Saturday, August 24, 2013

on vacation

Thursday was our last day of class for the summer session, so now I have two weeks off. Cleaning house, sewing, getting #5 Son ready for back-to-school and stuff like that are on the agenda of course, but plenty of cycling is also a priority.

Yesterday I rode 50k on the Trek 1000. 

Earlier this week I had bought a new, skinnier saddle, the SDG Allure from MEC. It's very similar to the comfy stock saddle on my Specialized Vita, and the price was right, so I figured it was worth a try. Hubby put it on for me, and we adjusted it as best we could, and I set off riding. As I was leaving the driveway, Hubby called me back and handed me the Allen wrench multi-tool. A good thing: just as I was heading up the first hill north of town, I felt the saddle give way under me. I wasn't sure exactly what to do, but I took out the Allen wrenches, found the right size -- actually two different sizes, as it happened -- and turned a couple of screws. Hoping it was good enough to get me home, I turned around and crossed the road, only to have the saddle collapse once again. OK, I thought, time to get serious and figure this thing out. And after a short period of trial and error, I got it! The saddle was set to the right height and seemed nice and tight, so I decided to continue riding.

As I was working on it, another cyclist came by, a guy dressed in what appeared to be swimming trunks -- possibly heading for the Leisure Centre pool -- and asked if I needed any help. Since by this time I was pretty sure I had things under control, I was happy to be able to say no thank you. But I appreciated the offer.

The rest of the ride went great. No problems with the saddle or anything else. There was almost no wind, so it was an easy ride. Again, I was impressed with how much easier the hill climbs are on this bike than on my hybrid. I might have to find some bigger hills -- or maybe start some hill repeats or something. 

Warm air, sunshine, comfortable bike -- what more could I ask for? And to think I have two more weeks of days like this!

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