Well, I didn't ride today because I was teaching at my club's bike workshop. Steve and I do "Basic Bike," where we teach about different kinds of bikes, gearing, accessories, clothing. We did four one hour sessions and I am exhausted (more than if I actually rode). At each session, people asked what bike shop we owned or represented, because of all of the shwag that was displayed. The only thing that wasn't ours was one stand and a hybrid bike! Of course, this stuff has been acquired over almost 10 years, but when you see it all spread out on a table, it made me feel a little guilty, like I must be crazy.

Yesterday, I did take my commuter bike on its maiden voyage. I rode 7.9 miles round trip to Concord center and back. There were a few annoying things, like when I tested out the spd pedals in my driveway, I couldn't unclip, so those need to be adjusted and some of the shifting was a little rough. So, I rode on the flat side of the pedals and my feet were flying off every few minutes. It was 35 degrees out when I left, so this was my coldest road ride ever. Well, on a hard tail mtb, I was not going that fast; I actually got up to 15-16 for a bit, but the bike, along with the pannier must weigh 30 lbs. Quite a different feeling from my Kuota. I bought some stuff at one of the stores and had a mocha latte. When I came out of the coffee place, it was snowing ! Well, flurries, and looking very dark.
I did notice that motorists were much friendlier to me. Three times cars stopped and let me make a left. Now, I ride these roads all of the time and nobody does that. I was wearing cycling clothes, but I looked like a "regular" person, commuting/doing errands.
Hopefully, I will get a real (long) ride in tomorrow.