FAST GRRRLZ

October.

2011-10-27T17:32:00.001-07:00

October is the most wonderful time of the year.

Awesome August. Magical September.

2011-09-08T07:35:00.000-07:00

Happy September.

I've been done with Road for a while and been doing some racing up at the track. Sometimes I wonder why people even ride bikes with derailleurs (though usually I hop on Slutty and quickly remember why). Track is neat because it's fitness but even more about being smart. I've been super lucky to be able to listen to, observe, and get pointers from some of the best riders in the area and in some cases nation up at Valley Preferred-- special thanks to Joe W. (who in addition to claiming the Masters Nationals Omnium Title is on the way to Masters WORLDS in October) and Hoover (who has provided me with endless pointers, a sick disc to ride, and drove us all up in his awesome van reminiscent of a certain training camp spent in a Eurovan). I still screw it up quite often, but it's slowly coming together. Here's a recent Points Race (I'm in green) I did, courtesy of Dan Hoover. I was coming off a week and half of no riding and lots of beer drinking, but tactics really paid off.

'But BChan, A week and a half of no riding and excessive beer drinking?!?! What's up with that?' you ask? Ha! Well, after finishing my summer gig in DC I hightailed it to a friend's organic farm in Virginia. What was intended to be a two day visit turned into six days of vegetable gardening, gorging on fresh figs, TV watching, beer drinking, and eating straight out of the back yard. A little slice of heaven, and certainly a great alternative to dealing with the wrath of Hurricane Irene up north. Thanks to C. Frederick for putting up with me....and continuing to talk to me after the fact.

Post-farm I have switched into ultra-vagabond mode; I'm now in Philly house sitting for friends for a couple weeks while continuing to seek gainful employment. I did the Donut Derby on Monday, which I would prefer not go into detail about as the mere thought of it triggers my gag reflex. My first run of 2011 + cross practice yesterday = wrecked body. But in a good way, of course :)

learning how to race track bikes.

2011-08-21T11:34:00.001-07:00

.velo.drome. Rules:

1. Don't yack on the track.
2. Don't talk smack on the track.

3. Kill, bunny. Kill.

2011-07-25T16:27:00.000-07:00

Well, it was not the best of weekends for racing. But at least we look rad...

2011-07-20T20:16:00.000-07:00

Happy July! How about this Tour???

Summer is blazin’ by! Quick updates since my last post:

-I’m living in D.C. for the summer and interning with the National Trust for Historic Preservation. DC has great museums and restaurants, and some great bike infrastructure/riding opportunities.

-I’m looking for a job. Demoralizng stuff for those of us who are overly educated and under- employed. If you know anyone who needs a preservationist, send them my way!

-Season goal accomplished: I’m officially a Cat. 2 racer! Thank you thank you thank you to my awesome teammates for laying it all out there for me. Couldn't have done it without them.

-Had some fun traveling in Northern NJ for to haz the stage racing. Get this…there are MOUNTAINS up there. It’s not all strip malls and jug handles. Baffling, I know.

-Raced on the track with Zee Hunny Badger. Oh man oh man it is so fun. I could really really see myself getting into track. So fast! So simple! So fun! And I met World Champion and OlympianLiz Reap Carlson and have a major totally-hetero-biker-girl crush. Talk about a FAST GRRRL!

-Rode with some hard core junior girls from Rock Creek Velo cycling. These girls are FAST! It’s only a matter of time before they’re kicking my butt…

-Got 2^nd Place for the third time now in a State Championship. Let me tell you, I’ve never ever been so happy with 2^nd before. We sent a squad of 5 up and I was fully ready to flog myself for Sarah and Leah, our NJ residents. Powered by my breakfast of champions (Mountain Dew, S'more poptarts, ice coffee and a $1 egg and cheese wrap from Dunkin Donuts) we sent attack after attack. Finally, one of the contenders for NJ title countered, and as she began to sit up, I countered with Sarah on my wheel and the two of us hammered off the front for the next twenty-ish miles. I cramped, ran out of gatorade, drank half of Sarah’s, couldn't swallow my Gu, and somehow we grew an 8 second gap into more than a minute and a half by the finish.

Mad props to the CHOPPAH for winning the damn thing, and for talking me off the edge (of lactate acid O-D, that is) and to The Princess, GRIZZ and Ramba who blocked things up in the peloton.

If I’ve learned anything this summer, it’s that cycling is a team sport. Fitness, handling, and equipment is great and all, but being on a team with girls that that you can trust to put it all out there is electrifying. ZAP!

I'm so lucky to have Wasabi Warriors.

This weekend the pillaging continues in PA. We're sending a squad of nine. Bring it on.

May/Early June Updates

2011-06-07T17:40:00.000-07:00

1 Hott hott hott bike (I <3 Specialized!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!): Check

Finished Thesis: Check

Masters Degree: Check

1 Pillaged Village With Ramba (Yes, we DID take home the sprinters, climbers and omnium jerseys at the Tour de Syracuse): Check

Moved out of Philly Apartment (So long bat-shit crazy land lady!! Hello D.C.!) : Check

Entered (and finished!) First NRC-esque Race(okay so it wasn't technically an NRC this year, but there were still some heavy hitters in the peloton!): Check

Pancake Week 2011: Check

"Recovery" Ride with the World Champion: Check

First V in a Women's Open (with a text book lead out from The Hunny Badger!): Check

Spray Painting The Manyunk Wall: Check

Cheering the Wasabi Warriors on in the Liberty Classic: Check

Rar!!

pffffttt!!

2011-05-24T19:40:00.001-07:00

http://www.onionsportsnetwork.com/articles/nondoping-cyclists-finish-tour-de-france,2268/

sneak peak...

2011-04-23T19:18:00.001-07:00

hehehehehehehe!

Updates...

2011-04-13T18:18:00.001-07:00

It's been a while. Between thesis, work, and bike riding I'm pretty busy these days. So here are the highlights:

March

-Wandered around in Tokyo for a couple days, then went to Shanghai. Ate a lot of good food. Learned a lot about urban conservation. Good for the soul. Bad for the watts/kg.

-Raced the Philly Phlyer. Cramped hard core on third lap of four. Threw down a 7th place finish in the A's. GGRR stupid cramping.

-Learned lots about handling and tactics at team clinics.

-Hung out in Baltimore a lot doing research for thesis. I like that town.

April

-Got new shoes, helmet, and saddle from our awesome awesome sponsor, Specialized! Hott.

-Went to team camp in Virginia. Got lost/stranded on the side of a snow topped mountain with Litespeed and had to be "escorted" down by Search and Rescue. THAT was an interesting power data file...

-Raced the Cherry Blossom Challenge in Newark with 2 awesome teammates. Fun.

-Raced Philadelphia Naval Yard Criterium in, well, Philly with 5 awesome teammates. REALLY FUN. Learned some little crit tricks to deliver physical pain and mental anguish to unsuspecting competitors.

Up Next...

-Finish thesis.

-New bike coming Friday ?!?!?!? (Fingers crossed!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!)

-Finish off (LAST) semester (ever??); graduate.

-Crush souls.

Me and fellow Wasabi Warrior, Kacy, dukin it out at Cherry Blossom. Kacy, got 2ND in the Battenkill P/1/2 race over the weekend. What an animal!

Wasabi Warriors Take to the Road

2011-02-27T17:15:00.000-08:00

Missing three from the squad, but overall a really nice day in the saddle with my favorite ladies in wasabi and orchid. Thanks to Mike for the pic, and herding the kittens :)

In other news: Tokyo on Wednesday, Shanghai on Sunday. Philly Phlyer in two weeks! RAR!

2011-02-06T22:06:00.000-08:00

fast grrrlz are getting faster.

rar!

2011-01-17T16:37:00.001-08:00

I dreamed of my old race chain last night...

2011-01-13T17:46:00.000-08:00

While B.Chan was poppin' watts, I was overheating up SW Montgomery... God it's hot here in PDX, and rainy. I did 2x10's -nothing serious, and nothing great enough to write about- and when I climbed to the top of the hill I got disoriented in the mist, and, embarrassingly enough, got lost. Baaa! 20 minute test is coming up on Saturday and I'm taking it easy and trying to stretch a lot. Chan, you motivate me. Now I'm going to go make some scones!

wattage nerd alert

2011-01-13T17:29:00.000-08:00

Who just smashed her 30 minute power record? This girl.

Maybe brutal trainer workouts aren't that bad???

Wait, wait. No, they still suck.

2011-01-13T09:17:00.000-08:00

Philly is covered in snow and I am getting cabin fever-y. This is sure to be the cure!

NEW JOB!! YEEE!

2011-01-11T14:22:00.000-08:00

I got a job!!

Oh man. Today has been craaazy. I don't want to sound too desperate, but this is just great news. I started freaking out when my credit card was declined. Then I went home and reviewed my accounts....and I was pretty much out of money. For thirty minutes I tried to compose myself so I could think of what to do next.... then I got the call, and I got a new job! Bingo! It couldn't be more perfect timing. I'm a lucky gal.

It's a copywriting job for a youngish online cycling apparel company. I think it will be a of fun to write witty little blurbs about bike clothing. It's kind of my thing. And the company seems cool and easy-going and yeah... it is good.

Now I can keep my bike! I might sell those race wheels though. Selling those will allow for a couple more months of coaching, which makes me faster than the race wheels would. Excellent logic.

The morning has been productive since these events. I've called around to try to set up more job shadowing and volunteer with OT gigs. I've contacted people about babysitting/dog sitting for some quick cash. I've emailed someone who is looking to buy a set of Easton EC90 SLX wheels. And hour+ of yoga. My hips are open. I'm lifting kettle bells tonight. Getting faster and richer and more experienced by the minute... oh boy, what a life. I've never been broke before. Its weird. I knew it was only a matter of time though. If one decides to go back to school and not work, and ride bikes all the time, one runs out of money; that's just how things work. BAAAAAAAAAA!

Anyway, it is supposed to snow tonight, so I *might* have to ride the trainer. But there is a good chance of it clearing up before Thursday. Sorry East Coast kids!

Bam just scored an interview for volunteering at the hospital!

Snow sucks.

2011-01-08T17:21:00.001-08:00

Spent three hours on the rollers and trainer today. Riding inside sucks.

Blending with BCHAN

2011-01-05T16:05:00.001-08:00

As our loyal readers are probably aware, we here at FastGRRRLZ are huge fans of recovery smoothies. And now that I'm back in the saddle and logging some serious bike time, I'm back on the recovery smoothie bandwagon.

What is so awesome about the recovery smoothie, you ask?

Let me explain. Today for example-- almost four hours in the saddle, post ride core/stretching is over, my toes have defrosted, and I'm STARVING. Unfortunately, it's only 5pm. Too early for dinner, but eating another Clif Bar or those carrots I have in the fridge just aint gonna cut it...

Enter recovery smoothie.

I've been on a sunflower butter and banana smoothie kick lately. Yeah, it's a little fattier than your typical fruit smoothie, but hey, I also just burned 2,000 calories.

All you need is:

1 frozen banana (frozen is key! it maintains the overall consistency of this delightful treat)

Couple ice cubes

Splash of orange juice or other liquid, even tap water will do

A small dollop of sunflower butter (soooo much better than PB!)

2 dollops of low or nonfat plain yogurt

optional: 2 spoonfuls of Gold Medal Aminos*, protein powder or your favorite recovery aid

Throw it all in a blender, magic bullet, food processor, or, heck, I suppose you could even use one of those old fashioned hand held beaters (though if you choose this option, let me know how it goes for ya**). Pour your well blended treat into a glass, and zing! you've got yourself a recovery smoothie!

Bon Appetit!

*These Gold Medal Aminos have been pretty great so far and have really sped my recovery! I'd highly recommend giving them a try.

**Pics or it didn't happen!

2011 !

2011-01-05T10:36:00.000-08:00

hi hi!

I had a faaabulous time with B.Chan and Axel in Champaign. We got to hang out all day and eat snax, x-mas shop, buy groceries that we didn't use, scavenge... just like the good ol' days. We also saw Nick, Nick's kitty, Nick's soap sliver, E.Mart, Sochacki, Ethan, Peter & Susan... and D.Penn's beard made an appearance. The crew. Awww. Tear.

Now back in PDX. I got up early and I think I've made the decision to do intervals on the trainer rather than go out in the rain. It'll be raining tomorrow, so I don't feel like I am missing out.

I got back late late Sunday night. Monday I woke up to SUN and thought I'd go out for a longish ride. Wearing a long sleeved jersey and wind vest, I left my house and rode to Sauvie Island (it's flat!) to knock out some 30 minute tempo blocks. 12 days off the bike, and I was flying. I was made for that bike. About 10 minutes to go of the 2nd interval I felt like I was bonking. But I had eaten and watered enough. WTF? I could barely turn the pedals over. I was getting cold. I limped around the rest of the island and started to make my way home. I took a couple of breaks. I almost cried. I almost puked. I felt like I hadn't been on a bike in years. My quads hurt. My hip flexors felt like they were going to pop out of my skin. My arms hurt. I was freezing, and I noticed that other people were wearing winter coats and balaclavas. It was in the 30's and I had been fooled by the sun into thinking that it was warm out. I finally made it home.

It took me 10 minutes to find my keys with my frozen fingers. I ate food and then had to shower and ride across the city to class. What a nasty ride. Uh.

So, 12 days and I feel really sluggish! It makes me happy that I am not 400 pounds. Or that I'm not sick, or hurt, or whatever... just that I haven't ridden in 12 days.

Yesterday I did a kettlebell workout with the coach, and it was hard. I couldn't lift what I normally lift, and I'm hella sore today.

It will come back, but right now, the thought of zone 4 intervals makes me feel ILL.

---
In other news, yesterday I finally became a member of People's Co-op and I am excited! Their bulk section is outta control! And..AND..they have FREE yoga for members, 5 days a week, and at different times. Hell Yes.

