Everyone needs to experience the simple joy of a cruiser bicycle. No gears, no frills, just your own two feet pedaling away on a single speed. The Three Oaks Spokes Bicycle Club Cruiser Tour was our first ride with the group this year. We joined the group last summer when our friend Doug Walter invited us to a Pizza Ride. Three Oaks Spokes hosts bicycle rentals, a bicycle museum, and the annual Apple Cider Century Ride which you learn more about here.

Every Saturday afternoon Three Oaks Spokes meets at the clubhouse in Three Oaks, Michigan for a group ride of 10-25 miles followed by dinner and ice cream. We love the group atmosphere and enjoy the challenge of climbing the countryside hills.  Normally we cycle with our road bikes but this time was much different on a cruiser bicycle.

When first hopping on, it was an unusual feeling that I hadn’t experienced since I first learned how to ride a bike with training wheels. The handlebars are spread out and closer to the body and the wide seat allows for a vertical positioning with a flat back instead of leaning forward on the handles. To brake, the pedals must be reversed-just like when we were kids!

Prior to the ride, club members split into groups for our “spring cleaning” roadside pick up. It’s amazing just how many plastic bags and cans really add up when you’re looking for them. It was fun spotting bits of shiny material and scooping them up with our trash grabber tools. Derek and I are looking forward to our next ride in a couple weeks when we cycle searching for clues to complete a scavenger hunt.