My name is April, and I am not an expert rider, nor do I think I will ever be. I can say with full certainty that I am a cyclist, which according to @BikeSnobNYC (author of the entertaining read, Bike Snob), means that I ride because I enjoy riding. Do I know how to change a flat tire? No. Do I understand the difference between a hardtail and a full suspension bike? Barely. When I decided to take up biking a couple of months ago, all I knew is that I wanted to develop a hobby that kept me fit, helped me cope with work stress, and allowed me to spend most of my free time outdoors.

Like many people, I have a job that forces me to spend my time indoors at a computer most of the day. Though I work in the public sector and feel like my work is rewarding, the environment that I find myself in 8-9 hours a day feels very unhealthy. 

My interest in biking comes in a few forms. I purchased my Trek 4300 at Matthews with the intention of taking up mountain biking. Yes, we do live in Indiana where we (unfortunately) have no mountains. But I knew that there were many elaborate trail systems in state parks that I wanted to experience. I absolutely love the Trek 4300, and if someone were planning to spend less than $800 on a mountain bike, I would highly recommend it. The one drawback is that it’s not the ideal bike for commuting, which I decided to start doing after getting my first “real” bike (I got a Schwinn cruiser a couple years ago on a whim and have only ridden it a handful of times.)

After about ten trips to work (at 16 miles round trip), I decided that I needed a bike with smaller tires. Charlie at The Bike Line let me test out a Trek 7.2 and I was instantly sold. I knew that my commute would be much more manageable on my new fitness bike – especially when my husband could hardly keep up with me on his mountain bike!

So, what’s the idea behind Hoosier Bike Girl? I wanted to start a blog to journal my adventures in the new world of cycling. I’ve also noticed that cycling clothes, blogs, gear, etc. seem to cater mostly to men, so I wanted a forum to post new finds for my gals out there.

Starting this blog is also a way to share with everyone that you don’t have to be an expert, or a really young person, or a hipster, to pick up a bike and start riding. I had no idea that I would get hooked on this new hobby so quickly. I honestly feel like a kid again as I ride down the Monon or on the Brown County mountain bike trails. I hope that others will see that this is not only a way to save gas and the planet – but it’s also a blast!

When I’m not biking, I
spend time with my husband, Tristan, who inspired me to join the social media movement with his TigerShark Music and Stuff Subtractor blogs, and our feline and canine family. I am not sure how much our dogs like us taking to mountain biking, since they don’t like us spending time outdoors without them.

Follow me on twitter for updates, @HoosierBikeGirl.

Disclaimer: I’m not a journalist, so I apologize in advance for any grammatical errors!