I want to ride on beautiful rural roads.... but cars scare me.

[froglegs]

This morning I went for a ride on a windy, hilly, narrow road flanked by vineyards, ranches, and oak trees. I went to a nearby town and back, about 24 miles round trip. It was SO FANTASTIC. I felt WAY more comfortable out there than I ever do in town. There were very few cars, I was able to hear them coming (haven't had time to buy a mirror yet, going to today) and they all gave me plenty of space. At one point, after going up a particularly long hill, I accidentally dropped my water bottle and it rolled across the road. There happened to be a car passing by, and the driver slowed all the way down to avoid running over my bottle. I thought that was very nice.

I went by myself, but I knew that the route I was going was frequented by cyclists, and I saw TONS of them. I will definitely be going on that ride again, maybe a little farther next time.

I want to say thanks to everyone here, if not for all of you, it probably would have taken weeks for me to work up the courage to do this!!

[jusdooit]

I don't use a mirror and rarely have difficulty hearing cars. A great place to search for routes in your area is mapmyride.com. You can also use it to track your own routes, or map out new ones.

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

I have tried out several ride mapping sites, and I like mapmyride.com the best too. It can also show you the elevations of a ride you are planning, so you are not surprised by unexpected huge hills, etc.
I love it!
Be sure to check the "follow roads" box and it will mark precisely right along on the road as you click.

[froglegs]

Wow, that is a great site (mapmyride.com). Great for my running too! I am really looking forward to Friday, the next time I can go for a ride........ I'm starting to sound like an addict...I need my fix!!