persistent cough

I'm finally coming to the realization that the wheeze I got from Burnaby has developed into a chest cold. It's starting to come out of the lungs though - and my coughs are getting a little more productive. Hopefully this illness will be gone soon. It doesn't help that I'm headed on a 40 miler after work today in the cold. But it seems like the past couple days when I don't have enough energy to exercise, as soon as I do I'm feeling even better.

On a side note - last night I went climbing with Ryan as a cross training exercise. The bouldering area is closed as they set new routes for this weekends bouldering competition so we climbed with ropes. I felt pretty strong but had no idea that later in the night I would be able to flash a 11a climb. That's some of the best climbing I've done indoors to date. It felt great.

My little sister leaves Sunday for Australia for a year. She met this guy over there last year about this time and fell in love. They've only been together in the flesh a little over a month. She's determined to get over there and see if it will work and spend some time with him. Good for her - but scary at the same time. I mean, she barely knows him. They've been developing a long distance relationship for a year via the Internet and phone calls. I'm curious what it will be like once they are around each other in the flesh for an extended period of time. I can't imagine being separated from Ryan like that. I wish her the best of luck.

Kaipo (my second cousin who lives on Oahu) ran away from home about 2 weeks ago. He's 14 years old and doesn't get along with Channing, his step dad. Kuulei is apparently a nervous wreck about the whole thing - and I hope that Kaipo gets things figured out quickly and back to school before too long. If there was something I could do I would do it in a heart beat.

Bope (my grandfather, dad's side) had difficulty breathing last week and decided to go get checked out at the hospital. Apparently the doctor discovered that he has congested heart failure and was put on medication. His feet are swollen and he's not feeling his normal self. I called him this morning and he said in all of his years of riding his bicycle he has not once felt this way. His doctor said he needs to decrease his salt intake - to which Mummer said she never cooks with salt and never has had to. However, once they took inventory of what they were eatting they discovered the Campbells soup and Ramen were really high in salt content. No more of that! Bope said how important it is to be active all your life and really do as many things outdoors as possible. He was proud of Ryan and I for being super active and said to keep it up. It's so important for a long healthy life. I just hope others in our family will realize this before their health starts failing.

Wow - I didn't realize how much family stuff is going on right now. I just hope everything works out - and it will. What will be will be.

whirlwind

Wow - what a weekend. Highlights include - Scratch race - I finished it. Out of 18 people that started, only 8 finished. I was one of the eight. Points race - stuck with it for all but the last 8 laps .... I just couldn't muster any more surges. I'm still working on the skill and endurance for those races. Then on Sunday my highlight was the Keirin - placed second in my heat. And although only the winner advanced, I was extremely happy with my performance. Then I had a really terrible elimination race - actually two of them. I'm still struggling with the miss n' out crash I had down at Alpenrose. In between the eliminations they held a chariot race - which I had a really good start and came close to catching one of the fastest guys in our group. It was great.
Due to my lame ass performance in the eliminations I almost didn't do the Win N out - mainly because I was tired and somewhat defeated mentally from being pulled right away in the other races. But I got fired up once on the track and pulled 3rd place out of 19 competitors!!! Not bad - I'll take that one to the bank for sure. Racing with the guys is definitely making me stronger. :)

up to burnaby we go!

waking up early tomorrow morning to head up north to do some track racing for the weekend. I'm super pumped - it's been over 2 months since I last raced and I'm excited to get the heart rate up there again!

Who knows how it will pan out with my fitness level though - I'm suspecting that it will have dropped off a lot compared to my peak fitness but I should still be able to hang because I have been keeping active and doing lots of cross training. I'll blog once I get back.
Peas

on the water

This morning Marcy and I volunteered to be in a double boat. She was in the stern and I was in the bow. Since she missed a week of classes she feels slightly uncomfortable on the water. She gets nervous and panics at the slightest tip of the boat. We rowed out to Portage Bay, followed by Tom and his megaphone ... and we listened as he told us one slap stick joke after another. Marcy had a hard time listening and rowing at the same time - often losing focus as he told us silly pirate jokes. RRRrrrrrrrrr.

I convinced her to have us paddle at the same time early in the practice - and she wasn't quite ready for it. Actually it freaked her out. I think her fear of being dumped into the water consumes her to a point where she stiffens up in the boat and doesn't want to get wet. I figure, what the hell - it's part of rowing... so if you go in, you go in. Her normal tendancy is to row stronger on her Starbird side - so we had a meandering boat through the cut. Then she started wigging out - letting that frustration leak out and consume her physical action. Then she started saying I was going too fast on the stroke - to which I responded - I'm just matching her. All she needs to worry about is doing a nice slow stroke - steady and timed with dipping the handles square into the water. I also suggested we start with 1/2 paddle, then 3/4 then a full stroke and that seemed to ease her nerves. We then had some of the best rowing we've done together yet. It was great! I got a kick out of it because although she's 21 - you still can't take the whine out of her when she's frustrated. He he hee.

living proof!

It's been 30 days since I last tasted a refined sugar morsel. I did it! All in the name of will power and determination. So what's next you say? Beer. Yep - the yeast and hops have got to be eliminated... or at least brought down in moderation. It's not that I've become a serious lush or anything - but I'm having one a night and those are empty calories and sugars that should be savored rather than consumed daily.

So coach - what's next? You said there's this excellerated plan for some of your athletes - but for some reason we have an impossible time connecting on the phone..... I'm getting a little eager to find out what that entails.

Turns out our planned trip to Beaver Creek over Presidents weekend has been foiled. We even bought the plan tickets! Come to find out the condo is booked the entire week and that time is even more popular than Christmas. So we're trying to find either another condo or somewhere else to go. Lame.

Yesterday was legs day - I put more pounds on than before. It felt good but I'm a little sore today.

Computrainer Thursday

Had an excellent workout tonight. Was able to maintain a decent wattage and high cadence without losing my breath on a hill interval workout. My legs felt fantastic - a testament to the gym work and taking time off ... not to mention the time spent away from sweets. It's making me feel fantastic!! I'm averaging about 152 during my morning weigh in - which is right where I want to be for the beginning of the off season. I'm feeling so jazzed and pumped for the upcoming season.

i'll be gone till november, i'll be gone till november. Januray, febuary march april may....

November was brought in with typical Northwest fashion - blistery, rainy and 48 degrees. Ah - winter is well on its way. There's talk of Crystal Mountain opening for the season this upcoming weekend. And mt. baker already has a 40" base with 3-4 feet of snow expected by next Tuesday. Time to break out the winter clothes and find out if my body remembers how to move on a pair of sleds.

It's been a mellow end to October - just shy of 250 miles for the month. A relatively slow month in terms of workout - but according to the rest of the racing community - an early start to the season. Most people took the month off - completely. But if you want to become a national champion - then you have to nurture that inner athlete and be willing to put the time and energy into the off season. So far so good - I feel like my motivation is solid - got on the track bike last night for the first time since early September and spun around on my rollers for an hour. It felt good - damn good. I'm looking forward to the race season. And considering New Years is just around the corner - racing will be here before we know it.

3 weeks and counting

Tomorrow marks three weeks without refined sugars and counting. Pretty impressive considering my last day of binging included a whole pan of triple chocolate brownies. I've noticed a big difference with my body - not only in performance but in shape. My tummy is actually starting to get firmer. Yeeee haw!
It's Halloween night though and Ryan left me home alone with not one but two bags of candy. Of course as he walked out the door he said I wouldn't be able not to sneak just one. Well guess what? I'm not going to have one just because he said that. So there! I'll show him with a big old bowl of starchy salty pop corn. Mmmmm..... starch.

computrainer observation

so last night we did interval threshold training. It lasts 47 minutes, and you have minute intervals of 120% of your max wattage. I had Tim tone mine down to 175 as being 100% so I could stay within an average heart rate zone. It really helps you concentrate on keeping a consistent pedal stroke and being fluid in your motion. Once we were finished I rode home in the dark - to be amazed with how easy the pedals were to spin around. This training is working!

moving on

So I found out what it's like to be on the other side of the fence. Melinda decided to find another team - she says she felt like she needed a bigger team with more mentors on it. The turning point for her was also the kits - the new ones for Starbucks were just not as cool as we had anticipated. To make a long story short - I found out she moved onto Group Health. Good for her - but at the same time, lame! She's a good friend and I know regardless of what team we are on - whether that be the same team or a different one - we will remain friends. Now I know how everyone else must have felt when I had my feet held to the fire. But you do what you have to do for hopefully the right reasons. I also know she's not training with Miller at the moment - and not sure if she will pick it back up again in the winter. People just move on I guess.

There's a lot to be said about sticking to something - striving toward your goals, regardless of how many obstacles are thrown in your way. It really takes a lot of time and dedication to get to the upper levels of a sport - there's no half -assing your way up there.