Also, I applied and interviewed for a job! I really hope I get it. More on it later, but it sounds like a lot of fun, and it fits perfectly with life. I think I would be good at it. And B.Chan and I can work from home remotely remotely together!

Yesterday we bought so much food. That's another thing: getting back from a hell ride and finding oatmeal and a can of corn leftover from Thanksgiving corn-casserole making supplies is the worst.

---
And I hear that Axel is coming to sleep on our futon?
And we are all going to ride the Mt. Hood Cycling Classic together?
Takers?

Happy Happy!!!!

2011-01-03T19:25:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year, Y'all.

My 2011 resolution: Make good choices.

Naturally, 2010 was ended by making some not good choices. Certainly not bad choices, but perhaps ones that made for an uncomfortable New Year's Day train ride home from New York.

Now that the shenanigans are out of my system it's time to concentrate on the task at hand. I started my consulting job today, and I'm working on my thesis as we speak (okay, so I'm taking a little break...jeez cut me some slack). I also kicked off the 2011 road season today, with, as all road seasons should, an easy day.

There's lots to be excited about. This is is going to be a good year. I can feel it.

rollers!

2010-12-09T18:29:00.000-08:00

Taught muhself how to ride them this evening. So fun! Nothing like the incentive of avoid chipped teeth whilst falling off of them to beat the boredom of indoor training. Why didn't anyone tell me about this before?????

Historical Research

2010-12-07T15:56:00.000-08:00

I've been looking at a lot of historical advertisements lately. Look at this gem I found from an 1895 Philadelphia Inquirer....

Season's Greetings

2010-11-28T18:55:00.001-08:00

The Model Home's first attempt at a family photo.

More pictorial evidence to come....

2010-11-21T18:48:00.000-08:00

It's November and I have fresh tan lines!

Maybe global warming isn't so bad?

2010-11-11T21:33:00.001-08:00

Watch the Teaser! (Below)

2010-11-11T21:32:00.000-08:00

A few updates also:

Dan and I are all settled in PDX. We are both on Ironclad now and are living in a green (as in the color) 3577 with a couple of teammates. Our living room is filled with bikes :-)

I continue to ride my bike and Dan only moves sometimes, but when he DOES get on a bike he goes pretty fast, and sometimes wins, with the help of the rest of the boys.

I quit my job and am back in school getting pre-reqs for a master's degree in Occupational Therapy. I'm at the tip of a gigantic iceberg in terms of discovering how wonderful and interesting OT is, but its an exciting feeling, and I think I might have finally found my "CALLING". Well, I made a decision, and that's an important first step. The biggest challenge will be getting into school. Hummmm.

The last year, for me, was spent sleep-deprived in a raincloud. I did make a lot of friends and joined a racing team that has basically become my family. However, the longish commute out of town wore on me and I got stressed, irritable, had a constant cold, and fell out of love with everything. I don't know how I rode a bike at all, but I did alright in races, though not as well as I'd have liked, and I didn't enjoy it as much as I should have.

Being back in school is fabulous. I'll need to find a job shortly, but it feels good to just re-center. I look forward to doing better in races and to just have more fun!

Lists:

1) Kettlebells are the hottest way to get swoll.

2) Acupuncture clears your head and makes you more friendly toward the world.

3) When racing cyclocross:
a. Pre-ride the course.
b. Start behind/next to the fastest person and go out hard.
c. Put in several hard efforts in order to pass people, preferably
before a technical portion of the course in order to control the pace and
slow them down.
d. Slow down before a slick/weird corner, block the person you just passed, and
sprint out of the corner. Bye Bye!

4) Eat steak the week before your period.

Okay! Homework time!

The Teaser!

2010-11-11T21:07:00.000-08:00

Chan, while your team was out guzzling Heed, we were busy working on this:

Life Updates from BCHAN

2010-11-04T15:18:00.000-07:00

It's been a while...

Since last post (back in July??? whoa...) I have:

1. Gone back to skool. At first I was really dreading this. but so far gradskool year 2 has been a LOT more enjoyable. I've got a pretty good thesis topic, and my studio is fun. We'll see how I feel about this in a month or so once the craze of finals sets in.....

2. Accepted an offer to ride for this team in 2011. More on this later! SO EXCITED. RAR!!!

3. Moved to a new 'hood in Philly. I won't go into much detail here, but if any of you are Arrested Development fans, I am basically living in the Model Home.

4. Went to Austin, TX for a conference.

In addition to learning lots, networking, and attending some swanky parties, I hung out with pedi-cab drivers (pilots? peddlers?) and ate korean tacos from the food carts. And I rented a bike from Mellow Johnny's and went for a pretty sweet ride. fun times.

5. Discovered the joys of foam rollers and amino acids in recover drinks.

6. Got my first real bike fit. It rocks.

zoom zoom.

HI HI HI!

2010-11-04T14:16:00.000-07:00

hi hi! new improved view?

well, i exist. thanks for the call to attention, b. chan.

i am busy setting up job shadowing with OTs, and am getting ready to go to school. it's an unseasonably warm and sunny rest day. more on life updates later.

blogging has fallen out of fashion, and i received brand new XTR pedals for my birthday 2 days ago!

2010-11-04T12:12:00.000-07:00

well, hopefully y'all haven't deleted us off your google reader. There have been some exciting biking/school developments lately and it looks like I'll be reviving this thing....

more to come soon! but in the mean time, back to studio.

BCHAN, signing off.

Looks like someone has a new jersey...

2010-08-18T06:54:00.000-07:00

I'm sorry, but I have to brag a little bit for my absentee co-blogger....

2010-07-07T05:56:00.000-07:00

It's really blazing hot.

Also, I am in love with Fabian Cancellara.

That is all.

First Race Back!!

2010-07-03T19:43:00.000-07:00

Heart House Crit, women's open. Flat, six-corner, hot as heeeeelllll with a bit o' wind. Drove with one of my favs in these parts. Witnessed some 4/5s get into an almost-fist-fight as I warmed up. Rode pretty aggressively considering today was essentially the end of week 1 of training. Finish-wise, meh. 5th maybe? Cramped in the sprint. Must eat bananas.

I had so much fun. I could feel myself grinning as I took corners. I love bike racing again. Doing it all again tomorrow :)

I'm so happy.

Back!!

2010-06-21T06:22:00.000-07:00

SCHMOWER SCHMAP LIVES!!!!

(seriously, I just changed the hub batteries all.by.myself. and it seems to be working!)

Well after nearly dying of food poisoning in Paris, I'm back and working for the summer in the Iladelph. Philly is really great in the summer-- lots of art festivals, outdoor movies, markets etc. I had my first Water Ice experience last week, and if we were still doing Likes and Gripes Tuesdays here, it would definitely be on the "Like" list.

Been doing some riding, but real training starts tomorrow with, as all real training does, a rest day. There have been some good races in these parts the last couple weekends and it's pretty frustrating knowing that I can't do them if I want to maintain any sort of self respect on a bike. I'm thinking I'll cave and race next weekend though. Patience has never been my thing....

Taking a break....

2010-05-30T12:30:00.000-07:00

Dobar don!

I'm taking a few weeks off the bike to do a summer course/project in Montenegro with Penn. Today I sat on a pebble beach and collected sea glass between dips in the Adriatic Sea and a plate of fresh seafood. Not feeling very fast currently, but I've got all summer to be a bike racer. Life is good.

New Plan!

2010-05-19T21:33:00.000-07:00

1. Go to Montenegro on Saturday.
2. Come back. Be beastly fast.
3. Win GMSR in September.
4. GILA!
5. JizzleMIZZLE? Yes.

Glad I figured that one out....gchats with A.Miles are so productive.

2010-04-26T22:05:00.000-07:00

Well, this weekend's races sucked. I'm full of allergy induced snot and flem. And a bit burned out on collegiate racing.

BUT

It doesn't matter because I'm going to Collegiate Nationals next next weekend.

See y'all in Madison!!!!

First USCF of the season: Lower Providence Crit 1/2/3

2010-04-21T10:50:00.000-07:00

Sunday was my USCF PA debut. The race was the w1/2/3 Lower Providence Crit, an hourish-mostly-flat-four-corners-with-a-bit-of-wind bchan kind of race. 30+ ladies at the start line, and I was really effing scared going into it because there were lots of legit fast girls that showed up from local pro/semi pro teams and I just had no idea what to expect from the fields out here in general. I had 3 teammates, which made me feel a LOT better, and we had a brief team meeting before the race to talk about who to mark etc.

So, I spent some time dicking around in the pack, bridged to one early break with fast girls that didn't stick. With about 8 laps to go and sitting mid pack, I saw two girls go who were joined by two more. I was sitting a bit too far back in the pack, but I ejected myself and bridged to the break while my teammates blocked things up in the pack. We dropped one of the girls, but the break stuck!!! With 1 to go in the last corner, a 2 person chase caught us, and one girl flew by me and scared the crap out of me. I lost focus just long enough for another girl to jump. But I was able to close enough to end up 3rd!!!!! With legit fast people!!!!!

So things learned/to work on: I botched the sprint, for sure. My handling is getting a lot better, but I also have to learn how to move through the pack without forcing it. I burnt a lot of matches doing that, and it needs to stop. Also, having multiple teammates to work with and to block and counter things in the pack is really fun :)

In collegiate news, the fair ladies and gents of PENN CYCLING are going to take a run at the ECCC omnium this weekend. 60+ mile road race, crit and a nasty hill climb TTT for me. It's going to be a brutal weekend, and I can't wait!!! RAR!!!

Okay, time to go do the skool thang....

2010-04-18T14:59:00.000-07:00

I did the local USCF race this weekend. As such, "Things Girls Say During Bike Races" is on hiatus until next weekend when I will inevitably be able to gather more material.

Race report to come.... it went well :)

Things Girls Say During Bike Races, v.3

2010-04-10T16:13:00.001-07:00

Fashion faux pas during the circuit:

"Oh my gawd, I can totally see your panty line!"

"I always wear panties under my bibs. Don't you??"

2010-03-30T20:28:00.000-07:00

I learned something this past weekend about cornering:

If you just take the same lines that the fast, smart girls take, then you'll be just fine!

Why didn't anyone tell me this before???

Things Girls Say During Bike Races, issue 2

2010-03-23T13:03:00.000-07:00

What to say when cornering:

"Slowing....Still slowing.... Breaking...I guess kinda breaking....Almost stopping...Well I guess, I'm like, kinda still breaking, but pretty much stopping..."

How to lead out a teammate:

"Soooo we were like, getting sooo close to the line and I knew [name withheld] was somewhere behind me, and I was like speeding up and speeding up, and then like, I said APPLES and [teammate] just came right around me and was going so fast and she won!"

On bicycle color schemes:

Girl 1: Oh Em Gee. You are like, totally rocking the 80s colors on your bike. I just looooove the hot pink decals and green tires!

Girl 2: Oh I know, right??? These tires were my boyfriend's and I said to him, 'can I have those? because they'd look soo super cute on my bike' and he was just like, 'yeah okay' and now I have them! Isn't that great?!

Threshold Test!

2010-03-21T12:32:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was 70 and sunny and the day of my Threshold test. After lingering over breakfast for 2 hours I rode out to Sauvie Island (flat, slightly windy to a non-midwesterner) and did a 20 minute TT. I warmed up for 20 minutes and did a couple of spin ups and max efforts, and then started the test. Only once did I have to pull out in front of a car so as not to slow down..

I'm not really sure how to do these things, so I just gradually pushed harder and tried to go all out on the last 5 minutes. It hurt pretty bad at the end. Of course I always think when it is over that I could have gone harder, but could I have really? I guess one only knows after doing a lot of these same types of efforts.

My average watts were 202, or 4.05 Watts/kg. (There Morgan, some numbers! Never posted those before.) Not sure how the number stack up but I'll see what coach says. I think they are not excellent, but not bad, and certainly fine for a the first Threshold test of the season (?) Looking back, I really think I could at least average 210W.. !!

The rest of the day was too nice to rest, so I rode home (45 minutes in the wind, stopped for a lemonade) and ate some food, then went back out with Dan, Clint and Kristin. Clint is Dan's boss at the Hub and Kristin is his fiance and my teammate. Kristin's got quite the story... Last season, she was in a crash on the last lap of a crit, and suffered a freak brain injury that left her in a coma. After a crazy few months and some therapy, she's about back to normal. Talk about a strong lady :-) She's pretty amazing. She's back on her bike now and doing well! We climbed up SW Montgomery onto Skyline yesterday and she dropped me on all of the descents, which I am still a little scared of. She kept saying "anona--look THROUGH the turn! look where you want to go!" which helps, but sometimes I just look at the ground.... oops. It was a good ride. We could see four (maybe even five!) snow-capped mountain peaks! And two dead snakes!

We were going to ride at 9 this morning, but it didn't happen :-) We've got all day... no races this weekend!

Race Weekend Recap

2010-03-18T19:46:00.000-07:00

March 13-14
Grant's Tomb Crit:
First trip to NYC. If the weather is always like that there I never want to go again. It was about 35 degrees, raining, sustained 40mph winds. The original course flooded, so they rerouted it into a tear drop. A girl got blown off her bike into me. I was saturated in freezing cold water and couldn't move, much less race well, but I finished it. I'm going to forget this one ever happened....
Steven's Duck County Circuit:
Surprisingly, this was probably one of the best races I have ever done. Roller-y circuit race about an hour and haiif norf of NYC. One kicker of a climb, other than that rolling. I made the break with four (five?) other girls!! We formed a rotating pace line and it was so smooth. Then the attacks from within the group started coming, but somehow I held on until the final climb. Finished 5th. Same result as the prior weekend, but I raced much better this time around.

