I’ve been riding casually for several months now, with the goal of getting used to the new bike and getting used to moving. Now that I’m in better shape I wanted a benchmark to work from so I took my Garmin GPS with me. It clips to the handlebars and shows me things like average speed, top speed, elapsed time, odometer, etc. I already knew the distance I would travel, but I wanted to know my average speed. There are variables I can’t control, like how many people are walking on the path, and how many of those people are walking four-abreast so the path is completely blocked and I have slow almost to a stop before somebody lets me pass. But, overall, I think it’s useful to know the numbers. I ended up going 10.44 miles at an average of 14.1 miles per hour. It took me just over 44 minutes to make it out and back. I’m not sure how I stack up against other people, but I was pretty pleased. It feels great to get out there and ride, especially when the weather is cooling down. It’s still plenty warm. I love it.
Cami and I were driving past what used to be Borders, and I noticed it’s been replaced with an REI. It’s probably been there for months, but I hadn’t paid attention. I checked prices on a new set of pedals and also a bike rack for the car. It’s been ages since I’ve been to an REI, so I wanted to see if they still had me in their system. Sure enough, they do. I could get 10% back if I make my purchase there. Woohoo!