Rowing is going well - I got to ride in a single scull today. It was super tipsy at first but once you get used to the extra core balance you have to maintain - it's super fun. I look forward to trying it again and again. Ryan warned me about getting competitive about it - I have to keep focused on cycling... there's more time later in life to pick up a sport and stick to it.

I've been tempted to eat sweets lately - Halloween is here and I think this is the first time since I was an infant to go sugarfree! Impressive.

screaming match

Last night Ryan, Andrew, Aaron and I went to the Weazer/Foo Fighters concert at the Key. We missed the opening band - but walked in just as Weazer starting playing. They rocked the house! They have such a clean, crisp rock sound that jams and gets your blood pumping. To follow it up Foo Fighters came on screaming on the top of their lungs. Their main singer has some insane vocal chords - belting out inaudible primal noises that left my ears ringing for hours. It's good listening to that type of music that loud - it rattles your cage and makes you feel alive and not a dormant hermit. It's way to easy to get wrapped up in the same routine day after day -only to wake up one morning and go - where the hell did the last year go? Seeing a rock band on stage wakes you up - and keeps in check whether or not you are following your personal journey. I'm putting Weazer and FF on my ipod tonight for future rides - they amp you up yet some of their songs keep you grounded.

The weather is changing again. It's definitely becoming late fall. The air has a cold snap to it - one that makes my joints ache if not covered up and exposed. Last winter's achilles injury came haunting back to me in memory.... I definitely want to avoid that again.

I just found out that we're going to a Halloween party down in Tacoma. Should be a blast. I love dressing up. I'm going to be a naughty nurse. :)

feathering the oars

This morning we went out in a four person sweep. The water was perfect - as was the temp. We placed the boat in the water and then climbed in. I was in the front bow position, then Marcy then Jess and last Chow. I had the control of the rutters - which means you get to wear velcro shoes that are 8 sizes too big for steering. Chow was the tempo setter once we finally all four started rowing together. It was a little tipsy at first - if you don't feather your blades on the water then you could potentially log roll the boat. Lightly feathering is the way you reset the boat (aka keep it stable) inbetween strokes. Maintaining a rythm between all 4 people can be difficult too because if you are not mimicking the steerns positioning and catch then you have a see saw motion that gets more and more tipsy as you go along. Chow admitted that when she was setting the tempo she would forget she was and then try to match everyone else in the boat - creating chaos. It was pretty funny. We didn't go swimming! Yeah!!!

On Friday we get to take single boats out on the water. I am super excited to try that!

GRD

Get R' Done.
I've been procrastinating long enough about getting my real estate license. And now I have incentive - once I complete the test and have my license I will then be able to work guilt free on obtaining a Level I Cyling certification from usa cycling in attempt to get some tax breaks. I spend so much time and money on cycling - why not use that loop hole to my advantage?

On the training front - things are going well. I've been putting the time in at the gym and on the dock down at the boat house. Winter is well on its way and on Sunday I rode through the pouring down rain and smiled to myself the whole time.

Ski season is coming -hopefully with more gusto than last year - and I'm looking forward to getting some turns in.

a wet cold hangover

went for a ride this afternoon despite partying last night and staying up late. It's been drizzling all day - your typical Seattle sunshine. Training is going well - I'm starting to notice some improvements in my stamina as well as increased muscle mass in my thighs. My pants are starting to get tight around areas they used to be baggy - and baggy where they used to be tight.
I'm looking forward to relaxing the rest of the evening.

making it count

yesterday we went on a serious hammer fest ride. it was hard - but good. I was talking with Leif and Melinda last night about it - the question is whether or not we should be going that hard in October. My response was - that may be what it takes to be a National Champion. I'm beat.

We went on a nice ride this morning - and the weather was amazing. I was wickedly tired though by the time I got home.

making it count

ok, so I'm not sure if I really like this obnoxious pink blog color. I'll change it eventually - once I get through my Barbie phase.

Yesterday we went on a straight up hammer fest ride. I'm not sure why we rode that hard for 2 hours - but we did. I was worked! Leif and I were talking about it later with Melinda - he was saying it was like a mid season ride. And then we started talking about the program... wondering if it's too hard too soon - and my response was - if you want to be a National Champion - then damn it, you do it. Making it count - each time. It still hurt. :)

The weather was amazing - one of the last beautiful fall days that one should savor for the rainy, cold winter days that are a comin'.

fly by week

this week passed quickly. Rowing started up on Monday and has been a blast. My sister and I are taking it together so we can spend some time before she heads off to Australia for a year. The instructor is hilarious - and it'll be comical to see what happens tomorrow when we try to put a boat in the water. Fun times!

Yesterday I went for a nice casual ride down to Seward and home. I got to wear my new Ibex knickers and they were fantastic, if not a little on the warm side. I smiled the whole time. I've been going through some old family photos from the nineties to put them in albums - and noticed how my weight will fluctuate significantly if I don't maintain exercise. Simply put - I LOVE to eat and if I'm not burning the calories then the pounds surmount. Then I thought about how cycling has put even more joy into my life - not only from a physical aspect but being outdoors, doing something that is in harmony with the environment and having fun while doing it. I will definitely be a lifelong cyclist.

Oh yeah - on a side note - it's been over a week since I vowed off the sweets and it's going great! I'm feeling good and not feeling guilty whatsoever! This is working well. Now if I can just push the drive for cycling into the seat next to my no sweet diet, I'll be rocking the house!

power testing

Tonight we did two tests at Computrainer. The first was a 5 mile time trial... hard out from the gates to give us a gage to see improvement over the training period. My average wattage was 230 with a time of 13:38. That set the bar and will give me a measurement from where I can gage my progress from this point on. It hurt. I had several peaks and valleys of power - every spike was followed by a valley of weakness. It is definitely an art to learn - I look forward to figuring out a solid conistency and doing much better.

The second test was on a Floscan to measure peak wattage and how long you can maintain that higher level of wattage. I peaked at 830, 171 max rpm, 143 avg rpm. I forget the other numbers but Ryan's holding onto them for future reference. Halfway through the first testing I had a stomach cramp creep up on me and I requested to be tested again. The second go around was much better.

It was an interesting test - although I am so friggin competitive that I feel like I could have and should have done better. I look forward to doing it again and seeing some progress.

whine, whine, bitch bitch complain

this morning I woke up a little sorer than usual .... my hammies were not used to that type of movement and I probably lifted too much weight to start with. I woke up a little unmotivated to head to the gym this morning so I did my total body workout at home. My target weakness - stretching. Spent several minutes doing lower body exercises and it felt great.

Last night I went to Computrainer - it was fun. I talked with Tim for a little while... he's definitely a good guy to know. Asta la pasta.

will power

in attempt to lose the flab that's been hanging around my tummy and test my will power, I have vowed off sweets. I'm pretty sure this is the only way to get the rock hard body I've been dreaming about... so no more Belgians, cookies, ice cream, etc. Damn - this is going to be hard. I'm giving myself 3 months to see what happens. If the flab remains, then why deny myself of the simple pleasures? If the flab goes - then I'll take some nude photos and submit them to Playboy.

achy knee

yesterday I did some squats in attempt to learn the proper positioning for injury free weight lifting. But unfortunately my knee started screaming at me while doing them. It left my knee feeling slightly tender today... it's aching while I'm sitting here. So until I get down better form then I'm going to avoid using weights to do the squats. I also attempted these dead leg lifts that for some reason I couldn't get the form down... maybe it was because the gym was filled with muscle bound men and i felt intimidated.... I usually go in the morning when I have the entire gym to myself. It makes a huge difference. I practiced the movement in the mirror today and it's looking a lot better.

Other than that - it's a beautiful day today and I'm looking forward to riding in it.

birthdays, climbing and broken bones

Coleman's 2nd birthday was a blast - there's nothing like a healthy dose of birth control to do a body good! Kids are cute and all - but we're just not ready yet for the mayhem.

On our way home we stopped in Portland off highway 84 to do some cragging. It was interesting rock - a basalt that was somewhat soapy at the bottom and then increased in texture the higher you climbed. Ryan of course was a hot stud and lead some excellent climbs - and yours truely seconded them. It was fun and a great way to take advantage of today's nice weather.

On Friday however, during a sprint practice down at Golden Gardens, I watched Tim overlap Ryan's rear wheel and go down, HARD. Turns out the poor guy had a concusion and broke his left collarbone. It was agonizing. We were working on some advanced moves, where I was to be right on Ryan's wheel and then Tim was supposed to work his way between us. Well when Ryan took off I immediately gapped off, Tim took advantage of the hole, Ryan looked back to see where I was and slowed just slightly so that Tim's wheel overlapped. Down he went. I was off to the right far enough so when he hit pavement I didn't get caught up in the spill. I slammed on the breaks immediately, causing my rear wheel to skid and then turned around. Tim didn't get up that quickly and some poor bystander helped block traffic so we could get out of the way. It spooked me out. I had a weird fear of falling today because of it. Strange. Traumatic.

