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On My Own Two Wheels: Back in the Saddle at Sixty
‘And yes, I was a sixty-year-old man who wanted to be young again, and that’s laughable for there is no turning back the years, but I didn’t think it was funny. I wasn’t going to try and win the Tour de France. But I was going to try to do what I had been able to do at thirty, and, what the hell, I was going to be a fitter, trimmer and happier old man at the end of it.’
Four years ago, Donegal-born Belfast-based journalist, broadcaster, and Writer-in-Residence in QUB Malachi O’Doherty shook the cobwebs off the old bicycle parked in his backyard and found that he had grown too fat to ride it comfortably. He got rid of it. But in just a few months, everything changed. Malachi, approaching sixty, found that he had type 2 diabetes.
Follow Malachi on a journey that takes us along the west coast of Ireland and over the drumlins of County Down as he rediscovers cycling – the frets, the struggles, and most of all, the joys. A wonderful read for anyone 50+ – or of any age – with an interest in cycling and general health and fitness.
Four years ago, Donegal-born Belfast-based journalist, broadcaster, and Writer-in-Residence in QUB Malachi O’Doherty shook the cobwebs off the old bicycle parked in his backyard and found that he had grown too fat to ride it comfortably. He got rid of it. But in just a few months, everything changed. Malachi, approaching sixty, found that he had type 2 diabetes.
Follow Malachi on a journey that takes us along the west coast of Ireland and over the drumlins of County Down as he rediscovers cycling – the frets, the struggles, and most of all, the joys. A wonderful read for anyone 50+ – or of any age – with an interest in cycling and general health and fitness.
190 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 1, 2012
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26 people want to read
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September 20, 2014
This book caught my eye when I was researching another author. I enjoy memoirs; I adore Ireland; I fight a family history of diabetes; and sixty is suddenly not such an ethereal concept. It was a soft sell.
What I found was an honest depiction of how he arrived at diabetes, and what he did to change his life. O’Doherty preaches peckishness, one of my new favorite words. In short: Love peckishness and trust it to go away.
O’Doherty returned to bicycling. He had cycled around Ireland in his younger days as well as a means of commute, and just fell out of the habit. His trips aid in his fitness and bring out the philosopher in him. I followed along à la Google, reveling in the beauty of Achill Island, Kylemore Abbey, the tiny village of Doolin, and Donegal Bay. After some intense trips, he settles into tootling—relaxed cycling for the joy of it. Rain or no rain.
'If you let the weather stop you, you’ll do nothing.'
I enjoyed the story; I like most Irish literary voices, and this one was winsome with that self-deprecating charm.
What I found was an honest depiction of how he arrived at diabetes, and what he did to change his life. O’Doherty preaches peckishness, one of my new favorite words. In short: Love peckishness and trust it to go away.
O’Doherty returned to bicycling. He had cycled around Ireland in his younger days as well as a means of commute, and just fell out of the habit. His trips aid in his fitness and bring out the philosopher in him. I followed along à la Google, reveling in the beauty of Achill Island, Kylemore Abbey, the tiny village of Doolin, and Donegal Bay. After some intense trips, he settles into tootling—relaxed cycling for the joy of it. Rain or no rain.
'If you let the weather stop you, you’ll do nothing.'
I enjoyed the story; I like most Irish literary voices, and this one was winsome with that self-deprecating charm.
Displaying 1 of 1 review