Weekend Wrap-Up

Wound up being a somewhat interesting weekend. Emails went back and forth throughout Friday as we tried to figure out a ride plan for higher elevations with somewhat inclement weather in store.

The forecast actually called for clearing and a tad warmer on Saturday, despite rain on Friday. A few of us agreed we'd head up to Idyllwild on Saturday morning to do some course recon for a race coming up in a few weeks. We got about 1/4 of the way up the hill and the cars with a few inches to have a foot of snow on their roofs started heading down. We should've turned around (Robert did!). We kept going. I was begging the drizzle at least to stop. The truck was screaming its ICE warning as we got to Mountain Center, and down at Hurkey the ground was damp, and while it wasn't remotely warm out, the temps weren't too bad.

The four of us (Luke, Eric, Justin and I) stood around and tried to formulate a plan. We were all dedicated to the ride, so we figured we'd head out and see what conditions were like.



Nothing too bad climbing up the course, but once we got over to Keen Camp climb it was drizzling again a bit, and the water hitting my face descending through the meadow was frigid. I kept changing my mind about continuing on or turning down Exfoliator. We continued up May Valley. The climb wasn't too bad. The dirt sucked our tires in, and made it feel slow. We got up to the singletrack turn-off and there was snow on the ground. It was raining, so temps weren't below freezing, but it definitely wasn't warm.



We started descending and I soon realized I couldn't continue without putting on my jacket. I was already soaked and muddy, and couldn't see through my glasses. I got moving again and my hands were so cold I had to stop to change out my gloves from the Cyclone's to the Sub-Zero's. Fingers were still freezing, but they weren't getting too much worse.

The boys were stopped waiting and Justin said we were heading down the trail. Off we went. We were all cold.

Luke decided to continue up the climb and finish out the course while Eric, Justin and I took off down Coyote Run and got back to the parking lot stat.

I felt better once I got into some dry clothes. Wasn't really the type of ride I'd been looking for. Too short and too much slow riding for it to be useful for my weekend ride, and too many efforts put in early on trying to stay warm and keep the boys visible that it wasn't easy enough for my easy day. D'oh!

I spent the afternoon cleaning up for a friendly get together planned for Sunday, and Justin and Luke headed down to the spring party at Beyond for burgers, brats, beer, and some warranty stuff. They got in a fast ride in the evening before heading back up north.

Sunday Justin and I slept in, I made a huge pot of oats, and we took our time getting suited up for a run at Daley. The lot was pretty empty (for a Sunday) when we showed up, but lots of trail runners out!

I was happy to NOT need multiple layers



My new shades! Stoked I finally was able to USE them!





We got in some efforts on the climbs, rested on the descents, and generally had a nice ride.



Stopped off at the store on the way home to pick up provisions and then it was food time.



Charressa's bomb salad (I was the only one that ate some!)



Half of dinner



Other than Justin, I was the only one that finished my burger and had corn! And sweet potatoes, and salad.

I can put away the food, let me tell you. Of course, I didn't feel so good for many hours post-binge, but hey…sometimes you gotta eat yourself sick.

Good weekend overall. Just missed not watching Paris-Roubaix. Hopefully we'll get to watch a bit of it this week.

XXC Mag

Jason just released Issue One of XXC Mag online!





Check it out! It looks pretty awesome.

Photo Shoot - flying new colors

Yesterday I was supposed to hit the dirt for an easy spin. It was pretty easy, but I did a lot of stopping and starting and going back and stopping again. Justin was nice enough to play photographer instead of getting in a ride of his own.











Sorry to disappoint, Matt... the Wiens and Lucca kits probably won't be my go-to training gear every other day :)

Take… "2"?

After the massive effort last Sunday at Fontana I took Monday off (as usual - it's my "errand" day) and decided since it was mid-cycle to do a bit longer of a ride on Tuesday, but with less intense efforts. I felt KILLER out on the bike. I hadn't had a training day like that in a long time. Wasn't pushing hard at all, but just really enjoying pedaling. Unfortunately Justin did not feel so great. We wound up a tad shy of 2 hours, with some easy efforts.

I was going to take Wednesday as it came, just get out on the bike at lunch and see how I felt... Well, I put in an effort and didn't feel horrible; did a 3min effort and then backed off a tad. So, I kept it going with efforts and recoveries the entire way. Solid hour! Still feeling pretty good.

Thursday we planned on heading out to our local easy mountain bike loop. I was planning on taking it easy, but Justin was out for redemption after a week of feeling the race efforts, the crash recovery, and tons of poison oak. He and Luke sped off, and I spun slowly behind, far far out of sight. It was pretty cold.



I took a right where I thought the boys may have gone, but I wasn't sure. Wasn't up for a steep climb, so I just stood around listening to the silence to see if I could hear them coming the other way…eventually I heard some tire skids and around the bend they came.