March 20-21
PHILLY PHLYER Day 1: TTT and Circuit
Did the TTT with my fellow Penn Cycling ladies, Rebecca and Ali. We almost killed a goose. Next up was the circuit, which was in Fairmount Park. Awesome course! Little bit of climbing, some technical spots, some long straights. I didn't have the legs to chase Harvard and MIT when they went off the front, but I had some luck stringing the pack out on the last lap's back stretch until the field was neutralized at the bridge due to an earlier crash that required an ambulance. Bummer. It was pretty much a drag race to the final climb after that, and I managed to sit third/fourth wheel out of the the climb which would normally have been awesome positioning for the final sprint on the last straight away until I my calves cramped up something awful coming out of the traffic circle. I ended up 6th. Harumph. Must have more electrolytes.
PHILLY PHLYER Day 2: Crit
L shaped crit, and I had awful positioning to start out. The awful positioning was exacerbated by some pretty horrific bike handling by my competitors (I realize I'm not the best handler out there, but if you cross from my inside to my outside and back to my inside over the course of one turn there are some issues...). I worked my way up slowly but at about 3 to go a girl crashed in front of me and I went right over her. I'm okay, and so is the bike. Just some missing skin, a swollen knee, and I'll probably have to re-glue a tire on my rear wheel, but it could have been much much worse. And I managed to bend my hoods back into shape and finish the race so I'm still in contention for collegiate nationals. Yeeeeeeaaaaaahhh!!!!

2010-03-18T19:31:00.000-07:00

who was that random person who posted that message?

SO daylight savings time is awesome! I've left work every day this week and ridden home in gorgeous weather, and had plenty of daylight left over. There are so many cyclists out. I'm on a rest week so I've been taking it easy. Saturday I do my first TEST. Today i rode home in shorts & a shorts sleeve jersey, no hat, no booties :-) love it..

FROLLER !!!

2010-03-16T06:08:00.000-07:00

And the word of the day is: FROLLER ! (thnx Chan.)

All the cyclists out here seem get it on with their froller daily. You really just roll all over this big foam log (roller) and it hurts really bad at first, and then it feels good. People say it's like a deep tissue massage. It hurts like hell at first, especially if you are covered in bruises all the time like I am (I run into stuff...yesterday I spilled Dan's beer twice in 10 minutes because I just ran into it while walking around the apartment..) but it's worth it. They say you get used to it.

naps !

2010-03-15T20:55:00.000-07:00

after yesterday's race, we went to Nicholas and ate reaaaaaally good food: vegan Mezza platter with hummous, tabouli, falafel, pita, some other sauce, a hot chick pea garlicky dish and lentils & rice :-) Then Dan & I went home and took a 2 hour nap! I woke up, ate the leftovers, and felt completely refreshed !!! I hadn't recovered that fast in a while. I rode to the grocery store and my legs felt almost fresh enough to race. I realized that this feeling was due to 1) immediate post-race protein 2) big healthy vegan protein rich meal 3)foam roller use 4)nap.

Last year, I would regularly do twoadays (lift then ride) and I rode a whole lot. This year I'm riding a lot also - frequently two rides a day - and working more, and I'm constantly fatigued. I've been wondering what the heeeeelll is wrong with me, and I think it's just that I need more sleep! Last year I'd get a nap in every day while I was training hard, but I never have time. In an ideal world I'd take one at midday or the afternoon, but oh well... so kids, if you have time NAP !

Today I was in the warehouse packing, which sucks because I stand all day (the day after racing) but is good because I listen to podcasts! Today I listened to the new This American Life, the Moth, a short story by Vonnegut that wasn't very good, and half of The Picture of Dorian Gray. Monday edification ..

omg omg so much to catch up on !

2010-03-14T17:03:00.000-07:00

A catch-up on the last month in bicycle racing and bicycle riding:

Sublime Sublimity Circuit Race, a weekend in February:

Hilly-as-hell ~60 mile race. On antibiotics. Could barely hold normal tempo pace. Got dropped. Almost quit. Caught up with Dawn. Dawn helps me get through the race. Dawn and I finally finish, and hold hands over the line. Smiles! Oucccchhhhhhhh. The good news: my teammate Anna wins the 4's! (She's an amazing animal.)

lalalallallaalala I get depressed, I think I'm slow.... and then

Ironclad Training camp in Kennewick, WA! We all drove up to Kennewick in a borrowed party RV and stayed with our lovely teammate Eva and her underpants model roommate boytoy. She cooked for us and gave us laughs :-) We went for a wet gritty ride Friday and a gorgeous long ride along the gorge to Pendleton on Saturday. Sunday we rode and drank bloody marys and had pushup contests. It was a crazy ride home in the RV... Check out pictures here.

Last Sunday: Banana Belt #2 at Hagg Lake outside of Portland. It was my first only 3's race, and much easier than the 1/2/3 races that I'd done. It was a weird race: mentally draining but not physically difficult. The course is rolly with a couple mild climbs, but not really hilly (managed to stay in the big ring the whole time). The beastly strong girl who won BB1 and a couple of previous races ran the show and pulled us around b/c we were too hesitant to do much. We did 4 laps--44 miles--and came to an uphill finished where I powered through and came in 3rd. Good finish! I wished I had thrown a good attack, but was happy with the placing. Used the race wheels and they made me fast. Ate raw fish the day before too, mua ha ha...

I started a new training plan with a coach last week. He's real good at bikes. Going to get fast and strong and good at bikes too. Excited. Stage races. (I don't blog anymore because I can't be bothered to form complete sentences.)

I purchased a foam roller. Coupled with chalk-o-late soy protein, freshly speared fish, sprouted quinoa, kelp, and quality shuteye, my recovery will be revolutionized.

Today: Banana Belt #3. Los Legs were sore from yesterday's 2X20's. We were going the opposite way from last week; a downhill finish and not as many p-pow-power bumpin climbs. Threw a counter attack on a hill and got caught just as the field was neutralized for the men's 1/2 field to pass. Opportune time for neutralization, as it allowed me to suck down an absolutely disgusting mint chocolate gu and wash it down with water before I had time to puke. The rest of the lap was fine. On the first hill of the last lap, my chain fell off and I had to stop and get off the bike and put it back on. Took me two tries. Pedal pedal pedal ("wha happened...! I almos caught the breakawayyyyyyyy...!") and I finally caught up with the group. Someone attacked and I held on. Second wind. Recover. Okay. I felt good, so I attacked on the first part of the last climb leading into the downhill finish. They caught me. I caught on. Attack up the second steeper bump. Ow.....goodbye....and I lost them. Then I went downhill and finished alone and it was disappointing.

Things I have learned:

1) Nicholas Restaurant: Go there, it's delicious and you get a lot of food and it can be vegan if you want.

2) Eat more food.

3) Eat more and more food.

3) Eat more food.

4) Shower smoothies are a good idea. Just because you are all wet and naked doesn't mean you should not be eating.

No but seriously... lately I've been a little weird and crazy b/c my job takes up a lot of time and I didn't know how to manage my training. I didn't even have a training plan! And so I decided to get a coach so I can have someone else tell me what to do and figure out the damn schedule. And now I have some focus. So yes, today my legs hurt and I made a dumb attack and I have no jump, but all this training will pay off. So when mid-June rolls around and it's time for los all important epic stages races, I'll be ready. Because really I just wanna race le bike and have fun and be really good at stage racing. That's all.

And Dan and I are thinking about getting a futon.

Here's to you, Mr. Upper Dublin Police Man

2010-03-10T07:04:00.000-08:00

Mile 35, Upper Dublin Township, near Temple's Ambler Campus. A red truck with Harley Davidson bumper stickers aggressively cuts us off and flips the bird as he speeds by. My buddy Brad waves 'hi'. The driver continues to wave his arms around. Seconds later we hear sirens and an Upper Dublin Police SUV speeds by and pulls the guy over. We roll by and smile. Police man gives us a small salute.

Sometimes there is justice in the cycling world.

Collegiate Season Opener: Rutgers Frozen Toes Race Weeked

2010-03-08T17:35:00.000-08:00

So I did in fact race this past weekend with the UPENN team. Saturday was a 2.8 mile ITT and a 40 minute crit and Sunday was a 60 minute circuit race.

Saturday was cold and windy, but flat. I rolled to the line much colder than I should have been for such a short crit. The riders were sent off 20 seconds apart, I think. I watched the girl from Harvard go out and was so nervous-- TTs are definitely not my thing! All I could think of was "catch Harvard" the whole time I was riding, and a little past the first turn around point I did! That was a relief because I knew I wouldn't be last place at the point. Catty, yes. But a confidence booster nonetheless.

Immediately after finishing the TTs the team packed up our vans and migrated to the crit course. It was about 1 mile, lots of crappy pavement and potholes, with four turns, only one of which was nasty due to gravel. After watching the eight other races before mine (ECCC conference is HUGE) it was time to warm up. I got a good warm up in, rolled around a bit and then it was time to race. My goal for this race: not to get dropped. About 30 other girls lined up and we started out. I didn't race with a pow tap or computer, but people said it was really fast. I spent some time trying to feel the field out- who was strong, who would or wouldn't work etc. I also spent a lot of time being scared of the sketchy corner and loosing a lot of ground. GRRR! Anyways, 2 girls got away and it came down to a field sprint. I got boxed before the last sketchy corner and figured it would be best not to crash out on a risky move the first weekend up. Overall I finished 4th in the TT and 6th in the WomenA Crit.

Sunday was the circuit. I was feeling a little more confident in my abilities after the previous day, but also a little sickly. The race was mostly flat with a couple slow climbs and crappy pavement. I tried one attack, but it was poorly placed as far as the course went and didn't stick. With 5 laps to go, the same two girls plus a few others who got away the day before got away again (I have a feeling this is going to happen every weekend...). I was on the wrong side of the field at that point, and by the time I had freed myself they were gone. I chased a bit and was able to at least thin the huge field out a little, but with 2 (maybe 3? or maybe she was just didn't get it...) girls with representation in the break we weren't bringing them back. I ended up winning the mini-field sprint which put me in 5th place. Hooray!

Lessons learned and things to improve on for next week:

1. Some things, as far as women's racing goes, never change. Namely the fact that girls say some really dumb things during races. After the break got away in the crit with 4 laps to go, one girl in the chase group looks around and says something along the lines of "Sooo, who wants to form a break group?". At which point I looked at her and said "Did you seriously just say that?". To which she replied, "Yeah, I know. Totally not secret, right! Hehehe". WTF?

2. Bring real food to races. Clif Bars are good, but not something to subsist on.

3. Think think think about when the moves are going to happen, where on the course they are going to happen, and who is going to initiate them. I can not out ride the field anymore. I have to race smart!

Penn is currently sitting 3rd in the ECCC, and 1st in the D1 category, ahead of perennial powerhouses UVM and Penn State U. Can we keep it up???

2010-03-04T18:19:00.001-08:00

sooo apparently I'm racing this weekend????

Sweet Cherry Pie

2010-02-14T13:15:00.000-08:00

So here it is! The Cherry Pie Road Race report !!! My very first road race in Oregon, and first race w/Ironclad.

I left early b/c my teammates are 4s (for now) and their race was a few hours before mine. Dave (team manager) and I went to the finish to watch our 3 ladies come in. Anna came in 1st with a sizable lead in her very first bike race ever. She looked pretty elated. I've never watched a teammate ride across the line 1st, so this was a pretty exciting thing. She apparently got away after her second attack, with 10 miles to go in the race, and hammered away alone until the end! Stephanie came in close after Anna, and Lana right after that. Lana has been racing for a while, but this was Steph's first road race (since we aren't counting the time she flatted a few minutes after the start of the road race she did last year.) So good spirits all around. The team win pumped me up for my race too.

OOoooooh just watched the men's olympic speed skate short track race AAAAAAH so great!

So my race was two laps of 26 miles. 1/2's, 3's and Masters raced together. We were mostly 3's, with 4 2s and a couple of Masters. The course was rolling hills, no sharp turns, nothing sketchy, and a big uphill finish. At the start Dave was giving me the lowdown on all the chicks lining up. This being on a team thing is pretty alright..! I was nervous as hell at first and felt awkward on my bike. But I found that I had no problem moving around in the pack and felt pretty comfortable riding bar to bar--sooooo happy I went to Superweek!!! I was also kind of concerned that I'd realize I should be a Cat 4 and not a Cat 3 out here in Oregon. Weather was great--50's, no rain, overcast. Oh, I can't grab my bottles very well... after I changed from Am Classics to the Bat cage because I thought they looked cool, the cages are stiff... must practice that....uh...such..a...doofus...

The beginning of the first lap was fairly slow and we kept together. Toward the middle or end of the first lap, one girl got away. Dave had told me that she was really strong. She didn't have any teammates so we let her go.. Oops. At the end of the 1st lap, I made sure I was toward the front, and stayed on a wheel up the hill so I could catch the the break. Caught the break without much trouble, and I guess we dropped about 1/3 to half the field.

I felt good going into lap 2, much less nervous and more comfortable and agile on the bike. Three Cat 2 teammates seemed to be running the show. The ten of us got to work putting on a strong chase after the girl who got away. We had a sweet rotating paceline going. Why don't we practice this more? It was so fast and efficient, but since I'm rusty on those moves I think it took me a while to realize what I needed to do to maximize recovery time. I'll get it though, next race. About halfway through the lap i started to feel it. I ate some and drank and tried to catch every second of recovery I could. By the last 1/4 of the race, I felt like I was going to die. Or puke. Or fall over. Or never EVER race bikes again.

We kept coming up on riders from the men's field thinking it was the chick who got away, and then we'd be disappointed and speed up the chase. I remember at one point almost losing the draft, and then realizing that if I didn't catch it I'd get dropped, so it was either do or die. We got to the small hill before the finish hill, and I held on, and then went to the finish hill and I wanted to stop... I couldn't get out of the saddle. I was so tired... I don't remember anything, just pushing too hard at the beginning of the hill, and then getting too tired to carry it out, and letting a girl pass me. I heard my team cheering and couldn't think about anything other than puking or falling over. Then it was over and I was sooooo relieved.... ! I came in top ten, maybe 7th in the 3's but the results aren't up yet. We never caught the girl who got away--she was amazing !!!!!!!!! And she's a 3, and last year was a 4. Wow.