Oh and for all you random readers, if there are any out there - I'm talking about two different Ryan's. Ryan my husband, the hot stud and Ryan Miller my coach.

random acts of kindness

so this morning at the gym, Janet, this perky personal trainer who has a thick New York accent, made an unsolicited compliment on how toned I look compared to last year. that made my morning! Now if I can just get rid of the junk around my tummy - I'd be really toned up!

Weight training is going well - getting back into the swing of things. I'm actually enjoying it a lot more now that there's more variety in my routine.

back to the gym

yesterday was my first day back at the gym - and I did the same routine that I did last year. I thought to myself, bare with it, this is for a good cause. But then I got my weight training schedule and it's new! it's exciting and most importantly it's different!!! so putting time in the gym won't be so bad anymore. I actually did my first circuit training this morning and feel a little pooped from it... I'm looking forward to the benefits already.

on a fender note - I'm trying to commando them myself and have already put in about 4 hours of retro fit of my old fenders. all i need is this one piece to fit and then i'll be good to go. but the hard part is it is nearly impossible to rebend to the proper shape. i'm tempted to take it in to the shop....

tomorrow's a cross training day - hopefully i'll be able to hold onto the wall at jonah's house. i did upper body today and know with that type of effort, i'm bound to be sore tomorrow.

underwater pedaling

it poured rain today while we were on our ride. I'm talking the typical Seattle weather that scares all of the southern Californians away... the rain that chills you to the bone and makes you thankful for wool and hot soup when you get home. The type of rain that makes you want to curl up in bed with a novel that you can read by dosing in and out of sleep because who in their right mind would go outside on a day like today rain. Inspiring rain - one's that helped the invention of gortex, aqua socks, thermal wear and synthestics that stay warm even though it's 45 degrees and raining. Rain that would give some Hawaiian islanders a serious life threating flu. I'm not mocking the rain - not in the slightest. For I know that when it gets really impossible and you wonder why the hell am I training in the rain - you know it will come down to winning or placing second. That puts a smile in my face regardless of how many inches per hour are coming down from the pale grey sky.

the rain is here

today we had a serious rain storm sweep through the Seattle area. Lighting and thunder - the full nine! It makes me realize just how lucky I was last season when we had an unusally dry fall and winter. I miss it already! Time to break out the old fenders and booties. Fun times!

observations

so I'm sitting here surfing the net when I should be getting something more important done - like studying for my real estate exam ... and I'm browsing through some cyclo cross photos and I come across Russell's. First of all, he won the race and second, the photo taken of him is with both feet unclipped from the pedals like a scene from Mr. Toad's Wild Adventure. Big cheesy devilish grin on his face - making it look easy as can be. Then it dawns on me in a way that it hasn't before - this guy has completely mastered the bike. His movements, regardless if they are joking or not, are so fine tuned that he can pull some crazy stunts in the middle of competition. So I begin to wonder, does this mastery just come with time and talent in the saddle? Do I have the skills to be able to master the bike like he does? And if so - am I taking the steps in the right direction to achieve this goal?

It only comes with practice - and working on skills. Maybe the root of me wanting a new bike is that I think I've mastered that bike. I wish that were the case! Suddenly my beautiful chipped Kona has become shiney and new again. There are so many things I have yet to learn on the bike - and i look forward to building on each step. Patience in racing is a virtue - these skills and practice will come with time. I just need to remember that when my learning curve isn't as dramatic as it was my first year - to stick with it because bigger picture wins await.

Then again, I could be talking out my ass. Thank God no one reads these.

last few days off

only a few more days of doing whatever exercise I want to and then it's back to it. It's been nice relaxing and not worrying about heart rates, etc. Latz,
Jen

LAF

This weekend I did the inagural LAF Ride held in Portland, OR. My dad had a generous donation of them using their airstreams during the festivities and so he got some extra tickets to do the ride as a result. I took my friend Kristin and we drove down Saturday afternoon. That night we were invited to the pasta feed at Nike with Lance, Bob Roll, Eddy Meryx and George Hincapie. There were about 350 people in the room - so the chance of getting near Lance for an autograph was nearly impossible. My grandfather was persistent though to get an autograph for Max, his great grandson - and managed to get one. Kristin and I had our photos taken with Bob Roll - the character. It was a good time! Several people shared their cancer stories of survival and fights - one husband raised over $20,000 in honor of his wife who watched the Tour this summer while battling severe chemo treatments. It was moving.
The following morning we woke up bright and early to chilly 43 degree weather - with 80 degree sun promised for later in the day. Dressed in layers, we departed the Nike head quarters for a 100 mile ride with nearly 4500 feet of climbing. Luckily the climb was in the morning - with 17% grade in some sections - and descent speeds in the upper 40s. It was thrilling cruising down that climb - a little scary but talk about endorphines!
The rest of the ride was somewhat grueling - when you get up to that many miles and you're just "riding" - it's harder for me to hang out then if I'm racing that distance. I'd much rather get it over as quickly as possible - cut out the rest breaks and food - give me the miles and let me pound them into my legs! It was good though - the sun was shining and it was fun passing all of the 40 year old weekend warriors who got pissed when a woman passed them. Some would say - you go girl! Others would surge and pass me again - and in a few minutes I would over take them again because suddenly that head wind was harder than they thought it was! It was all in good fun. And the average rider on this century ride was a lot different than STP - definitely a lot more serious. It was great. I can't tell you how many Colnagos I saw and passed. :) At least one guy had the heart to say - sure I have a nice bike - now all I have to do is learn how to ride it! I'd be more than happy to do that for you I said!
This morning I woke up - a little stiff but feeling good. Not sore like last weekend after the epic climbing Ryan and I did. My body is definitely conditioned for cycling than before. I'm looking forward to the off season training to begin. Later!

Worlds

I've been reading about what's going down in Madrid - and that seems like such a killer experience. I picture the journey to get there - and it fuels my fire to make it count each time I get on the bike.

nice weather

Jill and I went for a nice ride yesterday around the south end and Mercer. It got pretty chilly in the evening once the sun went down - I got home and immediately jumped in a hot shower. Gone are the warm summer nights! The leaves are changing to brilliant colors - making riding in the fall one of my favorite times to ride. It's getting chilly out - time to break out the tights soon. I'm thinking of getting some ibex pants - those suckers are super warm!

sore legs - still!

Apparently it was a good and bad thing that I exercised my legs to the point where they can barely manage walking. I can't believe how stiff they are! But it was good to get some kick ass cross training in and pushing myself to a different limit. I am looking forward to getting back into a training routine.

Weekend Warrior EXTREME

Ryan has been on a kick lately of '08 Beijing. This translates into me getting my arse kicked on an otherwise impossible rock climb. We packed the car and headed up to Squamish on Friday night. We arrived in just enough time to get a jug of beer at Howe Sound Brew Pub and check out exactly what climbs to do the following day.

We started early - 7 am to beat the crowds. We decided on Diedre - the most climbed multipitch route in all of Canada. It's one of Squamish's classics - a superb 5.8 with smearing, lay backs and using a dihedral to climb about 1000 feet. Every pitch was stellar - putting a smile on the face. Once we summitted, we headed through the forest to continue climbing up the Chief. We did a 5.5 scramble - over a razor thin granite slab that if you put enough force on, felt like it was going to peel off and into the trees you would go. Once we climbed that section, we removed our rock shoes and hiked 15 minutes up the forest, gaining quite a bit of elevation and finding the start of the Squamish Buttress - another Squamish classic rated 10c. The first couple of pitches are interesting - but are nothing in comparison to the crux pitch - a 10c hand and finger crack that goes straight up from the base of the anchors. All of the belay stations are on huge slabs - making it very popular to accomodate the busy ant trail that follows this climb. Luckily we had an early enough start- we beat all the crowds. I nearly climbed the 10c clean - until just from the summit, my overly sweaty hands that I couldn't relax to slip carefully into my chalk bag, flailed me off. I was sooooo close to summitting and onsighting the entire route! You should have heard the orgasmic grunts coming from my mouth. Ryan laughed. Once I pulled the final move, adrenaline surged through my entire body and I relished the feeling.

To get off of the Chief you down climb a hikers trail on the back side of the rock. The trail is so well maintained - you marvel at the hard labor it takes to upkeep, let alone create this myrid of stairs, strategically placed rock stairs and hand rails. We got lots of interesting looks from hikers - who you could hear breathing before you saw them - they were very happy to take a break from the 45 minute tredge up the steep trail. I think rock climbing is easier than hiking up that trail. Once we got down, we headed straight to the brew pub for food and more beer. We ended up running into some climbing friends - Shane and Matt - who were willing to share a table and stories to entertain us from 5 till bed time. It was great.

