March 21, 2013

   It's amazing to me that it still hasn't even been a full two years since I started cycling.  In some ways, it doesn't feel like something I was terrified of doing for twenty-five years.  This hasn't been a good season for getting out on the bike, for sure.  Between ridiculous wind, cold, and sporadically predicted snow, it's been too easy to chicken out.  I have the gear for the cold...but I do hate going out in wind.  Despite it all, though, I'd see cyclists on the road on the way home from work, and I've been looking more and more at their road bikes, feeling that my poor hybrid wasn't really ever going to be able to compete.
   And then I did it.  That niggling thought became a full fledged desire, and we found a good bike on sale: a 24-speed Diamondback Podium 1 road bike.  It took some doing to get as the Dick's Sporting Goods by us is small and has nothing, and the next one closer only had a 54...I need a 56.  So my wife helped me out and called a store closer into Denver, and they had and held one last night.  So we left right from work, piling the kids into the car, and braving Denver rush hour to get down there.  It was getting dark by the time we headed back with my new bike strapped to the back of the car.  The first time I very timidly got onto it, I found the seat to be way too high, so I spent some time adjusting last night, but that was it.
     I knew a couple things going into it this time, among them being that the bike itself was only part of the cost.  Thankfully, found some SPD clipless pedals to replace its stock toe-clip pedals, at Amazon as well as a couple bottle cages.  I have mountain bike shoes that will do for a time, and thankfully I thought to put the stock hybrid saddle back on the Nashiki Montour and use the purchased saddle onto the new one to replace the very rigid racer saddle...I was actually surprised when I took it off and found that it wasn't much lighter than the one I put on!
    So today, I got it all adjusted, so sans my bike shoes and water bottles, I took off.  Right away, I found the clips are harder to get into than I thought (I'm impressed my wife makes them work so easily); I spent too much time trying to get my right foot into the darn thing!  It was a bit windy, but I found it bothered me less as my profile was lower.  I also quickly discovered I'm right back to where I was not even two years ago with the inability to do too much shifting of my hands as I need to get used to my and the bike's balance (I won't misjudge so badly again!).  But best and most of all, I discovered that the bike handled very well and was definitely a lot of faster...which is also terrifying.  Part terror and part exhilaration, I was rather tremulous when I got home.  The web of my hand between my thumbs and index fingers is sore from holding onto the bars, which is unexpected.
   I'm going to keep my hybrid as it'll be great for family outings and can handle rougher roads that the road bike can, but the road bike will now be my main bike.
   A quick comparison of two years ago and now:

Barely able to stay upright and find my balance when on a bike for the first time in 25 years....

Taking off on my first ride through the neighborhood on my new road bike....