Two Adventures

Florida

2012-01-17T13:55:00.003-05:00

Despite not really having anything resembling winter just yet, I spent this past weekend in Panama City Beach, FL. My mom and dad are spending their third winter down there, and I made the trip down to spend some quality time with them, and the sun.

We had a great visit. Lots of walking, catching up, and lots of sun. The weather was MUCH more pleasant than when I was there last year (shorts and bare feet were possible all but the first day). And, I somehow managed to miss the coldest weekend we've had so far (I did, however, time my arrival back in Boston with a blizzard. The drive from Logan to home was a white-knuckle affair with nary a plow nor salt/sand truck in sight!).

In case you are suffering from some winter doldrums, here are a few pics from the trip.

Making Lemonade

2012-01-07T21:34:00.003-05:00

Excited to be out riding

Usually in January we have a decent snow cover in place, temps are frigid, and any time on the bike is in the basement. This year is a bit odd (but not unheard of - we had similar weather in January 2007), and we don't yet have any snow, everything is dry, and temps have fluctuated wildly - Tuesday night got down into the low teens, and today saw temps in the low sixties. Crazy.

With no snow (and a new snow blower, new skate skis, new snow boots, season passes to Weston...) there's nothing else for us to do but ride our bikes. Many years, at this time of the year, I am wiped out from riding/racing and need a break. That is still the case this year (I really could use a break and do wish it would snow), but I'm embracing what we have, and ENJOYING the time on the bike - making lemonade and having [gasp] fun.

Merry Christmas!

Over the Christmas break, Mike and I rode every day but two. We enjoyed our annual Christmas Day MTB ride - exploring conservation trails in Bedford, trails behind Middlesex Community College and then into the PR. We rode in the frigid cold on the road for two days, enjoyed short rides in the woods, and rang in the New Year with some new faces.

Where's the snow?

This past week, we continued the rides. Tuesday morning, it seemed like a terrific idea to me to invite my trusty riding partner, Teri, for an after work jaunt in the woods. Nothing unusual about that - except that the temperature when we rolled out from the house was a frigid 17.8 F! Let me be clear - IT. WAS. COLD. Since we are both too stubborn (stupid?), we bundled up like the Michelin man, put on the lights and headed into the woods. Getting to the trail head requires a bit of pavement time, and with the added windchill, I actually believed we may not be able to get through our intended route.

I have the opposite problem of many people - my hands are typically too warm, and I need to wear thinner gloves than most. That night, however, my fingers were frozen within 10 minutes - to the point of not being able to feel the brake levers! And the CamelBak I filled with water before leaving? Yeah - the hose on that sucker froze before hitting the trail head.

We stopped briefly in the woods to try and get some circulation in the hands, which helped. In the end, we managed to finish our intended loop and had an awesome night of riding, without turning into ice cubes. On returning to the house, the temp had dropped a couple of degrees, and was sitting at 15.1. Definitely the coldest ride so far this year (season). Likely to be a few more.

An awesome ride with T&S

So, bragging rights for the coldest ride of the year. Today, though, was a different story - Teri, Serene and I set out to do the big loop on the MTBs under bright sunshine and with starting temps already in the upper 40s. It only got warmer through our ride - when I got home, the thermometer said 59, and it had already begun to cool down!

Here Llama, llama, llama...

I was over-joyed to be out today - enjoying the unseasonable weather, the perfect trail conditions, the company of friends - the zen of being on the bike. The euphoria was overwhelming at times - I felt like I could ride forever. After almost 3.5 hours (and over 32 miles) it was time to end what for me was a perfect day. If we can't have snow, I sure do hope we can have a few more of these!

So, what do you do when life gives you lemons?

The End

2011-12-30T10:51:00.001-05:00

We're into the final few days of 2011. As I get older, it seems that the years seem to pass more and more quickly. I think I am turning into my grandmother :). It's natural at this time of year, to look back and reflect on the past twelve months - the good, the bad and the in between. Here are a few highlights:

With all the snow we had in the winter, Mike and I put in A LOT of hours on the skate skis, as well as some time on the cruisers in the woods. It was awesome to do something different from all the riding. It did, however, mean that we spent even LESS time in Bethel - the conditions were so good in MA, it just didn't make sense for us to make the drive up to ME most weekends. We also discovered biathlon - which I have fallen completely in love with!

We celebrated Opie and Ellie's first birthday, and one year adoption. All the celebrating was followed by an admonishment from the vet, and a diet plan for the poor kitties. They continue to wreak havoc - unfurling toilet paper, chewing on boxes, eating donuts out of the box (not kidding), and chewing the Christmas decorations. It's a darned good thing they are so cute!

I fell out of and back into and back out of love with road racing. While I scaled back on the total number of races, I had some success, some fun, and some disappointment. 2012 is likely to see even less road racing for me.

I also scaled back the number of MTB races, but did have some success at a couple of races, and ate more than my fair share of mud at a couple of others. We had a least two "epic" races in the rain/mud, including sinking so far into a puddle while riding, that my butt was submerged!

I continued to see improvement at the weekly TT. In fact, this season I hit a PR of 23:03 for our 9.75 mile course, making me the 5th fastest woman to race the course. I was ecstatic at first, but then realized that I need just 4 seconds to get into the elusive 22 minute range. Worse, I THEN realized that I need 22 seconds to become the third fastest woman... Goals. It's all about goals :) Good thing that Santa brought us some wind tunnel time.

Mike started a Junior Development team this year, and I helped. I think this is one of the greatest accomplishments of the year, at least for me. What started out as 2-3 kids who wanted nothing more than to ride together, turned into a team of 10 who trained together weekly, raced together and have really bonded. Despite some issues staying upright (and two concussions), the team had a very successful year on the road, and then transitioned to 'cross - something NONE of the kids had done before! Thanks to generous donations from NEBC members and Mike's time and know-how, we managed to get 5 bikes out to the kids and they raced full seasons, falling in love with the sport that Mike and I love so much. I'm very much looking forward to next season with the team, and hoping we can all manage to keep the rubber side down.

I ended my tenure as president of NEBC. Since 2005 I have been the Women's 3/4 team captain, a BOD member and president. It was time for me to move aside for someone new to bring their ideas to the table. Part of me was sad to let go of something that I poured a lot of time, energy and passion into, but it was the right decision.

We added a new room to the house - a three season sun room. We're really excited about being able to use the room next year - it got a bit too chilly for us to use it this year after it was finished.

And then there was the 'cross season. I had some highs and some lows during a "scaled back" season of 22 races. The lows included some less than stellar performances in the Verge races this season (the competition was tough, and my head wasn't in the game). While it was fun to see my friends every weekend, I just couldn't motivate myself in those races. I did have some success in the smaller races, including my best performances of the year in Canton and Plymouth (despite nearly crashing spectacularly).

The biggest success for me, however, came in racing my SS CX bike. I had a win and a couple of other podiums in the Zanconato SSCX series, and ended up winning the women's series outright at the Ice Weasels (despite being told by someone that I was taking the race too seriously). The series win was followed up the next weekend at the New England Regional Championships where I took the Women's SS CX title. The season was long (we started racing CX in August this year, and went all the way through the weekend before Christmas), and again, part of me is sad that it is over - I miss my friends from CX, and in a way, the routine of racing every weekend. Again, looking ahead to next year.

And by far the biggest accomplishment of 2011 at our house was becoming debt free :)

I am really looking forward to 2012 - lots of goals to achieve and adventures to be had. For the past couple of years, I have really not been excited about racing my bike, but now, with the season just barely put to rest, I am looking forward to and planning for the year ahead with great anticipation - the training, the racing, the camaraderie of my fellow cyclists, and the time spent with my favorite riding partner. I'm hoping for great things, but more importantly, fun times.

Wishing you and your families a very healthy, happy and adventurous 2012!

The CXers Are Coming, The CXers Are Coming!

2011-09-30T10:43:00.011-04:00

And the British came too!
(this photo by Russ Campbell; podium photo by Michael Foley)

Wednesday night we ventured to the Lancaster Fairgrounds to kick off what has been dubbed the "Holy Week of Cyclocross" here in New England. The Midnight Ride of Cyclocross would be the first in a series of 6 races over an 11 day period - Gloucester, Night Weasels and Providence would round out the "Holy Week".

This race marked the second in the Zanconato Single Speed series as well, so Mike and I decided those were the races we would do. I really wanted no part of lining up with the likes of Helen Wyman (British National CX champ), Gabriella Day, Mo Bruno-Roy and other REALLY fast women. Instead, I took the line with 49 of my SS friends (sadly, there were only 3 of us women) to blast away for 45 minutes with only one gear.

Prior to the race start there was much discussion amongst competitors about gearing choices. I laughed when Cort C. asked what gear I was running. Those of you who know me know that I don't pay ANY attention to those details - I simply ride what Mike puts on my bike. Cort laughed at that, and then agreed with me that zip-ties on a geared bike to limit to a SS was actually cheating. The people doing that had the opportunity to find the right gear for the course on the pre-ride, and then quickly zip tie their shifters into their selected gear. It's much harder to change out cogs than it is to zip tie a shifter - just sayin'.

I really liked that the promoters of this race staged the women SS racers amongst the men. I had reservations about this at first, but it turned out to be a big benefit as I had people with whom to race the entire time. Because of my points and being pre-reg'd for the race, I managed to be in about the 6th row starting out, allowing me a good opportunity to move up on the start whistle, and then to quickly get passed by some stronger men who had the misfortune of being staged behind me ;). The first twists and turns on lap one were a cluster - being so far back, there was a lot of braking, jostling and wistfully watching the front of the race maneuver seamlessly about 3-4 turns ahead of us.

I settled in, closely watching the other women competitors through the twists and turns. When I came through and saw 3 laps to go, I quite literally told myself that meant that I only had two - I was FULLY expecting to be lapped by the front runners of the men's race, as I had been at Quad. By that lap, I was attached to teammate Mark L. and a "Dr. Gonzo" racer (that's what was printed on his butt, which is all I saw). They rode smoothly, gapping me off in some corners and on the uphills, but I chased and could catch back on on the flats and power sections.

Going into the penultimate lap, I figured this was my last go round, but I was still with Mark and Dr. Gonzo. I had paid attention in the previous lap, and was able now to stay with them in the corners, pedaling through instead of coasting and sprinting. And then they slowed down. It became obvious that Dr. Gonzo was drafting to conserve energy, and I couldn't get around both of the riders. When Dr. Gonzo finally passed Mark just before the barriers, I shouted at him to hop on Gonzo's wheel and stick to it. That got me the evil glare from Dr. Gonzo, and he stepped on the gas to open an insurmountable gap.

Mark cramped at that point, and I left him to chase the racers ahead. Suddenly, I could see the race leaders on the course behind, and I literally talked myself through the latter part of the lap - spectators on the course probably wondered who the crazy lady was as "Don't get lapped" "Don't let Curtis lap you" "C'mon Cathy, go, go, go" came out of my mouth (in pants) as I desperately tried to NOT get lapped by Curtis, or any of the other leaders.

Curtis was coming, I stepped on the gas. I needed to ride the technical hill section cleanly to stay ahead. As I sprinted towards the start/finish, I checked under my arm to see where Curtis was, and pumped my fist when I realized that I really was going to finish on the lead lap! Wahoo!

I just needed to ride one more lap, and to ride it clean. I did get passed by the last racer on the course who wasn't lapped, shouted at the Elite men who were warming up that I WAS still racing, and finished off the race ecstatic - I had won the women's SS race, and I DID NOT GET LAPPED by Curtis! Success!

It hurt. It was hard. But it was oh so much fun. I don't think I've had that much fun racing my bike in a long time! So excited that this series is in place. Of course, now there is a giant sucking sound as I look at results and realize that I might need to do more of these races than originally planned to defend my position - maybe that was the intent ;).

Time for Some 'Cross Racing!

2011-09-12T13:59:00.010-04:00

I'll admit that my excitement for racing this year has been pretty hard to muster. There have been only a handful of road races, and a few more MTB races - down a significant number from previous years. I have been riding, but the racing just wasn't doing it for me.

But, it's "fall", and that means 'cross. And I am finally excited again about the prospect of getting out and racing! I love this time of year, and I love the feeling of a just finished cross race - knowing that I have gone out, and laid it all on the line for 40 minutes.

Two weeks ago, Mike and I headed out to Monson for our season opener in advance of the pending hurricane. The forecast was for overcast skies and humid temps, but no rain until late in the afternoon. On pre-riding the course I was VERY excited about the changes from the previous year - no more "I'm-gonna-poop-my-pants" downhill followed directly by the "I'm -going-to-have-a-heart-attack" climb. I liked the changes in general, though the laps were going to be on the short side.

Mike's race was first, and he had a demon or two to tame on this course over last year ;). He raced really well, quickly catching the 1/2/3 field that started 10 seconds ahead of him, and getting through most of them. I'm never sure which one of us is more excited about him having a good finish, but his reaction on crossing the line showed that he was pretty excited about his win - as was I.

I went off after his race to get ready, and Mike took the juniors out on the course for a preview. We were all racing at the same time, which was going to be - um - interesting. As we stood ready to race, the beginnings of the rain started, and it POURED. So much for the rain holding off until AFTER our race! The rain made the course conditions much more challenging - what had been dry for Mike's races was now mud-riddled and sloggy for us. The poor conditions, in addition to witnessing a junior racer (thankfully, not one of ours) introduce his face to a chain link fence made me race tentatively - not a good approach, and something I needed to work on. I wasn't entirely happy with my performance, but I looked at the race as an opener for the season.

Mike and I pre-reg'd last week for the upcoming Quadcross race, and I started obsessing. I checked start lists, and I checked them again. I looked at the crossresults.com race predictor. Then I started "freaking out" (in my friend Vicki's words) about the race. In fact, Vicki and I went back and forth a bit, and it was through those interactions that I realized I was being dumb. So much of racing is mental, and I needed to give myself a swift kick in the back end to realize that I have the engine - I needed to WANT it. So, I changed my attitude - I wanted to race. I was going to go hard. I was going to be aggressive. I WASN'T going to give in to self-doubt and self-talk. This is MY season!

So, after remembering how to pack the car for two people racing a day of 'cross, we headed off to Quadcross. In year's past, this has been held in Bedford - entirely convenient for us to roll out of bed and over to the venue! Unfortunately, a new venue had to be used this year and we had to drive all the way to *gasp* Maynard :). The venue was spectacular, and I have to say, the course was A LOT of fun.

The combined Women's 1/2/3, 3/4 and 3/4 Master's 40+ fields had 85 racers! That is A LOT of women out enjoying one of the most fun cycling disciplines you can find. It was also fun to see so many NEBC women on the line (11 in total). Because the Master's women were lined up BEHIND the 3/4 women, and starting at the same time, a good start was going to be essential. Unfortunately, I found myself suddenly behind a woman on an MTB who needed to borrow a t-shirt to wear under her sleeveless jersey! YIKES! That aside, I tore up the left side as hard as I could on the start, and made good headway through the field ahead. Then it was a matter of being smart and getting through as much traffic as possible, as quickly as possible.

It was confusing to know just who from my field was ahead of me - Andrea from CCB passed, as did Michele and a racer I didn't know. I figured that meant that I was sitting in about 4th place. I continued to push hard through the whole race, and at the finish, expected that I had ended up about 6th or so (ironically, where crossresults.com said I would be). Turned out I missed the Cycle Lodge women having a better start than I did! I ended up 7th, but ahead of some fast women I typically don't (or am lucky to) beat. I was really happy with the way I raced.

Instead of changing, having some food (and a beer), and taking in the aura of a 'cross race, I spent the next couple of hours on my feet - first watching our juniors experience the wonderful world of pain that is cyclocross, and then watching Mike's oh-so-competitive Master's 1/2/3 35+ race. Mike had a terrific race, finishing in 5th place! Of course in that time, there was also some socializing and running back and forth. I'm pretty sure that all of that was good prep for the coming SS race later in the afternoon ...

Yes - for some reason we decided that racing a SECOND time, on the SS bikes would be a good idea. There is a real SS series happening this year (though I think zip tied shifters are cheating) - 6 races with a raffle for a custom Zanconato frame at the end of the season. What's not to love about racing SS 'cross bikes?

Unfortunately, the standing, running, lack of eating and hydration and the almost 4 hours between races was enough to put me in a bad place - massive dehydration headache and legs that were shouting "ARE YOU CRAZY?" on my pre-ride lap. Of course, I shouted back "STFU legs!" and went out to race anyway. A good number of men lined up, but only 3 women, so the officials set us off about 15 seconds behind them. Like my previous race, I went out hard, trying to distance myself from the other two women. The defining moment came on the second uphill on the course - Cait rode it, and I had to run. Poo. I managed to stick with her for awhile, but then my legs stopped listening when I told them to STFU, and they started screaming back. I did finally manage to ride that uphill (screw you, legs!) for the final three laps, but it was too late - couldn't catch Cait.