And for some reason I want to keep racing bikes!? I never dig that deep. I know that's what bike racing is about, but it so hard for me to go as hard as I possibly can...I have to find a real good reason within myself. So after yesterday's race, I feel like I've achieved a lot just by getting to that point. And, by staying with the top half of the 3's and the 2's. (I'm a real Cat 3! ) So next race, I know I can get there if I'm willing to hurt! Yay! The last time I felt like that was Snake Alley, but I won that race. It's kind of a refreshing feeling to see where I am now and where I want to be. The road spread out in front of me... It was a great start to the season (ugh, remember hillsboro!?) AND I can't wait until the other Ironcladdies cat up! what can we do then?!?

No snow here !

2010-02-11T22:16:00.000-08:00

whoa that's a lot of snow ! It's been a bearable 45-50 degrees here in PDX lately, with a few scattered showers :-) Seriously kids, west coast winters are the way to go. If you can manage to fly out of your airport, we have an extra bed (and we'd find a mattress for it before you come!).

Amos is so cute ! He has a hilarious look on his face. Has Axel been cooking special anti-inflammatory meals for him?

Let the chalky soy protein cravings begin! My first road race, Cherry Pie, is Saturday. I'm a bit nervous! I don't have teammates in my race yet--that will change soon--so I am racing alone. It's about 50 miles, not too hilly, but a nice hill at the finish I guess. I'm excited. AAaaarg. It's February ! Race report to come, I promise. It's going to be great fun to go with my team and warm up under a tent and have a spot for all our food and bags and stuff. It'll be a bit of a change from the Race Corolla and not knowing who has the keys.

Yesterday I freaked out a little about my life and what I'm doing with it. To use a lame cliche, it seems that I've put all of my eggs in one basket..... and that basket is a bike handlebar basket. I just want to race bikes. I'd do more things, but with working a normal job, I don't find the energy to do more than go to work and ride (Or rather, ride to work) and then eat good food and get enough sleep. I've decided to get into some other things though--volunteering and maybe some community classes-- but more about that later when I actually do something. I was feeling down yesterday, but then I got on my bike this morning and everything was good. And I think when racing gets more crazy things will be different. Good different.

M time for bed. Niiight..

CAT lady

2010-02-10T18:16:00.001-08:00

Some of my favorite felines:

Amos.

...Conjures memories of race vans and warm ups.

I <3 Stouts.

And now a recent addition to the list of favorite felines:

Golden Cheetah.

Developed in part my fellow snowed in cyclist to south, Dr. Jamie K, Golden Cheetah is a software package that allows you to download and analyze Schmower Schmap data. I've been playing around with a bit this evening and it's got some excellent features. Best part is, it is released under an Open Source License. Try it out. It's pretty sweet. And way to go JamieK!!

P.S.: it's STILL SNOWING. AAAAAHHHHH!

C & B

2010-02-08T22:27:00.000-08:00

I really can't take this anymore...

Snowed in

2010-02-06T20:51:00.000-08:00

Not a whole lot of bike riding on the east coast; I am snowed in and it sucks.

Philly apparently experienced one of the largest snow storms in its history last night and during the day today. I was at my team's cocktail party last night up in Germantown and it was a really slick and snowy drive back. Not cool. This morning I had to walk the whole 2 miles to campus from our apartment for a meeting (an unfathomable distance for someone who is used to jumping on her bike and being there in 15 minutes) only to find that all sources of caffeine were closed due to the State of Emergency that had been declared due to the massive amounts of snow. Not. Cool.

Lucky for me, I have a new toy to play with. I recently purchased a Nikon D90 (yay for technology loans!!!) but aside from using it to create our new banner, I hadn't had much time to run it through its paces until today. I am smitten. Though I easily could have purchased a set of carbon wheels for the wheel barrow of cash I dropped on the camera, it will allow me to continue to develop my photo skillz (which will hopefully help me land the job that will pay for carbon wheels...).

Week 1 of training went okay. Not great. The combination of the added time it takes to get to decent roads out here and the diminished time I can to devote to riding is frustrating. I need to get into a get-up-early-and-get-your-ass-out-the-door routine if I'm going to do this training thing properly. And it needs to stop snowing. Seriously.

2010-02-06T08:41:00.001-08:00

so. much. snow.

WHOAAAAA A NEW LOOK!

2010-02-03T21:19:00.000-08:00

OH SO HOT I LOVE THESE COLORZZZZZZ !!!!

WHoaaaaA!

This is what I did at work today:

swimmin swimmin swimmin. Courtesy Denver of TE for the foto... We have fun sometimes :-)

Barely made it to work because i forgot to set the alarm. Good thing Dan's alarm went off for a ride he ended up skipping. I was out the door in a flash and made it just fine.

Did some jumps tonight on the trainer; 3 x 5 of lotsa power fast feet few second hard jumps. As usual, I didn't think it would be that hard and...it was. It didn't help that I was having trouble concentrating. Tomorrow maybe I'll hammer on the way to work and practice some lotsa power hard fast feet up the hills. If my legs aren't tired. I know shouldn't do it two days in a row... but uh uhh sometimes sometimes, well I'm just not organized with my training right now. I'm just getting into a routine. It will help now that I'm on a team and the season's starting and there's some structure.

Last night I ordered these bars. Tastes like PB&J ! Now I need to get on some drink. We're sponsored by OS BUUUUT the drink has fructose in it... My beef with fructose is that after a few days the simple sugars start eating away at my teeth. Yes..I know...but seriously... I had to give up the gatorade on our trip to Portland because my teeth hurt so bad. The teeth can't handle that for a season... So we'll see, maybe I'll have to opt for one of the leading competitors. See Axel, it still holds that I can't give up my teeth for cycling. If flossing cuts into my training time, so be it. I will never cut the handle off my toothbrush to save weight. Um yeah, so teeth...right, time for bed, bye...

2010-02-01T21:59:00.001-08:00

Chan: let's just take the pepto pink out of the banner and get rid of the ads because we've only made $6.00 in the past year. (?)

2010-02-01T21:58:00.000-08:00

ugly, ugly, ugly, colores.

2010-02-01T21:57:00.000-08:00

HOI! So i just joined Ironclad woot the team, the bicycling team :-) it's going to be funnnnn

but now i have to go to sleep because i am an old, old, old woman now.

goodnight.

Tis the Season!

2010-02-01T19:07:00.000-08:00

Hoi. My non-base training started today with, as all good training schedules should, a day of rest. It went well. Tomorrow I'll actually ride. I'm pretty excited. Up until this past weekend we had pretty decent weather out here considering it is January (Mid 30s-upper 40s?) which allowed me to get some good rides in. And I've been doing about as much trainer work as I can handle without going nuts!

I had my first Sturdy Girl team training session last weekend. Despite showing up way late (for those of you who have never attempted to drive in New Jersey I would suggest building at least 15 minutes of getting lost time per 5 miles traveled into your itinerary) it went pretty well. There are some strong ladies on my team and I am pretty sure I will learn a lot about riding with a team of more than A.Miles.

As for the collegiate racing scene, I am trying to get a women's team together for an occasional ride. I don't think there are any other A's to race with, but I can't get anyone to upgrade to race with me if I don't coerce them into riding and trying out racing first! The weather needs to cooperate a little bit more before we can get a good group going, though....

The semester is only 3 weeks underway and I am already swamped with projects, papers and proposals. I got to choose my classes this semester and they are a lot more exciting and geared towards what I want to do when I get out of here. It's finally beginning to feel like I'm in graduate school and not just continuing to slave away as an undergrad, which is a good feeling. But there's also a lot of responsibility that comes with it. Sometimes I freak and think about giving up riding, but then I come to my senses and remember that riding keeps me balanced. Everything in moderation.

On Thursday Axel and I are going to see David Byrne, author of The Bicycle Diaries, speak at an urban sustainability forum at the Academy of Natural Sciences. I'm pretty excited. Then Friday is my team's fundraiser cocktail party and the Penn team's potluck dinner. Yay!

2010-01-29T21:07:00.000-08:00

MMm ciclistos...

So i didnt say a whole lot about much about HOW WHAT the group rides are like out here. First of all, they are TEAM rides that I'm talking about. TEAMS. You seem to have to get invited, but once you are there, everyone is really cool. Fenders are a must. Unlike in the midwest, where everyone complains about the gravel-y sound of rocks up in your fender on a ride, in Portland you look like kind of a douchebagette if you don't have a fender. I didn't use a fender on Sunday (it was peeling the paint off Mad One) but it was sunny. Poprad is getting fenders, and will be the choice ride for any un-sunny day.

On the first group ride Dan and I went on, there was a dude on a fixie. IMAGINE a fixie mixed up with GEARED bicycles! I never saw that in the midwest either.. He climbed the long hill also, which impressed the hell out of me. Then he dropped off and went his own way. Very nice.

There is a lot of climbing here. On Sunday we made a point to ride on Sauvie Island, where it is flat. The cars buzzed us and flipped us off and yelled---it was outside of portland by a few miles. You have to ride somewhere else to get away from hills, which is kind of funny when I'm used to riding somewhere else to ride up the SAME hill multiple times. Everyday I ride up a few steep hills on the way to work, so it seems like no big deal anymore.

I rode with Ironclad Cycling , which the team I'm thinking of joining soon. All of the women are Cat 4s, but half of them are catting up soon probably. They ride together a lot, and race well as a team, which are both pretty important to me. I'll be the only 3 on the team for now. That's fine, because right now I guess I'm just seeing what Oregon racing is like in general. I really liked everyone on the team ride and the vibe was great, so yeaaaaa.... noice, all good ;-) I was extremely impressed when Dave pulled out a hamm's tallboy before the hill climb !!!!

---

today i got a new pair of knickers; the 1st pair of knickers, wooooooooot, sugoi, sould be noice..

i you go to Teamestrogen's website you can see my new career blossoming as an athletic apparel model. see if you can spot it. ha !

sunday is a ride 'round Hagg (?) Lake with Ironclad; a preview for the Bananabelt series. I like bananas, maybe Ill do well? It's supposed to be hilly. Everyone out here is telling me " OH Such-and-such race is..well..it's hilly...uhh" and I secretly but not so secretly say WOOOOOOOO YES HILLY! while they say Uhhhhh hilly... sounds fun. Of course, there are a fair amount of crits here too, and some strong crit riders, and apparently it doesn't rain all summer like I thought it might.

I can't wait till road bicycle racing season. Can you tell? Starts in two weeks... !!!!!!!!!!

My new dream, as of this morning's commute, is to get strong enough to lead Daniel out in the weekly men's 3 PIR races. We'd be such a good team if we could get that together. I don't think, though, that if he is strong enough to win a race that I'd be able to keep up.

Ahh tomorrow I think I'll ride, but I need to make it a priority to go shopping for essentials, like toothpaste and floss, and powertap hub batteries. I forget these errands when I just ride all weekend. Last weekend I rode a lot of hours and moved, so I got nothing done except for some new muscle and more space. But no new groceries. Ohh Dan says we can do taxes now!

Ok goodnite. Dan downloaded the NIN discography so I guess I'm in for the most depressing sleep ever. Happy trails.....

PDX group rides !

2010-01-23T21:09:00.000-08:00

HY.

Last Sunday Dan & I went on our 1st Portland group ride with Team Beer. (Dan's new boss is on the team.) Mid 40s and misty. We met at Bakery Bar (best scones in pdx. and cakes. and food made out of eggs.) and rode west out of the city on Cornell. The first climb was long.... there was a guy on a fixie with us too, and he made it. Can't imagine doing that ! We turned onto Thompson and climbed up that. Maybe Cornell doesn't go up...I can't remember. In any case, Thompson was the long climb. I kept up with the guys until the very end, and they got to the top a couple of meters ahead of me. Then we rode along Skyline--gorgeous road!!--and up Old Germantown. I can't remember then--maybe back to Skyline?--but we climbed more, and then went back down to the city. It was a fun,fun ride !

I saw this huge salamander going up Germantown and thought it was a dinosaur. You know when you're climbing, and you're working so hard that everything you look at looks really big? Well I saw this salamander under me (didn't squash it!) and it looked like this. I also spotted dozens of sweet VW busses. The view from Skyline is so pretty, you can see the low mountains near the coast if it is clear-ish.

Dan & I agreed that it's really nice to be riding with other people, not just each other. But when we are climbing we always fall into the same pace.. it's cute :-)

The week went by like always... rode to work in the morning, and home from work once. It stayed light out halfway through my commute home, and I arrived only 10 minutes later than I would have had I taken the MAX. Woot. I used my work desktop calculator nrrrrrrr and realized I ride a lot of hours a week with this commute. Yay for the suburbs.

Today I went on my 1st group ride with Ironclad. I was supposed to go last Saturday but was sick (and followed Axel's advice and got better by Sunday thx Axel now how to I get cankles?) I'd like to maybe join the team if things go well and we all like each other :-) and so far I like what I see! A few of us met at Dave's and rode out to Sauvie Island, where we met up with a few other people. There were maybe 20 of us? 15? There were 6 or 7 women. Everyone was really cool and friendly and we rode around the island twice at a conversational pace. Sauvie Island is great because it's right next to Portland, but it's all farms and kind of redneck. Just like home... except for the nude beach. Then we raced up Newberry(?), which is a 2 mile climb up the west hills. The guys raced up, and then the girls. Winners got sweet prizes. Mile one was steep as hell and hard. Mile 2 mellowed a bit and was much more manageable; there was a slight downhill spot where I could spin my legs a bit before climbing again. I made it up first among the women AND won one of these! After the hill we were all pretty much toasted, so we descended back to Portland and stopped at a cafe in NE. Mm vegan chili.. Then home. I'd been gone from about 10:45 to almost dark and Dan-o was worried! Fun fun fun day. I love bikes. Oh, the view of Mt. Hood from Germantown was GORGEOUS! It was HUGE and glowing white. That's what she said..

