Thank you all for your support! It looks like we're heading out now for ride number two. I really appreciate all the tips. I think a lot of my problems stemmed from stress. My front brake wasn't working right, and I never used the drop bars. It also didn't help that I didn't know how to shift properly and that I was completely unfamiliar with the roads. Today, I plan to try to relax (and we tweaked the front brake). I'm also going to put some cream between me thumb and index finger. I think I'll probably ride for a couple of weeks before I change anything on the bike. Hopefully, by then, I'll be able to distinguish between new rider pains and bike problems. We're going to try the same route this evening. The roads are quiet and twisty and run through the Santa Monica mountains. Some of it gets pretty steep, but now that I know what to expect, it should be easier... I hope. It's very pretty out there, and there are a good number of other people on road bikes and not too many cars. The only thing I really don't like is that it is also very popular with the crazy motorcycle guys (that's how my boyfriend first got familiar with the roads). They're scary.