Riding Through the Mental Block

I made the very last minute call this year to race Battenkill in April. I've raced there once before, and remember it being hard - really hard. Battenkill usually attracts 1000+ racers to its 62 miles with 25% dirt roads and almost 4000 feet of climbing. 

Since I am not a climber, I hunkered down after plopping my $80 into registration, and got busy with training. The past two weekends, Michele and I have been out riding 60+ miles, and last weekend, a number of hills. I've been out with the boys on the short hill climb loop, and the left-for-dead rides. But what I really needed were some tougher hills and a longer ride. I bumped into a friend this week and told him of my upcoming weekend ride plan - "You don't need to do that to train for Battenkill", he said. But you see - I needed it to prove to myself mentally that I was up for the challenge.

So, to celebrate St. Patrick's Day, Mike and I headed north to ride the Notches. We have done this ride in the past in early March - it was epic. This year, I checked the predicted wind forecast before leaving Bedford - temps were predicted to be in the 60s, sun and very little wind. We also made sure this year to check with the rangers before departure on the condition of Bear Notch and Passaconaway Road. They looked at us like we had twelve heads, and let us know that there was no way we could pass either of those on our bicycles. Given that there was no snow on the ground in Lincoln, NH, I was skeptical of their answer, but we planned to take them at their word.

Still smiling

The ride starts off with a relatively easy section of uphill leading into the more difficult Kinsman Notch climb. I stuck with Mike to the base of the climb, and then settled in to my own pace to make it to the top. Just over six miles into the ride and we had already climbed over 1200 feet! From the top of Kinsman, through the descent, over Franconia and heading into Twin Mountain was overcast, cold and reasonably miserable. It wasn't until just before we reached Twin Mountain that we saw the sun come out again, and we were grateful for the warmth.

Almost to the top of Kinsman

Thankfully, the ride up route 3, and then heading towards Crawford Notch on 302 was significantly less windy than on our epic ride. But, as we got ready to head down over the Notch, the wind funneling up through was once again a factor (just not quite as bad as my last experience). With the Zipps on the bike, the wind tends to push me around, so I was careful to control my speed on the descent - just in case.

It was through this section of the ride that I felt bad for Mike. He had pulled the entire way from Lincoln and onto Route 3 heading into Twin Mountain. I provided only a few brief respites for him as we rode from there and on into Bartlett - working to keep up was effort for me. I thought about how if he were with some other, stronger riders, this would have been an easier (and probably faster) ride for him, but was grateful that he chose to be with me.

Happy St. Paddy's Day!

We stopped in Bartlett at our usual pit stop to fill up our bottles, and get some real food into our systems. Since it was St. Patrick's Day, we opted to share a grilled reuben and some hand-made chips. Delicious, but probably a bit much given that we were only 1/2 way through our ride.

I think I ate too much

Back out on the roads, we continued past Attitash/Bear Peak where the skiers were eking out some of the last runs of the year, and onto West Side Road to head towards Conway. The only negative traffic encounter we had all day came in Conway Center when a driver insisted on blaring their horn at two riders, clearly in the bike lane. Apparently they needed more than a lane in which to drive their big SUV.

As we made the turn onto 112 and the bottom of the Kanc, I was starting to feel demoralized. I knew we still had 38 miles to ride, and the hardest climb of the day was still to come. I was already tired (after all, we HAD already ridden over 75 miles), but also knew that I could make it through. As the road pitched up on the lower section of the Kancamagus Highway, I started to drop off of Mike's pace, and told him to just keep going - I was going to suffer my way through.

YES! Finally the top!

I also noted the good amount of snow in the woods here - the rangers had been right about us not being able to get through either Bear Notch or Passaconaway. Just past the turn for Bear Notch Road, the Kanc levels out and I was able to get a better pace going. I looked up at one point though and thought I was hallucinating - I could see something at the side of the road, but couldn't quite make out what it was. As I rode closer, I saw that it was Mike, who had waited for me to be sure I was ok. We continued together until the real climb started, and then I sent him on his way, as I settled into my 8.2 mph average pace to the top. 

It's all downhill from here

There were points where I wanted to stop. My back hurt, my knees hurt, my a$$ was killing me. I alternated sitting and spinning, with getting out of the saddle to grind up a bit further. But, I never stopped, despite wanting to. I pushed through, albeit at close to a running pace, but made it up the climb. Hooray! Mike was waiting for me at the top, so after a quick stop to don my vest, head covering and warmer gloves, we were on our way back down.

MKR's stats - It took me 6:15

We passed the spot where I had climbed in the car the last time I did this ride, and I felt a sense of satisfaction knowing that I was going to finish. We rolled into the parking lot at the visitor center after 113 miles, 6355 ft of climbing, and over 6 hours in the saddle. I was wiped, but had beaten the mental demons to finish what I started. This was a good test for me - I know now, that I can get through Battenkill, and just maybe, even do a reasonable job at it.

We ended our day at the Woodstock Inn and Brewery for dinner and beverages. A beer never tasted so good! Thanks, Mike, for a terrific day, and for dragging me around the block.

Let Them Eat Cake

As near as we can tell, today is Opie and Ellie's 2nd birthday. These two kittens (ok, cats now, really) have brought a lot of joy (and some frustration) into our family. So, for their birthday, we had a party - of course. There were presents of English cucumber (they LOVE the cucumber), and of course, a cake. Thanks to Serene and Teri for helping to celebrate!

Florida

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

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

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!