I did get lapped by a bunch of the men, including Mike. I was surprised not to see him near the front of the race, but when he went by, he let me know that his chain kept popping off. He needs to fire his mechanic :). After arriving at the race venue at 8:30 in the morning, racing two races, catching up with the 'cross family, downing one beer at the end of the day, and collecting some sweet coffee schwag for the SS race, it was time to finally head home - after 5 pm! It was a long day, but I am SO PUMPED now for the rest of the season.

Speedy

2011-08-17T09:06:00.006-04:00

I have been participating in the CBTT (Charlie Baker Time Trial) since 2005, and have made significant time improvements over the years I have been racing - some as a result of coughing up for all the right equipment, but also through some hard work.

Last week, I rode from the house over to the event, as usual, and felt like absolute poo. I had raced a VERY muddy and wet MTB race the Sunday before (that took over 3 hours due to miserable conditions and a rear wheel that wouldn't turn on it's own), and had ridden reasonably hard with our junior development team the night prior. I figured that this was just not my night, and accepted that. The excuses were flowing fast and furious before I even started!

Heading out on the first leg of the loop (it's a 9.75 mile course with all right hand turns and one climb), I felt good, and was surprised to see speeds in the 27 to 30 mph range without feeling as if I was killing myself. I know that those speeds are high, and I backed off just a bit, worried that I wouldn't have anything left on the backside [hilly] part of the course if I went all out here. I assumed that I was riding with a major tailwind and would wind up paying later.

Mike started 30 seconds behind me, and I was surprised at how long it took him to catch me. When he did go by, I made it a goal to see how long I could keep him in sight, knowing he would soon be gone. I maintained visual contact all through the second leg of the course (woohoo!). As we made the right turn onto the final leg, I was very surprised to find myself closing the gap between us. Um - now what do I do? I shouldn't be passing him back - just not possible! But, pass him I did. And then I floored it to see if I could maintain my position.

I crossed the finish line in 23:03 - 14 seconds FASTER than my previous PR set last year!!! That equates to a 25.4 mph average speed. I am, of course, excited about the new PR, but also a bit disappointed that I couldn't find the extra 4 seconds needed to break into the 22 minute range. This is why I keep going BACK to the stupid TT! I also did a search of faster times over the years. There are now only 4 women faster than me, and 3 of them are professional triathletes with Ironman wins and a World Championship, and the other is an Olympic cycling hopeful for 2012! Not bad company, I'd say.

Tonight - the MTB TT championship!

Never Say Never Again

2011-08-02T17:15:00.005-04:00

After my last experience racing on the road this year, I said I was done. That was it - no more for me, thank you very much. Those of you who have hung out in this black hole of a blog for any time may remember that I have a bit of an issue with NOT racing whatever I decide it is I've had it with - this year road racing, last year, MTB racing (but I've NEVER quit 'cross - that would be crazy!).

All that said, I really like the Norwell race, and have done it a couple of times in the past with the Master's 45+ men (before they re-introduced a women's field). I debated a bit about registering though - I planned to ride the Fundo (64 miles and almost 5000 ft of climbing) the day before, and wasn't sure how the legs would hold up. The early morning start was also unattractive after getting up early for the Fundo. I briefly considered racing with the Master men again given their later start, but figured with so many teammates heading to the early women's race, I needed to be a team player :).

At the pre-race meeting, Juliane asked what everyone's goals were. Mine was simple - hang in. My legs felt like lead on the pre-ride, and 9 times up the finish hill after the previous days' effort was certain to hurt - A LOT. Jackie was more direct though - she wanted to win. I told her I would help if I could.

The race started out steadily enough, but with some suspicious bike handling by a few riders. We had a couple of strong women who tried attacking downhill - something I have learned (the hard way) never works. They must have learned it too, because I think they wore themselves out.

The first time a break went up the road, it was launched on the finish hill - the perfect place for it. We could see that group for a long time, and it was pretty easy to tell that they weren't working together. With a little effort from various racers, we managed to catch them. I did think it was funny that one racer said "C'mon - let's catch them. Just one more hard effort", but never put in an effort on the front herself...

The next time up the finish hill, though, another small break formed with three riders, including Jackie (again). After telling another NEBC racer NOT to chase her teammate, I sat on the front for a bit, literally sitting up (and no one trying to go around me, which I thought odd), and let the group of three get a good sized gap. Then, it was just a matter of defending. The chase group was made up of 6 racers, with 3 of us from NEBC. At this point, my goal was to sit second wheel and not do any work to bring back the break. Now, we were racing for 4th place!

The tactics worked perfectly. At one point, another racer (and NEBC member, but racing for another team) tried to wave me through, but I was having none of it given that I had a teammate up the road. She and another racer did try to work together for a time, but they couldn't shake any of the NEBC women :).

In the final lap, I found myself on the front of our group (not where I wanted to be or should have been, but I drifted there climbing the hill). As we descended the hill on the backside, teammate Lisa L. was there, and I jumped on her wheel. I told her that she needed to go as hard as she could despite being tired. Lisa pulled like crazy along the false flat leading to the finish (later commenting that she felt like a sled dog with me calling mush!), delivering our group to the base of the final climb. I started the sprint, and was happy to see Julianne take the field sprint for 4th, and Elizabeth finish 7th. After all of the work, I was happy with the 9th place finish, and excited that after the previous days' effort, my legs held up for the team.

There was real racing happening in this field. Constant attacks and perfect team tactics. I might have even had some fun racing my road bike, but we'll keep that just between us :).

No More Paying to Ride in Circles

2011-05-16T11:02:00.003-04:00

I have been racing my bike for well over a decade. While I started out racing on the dirt, I soon discovered time trials and road racing, and then the vortex that is cyclocross. And I loved it all. The more races the better - I was having a blast!

This year, however, my enthusiasm to race is less. I still LOVE to ride my bike, but the racing is not as exciting to me. In fact, after my experiences racing on the road this season, I believe I am done with that discipline. Paying money to go and ride around in circles with other women at 15-16 mph, just to see who can outsprint whom at the finish, is not racing to me. I'll have no more part of it.

You see, I lack patience. In my first race of the season, I attacked, attacked again, and attacked some more. Each time, every one of the women in the field came with me, and then, when I pulled off the front, settled in to a 16 mph pace. In that race, myself and a teammate did the bulk of the time on the front of the field, trying to animate the race. I finally gave up and did what everyone else was doing - sat in and waited to race in the final half mile. I ended up on the podium, but didn't feel good about it.

This past weekend, it was more of the same negative racing. Really, if all you intend to do in a race is sit in the field for 20 or 30 miles, comment on how we must be having a coffee break now or what a great group ride this is, and then sprint at the end - what have you accomplished? Why not just have a 5 minute sprint race? Why waste all the rest of the time?

So, with my lack of patience rearing its ugly head again on the weekend, as we rode along at 15.5 mph, I muttered, "Seriously?", and then laid down an attack - ramping the speeds up into the 20+ mph range. Of course, the entire field marked the attack, and proceeded to sit on my wheel. When I finally gave up, the counter attack went and all of those "sitter-inners" went with it. Me? I got dropped, but I never felt bad; I knew that I had animated an otherwise boring ride around in circles.

I managed to catch back onto the group (thanks in part to the field being neutralized, but also in part to their speed vs. mine) and heard "Well, we won't catch them." I also heard the coffee break comment - from someone who never once put their wheel in the wind, never once tried to make it a race. If you are going to sit in and suck wheel, you have NO RIGHT to complain about the pace of the race - it's within your control to change. Don't wait for/expect someone else to do it! There were only 2 women in the main field who legitimately shouldn't have been working - they had teammates in a break up the road. The rest of the field, however, shouldn't have let one of those two set the pace at 15 mph...

My lack of patience got the best of me again at the finish - I jumped too early and dragged at least 3 of the "sitter-inners" with me, getting bested by them at the line. Yes, I know that part of racing is tactics - I've been racing long enough to know that and to understand how to make them work. But how did all of these women end up with the mentality that they would just sit in and sprint at the finish????

I think I'll switch my focus away from the road for now. The frustration level for me is just too high. Instead, I'll do what I do best - TT and MTB through the summer seasons, and cross in the fall. Those disciplines let me race - REALLY race. There is no hiding or sitting in, and I can truly feel good about my results. The effort is hard for the ENTIRE race, not just the final 200 meters.

Here's Mud In Your Eye

2011-04-28T08:00:00.003-04:00

It's 4 days post race, and I'm still digging dirt out of my eyes. And the kit that I washed 4 times (plus one hosing outside) still has dirt in it, too.

I was reluctant to do this race - not because of the course, but because of the weather. Through the night prior, I could hear the rain hitting the skylight in the bedroom. It rained the entire way down to Taunton, and it was WET. It didn't help when the park ranger shared that the forecast was for a pretty good thunderstorm rolling through around 11 am - right when our race was to start. And did I mention that temps were in the low 40s? Not only was it wet, but it was also cold.

After some socializing, registering and getting kitted up, Mike and I went out to do some recon on the course. At that point, it wasn't raining, and the trails were in surprisingly good shape. Pre-race intel told me there were a lot of roots and a couple of bridges - wet roots are gross; wet bridges scare the pants off of me! I didn't think the roots were that bad, and after balking at the second bridge on the pre-ride and Mike MAKING me go back and clean it (he's good like that!), I was ready to roll.

We went back to the car for some last minute fueling and changing and that's when the skies opened. It was DEFINITELY going to be rainy, wet and slimy for our race - hooray!

On the start line, we all stood shivering - Pro women and Cat 1 women all together. We were already soaked through and hadn't yet turned over the pedals! I looked at Karin, whose lips were literally blue and wondered how on earth we were going to make it through 3 laps of this. And I felt a little bit guilty - I had talked my friend Meg into upgrading (she won the Cat 2 race at Winding Trails by 7 minutes) and I was thinking of her aversion to racing in the rain to begin with, and now she was lined up for an extra lap of suffering (and kudos to her for finishing a strong 4th)!

I made the mistake of removing my glasses before the race, and putting them in my jacket, which I was leaving at the start line. The lenses were spotted with rain, and were fogging up on me making them pretty much useless. I decided it would be best to race without them - a decision I would come to regret less than 5 minutes into the race!

On the whistle it was a mad sprint up the pavement to try and beat the chaos into the woods. I managed to get in right behind the pros, Karin and a couple of younger Cat 1s, with several racers still behind me. The initial pace was fast and furious and before I knew it, I was following those in front, digging mud out of my eyes, and riding over both the bridges that I had not really liked on the pre-ride. Thankfully, I didn't get caught out - behind, I could hear someone miss the entrance to the second bridge, holding up the riders behind. I was now in the front group, with just Rachel in my category ahead of me.

I chased Rachel for quite awhile - slipping my tires on a climb I had made on the pre-ride, and being forced off the bike. This opened a gap that I was having trouble closing. Soon, I came upon Rachel on the side of the trail. I asked if she was ok, but kept riding. She chased on, and on the next technical climb, passed me again. I could see her for the remainder of the lap, but after missing the dreaded bridge on the second lap, she got away, never to be seen again. At that point, I almost shut it down - I just didn't want it bad enough.

Fortunately, every time I looked behind me, I could see Michelle P. - not quite close enough to catch, but close enough that it made me uncomfortable, and I went just a bit harder, even though she wasn't in my category! That got me through the second lap of the race, at which point, I lost sight of Michelle as well.

The third lap was pure misery. I was cold and the course had turned into a giant power-sucking mud pit. The hills were now all runs as traction was gone on all but the most impossible of lines. I had no one in front, and no one I could see behind. About 5 miles from the finish, I heard the dreaded sound of a stick in my derailleur. Oh no! After looking down, I heard and saw the stick dislodge, and figured that someone was smiling down on me. Walking the final 5 miles would have been more misery than I could have managed!

Unfortunately, I now only had about 4 gears with which to work. I figured that either the stick had tweaked something in the derailleur or the hanger, or that the mud had caked into the drive train badly enough to ensure that shifting was now pretty much out of the question. I got a clean line down the treacherous "point and shoot" mud chute, and spun what gears I had as best I could on the remaining flat/downhill sections.

As I came into the final 2 run-ups of the course I caught a glimpse of a racer coming up from behind - NO! At this point, I was absolutely NOT getting caught. I had two near perfect cross remounts, and pushed as hard as I was able to cross the finish line in 2nd place. The advertised 21.3 mile race was actually almost 25 miles and over 2.5 hours.

Mike met me at the finish, and saw that about 2" of my free-loading stick was still stuck in my derailleur, having broken the jockey pulley! It was luck that I didn't completely shatter it during the race!

Then it was back to the car to try to get warm and clean-ish before heading home. Not only did I have dirt in places no one should EVER have dirt, but I learned that the reason I couldn't get anything to drink from my Camelbak was because it had leaked - my legs were dyed blue! With the weather conditions, I didn't even notice...

Was it fun? Well, I'm sick now and cleaning up was a disaster. The race itself was an exercise in suffering. But it makes a good story, and left a lasting impression on my eyes ;)

I Fought the Demons - And I Won!

2011-04-25T08:59:00.005-04:00

It was a hard fought battle!

Racing is supposed to be fun. We don't get paid to go out on the weekends and ride around as hard as we can for 2+ hours, so it should be fun. Right? Then how come this race got in my head so badly, making the nerves and anxiety what I remember most?

I like the Winding Trails course a lot, and was really looking forward to this race - especially after a really good solo MTB ride during the week prior. I had heard about changes to the course, and on pre-riding, determined that they were for the better - more twisty windy singletrack, but even fewer places to recover. It was going to be an all out sufferfest for sure.

The nerves and anxiety started on the line. I have always done well at this venue - winning twice, and finishing second one other time. I looked around at the women in the Cat 1 field, and was suddenly intimidated. What if I didn't do as well this year? My nemesis, Sue L was here - I can't beat her, was what I told myself (in my defense, the last time Sue raced here she beat all of the Cat 1 and Pro women, and put 11 minutes into my time). I wasn't where I wanted to be on the start line. It was going to be tough, and the mental demons were waging a war that they were intent on winning.

Thankfully, on the whistle, the demons quieted their war temporarily - enough for me to focus on getting a good position going into the singletrack. Oddly, as the first woman on the trail endoed on the log in front of me, cursed like a sailor, and then cut me off as she got back on her bike, it was me telling her that she needed to be calm. Me - 1; Demons - 0.

With only two young'uns off in front of me the first lap, I went hard. Too hard (and I knew it). Approaching the finish of the first lap, I knew that Sue was gaining on me. Then, she passed me, and I couldn't counter. I had gone out too hard for the first lap, and it wasn't going to be sustainable for another 3. I watched her ride away, and never saw her again. Me - 1; Demons - 1.

I pressed on in the second lap and was surprised to be passed by another racer late in the lap. I was now in 3rd place. Me - 1; Demons - 2. This wouldn't do. I had resigned myself to 2nd place before the race even started, but I was intent on NOT finishing 3rd! I got my head back into the race, and out of the war to chase her down and pass her back. Me - 2; Demons - 2.

Despite lapping traffic (including causing Mike to bobble and slow as he tried to get by me - never a good thing to get in the way of your spouse ;)), I managed to stay in front of the remainder of the women for the rest of the race (although in the final lap, I could certainly see people gaining, and had to put in an extra effort to maintain my position). I crossed the line in 2nd place - goal achieved! Me - 3; Demons - 2. Sue bested me by 6 minutes (hey - this is an improvement!), and I managed to hold off the next woman in my field by a mere 32 seconds. It was a victory with a slim margin, but I would take it.

In the battle of me vs. the demons, it appears that I won ;).

Finding Zen

2011-04-15T07:10:00.007-04:00

I had a long day in the office, I was cranky, and the last thing I wanted to do was ride my bike. Add that my trusty riding companions couldn't join me, and I was even less motivated ('cause I REALLY didn't want to go and suffer with the boys!). There was a time when any one of those would have kept me indoors - especially the thought of going out and riding in the woods alone.

I still suited up, strapped on the helmet, grabbed the bike, and went out the door, fully expecting I would ride just for an hour or so - enough to say I had done it.

But once I was on the bike, and finally into the woods, things changed. It was quiet - just me and the bike. I focused not on the results of the day or the week, but on the trail stretched out before me - leading me further into the woods. The bike wanted to ride, and who was I to hold it back?

I became one with the bike - floating over the rocks and roots, nailing the turns, clicking, shifting and pedaling without thinking. I was savoring the woods - I didn't hear the traffic, and was only interrupted from my zen-like state a few times, while passing other riders out for the same reason. A quick hello, and we passed, each off to continue to get the most out of the ride.

I cleaned the Smash Your Hooch trail from end to end, and let out a small whoop of joy. I smiled as I rode the Gravity Cavity, past the Mini Mangler, across the Bridge Too Far, both directions on the Refrigerator Door trail. I was muddy and I was happy, and grinning while I rode.

As the sun finally started to dip, I heard in my head the voice of my mother from my childhood. "You need to come in. It's getting dark out." So I did what every good kid in the same situation would have done - rode one more trail, just because, and then took the long way home.

