My Bike

I think it is long past due to talk about my bike- my brand new, shiny, and expensive graduation gift that my parents gave me.  We purchased my set of wheels from the local Freeport Bicycle Company.  And to be honest it was the first and only bike I looked at.  It wasn't that it was love at first sight- it was simply that I didn't know a whole lot about bikes-  actually I didn't know about bikes at all except that thick tires are mountain bikes and thin tires are road bikes.  But the owner of the store insisted that this was the bike i needed for the distance I would be going.  So my decision was based on his word and the pretty color of the bike :) 

It is a beautiful Trek :

2.3 WSD™

FRAMESET
Sizes	Women's 43, 47, 50, 52, 54, 56cm
Frame	Alpha Black Aluminum w/TCT Carbon stays
Fork	Bontrager Race, carbon; SpeedTrap compatible
WHEELS
Wheels	Bontrager Race
Tires	Bontrager Race Lite, 700x23c
DRIVETRAIN
Shifters	Shimano 105 STI, 10 speed w/Bontrager FIT reach adjust
Front Derailleur	Shimano 105
Rear Derailleur	Shimano Ultegra
Crank	Shimano 105 50/34 or 50/39/30
Cassette	Shimano 105 11-25 or 12-27 (triple), 10 speed
Pedals	Nylon body w/alloy cage; clips and straps
COMPONENTS
Saddle	Bontrager Select FIT CRZ+ Basic
Seat Post	Bontrager Carbon
Handlebars	Bontrager FIT VR, 31.8mm
Stem	Bontrager Select, 7 degree, 31.8mm
Headset	Aheadset w/semi-cartridge bearings, integrated, sealed, alloy
Brakeset	Alloy dual pivot w/Shimano 105 STI levers

RIDE

• 3D frame design provides the best of both worlds: the excellent stiffness-to-weight properties of Trek's Alpha Black aluminum with the vibration damping qualities of TCT carbon.

FIT

• Performance fit and ProTour proven geometry combine to stable bike that fits naturally

TECHNOLOGY

• Speed Trap integrated computer sensor pocket equipped

............................................I honestly may as well be writing about a rocket ship design.


Let me tell you what I do know- in Lehman's terms:


WSD stands for Women's Specific Design.  Which means that my bike is pretty much made for smaller and shorter framed people- like me.  The bike has a shorter top tube which means there is a less distance to reach the handle bars for shorter arm lengths.  The handlebars are also more narrow for women who don't have a big arm span which keeps the hands in a more natural position for greater control and less shoulder pain.  The saddle (or seat)  are made specifically for women's hips and other anatomy for optimized comfort and support.  The grips on the bike have a smaller diameter to fit smaller hands.  And finally there are shorter crank arms (circumference it takes for your pedals to go around) that improve leverage for a more efficient pedal stroke.


It has compact gearing which is according to Wikipedia, 

"In the context of road cycling, compact drivetrain typically refers to double cranksets with a smaller (usually 110mm) bolt circle diameter than the standard 130mm or Campagnolo's 135mm. As of 2006, all of the major component manufacturers such as Shimano and Campagnolo offer compact cranks in their midrange and high-end product lines. The compact crankset provides a compromise between the standard road double crankset (with 39/52 or 39/53 tooth chainrings) and the road triple (with 30/42/52 or 30/39/53 tooth chainrings). The compact crankset has two chainrings and typical ratios are 34/48, 34/50 and 36/50. This provides nearly the same lower gear ratios as a triple but without the need for a third chainring, a triple front derailleur and a long cage rear derailleur."


I have no idea what that means...if anyone knows let me know.  I understand that it is a compromise between a double and a triple and it is ideal for everyday riding.


I do know that the colors are teal and white which just so happens to match my helmet perfectly.  :)


The frame is aluminum with some smaller parts which are carbon fiber which means that my bike is barely heavier than a paperweight.


