,” she says. “Kasey’s the one that has to pay attention to what’s going on around us, and I just have to pedal hard and enjoy the scenery.”
Working together becomes easier with practice.
“The more you ride, the more it becomes subconscious, and you don’t have to verbalize the commands,” Rebecca says.
For a couple to be successful on a tandem bicycle, the riders must be comfortable in their roles.
“You can’t both want to be the captain. The personalities have to be a match for it,” Christine says. “I’m not always a backseat person in life, but on this bike, I’m happy to let Don take charge. It works out really well.”
Tandem bicycles can go just about any place a solo bicycle can go. The tandem bicycles are heavier, but with two riders giving equal effort, the tandem can go as fast as or faster than a solo rider.
While the Huddles ride their bike primarily in and around New Albany, the Ginders often load
their bike into their van and participate in different tours or ride on rails-to-trails all throughout Ohio.
Both the Ginders and the Kists have ridden their tandem bicycles in Pelotonia. The Kists rode
theirs in Pelotonia last year and were rewarded with an unforgettable experience.
“It was the best Pelotonia I’ve had yet. It was a blast, and we’re doing it again this year,” Kasey says.
His wife agrees.
“Kasey and I had so much fun, and in some ways it was kind of like we were on a date,” she says.
While riding a tandem bicycle is inherently more social because it allows for easier conversation and proximity, it isn’t simply a leisurely adventure; the exercise benefits that riding provides are an important part of the experience.
“Tandem requires a little more strength and a little more balance,” Greg says.
Don agrees. While tandem biking is a bit harder than riding solo, he and his wife enjoy the workout.
Comfort is also an important factor.
“You’ve got to have the bike fit correctly. If it’s not fit correctly, it’s very uncomfortable,” says Pat.
For comfort, the Ginders ride a recumbent tandem bicycle, which means that they are in a more reclined sitting position while they ride.
“It’s a lot of fun,” says Christine. “We enjoy being together, we laugh a lot, we have a good time, we have a good workout and we get out in nature. We love it.”
Bob Valasek is a contributing writer. Feedback welcome at ssole@cityscenemediagroup.com.
Related Stories