When the Cat's Away...

2011-04-13T09:31:00.003-04:00

OK. So the cats stayed home and Mike and I went away. But, I specifically told them both that they were to be NO PARTIES while we were gone, and that if there were, we would find out about it. Apparently, they weren't listening, or thought the consequences wouldn't be too harsh...

Sure enough, we received the photographic evidence of their shennanigans. But how can you stay angry at such cute kittens? And who among us hasn't tried the same thing at one time or another?

April Fools

2011-04-01T08:54:00.003-04:00

One of my all time favorite April Fools jokes growing up was to get up early, and then tell my little brother that it had snowed overnight. I'm not sure why, but every year when I said this, he would get up and look out the window, and I would yell "April Fool"! He didn't think it was funny.

This morning, I don't think it's funny either. The overnight storm waffled an apple tree in the backyard as well as dislodging a huge limb from a maple tree that just missed a fence.

Enough already - this really isn't funny!

Lemon Meringue Pie Day

2011-03-01T05:00:00.000-05:00

I officially declare today to be Lemon Meringue Pie Day!

This was my brother's favorite dessert, and today, he should have turned 40. I should be calling him, giving him a VERY HARD time about getting old, and turning the big 4-0. He should be replying that I'll always be older (true!), and twisting the tables by commenting on my gray hair ;).

Instead, I celebrate his birthday eating his favorite dessert, and remembering all of the good times we shared. The pie, and the memories, are both delicious.

Happy 40th Brad!

Turn It Off!

2011-02-01T15:56:00.005-05:00

Don't get me wrong - I love snow. Earlier this winter, I was chastising people for complaining about the snow - it's winter in New England after all. But, even I have almost had enough. Every Wednesday we get another foot or more of snow! I'm fine with it, but when I have to shovel the snowbanks in preparation for the next storm, or help lug the snow blower onto the roof, it's really a bit much.

Here are some scenes from today's snow - for my mom and dad who are in sunny, snow-less Florida...

From the front of the house to the street, and back

The neighbor's driveway - his car barely fits in the opening

The front walkway and yard - we shoveled those banks yesterday to make room for today's snow.

Mike has shoveled the roof multiple times, but still there is ice - and snow.

The narrow tunnel that is our street; today's accumulation on the grill

Winter's Delight

2011-01-23T11:04:00.007-05:00

Last weekend - Panama City Beach, FL to visit mom and dad

This weekend - Lincoln, MA with MKR

Blizzard 2010

2010-12-27T11:07:00.003-05:00

The snow is finally here, and at our house, there is major excitement. Even Opie and Ellie are excited (trust me - this was excitement!). Opie was just like a little kid - shivering madly, but wanting ever so badly to go back outside and play! That's what we're off to do now...

Flying with MRC

2010-10-19T21:42:00.004-04:00

Flyover? Really?

When I first heard about the now infamous flyover from Gary of MRC, I told him that if there was to be a flyover, I wasn’t racing. So much for that! I thankfully saw a photo of said contraption prior to arriving on-site, and figured it couldn’t be that bad. Plus, when we arrived, all the Cat 4 men were riding it without incident…

On the pre-ride, I got to the top and thought – “Oh – I don’t think so!”, but knew that the only way down was on my bike. Paul Curley had gone down ahead with Mike, and called back to me to just look at Mike and go – so I did. Piece of cake! Luckily, Mike and I were able to convince some of our other teammates of this before the race as well.

I lined up on the start line of the 1/2/3 race right behind Andrea Smith of Ladies First. I knew that would be a good choice, and it turned out I was right – she launched like rockets were attached to her bike on the whistle, and all I could do was try [in vain] to hang on. I had a great start, and was still within striking distance of the front group on the first part of the course. Unfortunately, I overcooked a corner just before the “kitty litter”, and completely slid out, coming off my bike. Michele got by me then (DOH!), but I stayed right on her wheel. I figured I would use her in the sections where drafting was an advantage. Then, I hesitated too long on the top of the flyover (note: do NOT put right leg over and then put left foot into pedal all while standing still!), and Sally also got by me, and Michele had a gap.

Now I was in a bit of a panic. I REALLY didn’t want to let either Sally or Michele get away, so I attached myself as close as possible to Sally’s wheel – too close. Just after we went under the flyover, Sally over-banked a turn and lost traction with both wheels. She went one way across the course, and her bike went another. And I had nowhere to go. I think I managed a paniced “Oh no!” before riding over some part of Sally’s bike, coming to a stop and asking if Sally was ok. I seemed fine, my bike seemed fine, and someone (Mike, as it turned out) was screaming at me to go – so I did. Unfortunately, I never caught back up to Michele, but I did find out that Sally got back into the race and was ok.

I LOVED the course, and ultimately, the flyover (despite the fact that I never really mastered the remount there).

The hardest part of my racing day, however, was standing and watching as Mike and Ryan duked it out for the finish of the Men’s 35+ race. I think if I had had my HR monitor running, it would have shown my highest HR of the day! It was nerve-wracking indeed, but came out well in the end.

Racing Suckerbrook

2010-09-28T21:21:00.016-04:00

Five years ago, I raced Suckerbrook as my first-ever 'cross race. Who knows how many 'cross races later, I still think this is one of my favorites of the season - great course, great organization, and a great cause (oh, and don't tell Mike, but I love Jack! ;)).

I pre-rode with some of the other NEBC women before the race to dial in the lines, and see what had changed since I last raced here (I had to miss it last year due to a family commitment). There were more corners (YAY), the same stairs and whoop-dee-dos (although with more sand this year), fewer trees, the same amount of rocks, a new log and woods section, and the dreaded sand. And despite multiple practice sessions in sand prior to the race, and multiple tries before the race at a clean line, I ended up running most of that section during the race.

As everyone knows (or now knows), the first race at Suckerbrook is TO the race. Despite a 9:45 start time, I was second to line up on the start - at 9:29 ;). But, it got me a terrific starting position on the front row, and I tried (in vain) to stay with hole-shot-Sally on the whistle. I did end up onto the course in 4th, and quickly moved up into second place behind Emily. And that's where I stayed for 3 of the 4 laps - slowly making up time on Emily in the power sections (and the whoop-dee-doo section), only to lose it once we hit the sand. Apparently the front was a good place to be - the course was REALLY dusty, and without a significant number of people in front, I was clearly able to see the entire time (and likely didn't eat quite as much dirt as some others later in the day).

And then, in the 3rd or 4th lap, the 3rd place racer caught and passed me as well. I had seen her coming for a bit and tried ever-so-hard to stay ahead of her. When she passed, though, instead of giving up the chase, I burned matches to stay attached. I was closing in on both Kate and Emily on the final lap when my foot popped out of my pedal on the uphill whoop-dee-doo - leaving me to see them ahead, but not be able to catch.

I was pretty pleased to finish with my best result here ever - landing on the podium. Thanks to EVERYONE who cheered madly from the sidelines - I heard you all, and gave the race everything I could.

After watching the start of Mike's race, and a quick stop at the podium, it was off to the pit for me to watch/support Mike. Here's his version of his race:

I’ve always had reasonable results at SBC and enjoy the race. This was the site of my legitimate entrance into cyclocross back in 2006. Prior to that I had only done a total of two races back in the late ‘90’s. Coming in this year I’ve had a string of issues and most recently back to back horrible results. I saw this race as a crossroad. If the luck changed, I could still pull off a good season but if it didn’t, I may just give it up.

Many of the big guns chose to race the Elite race instead of the Master’s race. Going in, I’d planned to do both. I felt pretty good and was hoping for a good show in the AM race. I started from the front row but once again got a terrible start; I just can’t seem to sprint start in a cross race for some reason. Immediately I was mid-pack. Some strategic chasing and frantic passing got me up to the lead group. Unfortunately I tried a dicey move on the last up of the steep up, down, up but got taken to the tape and hooked around a stake. Off the bike, untangle, running, remount, dismount, barrier and I’d lost half a dozen spots and was gassed. More frantic chasing, passing, and attempting to pass people with superior skills who didn’t want to be passed and the group was gone. All I could do from there was settle and start making ground back, which I did until I missed a turn where the tape was broken in the field and rode off course only to have to stop, turn around and ride back.

The laps went by and I feared the worst, however the gap was coming down. With about 2 to go I was in 8th and could now readily see the group of three just ahead. On the final lap I knew that it was now or never so focused on the catch. I made contact on the back double-track section with a surge around Ryan R. so as not to let him attach. We were thick with traffic and dust so I had to keep on the gas around the corner and into the log hop. At that point I contacted Big Al and Jeff M. as well as some traffic behind them. On the final double-track into the sand I passed the traffic and launched as hard as I could so as to hit the sand first. It worked albeit with a little rubbing when Al switched lanes at the last minute. I pinned it along the fence and then when we made the corner on the pavement I laid down all of the seated power that I could muster, which fortunately was enough to win the sprint, with a bike throw, by a solid wheel length. Nothing like waiting for the last minute I guess.

What Mike's report doesn't tell you is that he had a great ride, finishing 5th in the Elite Master's 35+ field! It helps to make up for some of the racing last weekend...

We both planned on doing a second race, but after hanging out and standing up for too long, decided to sit and spectate while heckling our friends instead! It was a terrific day and many thanks to Jack and Justin for their hard work in making it happen. We'll be back next year for sure!

I Winned!*

2010-09-25T19:43:00.006-04:00

This year is my fifth season of racing 'cross. I remember back in 2006 when my good friend Cris told me that I needed to "try" a 'cross race to see what it was like. I finished 14 races that season, and have been hooked ever since.

Despite wins on the road and on the MTB between then and now, I haven't been able to get a win on the 'cross bike. Last weekend at Green Mountain, that changed - finally! Of course, I had to race the "old ladies" (W 35+) to get the win, but I'll still take it.

I was excited when I saw that Alan was going to offer a Master's Women's field, and signed up for that category to support the effort, and in the hopes that more promoters would offer a field specifically for Master's Women. The only downside? We raced at the same time as the 3/4 women (same start time - no gap), but had to stage IN THE BACK ROW! DOH! It was a challenge to get past many of the women in front. I pulled a bit of a dicey move, starting in the middle of the last row, taking 3 pedal strokes, and moving immediately to the far right to move my way up the field.

I could see the leaders of the 3/4 race ahead of me, and put my head down to make as much progress as I could. Part way through the third and final lap, I looked and could see the 2nd place woman in my field behind. At that point, the race was mine to lose, and I didn't want her to catch. I buried myself, running scared, to the line - using the 3/4 field as rabbits (I passed my teammate Sam, but she passed me back and I was too gassed to get back by her). I managed to cross the line ahead of the remainder of the 35+ field to take my first ever 'cross win! Wahoo!

Sunday's race wasn't as kind. I got stuck in some 3/4 traffic forcing me to come to a complete stop at one point, and the leaders were gone. Every time I would catch on, they would accelerate and I couldn't respond. I finished just off the podium in 4th place on Sunday, disappointed that I hadn't had a better race.

The next Verge series race is in New Gloucester, ME, and John G has also added a W 35+ field! Looking forward to getting out and trying my hand again. Before then, there is a lot of racing to do - starting with Suckerbrook tomorrow!

*Disclaimer - the grammatically incorrect title was written by an English major ;)

Kitten Cam

2010-09-17T21:46:00.003-04:00

Ellie loves laundry
Opie being lazy

I folded all the clothes - the dryer is empty!

Best pals.

It's Here, It's Here, It's Here!

2010-09-17T21:16:00.007-04:00

Since I'm sitting in VT ready for the first weekend of Verge racing, I figured I'd better get my race report from LAST weekend's race up...

Yes, fellow crossers, there is a Santa Claus, and he brought the 2010 'cross season! I am literally like a 5 year old on Christmas morning - ecstatic over the possibility of what is to come this season.

Last Sunday was the "official" start of my 'cross season at Quad Cross (I did do one race in August, but hey - it was AUGUST and 90 degrees - not really 'cross ). The best part was that the race was in my hometown - no 2 hour, 1.5 hour or 3 hour drive to get to the race venue. Instead, I rode over from the house to get my warmup in for a 9:00 am start, while Mike brought the car loaded with pit bikes, tent, clothes, food, water... Packing for 'cross is a SCIENCE!

I did a few warmup laps on the course and L-O-V-E-D it. It wasn't technical except for all of the corners - the one thing I am really good at! There were also long power sections, another strong suit for me.

Imagine lining up with 46 Cat 3/4 women, and 6 45+ women at the first "real" race of the season. There were many who were out for their first 'cross racing experience - or their first ever bike racing experience! So exciting to see the enthusiasm, and feel all of that energy.

Unfortunately, I didn't get a great start and ended up in a bottleneck in the first corner, putting me immediately at a deficit. From there, I got caught behind a crash, further opening a gap to the leaders that proved to be insurmountable the remainder of the race. I did, however, have a race on my hands with those around me, and quickly became frustrated at the lack of cornering skills of some of the other racers. I may even have become a bit more vocal than I maybe should have, as a result of that frustration .

One of my Cross Results nemesis' was ahead at one point, and literally put her foot down (not out, DOWN) in every corner. She braked going into a small sandy section, and got completely bogged down in her gearing. At one point I said to her, "For God's sake, SHIFT!". Finally able to get past her, I managed to open a gap in the remainder of the race, by getting into the corners first, and powering back out of them.

I finished in the top 10, but wasn't completely satisfied - a better start and some smarter handling behind some other racers would have certainly helped.

Of course, if one race is good, two must be better, right? Later in the afternoon, I lined back up for the 1/2/3 race - 40 more minutes of top notch fun . I think I might have a slight issue...the fast girls were in the house, so I knew I was going to have to lay it all out. I was worried before the start that having already raced, I was really going to embarass myself. On the whistle, I dug deep and had a great start, only to come to a screeching halt in the first corner - DOH! Apparently bad cornering skills aren't limited to the 3/4 field . I was off on the chase but felt surprisingly good!

Suddenly, as we entered the first technical S-turn, I found my legs spinning and the bike not moving - my chain had jumped off the front ring, but NOT over the chain guide. I had to come to a complete stop to get it back onto the chainring, remounted and found it still wasn't engaged. Another try and I was back iin the race - DFL. EVERYONE had passed me. SIGH.

I put my head down and motored. I made solid progress throughout the race, and was one of the LAST people not to get lapped by the leaders. I was happy about that, but slightly disappointed about the mechanical. I would love to know how that might have worked out since I really felt better and better as the race progressed...

So, now it's on! Races both days, every weekend, between now and the middle of December! The Verge Series starts here in Williston, VT tomorrow, and a pre-ride shows that I really should have made sure to pack my climbing legs.

Regardless, I'm so excited! Thank you Santa, for bringing the 'cross season back.

What I Did on Summer Vacation

2010-07-11T11:41:00.010-04:00

Sunday - rode my bike (75 miles)
Monday - rode my bike (60 miles)
Tuesday - rode my bike (60 miles)
Wednesday - rode my bike (62.2 miles)
Thursday - rode my bike, twice (43.2 and 18.8 miles)
Friday - rode my bike (28.4 miles)
Saturday - raced my bike (26 miles)

It was a big mileage/hour week for me - in fact, the biggest ever. I ended seven days of riding (on 4 different bikes) with 373.6 miles/20.5 hours in the saddle. Now, I need a vacation from my vacation ;).

The week culminated with a return to the Attleboro Crit. Two years ago, I managed somehow to win the 3/4 race here. This year, I went and raced the Women's 30+ race. I was a bit concerned that all the miles on my legs would be an issue, but I had a good race, stayed away from the crash in the field, and managed to hold on to a 2nd place finish in the end! More importantly, I had fun racing my bike - something that I haven't had for awhile now. I'm hoping the big training week, and the successful race, will be the end of my riding/racing funk!

After my race, it was time to plunk myself in a chair for the remainder of the day, and watch as Mike contested both the M35+ and the P/1/2/3 races, for 95 total laps of the course (after already having 400+ miles for the week!). He looked strong and held on well in both races. Looks like he is going to have another strong 'cross season ahead!

The Overnight

2010-06-27T12:02:00.022-04:00

Twenty-three years ago, I became a suicide survivor. I was nineteen, and had a week left before high school graduation. My best friend and first love lost his battle with depression on May 1. Seemingly, he had a lot to live for - college, a loving family and friends who adored him. None of that was enough to save him.

I still remember that day vividly, down to what he was wearing, and the fact that we fought - our final words to each other. That experience shaped me for the next several years as I struggled to understand, to make sense of the non-sensical. The memories have not faded, nor will they ever.

Last year, I became a second time survivor when my thirty-eight year old younger brother ended his life on May 14. I was celebrating my birthday with friends when I got the call from my mother. In an instant, life was turned upside down. He left not only my mom & dad and myself, but also a six year old daughter. Once again, I struggled to understand.