I chased Luke and Justin down with Ben from Troupe hot on my wheels. He asked if this was our "slow" pace! I was like, "I'm working like crazy!" I fell way off after that since my legs were feeling it and not happy. No reason to put myself in a hole! I was out for a cruise. Made the boys wait for me a bit, but that's okay. HR was ridiculously low every time I stopped pedaling uphill.

Friday was a short regen spin in the morning. Good thing, too, cause right after work it was off for a family/friend dinner and we didn't get home until almost 10. Spent the next 2 hours or so packing up for our first race weekend away from home! I had been up just after 5 on Friday morning, so by midnight I was a zombie. It's a wonder I didn't forget anything imperative.

Saturday we slept in til about 7 and I got to work making us some delish oatmeal. We got on the road shortly after, and before 11 were down at the venue for Sagebrush Safari.



We met up with Steph and Dan, and it had been a LONG time. We did a ride with them around New Year's, but they had been our prime riding buddies last year, and it was a much needed reunion!





We hung out on the flats chilling, but once I hit a higher HR I decided to just go for some sweet spot riding up the hill. The course was marked, so I just kept following the pavement up and up. I looked back and didn't see anyone for awhile.



Justin was putting in the chase

Mt. Pinos in the distance. We gotta climb up THAT??



The group catching up



Techy



Look fast - unsuccessful



Hike-a-bike!



I'm just glad that I spent so much time hiking LAST weekend that my calves and shins were fully ready for the task! :)

I was fully enjoying the course. The descents were SO fun! I wasn't sure how it would play out on race day, but I was having a blast on the pre-ride.

I hit the hills again once we got down off the fire road and put in another easy effort back up to Four Corners.

I knew I wouldn't like this on race day!



I set off up Pinos in a solo attempt and got in some hard efforts on the steeper sections. I was thoroughly enjoying the climb and the views were spectactular. Got up to the top and took a short break to eat what little calories I had (definitely under packed on liquid and food!)



Shortly after the pack rolled up!



We rode with a few other guys, and finally met Adam from the Gary Fisher 29er crew! We chatted a bit on the way back up to Four Corners (again?!) about Joy's adventures in Costa Rica!

Once back together we made a run down the final singletrack. It was nice and sandy and dusty! Still a blast.

We hammered out the pavement and made it back to the venue in time for some lunch on the rocks before heading to the in-law's for dinner and bed.

I didn't feel like I was really recovering as well as I could've been (tons of walking and standing, and hydrating), but we had a killer dinner of grilled salmon and ahi, salad, and brown rice. It was SO good. There was hardly anything left over! We all destroyed the food.

I sat with my feet elevated for a bit, and off to bed we went.

I'd crashed UPHILL on Saturday, so my somewhat "twisted" ankle bugged me all night, and my legs definitely felt the efforts from the previous day on Sunday morning. I made some extra oatmeal goodies, we packed up and headed south for the race site. It was packed already and we got there before 8:30!

I tried to stay out of the wind and seated, but did a bit of walking around. Everyone was pretty spread out, but chatted with a few people and hung out in the truck to keep dust-free and warm.

We got suited up pretty early and cruised around a little, and headed out for a warm-up. We made it about halfway up to Four Corners and Justin needed to do some adjustments, and my legs just weren't feeling like any further efforts were going to help.

Got everything suited up and off we headed to the line!

The Pro men took off in a cloud of dust, and we took off shortly after.

I had no idea what to expect when we hit the tarmac. I thought maybe the group would stay in a nice peloton so we could work together on the flats in the wind. Pua had other ideas! She sped off like a freight train and the rest of us wound up strung out behind her single file. I don't know about anyone else, but it was all I could do to just hang on to Krista's wheel in front of me. I thought I'd be blown by the time we hit the ascent. Pua attacked off the front as soon as the road turned up, and I went around a few people and was sitting in 2nd. Pua had already made a gap too big to close. There were men in front of me, and people behind, but no one going a similar speed, so I climbed into the wind up to Four Corners solo. I had a small gap on Amanda, Kathy, Natasha, and Zephanie, but they weren't letting the gap grow at all! I hoped to make up some time on the singletrack, but when I hit the slickrock climb they were right there!

I continued to put in efforts on the super fun descent that followed, and generally forgot I was racing I was having so much fun. A train of men rolled through, but I had no chance of hanging on! They were smoking. I don't think I touched the brakes on the fire road descent, but shortly after we hit a false flat and the hike a bike loomed in front of me. I saw Pua picking her way through the men's field ahead, so I knew the women behind me would see me also! Continued moving at all times and putting in efforts where I could.

