I had a very nice ride today. Loving the new bike. Glad to see that the new technology doesn't dissapoint after holding out for so long resisting it.

It was a brisk 50F at the start of the ride and warmed up to the upper 60s by the end of the 50 miles. I took in as many of the notable hills in the area as I could, starting with Pancras to Cobb, followed by the steep rollers on Mt. Pleasant, then over to Wriley Road for Off-The Wall and Jack Brown Hill. After stopping in McIntyre to refill my bottles and munch on a Cliff Bar, I rode up Dedrick and down Claymont. The bike was amazingly smooth coming down the shake and bake on Claymont at up to 38mph. A nice section of rollers coming out of Gordon led to a short dirt section leading to Union Hill. Just for fun I threw in Torrance for one last climb.

I never needed a lower gear, though I wouldn't have scoffed at having one available on a couple of climbs. I didn't try to speed my way up the hills as my mid-winter form is best suited for LSD rides (long, steady distance), but I never got into a situation where I wondered if I would be able to continue the climb. The bike responds well to bursts of hard pedaling, and I'm sure I'll see some speed improvements when I am in better conditioning from more frequent riding.

http://ridewithgps.com/trips/151737?...trip&mode=auto

I've chosen the name "Betty" for the bike because it is fun to run the song through my head as I ride. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sYrK464nIeY
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R044sleOW6I&NR=1