I just picked up my bike from Mystic Cycle. They actually had it fixed on Saturday, but I couldn't leave the rainy cookout at my house to go pick it up.

Rick told me to take it for a test ride before paying for it.

Ahh, perfection! Not a hint of any sound, and the two-year-old shifting problem is gone, too.

Unfortunately, he predicted that I'll wear out this "lower bracket" (crank shaft and bearing assembly) before next season, so I might have to replace it every year.

"We don't see them trashed like this in road bikes very often. You big guys are too hard on your parts."

Heh. Maybe you had to be there to see why this was funny. He's about 5' 4" tall, and might way 130 pounds. I'm about 6' 10" tall, and a little more than twice his weight. Get the picture?

I started today's ride knowing that the bike wouldn't run perfectly at first. It felt perfect, but that doesn't mean anything. In my experience, getting a bike back from the shop always means somethign will have to be adjusted. I was right: the front wheel needed to be repositioned, and the chain jammed up for a minute in the rear derailleur.

I think that if it wasn't for the stopping and starting from those two problems, I might have finished with an average speed of 19 mph. As it is, I tied my last ride.

The stats: 19.41 miles in 61:42, for an average speed of 18.87 miles per hour.