Tuesday, 6/19

Okay. Maybe, just maybe, it wasn't the bike.

As you may recall, I got a new bike last weekend; specifically, this Giant mountain bike--

I really needed a new one for many different reasons, not the least of which was I wanted to keep up with Loraine when we went out together. She has a new bike, and when I was riding my 27-year old paperweight along side her I'd soon find myself looking at her back from a distance of, oh, a kilometer or so. So I thought getting a new bike might help in that regard.

Well, it did. Until it didn't. We went out Sunday between the thunderstorms, and ended up riding just over 15 miles out to Harvey and back, and then all through the city bike path system. It was sunny, it was 85 degrees, and it was a glorious day to test out my new bike.

And I almost—almost--was able to keep up with Loraine. Until I couldn't.

First of all, let me say my new bike is about 2,400% better than my old bike. I can accelerate quickly, and there's absolutely no comparison in going up hills. That's so much easier than it was with my old paperweight. But because it's different, physically, from my old bike I noticed it almost takes an entirely different pedaling style, one that I'm not used to. So while I was kind of able to keep up with Loraine (who, as we've established, is a monster when it comes to athletics) after a while my legs started to complain about this entirely new pedaling style. And by the end of the ride I was once again looking at Loraine's backside, although only from a distance of a couple of hundred meters instead of a whole kilometer.

So I have that going for me.

I'm hoping that as I get used to riding the new bike, and as my legs build up, I'll be able to keep up with Loraine even better. I don't know if that's the case; after all, as my leg strength builds up so does hers, so by the time I'm ready to go she'll be three steps ahead of me. Not that it matters; riding with her is the important thing, and besides, it gives me something to work toward—being able to keep up with her, I mean.

Wish me luck. And keep your fingers crossed that my new bike helps, if even just a little!

8-)

(jim@wmqt.com)