They say that hindsight is 20/20. In hindsight, looking at my brother's behavior over several years, he was most certainly battling some sort of depression. His highs were high, but the lows were at the bottom. In some conversations, I felt as if I were walking on eggshells, just waiting to step on the right one, and have it crack. Despite my previous experience, I was oblivious to my brother's illness.

In the days, weeks and months after Brad's death, I shied away from telling people about how he died. Society has placed a stigma on suicide and depression. Both are looked at as character flaws, weaknesses. As I have continued to heal, I realized that this stigma is just that - a label that is convenient, but wrong. We are accepting of diseases that can kill, like cancer, diabetes, heart disease - even AIDS. But mental illnesses (which can also kill) are still something that society feels should remain a "dirty little secret".

Last night, I took a step (18 miles worth, actually ;)) to erase that stigma. The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP) hosted its annual walk, "The Overnight - A Walk Out of the Darkness". Accompanied by good friends Hannah, Michele and Sue, and my new friend Lindsay, I walked to help raise awareness - to remove the stigma attached to suicide and depression - to help just one person make a different choice and get the treatment they need.

This was an emotional journey that started when I decided to sign up for the walk in late May. First, I needed to tell my parents, who are still healing themselves, what I was planning. They were both very supportive and even helped to spread the word to their friends. Next was actually putting out to the world via email and Facebook that my brother had committed suicide; a major step, but one that was met with compassion and understanding.

In fact, the response to what I was doing was overwhelming to me. I heard from so many people who had in some way been affected by depression and/or suicide. Brothers, cousins, fathers and uncles lost, children struggling, personal struggles. It was an honor to share those stories with all of you and I thank you from the bottom of my heart for the support that you gave, both in financial contributions and emotionally.

I knew going in that this event was not going to be easy. I wasn't so much worried about the walk, as the emotional aspect that I would face. And, as I registered and got myself squared away prior to the event, the emotion hit full force. As part of the event, walkers are sent luminary bags to decorate which are then used to light the path back to the event in the early morning hours. I found pictures of Brad and I from 1974 and 1995, had copies made, and attached them to my luminary, as well as writing a note. When I went to hand the bag off, I just couldn't do it. It was just a symbol, but it was symbolic of the relationship we shared, and the first tears were shed. I ended up carrying the bag to dinner, but did manage to turn it in (tear free) before the walk started.

The opening ceremony was another very emotional event. Here we were, sitting in City Hall Plaza, almost 2000 people who all had lost someone to suicide/depression, or were themselves, battling to overcome the disease. Twenty-three years ago, I felt like NO ONE, with the exception of my friend's family, knew what I was going through, and that I was alone. Last year, again, I felt that sense of aloneness - people couldn't possibly understand what this was like. And last night, I was surrounded by 2000 people who all KNEW exactly what it was like.

The personal stories were heart-wrenching, as were the reactions of the people in the crowd. In front of us, a mother, father and daughter all clung to one another - they had lost their son/brother. Beside us, a woman on her own (who we later walked with for several miles), remembered her best friend's father (her best friend was married last week, and the absence of her father was difficult for everyone). Brothers, sisters, mothers, fathers, husbands, wives, grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins. So much loss in such a small space.

But, as we began the walk, the mood shifted. People were excited to be underway, to be walking to make a difference. Tears were replaced with laughter. Conversations were animated, and many stopped to take in the sights along the way.

We started the walk at City Hall Plaza, and headed to Beacon Street - past the State Capital, the sunset reflecting in the gold dome. We crossed the Charles on the Mass Ave Bridge, and walked along the opposite shore - flanked by MIT on one side, and the Boston skyline on the other. And then, back across the river and back into the city - past BU and around Fenway Park. By this point, we had come from some of the last walkers to start, up through the pack to pass much of the peloton (oh - wait - this isn't supposed to be a race report!).

It was at Fenway, at mile 6.2 (and after 10 pm), that Mike was waiting. He had ridden in from home to cheer us on, and to show his support. Along the way, he'd gotten lost, but was determined to be there when we walked past. It meant a lot to me that he was there, just as it has meant a lot to me that he has supported me through this difficult time in my life. I don't say it to him often enough, but I thank him for being there, and helping me along the right path.

We left Mike and Fenway behind (he later texted to let me know he'd gotten home just before 11:30 - by then, we were in Southie!), and continued walking all the way down Boylston St - through the shopping district, past many VERY busy bars, along the opposite side of the Boston Common, and into Chinatown. We saw some pretty interesting characters on this stretch of the walk. I'm not sure some of the skirts could have been shorter, or the heels taller! DOH - that just showed my age, some ;).

From there, we passed South Station and headed into the Seaport district. We were excited along this part of the route to pass the halfway mark - nine miles down, and only nine more to go! All five of us were still hanging tough, ready to conquer the remainder of the route.

I had never been to South Boston before, but the neighborhood here was actually quite lovely. Nice architecture, and we walked along L street to the shore, where we were greeted with the ocean, some fireworks, a lovely park, and lots of "kids" just hanging out. We reached the "dinner" stop on Castle Island around 12:30 a.m. I didn't realize that a ham sandwich at that hour could taste so good ;). We spent a bit of time here, eating, stretching and changing our socks. We were at mile 12.3, and on the homeward stretch now.

But, just like on a long bike ride, the stop likely wasn't a great idea. It was about this point that the tired started to settle in, and the aches started to be more pronounced. Around mile 15, as we passed Rowe's Wharf, Lindsay claimed that she felt as if she were waddling - it took all of our effort to pick the legs up and move them forward without swinging them in a half circle. Our last pit stop came around mile 16 at the New England Aquarium. By now, all 5 of us had sore feet, sore hip flexors, and were pretty fatigued. We felt a few splatters of rain as we passed the TD Garden, but it was, thankfully, short lived.

We knew we were near the finish. As we approached City Hall Plaza just before 2:30 am, we were all tired. What greeted us there were cheery volunteers, 2000 lit luminara telling the stories of victims and survivors, and - breakfast. We took one last photo together - we made it. Eighteen miles all to help make a difference. My feet were sore, my legs were sore, and I was ready to go to bed. But none of that compares to the pain and suffering that my brother dealt with. I can only hope that he was watching over me last night, proud of what I was trying to do in his honor.

At the end of 18 miles

We were too tired to sit for three hours for the closing ceremony, so we all headed home. As I drove on 128, the sun began to rise ahead of me, with the full moon in my rear view mirror. I had accomplished a lot - not just overnight, but in the months since Brad's death, and certainly on the journey. I watched the sunset over Boston, and watched it rise again in the morning - literally walking out of the darkness. In my car, I whispered, "I love you, Brad", and knew that we had done a good thing.

No Racing...

2010-06-23T21:40:00.001-04:00

... so you get kittens instead (which will make a couple of you happy).

All For the Glory?

2010-06-16T09:05:00.003-04:00

Pushed. Elbowed. Sworn at. Buzzed. And this wasn't even WalMart at 4 am on Black Friday - there wasn't a 50" plasma TV waiting for the low, low price of $2.50, just a medal and bragging rights.

In all seriousness, EFTA's Pinnacle was the most un-sportsman-like race I have done - EVER. Despite a decent start in my field (the Cat 1 women, Master Men and Juniors all went off together), as soon as the Cat 2 men (who started a mere 30 seconds behind us) starting catching, all h*ll broke loose. We climbed on a tight trail filled with wet, slimy roots and rocks. There wasn't a good place to pass a single person, never mind having 50 testosterone-laden men racing for 20th place breathing down your neck. And once ONE person flubbed anything, it caused a chain reaction of people off bikes. Getting back on the bike, and into the conga line was near impossible. Within the first mile and a half, after all of the pushing, elbowing, swearing and having my tires buzzed multiple times by one rider, I literally gave up racing.

As I continued to climb, I thought about quitting. The course didn't suit me at all - there was a lot of climbing, the roots were wet and slick, and there were bridges (did I mention the wet part?). It wasn't fun. And then I even got yelled at by some of the WOMEN riders for riding down the left side of the Plummet - "Left is for walking, right is for riding" they chided as they dismounted and I rode. Oh well - I rode the left line every time down. I crossed through the start/finish after the first lap, STILL thinking about quitting. Then one of the women, who was literally in tears, said that she just didn't want to DNF. And I worried about what Mike would say if I quit. So, I kept going.

In lap 2, the Elites and some of the Cat 1 men started lapping me. This wasn't as bad, as I could get out of the way of most of them without having to get off the bike, or being pushed ;). In fact, many of them were downright pleasant, with one apologizing to me after he passed, and I slid on a root. Quite a difference in attitudes, and these guys were racing for more than just a medal!

At the end of lap 2, I looked directly at my friend Meg (who was cheering wildly) and said "This sucks" to which she replied, "But at least you're finishing". I gritted my teeth and said, "I have ONE MORE LAP TO GO". Ugh. But, off I went. And partway through the final lap, Keith caught me (cue angelic music from above here). It was nice to see a friendly face after all of that time - especially one with a halo circling his helmet. I tried to move out of Keith's way to let him pass, but he literally decided to ride the entire last lap WITH me. That was my saving grace. Being able to ride the remainder of the race with someone, and following good lines was the only thing that got me through the rest of the race.

Keith and I literally crossed the finish line within seconds of each other, both excited to finally be done. So, DFL for me (and in more than one category...), but I finished.

That is it for me for mass start MTB races though - never again after what I experienced at this race. Yes, you're racing and yes, you may be faster than me. BUT, I was racing, too. I paid the same amount to race as you did. Let's all get along out there - we're all doing it for fun, right?

Quests

2010-06-12T18:31:00.010-04:00

Our first quest of the day took Mike and I to Gordon College to go and ride our SS MTBs "somewhere different". We haven't ridden here in years, so there was some circular navigation for a little while before we found the really HARD trails. Let's just say that to me, the SS was like bringing a knife to a gun fight. Yes, there was also a lot of walking ;)

But, we missed most of the rain, and managed to stay relatively dry.

The second quest of the day? Donuts. You see, Mike loves donuts, but he likes GOOD donuts. We discovered Kane's a couple of years ago, but every time we've been back, they've been closed. So, an Internet search revealed that Verna's, on Mass Ave in Cambridge had donuts, and they had good reviews. We made it there just in time for closing, so our options were limited, but they did have jelly - Mike's favorite! I'm sure this will be awesome pre-race food for tomorrow ;)

EFTA Big Ring Rumpus

2010-06-11T11:20:00.003-04:00

Photo: Caroline Cardiasmenos

For those of you keeping track, this was race number 3 of my "not racing my MTB" year ;). Guess that was a giant fail! the good news is that it means I am having FUN racing my MTB this year.

Like some of my other [female] teammates, given that this race was pre-reg only, I knew going in that I was going to win, but was also going to finish DFL - it's all about perspective, right? I was still ready to go out and race, and decided to see where I would be against the rest of the Expert Women, across all of the fields. Most of them had been at Weeping Willow as well - another fast power course where I did reasonably well.

At the pre-race meeting we were told that the Auburn Fire Department was monitoring the weather. The forecast was for SEVERE weather at some point in the afternoon, and because we were running late, there might be a chance we would see it. If necessary, the promoters would pull us from the course for safety reasons. Other announcements were short so that they could line up the Elite/Expert fields, and get us underway. Only one teeny, tiny issue - 60+ racers were staged across the course, with sport racers still trying to finish their races! Every time a racer would come through, yells of "Racer Back" would make their way through the staged racers, the seas would part, the cheers would be loud, and the Sport racers ran the gamut. Likely intimidating for them, but great to see the cooperation of the other fields as well.

The Expert women took the line with the Master (50+) men. I knew about half of this field, and was both intimidated and confident about racing with them. On go, there was a good amount of jostling as racers 4 across attempted to get into a single line. The Junior woman took off like a rocket on the right side, while I hopped on the back of the Masters train as it left the station. Before going half a mile (but not before I got worried), the junior racer fell off, never to be seen again. And I ended up with my good friend Dave L, who came by me telling me that I had a good gap, and to sit in.

And so it went. Dave and I traded pulls every lap, seemingly through the same sections. It was so much easier to be WITH another racer, especially on this course. Who knew that drafting could play such an important role in a "mountain bike" course? At one point, I tried to jump on the wheel of a passing single speeder, but that didn't last long, and Dave and I were back together, counting laps.

After finishing 6 laps, we were both pretty excited to be going into the final lap of the race and also glad to still have all of our fingers attached to our hands (we were responsible for counting our own laps, and before the race Dave could be heard telling people the chewing off a finger a lap meant that when you were down to just thumbs, you were done!).

While cloudy, the rain had held off, but that was all about to change. Suddenly, the skies turned BLACK, and then opened. And it didn't just rain - it came down in SHEETS. Thunder was booming, lightning flashing, and marshalls were being pulled from the course. It was scary, and then got dangerous. Glasses on - couldn't see through the water and mud. Glasses off - couldn't see through the water and mud. Essentially, Dave and I were riding blind for the second part of the final lap. I later said that if he had ridden off the face of the Earth, I would have been right behind him. Thankfully the non-technical nature of the course helped us, and coming into the final chicane I ripped off my glasses, glad to have finished, and wanting desperately to get out of the storm!

Oh - and I guess I achieved my goal. Working with Dave, I never saw any of the other Expert women after the start until we were all huddled under the tent looking at results :).

It's All A-Bloom

2010-06-04T08:20:00.000-04:00

How Far?

2010-06-01T19:09:00.032-04:00

After a 4.5 day weekend, re-entry at the office yesterday was a little tough. The weather over the past few days was perfect for our planned trip to Maine for LOTS of riding. Mike and I headed north on Thursday afternoon, and were later joined by John and then Wayne and Jean.

Friday

Friday morning, Mike, John, Wayne and I headed to Gorham where we met Alexis and Michele. The six of us were in for an extended version of what I like to call the "Around the Block Loop" - Gorham to Jefferson Notch, up and over the highest state maintained road in NH; down Crawford Notch, up over Bear Notch to the Kanc, down to Passaconaway Rd, out West Side Rd to Rte 302, and then, finally, up and over Pinkham Notch. Alexis had his GPS running, so we were able to get the map and elevation profile.

Promptly at 9:32 (oops!), we rolled out for the day. Our first adventure came as we detoured from Rte 2 onto a parallel side road. The road was officially closed for bridge repair, but the construction crew let us "pay the toll" to cross through. They already thought we were nuts, and we were only just starting out.

We hit the base of Jefferson Notch together as a group, but that wasn't to last. Mike and John, followed closely by Wayne and then Alexis, and finally myself and Michele made our way up the long, steep, dirt climb. We had to use some 'cross skills on the way up, either bunny-hopping (the boys), or dismounting to get over a log across the road. There was tons of debris that we had to be careful didn't get lodged in the derailleurs. We regrouped at the top of the climb - one down and two more to go!

Our last trip down Crawford Notch saw us pedalling like gerbils only to go about 16 mph. Thankfully the wind wasn't a factor this day - I hit my highest speed ever descending there - about 48 mph! We maintained a pretty strong paceline down into Bartlett, where we stopped to refuel before our next climb.

The route over Bear Notch, down the Kanc and back into Bartlett was relatively uneventful. We made our second stop as we entered Glen, and by that point, we were all getting tired (some more than others!). Unfortunately, we still had 22 miles to go, and most of it was UP! On the first pitch after our stop, the boys were off, and Michele and I were left to climb up Pinkham alone. We slogged it out - my arms hurt, my back hurt and my feet were killing me. We felt a sense of accomplishment getting to the top, but that was short lived - the downhill back to Gorham was into a demoralizing headwind. Add a dropped chain part way down, and we were SO HAPPY to get back to the cars - 96 miles, 5115 ft and almost 6 hours later.

Unfortunately, ahead of Michele and I, Mike and John were descending at about 38 mph when John's wheel hit a piece of tailpipe laying in the shoulder. Mike looked back and saw John flying through the air, hitting the ground and sliding. John did make it up, but with less material in his jersey and shorts, and a skin donation on the pavement. Lucky for John, and off-duty EMT happened by, providing some ice packs, and a lift back down to the cars. Hopefully John heals quickly, and is back on the bike in no time.

After dinner we set out on a moose hunt up to Grafton Notch. Given the time of day, we figured it would be prime moose sighting, but alas, it was not to be. Instead, we had a nice stop at Screw Auger Falls, and then went hunting for ice cream ;)

(Wayne and Jean - oddly, we ended up seeing a moose just off the highway on the way home on Sunday!)

Saturday

We packed as much into a day on Saturday as possible! We started the day with a delicious breakfast, and then Mike and Wayne headed out for their ride. Jean and I stayed behind to do a few errands before heading out on a ride of our own.

Mike had mapped out a route for us that was to be about 53 miles, starting from the house. Starting out, I told Jean that the only rule for the day was that the ride was about having a good time. It's a good thing there wasn't any pressure, because shortly into our ride, I took us in the wrong direction and we had to double back to get onto the route we were targeting.

