This is my new bike --
The one Doug got me for Christmas, only we were too busy to actually shop for the bike until last weekend. She's posed like the rugged glamazon she is alongside Doug's mountain bike.
A Trek Woman's Specific Design 4300. A mountain bike with a floral design.
We went to Budget Pro Bicycles in Eagle Rock to look around. Just so that I could get an idea for what's out there and maybe test ride a few bikes.
Budget Pro's in a strip mall and from the outside looks like a little hole in the wall. I expected it to be about 500 square feet at most. But, it's actually quite large and well stocked. All the sales people are also cyclists and work there so they can talk about bikes all day.
Joe helped me.
First, he taught me how to figure out what size bike I need.
You straddle the bike and make sure there's a comfortable amount of space between your crotch and the top bar of the frame. (Very important.)
I need either a small or a medium frame.
Time to test ride.
First up -- the small WSD 4300. It felt good, but it also felt too small. Why it felt good, was impossible for me to describe. But, I knew it was too small because when I extended my leg out all the way to get maximum push my butt hung off the back of the seat.
Joe suggested I try one of his favorite models - a Gary Fisher unisex (read designed for men) bike. It was blue (my favorite color) and very sexy. Wasn't too small, but I didn't like the way it felt. The boys asked me why. I didn't really know. It felt like I had to lean over too far to get the handle bars, so it wasn't as comfortable. Joe believed I just needed a different saddle. He went in to get a comfort seat so I could try that.
Doug and I stayed outside and talked about what I liked and didn't like with the bikes. When Joe came back out I asked to try the Trek 4300 in a medium. That bike was up high, so it was a pain in the ass for them to get it down, but I had a feeling about it and wanted to try it.
I'm glad I did. It was perfect! So Doug bought it for me.
Sunday Doug and I packed our bikes up on the car and drove out to the bike paths in Arcadia.
I LOVED IT!
So, fun. Much, much more fun than riding the stationary bike at the gym.
When I went up hill I pretended that I was Lance Armstrong on the sixth day of the Tour of France. This kept me going. When I really struggled, Doug put his hand on my back and used the momentum from his own riding to help me. We stopped when I needed to stop, but all told I was able to go about five miles. Not too far (I wanted to go 10), but not bad for my first time out. The most important thing...
I liked it. There's a sport I like! Yippee!