Other news: Dan & I are moving to a one bedroom apartment downstairs! It's in the same building, but on the 1st floor ( NO MORE HAULING THE BIKES UP!) and the unit is at least two times larger than our place now. We already moved the bikes & tires & stand & wheels & trainer etc and it looks like a team lives there or something. Tomorrow we'll move the rest of the stuff and get some hooks for the bikes. I'm pretty excited to have a regular sized fridge and stove !!!!

Oiii goodnite.

Nutrition.

2010-01-18T12:57:00.001-08:00

Home made bread by Axel. I'm so proud!

Topped with a little protein for a post-ride snack.

2010-01-16T14:03:00.000-08:00

2010-01-16T13:53:00.001-08:00

Oki, I'm just messing around with the colors... we'll find something that pleases the eye eventually...

I sweated out the toxins, am eating a lot, and am staying warm, as per Axel's advice.

Ooh technicolor! this color reminds me of a cat sweatshirt I had in 2nd grade.

i want to start blogging again

2010-01-15T09:51:00.001-08:00

HOI!

I'm sick with a cold ugh.

Portland has been treating us great; high 40's and getting used to the rain. Beautiful rides, views of Mt. Hood on clear days, lots of green grass and daffodils in January, vegan food everywhere, early morning commutes to work ^_^

The racing scene has be a bit perplexed. You don't even have to train out here during the summer, there are so many races. (Though Joach would not condone this.) I'm contemplating joining a certain team if it turns out to be a good fit for all. Group ride tomorrow at 11 (not too early!!!!!) and I hope I'm fit enough to go by then. We'll see.

I started doing plyometrics at lunch, and I've felt the burn all week. Trying to increase my POWER! I'm pretty strong and light and fit, but I'm not super quick. My jump is awful. My sprint is worse. So, I'm trying to work on it by doing some plyometric exercises and sprint workouts (forthcoming..). I'm optimistic!

Also I'm following this easy training plan to work up to doing 100 BOY pushups. My upper body is hella weak, and I found myself being slowed down over barriers during cross season when my bike got heavy and caked with mud. Monday my max was 3 pushups, and now it's 10 ! Wooooooooot

Ok...and I ordered a pair of running shoes. Saucony running shoes; like, real running shoes, not the flat footed kind you wear for fashion. Got to start running for this sprint triathlon I'm doing with everyone at work in May. More about that later....

Um, so I've been resting since i woke up and still sick.. now I will make a kale honey ginger emergenC orange smoothie and try to get well. uh. welcome back to fastgrrrlz...

EURO MULLET

2010-01-01T15:45:00.000-08:00

Axel decided he needed a little change in his life to ring in the new year. So I gave him a haircut.

Business in the front.

Party in the back.

Post holiday update coming soon. Until then, Happy New Year!

Collegiate Racing RAR!

2009-11-18T06:28:00.000-08:00

ECCC schedule for Spring 2010 has been posted. Looks like nationals are in Madison, Wisconsin. I just can't seem to get out of the Midwest....

2009-11-17T05:08:00.000-08:00

hoi !

raining in portland and contemplating whether i want to ride all the way to work or take the max...

cross race was so so fun on sunday! more details later.... i crashed into someone's team tent at the start, but luckily missed the people warming up on trainers.. my rear wheel fell off in what brambly part of the course. i ended up 11th in the race which isn't too fabulous, but it was fun. i think i ended up 11th in the series b.Chan. and my front tire is completely flat and both hubs are super loose and my bike is generally all wobbly...

oh but time for work. ugh. train or training?

ditto my dear-o !

2009-11-15T09:38:00.000-08:00

Aw purrrfect; I read wanted: bikewife as I make peanut butter toast and coffee on Sunday morning while google-image-ing keyboard cat tattoos. Dan snores away... He's not going to the cross race today because he doesn't have a bike--you wouldn't know that from glancing in our studio apartment--and because I guess he had a honkin' time playing dominos last night with the guys (well, his only guy friend here, Ryan).

My bike-y friend Anna might come to the race today, but it's up in the air. She's yet to catch cross fever...never even been to a race...and sure won't be compulsively yelling ARE YOU READY FOR CROSS SEASON anytime soon. Don't get me wrong, Anna's no lame-o. She's a really hip girl and has been commuting by bike longer than I have, is always ecstatic about our huge climb on the way to work, hates cars as much as anybody: she's thoroughly bike-y, an absolute joy to ride with, and I am ever-so-grateful that we are friends, but that's not really the problem. It's just difficult to coerce her into racing her bike because I know what's best for her and because I want camaraderie. With a bikewife the difficulty goes away, because you do know what's best for the bikewife! (Recall Superweek B.Chan? I pretended to let you languish over the decision making process, but I was ready to throw myself and the Eastons under that Corolla). Anna and I will get to this point, but we're not there yet.

There are plenty of people in the city of Portland eating peanut butter toast and stalking their competitors this morning, I'm sure of it. Plenty of girls, potential wives. I spotted some yesterday clomping around River City and a couple riding across the bridge, and up the hill to Washington Park. And standing on the start line I am surrounded by cool chicks who hate cross at that cold and rainy moment, but who actually love it. The potential for everlasting love is inevitable, as they probably also love the road or the trail and could introduce me to new frontiers like track racing. However, regardless of my plumage--as attractive of a mate I try to make myself--the bikewife doesn't bite yet...because it can't.

The prerequisites for love go beyond displays of wooly argyle socks and foam dinosaur cutouts, and they are deeper than good race results and compression tights. We've yet to come across a squash graveyard. We haven't stuffed a pumpkin in your legwarmer and bounced it home. We haven't spent the day modpodging vulgarities all over the kitchen. We haven't lived in a van for a week in the woods, pretending we were pros and eating weird flavored peanuts from Aldi. We don't talk non-stop smack about a girl who we are afraid of, about the squirrelly chick on the giant (really?), about other teams' conspiracy theories. We haven't bedazzled our helmets or stuffed our messenger bags full of dumpster bread. We can't share Heed and soy protein. The local all-dude bike club is pretty indifferent to our existence. No one with whom to obsess about Lipsmacker and Tibco, no one who thinks pink aero shoecovers are actually kind of sort of cute even though they are pink..

SO I stalk alone. And get queasy from eating peanut butter alone. And I'll probably go to this race... alone.

Smile! I'M READY FOR CROSS SEASON! It's not a big deal. I miss my bikewife dearly, and would like to find a new one, but it will happen. It just takes time. But it will happen, B.Chan! You'll find someone who can stuff two pumpkins in one warmer! But for now, it's fun to pretend to be a rogue competitor, sabotaging the CrossCrusade women's B's top 10. Mua ha ha ha ha...... !!!

(It's the last CrossCrusade race today and I've been doing alright...solid top 10's and today I am digging deep. I am sitting 12th in the series, after missing the first three races, and at least a couple of the top women have catted up. This doesn't really mean a whole lot, but it's fun! I'm not a points calculator because I don't care that much, but maybe I can get top 10 in the series at least. We'll see. The only actual impetus for wanting to do well is that I'd like to show that I am a good enough racer to get on a developmental team. Other than that, I just want to play in the mud.)

Wanted: 1 "Bike Wife"

2009-11-14T17:37:00.001-08:00

Job Vacancy: "Bike Wife"

Company/Organization: B.CHAN

Description: A Bike Wife is analogous to the "work spouse" commonly found in office or similar professional settings. However, as the title suggests, this position is related to cycling and the lifestyle associated with riding, training and racing. In fact, it has nothing to do with an office. This position has become available due to the recent separation and relocation of my former Bike Wife, MizMiles.

Skillz: Candidate must live in Philadelphia, preferably West Philadelphia. Candidates must be highly motivational, receptive to goal setting, and occasional devious behavior. Candidate must be willing to ride with me both indoors and outdoors as I build a massive base this winter on my way to conquering the Eastern Seaboard. In addition to the ability to generate a multitude of contractions, successful candidates will readily create and implement unique phrases similar in quality to "ARE YOU READY FOR CROSS SEASON?!" and "HOI!!". Special consideration is given to those candidates who enjoy blasting M.I.A., making energy bars, commuting by bike, and/or camping in EuroVans.

Compensation: Depends on experience.

Reply to: BCHAN

Updates from Philly

2009-11-09T19:52:00.000-08:00

HOI!!!

Fall in Philly has been kinda strange so far. October was supposedly one of the rainiest Octobers Philly has had in years. Now November is here and it has been 65+ ever since. Definitely can not complain about riding in shorts and a short sleeve jersey this time of year.

I attempted to race cyclocross last weekend. The race was the Cat and Kitten Cross race in New Jersey and we drove through a really pretty area to get there. Apparently the race was the wedding reception of a Kelley Benefits guy and a chic from VanderKitten. How cool is that?! I went with the Penn Cycling team. We managed to get properly lost and missed my race. Fortunately the race promoters were really nice and let me ride the men's B race. I wish I had been able to get to mine on time because the course was fun. Nothing too exciting, but lots of technical switch back type things and TONS of mud. After one lap my bike must have weighed 50 lbs. Well maybe not really, but it was really really hard to pedal!

I wasn't able to race on Halloween, which I heard was ridiculous. But it's okay because I was having fun and getting paid to ride my bike. One of the cool things about work study jobs here at Penn is that they allow you to work with some really cool non profits. I had the great fortune of getting hooked up with Neighborhood Bike Works back in September. I get to ride with the road racing team on Fridays, help the kids fix their bikes on Mondays and on Saturdays I lead the Mountain Bike Club ride. I haven't worked directly with kids for a long time and I had sort of forgotten how much fun it can be. The kids are great (for the most part) and its cool to see them get stronger each week. Sometimes I feel like cycling can be intimidating and cyclists can be elitists jerks, so its refreshing to work with kids who don't care about their V02 maxes or watts/kg or yearly mileage and instead just want to ride bikes and go FAST.

Last week I started lifting again. Ugh! So sore!!! Lifting really helped me a lot last season though, so I'm planning on sticking with it.

In other, un-cycling related news, I adopted a kitten last week. His name is Amos. He's a sweetie pie. Got a little bit of a cold/cough, but that should be cleared up soon.

and more pics here. And for those of you who were wondering, yes, I am well on my way to becoming a batty old cat lady.

Other than that, things are pretty much the ush. Skool is hard. It gets dark really early. Axel got a job at Eastern Mountain Sports. He seems to like it. They're moving him to Morristown NJ next week, so we'll see how that goes....

Back to homework. Kthxbai!!!

yay to a new kitteh

2009-11-08T10:38:00.000-08:00

So apparently Chan & Axel have a new kitteh. B's Picasa pictures show him to be ever so cute too. Oh oh how I want to pet their new kitteh ! What is kitteh's name?

Today Dan & I are going to race cross at Portland International Raceway for the Cross Crusade's penultimate series race. Well, I am going to race because Dan's derailleur flew into his spokes on the way to the now non-existent farmer's market last wednesday. He tried to put the der. from his road bike on, but it turns out that he needs a new chain and hanger. Poor dude. I'm going to race. The flu has been going around at work though, and last friday I felt pukey. Saturday I stayed in all day and rested, and felt fine, and today I can't tell how I feel! I might be feeling hot, but that might be because I've been wearing wool baselayers and the heat is on.... and I might be pukey, but it might be because I ate oatmeal in the morning.... or maybe this is all pms, or maybe I am nervous about racing... ugh, in any case, I've been drinking a lot of tea. In any case, I am racing today and I am going to have a blast and maybe even do well.

Speaking of cross, last weekend was amaaaaazing. Epic (for me, but I've only lived in Oregon for about a month!). Dan and I rented a car and drove to Astoria, on the coast. Actually the car was a Camry, and quite pleasant and even gave me a bit of a soft spot for cars, as it was cozy and warm and sure beat leaving at 8:00 pm Friday night to ride our bikes to Astoria with the gear on our backs. The race was at the fairgrounds, and it had rained a lot, leaving the place a muddy mess. When we rolled in, a group of about 4 older dudes dressed as Borat were racing. Yes, they were wearing the neon green thong. And yes, one of them at least experienced a wardrobe malfunction, though I only heard about it. Sunday was "official costume day" because it was tradition, even though Saturday was real Halloween. Dan and I only dressed up on Sunday.

Before my race Saturday, it poured for about 5 minutes, and all the women's Bs ran under tents. Then it cleared up and our race was on! Lots of fresh mud! I actually got a call up, which came as a pleasant surprise. We went down a screaming hill at the start, the kind of slick hill you can't brake on and that you slide all over the place at the bottom, where it turns, but your tires catch you and you keep pedaling like nothing happened because you have to climb another hill. That was a fun part. We wove in and out of stables (or something stable-y) which was slick, and there was a longish climb that you had to dismount in the middle of usually because it got too slick, and a few short climbs that you could get up if you got enough momentum. On one of these shorties, a girl crashed in front of me, and I crashed into her and our bikes got tangled, and when we thought we had them free they got tangled again... oh the laughs. There was a technical part with lots of turns and hills where I kept crashing into the chain-link fence. And then the finish line that was easy to sprint to, except that each time I sprinted to it I found I had one more lap. Ahh! It was a hard race for me, and a lot of fun. I got 7th! Dan ended up mid-pack that day. He was at the very back of the starting line-up and passed people the entire time, so he did pretty decently.

After the race, we watched the A's for a bit, drank a couple of beers, and got some dinner at a cheesy and expensive restaurant because we were too tired to go find the restaurant we were actually looking for. Dan ordered a burger with Habaneros and couldn't finish it because it was so hot! He was almost crying. He couldn't finish his beer. We counted, and there were 8 entire habaneros on the burger. Why he ordered it...? We went to our campsite at the gorgeous piney state park and crawled into our tent at 7:30. Yep, we slept for 15 hours that night!

