The force is with me.

That is the Panthers Tri Club force is with me. Today I went out for my first ever morning ride on a real road for 56km. It has to have been one of the highlights of my shortlived cycling career.

As usual my excitement is too much to control and I arrived super early. However, arriving early also gave me the opportunity to get myself together and breathe - I didn't want to look like a total bundle of newbie frenetic energy. There were a few members from the Tri Club - Drew, Cloe, Kate who arrived not long after and they called me over just to have a chat. And then Kylie, Matthew, his brother and another couple arrived. They asked if I wanted to join them, however they all looked way too fast for me and the last thing I would want is to hold them back. I was also looking forward to my ride with my new riding buddy Maureen.

Maureen is a fantastic lady and a great person to learn from. We spoke pretty much the whole entire 56km distance about life, family, children, sports, anything and everything was up for discussion. I learnt heaps about my gears and what I should be riding in when going up an incline and what I should be in going down the hill. I learnt where to position myself when going into a roundabout which was one of my major concerns. This may sound minor to some, but for me it was a huge reason as to why I was holding back from getting out there.

So now that I was out there riding, it wasn't as hard as I had made it out to be in my head. The traffic although constant, and I was fully aware of every car and truck that was passing me, I was not bothered by them. They did not scare me the way I thought they would. I could not believe I had not done this earlier. But, good things come to those who wait.

On my journey I was introduced to some other people like Ted, Rommel and Jen. They are such lovely people and I got to spend some time with each of them. They took a genuine interest in me and my first experience out on the road. I also passed Drew again on his journey back and Shane who was heading out for his morning ride. So many familiar faces and they were all happy to see me out and about.

With about 10km left Maureen and I stopped for a well deserved coffee break and once again I felt like part of the cycling world. There were other cyclists all enjoying their Sunday morning ride and cuppa too and it's amazing how nobody is short of a hello. So, with our belly full of caffeine we headed off for the final stretch home. What a glorious morning I had had and I really did not want it to end. I had no idea of the distance but am happy to report that after checking with google maps I rode another 56km stretch. And, to tell you the truth I felt so good I could have ridden for atleast another hour. Oh well, next weekend is set to be another road ride with more distance attached to it. Can't wait.