Biking - SWC Thursday night beer and pizza ride

After some passing showers early in the day, it turned into a very nice afternoon and evening, a perfect night for the weekly SWC ride. I took the old 10-speed tonight, mostly to try to get in a slower-paced ride than usual on these outings. I also had an inkling of where we'd be going, and relished the thought of cranking up some of the hills on this old bike with much higher gearing. As it turned out, I didn't ride much slower, and a friend and I even called a sprint to a road sign ahead at one point. It was almost a dead heat, but he beat me by half a length after 30-45 seconds of all-out effort. Most of the ride was at a much more leisurely pace, with stops to regroup and chat. The hills were not a problem, though tougher than on my touring bike, and I felt pretty strong pushing the bigger gears. After 16.6 miles, the beer, pizza, and conversation finished off a satisfying night.