Costume day! I put together a dinosaur costume with the remains of the padded foam from my Madone box and we got some funky clothes from the Goodwill. Dan wore a dalmatian print silk blouse with flowy purple pants and foam puppy ears. We called him a "Circus Pup". (???) We blended right in. Dan flatted on his second lap, which really sucked because he had gotten a good start for once, and was moving right up. It's hard in the B's because there are so many strong dudes. Oh well.. The course was different today, but equally muddy and fun and insane and hard. There were guys dressed in orange suits who acted as human barriers and race rules said we had to go over them just like they were real (non-human) barriers! How many times did they get kicked in the balls? I had gotten a better warm-up Sunday than Saturday and was more used to my tires and bike. (Saturday was my first race on Poprad for the season! Also, I am racing my EC90's with hot new grayish tubies that Dan got me for my birthday!) Sunday it was easier to see who was who: I knew Wonder Woman was in front, so I tried to catch her, for example. I spent the race chasing the blue/pink fairy and not letting Wonder Woman #2 and Mrs. Claus get me. Costumes are so much easier for me to spot than team kits. All team kits look the same.....well, except for that notorious joker skull! I ended up 4th on Sunday!

The A's race was a lot of fun to watch. We hung out for a while and then drove home. What a great weekend. Oh, you have to check out the cross pictures at pdxcross. They are beautiful black and white photos that really capture the spirit of cross. Y'all are missing out..

So yeah, everything is going well. Dan is applying for a head mechanic job at the moment. I'm enjoying my new job as well! The early mornings are fine now, and the commute is pretty fun. One afternoon last week, Anna and I rode by Nike headquarters and met with 7 other people commuting home from work! The nine of us continued to Portland together, and I ended up riding with two other people almost all the way home. There is certainly a camaraderie here! My new job is pretty fun, I really like my co-workers and boss and the office has a really comfortable atmosphere. There isn't a real feeling of hierarchy within their system, which is nice. Anna and I are new, but our jobs seem to be important to the company, after all, we make sure that people get their money back on returns! Everyone is so helpful at teaching us things, and I enjoy the pace of the job. One funny thing is that some of the regulars at Champaign Cycle also shop online at TE! When I discovered this it made me happy... the shop regulars are people I kind of miss!

So here's to fastgrrrlz :-)

Halloween !

2009-10-26T22:00:00.001-07:00

What should D.Penn & I dress like for Halloween????

Aaaand we're back!

2009-10-26T21:39:00.000-07:00

18 OCT. 2009: Wissahickon Cross Race. 35 degrees and raining. Grass, gravel, sand, and three barriers on a run up. They don't mess around out here....

FAST AGAIN FAST AGAIN FAST AGAIN!!!

2009-10-26T10:41:00.000-07:00

Wooooooooooo!!!!!!!!!!

B.Chan & I need to be fastgrrrlz again, we've decided. We are fastgrrrlz, and we will combat the snide actions of Team HeftyGalz and the like. (Chan, feel free to edit me).

Yesterday I raced cross here in Portland. I've missed 4 cross crusade races, and I decided enough is enough. Check out the other blog for the race report.

Not sure what I'll do with the smelly blog, as it's name is fabulous and would be a shame for it to go to waste. Must compartmentalize. Becky also has a hip newblog which employs the latest in blognology. It would be fun, though, for our friends to be sandwiched between the two coasts by B.Chan & me via this blog. We'll see what happens!

Hasta La Vista

2009-08-27T15:36:00.000-07:00

Alright. You can thank Comcast for not getting any Colorado pictures. Or a timely update. Seriously. It's been 2.5 weeks, 10 phone calls, a trip to the Comcast office, and my address still isn't in the "database".

Here are some terribly delayed CO trip highlights:

and, if you are so inclined, more here .

In other news, Philly is pretty cool. Although it will be much better after Axel finally gets here on Thursday. I joined a new team and they seem pretty cool, although quite the opposite of Wild Card. I'll probably race for Penn's team, too. The riding out here is lovely. It takes a bit to get out of the city, but once you do it's lots of rolling hills, quaint farms and twisty roads. I'm still learning the road network though, and haven't been brave enough to venture out on my own yet. This whole "terrain" and lack of a solid grid of roads is going to take some getting used to.

So this will probably be the last post on FASTGRRLZ for quite a while. I should probably start a blog of my own, but I doubt anyone would read it. Don't delete us from your GoogleReader, though. Maybe once Miz Miles gets to Portland we can trade stories on here about cross season...

-B.Chan, signing off

oh Mr. Axel!

2009-08-26T11:00:00.000-07:00

suxxxxxxxxx !

want to hear your update B.Chan!

And i won't be updating this blog nomore.....all's at smellmychamois.blogspot.com

we are going slowly..... ever....so.....slow....ly...

Oh Noes!

2009-08-16T17:58:00.000-07:00

Axel is Broke.

Back from CO

2009-08-14T21:33:00.000-07:00

Well, unfortunately Axel and I are back in Illinois. I'll post a full recap in a day or two but a couple highlights:

1. We successfully climbed Mt. Evans, the highest paved road in North America at 14,270 ft. Alex actually climbed from Idaho Springs, bringing his total altitude gain for the day to 7,000+ feet. What a hoss. I was just happy to make it to the top on my double.
2. We had a close encounter with a mama bear and her babies while hiking in Rocky Mountain National Park. Alex probably saved me from being eaten/mauled.
3. Alex's Mom didn't shoot us when we pulled up at 3:30am and camped on the family lawn.
4. 12 days. 2 showers.

More later.... but now I've gotta get some sleep. kbai!

NEW BLOG!

2009-08-10T22:13:00.000-07:00

Check Dan's and My new Blog, called SMELL MY CHAMOIS, for updates about our trip to Portland.

I probably won't be on fastgrrrlz much because we won't be going so fast and because Dan's not a girl.

relax...

2009-08-09T15:25:00.000-07:00

So I certainly don't feel too fast right now. Dan and I have moved out of the Shire completely, as of Thursday night. I have Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday off work so I've been just relaxing... and getting some stuff ready for the trip. I got soap, olive oil, agave nectar, sponges.... I cleaned my mtn bike and patched the tire, and mounted a computer on my touring gig. SO productive. I also got a really good tan (burn..) at the pool yesterday and went back for more today. Dan and I made chocolate fondue. It's the life. My friend Soli and her guy Robert are up here visiting for a day from STL and we made some fruity yummm pancakes for brekkie and lounged. Now we are going to ride into town and find the Korean food that we're all craving. Ahhh I don't know how much more relaxation I can take! I always need something to focus the attentions on... ahh bikes. fast. fast at bikes.

Soon we'll be off on our trip and it will be a whole new sort of relaxation. Tomorrow we are going to whittle our posessions down even more and start stuffing things in our bags.

Which three kits will I take?

Sock choices: DiNO Series woolie boolies, Capo black & white high socks, the black ones with the rose from the cross race in michigan, the pearl high woolies, the 7-up socks...

Oh must think of a new blog name for D and I. Forthcoming.

Greetings from Boulder, CO.....

2009-08-06T19:02:00.000-07:00

There are very steep mountains here and I go very slowly up them.

More later kthxbai!

Good Job at Elk Grove!

2009-08-03T06:40:00.001-07:00

Congrats to Pascale Petro from Project Five for winning the 3/4 race at Elk Grove! Can you say peak? Wow. This lady is smart and unstoppable. Amy Stauffer was 2nd, Siobhan Jones finished 3rd. Fine Chicago women Jannette Rho of Bouledogue Tout Noir and Leah Sanda of Flatlandia finished 4th and 5th. AWESOME. I'm curious as to whether Pascale will cat up soon? And Jannette and Leah?

The great thing about this is that R. F. from Vanderbitchen came in 8th. Ouch.

AAAAAAnd we all know that B.Chan and I could have taken ALL of them.

Just kidding... really! Good job!

........

Meanwhile, we are moving out. I packed up my Eastons. Our stuff is loaded up on the front porch of the thrift shop on Elm Street (well, not the Eastons). Dan and I have moved into Susan's place for the next two weeks; the bed is so big that I forgot he was in it last night and kicked my leg out really hard---perfect for an anti-snuggler like D.Penn. It's a posh lifestyle we're living right now--no bike parts popping out of my morning oatmeal or fluffy cat hair on my bath towel (SURPRISE! I gave Ollie a bath!). I thought I didn't have much stuff, but it keeps appearing. Moving sucks. More moving today after work though...

Mountain biking yesterday! YA! Nick and I drove out to Kickapoo and met Gene and Don there. Birkenstock didn't show up at the Shire, which was good because we didn't have room for him or his bike. No one knew Jason's phone # (he thinks we use cell phones here!). Nick and I were happy to see Gene and Don and we hit the trail when Larry also didn't show up. Kickapoo is hard! But so fun. The blackberries were are coming in and the trail was dry. Wish I would be here for the race at the end of August.

BTW Axel and Becky left on Friday. Not sure what their plans are exactly. Baiiiiiiiiiiiii! I kind of miss them already. Good thing we got an overdose of each other during Superweek!

Dan and I are going to start a blog about our trip. We're leaving the 16th of August. I'm so excited!

..and finally...SUPERWEEK! wrap up

2009-07-31T22:38:00.000-07:00

To sum: Superweek was hard.

We lined up at the Evanston crit with about 33 other girls. The course was technical, with a few fast and scary corners. I remember finding myself slip back into the back of the pack and kind of panicking about how to move up. I attacked into the BK pileup corner, but to no avail. The group stayed together the entire race, and i finished 17th in a group sprint. Yuck. After this race I was fairly discouraged, but I soon identified the problems: I had no idea how to ride in a pack of more than 10, I wasted too much energy, and I simply wasn't strong enough to outride the entire field! Evanston was heartbreaking, but it was real bike racing! Better luck the next day (this became the slogan of the week.)

The next race was in a park, with a slight uphill toward the finish. Again, the pack stayed together for the entire race. A couple of breakaways were attempted, but nothing stuck. In this race, I tried to tuck in and not waste a ton of energy, except when chasing down a couple girls for an attempted 3-man break. I finished 7th in the group sprint...better (in the money!).

The next day...... what was the next day? I can't remember! We drove up to Milwaukee and stayed with M.J., the woman with whom Alex stayed with during Superweek last year. She was awesome, and we really made ourselves at home. We slept in the basement, watched the Tour on a projection screen, and cooked our own meals in the kitchen. Perfect.

The road race! My favorite! It was a 5 mile loop and we did 4 laps. There was hill at the beginning, a screaming downhill, a serious bottleneck in the road, another hill, and a downhill with a tailwind to the finish. Lucky for us, it started raining as soon as the race started. It was a misty sprinkling rain, and sure enough, at the top of the screaming downhill a woman crashed in front of me and I (sitting 3rd wheel) rode into the curb to avoid her crash. My tubular flatted and I waved to the SRAM guy, who quickly put a hot Zipp wheel in there and pushed me off. I took it easy on the downhill because it was scary and lost some time. I chased. I thought about quitting, but then remembered that toward the end of the week I might stand a chance in the GC is I finished the races. I kept going..time trialled for 3 laps. I thought it was the last lap, and I saw myself closing in on the peloton as they rode through the finish. They kept going! I chased them up the hill, and at the top, pulled up next to B.Chan and said "hoiii!" and she looked at me like "where did u come from!!??" (Actually I wanted to say HOIII but i probably just breathed hard and said "uh...finally"). Caught them on the last lap. I sat in and then attacked on the uphill. On the downhill toward the finish, we had a small break going, but we got caught. I finished 14 I think that day. Decent for getting dropped. By the way, people say the dumbest things to dropped riders! "Just another fun group ride!" and "Oh...uh...that girl isn't giving up...Hmm.." Yeah well, ha!

Racine: Technical, flat, 8 corner kit. Fun! I broke away....had a gap...stayed away 5 laps, but WAY TOO EARLY!!!!!!! Would have won that race had I done that later (maybe). I had a lot of fun--it was better than riding around in circles and sprinting at the end. I finished 9th I think. In the money!

Kenosha: Four corner crit. I couldn't do much. Wanted to break away with 4 to go, but missed it. Booo...finished 9th again.

Another race: This was my favorite (because I did well?) ! It was in a park. On the second lap, a girl (fresh, hadn't raced all week) broke away and actually stayed away. I soon chased her down with Margaret from Utah Ski. A teammate of the flier went with us and seriously slowed us down. There was a semi-steep hill that I attacked up. I attacked the two women who I was working with, and dropped them for a bit, but they caught me and chewed me out a bit. Margaret didn't realize that the other girl was the flier's teammate! We only dropped her on the last second to last lap. I made the mistake of trying to attack up the hill the last lap and pulling for the whole time, finishing 3rd. My only podium...whewwww. This race brought my spirits up a bit!

I finished 10th in the last race, and ended up 4th in the GC for category 3/4. I was disappointed at how I did in a lot of races, but I guess 4th is pretty good! A woman from FLorida got 1st, Pascale Petro from Project 5 took 2nd, Rae from California took 3rd.

The week was great because I learned a lot about bike racing! I'm not ready to be a Cat. 2 yet--must learn how to ride my bike better first! A few things I noticed are that a lot of races end in a group sprint, and I hate that. I have to work to get myself out of that situation. Also, I have to save more energy, but I never want to be one of those racers that sits in the entire time. Boring. A real lame way to bike race. There was a team from California that brought 5 or 6 girls but never played any moves! Never sent a flier, rarely chased, never did well in a sprint or even led anyone out.... what's with that? So much wasted potential....mind boggling. All in all a hard week of racing because there were lots of strong girls.

And I think this is the end of my road season. Dan and I head out on our trip on the 16th, and we are getting everything ready and moving out of our apartment now. SO excited!!! And BAAAIIIIII to Axel and Becky who left today!

Lucky Sunglasses!

