invited on a pick-up ride

 I got invited on a pick-up ride with a few friends today, and it was great.

It was great partly because there were a couple of guys there I haven't seen on a ride in ages: one, because of new-business responsibilities, and another because of illness. The illness situation is apparently much better, and this rider was able to complete the first, less-demanding half of the ride with us. I had missed him, and hope to see him more regularly.

The guy with the business responsibilities came out, but his electronic shifting was uncooperative after he had been off the bike for months. He decided he couldn't ride with us in the single gear he had, and sadly went home; he's subsequently diagnosed the problem, and it apparently has an easy fix. (My bar-end friction shifters continue to give uncomplaining service in the harshest of conditions. Just sayin'.)

But eight of us went out of Pennington today. The ride page shows we started near the Terra Momo Bakery in Pennington, did a very pleasant, flat twenty-odd miles around Lawrenceville, then went back to the Terra Momo for some empty calories and fellowship, and did another, much more demanding twenty miles (including climbs on Pleasant Valley and Harbourton), before ending at Terra Momo.

(I picked up a dolce niente for The Excellent Wife (TEW) before I came home. Valentine's Day is coming, and an old man wants to stay married.)

Yeah, I didn't get enough pictures. I'm leading for the club tomorrow; maybe I'll do better.