Pat,
Thanks for the good advice. I am learning to do as you suggest on bumps. Like a lot of things, one learns from reading and experience. By "unweight" do you mean kind of give a little hop to take weight off just so the tires are hitting the bump with much less effective weight?
Good point about spinning. Thanks to advice from Steve on a different thread I have already started working on that - gear down one and focus on spinning. Right now I am only able to maintain 70-75 for the duration of my 8.7 mile ride to work. On the way home I try to work at 80-85 in loose "intervals" (spin several blocks, stop for red light, spin, stop) then 70-75 for a couple of miles to wind down at the end of the 11.5 miles home. I know that is a pretty modest rate, but it is coming along. The first day I tried 80 I thought I would die, but the next day it was already feeling easier. I used to run, including one marathon, so I know that a lot of things are as much conditioning you mind and muscle memory as actual conditioning, though you can't do it without all three.
Regards,
Raymond