Oh, hey there, I have a neglected blog...

In the wake of a whirlwind school semester which is currently being finalized with... well...  finals, I have been well aware of the lack of blogging I've done.  It's just that, every time I thought about blogging, I realized that I had some other pressing assignment that I should be working on.  This blog isn't going to get me a really sweet career someday (or is it?), so I need to focus on reaping the most from this educational opportunity which is consuming my already preoccupied life.  Right on.

And so, a whole lot of stuff has been happening, and I haven't been able to write about it.  If we are related somehow via social media, it's likely that you are up to speed, but if not, buckle up; this could be a long and wordy ride...  but I'll try to be brief(ish).

I never planned to race much cross this season - that is, I hadn't planned on it until I realized MTB race season was ending, and I wanted to add some more fun to my schedule.  So I barely rode, didn't exactly train, but raced nearly every weekend.  Now that it's officially over with, I'm glad I did it.  Talk about a learning experience - damn!  I've mentioned in previous posts that I haven't really raced cross before.  I've done a few races here and there, but it's never been my thing.  Yeah, it still isn't - not really.  I do like it though...  next year I'll know what I'm getting myself into, and I'll put a little more effort into being prepared.

The highlight of the season came a little unexpectedly.  We were planning to put on a DAS cyclocross race; there's been one at Owen Bell park since Donnie opened DAS.  This year we'd talked about changing the course a bit - Donnie had some ideas to make the course more spectator friendly.  We also had to change the name of the race because we were using a town park and calling it 'Beer cross' wasn't really good for town image.  No problem...  after joking around at cross practice one Wednesday night, we somehow decided on Beaver Cross.  We got ourselves all set up through USA cycling, and seemed off to a good start.  Then a Facebook post about inequality in women's payouts vs men's payouts spiraled into a never-ending dialogue that had everything from seemingly chauvinist pigs to radical feminists.  Okay, I might be exaggerating, but there were a lot of concerned individuals who felt strongly about what they were saying...  finally, someone pointed out that maybe we should do something rather than talk about it.  Right-O!  Almost immediately, Beaver Cross became all about the Bea....  um, all about the women's payout being as awesome as possible.  Yeah, equal payout would be cool, but how about this time, we show all the ladies that there are people willing to put up some money for them to race.  We ended up with $850 in donations and distributed it 5 deep for both the open women's category AND the 3/4 women's category.  There were also lots of other sweet goodies donated.  Donnie's buddy Oliver offered some of his jerseys... check them out!

Race day went off beautifully!  We had an amazing crew of volunteers helping out, built a kick-ass course, and the weather cooperated for set-up, racing, and clean-up.  This year's race featured in a DJ, a fire, and a quadruple uphill sandpit from your wildest cyclocross nightmares.  To quote one of the participants, it was the "raddest course ever!"  SOOOoooo looking forward to doing it again next year.

...But before next year's cross season gets here, MOUNTAIN BIKE RACING RETURNS!!!  Can you tell I'm excited!?   Well, I have reason to be because there's a lot to be excited about in the New England MTB racing world...  Nationals are coming back to the East coast!  That's right, the end of July will bring some of the fastest racers in the USA out to Bear Creek Resort in PA.  AND THAT'S NOT ALL...  The USA cycling Pro XCT is coming to the East TWICE - to Windham, NY and Catamount, VT.  I bet you're beginning to see why I'm using so many capitals (I'm not sorry if that annoys you... I'm excited; deal with it).  The 2013 season is already looking like it's going to be an amazing one.

Meanwhile, my BA in English is nearing completion...  seriously, I only have senior seminar (two semesters of it) which I'm starting in a few weeks, and my BS in Biology is about a year and half away...  that's if I really buckle down and bust it out - which I've been doing.  Also, my knee problems are en route to a state of resolution...  my IT band is pulling my knee all 'outta-whack' so I'm supposed to be stretching and what-not.  Stretching and use of the foam roller of death seems to be helping a whole lot, so I'll keep on it.

I suppose this wasn't nearly as wordy or long-winded as it could have been...  I'm on break for the next three weeks, so I plan on posting some interesting stuff about fun rides and trail-building.  Here's hoping it doesn't rain the entire time I'm on break!

Gloucester GP - adding some experience to my inexperienced status...

Well, that sure was something.  I was hoping to experience a muddy cross race yesterday, and it was delivered.  I don't recall there being many sections of the course that weren't mud unless they were puddles, sand, or pavement.  Challenging is an understatement.