Part of our route took us onto Rabbit Rd - a snowmobile trail in the winter, and dirt road in the summer. With the dry weather, parts of the road were big sandpits, requiring us to dismount at one point! We traversed water crossings, rock gardens and washboard roads before turning onto the next section of dirt road - rocky and rooty, and requiring some deft handling skills. Jean handled it well, with only one minor mishap (how's that bruise???). I think we were BOTH glad to get back out onto the pavement.

After riding past Round Pond, and then along North Pond, we ended up on Rte 232 with only 18 miles. Somehow, I had done something wrong in my navigation - there was no way that we were going to hit 50 miles (I forgot the Andover part of the loop). So, I sort of offered Jean an alternative (talking while riding in the direction I was talking about going...) to ride along the Androscoggin to Rumford, and then back to Bethel. Somewhere along the way, I learned that Jean hadn't done a 50 mile ride this season - she did an awesome job getting around the loop with no complaints. It was a sense of accomplishment for Jean, and for me (it made the week my longest of the year).

Surprisingly, the boys were back when we got to the house. They had cut their plans of 100 mile ride, and finished up with 70 for the day. After eating and cleaning up, we headed out for our reward - beers at the Sunday River Brewery. We followed that with a visit to Bethel's Casablanca Cinema to see Iron Man 2, and then dinner at the Jolly Drayman. It was a full day, and we were all pretty beat when we got back to the house.

Sunday

The lack of motivation Sunday morning was palpable ;). It's not often that we spend a leisurely morning just hanging out, but that's exactly what we did. We were all still in our PJ's at 10:30! I think it was at that point that we all decided we weren't up for any big activity, so we packed up and headed back home.

Monday

After a day off the bike, Monday brought another big ride for Mike and I. We went out on the tandem and tried to find flat roads after all of the climbing we had already done on the weekend. Somehow that landed us on 117 all the way into Leominster! After some navigating in the downtown, we ended up on Rte 12 into Sterling, and then onto 62 and then 110 to get back home. It was a tough ride (with more wind), but we added another 75 miles to the weekend's tally.

So, a long weekend with lots of riding (I ended up with 221 miles total). And I have to say, it was WAY more fun than I would have had racing at Killington ;)

It's Supposed to be Fun...

2010-05-28T18:03:00.006-04:00

I promised that there would be some bike content forthcoming. You see, I haven't really been wanting to write about my racing this season - haven't felt good about it for awhile. In fact, at one point, the passion I've had for years for riding/racing my bike was gone. I was dreading getting on the bike for the races, and for training. I was in a BAD place.

Late last year, I decided that I would race as part of the NEBC Women's Elite team. I was excited but nervous to do it, and spent a lot of time training. The team started the season this year with Battenkill - I got dropped. Then we did Turtle Pond - I got dropped. Next was Sterling, and I got dropped. Sense a theme here? In between team races, I also gave the Wayne Elliot race a go. Guess what? I got dropped there too (though I WAS racing with the 50+ men's field, and those guys do NOT get slower as they get older).

Unfortunately, my enthusiasm and motivation went out the back too. Add in the fact that I started a new job in March, and that I have the additional full time job of NEBC president, I was also tired, and the commitment required was just too much. So, I resigned from the team. Ok, I quit. But resigned sounds so much better, don't you think? ;)

Amazingly, taking the pressure off has been good for me. I did the Waterville Valley TT, and defended my title of Master's Woman champion, and finishing as the 3rd woman overall. The day was viciously windy, and coming down the mountain road was terrifying. Getting pushed by a sideways wind gust at 38 mph is enough to scare the pants off of anyone. It was tough to control the bike, and it cost me some time going down. Still was a good day though.

Then last weekend, we treked out to Ipswich for the inaugural version of the Weeping Willow mountain bike race (yes, I KNOW I said that I wasn't racing MTBs anymore - so I lied ;)). I used the same trick at this race as at Winding Trails, and took the hole shot from the start to get out and into the singletrack in front of the field. The course was winding and a lot of fun, but working that hard for 20 miles (or 2:19 if you want the time) put me at a deficit. I ended up doing well, winning the expert women's field for geared bikes overall, and my category. VERY fun race, and a great boost for me as well.

Mike and I have also been doing some "fun" riding. We did a nice tandem ride a few weeks ago, venturing out onto roads we've never ridden, and just riding until we didn't want to anymore. We ended up in Framingham (of all places), and then home from there. Last weekend (on Saturday - before the MTB race on Sunday), did a great ride up in Bethel. It was nice to be up in Maine after not having been here since February. While we could have done without the headwind, it was a nice ride.

I will continue to race this season - I will just be focusing on the races that I want to do, and that I consider "fun". Life is too short to be doing something we don't like to do.

And today's adventure? You'll have to wait for the next post to read all about that, but I'll tease you with the fact that it included almost 6 hours of saddle time and 4 notches. Oh - and it was FUN!

Kitten Adventures

2010-05-24T21:42:00.005-04:00

Opie and Ellie had their first big adventure this past weekend - a trip to Maine! Yup - packed them up in the truck for the 3.5 hour drive north to the Maine house. They were really good in the car, although rather inquisitive, and a wee bit squirmy (they wanted to see out the windows!).

Once in Maine, they had a ball. Running upstairs and down (we don't have an upstairs at home), and checking out the new digs. They seemed to adapt fairly well, even finding new snoozing places ;).

Coming home was a bit rougher than going. They REALLY didn't want to be in the Pet Taxi, and meowed, banged, bit and tried to chew their way out. When I finally released them, they curled up in my lap and fell fast asleep for the remainder of the trip. Such good kittens.

Don't worry - I promise that there is bike content coming ;)

And Even More Kittens!

2010-05-21T11:23:00.005-04:00

JB commented that he was glad to see we were "smitten with our kittens" after one of my recent posts. Anyone coming here for bike content will see that for us, right now, it's ALL about kittens, ALL of the time! How can you not be smitten with these two adorable creatures?

Mike, Opie and Ellie all survived the first trip to the vet this week. Reports are that they didn't mind the car, or the vet, and both are in good health. This also completed our kitten adoption process - yay! Now if we can just keep Opie's head out of holes that are too small, and keep Ellie from jumping in the shower when it is ON, we'll be all set ;).

More Kitties

2010-05-07T11:19:00.006-04:00

If you're here for bike-related content, move along, there is nothing to see. If, however, you are interested in some cuddly cuteness of the feline variety, then you are in the right place!

Opie and Ellie are settling in nicely to their new home and family. Mike and I have fallen head over heels for these two kids! They are a riot, but also very affectionate both with one another, and with us. We're really glad we opted for a brother/sister pair. Oh, but Mike will gladly tell you how smelly they are, especially if I feed them canned food ;)

This is just the right spot!
Hey Ellie - what do you think is down here?

Aren't we the cutest?

Opie - how can we get this ball OUT of here so we can get it under the furniture instead?

Goodnight

Welcome

2010-05-01T07:03:00.003-04:00

The Rowell household is in a bit of chaos right now. Yesterday, we welcomed Ellie and Opie to our family! They are so DARNED CUTE!

Opie - get that bug!

Snoozing

Ellie - still sleepy

Breakfast!

A Decade of Adventure

2010-04-28T08:50:00.000-04:00

April 28, 2000
March 28, 2010

It's All About the Hole Shot

2010-04-21T21:28:00.003-04:00

So, I decided after last year not to race my MTB this season. I had had my fill of muddy, wet, nasty slogs on tough trails. It was with reluctance, therefore, that I ended up at Winding Trails, and paid my money to line up to race this past weekend. My coach told me I needed the intensity of the workout, and since HE was racing, I might as well ;) The weather was a far cry from last year's 90 degree temps, as we stood, shivering, waiting for our turn to get out on the course.

On the start last year, I got a bad line through the soft sand, and had to work to try to make up places as a result. I KNEW I needed to get the hole shot (how long have I been racing, and this is just now sinking in?!?!?!). On the whistle, I put my head down, headed left and completely avoided the sand. One woman ended up in front of me, but with dual lines up the first incline, I took the left, might have cut her a bit in the corner, and ended up with the hole shot around the first corner.

That meant I got to be first over the double logs, and first down the steep downhill. But I could still hear the other racer close behind. About halfway through the first lap, she passed me, and I realized that she was in the younger category. I still worked to stay with her as long as possible, and kept her in sight for most of the first lap, and then, never saw her again.

Coming into the new climb at the finish, I had some trepidation. On the pre-ride, I hadn't been able to make it up the hill. Mike and I talked about it, and he said it might be faster to just get off and run up the hill during the race. But as I approached on the first lap, there were seemingly hundreds of people standing in that spot, and there was NO WAY I was getting off my bike. Into the granny gear I went, and grunted my way up (success!). I was psyched to be able to make this each of the 4 laps.

The rest of the race was reasonably uneventful. I never saw another woman the entire race. Did get passed by many of the men, and worked to stay with them as long as possible (which usually wasn't long). I had a BLAST on the course this year, working the tight twisty trails, [seemingly] floating over the rooty sections, carrying speed in the turns, and generally feeling the flow of the trail. Mike had shown me all the good lines in the pre-ride, and that certainly helped get me through the course.

I crossed the line with no gas left in the tank - just the way it should have been. I was so happy to be done, it took quite awhile for me to realize that a significant amount of time had passed, and there STILL weren't any of the women in my race coming across the line. Turned out that despite running scared the entire race, I had a fairly significant gap on the next competitor. Guess the reluctance paid off. And no, I am not doing more MTB racing this season ;)

A New Easter Tradition

2010-04-04T20:56:00.002-04:00

It seems that this is year 3 of our Easter scooter rides ;). The weather this weekend was awesome, allowing for long, hard rides on Saturday, a recovery ride on Sunday, and then, our scooter adventure. All of the recent rain still has roads closed all over MA and RI...

If It's Cold and Windy, It Must Be Marblehead

2010-03-30T21:52:00.004-04:00

For Mike, the first race of the season is in the books. As is tradition, Marblehead went off on a cold, blustery day at the end of March. It's always a good race to see where everyone's fitness is after a long season of rollers/trainers, and a good chance to catch up with racing friends.

I was the support crew and cheering section for the day :). After a short walk on the beach, Mike prepped for the race. He put in great efforts throughout, and showed that he is on good form at the start of the season. I can only imagine how well he will do as the season goes on...

Oreo - 1993 to 2010

2010-03-24T07:38:00.002-04:00

We love you, and will miss you dearly.

Hors Epic

2010-03-14T09:45:00.011-04:00

It seemed like a good idea - an early season notch ride, covering about 107 miles. Easily doable, and something we had done before (although not this exact route). We planned to set out from the Lincoln Visitor's Center at 9:30, and figured we would be back by 3:30, at the latest.

Little did we know...

We chose to head north to ride given that the forecast for MA was for rain. When we set out, and for most of the day, we were blessed with sunny skies and temps in the low to mid 40s. Excellent riding weather - we thought ;).

The first hurdle on our route was the climb up Kinsman Notch, which comes just 5 miles into the overall ride. Mike and Wayne went ahead, while I set a steady pace for me, and knocked off the first climb. Thirty minutes in, and we had already climbed 1000 feet! As we started on the descent, we experienced the first hint of wind. The gusts were strong enough to blow you off a particular line, and at speed, a bit scary. We chalked that up to where we were, and rolled on along our route.

The next challenge came in a climb in Franconia. Someone might have taken a wrong turn that caused us to climb 1000 feet... I won't say who that was ;).

As we headed towards Rte 93 and then onto Rte 3 and then 302, the wind was a HUGE factor! There was no "free ride" sitting in the draft today - everyone worked. We estimate that we rode a LOT of miles into a sustained 15-20 mph headwind, as well as enduring 35-40 mph gusts that would almost take you off the bike. Sections of the road that we KNOW are fast sections we were struggling to maintain 13 mph... It was tough work and slow going. I felt bad for making Mike and Wayne do the lion's share of the work, but it was EVERYTHING that I could do just to not lose the wheel in front of me.

As we approached Crawford Notch, the wind continued. The descent here is normally a 50+ mph speed-fest. On this ride, we were pedalling the entire way down trying to maintain 16 mph. The wind was tunneling up from the valley directly into the notch. At one point, a gust hit so hard I envisioned all three of us getting tossed into the gully below, or into the traffic. It was the scariest descent I have ever made on a bicycle!

The headwind continued all along Rte 302, into Bartlett and beyond. We turned onto West Side Rd in North Conway, and it seemed as if the wind, in a cruel fashion, moved again to force us into a headwind.

Finally, we found ourselves on Passaconaway Rd - the final stretch before the Kanc. At this point, I was exhausted, and just trying to keep pedaling for the remaining 30 or so miles. Imagine my surprise when I rode down a hill to find a gate, and the road beyond covered in SNOW! Too tired to even THINK about turning back (this would have easily added 25 miles to our journey), we decided to walk, pushing our bikes. It couldn't be too far, right?

A mile and a half later, Wayne and I emerged, finally, from the snowy road onto dry pavement. But where was Mike? Had had gone ahead and we didn't see him. Looking at my watch, and seeing that it was already after 4 pm (remember we thought we would be back by 3:30?), I figured that he had booked back to get the car. So, off Wayne and I went, headed UP the Kanc.

And up, and up, and up. It wasn't until we finally got near the top of the climb that the I felt the tailwind. FINALLY! Wayne was waiting for me at the top, we donned all the clothes we had (at that point, it had clouded over and the temp had dropped to about 37) and started the descent. The funniest part of that was the two cars who passed by us video-taping us! They must have thought we were nuts ;).

Partway down the descent, I saw Mike approaching with the car. After 7:43 in the saddle, and 101 miles of riding, I got in, with no shame. Wayne descended another 2 miles before also giving in to the biting cold, and the fatigue.

It was certainly an adventure that went beyond epic, one we will talk about for a long time to come.

Happy Kitty

2010-02-24T08:41:00.002-05:00

Trail Treasure and Training Camp

2010-02-16T14:11:00.015-05:00

Trail Treasure

Survival of the Fittest

I didn't realize when we set off on our extended long weekend that I was in for a mini training camp! Friday's painfully awesome ride was followed by three more days of long, difficult rides. I survived, but just barely ;). Thankfully my evil coach (well, not that evil ;)) gave me a break this week, cause I am tired!

Trail Treasure

We started our Saturday not on bikes, but on skates. Ice skates, not skiing! Bethel has created a rink for public use, and the conditions were pretty good. It was fun to get out and do something a bit different.

It was another bluebird day in Maine, and after skating and changing, we set off on the local Greenstock Snowmobile club trails for an advertised "1.5 hour" ride. Those of you who know Mike know how that went...

If anything though, the conditions were better than they had been the previous day, and the riding was stellar. Our route had a fairly significant amount of climbing, requiring me to settle into the granny and spin it out on more than one occasion. As we hit the first plateau in our climbing, Mike circled back to me with a piece of trail treasure...

Of course, we had to pack this up and take it home! We have been finding a shed about once every two years, but usually it is on our snowmobile adventures. It's a good thing this find wasn't any bigger - we would have had a real issue getting it back home from the middle of nowhere, and there is no leaving a perfectly good moose shed in the middle of the trail. This find fits in nicely with our other two.

We continued on with our ride, Mike telling me that we "were at the top". As I climbed yet ANOTHER long incline, I looked up to see him once again coming back towards me. With the shed stuck in his Camelback, it looked like he had horns coming out of his head, and I could only think how appropriate that looked - like the devil! The trail finally turned downward and we popped out onto the road for a short section, and then back into the woods to make the final push towards home.

Our 1.5 hour ride turned into 2.5 hours - typical for a Rowell adventure ;). The treasure made it all worth it though, and the effort of the two days made dinner taste just that much better.

Valentine's Day

Our Valentine's Day ride started with a negotiation, which I lost ;). We were going to ride the tandem (appropriate for the day, don't you think?), but it was the duration of the ride that was in question. Unfortunately for me, as the stoker, I pretty much have to go where and how far the captain takes us!

It turned out to be a good ride, despite tired legs and an unrelenting wind. We ended up with just under 3 hours of riding, and 53 miles. And after our forays into the woods of Maine and seeing ZERO wildlife, we were treated to a fox running across the road in front of us out in Groton.

Survival of the Fittest

We had one more day of the long weekend, and we certainly didn't want to let it go to waste ;). I was tired, but knew that one more day of hard riding would be good for me at this point in the season (that which does not kill you makes you stronger, right?). Monday's weapons - the SS bikes.

The weathermen proved that they could keep their jobs by being wrong - again. They had promised no wind, but it was once again, ever present. It seemed no matter which direction we rode, the wind was coming at us head on, or trying to blow me sideways off the road. After 1.5 hours of riding, I was pretty cooked, but we continued on. At about the 2 hour mark, as we were out in Harvard climbing yet another stinkin' hill, the tears came. I was so tired and I just wanted to be home (which was over an hour's ride away...).

I gritted my teeth, pedaled squares, and just tried to hang on for the remainder of the ride home. It was another long day, ending with 57.5 miles in just over 3.5 hours.