I got to the top and solo'd that. Once I got to the turn to go downhill I was faced with a massive headwind! Going downhill is not usually so slow and laborious! Put in a lot of time solo, and eventually down on the false flat looked back and saw a big group of guys coming my way. I had no hopes of latching on to the first few, but tried to draft wherever I could!

The climb up to Four Corners was fairly painful. Lots of wind and no relief. I grabbed a fresh bottle (though my initial one was less than half empty!) from Business Darter who is a highly coveted pit man and definitely stands atop the pit guy podium at every event he is at! Not only did he hand me my bottle mid-climb, but he also was snapping shots whilest mid-hand off. That takes skill!

I wasn't much looking forward to climbing up to Mt. Pinos, but made the best of it. I looked back on the big switchback and saw a LOT of riders. I saw a few red jerseys in there as well and knew the Pro women were chasing me down! Pua was out of sight! I put in a few efforts thinking the top was much closer than it actually was, and suffered all the way to the top! It was sweet relief with we turned on to the fire road descent. I was hoping to recover a bit in order to have some energy for the last ascent up to Four Corners.

There was a LOT more traffic this time around with the other categories out on their shorter loop. Lots of traffic on the final descent, but I had a good time just trying to hang on.

I spent the final flat back to the finish line begging my legs to hold on to 2nd place. I hit the dirt and heard "just one more mile!" I hoped he was kidding, but when I saw the motorhomes in the distance I knew I had a LONG way to go!

Pushed it the entire way and was stoked to finish 2nd behind Pua! 3-6 came in not too much later! It was all really close! The Pro women definitely pushed my limits a ton this past weekend, and I was ecstatic to place where I did.

I was a bit out sorts after crossing the line, so half spun around in a daze, waiting for Justin. I cheered on a few people, wandered around, and Sarah was awesome for letting me know Justin was fine, but he'd stopped to help out an injured rider.

We took our time getting dressed and stayed for about 98% of podiums to cheer on Vu and Matt









After that I was done with the wind and the sun and we took off. We snacked on some Clif/Luna bars and then Justin had the brilliant idea to stop at Rita's in El Cajon. What! I was full already!

We split a burrito anyway (3rd meal since the finish!)



The ride home



No post-race beers or candy for me this time!

Killer weekend overall. No complaints. Sho-Air is putting on a killer race series for us here in CA and I can't wait to head up to Sea Otter in a few weeks!

It's not May, but I've got about a "month" of mayhem coming up pretty soon! 3 race weekends in a row. I decided already I'm taking the day after Idyllwild off! Course, I will have to do some cheering for the Super D!

Until next time...

The debut - Pro XCT Fontana City National!

Let's just say I was stoked when after a little bit of prodding I was able to get my upgrade to the Pro/Elite ranks for the remainder of the 2009 race season. I am still a little sad about missing out on points/ranking that I would've gotten for a possible top-5 at Bonelli Park in the Kenda Cup West, but no regrets. I'm stoked that I was given the opportunity to race with the fast ladies for the rest of the year!

Last week was a rollercoaster for me with a lot of unknowns! Was I going to be lapped and pulled? Would I be able to complete all 4 laps at race pace? No more what-if's!

Friday afternoon came around quick enough, and Justin and I packed up the goods and headed north for some course recon. We had ridden the SRC course the weekend before, but found out last week the course would be changing drastically, with a "new" climb up the old elevator/ladder ascent! It was rumored to be steep and loose.

It was pretty warm when we were suited up and heading out to ride, but I figured it would be similar to race conditions come Sunday. We headed out for a cruiser lap and even though there hadn't been hundreds of feet pounding up the hill yet, it wasn't a climb I was able to clean! I hopped off and hiked up, and we finished off the lap talking race strategy.

We finished up a second lap, and while I felt like I could do more, I knew it was time to call it a day. I took in some calories and we headed south to get back home and cook up dinner.

Saturday was a really chill day - short ride with a few efforts and then hanging out and completing race day prep (getting the bikes dusted off and in perfect condition, putting all the bottles together, packing the cooler with food and water, packing up clothes, etc.). It was supposed to be really nice and easy, but unfortunately Justin took a digger in the last few minutes of our ride and wound up with some massive bruising and cuts. He wasn't sure he would able to race. As much as I would've liked to sleep in on Sunday morning, and not have to worry about support and feed zone time, I told him that he had worked too hard to not race; if he could walk - he would be on the start line!

Sunday morning came around quick and we wound up with a killer parking/pit spot that morning that would yield a ton of afternoon shade (and a front row seat to the motorcycle show!). Justin set up the pit area and got his bike on the trainer while I sat in the truck trying to stay warm and figure out what I was doing racing Pro!

He had to do an extended warm-up as they delayed his start a bit. But, it seemed to work out okay. He took off for the line and I gathered up my chair, his race bottles, a water and a bar for me, and took off to catch the start.



