This same practice one year ago, I showed up with a brand spanking new bike, new clips, new shoes, new everything. I planned to ride it before practice, but I think I was super busy at the time. I still remember being so nervous, because the last time I rode my bike was probably middle school! I fell trying to clip into my pedals BEFORE the warm up. I struggled to turn past the cones during the drill, then I fell again! Coach Brad even had to hold my seat and push me like I was learning how to ride for the first time. Embarassing!
This time around, after a year of bike experience… WOW, night and day. It felt great to be able to DO the drills, to NOT fall, to NOT shake on the ride, to NOT grip the handlebars. We also teamed up with the TNT Tri team and combined learning efforts for technique and safety. It was also a great time to meet new teammates, and get to know some that I met last week as well. We were split into smaller groups, with tire change, and bike form clinics. We were also split into different groups on the ride, depending on ride experience.
For some added fun, Adam & I wore our crazy pants from Halloween, because we knew this practice would be the shortest bike ride of the season. I mean, might as well!
Took everyone by surprise for sure. We had fun sporting them. I was able to actually ride in them because they were tight enough that it won’t catch on the chain or anything. They were pretty comfortable! Last time I rode was the Carpinteria Triathlon, so I was a bit nervous at first, but eventually got used to it. We did loops near the airport, nice & flat, not so much car traffic, great for everyone to get comfortable on the bike.
