So, Christmas finally arrived for me this morning!

The day started with the ceremonial collection of my new bikes.  This wasn’t without anxiety!  The collection itself was incident free and relatively swift.  However the trip home relied on the stability and strength of a new Cycle Rack (for the car), ably fitted by myself, and was therefore fraught with danger!

As it turned out, the trip was fine.  No structural failures.  No shed loads.  Not even any audible rattles.  Success!  I felt particularly sporty, and a smidgen of pride, as I paraded my new bikes through town on my way home.

A very proud moment… home safely!

There then followed several hours of slightly inept mechanical “fiddling” as I made the final adjustments.

Bikes aren’t how I remember them.  They don’t have the knobs and levers I’m familiar with any more.  I had to refer to the internet a couple of times to work out how to work the gears (multi-purpose break levers, if you’re interested!).  One of the bikes has disc breaks – heaven only knows how they work!  I’m very relieved I took out some “free labour” cover for them for the 1st Year… I can see me using this extensively!

What I’ve also discovered is that it appears the more you pay for a bike, the less you get.  In some ways, the “less” is good (e.g. less weight), but in other ways, the “less” is bad (e.g. the more expensive bike required me to buy pedals separately).

Fortunately I didn’t spend too much, so it was just the pedals that needed to be added.  I can only dream of owning a bike that requires you to buy wheels, a seat and handlebars!

Bicycles have definitely advanced a bit!

I still haven’t managed to get outside on a bike yet, but it’s on the cards for tomorrow (weather permitting).  Ominously, it felt like autumn arrived in Aberdeen today.  I may have timed the bike purchase perfectly!

Still, with my bikes, the Turbo Trainer, and a Sufferfest video selection, I’m sure the winter will fly by!