The real challenge of the weekend came the following morning, when we woke up early again to extremely sore and fatigued legs - not from the climb itself but from the hike down. We headed to Starbucks, downed some coffee and were back at the climbers parking lot by 8:10. We grabbed our pack, rope and friends and hiked to the base of the trail. Unfortunately we took a wrong turn - ended up hiking for 25 minutes up a gully - sweating our arses off - then down hiking, putting some serious doubt into my head as to whether or not I could attempt another multipitch climb - this time 13 pitches with several 10+ pitches.

When I voiced this concern out loud, Ryan and I had a moment. Basically - champions don't decide that when it hurts, to call it quits and do something easier. They push through the pain - they take it to the next level. Because every action counts - so make it count. Suck up your sore legs, your mental fatigue and let's do this friggin' climb. '08 baby. I want to go to China.

This put swiftness into my legs - we hiked until the sweat poured off our forheads. And just when I thought I couldn't take any more and had to relax and lay down, we found the base of the climb called Angel's Crest, another Squamish Classic. When you climb a multipitch - and something as long as Angel's Crest - you have to constant keep moving. 5 minutes here - 5 minutes there - suddenly what should have taken a few minutes becomes additional hours and can mean summitting during daylight or dusk. We learned our lesson about this fundamental on our honeymoon in Yosemite - and since then it has been engrained in both of us - hail ass.

The climb starts by climbing up a dying douglas fur - 5.7 in difficulty. It's somewhat sketched because the lower limbs are brittle and may break under too much weight. Once you climb up you then traverse a chossy ledge to the first belay. I lead this pitch and it started sprinkling. Ryan decided to continue up - a 10b/c lay back crack with the crux at the top. I actually styled it without fail. We ran into another party - they caught us from below. On and on we climbed - through 5.7s, 5.10s, through forests and ledges. It is quite an adventurous route - with no pitch similar to the last in any way. There were a couple of super exposed sections - on the crest of the Acrophobes - if you look left you saw how far you would fall to the gully and if you looked right you saw how far you would fall to the valley floor. It was a heady section - I've been paralyzed in that position before - so it was liberating to easily climb through those sections.

The final two pitches are the cruxes - the first being an airy crack with stemming moves and followed by a 5.8 chimney. The chimney was the most taxing on the body. The moves weren't hard - they were just impossible to get into and requirred a lot of core, pushing and slowly inching up the 15" slot. Summitting was oh so sweet. Ryan did it - he got me up the Chief twice - no easy feat for someone who's an off the couch climber. We quickly hiked down the trail and reached the car extremely thirtsy and hungry. My legs started freezing up immediately - and by the time we reached Bellingham I was walking around like an 80 year old person with severe joint issues. It was a great weekend - and I really enjoyed pushing my body beyond its limits. 2008 baby!



Oh well - the following day we had more ambitions to climb Angles Crest, another 10b/c.

Livestrong

My dad offered to do an Airstream sponsorship for the LAF in Niketown. With his donations, he gets to ride with Lance and other cyclists who raised enough money for the foundation. I am lucky enough to be able to partake in this endeavor - and will be riding for my grandmother - a lukimeia survivor. It should be a pretty special event.

pixie dissin'

So I feel horendous for putting Camile down yesterday. I have a hard time relating to and understanding her and instead of keeping my big mouth shut I spouted off.... sorry about that. She's a good person and married to an incredible friend - I just have had several experiences with her that have made me less than amicable toward her. My apologies.

It was fun going out last night - Tim Reynolds is probably one of the baddest guitarists alive right now. His passion for the guitar - regardless if it's acoustic, a fender, or other stinged instrument - shows in his performances on stage. He has in all senses mastered playing. His fingers move fluidly - it was amazing. Watching someone who is that passionette about what they are doing is a rare opportunity.

I had more dreams last night. This time I was racing - but in what seemed to be a rec ride. Except I couldn't move fast enough. It was as though my fitness had deteriorated so much that I couldn't sprint -let alone find the legs to stand up. I was following Keri something from t-mobile but she was in regular apparel. Weird. I woke before the finish - so who knows what panned out.

I am enjoying relaxing at home this week. My body seems to be recovering from the months spent driving it into the red..... although I am developing a sore throat. We're headed to Smith Rock this weekend to do some climbing - should be fun.

Taking a breather

It's been nice with no pressure to ride the bike for the month of September. Acutally - this is the first week where I have actually put the bike in the shop with no intentions of getting it for a week. It feels good to have a mental and physical break from it. In the meantime I've been researching some of the top female cyclists interviews on the web in attempt to find out how their training is going and how hard the elite level really is. I'm getting a pretty good picture set up in my mind of how to tackle that level of competition and succeed. It's definitely helping my motivation. I would like to talk with some other top athletes in person to pick their brains about it.... that would be cool.

I also had a massage today at the Dreamclinic. I think I found my new favorite massues. (Spelling?) He worked my cronic right shoulder blade with such finese that I booked another appointment with him in a week.

more dreams

This weekend I had some whacky dreams. I dreamt that I was trying to dry shave my hairy legs in an empty swimming pool. Then I thought to grab my coach, Ryan, and show him what I was doing. When we got back to the swimming pool there was some national champion from track nats hanging out near the swimming pool. Strange. I'm not sure what to make of it other than I finally shaved my extremely hairy legs today.

crazy dream!

Last night I dreamt that I saw Joyce walking in a grass field full of people. She was carrying two coffees of course and when she saw that I was approaching she put a smile on her face. I told her I'm not coming to say hello, I'm coming to mess with you! I then wrestled with her to try and spill coffee on her but ended up having it spilled all over me! Then later in my dream I was trying to get her other coffee poured onto her and she ended up finding my running shoe (I have no idea why it was off) and pouring it directly in there and then hiding it from me. I guess the morale of the dream is - don't even think about revenge with Joyce she could do some nasty things.

Melinda told me she's going to Recycled. The funny thing? I don't know if recycled will put up with her - she did afterall sue them.

Fall is here

The colors in the park are changing - going from a dark green to golden hues. It is a beautiful site.

Training wise - I'm getting anxious to have a training plan again. Not that I need to do much but without a structured plan, even if I deter from it, I feel like I'm needlessly exercising. I expressed this to Ryan - we'll see what he comes up with. :)

Observations

So I observed this past Friday that some of my teammates - (younger ones) are having a tiff. I don't really want to get involved - it seems pretty immatuer. Hopefully they will work it out.

ahhhh it feels so good to be home again

traveling across the west coast really makes you appreciate how lucky we are to live in Seattle. The air in California is terrible - they call it "the marine layer" - aka smog. Blah! Not that we don't have any up here - but at least it doesn't discolor the view that much!

I got some excellent fun rides in while in Santa Barbara/ Ventura area. I think I balanced it enough compared to my calorie intake - which was quite high from eatting out at every meal. I drove up from Brownsville this morning - and am awaiting Ryan to get home so I can jump his bones. :O)

Quit SPAMMING ME!

Dude - unless you have something related to cycling or a bike - please do not post a comment on my blog. I do not appreciate it. I would hate to have to recreate my blog because some jack asses decided they could randomly post to my site.

ventura vaca

Went on a nice fun ride today into the hills. I managed to get a nice biker's tan - Amara would be so proud.

We're moving Marcy's crap out and cleaning her place - I'm glad I brought the bike so I can escape for a couple of hours. It feels good to move the legs!

looking forward to

taking a week off. I put more miles in this week then ever before - on top of racing - a mere 185 miles! The last time I put in that many miles was back in April. Crazy. No wonder I'm getting tired. It feels good - and I feel stronger than ever before. I want to keel off a little bit now before I burn out... it's been a nice long season! Time for some rock climbing!

Oh - check the photo out Diana took - I laughed my ass off.
http://wheelsinfocus.com/img_5308ccr.jpg

Hahaha

Crushin' Carnation

Amara and I had an excellent race this morning. During the intermediate sprint she lead me out for the points and then I tried to return the favor in the last 300m. It ended up being enough to out sprint Mindy and Amara got the field sprint. Unfortunately Lisa Dunnwald had a break away from the pack with three laps to go and time trialed to win the race. I'm still working on figuring out how to win the intermediate sprint and the win - I think I need to rest a little more between efforts. One thing I keep forgetting is to refuel on the bike. Luckily Amara told me to eat to recharge shortly after the int. sprint. It did wonders for my energy level again.

We are working really well together - it rules. I have a feeling she and I are going to be an unstoppable force in the peloton. Excellent.

summer time

Now that we're back and there isn't a big pressing race coming up - it feels like I can finally start enjoying summer again. Not that I wasn't before - but it seems like now I can do rec rides verses training rides and enjoy the view vs. the journey.

