On The Road Again

Happy New Year to Evan, Owen and all my 53x11 Coffee teammates. It is the start of another season and I am giddy with anticipation (to parahrase Dr. Frankenfurter).
I have been riding my trainer almost every day since October but finally had my first real road ride of 2010 today. I did do one yesterday but that was what I consider "getting my feet" kind of ride. I did a 2 hr jaunt today around Mercer Island and had a great ride, seeing many other riders and teams out and about. It was nice to recoginize and to be recognized. I feel like part of a very large family and it was just a good feeling today. I did have one rider ask if I wanted to pace with him but I declined as I could feel my legs and I wanted just a nice training day. It was good to discover though that my 75% effort equaled his 100% as he did not get too far ahead and I often caught him. My legs are a bit heavy right now but I know I am on the road back.
Hope everyone had a great New Years.
Ty (aka Saddledancer).