Some people in retirement find more time to ride their bike.

For Herb Schultz, retirement meant he could pedal 5,000 miles in just one year -- in his late 70s.

An inspiration to the fit and not-so-fit, Schultz was long a rolling icon for the Twin Cities Bicycling Club, which has more than 1,000 members.

"He was undoubtedly the best-known member," said Don Picard, a ride leader. "He was one of the most gregarious people I've met."

Schultz died recently at his home in Eden Prairie. He was 79.

Picard and others recall how Schultz, as fit as many riders 20 years younger, shepherded new members of the club on rides, making sure no one lost contact with the group.

"Nobody ever got dropped in a Herb ride, at least anyone he could help," Picard said.

At any given time, Schultz typically had more than 10 bikes stashed in his garage. There were sit-down recumbents and other bikes often associated with older riders, but also a Greg LeMond carbon fiber racing bike with components suitable for Tour de France competitions that he bought this year.

"It was his very favorite bike," recalled his daughter Barbara Schultz of Vadnais Heights. "He could really rock and roll on that."

He began riding seriously after he was laid off from his manager job at Control Data when he was in his mid-50s. Soon he was biking across Minnesota and Iowa, in Maine, Massachusetts, New Mexico, Austria, Germany and Amsterdam.

"It got to be an expensive habit," Barbara said.

"In order to support that, in the winter when he wasn't biking, he did taxes ... and he worked for the Postal Service a little bit."

He typically led five to 50 people on more than 100 rides a year, making sure to keep the pace at 10 miles an hour even though he could go much faster.

"He was a very strong rider," said fellow rider and friend Clareyse Nelson. "Young people were astounded he could go that far."

At age 78, Schultz rode more than 5,000 miles, and he was on track to do the same this year when he died unexpectedly earlier this month.

"He was supposed to lead a ride ... and the riders all showed up and he didn't," Nelson said.

In addition to his daughter Barbara, Schultz is survived by three other daughters, Elizabeth Carey of Rowley, Mass., Susan Mann of Plattsburg, Mo., and Sarah Rasmussen of Gloucester, Mass.; his former wife, Ann Schultz, and seven grandchildren.

Services have been held.