And as for the pedals...I am using clipless pedals which are pedals more commonly used on road bikes, which allow the rider to clip his or her cleated shoes to the pedals, providing the ability to drive the pedals through the full rotation of the circle.  I am able to pull up on the pedals during the  upstroke as well as push them down.  Which means my shoes are literally locked into the bike which is the one component of my bike that is causing me problems.......


And now for over a month I have been building a relationship with my bike and my new clip- in shoes.  And it has been a rocky start.  I have officially fell off of my bike not once but twice now.  Literally fell over like a sack of potatoes.  Un"clicking" my shoes from the pedals simply doesn't come naturally to me.  The first bikes I rode you had to pedal backwards to break.  And even when I did get gears where the breaks were by the handles, I was still able to effortlessly take my feet off the pedal and place it on the ground to hold me up.  Now that my feet are clipped in it takes me a minute to think about what I have to do in order to unclip my feet- and when I have to stop fast that minute is all it takes for me to fall over.

Don't worry- nothing was hurt or bruised but my ego- both times falling over in front of Ron.  I mean the last time I fell off a bike was when I was five or six years old in the ally by my old house with my dad running right beside me.  I am now 21 years old and still falling off!!!  Humiliating.


But like all relationships- a good one takes patience and good humor.

ShiitAKE Mushrooms

74 more days and counting until I do what my mom says, "Will be the hardest thing you ever do."  In every sense of the word she is probably right.

And what am I doing to prepare for it?  Well for starters I went to Naples, Florida for a little over a week with my grandma and her friends to scope out possible wedding locations for my destination wedding.  I called it a "business" trip but most people would see it as a margarita sipping, sun bathing, shopping vacation.  Those people would probably be right.  It was a vacation that crossed between Breakfast at Tiffanys and the Divine Secrets of the YaYa sisterhood with margaritas, vodka gimlets, and a beach.  It was nothing short of amazing.  And it was successful in the fact that I fell in love with a couple resorts where I could definitely see myself having my wedding.

But the wedding is in June of 2012.  My bike trip is in May of 2011.  In 74 days as I mentioned before.  And I completely dropped the ball on vacation.  I didn't work out- not once (I did pack tennis shoes though so you got to give me credit for effort-or intention atleast)  I ate whatever I wanted.  And I surely didn't ride a bike anywhere.  The only sweat that I may have had was because I was overcooking in the sun by the pool.  I spent all my money-well most of my money.  I didn't blog (if you could tell) nor did I fundraise.  I did a bunch of nothing.  It was glorious-

and now I am back in southern Illinois where it can't be above forty degrees and its rainy.  Reality sucks.

And the reality is I am the biggest procrasintaor in the world.  I have this amazing ability to believe that everything will work out and I have an incredibly lucky record of that being true.  So I usually slide right by with flying colors- no matter what it is- whether it was my half marathon, applying to study abroad in Ecuador, my school projects and papers, getting an internship etc.  So here I am again finding myself doing everything but riding that bike.  Something always comes up when I plan on running.  Ron actually got mad at me last night and told me, "I am going to die [on the trip].  And that I better not say a word when it takes me 12 hours to finish on the first day."  And you know what?  He's probably right too.  (Even though he thinks he is always right)

Why the heck am I doing my worst at preparing for the biggest undertaking of my life????!  Maybe because I feel like 74 days is a loonnggg time away.  I have a hard time looking a month ahead.  But 74 days isn't far at all.   Or maybe I can blame the weather-its not exactly inviting to ride in the rain or icy winds.  Or maybe because I honestly think that I can just do this no problem without too much preperation like most things.  Or maybe I would just rather watch Law and Order sitting on a comfy couch instead of pedaling on a banana seat.  Or maybe its because no one is making me do this- and my will power SUCKS.  It really does.  I am going to quote Ron again because one of his favorite quotes is, "Excuses are just like a**holes- everyone has one." 

Bottom line is- I need to get the ball rolling again- ASAP.  And in the words of everyone who has ever failed at smoking, or keeping up with the new fad diet, or failed at keeping up with a workout regimine or in that fact any regimine: TODAY IS A NEW DAY.