2009-07-18T19:26:00.000-07:00

On Friday morning I realized that my sunglasses had fallen out of my pocket during my Thursday night ride. On Friday morning, A.Miles and I rode back the way I went and found them in the road! So lucky!!

Wish us luck as Superweek. 3/4 Overall starts tomorrow at the Evanston Grand Prix!!!

Tour de Champaign Day 2: FASTGRRRLZ GET VICIOUS

2009-07-14T22:33:00.000-07:00

Not gonna lie: I was out for blood on Sunday.

It was a small field that lined up on Sunday morning, but a certain person who had finished in a certain place that they didn't deserve happened to stick around for a second day of racing. And proceeded to talk sh*t about "those b*tches from Wild Card" on the line as I was standing directly next to her. Whoa bear, whoa. What a Nasty Girl.

The race was actually kind of boring. None of our attacks really stuck. Nasty Girl was dropped. I wasn't feeling so hot to trot, but I was really excited when I saw Claire T. still in the main pack when we had 3 to go (keep your eye out for her in the coming seasons!). We came down to the last corner, and I was in pretty good positioning. A.Miles had so kindly blocked going into the last part of the last lap. And I just sorta gunned it. I remember thinking I might have gone a little too early, and couldn't tell where Vanderkitten was, so I just plowed through the line instead of throwing up the classic V arms (Varms?). I'll take looking like an amateur at the line over looking like an idiot and getting pipped a few meters short any day.

We started the Women's Open with another tiny field. The pack rolled around pretty slowly for a lap or two until there was a prime. I had no intention of going for any primes. Nor did I have any business doing so as my goal for this race was simply to hang on. But as we came into the straight away Nasty Girl began to go for it with probably about 100 meters to go. I could see her getting ready for it, and no one else really moving. This is incredibly unsportsmanlike, and I promise never to do it again, but I rode right up on Nasty Girl's left as she began to sprint for the line, turned my head to give her the B.Chan I VILL CRUSH YOUR SOUL look and then stepped on it to win the prime. Nananananana!

So shallow and pedantic. And yet so gratifying.

My hubris ultimately led to my demise in this race as the field attacked over the top of the first prime and the race blew up from there. I did lap nasty girl twice, however, before I cramped hard core and ended up pedaling around by myself for the last 15 minutes of the race. Not how I wanted my first Pro/1/2/3 race to go, but I should have been expecting as much seeing as I puked up my heed and soy protein after the first race of the day.

All in all a REALLY fun weekend. It was great seeing all the locals come out and hopefully enjoy the atmosphere at bike races as much as I do. And after learning that the pro women who showed up are more than 25 years older than me and still kicking ass, I am PUMPED for my career as a cyclist. Time to find a good team in Philly, so if anyone has any suggestions, lemme know.

So now I begin peak period in preparation for the last legs of my racing season in the Midwest. Axel is off to Superweek, I almost got hit by stupid SUV drivers on their cell phones twice on my way home today, I did the TT in seymour and dropped some time, and I joined twitter.

Until next time....

Champaign Criterium!

2009-07-14T10:24:00.000-07:00

Oh what a fabulous weekend! 4 races in 26 hours...whooo

Saturday was rainy. I feel as though all of you were present, so there's no need to go into great detail. It began raining in the beginning of the 4's race and poured and made the conditions hella slick. It dried a bit by the time ten 3/4 chicks lined up and then began drizzling about halfway through. I think that's how the weather went anyhow..

B.Chan attacked on the first lap. WHAT ARE YOU DOING GIRL!!?!?!? I followed and we dropped some people. Sometime after that, I attacked and she blocked. She did an amazing job because soon I lapped the stragglers and was in sight of the field again. I went hard at first, but Becky was blocking so well that I didn't work too terribly hard to keep my position...it was like a 20 minute interval. I smiled a few times and heard Larry shout from the corner "SHOW THOSE MEN HOW TO RACE!" haha ! It was fun. There were so many spectators! My fam was there and people I recognized from the shop and from the community. What fun.

SO the f*cked up thing is that the girl I lapped got 2nd place. She was dropped right at the beginning, and then I pulled her back up to the field. This may be true, but I have a fairly good recollection that I completely lapped her AND the field lapped her, and THEN she got on my wheel. I was going hard enough that my memory might not be correct, so I don't know... in any case, she got second. She stayed glued to my wheel for so many laps and did no work. I admire how well she drafts; I get scared to stay on someone's wheel on the slick corners. But she really did it...wow, what talent. At the finish line she was heard saying I feel bad for her (me)--she time trialed me the whole time and I came in first! Um, ok.

Some of the women were a little upset about the officials' decision. All I have to say is that this young woman was dropped on the first three laps of every race she entered so unless this is a racing strategy it might be in her best interest to train.

I missed the jump in the 1/2/3 race and Trish took off. I wanted to stay on her wheel, but instead another woman and I chased her around. We didn't gain much ground I don't think, and on the last lap I made sure that I didn't pull through the windy section, that I was first into the last corner, and I sprinted for second. I still don't know if the third place woman let me take second or if I actually beat her with my sprint. I hope for the latter.

Saturday was a good day! While we were racing, Dan's and my parents were hanging out for the first time, and that evening we had a cookout at the Penners. The parents get along :-) and seemed to enjoy themselves.

Sunday... the course had a few hills and it was impossible to get away. Becky and I attacked so many times, but were unable to lose the pack. A strong Vanderkitten girl showed up and made it pretty fun: she attacked on the hills and caught me every time I attacked her. Unfortunately she was pretty unfriendly and after the race when I tried to talk to her she ignored me. On the last lap, Becky was pulling through the back side and I got in front so she could get my wheel. I pulled her and the pack up the last hill, and she took off through the corner, sprinting to the V with the Vanderbitchin girl close behind. Gina Champion of Team Mack took third (and she told me she couldn't sprint!) Looking back, I wish I had sprinted out of the corner and taken third, but I was just so happy that B.Chan won, that I didn't care too much at the time. Besides, Gina is going for the IL cup so she can use the points!

The 1/2/3 race was next. There was a preme in the first few laps and I planned to attack right after it...but when B.CHan sprinted for it, everyone else did, and they were in front of me and I missed the jump. Texas Roadhouse took off, as pros often do, and B.CHan, the purple kit chick, and I made a chase group. Again I missed the jump. MUST WORK ON THIS. We could have gained more ground, but one of our women wasn't taking strong enough pulls. B.CHan and I were becoming frustrated. We attacked the leech girl from Saturday so she wouldn't get our wheel, and then we heard the pace car. Texas Roadhouse was lapping us, so I jumped on her wheel. I was nervous that maybe she would be pissed, but I figured that since she was a pro she could drop me anytime she wanted. She didn't drop me, so I hung on. I pulled her up the hill on the 3rd side and she seemed to appreciate it some (she said thanks) and kept on her wheel for a few laps. She had 45 seconds on 2 and 3, so I wasn't too far behind them. Then I lost her wheel. I was going so hard that I could feel every muscle fiber in my legs. I ate a goo and it got all over my face yuck.. I came in 4th. Had I not missed the jump, I could have done so much better! If I could stay with TR for that many laps, I could have definitely chased her with two other people. It was awesome though to just ride behind someone so fast and think that someday I can be like that too....

All in all it was a great weekend. Having the crazy bike shop regulars at the races was hilarious! Do you know that guy????? Well...yeah, he comes into the shop..he's harmless.... Having my family there was fun too. And racing 4 times in a weekend was epic for me and a great way to jumpstart my peak! Now after a rest day I feel ready to break a record at the tuesday night Time Trail ! Now I'll let b.Chan give her account of the weekend:

Champaign Crit: Day 1: FASTGRRRLZ ADOPT NEW RACE STRATEGY

2009-07-13T16:11:00.001-07:00

***WARNING***
The following blogpost is based solely on B.Chan's interpretation of Saturday's events.
It contains unsportsmanlike language;
Those easily offended need not read further.

Day 1 was fun-- we threw the regular attacks, waiting for one to stick and finally A.Miles got away. And boyyyy did she get away :) We basically played the same game but in opposite positions as Proctor. And blocking, although not as glorified as the break, is actually kind of fun. Especially when you are commanding the break. I would just sit in and chase movesif it looked like any girl was going to try to get away and occasionally heat things up to test who was tired and willing to chase and who was done for.

And then it began to rain. My original plan was to attack somewhere between 4 and 3 laps to go. I think I went at about 3 and gained some ground, but I could feel my back wheel slip out just a little bit more every time I went around a corner. Scary stuff. I slowed up and the chase was able to catch me. With two laps to go things got very, very confusing. Anona came around to lap the chase, also toting two girls, somewhere around the last turn. My immediate instinct was to chase her, but when I saw the girls she was toting with her, I was fairly certain the group I was in had already lapped these girls. No one else in the chase made any effort to jump so I stayed with them. We approach the last straight away and I see a girl in the group get out of her pedals. I'm not sure at this point if we have 1 lap to go still and she's attacking or if this is the last lap and she's sprinting for the finish. So I sped things up to stay with her. Before I knew it I was sliding through turn 1. Wanting to make sure I had clinched 2nd, I pick my bike up, jump back on and finish 1 last lap.

And this is where things got really screwy. Apparently I was not 2nd, as I thought, but 4th. According to the officials, the two girls on Anona's wheel had not been lapped by the chase, but instead had used her to blow past us. I have serious, serious doubts as to whether this was actually how the race went down. But if that's what really happened, then that's just tough sh*t and I should have known better.

But what made me the angriest about the whole situation was the incredibly disrespectful and unprofessional manner in which the officials handled the situation. Before the girl who actually should have gotten 4th place and I even made it to the MC stand, the officials snapped "You're wrong!" and told us to check our rule books. They refused to listen to our side of the story and kept demanding that we take out our rulebooks and reference the rules. (I'm sorry, but I don't carry my official copy of the USA cycling rulebook on my person at all times. It's so not aero.) One of the officials, who I doubt could even physically get ON a bike, kept reading the same ambiguous "rule" outloud. The icing on the cake of course was that due to a tacky manicure, this very same official could barely turn the pages of her own rule book. However, after being read several rules, tinted by by the officials' interpretations (which are, of course, correct because officials "go to official cycling referee camp in Colorado and take tests") I learned that had I sprinted down that last straight away and won the sprint I would have won the race. Riiiiiight.

This new and improved race strategy will certainly get me far at Evanston next weekend.

Anyways, in typical Stanley manner I rolled home to patch myself up from the crash and fume about the potential upgrade points I will not be receiving. I didn't race the women's open, and quite honestly, I don't regret that decision. Instead I rode back on the tandem with A.Dillon's brother, Andrew, and amazingly, I didn't kill us. After that it was delightful dinner with A.Dillon's family at Crane Alley, and then I crashed the Verizon Wireless team dinner (woops...)

2009-07-09T17:52:00.000-07:00

What a night for B.Chan and Axel ! In addition to the Pringles, Becky and Axel were spotted buying Barbara's all natural fig bars, which are a delicious alternative to hydrogenated-oil laced Fig Newtons. With these on hand, I am skeptical as to how bad the wait at Shnucks really was.

My friend sent me this link--check it out:

Apparently, farmers in Japan are creating huge murals in their fields by planting different colored rice plants. It's kind of cool.

.....

I am selling my fixie (minus the wheels). If you are interested, get in touch with me and I'll tell you about it. This photo is above; I don't know how to put it where I want it (that's what she said).

.....

The Tour is under way and it's pumping me up for bike riding in general. I'm easily excited... The sprint is the most thrilling part, but the climbing is really where it's at for me. I just finished reading Tim Krabbé's The Rider and I'm nostalgic for the days when riders drilled holes in their bikes to save weight and when they climbed mountain passes that were closed to vehicular traffic due to snowfall.

......

If anyone has seen a small white with black spots kitty that answers to the name "Cosette" let me know. A woman has been outside calling to her for the last couple of days :-(

New Old Saddle and Other Sundries....

2009-07-09T07:37:00.000-07:00

It was raining last night, so instead of going on the Wednesday night ride I switched my saddle out for a Selle San Marco I've had lying around or a while. This might have been a very foolish thing to do two days before a race, as I quite enjoyed the position of my old saddle, but I was bored and the rain showed no signs of slowing up. After meticulous measurements (ask Nick-- I had the T-Square out and everything!), and electrical tape to mark the old positions I installed the new old saddle . Took it for a ride this morning and voila! not too shabby. Ahhhhh, Wednesday nights with B.Chan...

The evening got a little more interesting after Axel got home. He decided to take a ride to the food co-op and I decided to join him. Riding across town in the rain was a rather unpleasant experience and I was pretty grumpy by the time we got there. My grumpiness escalated when my bike lock jammed. Axel, however, is quite handy and was able to get it open allowing me to safely lock the fuji up and go inside. I probably should have taken this as a warning sign NOT to keep using the lock, but I continued to do so at Schnucks, the second destination of the evening. Unfortunately, what was intended to be an in-and-out peanut butter and beer run turned into quite the snafu: 1 broken key, my precious fuji locked to the bike rack, Axel riding home to fetch a spare key and the car, and me sitting on a bench drowning my sorrows in pringles (side note: I really must put an end to this salt kick I'm on). Things got even worse when the SPARE KEY BROKE BEFORE WE EVEN GOT TO THE BIKE RACK. So, back once more to the Shire to find the "master" key and then back to Schnucks. Fortunately, the third key worked with some finagling and I was able to toss my bike in the back seat of the car and go home.

So today I get to try out an On Guard BRUTE. I'll let y'all know how it goes.

In other news, J.Cole was in town earlier this week, and I was able to catch up with her and Miz Moon over some home cookin' at the Apple Dumpling in Urbana. Good pickles at the salad bar, good rolls and a marvelous apple dumpling. It was good to hear that Morgan is back on her bike (watch out for her at the Chicago Crit!!) and Jess had an awesome time in Israel and is loving San Francisco. The plan was to hit the Blind Pig later that evening, but it started raining (again- ggrr!) and so plans sort of fizzled. Which means I STILL owe J.Cole quite a few beers. Hrrm, I suppose this means I'll have to start saving my frequent flyer miles for a ticket to Cali....

