Cycling Begins

Cycling is working out better than I imagined. I rode 5.5 miles along the river on Saturday. I took one day recuperating and I was back on saddle again for 4 miles today. And I rode at a decent clip too, at least twice as fast as the ride in 2010 that made me sick for a week. It's now as if I'm only extremely out of shape rather than sick. I'm going to do 10 miles this week and see if I can get away with it without getting sick. If I can, oh boy, I could really start believing that I'm recovering.

So, I was in SF  last week to pick up the bike. In the morning I went back to the old neighborhood around the Rincon Hill  where I walked around like a zombie, sitting down wherever I could. Portico at 1st and Mission. 201 Mission where I draped myself on a patio chair outside of Angus Burger, now gone, during a desolate walk on the thanksgiving of 2009. Starbucks on Drumm where I camped with my legs up on the chair to relieve the ache. Starbucks on Howard and Spear. How I struggled to walk a few blocks back then. And how anticlimactic it would be to recover from all that as if nothing happened.

In the evening, I picked up a Giant Contend SL 1 from Bike Connection. I was gonna buy Giant Contend SL 2 from an LA bike shop -- they were selling a red one that I was looking for $899, almost 25% off -- and see my nephew and his new bride while there.  The one from the SF bike shop for 15% off instead. But going down to LA was too much a work and SF is nearer in case I need to get the bike serviced. (Turned out, I needed 80mm stem and they will swap it out for free.) So now I'm finally done with the bike shopping. For now and happy with it -- it is an aluminium bike, but it is very responsive and comfortable at the same time. And it fits me every well. Next week I'll go to Mike's Bike and see what they have on sale. If they have a Tarmac comp or S-Works at 25% off, I may get tempted.