The NEW new ride

So here it is - my new bike! It looks just like the old one. It's not the old one, but in time it'll make me just as happy. I had my fit with a local bike shop, Chain Reaction, and they did a wonderful job. It's not the guys at Jack & Adam's, but they spent lots of time with me and made me feel like royalty. I got lots of compliments from the guys at the shop and everyone loved the bike, of course. Most importantly is that I feel like I got a pretty good fit. Now I feel like I can truly focus on my bike training.

Sunday is long ride day and this week was 4.5 hours. Obviously, I didn't want to head out of town for a ride of that length on a brand new bike whose only miles were on the trainer during the fit. Also, there's little adjustments that need to be made to a bike once you start riding it, and you want to be sure it's mechanically sound and that you are comfortable with gears, brakes, etc. I decided the best option was to start the ride on the trainer so I could futz around with everything as needed. After an hour or so on the trainer, I headed out to the neighborhood to ride around and just see how I felt. I was a little wobbly starting and stopping, but that's just rediscovering where my center of gravity is with that bike. Overall, I felt comfortable so I headed out to the road for a bit, and then came back and did the last hour on the trainer. It feels good to be back on the tribike. There's definitely some work to be done, but it's all good.

On a side note, it was absolutely beautiful on Sunday. We had completely clear skies for the first time in I don't know how long. It was hot - 96 degrees - but the humidity dropped to 60%. I couldn't believe it. It was dry! It was the first time in quite awhile that I was only wet from sweat. I had to check my speedometer to make sure I hadn't slacked during my ride because I wasn't completely drenched. I didn't even smell all that bad. Seriously, it actually felt good to have the sun on my back and it was a lovely ride. Yay!

The weather today was equally as lovely, and none of my campers complained once about being outside. I was outside earlier this evening and I saw the stars in the sky. I hadn't realized it, but it has been a long tine since I remember seeing the stars. That realization really drove home how oppressive clouds and rain can be. I will never live in the Pacific Northwest. At any rate, it's been a pleasant break from the typical Florida summer and I hope it lasts a while longer.