- She wants to go fast. I barely had to pedal and she was off and running. I even raced up that blasted hill to the 28 bridge at 12mph. WHAT?? And, when I got home I wasn't a sweaty mess despite riding faster and farther than I do during a commute. Instead, I was merely glistening and my hair was almost completely dry.
- My posture needs a lot of work. That's hardly surprising since, aside from the test rides, my road bike experience was a couple of short rides on my cousin's bike in my early teens. Riding on the horns and in the drop bars put pressure on the webbing between my thumbs and index fingers. Also, I don't need bike shorts for anything less than thirty miles on the Ariel, but I could've used them tonight. The saddle isn't that different from the hybrid's, but my posture put uncomfortable pressure on new and interesting places. Ouch.
- She is light! I already knew this because I've goofed around using the bike for bicep curls. :) There was a bit of a cross wind during my ride and I felt like I might have been blown off the trail if I weren't so heavy.
- She's also kind of squirrelly. Riding one handed was... frightening. I'll get there, and I might even get to hands-free someday, but it's going to take some practice.
- Her name is Circe and we're going to be fast friends. See what I did there?
Monday, February 27, 2012
First ride on the Dolce
Tonight was my first actual ride on the Dolce and I learned many things during the short, six mile jaunt:
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Nothing beats the ride of a new bike! After years on a mtb I started riding road bikes as well and had the same discomfort issue with the hands and saddle. It does get easier! Despite being able to do hours on my mtb an hour on my road bike at first was an exhausting experience!!
ReplyDeleteJez
Hi Jez. :)
DeleteI hear you. I had fun last night, but I couldn't go much longer than the 20 minutes spent in the saddle. I'm definitely looking forward to being able to handle longer rides!
Awww the first ride of a new bike!! I could have written this exact same post a couple months ago. The first time I got on my Specialized Allez, she about scared me to death. Man she took off and I felt like I was barely holding on. My posture STILL needs a lot of work, that is still the challenge. I'm going in for a personal fitting on Friday, just to see if I'm doing something wrong. But enjoy your new girl, you won't ever get AS sweaty and hot again, they lope these light gorgeous road bikes. They are a bikers dream come true!!
ReplyDeleteA pointer for tired hands or the webbing bit can also have something to do with your gloves. My mtb gloves seem to be better as the padding from the palm goes over the seam, where as my cool weather gloves have a horrible stich line that rubs on the web bit. I find it really uncomfortable. Just a thought.
ReplyDeleteJez www.followingthechainline.blogspot.com
Thanks for the tip! I'll check my gloves tonight and see if they're the problem.
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