newbie shopping for hybrid

[badgercat]

So, I took my new bike for a 20 mile spin yesterday morning! It wasn't 20 miles all at once by any means--we stopped a few times for bathroom breaks, snacks, and water, so the adventure wound up taking over 3 hours. We mostly were on paved roads and a paved path... though the path did have a significant stretch (probably not a mile, but it felt long enough) that was unpaved, kind of sandy and gravelly, and pretty uneven. I freaked out a bit at that point since this is my first bike with skinny-ish tires, but she performed admirably! I bounced clear off my seat once, but for the most part was able to pretty easily navigate around or gingerly over the bumps and never lost control.

I was drained last night, but I feel pretty good today! A little tense in the upper back/shoulders (though that's really not unusual for me) and my sit-bones aren't feeling toooo bad. I'm actually surprised how well that region is feeling, considering I don't have any bike shorts yet and was just wearing regular ol' cotton panties and light cotton shorts. My right wrist is sore (the only thing that was really bothering me DURING the ride, besides my saddle-parts at the very end, were my arms--soreness in my wrists, and just arm fatigue overall.) I'm not sure if I was gripping too hard, if it's a positioning thing, or what... I guess I'll have to spend some more time riding before I figure that one out.

Anyway, on to the pictures! I have a few...

Here's my bike parked near one of the overpasses over the river, which, as you may have noticed, doesn't have much water in it.


My bike and my boyfriend's mtb that he's had since he was like... 10 years old. Boy, is he excited to get his cyclo-cross bike.


The next 4 don't have my bike in them, they're just for fun!
Many of the bridges along the path had fun little mosaics and such at the ends... here's one featuring a Joni Mitchell quote:


I still get really excited whenever I see a lizard outside... I think it'll take me a while to get that lizards are just what they have here, instead of squirrels and chipmunks like I'm used to in the midwest...


Playing around with the macro settings on my camera in the trees... I really like the effect of the sunlight through the leaves.


Finally, here's a woman who rides... horses! It was fun to see someone out in the riverbed giving her horse some good exercise.


We joked about taking a Chicago hold-up style picture at the end, but I was far too wiped out to think of anything but getting lunch at that point.

So... there ya go!

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

Fantastic!!!

Oh my, it is obvious that you are going to have WAY too much fun on your new sky-blue bike. Thank you for posting such great pictures.

The tires you think are 'skinny' are actually pretty hefty and sturdy- don't worry about a little gravel and pebbles. That's one of the nice things about hybrids.
(Just avoid glass and sharp metal -no matter what kind of tires you have)

Congratulations!

[badgercat]

Fantastic!!!

Oh my, it is obvious that you are going to have WAY too much fun on your new sky-blue bike. Thank you for posting such great pictures.

The tires you think are 'skinny' are actually pretty hefty and sturdy- don't worry about a little gravel and pebbles. That's one of the nice things about hybrids.
(Just avoid glass and sharp metal -no matter what kind of tires you have)

Congratulations!

Thanks! I'm glad you enjoyed the pics.

I know they're not really skinny, I'm just used to very fat and knobby so it's pretty new for me. I was more worried about my own control than how the bike would hold up.

Side note--when I first saw your post, I read it as "grass" instead of "glass," and wondered if I had been taking huge risks with my life in the backyard and neighborhood park as a kid.

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

Side note--when I first saw your post, I read it as "grass" instead of "glass," and wondered if I had been taking huge risks with my life in the backyard and neighborhood park as a kid.

That is too funny.

Of course one of the 'real' hazards of riding on grass in the park is that you could dangerously skid out on a hidden patch of dog poo! (eeeeeewwwww.......)

[Blueberry]

Thanks for sharing the pictures - I always enjoy seeing pictures of people's bikes AND where they ride

And what's up with no bikes in the apartments? Glad you found an inside bike storage place - but that seems really strange to me. I guess it's because of grease on carpet? Seems like they could still address that if needed (you stain the carpet, you pay to replace it).

Anyhow - congratulations!!!!

CA

PS- WackyJacky - I LOVE how you have your bike set up. VERY cool!!!

[Tuckervill]

Thanks! I'm glad you enjoyed the pics.

I know they're not really skinny, I'm just used to very fat and knobby so it's pretty new for me. I was more worried about my own control than how the bike would hold up.

Side note--when I first saw your post, I read it as "grass" instead of "glass," and wondered if I had been taking huge risks with my life in the backyard and neighborhood park as a kid.

Hey, since you do live in the Southwest, you should be careful of GOATHEADS in your tires! Stay away from the vegetation! Don't ask me how I know.

Karen

[badgercat]

Hey, since you do live in the Southwest, you should be careful of GOATHEADS in your tires! Stay away from the vegetation! Don't ask me how I know.

I had no idea what those were, so I wikipedia'd them... lo and behold, when my parents and I drove down here to move me out here, we got a bunch of those things stuck in our shoes when we cut across a big, dry grassy area at a rest stop! I can't remember what state that was in, even, but I think it might have been Oklahoma.