Thanks for the tips. Sounds like you know some good places to train...I would definitely be interested in hearing about them (there is plenty of good paved road riding down here in York County but not much gravel that I know of). The widest tires I could manage on my bike would be upwards of 2" (being a Surly, "fatties fit fine", haha)...would I be correct in thinking that is probably overkill? The tires on it right now are 1.5" wide. As far as getting together for a ride, that might be fun but I'm not sure you would want to ride with me given my lack of speed, especially if you race etc. Maybe if you treat it as an easy recovery ride...otherwise you might really be frustrated!