Today was a beautiful day to ride. The sun was shining, the temp was warm, and the wind appeared to be calm. A great day to try out my new bike shoes, clip in pedals, and street tires. I've always been slightly in fear of clip in pedals. Afraid that I would need to put my foot down and be stuck to the bike and as a result, fall over. I've never had any serious wipe-outs on a bike, only the time I thought I'd ride my 10 speed down a grassy trail on the back hill... it didn't end well and was enough to keep me on the paved roads from there on out. But I digress...
After a couple of practice clip-ins and twist outs, I hit the road. Clipping in and out wasn't so bad! My left foot didn't really want to cooperate and clip in while I was pedaling but I eventually got it. For the first hour of my ride, I flew. I thought "This is great! I'm shaving a minute per mile. I'm flying!". Little did I know, the wind was seriously to my back. So while I can't say that the new tires, shoes, and pedals make me any faster, they do save the wear and tear on my knees! That's a big deal as all of my big rides have been followed by achy knees but not today!
As for the ride, 45 miles (75 km), much of it east/west with the wind coming from the west, I conquered the Century Rd hill north of town (again), hit a few smaller hills, and enjoyed the ride. I have the goofiest tan ever, I didn't fall off my bike, and I think I swallowed few bugs.
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