At Last I've Got Her

Here she is. My new Specialized Dolce Elite. Rode her home and what a difference. She flies:D

Only thing I'm not too keen on is the clips. Methinks I'll be going clipless very soon, in fact, sooner than soon.

http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y22...e/PICT0092.jpg

The front derailleur doesn't seem to be shifting as it should (maybe I'm not used to the bike yet) so will see how it goes over the weekend. LBS is closed on a Monday so if it still doesn't feel right I'll take her back on Tuesday for them to adjust. LBS is within 5 minutes of where I work so I could put her there and collect her after work. Apart from that, she feels great:D

Very nice!! I love the color!!

me too! congrats on a nice looking bike. happy trails to you!

Hot stuff! Nice paint job. Go clipless--I did last year, after riding for years with toeclips, and I've never looked back.

Wishing you many happy miles together!

One thing I find totally different is I have suicide bars on my Raleigh (it's OK they're Weinnman (sp) and work perfectly) my new bike doesn't so it feels a bit alien at the moment.

LBS threw in a free wireless computer:D Very nice of them:D

Also put on a bottle and cage and treated myself to a new pair of gloves (both with good discounts).

Can't be bad:D :D :D

One thing I am going to do is move the seat slightly forward.

Ooh! I'm like a kid with a new toy:D

P.S. My son took one look at my bike and christened it...Tallulah!!!

Beautiful!

Nice bike! Enjoy!

If your front derailleur just seems hard to shift, try asking them to lube the cable so it shifts more easily- I suffered for months with my new bike not knowing that a bit of easy lubing on the cable inside was all it needed to shift like butter- they just hadn't bothered doing that to begin with. Made a HUGE difference. Worth a try if that's what the issue is. :)

Good idea Lisa. It just seems that I have to push the shift for the front derailleur much further than the one for the rear, almost as if it has too much travel compared to the rear shift. Could be just me not being used to the bike, but it's something I'll be keeping an eye on.

suicide bars?

I'm so glad you finally got your bike. I had trouble with the throw on the front ring too, finally ended up getting a bar end shifter on that side. I hope you don't have to do that, the levers are so much more comfortable.

Have many wonderful trails on your beautiful bike.

Don't forget, the chain has a lot further to go when you change at the front than when you change at the back, so it should feel different.

It's probably me not being used to her yet. At the moment she's still sitting in my living room propped up against the sofa. Hubby's relegated to the armchair. It's pouring rain outside and I don't want to get her wet:p

'splain me the suicide bars, Lucy!

Suicide bars are the extra brake levers that go along the front of the handlebars so if you're on the top of the bars you can pull the brakes on with the suicide bars - so called because some of them are notorious for failing. Weinnman brakes provided they are adjusted properly are OK.

Ohhhh, those. I was unfamiliar with the terminology :D