Living Life With the Breaks On: Multiple Sclerosis on the Seat of a Bike

In a scene from one of my favorite Irish films, The Commitments – the story of a young soul band forming in 1980’s Dublin – three of the band members are trying to come up with a name for their group. “How about ‘And, And, And’!” says one of the lads. I mention that because it seems lie something of a lifestyle choice here in Ireland. Everyone seems to be/do more than one thing. A grocer-and-member of the county council, a publican-and-lifeboat captain, the farmer-and-builder for example. Last week we took our bicycles to be reassembled by the local publican-and-bike repairman. As we don’t yet have a car – and we know how walking can be with MS – the bikes make for easy transportation, a walker on the days when balance precludes actually riding and the flip-out baskets on the back make carrying groceries (yes, from the grocer-and-MP) back home from the shops. While I’ll not pass judgment on the work of the bicycleman (he is after all, a publican and I do want to get a decent pint now and again), let’s just say that my bike will need a tune-up once the proper bike shop opens back up in the spring (as I have neither the tools nor the mechanical inclination to figure out how to fix the issue) While Caryn was riding further and further ahead of my on our first trip back from town, I noted that my breaks needed major adjustment. The rear brakes weren’t deployed completely, so I could still pedal and make my way along the road. Each crank, however, took m...
Source: Life with MS - Category: Other Conditions Authors: Tags: exercise bikes and ms walking and ms Source Type: blogs