Fasten Your Chin Straps

One of those boxes from Europe contained a Limar 535 helmet not mentioned in the previous posts.  Why Limar?  It was offered at a reduced price, reviewed well, is very light weight, fits, has a comfortable lining, and has more holes than Victoria Secret lingerie.  Perfect.

So why mention it now?  Because it's finally time to jam it atop my noggin, strap it under my chin and ride this bike!

Took an inaugural ride of about ten miles.

First impression wasn't as favorable as hoped.  The steering seemed touchy, as in almost hard to control at lower speeds.  That impression proved to be short lived, as I quickly adapted.  Guess I was used to relatively wide and heavy tires that took more effort to turn.  Now,  the responsiveness plays a huge part in making the bike fun to ride.

I'm glad I went with the 54cm frame size as the top tube feels somewhat high.  While the official stand over height gets measured at the center of the top tube, the actual stand over height is a bit further forward. Though 5'10", I have a shorter than normal inseam, and standing over this bike puts certain body parts as close to the top tube as those parts need to get.  The 56cm might have been too close for comfort ... literally.

The other sizing choices have worked out too.  I didn't even have to adjust the saddle height, though I admit measuring when the height was initially set.  The reach feels good, though I might experiment with different stem angles tomorrow, and the bar width works well too.

The Brooks saddle is hard, bone ass hard, but surprisingly comfortable right out of the box.  If this thing gets more comfortable as it breaks in, it will have a long happy relationship with my bottom.