I arrived in Gloucester with plenty of time to register, warm-up, and pre-ride the course.  What I didn't anticipate was maybe wanting to clean my bike off before the start or the fact that it would take me a fair amount of time to get around the course with it being so sloppy.  Slop - what a fun word.  Anyhow, John and John were Skyler's buddies for the day, and she had a blast hanging out with them while I slopped it up.  So I finished my inspection of the course with just under 20 minutes to spare, rode up to my car to drop my water bottle and grab a GU, and by the time I got down to the start area, I'd missed my call-up to row 3 or 4.  

My start in the back of the pack didn't really bother me; I don't have enough experience to warrant a good starting position just yet, and it wouldn't have been fair to people who've been doing this longer.  Last row was just fine.  However, as we hit the mud and I found myself having to dodge other riders, I soon saw the value of starting closer to the front.  At one point, a girl fell in front of me and I rode directly into her.  We politely apologized to one another and were on our way, but in the meantime, the field was getting pretty stretched out.  Over the course of the first lap, which seemingly took forever, I was back and forth with a few other girls, and I tried my best to ride as smooth as possible.  

To sum it up, I managed to stay on the bike when necessary, and I shouldered my bike the proper way on the dismounts, but I had some really ugly moments out there.  All semblance of technical ability was left on the first lap.  I learned a LOT in those three laps (I think it was three anyhow...).  The course was definitely challenging and fun.  It would have been nice to experience the double-race thing and do Saturday's race as well; from what it sounds like, the course was an entirely different animal.  Maybe someday I'll be up for it, but for now, Saturdays I am up for delivering mail.  

I ended up finishing 38th out of 42 finishers - there were a handful of DNFs and DNSs, too.  I wasn't last, and I finished, barely.  It certainly was a learning experience.  Today, my shoulder is sore, it hurts to wear my backpack full of books, and I think I still have some mud in the corners of my eyes, but climbing four flights of stairs with said backpack seems a lot easier than climbing a muddy hill shouldering a bike covered in 20lbs of debris.  Believe it or not - I'm looking forward to doing it again.  The Night Weasels Cometh this Wednesday to Shrewsbury! 

Cross Twenty-Eleven = 3 Races in 3 Months; Cross Twenty-Twelve = 3 Races in 5 Days... any questions?

I guess I finally get it.  There's just something about racing for 40-60 minutes at the highest level you can manage to put out...  I can't say I'm completely buying into it enough where I'm going to do all the silly stuff - like spend time gluing tires to wheels or bring two bikes to a race, though I can see the value in these activities - but I fully intend to learn how and when my body should be pushed to its limit within the course of a race.

Last year, I raced three times, and I had no idea what I was doing other than riding my bike, getting off my bike, remounting my bike, and suffering.  I raced at Mansfield Hollow, Hopbrook, and the local DAS race all at random throughout the season.  While my intention coming into the 2012 season was not to race every weekend, it seems as though I might come pretty close.  The races are close enough, short enough, and fun enough that they don't take too much time out of my homework-filled weekends. The brevity of the actual race and the fact that the course is a shorter circuit than a mountain bike race makes it an ideal event to bring the family to.  I'm not saying that cross is better than mountain biking - I'm only admitting that it does have some perks, and I've decided to embrace it.

So, I started out the season last Saturday at the Expo Wheelman's Silk City Cyclocross in Manchester CT.  The starting line was filled with experienced racers and regardless of my mountain bike fitness, I knew it was going to be a tough race.  Before the start, I spent plenty of time warming up, but I didn't get a chance to ride the course at all.  Rumor had it that it was a mountain biker's sort of course because it had some good off-camber sections and some tricky stuff, so I was hoping that would work to my advantage.  I should have pre-ridden it.  Yes, it was my kind of course, but I made some stupid mistakes, especially on the first lap, that I wouldn't have made if I'd spent some time going through the course carefully before the start.  There was one spot in particular where I was going to fast over a blind hill and didn't know there was a corner on the other side.  No amount of braking could stop me from going through the tape and off course.  You live/race and you learn.  I finished 4th and got to podium with some very fast ladies - the loot was pretty sweet, too... cash and Verge accessories.