So, as I asked on FB, can I really claim surviving our mini-camp? Yessiree! And of course, now that it is over, I can see that it was really a good idea to have done the hard training early in the season. This week, we're resting before getting back to the hard stuff again this weekend.

Painfully Awesome

2010-02-13T09:01:00.012-05:00

I know - a dichotomy. How can something painful also be awesome? Call me a sucker for punishment, but yesterday's 4+ hour MTB ride from Bethel to Gilead and Evan's Notch was both.

With the studded MTBs, we headed out from the house on the local snowmobile trails. They aren't much good for snowmobiling right now, but they were in great shape for riding. Lots of hard packed snow and ice along the way. We did hit a patch on the gas lines that was questionable, so ducked out onto the road for a couple of miles.

After 2 hours of riding, we were finally in Evans Notch, riding a frozen sluice! By now, I was already pretty tired, but we still had some climbing to do... Up and over (actually around, but it felt like up and over) a mountain, then back out to Rte 2 to do the return trip.

The sun had started to warm things up, and the trails that had been hard packed in the morning were now a little soft, making it even tougher going. By the 3.5 hour mark, I had had enough, and decided to just ride the road back to Bethel, while Mike returned the way we had come - through the woods. It turned out we didn't get home that far apart from one another. The woods had been terrible, so Mike came back from the end of that trail on the road, while I had opted to go back ONTO the snowmobile trail as I entered Bethel. In all, we were out for 4.5 hours, with about 4:10 of rolling time. Total distance was 38 and 41 miles (38 for me, 41 for Mike), and a total of about 2700 feet of elevation.

Painful? Yes. Awesome? You betchya!

What was THAT?!?!?

2010-02-11T11:13:00.005-05:00

As I was sitting eating my Lucky Charms this morning, my eye caught sight of this animal running through the yard. I didn't recognize it, and yelled to Mike to come quick to tell me what it was (and no, I didn't think fast enough to get the camera out).

Now, we've seen deer, turkeys, fox, possums, skunks and coons in the yard (in addition to the more traditional suburban squirrels and chipmunks), but this beast was an honest to goodness fisher cat. Pen up your chickens, cats, small dogs and small children people! This thing had BIG TEETH

Mike did get out to get pics of the tracks it left in the snow...

Decisions, Decisions

2010-02-08T21:02:00.000-05:00

Can you tell what we're about to do?

Cold Temps + No Snow = Big Rides

2010-02-07T19:59:00.014-05:00

Frozen water bottles

Chemical toe warmers

Studded tires

Drippy nose

Tired legs

Seems that all of the snow storms have been missing New England this year, and have been dumping instead in the mid-Atlantic. With no recent storms, and no snowfall in the forecasts, we've been unable to get out skiing or snowmobiling. Instead, we've been out on the bikes for some pretty epic (yes, I used the word epic - sue me!) rides the past couple of weeks.

Last Saturday, Kevin B invited us up for a tour of the snowmobile trails in Hollis, NH. I read "luge-like snowmobile trails", but had no idea what that really meant. Mike, Wayne and I headed up and met Kevin and Steve to set out on the iciest ride I have ever done! The trails were rivers of ice - off camber, bumpy ice... We went up hills where if you had put your foot down, you would have slid all the way back down to the bottom! It was scary, but oddly fun at the same time. Unfortunately, I am a wuss in icy conditions like some we encountered, and encouraged the boys to continue on without me. While I ended up with almost 2 hours of riding, they finished with 20 miles and 5000 feet of climbing!

Wayne, me, Steve and Kevin; Steve trying to stay upright

Waiting for me again; Let go of the brakes!

The next day, Mike and I took the tandem out for it's first adventure of the year. Leaving the house, it was so cold I almost cried! Once we got moving though, I warmed up, but then we had to stop in Concord Center to wait for Wayne and John. Once we were off, temps were ok. Our water bottles froze up though! It was a tough ride, and Wayne felt the ride from the day before. Mike John and I ended up with a 63 mile ride - the longest and fastest for me of the year.

Yesterday's ride for me can be summed up in two words - cold and demoralizing. The thermometer said 19 degrees when I left the house for a solo ride. In many ways, it was good no one else was with me to witness my ride. Just over an hour in, I had no water - bottles frozen again. About two hours in, I thought about calling my friend Jean to come and pick me up - I was cold, and cramping badly enough that I wasn't sure I would actually make it home. Instead, I kept going, and managed just over 3 hours. The 48 miles put me ABOVE Mike's mileage for the week - probably the first and last time that will happen ;).

I'm convinced now that I'll be all set for the race season - as long as we only race at 15 mph ;)

Today was a bit warmer, but the wind was brutal. Managed just 2 hours before running out of daylight, but I honestly don't think I could have gone any more than that. These two weekends puts me 300 miles ahead of this time last year. I can only hope that "that which does not kill me, makes me stronger" ;)

Torture Will Make Me Stronger...

2010-01-27T21:57:00.001-05:00

The torture device

The torturer

Me, suffering torture

Last year, I learned to ride the rollers after having had a bad experience trying it out with Teri and Serene (apparently, rollers for idiots aren't for all idiots!). After a few goes at it, I went back to the trusty trainer - it was just easier for me.

This year my new coach (aka, the torturer) declared that I would ride the rollers. He even went so far as to buy me a new set - parabolic rollers that came from Nashbar. So, I tried it again, and have completely given up the trainer. While I can't do any roller tricks, I have managed to be able to ride one handed, grab my water bottle, drink, and replace it, and am working on the no hands riding that Mike makes look so easy. I will admit, it is a better workout than I ever got on the trainer, but after an hour, it really is just torture!

Great Expectations

2010-01-20T16:18:00.002-05:00

Actually, after back to back 40 degree days in January (who would have thought?), Mike and I had pretty low expectations for snow conditions this past weekend, but headed up north anyway.

After having switched out the carbides on my sled, we loaded up the trailer and headed to Gorham on Friday. As I said, our expectations were pretty low, but we figured we would go, see what it was like, and decide on our ride as we went. About 85 miles later, we returned to the truck, grinning like little children just in from a snowy recess. The trail conditions had been AMAZING (well, ok, there were 2 trails that were pretty terrible), and we had also ridden places we'd never been before.

On Saturday, we were torn about where to go and do some skate skiing. We looked at heading to Jackson, which was sure to be busy. We talked about Bretton Woods (we had ridden past there on the sleds, and snow cover looked good) but didn't want to drive that far. We looked up the Balsams and were surprised at the vast amount of terrain, but again, didn't want to travel that far. In the end, we went with our old standby, the Wilderness House (formerly, the Sunday River Inn).

The trails were recently groomed, and there was very little traffic. Both good things. Unfortunately, the fact that it was sunny about almost 40 degrees made the snow ski more like mashed potatoes. No glide. Hard work. And our favorite trails weren't open due to lack of snow cover. It certainly made us glad we hadn't traveled far to ski! We made the best of it, however, and managed to be out for a HARD 1.5 hour ski. By the end, my arms and shoulders needed some cheese to go with their whine ;) Hopefully this week's snow will have improved conditions in many places so we can head back up this weekend.

We read on Facebook that a number of our friends had been out for long rides in MA on Saturday, enjoying the same sun, and warmer temps than we had had. So, we packed up early Sunday and headed back south to get some outdoor saddle time in. I headed out with a small group of NEBC women for an "endurance" ride. Unfortunately, none of us really know what that means ;). And we had missed the good riding day - temps on Sunday were much cooler, the sun was absent, and I definitely got way too cold on that ride. It was, however, good to be outside, and I managed 2.5 hours of some pretty good tempo riding.

Monday finally brought - cement. Yes, it looked like snow, but I'm pretty sure that somewhere, it was mixed with concrete before finally landing on our driveway. We cleared the heavy, wet snow from the usual places, but also had to ensure that our trees were cleared - especially the ones we had transplanted earlier this year. All that heavy lifting, combined with sore arms/shoulders from the weekend's other activities, had us opting for a quick snowshoe in the Burlington Landlocked Forest instead of any skiing. It was nice to be out traipsing in the woods - especially on what would normally have been a workday!

So, despite our low expecations for the weekend's weather conditions, we ended up with a variety of activities, and were pleasantly surprised that at least some of the conditions were far better than what we could have hoped for.

Perfect Saturday

2010-01-16T21:27:00.000-05:00

Sleep LATE.
Lounge*
Skate skiing at the Wilderness House (formerly Sunday River Inn)
More lounging*
Movies - we saw The Book of Eli (it was good - just different from what we expected) -for $5 each!
Beers
Beers with friends
Excellent dinner at Sudbury Inn
Posting and bed...

* Yes - for all you skeptics, there was, indeed, lounging at our house today!

True Adventures and the Nine Lives of Oreo the Cat

2010-01-15T20:31:00.004-05:00

In the late summer of 1993, a small kitten, born in a barn, decided to bite what was likely the first human it encountered. That bite landed the kitten in quarantine ensuring that rabies weren't present. When I heard about the kitten (the human was a family member), I knew that I had to save it. And I've been saving her ever since ;).

At 10 weeks old, the kitten adopted me. Her name was an evolution of sorts. I was an English major in college, and wanted to call her Shakespeare, which was given a big thumbs down. Since she was black and white, that morphed to Othello, which also didn't work. Domino? Dominoreo? Ah -Oreo! And that was it - the kitten had a new person, and a new name.

In 1995, when Oreo was just 2 years old, I relocated us from just outside of Toronto, to Cambridge, MA. I knew not a soul here at the time, but Oreo made the long car ride with me, packed in with my clothes, a lamp, plants and other important belongings, and was my constant companion. When, in the first 6 months of my time here, I cried and wanted to go back "home", Oreo was always there as a source of comfort and stability. I could count on her being there when I got home from work, and she was a confidant as I worked to settle in to my new "home", listening to all of my trials and tribulations along the way.

Mike eventually came into our lives, and Oreo accepted that there was this new person around. Early in our relationship, Mike and I entered my apartment to the smell of gas. Somehow, I must have bumped one of the knobs on my stove enough for it to emit gas, but not to ignite. The gas stoves were an anomoly to me anyway, and kind of scared me. This made me really nervous, and I suspected that we had poisoned the poor cat! So, I opened some windows to air the place out, and we left for an overnight. I should mention that it was March, and it was COLD. When we came back to the apartment again, Oreo was nowhere to be found! In a panic, I searched, and finally found her burrowed under all the covers in the bed - trying to stay warm. OK - we hadn't poisoned her with the gas, but we had almost frozen her.

In the morning, I awoke to find Oreo covered in some nasty stuff, and assumed that she had been sick. I cleaned her up and went back to bed, thinking nothing of it. When we finally awoke, she was covered AGAIN, and it was then that I noticed she hadn't been sick at all, but was actually oozing out of an open wound on her throat/chest. It was Sunday, I hadn't yet found a vet in the area, so a few phone calls later, I took her to an emergency clinic in Arlington. The vet was concerned about how she had gotten the wound - any other cats? No. Does she go outside? No. We were all perplexed. Mike and I left her with the vet to determine what the trouble was. A few hours later, he called and wanted to know how on earth she had managed to swallow a sewing needle! Yup - swallowed the needle and lacerated herself from the inside out... And now, surgery was required to remove said needle.

I called the vet multiple times a day to get an update on how Oreo was doing. Continually, I received disheartening news - she wasn't responsive, not doing well, etc. After 4 or 5 days, I knew that something had to be done, and that this was NOT my cat's behavior. I was really led to believe that she was suffering greatly, so after much crying and a great deal of torment, I made the very difficult decision to have her put down. I went so far as to pack up all of her things in the apartment. Mike intervened, though, and told me that I had to at least go and see her one more time. "But I can't", I lamented! How could I see her after making this decision??? But, off we went, together, back to the vet. Imagine my surprise when Oreo was brought out, and she looked at both of us as if to say "Woohoo! Get me the heck out of this place!". We decided then and there that we were taking her back home. And, given my state of financial instability at the time, Mike paid the vet bill, making me the first person ever to have had a lien on her cat ;) (FWIW, I paid it all back!).

Oreo and I continued to live in our apartment through the summer, and then moved together into Mike's apartment, before we finally all moved into the home we have been in now for 13 years. She's had a pretty good life here, and been a pretty pampered kitty. She has her own door, and we built what we called her "office" which was a place she could go and do her "business" in private ;). We continue to say that really this is her house, and she just lets Mike and I live here.

In 2003, Oreo began not eating, and having some other issues as well. Off to the vet we went, and over the course of that year, we spent a lot of time (and money) at the Lexington Cat Clinic. First, we had a diagnosis of kidney disease, necessitating a new diet, and some prescription medication. Another diagnosis was that she had an issue with her thyroid. We started medication for that and we ended up with the ONE cat in ONE MILLION who is allergic to the medication! As it turns out, that was a mis-diagnosis anyway. Later in the year, she had surgery to remove two large bladder stones, and then even later in 2003, a complete dental cleaning. That's a LOT for a small kitty, who was only 10 years old. We continued to monitor her, and she rebounded well with the treatments we ended up with, and lived out another number of years healthy and happy.

In July of 2009, Oreo turned 16. It's a good age for a cat, but the month before that, we were informed that the kidney disease had progressed to the point where regular sub-cutaneous fluids were going to be required. I had to go into the vet and learn how to administer the fluids, which involves an 18-guage needle, and in IV bag. Now let me just tell you that if someone came at me with this needle, I would fight like a banshee - the thing is HUGE!

We settled in to a pretty good routine of adminstering the fluids once/twice a week. Then, in December, Oreo's health seemed much worse. Due to the closing of the Lexington office of my vet, we tried the Bedford Cat Doctor, a mere 5 minutes down the street. Mike and I went together to learn that Oreo was now in crisis. Neither I, nor the vet thought that Oreo would make it through the weekend, and I, and Mike were devestated. We were going to do whatever we could to help her, but were also very cognizant of her quality of life. Our fluids went to a daily activity, and we were now also adding potassium and an antacid, as well as appetite stimulants to try and get her eating.

I became vigilant, and learned about creatin numbers, red blood cell counts, and was excited when her weight went up by mere ounces. After a week with the fluids, we added potassium tablets in addition to the potassium in her fluids, hoping to increase her appetite. We fed her raw steak (that's all she would eat). We tried liver (yuck - and Oreo agreed). We were at the point where if she would eat something, we fed it to her. Then we learned that with the increase in fluids, she had become anemic, with a red blood cell count at 16 (healthy is above 26). This brought another injection 3 times a week to increase the red blood cells.

I am happy to report that the perserverance is paying off. At our last vet visit, Oreo weighed in at 7 lbs 3 oz, almost a half a pound heavier than her visit three weeks prior. Her hydration level was good, her skin pigment had returned to pink and her red blood cell count hit 32! We've readjusted again, and now have fluids every other day, and the anemia shot only once a week! We do continue though with the daily potassium and antacid. For now, things are good. We have a 16.5 year old cat who seems happy, and with the aid of medications, has resumed a level of health.

I've lost count of where we are in the nine lives, but I'm pretty sure we have at least a few more left! Hopefully she continues to let us poke her, prod her, and stuff her with pills, all so we can all have a good cuddle in the end.

Starting Fresh

2010-01-12T13:21:00.000-05:00

No, I haven't been blogging. Pick any one of the following excuses:

Work has been too busy (true)
The holidays got in the way (sort of true - see last excuse)
My Picasa account ran out of space for pictures (true, but fixed now - money fixes anything)
Massive case of writer's block (true)
I just haven't felt like it (true)

What it really boils down to, is the final bullet - for whatever reason, I simply have not felt like blogging. My apologies to the three people who actually READ this blog ;).

So, I figured that now was as good a time as any to get back to it, and what better way than to start with a new look. I used the exact same template for the past three years, and decided I wanted something new and fresh - it may help with the writer's block!

Thanks to those of you who have inspired me to get back on the horse, so to speak ;). Look for some new pics later this week.

Giving Thanks

2009-11-26T07:34:00.004-05:00

Today is a day of Thanksgiving. Here is a list of those things for which I am thankful:

Mike. He is my best friend, fellow adventurer, coach, supporter, mechanic and enabler. My world would not be the same without him.
I am thankful to my brother for leaving us with his beautiful daughter, my niece. She is a treasure beyond imagination.
I am thankful to still have my parents, who are both in good health, and are best friends. They have been guideposts throughout my life, and this year we have all leaned on one another for strength and comfort.
I am thankful to still have my furry friend Oreo. Her health is rapidly declining, but I am truly thankful we made it through last weekend's crisis.
For my extended family - grandma, inlaws, aunts, uncles and cousins with whom I have reunited this year.
I am also thankful for all of my friends, far and wide. I am blessed to have so many good people in my life who share the good and the bad with me.
And, lastly, I am thankful for my bikes. They give me a chance to escape, fly free, and to truly test myself.

Happy Friday!

2009-10-23T06:30:00.000-04:00

Perfect autumn weather (clearly NOT a race day!)

Yummy treats from a good friend (thanks, Marc!)

