Why do we road bike?

Nhan threw out this crazy idea in 2013, "Yo Dilio, we should sign up for STP!" 

As in the Seattle to Portland Bike Classic, an annual 200+ mile bike ride between the two cities that takes place every July. Up until then, we had only casually rolled along the Burke-Gilman and Sammamish River Trails, biking less than 20 miles on any given day, on dinosaur old bikes we reclaimed from the dark and dusty depths of the garage. Neither of us were road bikers, knew much about the sport, nor had any idea exactly what we were getting into. We had less than 6 months to train! But we knew how to pedal and had a knack for finding fun, and that was somehow enough to get us started... 

I used to be one of those people who snickered at grown men in painfully-tight spandex, and got somewhat annoyed by bikers creating congestion for drivers on the roads. Now Nhan is one of them!

Nhan is the visionary, always coming up with grandiose schemes for fun and adventure. An idea seizes him, and it's an all-consuming obsession until we make it happen. He enlisted me because I'm always game, I can flesh out the idea, offer a practical component, figure out all the logistics, and bring it to fruition. Within a few weeks, I signed us up as Cascade Bicycle Club members, registered for the event, each procured road bikes and gear (spandex outfits notwithstanding), and started training together like the amateurs we were.

Look at these confident kids at the start of STP in July 2013! There are 10,000 riders in this event, from every part of the Pacific NW and beyond. Sitting in a sea of bikes!

Nhan expressively happy at our first food stop.

Nhan caught so much crap for this sexy leg pose. Like a human billboard for Gregg's Cycle!

Rolling along some scenic by-ways

We need to coordinate our outfits better, or not

Posing with the famous chicken of Winlock

Showcasing our official STP Finishers' Badges!

The short answer for why we road bike is because it is life-affirming in so many ways (and we rock the spandex look). The long answer is for all the reasons Nhan mentioned in his first post. Once we started, we never regretted it, and we never looked back (except to make sure our fellow biker kept up).