Sibs on the Road

My brother and his family came down  for Thanksgiving.  He packed up his bike and schlepped it down here from Seattle so we could pound out a few miles between feeding frenzies. Totally cool--I'd never ridden with my bro before. The first ever Kate and Jason road ride.

It was COLD. OK, not cold for most of the country, but cold for So Cal. 40 degrees in the sun--I don't even own a long-sleeved anything. Jay loaned me a pair of leg warmers which made life more bearable, and I borrowed Dave's vest to keep from freezing on top. Guess I know what to ask Santa for this year...

Thanksgiving morning we rolled out of my house for a leisurely 14 mile round trip to Starbucks. Nothing like a little Pumpkin Spice Latte to help with the spirit of thanks. You might be surprised just how busy Starbucks is at 10 o'clock Thanksgiving morning. We were pleased to hear that the coffee kids did get to close early.

Friday morning we headed out from my parents' house, which was great, except...it's uphill to get anywhere from there. Hills are my nemesis. Managed the first short one with a few encouraging words, sailed through a nice downhill, then started up again. Ugh. Had to stop half-way up for a short recovery. Short is relative. While huffing and puffing at the side of the road, we were passed by a perky group of six cyclists. Oh well. A little humiliation never hurt anyone, right?

We headed up through Chapman Heights to Oak Glen Road (more uphill) to 5th, and eventually up to Bryant. The last long, sweet downhill was bliss...Oh, wait...one more hill...this one, with a little help from my sweet brother, who swears he wasn't doing anything, but the burn in the quads was suddenly bearable. You rock, Jay!

After some discussion about my hill aversion, Jay suggested a compact crankset. Truthfully, I am up for anything that will make life even a little easier.  Ebay, here I come.