Hello from the River Valley in Arkansas!
09-13-18 | 09:11 AM
#1
Thread Starter
Newbie
Joined: Sep 2018
Posts: 34
Likes: 13
Hello from the River Valley in Arkansas!
Hi everyone! Just ran a search and saw that there are several of my fellow Arkansans here on bikeforums. Glad to join you guys!
I'm a 36 year old biology teacher at a moderately large high school. Several of my colleagues at this school ride and rekindled my interest in the hobby/sport. I actually used to ride my Trek Dual Sport pretty regularly until about 5 years ago when an accident - rounded a corner on a local trail, woman with three huge dogs occupying the entirety of the space, I layed it over rather than crashing into her or the pooches - resulted in a pretty bad injury and kind of scared me away from it for a while. I finally decided it's time, and I'm getting back into it. I started riding my DS again and, wanting something lighter, made the 'mistake' of visiting some local bike shops to check out their road bike inventories. You know how it goes...one thing leads to another, and before I know it, I'm placing an order for a 2018 Trek Domane SL8. It was a huge investment, but I justify it by assuring myself that I'm starting high, so less temptation to fall victim to bike lust, and to borrow the motto from my colleagues, it's for the health of it.
The bike should arrival tomorrow and I can't wait to see what a 16 lb carbon frame feels like compared to my 36 lb metal DS! Road biking will be very different from what I'm used to so I imagine there will be a big of an adjustment period. I feel fortunate that I live in a place that is pretty friendly to bikes, and has moderate to low amounts of traffic. I'm looking forward to taking it around the state and visiting more bike routes.
I'm looking forward to learning from you all!
I'm a 36 year old biology teacher at a moderately large high school. Several of my colleagues at this school ride and rekindled my interest in the hobby/sport. I actually used to ride my Trek Dual Sport pretty regularly until about 5 years ago when an accident - rounded a corner on a local trail, woman with three huge dogs occupying the entirety of the space, I layed it over rather than crashing into her or the pooches - resulted in a pretty bad injury and kind of scared me away from it for a while. I finally decided it's time, and I'm getting back into it. I started riding my DS again and, wanting something lighter, made the 'mistake' of visiting some local bike shops to check out their road bike inventories. You know how it goes...one thing leads to another, and before I know it, I'm placing an order for a 2018 Trek Domane SL8. It was a huge investment, but I justify it by assuring myself that I'm starting high, so less temptation to fall victim to bike lust, and to borrow the motto from my colleagues, it's for the health of it.
The bike should arrival tomorrow and I can't wait to see what a 16 lb carbon frame feels like compared to my 36 lb metal DS! Road biking will be very different from what I'm used to so I imagine there will be a big of an adjustment period. I feel fortunate that I live in a place that is pretty friendly to bikes, and has moderate to low amounts of traffic. I'm looking forward to taking it around the state and visiting more bike routes.
I'm looking forward to learning from you all!
09-13-18 | 03:05 PM
#2
So it is
Joined: Sep 2008
Posts: 22,878
Likes: 6,382
From: Westminster, CO
Bikes: Luzerne, 684, Boreas, Wheelhouse, Alize©®, Bayamo, Cayo
Welcome to Bike Forums, SkepTeach! You're in for a very pleasant surprise. Riding a bike half the weight of your current one, is going to be a blast. Enjoy the whole experience!
09-13-18 | 05:07 PM
#3
Welcome and thank you for being a teacher!
Congrats on your new bike!
Congrats on your new bike!
09-14-18 | 04:59 AM
#5
Thread Starter
Newbie
Joined: Sep 2018
Posts: 34
Likes: 13
Thank you all for the warm welcomes!
The new bike should arrive today and I'm eager to say goodbye to my afternoon rides on the DS. Teaching throughout the week, afternoon rides get tougher and tougher as Friday approaches, and yesterday was killer. 87F and high humidity. I still managed to go nearly 15 miles at an average of 14.3 mph. Looking forward to seeing what the stats on the new bike will be like.
You know it's funny, humans are such social animals. It started with one of my colleagues who's a dedicated cyclist and has been for decades. Then two more picked up the interest, then me, then another. then I was out to dinner last night with some friends and they're all wanting to start riding. It's an epidemic!
The new bike should arrive today and I'm eager to say goodbye to my afternoon rides on the DS. Teaching throughout the week, afternoon rides get tougher and tougher as Friday approaches, and yesterday was killer. 87F and high humidity. I still managed to go nearly 15 miles at an average of 14.3 mph. Looking forward to seeing what the stats on the new bike will be like.
You know it's funny, humans are such social animals. It started with one of my colleagues who's a dedicated cyclist and has been for decades. Then two more picked up the interest, then me, then another. then I was out to dinner last night with some friends and they're all wanting to start riding. It's an epidemic!
