Happy New Year!!

For the first time Carrie and I went on the annual Bike Store New Year's Day ride. It was a first because they do this on the road, and we haven't had road bikes in the past. The ride started at about 1 PM New Year's Day and was planned for about 40 miles at "hangover" pace of about 17 mph. Now, let's be honest, I don't think I can ride 20 miles at that speed, much less 40 with the big boys. I'm not sure who really believes 17mph is a "hangover" pace, but I am pretty sure they're way too serious about training to actually have a hangover.

Well, the weather decided to be about half crappy for the ride. I say half, because, hey, it could have been raining. That would have been worse, but then I'd have stayed inside and it wouldn't have mattered. It decided to be bright and sunny - and COLD and WINDY. Highs around 50 with 25 mph gusts, specifically. Which means it was gusting faster than I can normally ride, and being of the wider variety of human, that can be great as a tailwind, and a lot like riding into a parked bus as a headwind. Some people were smart and scheduled a different bike ride.
So, after a quick raffle drawing in the store (thanks Bill, even though I didn't win anything) we assembled and departed. That is to say, our collective shivering coincided to move us in a forward direction. With semi-aero wheels on the road bike, the gusts were enough to almost pull the handlebars out from under you if you weren't hanging on pretty tight. Of course, my hands had frozen to the bars, so I was in no danger. The big event this year was that Carrie decided to come out on her very first real road ride, despite the iffy weather. Up until this point, her only experience was a couple orientation rides and a stout 20 mile trainer ride. We ended up doing 26 miles at an average of 11 mph. Not too shabby in these conditions on a first ride. We climbed both Powersville hills, rode part of Hwy 49 into Byron (the scariest part to me) and circled back through the neighborhood to end at the store. Carrie managed to drift her roadbike around a turn with a patch of gravel in the middle like a Japanese stunt driver. Not only did My Dear Wife ride all the hills like a champ and practice her cyclocross skills, she was even still able to smile back at the truck.

As a matter of fact, all of us were smiling. Frozen like cheap vegetables, but smiling. Kat and Diana chaperoned Carrie and I and were kind enough to handle route planning.
After we got back we went to the bulldog cafe and had a guinness to celebrate our survival and defrost our interiors. It also gave us a good warm place to wait for the other riders to return. Interestingly, we didn't take clothes to change into, so I actually went into a sports bar wearing tights. And I was sober, even. Luckily, the place was pretty empty, so I survived.
All in all, it was a great start to the year. Let's just hope the winds ease up.