After his age group took off I went to find a spot to hang out in the feed zone. Sat down with my feet up on the mini-cooler for a bit until Tim from Troupe Racing came over. Cool to finally officially meet and chat with him! His team continues to grow and is getting great results.

I realized after the bottle hand-off on lap 2 that I had never done a bottle hand-off before! Good thing it went smoothly!



Thanks to Mark for the photo with my camera!

The other laps went off without a hitch, and I cheered on some of my Cat 1 buddies (Rachel, Lisa, Heidi, Steve, Ryan). I noticed some of the Cat 1 women in my AG looked fast! They were smoking out there!

Justin seemed to be easily in a top 10 position throughout. I had trouble keeping track since everyone got mixed together, and a few of the front runners weren't "marked" with their #'s. Either way, as Justin set out on his 4th and final lap I started back to our pit area to get on my race clothes and do my warmup. Time was running out!

Hopped on the trainer right around 11 am (11:30 start!) and was hoping I'd get in enough time. There was a pre-race call-up that would be going on. I found out that morning that I'd be called up last since I was the newest racer (no results). I had assumed as much, so wasn't worried about it. Just knew it meant I had to make some smart decisions and try to pass where I could!

Justin came back over a few minutes after his race, and a few minutes before mine. He did a few last minute bike checks as he said he got 5th in his AG!! Awesome!

I quickly rolled over to the start about a minute before the call-ups began. It was so cool lininng up behind the World and National champions!



My nerves seemed to be in check, but the HR was definitely slightly elevated!

Soon after it was GO time!





The start was a mad dash off the line. No one hesitated. There was some jostling for position and some slipping and sliding. I ran up a few of the hills I was hoping to be riding, but no worries. We all kept it moving!

I put my head down and cranked out the flats and before I knew it I was on Krista's wheel heading up the big climb. I wound up off line and had to run up the entire climb! So painful! I was not about to give up any positions, though.



I spent the next half a lap trying to decide if I should put in efforts and pass, or just sit in. I passed a few times. Two of the women caught back up to me on the rocky climb near the end of lap 1 and passed me back as I had to dab and run up the hill.

Lap 2 I wound up passing Chloe and Kathy and spent the remainder of the race putting in efforts to stay in front of them and not let the gap close down. Kathy was putting in some massive efforts on the climbs to close the gap, so wherever I could I was pushing it to keep it steady!



Lap 4 I begged my legs to hold out for another 20 minutes as I continued to put in efforts.



I spent a lot of the race on my own, sometimes in the wind, and sometimes just enjoying the singletrack and railing the course like it was a Sport SRC race! I was suffering pretty badly cranking along, but kept it moving. I decided lap 4 I wasn't going to hold anything back and cranked out the final turns and finish straight harder than I had any of the other laps. I wasn't sprinting for position, but pretended like I was!

I was so stoked to have finished and held on to a top 10 position! The women I had gone back and forth with were great competitors and kept me challenged. It was great!

Due to the effort I was hurting pretty bad. Breathing was painful. I took off shortly after I came through to hop back on the trainer and do a good cool down. The motorcycle show was about to start, so we needed to get back to the parking lot before it was a mad house!

I was having trouble thinking straight, but Justin hooked me up with my road shoes and some post-race nutrition. All I wanted was a wet towel and some water, so I focused on taking in some fluids and cleaning up my face before I did anything else.



Stoked, but in so much pain!

Not too long after Justin went to get our free In & Out, so I figured I'd spin until he got back. I was ready to enjoy the fruits of my labor!

(First lunch)



Eventually I got myself together enough to go watch some of the Pro Men's race. It was awesome to watch all those guys come by!

We hiked up the elevator/ladder climb (again! #5 for the day!) and I sat down for second lunch



A few minutes later I realized it was women's podium time, so I headed back down the hill to cheer on the top women. Amazing efforts!

Eventually we were running out of steam (and out of water), so it was time to head home. I enjoyed some quality time on the couch…



Overall, I am totally pleased with my day. I can't wait to keep testing myself and learning this year. I hope I am able to remain competitive at this level. I've got a busy 2 months ahead! Very excited about it all!

US Pro XCT Fontana City National

Well, Sunday has come and gone! Just a super quick update...

I finished 10th Pro woman overall at the US Pro XCT race this past weekend! Absolutely stoked on my result.

Full write-up of some sort coming soon. Stay tuned!

Midweek update - in photos

"There is no life I know to compare with pure imagination. Living there, you'll be free if you truly wish to be."



I love food!





Only had this one night, but it tastes good. Might go back to it next week a few days.



We saw about 4 of them on Sunday morning



I was so worked that I couldn't even hold myself up. Thought I'd get that one for posterity.