The Idiots' Guide to Learning How to Ride A Bicycle when You're in your 20s

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I never thought that I would be able to learn how to ride a bicycle.

I have always been scared of not being in control. And falling. And having gashes or wounds that will eventually become scars (that will forever ruin my bid to wear miniskirts and short shorts). And being run over by a truck.

All of which can be caused by riding a bicycle.

So I didn't learn how to ride a bicycle until I'm already 25.

So what made a disillusioned-job-hopping-jaded-millennial-me try to learn an activity which should have been learned ages ago?

Nothing. Just for the heck of it.

But really, I wanted to learn something new. Something that will give me a different perspective in life.

And I wanted to be able to operate a vehicle since I don't really have a means to have a car for now so why not a bicycle.

It's low-maintenance, cost-efficient, environment-friendly and good for the health. (I'm just really justifying the reasons why I chose it because I don't really have the money to buy a car yet. Just kidding.)

So my roommate taught me how. On the fifth try, I learned. Without falling hard. (Some minor falls, yes. ) Without having major wounds. (Some scratches and bruises, yes but nothing life-threatening.) Without being run over by a truck. (I actually ran over some ornamental plants. Sorry plants.)

And it felt great. It was one of the moments that I will always remember since I felt my inner kid jumping with joy and my smile was all over the place. It felt like flying except that there's are no wings involved (and I haven't experienced flying) but it's exhilarating.

I felt proud of myself for having to accomplish what before was only a dream. And I'm not exaggerating.

I've mentioned that I never thought that I would be able to ride a bicycle because of the fears that I had but I was able to overcome all those fears and with the help of my roommate who's very patient with me, I have fulfilled my lifelong dream.

So where's the The Idiot' Guide to Learning How to Ride A Bicycle when You're in your 20s?

I have not become an expert (yet) and until now I'm still perfecting my turning skills but here are the things that certainly worked for me:


1. You have to have the right mindset before you decide to learn biking. You have to anticipate that you will not get it the first time. You also have to accept beforehand that you will get hurt or wounded at some point and you can attribute this all to your age because as people age, we get to be more stubborn and we find it harder to try new things. If you learn it on the first time, then that's great. If not, you're not alone. Don't get frustrated with yourself. You have to think like a child. Children learn biking faster than us because they have a one-track mind. It doesn't matter if they get hurt, or if they have to try it over and over again as long as they learn how to do it.

2. You have to have a buddy who is very patient in showing you the ropes repeatedly to the point of insanity.

3. There should a wide place free of distracting, roaming people for practicing.

Probably, the reason why it took me 5 tries was because the park where we were practicing is always full of people during the weekends so whenever I got the bicycle controlled and moving already, we had no choice but to always let those people pass and the momentum just went off and I had to start all over again from the balancing and etc. It also helps that there is softly inclining grassy hill because it's easier to practice balancing when you're rolling downwards.

4. Your bike should have properly working brakes and a lower seat so that your feet can touch the ground which will make it easier for you to coast around.

5. Relax. Breathe in, breathe out. If you don't, your grip on the handlebars will be tighter and you hands will get hurt or worse, blisters. Also, if your body is tensed, the amount of damage caused by falling will be increased.

5. When starting, one foot should be on the pedal at 2 o’clock position – forward and high and the other one should be on the ground to give yourself a push. It depends on which foot you're comfortable to use for the push. After the push, put that foot on the pedal as well. Don't pedal just yet. Try to balance without pedaling.

6. Don't look at the wheel. Look forward.  Your focus should be on balancing. Try looking at the wheel and I guarantee your balance will be gone so just look forward.

7. Spread your legs a little bit as this helps on balancing.

8.When you're already comfortable in balancing, try pedaling. If you didn't fall, then you're good to go. Try using your brakes. You should use the back brake first because if it's the front one first, the danger of being thrown forward is imminent.

9. When you're already confident in balancing, pedaling and stopping, try turning your handlebar.  When steering, you don't really have to pedal and for starters, do a slow, wide turn with the handlebars without leaning. Leaning works best if you have to turn fast but this is petrifying for newbies (like me) since the possibility of falling is greater.

Another advise from a forum in roadbikereview.com :

" If you are turning right, put your left pedal down and keep your weight on it. (Left turns will have your right pedal lower.) "

But I will have to apply this next time I ride my bike.

What I learned from biking that can be applied in everyday life are:

1. Have patience. Tons of it. On yourself. On other people. You can't have everything your way.

2. Slow down. Oftentimes, when you already learned how to ride a bike, it feels good to go fast but if you do that and you're just a newbie, you tend to bump into other people's property(or other people themselves) and hurt yourself as the others. Just like in life. You don't need to rush. You have to savor the journey. It doesn't matter how slowly you reach the finish line as long as you enjoy getting there.

3. Say sorry. Inevitably, you will crash into someone or you will run over someone's feet so don't hesitate to sincerely apologize. In reality, you will hurt people without meaning to and sometimes people just needed  other people who did them wrong to say sorry.

4. Be careful. Always. Use your eyes and ears whenever your on an open road to prevent accident. You just can't turn whenever you want to. You will have to check if the direction your turning to doesn't have a vehicle coming towards your direction.

5. Be confident. You can never be successful in any endeavor that you will venture if you don't believe that you can do it and if you don't put your heart into it.

And last but absolutely not the least..

6. It's never too late to try. Want to learn a new language? Skill? Age is just a number. Don't let your age or any other silly factor inhibit you from crossing off things on your bucket list. I know these are clichés but let the photos tell you anyway.

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