Lessons Help Smooth the Ride

Jim von Tungeln says he believes inner peace can achieved on the seat of a bicycle--which certainly seems a worthwhile goal--but maybe you’d be satisfied if you could pedal your way to improved fitness.

Whether you seek cardiovascular health or spiritual salvation, the Orange County Wheelmen will be glad to help you get started. Every Saturday morning until September, free instruction and training is available beginning at 8 a.m. at the Food Park in Irvine.

“We have people who can barely ride 20 miles to those who are training for much longer races,” club president von Tungeln said. “We stress individualized attention and we have a no-drop policy which means no one will ever be left behind, whether it’s a flat tire or any other problem.”

The sessions include training rides and clinics on how to climb hills, how to change flat tires, how to correctly fit the height of your seat and handle bars--”most people are on their bikes incorrectly,” von Tungeln says--and proper nutrition.

For more information call the O.C. Wheelmen at (714) 956-BIKE (956-2453) or check out their website at https://www.ocw.org.