Leif and I went for a nice ride yesterday - I noticed my fitness is pretty high - it was easy to maintain 19-20 mph in zone 1. I swear I came back from LA in better fitness than before - it feels fantastic. My clothes barely fit anymore - a great excuse to get a new wardrobe.

Ryan redpointed Black Ice last night! That's HUGE!!! He now has a 13 c under his belt.

back into the marymoore mode

last night we had some roadies show up and work out at the track. their handling skills are amazing - and I saw mary try to stop pedaling only once. we laughed about it later. :0)

On another note, apparently the fours have had quite a few complaints about us 3's coming to the Wednesday session and cleaning up. It discourages the new 4s from graduating from the Monday nights and racing with us big girls. Now we only have the option of racing Master B's and then just sit in with the women to coach them. This sounds like a very viable option and should encourage more women to move up into the Wednesday night racing.

The legs are feeling strong but a little fatigued. I'm looking forward to a nice mellow road ride this afternoon.

What a week!

It feels good to be home - sleeping in our own bed and relaxing. The air is so much cleaner up here. I am stoked about my experiences down in LA though - what an amazing time. I can't believe it's over just like that!

I am looking forward to relaxing just a little and then increasing my fitness again. I'm looking at my bike right now - thinking, sorry. You're going to get beat down just a little bit more this season.

I'm still formulating a trip report from this week - I will probably post it later. Till then - ciao.

anticipation

t minus 5 hours till blast off in the scratch final with the nations best female riders. I am excited, nervous, antsy, anxious, and happy to get it started. I've been building toward this moment for several months now - and am tickled to get started with my national pursuit of track. Amara unfortunately didn't make the sprint finals - but I am glad I didn't go through with the qualifier to burn myself for the endurance events.

I think our scratch race is going to be fast and furious at times with some nice breaks in between. I'm hoping to chase and insitgate some breaks - keeping in mind not to chase down teammates. Amara and I should do well - I just hope her head will be in the right spot to compete. I am really excited for the race. More later.

fast like cheetah

Alynda said to me last night, "Either I've gotten slower or you have suddenly gotten much faster." I had an amazing finish to a 8 lap scratch race - smoking by the competition and beginning my sprint from corner two. By the time I pulled through the finish line I had 10 bike lengths between me and second place. It was exhilerating.

Then came the Miss N' Out - I can say that I learned alot from Alpenrose. Never ever ever get stuck down in the sprinters lane unless you are the first in line. Otherwise you will be pinched out everytime. I managed to stay up high and draft once we pulled through the finish line to conserve energy for the over the top move. Kit was trying hard to flick and hook Amara and I - as though she had decided to ban against us from the start. Thankfully it didn't work - although there was one occassion when she crossed wheels with Amara and I was so happy that a collusion didn't occur. Taylor, Emily and I duked it out the final lap - I was in front for the neutral and then we had one to go. Taylor drafted behind me, I made a move in corner two and she managed to stay on my wheel and pull around me last minute. Originally they called it for me - and then they reversed their decision and called it for Taylor. It was a tough call. Amara said when someone comes over the top and it's a photo finish they will typically call it for the higher person. lame! It was a great race.

Then lastly we did a 5 mile scratch race. The pace was fast - Teresa had an excellent break away and managed to hold it for the win. I burnt my matches up when we couldn't catch her and I ended up pulling for dear life to catch her. Deb sat on my wheel like a fly on paper - and wouldn't pull. Come to find out later that was her intent the entire time. Some people said they had a hard time staying in the paceline. I was getting frustrated because it seemed no one was willing to do hard efforts to pull her back. I learned I need to distribute the work more and pull 1/4 laps. It was a good way to end the night - I'm actually pretty dang thankful the last one was challenging - because you only learn when you're challenged.

On another note - Dianna Boursaw spoke with Stan Gregg about getting on the Gregg's team. So I spoke with Stan and he insisted that I not be pulled away from my current team - to which I said, don't worry I came to this decision quite some time ago. Plus our team is not a track team or supportive of the track discipline. I suppose I could have worn a different jersey all this time... oh well. He and I are supposed to meet tomorrow to see about additional jerseys to wear down at Nationals and also about my future with the team. I'm looking forward to that conversation.

smiling with my eyes

Last night Tim paid me a HUGE compliment - he said I had the most beautiful eyes he has ever seen. And that when I smile, I do it with my eyes. I blushed. What an amazing compliment.

The planets are aligning again. I am really looking forward to next week. It has been on my mind 24/7. I had another dream last night of spinning my legs faster than anyone else. I am dumbfounded by how successful I have been this year. It's really been amazing - and beyond normal. I can't explain it. The best part? There are so many people around me who are supportive and caring and genuinely want to see me succeed in so many ways. That puts a huge smile on my face. And enjoying and loving what you are doing makes the task that much more enjoyable. Who would have thought cycling was going to be it? Wasn't I the girl who during college told Ryan that my butt was just not meant to be on a bike? Well I've proven that wrong. What I should have said and really meant was that my butt was not meant to be on a bike at the time. I need to matured a little more - learn some life lessons and prepare myself for the quest to my dreams. I am headed there now - it's thrilling.

championship dreams

Last night I dreamt I won the 500m TT. I thought to myself, shoot - I don't need to compete in any other events. I just won a championship! How cool would that be?

Meanwhile I've been visualizing the win for several days now. I am getting super excited for the race - and despite my anxiety - I'm still sleeping really well. cool.

recovery ez days

I've taken the last two days off the bike - with just minimal exercise (yoga last night, climbing the day before). Today is a massage - and tomorrow a pedicure. Just what I need - a little relaxation time. I had a talk with Joyce via email regarding entry fee reimbursement and will receive $38 back. I told her I was disappointed with the return and asked which races were covered. I also mentioned that it would have been nice to know what might be covered with the budget before the season to avoid playing the guessing game. Then I asked why track, mountain biking and cross weren't included in the program because you could attract a larger audience that way. I mentioned Evening Magazine coming out to the track - which our sponsors would love to be a part of. That's all I said - somewhat of a pot turner but not really. That will be the last communication I send to her - ever. She said thanks for the feedback - call me when you get the check. Cha right and monkies will fly out of my butt!

Meanwhile the weather has been stunning - and our dandelions are growing to new heights. I must put this computer down and go wack their little heads off! Tootles.

relaxation

yesterday I had the opportunity to go out in George's Cobalt and lounge for about 5 hours in the sun. We swam a little, watched George and Kyle get thrown around behind the boat like rag dolls (250-260 pound ragdolls!) and laughed our asses off. It was a lot of fun. Coleman is in town - the cute little terror that he is. It's been nice having them around for it helps take my mind off all seriousness. Tonight I race - and then my work load tappers off right before nationals.

Zipp Wheels

Okay - so I've been doing my research. Apparently the "deals" that I've been finding thus far on Zipp's have been rip offs. Luckily I didn't fork over any of my hard earned cash to some shmuck just waiting to prey on someone who doesn't know what they're doing. I called Zipp directly and asked them their thoughts on the matter. Specifically I was comparing a 2003 909 wheelset to the current model. I was easily convinced to go with this year's technology - dimples, hubs, weight, etc. No brainer. Unless the older 2003 version was a screaming deal - say around 600-800 bucks then no way.

So I'm in the market for the brand new super duper fastest wheel on the market. Speedy Reedy has it in stock right now - but at full retail. Recycled Cycles can order it and have it here in about 5 days - with a 20% discount. That seems the safer bet - except they would not give me a solid answer of when it would be coming in. I'd much rather compromise and pay between that price with Second Ascent - but they have not gotten back to me. Time is only ticking away.

coming to a head

I got a phone call this morning from Jill. She was pretty distraught and confronted me about some rumors she heard from people. The first one was that the team was disbanding and the second was that I was going to form my own team. She said she was hurt that I didn't bring this up to her first. I admitted that I have toyed with the idea of starting a team because I am not sure if any of the current teams would jive with what I'm attempting to do. I told her that unless the leadership changes on Starbucks then unfortunately I cannot be a part of it. The way I've been treated and ostrasized from the get go has been frustrating and no way would I subject myself to another year of that.

I am not sure if I'm ready for the commitment of forming another women's team. It would be great - and successful for sure. But in no way would I try to disband Starbucks. If some people choose to do their own thing as a result of me leaving then that's their perogative. I am not trying to persuade anyone.

Ie crumba. Actually in some way it seems like a weight has lifted off of my shoulders.

fatigued

I had a nice and relaxing day yesterday - although my body is still fatigued from last week. I should have just rested all day - but I had some errands to run. My energy levels feel pretty low - I think that time of the month is just around the corner. My mom and I are traveling down to LA at the end of August to pack up my little sister and help her move back to Seattle. I'm looking forward to a nice break.

2nd ascent mentioned sponsoring a women's team again - I just need to get in there and talk with greg the owner about what that will entail. hopefully jill will be up for that.

