Introducing Blanch

Friends!  So here it is.  The affection of my heart!  The beauty of my life that will be the core of my love affair (don't forget, this is a mini romantic comedy).  Meet Blanch, my Bianchi Imola bike (blanch is her working name; she can change names or sex at any time, any suggestions)

Let me tell you, what a crazy experience.  It was like buying a brand new car.  My friend Manny accompanied me to the bike shop as he is a pro rider, and I, just an amateur.  I needed the support and knowledge. The sales guy, Noah, and Manny started talking spokes, weight, carbon steel, centimeters, pedals, etc. and I just sat and stared as if a Mack truck was headed right towards me and I was the deer in the headlights.  I digress.  I know very little about bikes.  However, Manny practically held my hand through the process taking me through each step and even joined me on test rides.  I will say this, this bike shifts like smooth silken butter. It is nothing like the bike I had eons ago that would clank and clunk with each shift.  The process though, once the boys had their shop talk, was easy.  I went to Adams Avenue Bicycles.  They were Fantastic! They knew I was a newbie but treated me respectfully, spent almost two hours with me, including a bike fitting, and answered all my questions.  On top of that, I got a discount as they are a sponsor of the Aids Life Cycle!  (Oh yeah, free tune ups for the life of the bike!)  I will encourage any and all who ask to go to this shop for their wonderful customer service.  I got my carbon shoes, pedals, gloves all from there as well. 

Most importantly, I got my helmet, and I did not skimp on it.  In my previous post, I posted that I got an email saying that an acquaintance (too be honest, I only knew of him) had got into an accident and was in the hospital.  He did unfortunately pass away due to his injuries.  From my understanding, he was not wearing a helmet.  My thoughts go out to him and his loved ones.  I promise to all of you that I will be careful, obey the street laws and wear my helmet.  I also bought the helmet that can take multiple strikes before becoming unusable.  I guess other helmets can take only one blow, but unfortunately, most crashes involve multiple blows.

So I have mixed emotions.  I am excited. I am nervous. This is very real now. But in the end, I am super happy.  Being at the bike shop, I recognized that I join a family of bikers who from being new to it, seem like a great bunch of people.