Part IV: Forever Young Guests

Every week the stories get better and better. This week’s Forever Young tales includes that told by our youthful 82 year-old guest Ivan Strand with his inspirational ideas on the power behind adapted attitudes and approach to life. He brought a huge smile to my face when he said “”I’m pretty excited, I have waited almost 82 years for my 15 minutes of fame … and here it is!””  A truly motivating force of life.

Ivan Strand, 82 years old

La Bella Puglia ‘15

Ivan loves to chat up the locals!

I started cycling in the early ’70s.  My bike dealer went to Europe and got a Colnago Tour d’Italia  bike for me which I have now been riding for 40+ years, all over the U.S. West Coast and in Italy. I lived in Manhattan Beach, CA and commuted to Palos Verdes, 30 miles round trip, for 5 years.

I try to ride whenever we travel somewhere where there is time. I love riding in Europe. Although the cars  go faster than in the U.S. they are much more aware of bikes than U.S. drivers are. I have done a lot of mountain road riding, lived in Aspen CO, (road from Aspen to Leadville for lunch, which was a major event, check it out on Google Maps). I have ridden all over the passes and mountains around Tahoe, lots of serious climbs in Tuscany, and have ridden up both volcanos in Maui, which most people just bus to top and ride down. So my 40 year old bike and I will continue to enjoy one another for as long as I am able, and although I no longer do 100 mile days, I am still good for 40+ more years.

Staying in shape has always been my primary goal.  (I will be 82 in March) and cycling (not now as we have a foot of snow and single digit temperatures) is something I do  3+ times a week when the weather is clement. I have a cyclist friend and we explore places nearby we have not visited before. Although I also walk a lot with my dog, a Spinone Italiano and go the gym, cycling remains the most pleasurable exercise I engage in.

I did have a heart issue about 15 years ago, fixed with a stent. I’m not sure that cycling did much to aid the recovery and I was very into Dragon Boat racing at the time.  I was on the Canadian National Dragon Boat team worked out daily as we prepared to go to the World Championships in Australia. But recover I did. I also had an accident mountain biking — broke my shoulder blade off and had walk out 5 miles while carrying my mountain bike, gave up Mountain Biking, but kept up road biking.

I would like to add that over the past 2.5 years I have dropped from 205 to 165 (75kg) which for a 6’0″” man of medium large bones is ideal, gives me 40/30/37 chest, waist, and hips and, although I have not had a test, I am sure it is 10% or less body fat.

My friend that I ride with on Fridays (when weather permits)  is 30+ years younger than I am,  so I ride other days on my own so that I can do better about  keeping up with him.

I bike to get somewhere, or just for the exercise. I also always cycle when we go to Italy and I hope to repeat a trip with Ciclismo this year.  The scenery, wine, food, people are all wonderful additions.

Cycling with Ciclismo Classico guides Frank and Dana and being able to keep up with them made me feel ageless. That’s pretty self evident from the picture. And Judy, who only rode a couple of days due to health issues, had a great time with them when in the van.

Have a regular exploring ride on Fridays, other wise I ride to my office  (16 miles) and downtown for haircuts and physical therapy. Then, I ride just because I like to ride!

We hope to do a Ciclismo tour again this year. It was great.  Frank and Dana are The Best and the other guests are fun.  The routes they pick are much safer and more interesting than what I find when I ride alone in strange places.

Joanne Downes, 76 years old  

Bike Across Italy ‘07

Joanne with her husband, Stephen on the Bike Across Italy trip. She says: “”friends called us youngsters, teenagers.””

I began biking by commuting to work and taking our daughter to school.  Living in Manhattan, my recreational cycling was limited to biking the path along the Hudson River.  Upon retirement we began spending our summers in Colorado where biking is so much a part of the culture.  When my husband and I were in our mid-60s we joined Ciclismo Classico in their Bike Across Italy tour with wonderful guides Dana and Frank.  Though I was initially dubious about my success in this endeavor, being the oldest and slowest of the group, it became a great experience.  The support and encouragement I received from my husband, the guides and my group were gratifying.  They cheered me on during the challenging times, and I was not embarrassed to climb into the sag wagon when desired.

Since then, we have become avid cyclists riding a minimum of two or three times a week during the summers. In winters we ski and go to the gym for the stationary bikes. We try to incorporate a ride when traveling.  We especially enjoy the rails-to-trails rides.  I belong to two groups each of which bikes once weekly.  Our ladies “Bike to Lunch”” group (we even have our own bike shirts!) takes a different ride each week and finishes with lunch.  It’s great both for the exercise and socializing.  Our local “”Over the Hill Gang”” group meets weekly and is co-ed.  We divide up naturally by ability and distance.  There’s no competition, just the joy of cycling with friends in magnificent mountain scenery while feeling the fresh air and sun. AND cycling is inexpensive once the bike is purchased.  (Well, I will admit to owning more bike shirts than dresses!)

In addition to the pleasure I have received with every bike ride, the exercise has had a very practical outcome.  In recent years I have had two abdominal surgeries as well as shoulder surgery following an injury while mushing in Alaska last winter.  After all these surgeries the doctors and nurses were amazed at my physical stamina and quick recovery.

We hope to join a Ciclismo Classico trip again in the future.  I am grateful for the joy Ciclismo Classico specifically–and cycling in general–have given me in my senior years.

David Rentschler, 72 years old

Piedmont ‘04, Bike Across Italy II ‘05, Sicily East & Sicily West ‘06, Island Hopping ‘07, Croatia ‘08, Friuli & Slovenia ‘08, Bike Across Italy ‘09, Swept Away in Sardinia ‘10, Tuscany & Elba ‘10, Piedmont ‘13, Puglia ‘15, Savor Sardinia ‘16

David and his lovely wife Rosemary on tour in Sardinia

First of all, fourteen Ciclismo Classico tours clearly tells you how much we really like the program.

Rosemary and I started cycling about 15 years ago to stay in shape for skiing and general health. We purchased two mountain bikes and cycled on jeep trails and the canyon roads  around our second home in the Wasatch mountains near Salt Lake City.  About that time, a good ski friend of ours recommended that we try a European cycling tour and the rest is history.

I always tell friends that in this active retirement phase of life my mission statement is to be outside under my own power in a beautiful natural landscape.  We love to be in the mountains winter and summer and the back roads and landscapes of Italy also clearly qualify.

We viewed cycling as mostly good aerobic exercise with descending reminding us of  the exhilaration we experience  skiing down challenging runs. Never being much of a pure sightseer, our first bike tour really resonated as it produced  a good day of exercise while enjoying the sights.  Covering areas by car are too fast, hiking too slow but perfect on a bike.

Ciclismo trips have been a perfectly paced  tour of Western Civilization with a concentration in the Italian peninsula — pre- Roman, Roman and medieval European history. We very much enjoy the routes for both beauty and cycling pleasure while learning  about the food and wine — region by region throughout the day and evenings. The Ciclismo guides have provided enthusiastic, knowledgeable with keen direction and support on the riding and sightseeing. The fun and camaraderie that we have experienced with the friends who have joined us as well as with new found friends has been special.

While Rosemary is fortunate to have all of her original parts I have had to have my right hip replaced twice. But the good news is cycling is the best form of rehab.

We cycle from May through November  four or five days a week. A quarter of the time we ride in the Wasatch mountains near Salt Lake City while the remainder is with friends in California, Idaho, Oregon and Wyoming on road trips.

We are very much looking forward to our next trip this September on the Assaggio Toscana tour.