Abby huffed a bit as she pedaled her new bike. She was definitely not in bad shape. In fact, she was quite fond of showing off the muscular definition of her equine body. But it had been a long time since she last rode a bicycle. Even before she became an Animalian, she still preferred horse-riding to bicycling. And since horse-riding was no longer possible for her, for multiple reasons, she had been wanting to get back to bicycling. Of course, considering how much mass she gained upon becoming an anthropomorphic mare, normal bikes would be crushed if she sat on them.
But this new bike by Huffy had been custom-designed to carry Animalians of greater mass. The frame of the bike was bigger and made of thicker steel than a normal bike to make sure it could hold her weight. It was also a lot taller which allowed her to fully flex her ungulate legs. The pedals even had a sort of lip on the front edge to keep her hooves from slipping off and were definitely big enough to fit most paws. The biggest change to the bike where its wheels. The wheels were also bigger and thicker than that of a normal bike, but it was the tires that were what made the difference. Instead of being filled with air, these tires were solid rubber, allowing the bike to carry her mass. The tires won't need inflating, but they'll need to be replaced when they've been worn down.
It was really exhilarating for Abby to ride her new bike. She'll never be able to ride a horse again and this was the next best thing. She loved the way the world sped past her. She wondered if she really was moving faster than she could run. It felt that way, but Abby would need to time her running and biking to make sure. But right now, she was going to put this bike to the test and she knew just who she wanted to tested it with.
She rode to Claw Coliseum and spotted who she wanted to see at the door. Like Abby, Durga the tigress was wearing a tank top and bike shorts that clung to her curvy muscular figure. She was also holding a bike and waving at Abby. "Abigail, I see you've gotten your bike as well," said Durga as Abby pedaled over to her.
"Yep, me and Dad just put it together," said Abby as she came to a stop.
"I had to have the delivery man assemble mine," said Durga, looking at her bike with some doubt.
"Is there something wrong with it?" asked Abby as she stepped off her bike.
"I don't think so, but I wouldn't know. I don't even really know how to ride it," Durga admitted. As an uplifted Animalian, she didn't even know what a bicycle was until the virus changed her.
"Well, it's easy enough to show you," said Abby, "You saw how I was riding, right?"
"Mostly from the front," said Durga.
"Well, it's very simple once you know how," said Abby. She helped Durga put her leg over the bike frame. "Ok, first thing you want to do is sit on the seat," said Abby, guiding Durga's rear onto the seat. She couldn't help but feel the large amount of muscle that was underneath the curve of Durga's ass. "Ok, just put your paws on the pedals and grip the handlebars," instructed Abby. Once Durga had her hands and paws in place, Abby said, "Ok, now we're just going to start out slow. Move your paws with the pedals."
With that, she walked out the bike with Durga, allowing her to feel the pedals move beneath her paws. It reminded Abby of when her mom taught her how to ride a bicycle. Of course, Abby was a much smaller girl back then and Durga was about the same size of Abby. "Ok, all you have to do is keep your balance. We could probably get some training wheels until you've gotten the hang of that," said Abby.
Durga gave her a bemused look, "I am a CAT, you know," she said pointedly.
"Oh, right," said Abby, "Well, you think you got the basic idea?"
"I think so," said Durga, "It's like walking but not touching the ground."
"Good, ok, I'm gonna let go now," said Abby before releasing her grip. Durga rolled away from her as she pushed on the pedals. She wobbled a tiny bit, but she soon found her balance. Pretty soon, she was picking up speed.
As Durga got faster than walking pace, she asked, "So how do I stop?"
"Just pedal backwards," said Abby.
Durga's bike came to a lurching stop as she did so. "That was a little unpleasant," she said as she stepped on the ground.
"Most bikes have handle brakes nowadays, but I think the tires are too thick for that to work," said Abby as she got her own bike, "These are still the prototypes so we'll need to test them and see what improvements Huffy can make. They might be able to add more features like handle brakes later."
"So how do you want to test them?" asked Durga with competitive interest.
"One lap around the Coliseum," said Abby, "That should be enough."
"Let's see who gets back first," said Durga.
She waited for Abby to get on her bike before they both started pedaling. They soon picked up speed as they went around Claw Coliseum. They started off even at first, but Abby was riding a bicycle long before Durga. Not to mention as a horse, her legs were particularly strong. It wasn't long before Abby pulled out ahead of Dugra. The tigress pedaled hard to keep up, but she was still too inexperienced. By the time they had circled back around to the front, Abby had a comfortable lead.
Abby cheered as she got to the front of the Coliseum first. "I've still got it!" she said happily.
Durga rode up next to her and said, "You had the edge because you had more experience. When I get enough practice with this thing, you won't be outracing me so easily."
"I hope not," said Abby, "Winning the Triathlon won't be as much fun if you can't keep up."
"I'm still the better swimmer," said Durga boastfully.
"But I've got the edge on running," said Abby.
"But you won't have the edge of biking for long," said Durga.
This friendly banter went back and forth. The two of them really balanced each other, pushing the other to train harder. By the time the games come around, both of them will be as prepared as they can get.