Friday Fun

Last night was a great workout. Annette joined the women's field and dominated. It was good to race against her and push it up a level. I burned some serious matches during the win n out - coming second three times in a row. But then I made a clutch move for the 6pts in a snowball and it placed me second for that race. Lastly Christine Huber and I had a break away from the rest of the pack for the final points and primes - it was great. That put me in second overall for points. Excellent.

Oh and I found a zipp dimpled 900 series disc for $940. Nice.

best comfort food EVER

well jill did show up - albeit a little late. we cruised down to seward at a crawl - love those zone 1 rides. - and ran into melinda. we convinced her to join us for dinner at Blue water bistro. Ryan recommended the dungeness crab mac n cheese - and it was the BEST mac n cheese EVER. There's nothing like butter, crab and cheese. I must replicate that recipe!

Looking forward to some serious racing tonight. Friday night races are the best!!

thursday thriller

Here I sit waiting for Jill to show up at Gasworks. I sat down there for about 25 minutes and realized we're on Jill time... I hope she's okay and didn't get into an accident.

Training this morning took a lot out of my legs. I didn't realize it would until this afternoon when I went to pedal on my road bike. Then BAM it hit me. They are fatigued. They should be golden for tomorrow night though. At least that's what I hope.

Training wise - it's going well. I like doing double days actually. The week cruises by that way. My starts are coming -they just need more and more practice. It seems like they're 50/50 right now. The one's that do go well are great - the other ones not so much. Where is JILL?!!

Checking in

Rested the past couple of days. Only got on the bike to commute to work. Last night I went to the women's clinic for a nice mellow workout - did some jumps in a 49 x 16 and spun my legs out. They definitely had some efforts thrown at them this weekend.

This morning I woke up early and beat traffic to the Eastside. I warmed up with 25 laps at 85% heart rate effort and then did 4 x 1k flys with 49 x 16 and three laps between (about a 3-4 minute recovery). They were difficult to maintain a fast pace for the entire effort - but I did my best to maintain a zone 4 and not cross into the zone 5 upper threshold. I'm not sure if anyone will be at the track in the next hour - but I will give it a go and spin for about an hour. I'm supposed to sit in on Madison practice but I don't think anyone will be there.

On the Starbucks front - I'm not sure what's going to happen. Joyce has been incommunicato and Rachel is sending out team emails again. I would rather not even participate in emails - it has left such a bitter taste in my mouth. The moment I start thinking about responding my stress shoulder starts flaring up again so I'd rather not go there. I mentioned troubles in paradise to Kelly last night - she said she knew Joyce was psycho through the community but hasn't experienced it first hand. Melinda and Cindy had some wine the other night and got to talking and are ready to realistically form our own team if need be. Kick psycho off and a lot of our issues would go away. Again - I've already given this far too much thought than what it's worth.

On a side note - today's my mom's birthday. We're talking her out to dinner and celebrating. She's such an amazing person.

fantastic weekend

wow - what a great experience this past weekend was. Talk about some competition and seeing how it's done. I was a little intimidated I must admit - and crashing might have taken some of my drive out of my legs. Being on a new track that was much steeper was challenging too - but boy am I stoked that I had that experience. I learned a lot and look forward to applying my skills to upcoming competitions - not to mention Nationals.

During the Miss N Out - I should have been higher for the up and over approach. Instead I was almost pinched out several times from the field. Ryan was yelling this at me - and before it could register I was caught in the crash. Somethings just can't be avoided.

During the 500m TT - I wasn't prepared for the G forces and pull that going that fast on such a steep track would do. I may have been able to decrease my time. I used a 48 x 15 gear - it worked well. My time was 41:21 which was faster than the Nat Qualifier - and it is said Alpenrose is a slower track. Thanks to Alynda for helping me with my start! I placed 7th in that line up of 19 women.

During the Keirin - I needed more experience with jockeying for position. When the girls attacked I should have gone right after them. I know I have more sprinting ability than the little ones - but just didn't do well from lack of experience. I look forward to practicing this more.

The 200m flier went well - I borrowed Emily's disc wheel and placed 13:66, with 49 x 15... seating me 5th overall. My match sprint was with Erin Mirabella and another local girl - I should have initiated my sprint sooner and dominated the race. Instead I reacted and did so too late. I lost some time in the corners b/c we were going so fast and I couldn't keep a straight line. It was close at the finish - but not close enough.

My second match sprint was with Amara, Miranda and larssy. Miranda jumped and I was a second too late. It cost me mere centimeters at the finish line. Dang. Maybe next time.

At Alpenrose it is essential to be on your competitors hip by the last corner on a match sprint. Otherwise it is really hard to come around the other person. I don't know why I didn't initiate the sprint - I thought about it too late and didn't risk it soon enough. Dang.

I learned about 2 years of racing in one weekend. It was great and I'm really looking forward to going to Nationals.

do you really?

read blogs anymore? I'm just curious....

Looking forward to a sunny and warm weekend in P-town. It should be fun! See you down there....

Juice

getting ready

for the weekend.... looking forward to it actually. There should be some excellent competition down there in Portland... I hope the weather holds out! After this morning's workout my legs are feeling pretty heavy. Ryan and I pedaled down to Aqua Verda and I was moving at a slow slug pace. Time for a nap I think.

Struck by drama - AGAIN

Son of a biscuit.... it's happening again. I just sent an email out that apparently threatened the leadership in some shape or form and now it has developed into a full on frenzy. Give me a freaking break - this is ridiculous. The details are unimportant - the message is clear. They are threatened by me beyond belief and it's getting nearly comical. It almost seems like I could say things to create more panic. And sinisterly I am tempted. Heeeehaaaaaawwwww!!!

But I won't stoop to their level so I can only just laugh it off. Cycling shouldn't be like high school - it should be about competing and preforming to the best of your ability. Nothing more nothing less. Where in the quest to fulfill this goal did it become so drama riden? Holy crap!

rest day

Went on a great ride with the girls yesterday - there's no way I could possibly leave the team. We have way too much fun together. Between you me and who ever else may read this blog - I think a certain someone may bow out all together. We'll see though. She didn't show up last night at the BBQ nor the race on Saturday or Sunday. Hmmmm... maybe someone sprinkled water on her and she melted. Ouch - that was harsh. My bad.

I'm wondering where our summer weather is?! Isn't July supposed to be beautiful and sunny? Oh well.

Aligning planets

Tonight I got a call from Kristin - my cheese friend. She bought a bike during the Bike Expo and has since been riding her bike and tonight called to let me know she completed the STP in one day! I am so proud of her! Next thing I know she'll be racing! Perfect... she can join our team!

On another note - Derby Days went well. I'm learning and soaking up this new found knowledge like a sponge. I stayed away from sketchy girl Miranda Duff and learned some of the flow that happens in the race. Gina is an animal - that women places attacks whenever there is a lull in action. She's amazing. What a great race. I place 7th - 3rd in the Cat 3s - $125! That will go to the traveling fund. Nice work.

Melinda and John are getting a separation and now it's out in the open. Bummer. My heart goes out to both of them and I hope it's a speedy and quick recovery.

dominatrix

Or so I was called by Aaron from Second Bounce. They are so tickled and stoked - and encouraging on this wild fantastic adventure to Nationals. Amazing.

Yesterday went for a mellow ride with Ryan down the Burke - and we managed to avoid the rain. However it might be a wild and wet ride tonight. I've been visualizing and mentally preparing for the battle tonight.... and although the premes may be tempting, I think I will forgo them and go for a win. Joyce may be there tonight which will be added incentive to stick in the entire race. She'll be riding for herself and may yelling out orders... first she's going to have to earn the respect back. This olive branch to olive branch shit is annoying - I function much better with ordinary people. I've already given this one too much thought - onto something else.

Ryan bought me some bike boxes last night. What a stud. I also found some rollers for $99... maybe too good to be true. I'm not sure what the differences will be between an expensive set and Supergos.... but I shall find out!

A little tired

Last night I was tired even before I started racing. Emily was able to take advantage of it and won each race - and I placed second. I just didn't have the gumption to expend any more energy. I also have Derby Days on my mind and am looking forward to that crit. It should be fun!

Trying to book flights for LA.... it's going to be an awesome trip.

Today I went for an easy spin to loosen the legs - it was nice. Then I went climbing with my friend Linn and am pooped now. We're headed to Tutta Bella for some good eats. Then watching the Tour later tonight.

Correlations

In an article posted in this months Outside magazine on boxing I found some interesting correlations between my athletic abilities and the skills one gets from pugalism. It gave me some insight as to why I'm killing the competition. The good part? Most cyclists have a weak upper body so they may never be able to hone in their boxing skills.

