A Couple More Rides

On Saturday I took a ride on my road bike for the first time in 4 or 5 years. It's a Nishiki Maricopa that I bought at Dick's Sporting Goods because I was missing my 1986 Nishiki Olympic 12, that I foolishly got rid of around a decade ago.

I put about 13 miles on it and it's amazing how much faster it rolls than my Trek 820 or especially the Lectric XP when it's set to PAS01 or 02.

One thing that had been holding me back from riding the Nishiki was the forward riding position. I have a gut that I'm trying to shrink and when I'm leaned over, it's uncomfortable. So, yesterday I ordered a stem extension to raise the handlebars about 2.7". This will give me a more upright riding position that should be more comfortable.

On Sunday I took out the Lectric XP on the longest ride I've done in over 30 years, about 22 miles. As usual, I took the Cross County Trail to the Schukyll River Trail and headed west towards Valley Forge. I wasn't wearing bike shorts so by the time I got to about 9 miles out my nether regions were complaining.

I did this ride mostly in PAS2 but kicked it up to PAS3 once I got to within 5 miles of home. By that point I wanted to get off the bike. When the ride was done the battery was down to about 60% left, so not bad at all.

You may have noticed that I replaced the OEM panniers with a Lixada bike trunk that I bought on Prime Day. The panniers were floppy, added even more wind resistance to an already fat bike, and I don't currently need the capacity. The trunk is a lot more streamlined and it's easier to access without bending over.

I also went back to the factory saddle. I tried a wider, softer Cloud 9 saddle on a couple rides but couldn't get it set comfortably.

It was over 90 degrees F (32.2 C) on both rides so I made sure that I hydrated well before, during, and after the rides. The Zefal 33 oz. bottle filled with half strength Liquid I.V. worked great for this. I also had a 16 oz. water bottle with me in the trunk on Sunday's ride. On Saturday I wore a light pack with a water bottle and a snack, since the Nishiki doesn't have a rack.

ASSuming that the stem extender works well and I start riding the Nishiki more, I'll want to install a rack and trunk. It has rack mounting eyelets at the rear wheel drops but nothing up top, so I'll either need a rack that clamps around the seat post or comes with an adapter.

I've only been taking these rides for about a month but I've already noticed an improvement in my leg strength and cardio.