The queen of our castle

'Cross is a Spectator Sport

2009-10-22T14:58:00.017-04:00

With my ankle recovering, and no racing for me, I did the next best thing last weekend - went to the races to watch and support Mike!

Saturday - Casco Bay

This was the first race put on by the good folks at Bikeman. The venue was beautiful - right on the Bay in Portland, ME. The course looked like a lot of fun, but with all of the running sections, I was glad that I made the call to be on the sidelines. As it was, I probably ended up walking the course twice between managing in the pits, and taking photos of Mike's races.

Michele and I were pit crew and cheering squad

Mike lined up for the Master's 35+ race, along with Todd and Alexis. The initial pace was pretty fast, and Wheels initiated a gap early, with Mike running in second place. He was soon joined by Al and Ryan from Bikeman though, and was gapped. A technical challenge forced Al to pit, Mike got by him, and Al, unfortunately, had a flat on his pit bike, ending his race. With a solid effort, Mike maintained a third place finish!

All along, Mike had planned on doubling up - racing the Master's race and then the Elite 1/2/3 race later in the day. After the effort of the first race, he wasn't so sure about doing a second. He did end up registering and pinning on his number though, and lined up for another go at the course. This time, he managed a great start, and maintained a gap over fifth place (after an impressive pass on a run-up) to finish fourth (although with another lap, he MAY have managed to catch Colin M.).

Oreo was less impressed by the second race...

Mike and Pete S coming up the run up

Todd; Mike over the barriers

The pass

The weather was stellar throughout the day, and I had a blast watching all the races, and cheering on friends. Maybe I could get used to this ;).

Sunday - MRC Wrentham

As nice as the weather was on Saturday, it was the diabolic OPPOSITE on Sunday. Cold, wet, windy... But, I still suited up and trudged out to Wrentham to cheer on Mike and the Master's racers (sorry to everyone else, but it was WAY too nasty to be out for more than one race!). Given all the walking I had done the previous day, I took my chair, my rain gear and my umbrella, and planted myself under the only tree in the field. It was still cold and wet!

Yes, that's me under that girlie umbrella! (Photo: MRC)

With the weather, and the muddy conditions, Mike opted to race his new SSCX bike - a Felt. And then he convinced Thom P to race his SS (although it was his MTB) instead of his brandy-new geared 'cross bike ;). Mike had a great start, and came by me leading the pack. He later said, though, that he was over-geared on his bike - and I could see it on the long straights in the mud - he struggled to turn the pedals over. He ended up doing well, and finishing 4th overall again.

We didn't wait around for results - too wet and cold. And I'm glad we didn't wait any longer than necessary - we ended up driving home in a snowstorm! ACK!

Avulsion Fracture

2009-10-20T09:15:00.000-04:00

So, after Providence, I decided to actually go and have a picture taken of my ankle, based on Kathy's advice. As it turns out, I have an avulsion fracture on the tip of my lateral malleolus.

English please?

When I rolled my ankle at Providence, the tendon pulled so hard that it separated a piece of bone from the tip of my left ankle with it. It's a small piece, and won't reattach. After seeing an orthopedic specialist, I am in a small air cast for stability, and have been advised against racing (actually running, but for 'cross, that means racing) for four weeks. Guess this is as good a time as any for a "break" ;).

Ouch - Providence Hurt!

2009-10-19T14:44:00.016-04:00

As always, I'm playing catch up with my blogging. This week, I'm catching up from last week's Verge Series races in Providence, RI.

Saturday

I raced at Roger William’s Park for the first time in 2006 – for ‘Cross Nationals. I remember the course being difficult, with lots of power sections and some technical handling skills required. I was happy to see that hadn’t changed ;). I had a reasonable start into the grassy section, but managed to let myself get “squeezed out” by a couple more aggressive racers entering the first turns. At one point, entering "the bowl", I had a terrific uphill line to the right around several stalled riders. Unfortunately, one of them moved into my line forcing me to dismount, and nearly kick Michele H in the head!

Knowing I was still sitting in the top 10, I pushed as hard as I could, having to yell at a Quad Cycles racer at one point as she ran a hill I was riding – she kept cutting into my line! I ended up giving up a few places in the final lap of the race – just didn’t have the legs to go any harder. I know I raced well, and I was happy with the day.

After changing up and grabbing some food, it was time for me to cheer Mike on in his race. He told me that I didn't need to be in the pits - his bike was there if he needed it. So, I found my friends Susan and ML, and we watched the race from the barriers. As the Master's men came by for the first lap, I was concerned - Mike wasn't where he should have been. After LOTS of racing, you get to know where someone should be in a race - Mike was too far back, and I knew something had happened. Sure enough, as he came through, I could see from the dirt on his leg that he had gone down.

I continued to watch from the same spot. Lots of people will tell you that I can be a little, well, loud when I'm cheering. As Mike made his way through the "spaghetti bowl" and the "whoopdy-doos", I yelled again. He heard me, and yelled that he needed a bike. Uh-oh. I literally dropped my camera, my bag and my partially eaten bologna sandwich right then, and proceeded to SPRINT across the venue to the pit - in my clogs. As I was running, I thought about ditching the shoes, but changed my mind. Later, friends would tell me that don't think they had ever seen me move so fast - guess I need to practice that WHILE RACING!

I made it to the pit, but Mike wasn't expecting it, so went another half a lap before coming in for a bike change. In his haste, he literally threw his race bike into my shin (ouch) and took off, telling me only that it was "all messed up". I did a cursory look and saw that it wasn't shifting, and that the rear shifter had bent. Many, many thanks to the neutral support from Mavic - he had the shifter repositioned and the shifting fixed in time for Mike to change up the next time through. Another change of bikes, and Mike was on his way to try and pick off more racers.

In the end, I learned that he had gone down on the pavement just before the concrete stairs, costing him a number of places. His leg looked like raw hamburger, so we wandered to the medical tent for a clean up before watching the Elite races. He ended up 20th, still in the points despite the crash and two bike changes - pretty good racing, I'd say!

Sunday

The change in course was going to require more technical handling skills on Sunday. Before the race, world champion Kathy S came by and told me to ride smart, leave space, and take advantage when people make mistakes. We talked about specific lines in certain places, and then went on to our individual warm-ups.

On the whistle, I wanted to get a better start than the previous day when I got boxed out slowing for the first corner in the pavement/grass transition. I sprinted up the hill and hit the hole shot second wheel behind Natalia G - sweet! Kathy proceeded to pass me on the straight grass section and then crash in the second corner. I took her advice and took advantage, got by her and continued chasing Natalia ;). (Photo by Geoff M.)

Unfortunately, I bobbled in the “spaghetti bowl” the first time through. I was forced to dismount on the first uphill and then couldn’t get clipped in fast enough going through the whoopdy-doos. That cost me about 5 places, and I was angry at myself for letting it happen. Heading into the same section on the next lap, I was behind Leah going up the hill. I didn’t quite make it, put my downhill foot out, and crashed, rolling to the bottom of the hill. Being the not-so-smart racer that I am, I jumped up only to crash right back down when I put weight on my left foot. I literally sat for 3-5 minutes before I was able to get up, get back on the bike and finish the race. The pedaling was ok, but anytime I had to dismount to run over or up anything, the pain was pretty brutal. I just don’t know when to stop ;).

Pain Face - captured by Geoff M.

Sadly, as I was crashing, Michele H was behind me, looked up and simultaneously hit a divot, sending her over the bars and onto her already injured shoulder - on the same hill from the previous day! That hill was jinxed for us.

Again, I changed up, and then went into the pits to support Mike in his race. He did really well the second day, and managed to finish on the same bike he started on, and to stay upright ;). He also did well, with a 15th place finish. He's been riding really strong this season.

Now, it was my turn to head to the medical tent. I was positive I had just sprained the ankle - after all, I had done the same thing, on the same ankle earlier in the year. So, I went in search of an ace bandage and some ice. Tom Stevens' wife, Kathy, was the attending, and advised that I should likely have an x-ray, just to rule out anything worse than a sprain, especially given where I was/wasn't feeling the pain. She treated both of us over the course of the two day event...

Then it was time for beer. Beer and cheering cures just about anything ;). Despite the crash-filled weekend, and the suffering, it was still a lot of fun.

Gran Prix of Gloucester - LATE!

2009-10-14T08:54:00.013-04:00

Freezing on the start (photo: Patrick K.)

I heard the rain hitting the skylight in the night, and inwardly groaned – ANOTHER race in the rain, cold and mud. After a season of 7 MTB races in the same conditions, my motivation for the first day of Gloucester – a race I look forward to all year, was gone. A pre-ride of the course confirmed that the race would be slick and VERY muddy. I retreated to the trainer, and actually managed to get warmed up – until we went to stage. The wind off the ocean, the sideways rain, and the cool temps negated everything I had just done. I shivered with teeth chattering until it was time for us to start.

The one heartening thing pre-race? I was FAR from alone. Seventy-five women took the line in monsoon-like conditions. Guess we were all a bit crazy. It is really incredible, though, to see that many women racing. Where were they all during the road and MTB seasons????

Up the mud hill of doom(photo: Patrick K.)

I did have a good start to the race, leading the pack about halfway up the hill. Most of the rest of the race is a blur to me – a lot of sideways sliding, more running than I care for, and a lot of thinking about being finished. I did actually pit my bike after a lap and a half – that was good practice for me, and also illustrated how differently my two bikes handled in the conditions. After finishing up, I changed into dry clothes, proceeded to work the pits for Mike’s race, and was soaked through again. It wasn’t until much later in the evening that I felt warm, and dry!

Mike had an AWESOME day on the bike! Watching from the pits, I couldn't see how he was managing in the technical sections of the course, but he finished the day in 10th place in the Masters 1/2/3 35+ field, so he CLEARLY was riding those sections, and everything else, well!

My motivation came back on Sunday. The weather was improving, temps were rising, and the slippery, muddy conditions were tacking up and improving. The big challenge was figuring out the course – most of us couldn’t make heads or tails of which way it went!

I chose NOT to pre-ride the course, but instead, to sit on the trainer to get warmed up. I knew that once the race started, as long as I followed tape, I would find the course and be ok ;). Sunday was more about power, but there were also a lot of turns, which I have been practicing. Got another good start, but was worried when I heard that a rider had gone down. Couldn’t look back to see if everyone was ok though – head was down sprinting for the hole shot. I ended up onto the grass about 3rd wheel, and rode a reasonably clean race. Mike’s advice on not shouldering the bike in the chicanes was good, and let me use the bike as a pivot point to get around those tight corners while running. I was able to ride into the barrier section pretty well, also, and not lose any time there. I felt much better on Sunday, and was slightly upset at losing 3 places in the final turns of the course – and losing the final sprint to my nemesis, Karen T.

The great news for me? I had a better second day at Gloucester than the first, which hasn’t happened since I started racing at that venue! I also didn’t crash at Gloucester this year – another first and a bit of a surprise given the conditions.

Mike had another good day on the bike, and released me from pit duty so I could go out and capture some photos of his race too:

We ended up spending most of the day after we were both done racing, hanging with friends and partaking in the beer tent. It was a great way to celebrate another "epic" weekend of racing!

Prost!

Colors of Autumn

2009-10-05T20:28:00.003-04:00

These images from a beautiful fall morning in New England will have to tide you over until I have time for a proper report on the weekend of racing in Gloucester. Enjoy!

Morning Dew on the Dogwood Tree

Finds from the trail - really!

Green Mountain - The Report and Photos

2009-10-01T13:37:00.023-04:00

This was my first ‘cross race of the season, having missed out on the Suckerbrook season opener. I was excited, but also nervous. The venue at Catamount Family Center offers up beautiful mountain vistas, but also a painful, climbing 'cross course. And I may have left my climbing legs in MA...

We decided to head up on Friday to get some rest that night without having to be leaving the house at 5:30 am. It was a good call, and let us get out for an early preview of Saturday's course.

The start of the course was a long, grassy, uphill slog. The good thing was that conditions were very dry, so traction wasn't going to be an issue either up or down. Some of the standard features I remembered from last year reappeared for the race – the downhill-180 corner-uphill chicane, the log run-up (ok, for the men it was a ride-up, but I'm not that good), a screaming fast descent into a gravelly 90 degree left turn (I thought this turn would cause carnage, but somehow, all of the racers managed to navigate through without dire injury), another downhill-180-uphill chicane (that was faster to run than to ride - just ask Adam), long grassy power sections, and barriers that appeared just after a hard left turn. I heard there was about 500 feet of climbing per lap, and in between the climbs, you needed a lot of power.

We weren't the only ones pre-riding on Friday either. We bumped into Vicki and Marc while we were there, and they had just arrived from Ottawa. You know - I LOVE the social aspect of 'cross. We haven't seen each other since the last races at NBX last season, and it was good to catch up. Of course, blog-land and Facebook let us keep in touch in the off season, but it's just not the same...

After checking out the venue, and having already checked in to our home away from home for the weekend, we set out in search of dinner. Mike wanted to see certain parts of Burlington, and how things have changed since he graduated from UVM (many moons ago!). We ended up driving quite a ways with no luck. Places he remembered were no longer there, and other places had 30 minute waits for a table. Frustration started to set in, and I remembered that I had seen a tavern next to our B&B, so we decided to check it out. It ended up being a TERRIFIC find - awesome food (recommend the veggie pot pie, potato pancakes and mac 'n cheese), great service and really good beer. Plus, we could walk back to our room!

In the morning, we were able to take our time having coffee and breakfast at the B&B, since we were literally two minutes from the venue. One thing I will caution, however, is that eggs benedict does not make good pre-race food! Tasted fine when I ate it, but caused some serious issues later. Full of breakfast, topped off after a trip to Starbucks (literally passing a burning building to get there), and we were at the race site, prepping for the day.

In pre-riding the course, I felt good, but knew that the climbing would give me some trouble. Back to the trainer for 35 mins before the race, and then it was show time.

I lined up at the start behind my teammate Julie. My start was ok, and I quickly moved into having to pass riders ahead. In the first down-180-up, several riders had issues, and one crashed remounting her bike directly in front of me! This put me back behind a place or two, and I knew I needed to move back up. I passed Christine Fort (Quad), and for most of a lap couldn’t get her off of my wheel. I finally buried myself in one of the uphill power sections to create a gap that stuck. After the race, Christine told me that one of her goals for the season had been to chase me, and now she could cross that off her list ;). I had a decent race, and practiced ensuring that I was smooth in the corners, and took long strides into, over, and after the barriers before getting back on my bike. Haven’t had that hard of an effort for the entire year! Finished up with 13 mins of anaerobic effort (of a total 29 minutes racing). Man – I forgot how much ‘cross hurts!

After my race, I changed up and was ready to become a cheering spectator. Mike was up soon after I finished, and I spent his entire race chasing him around the course to take photos, and to let him know where he was in the field. You see, we didn't decide until quite late that we were even going to race the Green Mountain races, so Mike ended up lined up in the LAST row - of 50+ racers! And, he had an auspicious start when the official told someone else to get in that row, telling Mike to move over. Mike made the other racer go to his left so he could maintain his outside position, and the official then told him he couldn't move up that side. Baffled, neither of us knew exactly what he meant, but Mike quickly found out when he went to blast to the right, only to almost run into said official, who stood there to ensure he stayed straight/behind.

Nonetheless, Mike had a great racing, quickly passing about half the field. He worked his way from 26th, all the way up to a 16th place finish! The funniest thing about his race was when he and teammate Todd were in the same group - since they share the same last name, and are teammates, the announcer made the [incorrect] assumption that they were brothers - not the first time we've heard that one! Todd also finished well, just behind Mike in 17th. That meant they were both in the points, and would get a call up on Day 2.

The rest of the day was spent spectating, cheering wildly, and just hanging with all of our 'cross friends. A few of us went back to the tavern for dinner that night, but bedtime came early for most after a long, tough day.

I heard the rain start in the night, and with the forecast, knew that the conditions on Sunday weren’t going to be stellar. Quite frankly, after all of the MTB racing I have done in the rain this year, my motivation for another rainy, cold, muddy race was pretty low. It was tough to even get warmed up on the trainer, and by the time we went to staging and waited to start, I was cold again anyway.

The good traction of the previous day was gone with the rain and cooler temps. Instead, the corners were slick and muddy. And if at all possible, there seemed to be MORE climbing in the course on Sunday; the laps were also a full 2.5 miles long! Features like the BMX pump track, a set of stairs, a rock drop and the barriers kept us all on our toes. Getting caught in the single-track ruts claimed more than one rider on the day – riding in the grass seemed to be the safer alternative.

I’ll admit that I approached this race with a bit too much caution. I was nervous about the corners and the slippery conditions, and that nervousness cost me. In a 2-3 hour mountain bike race, time can be made up – not in a 39 minute ‘cross race! In hindsight, I should have done two things:

Pitted and used my other bike – the tires would have provided better traction;
Planned to run the pump track each time instead of getting bogged down TRYING to ride it.