Sunday I went up to Auburn, NH for the 2012 Suckerbrook Cyclocross Race.  Unlike Saturday's race, there were two options for the ladies - a category 2/3/4 race and an open race.  Based on my mountain bike license with USAC, I was automatically registered as a Cat 1 cyclocross racer (despite my HUGE lack of experience).  I'm trying to embrace this, and realize that it won't really hurt anything for me to race against the really fast girls.  So that's what I did on Sunday.  It was insane, and I watched as woman after woman rode away from me on the straightaways and I caught up to them in the very small sections of woods.  I left that race with a finish of 15 out of 20 and the knowledge that I needed power...  unfortunately in this case, knowledge is NOT power.

Wednesday night...  The Midnight Ride of Cyclocross in Lancaster, MA.  The women's open race was dubbed Elite Women and for good reason.  The best of the best were there.  Not only were there some of the best women in New England signed up, but these girls are some of the best in the country.  My goals for the night were 1) gain experience, 2) not get lapped, and 3) push harder than I did on Saturday and Sunday.  So, I spent some time warming up with Jordan Dube, and with 15 minutes to go before the race, I noticed my tire was getting a little squirrelly.  Sure enough, I had a flat - fortunately, I had a tube in the car, and even if I hadn't, a couple of people offered to lend me a wheel (thank you again, both Shawn M and Kate N's hubby).  So, I somehow was in the second row at the start and shakin' in my chamois.  Racing on pavement and in a tight pack is terrifying for me - mostly because I have no experience at it - and as luck would have it, the start was on pavement.  I'd pre-ridden this course earlier in the evening, but the sun was still out, so when I hit the dark corners of the course, it was a little unnerving.  I eventually got into a groove and rode hard.  The course was fun.  I managed to ride everything smoothly until the final lap where I went down in some woodchips.  The rider behind me gained some ground but didn't pass me until the final straightaway where we had a sprint finish.  I ended up finishing 11th out of 22.

What a fun couple of days...  and there're more coming.  I can't race Saturday at Gloucester because I need to work, but I'm signed up for Sunday and should be starting somewhere in the last row.  Wednesday night will be a race in Shrewsbury, MA called the Night Weasels, and the following weekend is the Providence Cyclocross Festival - again, I can only race on Sunday.  It's crazy how much more I like it the more I try it.

The Landmine Classic (NOT the marathon)

Sunday brought my 2012 mountain bike race season to an official close, and while I loved every minute of it (almost), I sure am glad to take a break.  It's funny though...  I say this, but earlier this morning I found myself on Bikereg.com looking at the remaining mountain bike races in the New England area.

I'm signed up for a handful of cyclocross races with the hope that I'll learn how to push myself a little harder.  It's not my favorite sort of racing (short, intense, lots of dismounts and remounts), but it'll keep me going while I'm plugging away at my education.  I'm a little nervous...  I'm inexperienced at it, and I am expected to race at the Cat 1 level because of my experience in the MTB race world.  I've never done a road race, so I can't even draw from that sort of experience (nor do I ever wish to have that experience).

So, mountain bike race season, for me, is complete for 2012.  The Landmine Classic, at Wompatuck State Forest in Hingham Mass, is a race I've done a few times before.  The first time I did it, I hated every moment of it, but I went back and raced the marathon version twice and loved it.  This year, with time constraints and my daughter there waiting for me to finish, I figured there was no need to be out racing for half the day.  Besides, it sure would be nice to come through the 25 mile loop and be finished rather than get back out there for another lap.

The week leading up to the race, like many years in the past, brought with it a fair amount of rain.  For me, that would work to my advantage - I knew I wasn't at my peak for speed, but I knew I could ride the challenging wet roots and rocks without much of a hitch.

The race started off in the usual fashion - me trying to keep up with the other girls at the start.  I think I actually stayed within 20 feet of them for the first 1/2 mile or so.  My starts are terrible though, and they slowly started to slip away.  Hopefully a little bit of cyclocross will help me with that.  Meanwhile, I didn't let that bother me.  I knew there was plenty of tech coming up and hoped they'd slow a little in there.  I never saw either of my opponents again until the end of the race, but I wasn't far from second.  Crystal Anthony finished in 2:08:26, Karin Holmes in 2:14:01, and I was right there at 2:14:52.  There were definitely places where I know I should have been going faster or harder.  I could have passed some people sooner, and instead of taking my time to eat and drink on the paved sections (they connected a lot of the singletrack sections), I could have chugged a little faster and really hammered.  But, as I've already said, I'm not at my fastest right now anyhow.

The course was a blast, and I was fortunate enough to have friends from the NBX team offer to keep an eye on my daughter while I was out racing.  Not only that, but along with the Union Velo team, my NBX pals also provided us with a post-race gourmet buffet.  It was a great ending to the season.