Alright, time to get some real work done.

See you all at the Champaign Crit!

One week till the Champaign Crit!

2009-07-06T06:40:00.000-07:00

Hoy!

Yesterday was the muddiest of muddy mud mud mountain bike race ever. Well, maybe not, but it was the first time I'd ridden in mud! SO FUN !!! It was a successful day. Nick finished 8th in the Cat 1 race, E.Mart finished well (can't remember, but check his blog), Dan finished fairly well on Nick's single speed without dying or getting bloodied up, and I took 1st in the women's Cat 2 race.

Pre-riding the first part of the trail scared the sh*t out of me, and then I got a big glop of mud in my eye. At the start though, it was a lot easier. I passed the first place woman in my category and followed the Cat. 1 women and tried to stay on their tail for as long as I could. There were lots of messy spots where riders had to dismount because of too-thick mud or rider pile-ups. I found my bike a lot easier to control than previous rides, probably because I'm getting used to it. It didn't go the opposite direction when I tried to steer it one way, so that was an advancement. I got going fast on the second half of the trail, and cleared a log that sent me flying into the air screaming. I said to myself "Ok A.miles, you're getting it!" only to flip over my handlebars on the next log! That hurt, and I found myself trapped under my HUGE bike in the middle of the trail. I felt like the thing was too heavy to move, and then I realized it was just a bike, pushed it aside, and hopped back on.. Oh! Then the first lap was over and it was time for the second. I hadn't seen the second place woman in a while, so I didn't kill myself trying to go fast. Maybe next time I will and see if I get a better lap time? I had dropped my waterbottle 5 minutes into the race, and had neglected E.Mart's advice to put one in the feed zone, so I was happy we only had two laps. The second lap was fairly uneventful, and I rolled into the finish only 10 seconds ahead of second place. 'Twas a fun race. I have a huge bruise on my left quad that hurts when I walk, but 'tis only a bruise. Last night I was dehydrated and grumpy and went to bed early when everyone was grilling and shooting off fireworks and drinking. Ugh...

One week until the Champaign Criterium(s) and I am pre-registered. Woot !

My sister received as a birthday present a 2002 Litespeed (aluminum and titanium/carbon stays) with Campy Centaur and speedplays. It was a combined gift from her b/f and my parents; a good deal on craigslist. Not a bad first road bike!

2009-07-04T10:34:00.000-07:00

Oh sad, it's supposed to rain all day... Sad sad sad.

Yesterday I did some lackluster 5 minute intervals...uhh... I was looking forward to some pain and suffering today. I guess the rain only adds to the pain and suffering...we'll see how easy it is to convince friends/teammates/roommates to join me...

Lonnie finished my tattoo Thursday night. Torture for over 4 hours... uhhh never getting another tattoo, it hurt so bad. But it looks great! I love it !

Yesterday Dan and I saw Transformers, which was the worst movie ever, and then Up, which was the cutest movie ever. I highly recommend Up ! I'm a sucker for heart warming animation I guess; I cried numerous times.

The girl who hit me with her car last week now thinks that "maybe I did hit her" and she is going to take the holiday weekend to find out how she can "protect herself". Okay, that's fine. I gave her the opportunity to just pay for the damages after she made it clear that she did not want me to file an insurance claim, and she has suddenly changed her mind. Silly girl, making it so much more difficult. She'll get what she deserves for hitting a cyclist. HA.

This week, the fastgrrlz get cold hearted, with B.Chan slashing tires and A.Miles zorring stupid drivers !

Prcotor Recap + 20 Minute Intervals

2009-07-01T07:03:00.000-07:00

Ugh.. this is so late.... So A. Miles pretty much summed up Proctor. Having gotten my Cat 3 upgrade on Wednesday I was pretty afraid of getting spit right out the back on the first lap. Rolling to the line I was nervous but not butterfly-puking-up-my breakfast-legs-feel-like-dead-weight nervous. As we rolled off the start line at the beginning of the race I did a good Noob job of missing my pedal and nailing myself with the top tube. Way to go, Chan.

I attacked early on, not thinking it would stick, and a girl from Proctor went with me. We worked together and our efforts combined with Anona blocking for me in the field allowed us to open up a sizeable gap. I went 2nd and Vanessa, the Proctor girl, took the State Championship Jersey.

Initially I was pretty happy with how the day went, but now that I've had a few days to stew there are a couple things that I learned, mostly having to do with being a Noob Cat 3.

Always bring food. Prior to the race I thought to myself, "How could I possibly use a whole bottle of HEED AND need a clif shot for a 30 minute race?" Um, yeah, needed it. Vanessa was nice enough to hand me a couple shot blocks. Otherwise who knows what might have happened....

Always race with confidence. I've been in a couple breaks in races this year now, and I still have yet to learn that I CAN put in the effort to stay away. I was scared in that break. Scared of getting caught, scared of getting dropped. Scared of the last lap of the race. I shouldn't have been. I did my fair share of pulls and stuck it out, so obviously I can handle it. Ugh, I just keep thinking about how that race could have gone differently had I screwed my head back on and raced with gusto.

Racing with teammates is FUN. Okay, I'm not just saying this because A.Miles did an awesome job of blocking for me. (And I still can't thank her enough!!!) But seriously, I think the biggest different in my training and riding this year is training, racing and living with cycling teammates/roommates/friends. It's like a built in motivation system before, during and after races. I love it.

Bottom line: I got 2nd and there's nothing I can do about it now. Lesson(s) learned. Well B.Chan, it's time to put the big GRRRL pants on and race like a Cat 3.

In other news: I'm getting stronger. I've been doing 20 minute intervals which I hate hate hate but seem to be working. I set new 10, 20 and 30 minute power records this week with about a 15% increase, respectively. What a wattage nerd.

AND Last but not least, a public service announcement...

TO ANY AND ALL CYCLISTS (ESPECIALLY WOMEN) READING THIS BLOG: SIGN UP FOR THE CHAMPAIGN CRITERIUM OR I WILL HUNT YOU DOWN AND SLASH YOUR TIRES.

Seriously. Who needs StooperWeek, anyways?

kthxbai!

Proctor... HOYYY!!

2009-06-29T21:14:00.000-07:00

Hoy!

Aw, no jersey ... but a great race. There were only 8 women at the start, which was alright; i think only 4 or 5 raced last year. The weather was cooler and less humid and the gusty winds were picking up. On the third lap (?) I threw an attack that didn't do much but make some girls breath harder. Becky pulled our favorite textbook move and threw an attack immediately after, and was chased by Vanessa of Proctor Cycling. Of course, my first instinct was to chase also, but then some little voice in my head told me to stay back and block. It was difficult to actually hold back and do what I felt like was the right thing...! I am usually way too sassy and try to outride the field, and while this might have worked in some 4s races, it's not the way to do things. I stayed back and slowed the field down. They were getting frustrated and only two women (Pascale of Project 5 and someone else) were doing the work. I got on the front when they tried to push the pace, and this went on for a few laps. The announcer even said that I was "relaxing" on the front.

Soon we lost sight of Becky and Vanessa and I threw an attack on the windy back stretch. I think I dropped everyone except two other women, and then attacked again on the uphill and was alone. (It might have been three attacks; I can't remember..I'm pretty sure it happened in one lap.)

So now I was solo trying to catch up on their 35 (?) second gap. It was about time too; the fans at the Roly Poly sandwich place on the backstretch had been heckling us saying "You gonna settle for third!???" I kept gaining on them, and at one point I think I heard there was a 17 second gap, and then maybe 15 seconds. I only found out later that Becky didn't know I was alone--she thought it was the whole chase group. Had she known, she could have slowed down and maybe we could have taken Vanessa. I went as hard as I could, but never caught them.

This whole race was so fun for me though--I felt really "in flow" and couldn't stop imagining Becky sprinting across the finish line and getting that jersey! Nevertheless, Vanessa won her hometown race. She's got some pretty impressive results too, especially after three years off!!! Good job girls... this was a fun fun fun race.

NOW practicing jumps & sprints. What if it's ME sprinting for the finish next time? And, if I have a good JUMP to begin with, everything will be that much easier!

"I didn't hit her--she hit me!!!!"

2009-06-26T21:24:00.000-07:00

um yeah..

So Alex and I were going out for a ride after work, and one block from our house I got hit by a car. The woman in the car went into the left lane to pass us and turned right into me. I was knocked to the pavement, livid & stunned, and immediately started yelling at the lady. Luckily I only have small scrapes on my elbow, ankle, and upper thigh. My bike isn't damaged too badly either--new bar tape, left hood, left crank arm, saddle, and it should be like it was before. The frame is a bit dinged, but it seems to be fine structurally.

Axel was still on his bike, and he chased her when she started driving away. She pulled into her (?) driveway a few feet away and yelled "I didn't hit her! She hit me!". I was walking toward her swearing like crazy... and when I got there she had realized that the accident was her fault. She was way more shaken than either of us were, and she apologized profusely and gave me a million hugs. She had just misjudged her turn. Ugh. How can you drive straight into a person on a bicycle? In a quiet residential neighborhood? I got her info while Alex checked my bike thoroughly, and then we left. Tomorrow I'll go to the police station and fill out a report, and then get an estimate of the damages.

We did get a nice ride in! I need to practice sprinting. Push a harder gear and stay out of the saddle longer. So hard..

The funny thing about this crash is that it was almost a year ago today that I ran a stop sign and rode into a car on Philo road. Del found me in the middle of the road and called an ambulance and went to the hospital with me. He even knew the driver of the vehicle. That crash was the turning point for me: after it I began working at the shop, began racing, started dating Dan and became friends with the whole crew I live with now. It turned out great :-) So today, Del came into the shop AND the guy who I ran into came in! It's the first time I've seen him since the crash, and the first time Del had seen him too. Weird? Yaa..

2009-06-26T08:09:00.000-07:00

Well, I got me a 3's upgrade a couple nights ago. Proctor is going to be so much fun!

Winghaven

2009-06-24T07:32:00.000-07:00

Nice posts B.Chan. We are generally slacking on this blog... o well..

So Winghaven! Women's open. I was nervous as hell and made the mistake of eating a free sample energy bar yuck. It was also hot that day, very hot.

There were 32 women on the start, among them a few 4s whom I had raced against before, and Team Revolution women, Mercy cycling, The Hub... there were some strong women on the line. The first couple of laps, I felt hot and I was freaking out around the roundabouts and the really fast corner after the downhill. (Weakness: cornering!). I tried to stay on the wheels of the really strong riders, and didn't have much trouble. There were a couple of attacks from Mercy cycling, but nothing stuck. I wasted some energy catching the group on the uphill after the fast corner, but never got dropped. Apparently we dropped half of the field on the first or second lap. There were a couple of points where I would have loved to attack, but held back because I knew I was racing against Cat 1's and had no teammates. I really wanted to stick to my goal of the race, which was to just feel out what it was like to be in a decent sized field of fast and experienced women, to finish with the main group, to ride smart and not be afraid of the technical stuff, and to finish in the money. I pulled the group for a bit on the third to last lap on the uphill section at the back--no problem. At the second to last lap, I was fourth wheel, and I wanted to keep the position, but lost it on the downhill because I was a bit scared. Then, on the uphill I sprinted up with the pack, and rolled into the finish 15th as the leaders really sprinted for the finish. $2000, 15 deep and I finished in the money! Also, I pedaled through most of the roundabouts. It was a good race. I didn't go all out, mainly because I'm not yet comfortable with racing my bike! But I'll learn. Each race gets smarter. Now I'm all ready for Proctor and that Illinois jersey :-)

AND it is hot outside.

FAST GRRRLZ

October.

Awesome August. Magical September.

learning how to race track bikes.

May/Early June Updates

pffffttt!!

sneak peak...

Updates...

Wasabi Warriors Take to the Road

*wattage nerd alert*

NEW JOB!! YEEE!

Snow sucks.

Blending with BCHAN

2011 !

Happy Happy!!!!

rollers!

Historical Research

Season's Greetings

Watch the Teaser! (Below)

The Teaser!

Life Updates from BCHAN

HI HI HI!

Looks like someone has a new jersey...

First Race Back!!

Back!!

Taking a break....

New Plan!

First USCF of the season: Lower Providence Crit 1/2/3

Things Girls Say During Bike Races, v.3

Things Girls Say During Bike Races, issue 2

Threshold Test!

Race Weekend Recap

FROLLER !!!

naps !

omg omg so much to catch up on !

Here's to you, Mr. Upper Dublin Police Man

Collegiate Season Opener: Rutgers Frozen Toes Race Weeked

Sweet Cherry Pie

No snow here !

CAT lady

C & B

Snowed in

WHOAAAAA A NEW LOOK!

Tis the Season!

PDX group rides !

Nutrition.

i want to start blogging again

EURO MULLET

Collegiate Racing RAR!

ditto my dear-o !

Wanted: 1 "Bike Wife"

Updates from Philly

yay to a new kitteh

Halloween !

Aaaand we're back!

FAST AGAIN FAST AGAIN FAST AGAIN!!!

Hasta La Vista

oh Mr. Axel!

Oh Noes!

Back from CO

NEW BLOG!

relax...

Greetings from Boulder, CO.....

Good Job at Elk Grove!

..and finally...SUPERWEEK! wrap up

Lucky Sunglasses!

Tour de Champaign Day 2: FASTGRRRLZ GET VICIOUS

Champaign Criterium!

Champaign Crit: Day 1: FASTGRRRLZ ADOPT NEW RACE STRATEGY

New Old Saddle and Other Sundries....

One week till the Champaign Crit!

Prcotor Recap + 20 Minute Intervals

Proctor... HOYYY!!

"I didn't hit her--she hit me!!!!"

Winghaven

wattage nerd alert