WATERLOO, Ind. (AP) - Sallie Pease had a choice: Be healthier or sit at home and do nothing. She chose to ride a bike.
Pease, the children’s librarian at Waterloo Grant Township Public Library, rides her bicycle to work almost every day.
“I almost hate having to drive,” Pease told The Star (https://bit.ly/1jvcFqG ) in Auburn.
If her trip is light, she’ll take her bicycle on the six-mile trip from Waterloo to Walmart in Auburn.
Pease directs the children’s activities at the library, leading children in groups of songs at story time and reading books. The children call her Miss Sallie.
Earlier this month, Pease rode in Bike 101 Lakes in Steuben County. Sponsored by the Steuben County Community Foundation, the event features five courses ranging from 3.8 miles to 112 miles. Pease chose the latter. The course took her through Steuben County, parts of southeast Michigan and northeast Ohio. The race was chilly and windy, Pease said.
“It’s the beginning of the (biking) season. You never know what to expect,” Pease said. At the end of the race, Pease said she was just happy to finish the course.
Many of the organized bike rides support charities, Pease said. Bike 101 Lakes supports scholarships for Steuben County students. Pease also participated in a ride for the Ronald McDonald House Charities of Northeast Indiana in April.
When she started cycling in 2011, Pease joined friends for Ride Across Indiana. The longest distance she rode before RAIN was 50 miles. RAIN takes riders 163 miles east to west across the state. The trek was difficult, but Pease finished the course.
For new bikers, repetition is what matters.
“You need to get out every day and ride. Don’t think you can do 10 miles and then go out and ride 100 miles,” Pease said.
When Pease traveled to Hawaii to see her daughter, she bought two small bears - similar size in size to Beanie Babies - that went with her on bicycle adventures. Pease named the bears “The Girls” and they join her on biking adventures and in photos she takes around the town of Waterloo and at the library.
Pease said she never played organized sports in school. She has found biking to be a sport where anyone is good enough, and competition doesn’t have to be against other people.
“You can set goals for yourself and be successful,” Pease said.
For her, cycling is not about the competition, but about getting out and riding.
“I like to be able to stop on the side of the road and take a picture,” she said. “It takes you on roads less traveled.”
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Information from: The (Auburn, Ind.) Star, https://www.dekalbstar.com
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