Of note, here's a highlight of the article by Roy Wallack...
A well conditioned boxer enjoys heightened hand-eye coordination, ideal for throwing and swinging sports like baseball and golf; lightning quick reflexes, necessary for hoops, mountain biking and skiing; improved core strength, great for paddling; and better foot speed, for racket sports such as tennis and racquetball. Moreover, your new found defensive skills will boost your self-confidence - which will in turn give you an added edge in pretty much any athletic endeavor you pursue.

So does my boxing background transfer into competitive cycling? You betcha.

branching out

well joyce actually acknowledged my accomplishment from this weekend. As Jill puts it - olive branch to olive branch. I gave Jill shit last night saying that the next race I race with Joyce I'm going to be telling her to chase down the attacks. Ha! She cringed. :)

I spoke with Leo from Larabar and he's going to work on getting me a cycling jersey for the national competition. Wow - far exceeding my wildest dreams!

Yesterady was an incredible example of where physical ability and mental desire helped me greatly exceed my expectations. Wow. Two golds and a silver. Simply put - amazing.

Nationals here we come.

Bring it on.

preparation

Thank goodness today's national qualifier was rescheduled for tomorrow. My legs were feeling rocked this morning - plus it was a late night and optimal performance would have been questionable. So in the meantime I've been propping my legs up and watching movies all morning - preparing for tomorrows slug fest. It should be excellent. I am really excited in taking this small step towards my ultimate goal. Again - the season has been unreal so far! Somebody pinch me!!!

PS - Proof we had fun last night... http://wheelsinfocus.com/img_2754mva.jpg

Getting nervous

HOly cow - I have not been this nervous/anxious before a physical endeavor for quite some time - I actually equate it to boxing. It's exciting but nerve racking all at the same time. I feel like I'm shaking all over - but in reality it's only inner turmoil. Just wait until it's something really important - I guess I better learn how to best vent this energy.

big fish in little pond?

Did I really hear you use that metaphor for me? Or did I just imagine that one? Thank you for the compliments - they were very kind of you.

I feel like that pinch me I'm dreaming again.

Lately I've been having a lot of philosophical thoughts - centered around the meaning of one's existance feeling. You know where you try to figure out where you fit into this spinning ball we call earth. When I was younger I tried to find that meaning through recklessness - drugs, alcohol, sex - and luckily I didn't fall flat on my face - not from a lack of trying I might add. Little did I know that at 18 when I came to the self-realization I did those things early in life so I wouldn't have to go through it when I was older and it mattered more - would be wise well beyond my years. I still thank my lucky stars I tried the self-destructive habits early and recovered completely from them. So you ask where's my wild side? Well I know it's there - it's just a little deeper than some and more self-destructive than others. You see my obsession and passion toward cycling? Well just think of how that could be turned toward vises. But why be another statistic?

I've always had a dream to become a motivational speaker. Travel the world and tell my story to hopefully inspire people to be the best that they can be - never settle for mediocracy. It's happening on a small scale - however I feel the people I surround myself with have a reciprocating inspiration. I'm babbling... but more to come when I formulate my thoughts more....

Wed Night Recap

I learned some valuable lessons again last night.... cotton mouth. Drink more water and hydrate throughout the day to avoid cotton mouth. If I end up getting it them stick a piece of hard candy in my mouth. Sprinting -maintain a straight line. I was warned tonight about my somewhat erratic finish - I was close to being disqualified. Apparently it was enough of a wavering to get the officials attention but not enough to disqualify me. Lesson learned - maintain a straight line. Also - once I go around someone in the sprinters lane - get into the sprinters lane so they have to go around me and cover more track to pass the finish line.

I did learn from last Friday though - staying near the back of the pack and getting to know the key players in the field. This helped me pull a stellar move with 1.2 laps to go - everyone else was lined into two pacelines - boxing in several of the stronger riders. I made a move from the back of the pack and no one saw it coming. Next thing I knew I was crossing the finish line with 10 bike lengths between me and second place. Nice execution.

late blog

had a productive day at the track last night. I went to the women's clinic, which although was a little unorganized and scattered had a great turnout. There were about 18 women there - an excellent turn out! Afterward we had a women's advisory MVA meeting - discussing how to attract and retain women to get to the Friday night program. This year has been a build year - and we should have enough women moving through the ranks soon enough to foster some amazing competitions. I am stoked to be a part of building this program for the years to come.

Training wise - it just seems like I've been racing all the time - and I miss the longer road rides! I know they will be back before I know it - so no worries. Maybe I'll do RSVP again - that was sooo much fun last year!

Easy Monday

Still recovering from the weekend. Sat night was a tad wild - we visited a friend down in Tacoma and started with Tequila moved onto beer... and then wine. It reminded me why I don't like to drink. :) Needless to say I didn't get in the road rides that I anticipated.....

Friday night debut

Last night was great. I learned a lot and managed to keep the pace high and exciting. My breasts made the front cover of the flier - it's hilarious! The first race was a 10 lap scratch - I got stuck up high and missed the attack. I still managed to bring in 4th. Then we did a 10 lap snowball where Taylor and I had a nice break away and captured the points in the beginning only to be caught by Emily and Christine in the last few laps. Talk about a thigh burner! Then we did a 4x4 and I collected some money from premes but was spent for the points. I knew that lesson - but I thought maybe I'd still have some kick for the end. Apparently the snowball had more of an effect than I thought.... overall a good showing though. I think I placed 4th. Not bad for my first night! Tactically I could have been a lot smarter... but that will come with experience. Also I need bigger gearing.... I was spinning out pretty easily. Fun times!

Rest week

Well obviously it's been a better rest week - I haven't had much to say since the beginning of the week! I did go with Jill and Cindy last night down to PRI - it was great! Women's night is an excellent chance to work on tactics and sprinting. I taught a Groupie some sprinting techniques and then she chased me down to the finish line! It was fun.

I'm looking forward to my first Friday night tonight... makes the whole week's anticipation worth it! Plus my Bubba is coming. :)

Monday night audieu

Yesterday I had the opportunity to go to Roz's 3rd grade class as a guest speaker. I kitted up and rode across the bridge into one of the richest parts of Bellevue. The kids were great - they asked me tons of questions and hopefully I left a good impression on them. I have pictures coming soon....

Then last night I went to the track with Kelly and practiced my sprint a little. There was yet another crash at the race - a broken collarbone. Ugh. I was officially kicked out of Monday nights and onto Wednesdays and Fridays. I'm looking foward to it! Phil was there again and I chatted with him for awhile. Kelly did awesome - she's building on her fitness and is super stoked about the track. I watched a big black man give it all his heart in the sprint race and it was amazing. It looked like he was going to rip that bike apart he had so much power forced into it. Not graceful at all - but with that much heart it was a beautiful thing. I love this sport.

playing with the big girls....

ah - what a race! Probably one of my favorite ones of the season. It was simply amazing. Sure I was humbled today - but I pulled a rookie move and learned from my mistake. Those girls better watch out! It was funny - I went up to Mindy after the race and congratulated her - she said thanks Jennifer. Whoa - she knew my name! Craziness!
So the rookie move you might ask? I moved up the line and got off the front - I was a couple of bike lengths up and then they caught up pretty quickly. Then before I knew it, I was sucking air off the back and had a hard time recovering. Silly me. What was I thinking?! But oh the corners - they were so stinking fun. I did learn that I need to tighten them up a little - thanks to Annie from Wines. I had my moment of glory though - apparently the announcer was saying my name again and again. Then Phil Miller came and said, I wasn't going to pull you! I should have kept going just out of sheer determination. But I pulled myself and happily grabbed my recovery drink. Live and learn .... I learned a lot today! Fun times. I can't wait till the next one!!!

confidence builder

two separate incidents happened today on my ride around the south end. While coming back through Mercer, a Recycled racer said, "I don't mean to be rude but I was wondering if anyone ever told you that you have the most incredible calves I have ever seen." Wow - I responded, no, not on the bike. :) We chatted for a little while - he's a cat 3 and racing tomorrow too.

Then on my way back through Leschi, I'm spinning along and get a comment from a speedy reedy jersey, "are you on the national championship team?" and I responded, "no, not yet." Then he says, "well congrats on the state championship." I smiled and thanked him. I love this sport. Like you said - closer to rock star status each day. :)

the little knot is dissipating

when I get stressed out I get this knot that builds up right under my left shoulder blade. It's been getting worse over the past couple of weeks - but it's feeling better today. Much better actually.
So this weekend I get to race with the big girls. Exciting. I'm going to have to rearrange my handlebars to just the right position for all of those corners. I'm really looking forward to it. Stepping it up a notch will be challenging - but I'm always up for a challenge. :)

My track big front tyre has issues. I just checked it this morning and it's flat again. What is going on?! I'm taking it in and let the experts look it over. Maybe they will find something I can't.