So why didn’t I do either of those things? Everytime I went by the pit, I was either just ahead of or just behind other racers, and I didn’t want to take the time necessary for a bike change. I also didn’t know that I COULD legally do that since my bike was working (shifting) fine, I hadn’t crashed, and nothing was broken. And approaching the pump track each time, I THOUGHT that I could ride it – I really did! Good lessons to learn early in the season. ;) So, I finished without crashing, but didn't have a stellar performance. Christine needs to update her goal sheet though - she beat me on Sunday...

Again, I changed up and prepped for Mike's race. Today though, I had a job - I was working the pits. With the weather a factor, and course conditions deteriorating, it was important that I was there in case he needed a bike change during the race (plus, he had done the same for me!). I got schooled in pit etiquette by some veterans, and was ready (Mike didn't end up needing to pit, and I did take some grief from Jamie for yelling "Go Honey" as Mike went by).

Mike got a second row call up on Day 2 - a much better position than the previous day! Unfortunately, he had a couple of issues with his pedal on the start, and was forced to chase for the first part of the first lap. I tried to let him know where he was in the placing through the race, but lost count near the end, with lapped traffic. Like me, he didn't crash, but also didn't feel as good about the day - finishing 18th. Still good enough for series points, and the all important call ups for Gloucester this weekend!

Green Mountain 'Cross

2009-09-28T15:55:00.004-04:00

More pics and a race report are forthcoming. In the meantime, here's a small bit of video from Saturday (sunny) and Sunday (not so much sunny...) Oh - and I intentionally removed the audio of Mike cheering :).

Backyard 'Cross

2009-09-17T13:55:00.004-04:00

You too can have your own backyard 'cross course. It's really easy:

Don't mow the lawn for 2 or 3 weeks.
Lay out the course.
Mow the laid out course on an extra short setting.
Build and place barricades.
Ride!

It's Time...For Some 'Cross!

2009-09-16T16:07:00.002-04:00

The bikes are ready...

... and the course is set!

Is Anyone Home?

2009-09-14T12:28:00.004-04:00

This post is for Dave B., who kindly pointed out to me at the Landmine race yesterday that my blog updates have been sadly lacking. As I said to Dave, with the summer I have had, I haven't much felt like blogging... But, it's a new season, and time to get back to it!

Yesterday was the official end of the MTB race season for me. It's been long, wet, muddy and frustrating to say the least. It seemed that every race we had was proceeded by rain, or it rained WHILE we were racing. The exception to that, of course, was the sunny, 90 degree Winding Trails race in April - still a weather challenge! Of course, yesterday's race couldn't be an exception - torrential rains on Saturday made for some swimingly good conditions to race in on Sunday...

At the pre-race meeting, they told us that it was slippery out there, and to be careful. Essentially, the bridges were slick as snot and ended up claiming more than one victim (Mike said he ended up wiped out on the last bridge in the race). In other places, we literally rode down rivers, or through puddles that we hoped didn't contain wheel-sucking holes in the middle (at least one did). I swore when I was through I was going to just throw my kit in the trash...

At the whistle, I fell in behind the two Pro racers, and the one woman in the 19-34 class, putting me 4th overall, but leading my class of 4 women. I tried to hang onto the fast women as long as I could, but their technical skills soon bested me, and they were out of sight. The good news for me was that the remainder of the women were out of MY sight, which made me keep pushing to stay ahead.

The sport men soon started coming by. While many of these guys are actually pretty savvy and nice when over-taking, many also are not! I had a few who tried to pass in very technical sections with no clear line, or approaching some of those slick-as-snot one-lane bridges. While I did my best to get out of the way WHEN I could, I also knew that I needed to stay on the gas as my competitors were still behind me.

As I passed through the first feed zone, I got a look behind and saw one of the other women coming up on me. I worked hard to stay ahead, and managed to hold the lead in my race until mile 8. At that point, I made a technical error, Mary got ahead, and then I fell into the trap of watching her instead of where I was going, causing more errors. In another technical section, I dropped my chain, and watched the other 2 women pass by with a flurry of men as I got it back on, and looked for a break in the traffic to get back on with the race.

I managed to catch 3rd place again by mile 9, but once things got more technical, I lost her for good. It was actually awesome to watch Rachael ride away from me, as she did it on a section where many of the men were walking ;). From there, I fell into a good pace for me, trying to achieve other goals in the race - riding more than last year, not getting passed by certain friends in the Sport race, taking time off my race time from the previous year, and to have fun.

Somewhere this season, racing my MTB stopped being fun for me. So yesterday, I decided to have FUN (and still race). The conditions were pretty harsh, but when I crossed the line, I was happy - despite being DFL - because I had had fun on my ride. There was no crying, not much swearing, and I took 16 minutes off of my race time from last year. It's all about perspective, and I had lost that. It was good for me, then, to finish such a lackluster (from my perspective) season on a good note.

I ended up with 8 races in the Root 66 series, as well as 1 EFTA "race". Having been the only woman to show up at a couple of the races in my category means that I win the overall series for the Cat 1 35+ women - more a testament to my attendance than my results, but with all of the bad weather and lack of motivation I have had, I'll take it ;).

Oh - and a big shout out to our friend Kevin H. Yesterday, Kevin bested the times of ALL the other riders in the 25 mile cross-country race by 6 minutes to win the GT Golden Bike! Congrats, Kevin!

North Shore Racing

2009-08-17T14:32:00.011-04:00

This was a big week for racing in New England. Wednesday was the Witches Cup in Salem, MA followed on Thursday by the brand new Gran Prix of Beverly. The words fast, hard and painful come to mind - oh, and fun. Yes, definitely fun!

Witches Cup

Celebrating the team win

I first did this race two years ago when it was re-introduced to the New England calendar. I was a brand new Cat 3 racer jumping into an Open Women's field. And I didn't like corners. Sounds like disaster in a crit to me - I ended up lapped TWICE by Lyne Bessette and my teammate, Rebecca. This year, all I wanted was to stay with the pack...

I knew the race was going to be fast - Lyne was going for win number 3, and Rebecca had decided being second two years in a row wasn't enough. Nicole Friedman (another former Olympian) was also on the start line in addition to the fast NEBC Elite team and many other strong racers from the local scene. Deep breaths, and sure enough, it was rockets from go. It took me a few laps to finally get comfortable with the corners and the pace, but I was still hanging in (although Mike scared the pants off me early when he yelled, "You've gotta move up! You're gonna get pulled!" - important note - I was about 10 feet off the back of the pack...).

As I got more comfortable, I decided to go up the road with about 5 laps to go. I pulled for a lap, and was able to get back into the pack. I crossed the line in 17th place - WITH THE PACK! Goal accomplished - I hung in to the finish without any gapping or lapping! Woohoo! And even better - it was a team win (#7 for Rebecca!).

Then it was time for the big race - the P1/2/3 men. Two years ago, Mike won the 4/5 race here. Last year he did well in the P1/2/3 race, and he was hoping to do well again this year. The pace was furious with big names dominating the front of the field. While 100 men started only 59 finished the race, including Mike (an awesome 37th).

Gran Prix of Beverly

Thursday took us to Beverly for an entirely different type of race. Walking the course early, I could tell this was going to be tough. Soon after the start/finish was a 110 degree right hand corner, followed by a quick left and another right through a chicane. In some instances, the course went from a wide boulevard to a narrow side street. Adam Myerson later described the course as a paved 'cross race - it was definitely technical!

There were also far fewer women starting this race (17 vs. 27), although all the big names from the previous night's race were back for more. With my technical cornering skills not where they need to be, I had a race that can best be summarized as follows:

Drop, chase, catch; drop chase, catch; drop, chase, chase, chase, catch, attack; POP; drop, drop drop, chase, chase, chase, chase, chase, chase, pulled with 2 laps to go

I got so angry with myself part way through the race that I blew through the pack, burnt all my matches at once, and then was dropped for good - yeah, that was not so smart. Apparently, though, I have a "too stupid to stop" gene, so kept on plugging, hoping that I could hold off from getting lapped as long as possible. The effort was full on, but with just 2 laps left, I was caught. Bill, the chief referee, had to violently blow his whistle to get my attention, since I still had my head down and was still moving at 22+ mph! I was disappointed that I got dropped, but in the end, I am proud of myself for sticking it out as long as I did.

Again, the good news was a team win - #8 for Rebecca (did I mention that girl is on fire?).

The men lined up for their race, and the technical course took its toll on most of the field. Out of 77 starters, only 32 ended up finishing the race - the remainder being pulled or just not finishing. Mike said that as hard as Wednesday's race was, Thursday was harder. I'm glad that he thought so, too ;)

The best part of this race, to me, was the enthusiasm of the town and the spectators. There were people having parties on their front lawns. All the shop windows sported posters for the event. Restaurants set up makeshift patio areas for serving food and drinks. And no matter HOW far off the back I was, people were constantly cheering and supporting the effort. Almost makes me want to go back and do it again!

More Racing, and Some Riding For Fun

2009-08-12T09:11:00.017-04:00

Saturday - Gate City Cyclone

Cathy - Women's 1/2/3 - 8th/11
Mike - Pro 1/2/3 - 33rd/75

Just a couple of overall observations from the races on Saturday:

If the women don't start showing up for races, the promoters are going to start cutting the prize lists and/or the entire fields. Not sure what's up with everyone, but this race literally had 21 prime prizes and a cash payout of $750 for the top 6 finishers. I don't want to hear any women complaining when fields and prizes start getting cut.
Team Equipe Specialized showed up for the Men's P1/2/3 race from Quebec. They had two fancy team vans, and they were FAST. Cleaned up on many primes, and won the race overall.
Everyone should wear gloves when racing. Manny G learned this the hard way, going down in a crash in the first corner. Looked like a broken finger and lots of skin lost on his hands.
Neutralizing a race is always hard. Doing it on a prime lap, at the finish line is harder. Having the pace scooter STOP directly in front of sprinting racers is B-A-D!

Overall, this was a fun race, and I had a good time. With two teammates in the break, I settled in to the "chase group" (when there are only 11 and 4 are up the road, it's hard to be called "the pack") to sit in. I figured that I could settle in for the final sprint, but Kerry L wound it up a bit too early for me, and I got caught out.

After changing up and some socializing, I got to watch Mike, Scott and Oscar race in the P1/2/3 race. They looked great, holding their own in the front third of a tough field. Of course, following up racing with food, friends and beer is always a good end to the day.

Sunday - Lynn Woods

Sunday was all about riding for fun. We don't get an opportunity to do that very often during the race season, so it was nice to head out with Mike, Scott and Wayne. Three hours of technical riding, some crashes and a whole lot of fun reminded me of why I am so passionate about riding my bike ;) Sometimes, perspective is a good thing!

Norwell, Canada and Trees

2009-08-07T11:08:00.017-04:00

Once again, I have fallen behind on the blogging. This seems to be a recurring theme this year!

Norwell

Two weeks ago, Mike and I went to Norwell for the MBRC-sponsored race. I loved this race last year, and this year was the same. We lucked out on the weather (it rained the entire way to the race) with sun and warm temps.

NEBC actually had a team of racers in the 35+ - Mike, Scott, Jim, John and Rob. Together, they rode strong, chasing early breaks, working together, and dicing it up with the Corner Cycles and Fuji teams. Their hard work paid off with three top 10 finishes (Scott - 7th, Mike - 8th, John - 10th).

The start; Looking strong

The break; And the chase

I didn't get to see the finish of their race as I was busy prepping to line up with the 45+ men. Norwell doesn't have a women's field, so racing with the boys is my only option (I was the only woman in the field). Last year at this race, I managed to hang on to the field, but got dropped everytime we went up the finish hill, and had to chase back on. This year, I wanted to NOT get dropped on the climb!

Typically, the 45+ field is considered relatively safe, at least by me. I know many of the racers in this field, and they have lots of years of experience. This year, however, some of the racers were unknown to me, and really made me nervous - not holding lines, pretending to be a top Tour de France descender IN THE MIDDLE OF THE PACK, etc. The other interesting phenomenon? I got the sense that some of them desperately did not want to get beaten by a girl ;). So, it took me a few laps to get comfortable and move around the pack, but I met my overall goal - I never once got dropped on the climb, and was, in fact, PASSING people here! On the final climb, I dug deep, sprinted, and passed about 5 riders going into the finish. I managed to finish a respectable 24th in a field of 39, so was happy with the overall result.

Canada

This past weekend I headed to the homeland for a long over-due visit with my grandma, and a wedding. I flew in this time and rented a car - and since they didn't have any compacts available, I ended up with a convertible! I had a blast driving around with the top down all weekend.

The lake and cottage where I spent a lot of time growing up. The cottage has been moved, and the front room removed, but other than that, it still looks the same as I remember - just smaller!

My rock. It has been green, pink, beige...; My weekend ride - very fun

Me and gram

Enjoyed a visit with gram, who had just turned 86 the previous day. It was a surprise to her that I was coming, which was nice. She was at my aunt and uncle's which used to be her cottage when we were growing up. Lots of changes up there, but the visit brought back some great memories of playing with my cousins and brother.

Then it was off to Paula and Dave's wedding. It's always fun to catch up with good friends, and especially so for such a happy occasion.

Trees

When I got home from my visit, I was happy to see that the tree work we had planned was complete. We moved a large rhododendrun and holly bush, as well as a magnolia tree from the front yard to the side of the house. This will afford us some privacy from the neighbors, as well as from the road! Certainly changes the view out my office window. We also had two apple trees moved, although one of those is looking like it might not survive the stress.

Before - prepping for move; Moving the holly bush

Here comes the magnolia; Placing the rhodie

Finally in its new home; After - a bit lonely?

The finished bed/view from the office!

Off to other adventures this weekend! An MTB clinic, a race in Nashua and who knows what else might be in store...

A Smashing End

2009-07-18T21:45:00.004-04:00

Mike and I had a great day up in Maine, until it all came to a "smashing" end.

We got up late, enjoyed a leisurely breakfast, did some shopping, went for a bike ride to open the legs before tomorrow's race (ride ended with lemonade and fresh french fries at the town's fair) and were just heading up to Grafton Notch to take some pictures at Screw Auger Falls, and maybe see a moose.

Coming down the hill on Rte 2, I turned on my signal to make the left turn onto Rte 26 and started to slow. With oncoming traffic, I stopped. Unfortunately, the girl driving behind me (talking on her cell phone) did not. Smash.

We are both fine, but the van, as you can see, took a good hit. Good thing the bikes weren't on the rack! Oh, and the other driver claimed that the sun was in her eyes...

Insult to injury? It took Maine's finest almost 45 minutes to show up, and when they finally got there, the skies opened in a vicious downpour. And the bugs? There were MILLIONS!

The tailpipe has been cut off the car with a sawzall, and Mike has removed and straightened the rear shock which was bent and would not compress. Now it's up to the insurance to deal with the aftermath.

HANG UP AND DRIVE!

What's New?

2009-07-15T14:33:00.012-04:00

Well, since my last update, life has continued to be busy here. So much so, that you get a summary of what's been going on instead of the full on blow-by-blow! Not to worry though - I am at least providing some pictures for your enjoyment ;).

Mike started the Working Man's Stage Race last night, along with several other friends and teammates. Sadly, this is my first year in the past 4 not participating in this race! I have requested that the promoter consider a Women's Open field next year. I think the highlight of the evening though was Colin's initiation to the TT - he thought we were all kidding when we told him he needed to ride for over 15 minutes with the nose of his saddle stuck up his butt.
Last year, I didn't get to race at Pat's Peak. I was determined NOT to have a mechanical during my warmup this year, and to see what this course was all about. Well, it was about climbing and lots of it. Oh, and that bright thing in the sky we haven't seen in two months? It made a grand appearance on Sunday, making it hot. And thunderstorms the night before (not to mention two months of rain) made for lots of energy-sucking, stinky, bug-filled mud. Oh, and I almost forgot about the wrong turn I took in the first lap taking me downhill to the lodge when I should have been going UPHILL... Short story on my result: if your glass is half empty, I lost; if your glass is half full, I won ;). Where were all the other Cat 1 women????
Mike and I went to Lynn Woods for the first time in years. Of course, it was the day before Pat's Peak, so we only rode the fire roads and some lesser technical trails, but it was still invigorating to ride somewhere different.
Last week, I played hooky from work to spend the day with my mom, dad and niece up in North Conway. We went to StoryLand for the day, and had a blast, despite gray skies and chilly temps. I've never been in StoryLand except for racing my bike...
Mike has fully recovered from a debilitating bout of food poisoning. No more Chinese buffet lunches for us!
Putney came, Putney went. 'Nuff said.

So, I think that finally brings me up to date! Here are some photos from some of the events listed above. I'll try to be better about timely updates ;)

How many roadies does it take to get an MTB racer ready for a TT?

Katherine kicking for 2nd; Colin with his MTB game face - no reverse hole shot here!

Mike looking super fast; Hey - are those MY wheels? ;)

A fun ride at Lynn Woods

My niece loves to drive!

Weather Weary

2009-07-01T16:24:00.003-04:00

These are at least brighter to look at than the weather outside...