I took my new bike for a ride today. I hitched up the trailer, put Kevin in with his snacks, drink, books and toys (wait a minute, who does he think is hauling all that extra weight??) and headed to the playground.
*cue Dorothy's neighbor/witch riding her bike theme song*
The ride was smooth thanks to the cushy seat and suspension seat post but I'm still not sure what the suspension fork is for when 110% of my weight is carried on the back of the bike and not an ounce is on the front. Anyway, I learned a few things:
- Sitting straight up on a bicycle with ones' feet directly below works nothing in the body except for the quadriceps - and maybe the glutes. I'm banking on some seriously buff legs by the end of the summer.
- A kickstand can be really handy (I know! I'm as embarassed as you are about the kickstand.)
- When turning one's body around on a bike without drop handlebars, one should not expect to continue traveling in a straight line if said body's hand pushes down on the handlebar to maintain balance.
- Seven-speed rear cogsets have a whopping tooth differential between the first and second cogs.
- Standing up on a bike with the handlebars nestled in one's abdomen provides surprisingly little positive leverage.
I believe I can get used to everything except for the seatpost falling, which happened twice today. That's a bit of a jolt. I also want to angle the brake levers farther down, just as my preference.
I am probably imagining this, but it seemed that more people smiled and waved back at me todaythan they used to when I'd ride by on my road bike. I am either intimidating in my bike shorts and fancy bike shoes or maybe just scary.
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