You can't be any more green than I was a month ago when I rode my bike at my LBS for the first time. They had to ship in this bike from a shop in Texas for me, so test riding wasn't even an option. However, I was fitted on a similar aluminum Trek WSD model to ensure the 50 cm model was the right size. They wanted me to test ride the aluminum one but I was too embarrassed. I haven't been on a bike in more than 40 years, I'm betting. I learned to ride a bike as a young girl but I had certainly never been on a road bike, had never used gears or hand brakes or any of that. When my bike came in, I guess you would call that my test ride. I was convinced I could start with clipless pedals and cleats and shoes. Oh, mercy! Even though we practiced all of these things on a trainer and it seemed easy, it's obviously not the same as doing it while balancing and take-offs and stops, etc. I couldn't get clipped in, stayed in whatever gear I was in and pretty much managed only a one-footed pedaling job around the parking lot and the brakes! Luckily, it was a Sunday and there weren't very many cars in the lot (I would recommend that, by the way). When I got back to where the bike guy was standing, I stopped right next to him, and of course the bike tilted to the clipped-in side since I didn't know what I was doing. Oh, sweet heaven...I was sure I was falling and without even thinking, reached out to hang on to him and grabbed the guy in the crotch!! Talk about embarrassed!!!! Fortunately, he wasn't hurt. Another guy (customer) had obviously been watching and he was laughing as he walked to his car. We switched out the pedals temporarily, since I felt I was taking on too many new things at one time and I really, really wanted to ride this bike. And, I've done fine since, despite limited riding due to the horribly hot weather in NC. A week and a half ago, I rode 27 miles straight through, averaged 13.4 mph with 989 ft in climbs and (most importantly) taught myself how to get the water bottle out of the cage, drink, and return it to the cage while riding! That's a tough one for a beginner. Applied chapstick one-handed while riding, too.

The moral of the story is.....you can NEVER do as badly as some of the rest of us! And you will NEVER be the worst they've seen. They take these things in stride. It's not a private club -- EVERYONE who cycles was new once and EVERYONE has had these wonderfully (now) funny stories happen to them. Or maybe I just tell myself that!!!!!