Thank you, both! I have to confess that I went out again today, and ended up falling (a tourist stepped in front of me), and I swerved to avoid hitting her. I couldn't disengage my shoe from the pedal, so the bike went down with me all in one piece. My confidence did take a hit--I did start out on the road, but came back on a shared bike/walk/skate path as I was tired. So, I know now never to do this again.

Murienne, you did bring up a good point, and I have thought of that. My last road bike was a mens, but this was when women's road bikes were never thought of. I'm 5'6", with monkey arms and very narrow shoulders. I've even thought of having a professional fitting, but I'm not certain if at my age (I just turned 63) it would be worth it. My LBS does a decent job of getting the right size, so, is a pro fitting going to be much better? The pro fitting is $275, which isn't that bad--and thought I could have this done before I buy a bike. Of course, this would open up more bikes to look into and test ride. I don't plan on purchasing the bike until after the holidays--so I have plenty of time. I'm concentrating now on getting my fitness level back as well as bike handling skills.