Interview with customer Betsy Imig

Family? (Who stayed home or who came with you?):
My husband Jack accompanied me on the bike trips and our cat  Zen stayed home.  I have 3 children, but they are all grown and gone.

Age (be as vague as you wish!):
I turned 64 in March.

Where are some of the places you’ve bicycled with ExperiencePlus! or with other groups?
We've done 7 trips with ExperiencePlus!  The first trip to Provence and the Cevenne Mountains, the Dordogne, Andalucia, and Sicily are my favorites.  We also rode the 185 mile C & O canal towpath from Cumberland, Maryland to Washington DC on our own.

How did you get into riding a bike?
I learned to ride as a child but had to give up my bike because of severe asthma.  I didn't start riding again until around 2000.  My husband had been an avid bike rider for years and rode with a couples group and I decided I wanted to join them.  I started with one of his old mountain bikes but eventually got a road bike of my own and even into clipless pedals.  We still ride with our couple friends on week-ends and I ride with a girls group on Tuesdays.

What’s your favorite thing about ExperiencePlus! bicycle trips?
I think what sets ExperiencePlus!  above other bike companies is that they offer adventure in addition to great bike rides in beautiful places, and I love adventure.  I love the arrows that give you the freedom to explore at your own pace and not be a slave to a map.  I love the small villages we ride through and to see how the people live.  I love staying in lovely hotels that are not above the local economy and eating regional dishes in local restaurants.  I may not always love the dishes but I love knowing their history, how they are served and how they taste.  I love all the extras like wine tastings, tours of olive oil factories, castles, churches and caves, kayaking the Dordogne and agriturismo lunches.  I love riding the beautiful small roads that take you to new sights and discoveries.  I even love figuring out the bathrooms and "conversing" with the locals in a "baby talk" version of their language. And a bike is the perfect speed to do all this.

Tell us something about yourself that most people don’t know:
I became a registered nurse at the age of 49.

Do you have any movie or book recommendations?
I love books and movies.  Of the recent movies I liked Gran Torino and The Reader.  Favorite books are: A Moveable Feast by Ernest Hemingway, The Looming Tower by Lawrence Wright, and A River Runs Through It by Norman MacLean.

What’s your favorite ride in your hometown, Boulder, Colorado?
If I want to ride "the flats" I go with the girls from Boulder to Lyons and stop at the Stone Cup coffee shop and if I want to climb, I ride up Left Hand Canyon to Jamestown.

Describe the greatest adventure you've yet to take:
Grandparenting

What question do you wish we had asked, and how would you have answered?
I guess, how have these trips changed me?  These trips have changed how I look at the world and given me a much greater understanding and appreciation of other cultures.   I was surprised to find that they are way ahead of us in some areas, like recycling and conservation.  I like how they eat seasonally and locally which is becoming a trend here. And hopefully this new understanding has gone both ways, that by interacting with these bike groups they have a better impression of America and Americans.  I have become more of a global citizen and ambassador as well.  I think in this changing world, it is a win/win combination.