Last night I put a refundable hold-deposit on the 2011 Lexa SLX at my favorite LBS. The deciding factors were the fact that for $150 more than the creamsicle I am able to get a step up in components (105s vs Tiagra mix) and fender mounts. I was told at a different LBS and in subsequent research that the 105s had a significant upgrade around 2009/10 so I decided that was worth the jump. The lower end components on my '97 HardRock do show their wear more these days but generally still works for the easier trail riding I do with it.

My goals with this bike are to start working up to distance rides for fitness. There's a great large local bicycle club here in Seattle that hosts rides almost every night of the week at varying levels. They also have classes on riding in traffic and for learning to do group rides, which I'd like to take to make sure I'm at the right level before joining the group rides. I also work for a large corporation that has a non-sponsored employee bicycle club that also organizes local rides on weekends and after work. With luck, doing group and solo rides I'll be able to build up mileage to do some bigger event rides like the Seattle Century, STP and the many Tour-de-[insert county name here] rides. I may consider commuting but currently that involves riding through the heart of downtown Seattle and the industrial/port area in south Seattle which involves lots of semi-truck traffic so I'm not sure if I'm comfortable with that idea just yet. Maybe a bus/bike combo a few days a week.

I have two friends that I have also encouraged to join me for some riding. One used to be an avid racer about 10 years ago in college and it fell by the wayside to full time swing/night shift work. He's ordering new components for his bike and rebuilding it next week. The other friend got a late-1980s Trek from his dad that needed a few parts replaced but is otherwise a sturdy aluminum bike. He's planning to try commuting to work a few days a week. So I'm very excited that I'll have a couple of friends joining my cycling adventure!