First LeadOut Racing Group Ride

LeadOut Racing had a ride the day after Thanksgiving. Hey, we all ate/drank too much and needed to do something to help those who felt guilt (I felt no guilt. I love food!). The ride was a no-drop ride around Folsom Lake. It's about 55 miles and quite a bit of climbing.

Thank you, Strava, for saying I climbed at a wooping 8 watts up Zee Estates.

There were 10 of us. Frank, Asa, George, Pako, Stuart, Jessica, Mike, Charles, Tony, and me. We met at coffee republic, took pictures, goofed off, and headed out. We climbed at a nice, easy pace, waited at the top of the bigger climbs, goofed off, rode some more, goofed off. See the pattern?

It doesn't really matter how "easy" of a pace you ride Folsom Lake Loop; it's still a bitch. You have to climb out of some pretty good hills. Either way, the company, the jokes, and the fun made the climbs a lot easier than they usually were. Not only that, I have an awesome bike now! It's great when you have a bunch of riders who are out there just for the fun and love of the bike. LeadOut is a bran new team (maybe 6 weeks old) and it's already proving that it can bring cyclists together - cyclists who want to have fun.

These are the kinds of rides I live for. The ones where you get together with a bunch of friends and have fun. You get to know your teammates, make new friendships and new training partners, you learn new things from the experienced riders, and so on.

I found myself getting tired of the bike. I didn't want to go out as often because the fun was fading. Riding with LeadOut has re-sparked that fun and helped me remember why I love being out there, whether it's suffering up a climb, riding 10 miles of dirt on my road bike, or riding in the rain and getting soaked.

It was a great first group ride for LeadOut. I can't wait to get our kits and start racing and representing out there! I'm going into 2012 with a lot of changes: new bike, new team, new training, and a whole new attitude!