Oh - and it's official. Easton just called and they are replacing my handlebars!!!!! Sweet!

committment

I hearby commit to not letting this caddy bs get in my way and alter my being. I am done with the negativity and am only focused on the positive and winning. Ahhhhh.... huge weight has been lifted. And I am starting to feel back to my normal being. yeah!

upgrade

I'm doing it. That's all there is to it. Joyce sent out this DICTATOR email that said Rachel is our designated winner this weekend. So rather than get kicked off the team for performing, I'm going to upgrade and get kicked off the team. This is ridculous. I'm totally switching. I can't stand her shit any more.

issues

so today was more of a 101 on bike mechanics than anything. I was a little frustrated not being able to workout as long and as hard as the rest of the group. But after refueling the belly and mind with wasabi - it was a good day. Like Diana said, patience is required for mechanical issues. Thanks for lending me the 15 - looks like I have some more gear to acquire. I'm going to take my time with that though - I swear I should find more sponsors or start working at the bike shop. It's getting ridiculous. Savings? What savings?

Sigh.

eternal circles of a spotless mind

I had a lot of fun last night. The only downfall was that there were so many people that they were only able to host a few races per category. It was such a social event - fun though. I'm looking forward to more. Ryan said don't forget my road skills. Hills, hills hills! It's nice to have distractions. :)

becoming a trackie

despite having a crash and post race beers catch up with me - I had a lot of fun at the track yesterday. Sprinting is a lot of fun. I really enjoyed it.... I still have a lot to learn but it's coming along.

ballard crit review

Wickly fun 4 corner course with some potentially disasterous obstacles (man hole cover on turn 3, slick steep bumpy section on corner 1, brick that's as slick as snot at the finish/start line). I was hanging with the combined field, had just pulled a move to advance to the front of the pack and then on the back hand side, right before corner 3, I watched a woman attempt to make an advance on two women that wasn't really there and then go down. Unfortunately I was right behind her and went down too. I landed right on my butt - hard. My elbow got scrapped up and my pedal nearly impalled my left shin. I was able to walk away - although, my bike handle bars were cracked. Damn carbon fiber. Molly suggested I send them back to Easton and see if they do anything for me.

So the woman who went down is also the woman who won. But she was DQ'd because in the field sprint she blocked both Amara and Annette. I was glad to see kharma bit her in the ass.

Falling - it's part of racing. I'm just lucky and glad that I'm not seriously injured.

Oh yeah - and for the record, Ryan had practically the same crash on the same corner, with matching scrapped elbows and hinnie. Lame!

decisions, decisions

do i put up with one ruthless and cruel individual so I can enjoy my other teammates/friends? Or do I say goodbye to any negative energy and move on? Melinda had a great suggestion - doing a team meeting. so who calls the meeting? if I do it Joyce will feel even more threatened that i am trying to take over her leadership - which I am not - but if the team isn't aware of the situation then how will we be able to resolve this? this is a team thing - it's not an individual situation. to me, that seems like a very good and viable option.

back to normal

the meeting with joyce went really well. I am so happy that it did. We had our moments where we both put our baggage onto the table - and ultimately she apologized for her email and attacks. I told her that it is hard to approach her when she says one thing and then demonstrates another in person. I also mentioned Rachel about the "mediator" yet on Joyce's side thing. I told her that her upgrade question made me feel like I was set up and she admitted not meaning to do that. We basically had a meeting of the minds and are both willing to contribute to making this an amazing thing. I understand where she is coming from and she understands where I am coming from as well. Damn that woman has a lot of baggage. But she also has a vision and it should shine through in the end.

the bike is here. it is a machine. i would like to take some time and get together to ensure it is properly fitted. do you have any time this weekend?

And then I got home and started processing our conversation. I started to get angry - really angry. What she is pleading for me to do is to throw races to sacrafice my own performance for the team. Sure I understand this to an extent - but at the same time that's like asking an Olympian to step it down a notch and give it to another person. She had the audacity to say if you hadn't of won then Katy would have been third. Well then why the hell am I there? Why am I competing if it's not to go for the very best each and every time? This is all just crap.

endurance miles

went for an endurance ride with katy yesterday on the burke. her handling and threshold mirrors mine. it was great! we worked on some lead outs and 3 -10 minute lt tempo runs.

on a side note - my bike is in!!!!!!! i pick it up in a couple of hours. i feel like a little kid again. headed out to the track tonight....yahooooooo!

foiled again!

stinking rain - spoiled track practice again. I am not risking it tomorrow - I am going to ride in the morning and get some endurance miles in again. I hope the rain goes away soon.

I don't remember the last time I woke up from a nap and felt so disoriented. I glanced at the clock - thinking it was 4 am and realized I was in my bed but in vertigo land.

Today was a low energy day. Throwing a party, winning a race and riding to Ballard for lunch is enough to exhaust anyone. I feel emotionally drained too - and when my mom called and insisted I make a dentist appointment I nearly lost it. I hate the dentist. I have bolted out of the chair before. All I have to hear is the drill and then it's curtains for me. Last time I needed some work done they had to perscribe me valium. I laugh at myself but it is a serious fear of mine.

Track was cancelled due to the rain. Lame. I went on a short easy ride. I also met up and carpooled with Kele - Lief Clark's girlfriend. From our conversation, I must have caught him on a bad day. I didn't tell her my thoughts on it... it just goes to show how damn small the cycling community is.

Ah what a week

I'm pooped. I didn't sleep well last night due to the recent drama in my life and having to race with that cloud hanging over my head. But I must say - it couldn't have gone better. Podium, Katy 4th, Melinda prime, etc etc... nice work

track rulz and i'm getting kicked off the team...

some shit is going down. tons of details - but I need to focus on the race tomorrow...

Well the vacation did wonders for my cycling game - I stayed with the guys the whole time. I would have finished with the pack had some yahoos not crashed right in front of me on the last lap. They were maybe two bike lengths. I slammed on the brakes and stopped to help the carnage up. Dang! Oh well, there's always next week.

The legs felt great - and today I'm feeling even better. I should be good to go for the weekend and the upcoming track! Boy am I excited for that! My mom and I might be traveling to Hawaii later this month to visit with the family. Will that be an issue for my training?

if you didn't want to win....

then why did you chase me down after the meet the team ride? Excuse me, but isn't a goal of racing to win? I'll never forget the Mason Lake race that you came up to me and said something and I said, "we're here to win, right?" Well apparently this is not the case.

I am a type A personality. I set goals for myself and then go after them with a vengence. If I don't succeed the first time, then I try and try again until I get it. Racing fills that need to succeed. Hosting team meetings, contributing to the website, volunteering to be the voice at meetings - thanking the team after events via email and encouraging them to strive for excellence... apparently that is not enough team contribution. I can't help it if my teammates are not at a level playing field. That they don't have the same drive and desires as I do. I certainly don't expect them to.

"So, when I read your thoughts about upgrading, and I put on my team
manager hat, I have some thoughts. First of all, I really don't see
anything in your note below that talks about supporting your teammates
or team work. Your goal below is about upgrading so with an eye toward
getting on a national team and this is an individual goal. I've thought
about this a lot and I'm not sure that the team is not in a position to
support this, for a number of reasons, most of which I outlined back in
December and have continued to talk about during the season. I'd love
to sit and talk with you about how can we either find a way to support
our mutual goals or think about how we transition you to another team
that can support you in this endeavor. I'd prefer to just have this be
a conversation between you and I, vs. including others so that we can
both speak freely. I'm really hoping that we can get to a place that
works for us both. I seriously applaud your enthusiasm and your dream,
but need to think about the goals & objectives of the team (which have
never been about results) and I also need to make sure that I can keep
the promises I've made to the other 9 women on the team by continued
focus on supporting them in their development - that's my job :)"

First day back

It took me a few revolutions to get back in the mode - I thought to myself - aie crumba. Racing starts back up this weekend. But half way around the south end - with the threat of an oncoming thundershower approaching - I found my legs again and picked up the tempo. Once around Boeing the showers let up and then I ran into a friend - Paul - who is an avid recreational cyclist. Then I took him through the arb - letting him cruise first to run out his legs and then zoomed by him and sprinted to the bridge. The legs are back and feeling strong!

On the drama tip - Ryan and I ran into Joyce on our way to the climbing gym to which she said, "We need to talk." Dude - I feel like I'm grounded or something! Apparently my comments regarding Upgrading ruffled some feathers. This is what I said in an email....
Upgrading - I've been talking with my husband about this a lot lately. On one hand I would like to win the BARR - which I have a great contention for this year. But on the other hand - that means remaining a Cat 4 until August. Not saying that would be a bad thing. On the other hand - I would like to continually improve and feel I will by leaps and bounds by upgrading and getting my arse kicked. I'm also thinking about the future - for elite level cycling. If I were to show my resume to a national team - what would be more weighted - a BARR winner or upgrading to Cat 3 in my first season? Dilema, dilema. Any input would be wonderful.

Oh well - you can't make everyone happy all the time.