Fight Back Against Aging—On Two Wheels and Two Feet

Oh, the Freedom We've Found

When we decided to hit the road full-time in our 5^th wheel back in 2022, we knew one thing for sure: Roger’s body wasn’t going to let him be as adventurous as he wanted. Back pain discouraged him from hiking and even taking walks. So to fight back against aging, we splurged on an exciting solution: Lectric e-bikes.

To mountain bikers or long-distance bicyclists, e-bikes are a cheat. But to a Type 1 diabetic whose body wears out more quickly than most, an e-bike turns back the clock in the best way possible.

In a word, e-bikes provide freedom. A two-mile path to the lake? No problem! More than a mile to traverse on the Walkway Over the Hudson? Piece of cake! Biking for hours around the steep mountains at Mammoth Lakes? Even getting saddle-sore couldn’t stop us.

We first fell in love with e-bikes back in 2020, at the beginning of COVID. Since Roger could video his sermon during the week, we decided to spend a weekend at Mammoth Lakes, a small resort town nestled on the eastern slopes of the Sierra Nevada mountains. Usually bustling during the summer months, all the campgrounds were closed and the town was nearly deserted.

Remembering our son-in-law’s good experience renting an electric bike on a previous visit to the area, we decided to give it a try and explore on two wheels that weekend. The first day we cruised up mountains, coasted through pine tree-scented campgrounds, and circled gorgeous blue mountain lakes. Four hours and many miles later we parked the bikes outside a small cafe to enjoy the mountain view and deli sandwiches.

Except for being saddle-sore, that was one of our all-time favorite days.

So in 2021 we became the proud, excited owners of our own Lectric e-bikes. Roger went for the extra comfort seat—maybe I should have, too. Those bikes have carried us many miles, from the hills of Mississippi to the beaches of Maine, from a river in Kentucky to a golf course in Ohio, and many more places we would have missed without the freedom the bikes provide.

A New Chapter in Mobility Assistance

This fall, while planning our next season as full-time RVers, we stumbled across another potentially freedom-producing product: the Hypershell Exoskeleton. As advertised on their website (https://hypershell.tech/en-us/pages/about-us), “the Hypershell exoskeleton…amplifies your movement, pushes your limits, and takes your free will to new heights.” Sounds like something Roger could have written. (I promise I’m not getting any kickbacks from Hypershell for this promotion.)

It looks kinda funny, but this robotics-inspired gadget gives Roger an extra boost when walking, kind of like an e-bike for his legs. As of this writing, we just unpacked his Hypershell X Pro last week. He’s still in the “getting used to it” phase, but we have high hopes that Roger will enjoy many trails using the Hypershell. Watch for our in-depth review in a future blog post.

The Best Kind of Freedom

Of course, no mobility gadget in the world can stop the march of time. And Roger can’t ride or wear a mobility-assisting device every minute. But for now, what seemed out of reach has been handed back to him. And we’ll enjoy biking and walking as long as possible.

Still, we have greater freedom available to us, freedom we never have to take off, for all time. That kind of freedom is what we’ve found in Christ.

“And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free,” Jesus said in John 8:32. During this particular dialogue with local religious leaders, they insisted they had never been slaves to anyone. Then Jesus explained what He meant: “I tell you the truth, everyone who sins is a slave of sin. A slave is not a permanent member of the family, but a son is part of the family forever. So if the Son sets you free, you are truly free” (v. 34-36).

Whether Roger and I walk and ride until we’re 100 or not, we’re already free in the most important way.

What have you tried to beat back aging? Share your thoughts in the comments below.