My New Bike

So if you read my last post, you know I attended that Gulf Coast Triathlon and loved it. That was just the push I needed to go ahead and purchase a bike. I’d already done a little bit of research since I got the idea in my head to do a duathlon at the Wilson YMCA. I thought I’d be able to do it with a borrowed mountain bike but, after riding it a little bit, I realized that I was going to really need something for the road. Another push was the fact that my good friend Allison went ahead and bought a road bike and raved about how much she loved it. Not that I’m typically competitive (because I’m really not) but I couldn’t let her smoke me on her road bike while I pumped my short legs on a mountain bike!

First let me stress that up to now, I have known nothing about cycling except that I could ride a bike. I found the bike I wanted at Steve’s Bike Shop in Panama City. My PC friends spoke highly of their experience and customer service. Props to the Bike Shop and to both Steves for taking the time with me to make sure my bike was a good fit, give me tips on riding, etc. I’ve spoken with them on the phone numerous times and they are great! I’ll be going down a lot and stopping in for all my accessories.

My good friend Keith met up with me the morning after my purchase. The weather was perfect for a bike ride. We decided to do about 20 miles for my maiden voyage. I was getting used to the gears, etc but felt pretty comfortable. As we got about 11 miles into the ride, I asked Keith how much further to Hwy 79. He said a few miles so I said “Might as well go there and turn around.” Keith warned me that we would be against the wind coming back but, of course, I seem to think I’m Superwoman and was like “So?” We rested for about 10 minutes at the turnaround and headed back. He wasn’t lying about the wind! I was pedaling about a minute per mile slower than I had on the first half. Then came the rain!

Neither of us was expecting rain and we got lucky. We got a lot of wind and a little bit of misting and light rain but we managed to miss the downpour that came only a few minutes before we got back to Hwy 77. We made the wet 4 miles back to my grandparents to discover that Keith had left his sunroof open and everything was soaked. Other than his wet interior, it was a perfect ride. I loved that I got to experience sunshine, clouds, wind, and rain all in one bike ride. And we ended up doing 32 miles! That’s a heck of a ride for my maiden voyage. I can’t wait to get new pedals and clips and shoes. I have not fallen yet but it’s coming. It’s not a matter of if, it’s when.