Based on the number of races I did this season with the Root 66 Race Series, I finished in top standing for points.  This means I got to take home a Series Champion Root 66 Jersey!

A big thank you to all of my friends and family this season for putting up with me and this crazy obsession...  it's been a lot of fun.  2013 will be even better!

In the meantime, I'm back in school full-time - 5 courses + 2 labs = a lot of f-ing work.  The good news is, I'm almost done with my English degree, and then I can completely devote myself to Bio and get it done.  Don't ask me what I plan on doing with my degree(s)...  I haven't officially decided on anything yet.  It's an evolutionary process for me, but I know that I'm on the right track with biology.  I can't get enough of it.

Okay, now where did I put that cowbell...

New Hampshire 100 (miles): Holy Hell that was HARD!

The longer I wait to write about this, the fluffier my memories seem to become, and quite frankly, there was nothing fluffy about the New Hampshire 100 - neither the 100k nor the 100 mile option.  I didn't even see a fluffy animal out there.  What I did see was a whole lot of New Hampshire countryside... 100 miles of it.  Sure, I saw some of it twice - we rode the 100k loop and went back out for an abbreviated loop of some of the same stuff - but every mile counted, and I certainly did count them.

Saturday morning, I met up with Dan - a fellow DAS rider, and we loaded up his truck and family camper for what we anticipated as being the most epic race of our race season.  It was raining lightly as we packed, but as soon as we hit I-395, the rain came down in sheets and it was slow going.  We had hopes of getting to Greenfield, NH by 1pm, but I think we rolled in closer to 2pm after making a stop in an unmentionable creepy town where things just seemed a little off.  Fortunately, the skies were blue and clear, and the temperatures seemed perfect along with the forecast for Sunday (race day). 

We set up camp while we waited for our friends to arrive.  As soon as Kevin, John, and Haley arrived, we all headed over to check-in at the venue.  Our campground was actually across the street from the start/finish area, and the final stretch of the race went through a portion of the campground.  Kudos to Amy (Dan's wife) for finding us such a sweet place to stay!  

Check-in consisted of acquiring our number plates, a goody bag, a cool t-shirt, and a sweet pint glass.  We joked that since we had the shirt and the glass, we didn't need to actually do the race...  of course, that wasn't why we were there.  Back at the campsite, I was scanning the facebook feed and noticed that our friend Jesse, who had just gotten back to CT from racing Leadville the previous weekend and had ridden all week out west, had decided to come race the 100 miler with us.  We were still expecting Alby to join us at the campground, but with the motto of the more the merrier, we told Jesse he could crash at our site as well.  In the fashion of true campers, we spent a portion of the evening sitting around a non-existant campfire watching youtube videos of silly things that Kevin knew we would enjoy, and we watched as Jesse carbo-loaded on Teddy Grahams and Ginger Snaps.  Ginger Snaps are delicious.

After a restless night of tossing and turning, we woke up at 5am and slowly started to come to terms with the fact that it was, indeed, the day we had been waiting for.  For some of us, the commitment came in January, and for others, March, while some waited until the day before the race...  but there we all were.  

Lining up at the start, I looked around at the enormous amount of people who had shown up for what was bound to be a very long day on the bike.  It was pretty impressive.  The race started in waves - first off was the men's 100 mile open category, then came the singlespeed open category with the women's open, and all of the 100k categories started after us.  I watched as the pack took off quickly in front of me, and I tried to ignore the fact that they were going to have quite a lead on me.  I knew it was going to be a long day.  I also knew that the first 20 miles were supposed to ride fast and easy, but we would hit a wall around mile 20, and that's when things would get really hard really fast.  I figured I'd better not blow up...  boy, am I glad I did what I planned.  The wall was definitely a wall.  Not long after that, we came to the power line climb which was touted as a "power line climb."  There was no riding it.  The course was just too congested at that point.  I was actually amazed at how many people I was riding with through most of the race.  

There was definitely a good amount of climbing.  I decided to race with a GPS so I could keep track of my time and speed.  I wanted to stay on track and finish in 10 hours, but I knew when I came through the start/finish at the 100k mark that it was going to be tough.  I was at about 6.5 hours and I had no idea what the middle of the next loop would look like, but having seen how slow the last miles of the 100k loop had ridden, I knew that I'd have to go as fast as possible in the sections where I could.  At that point, I had no idea where any of the other women were at except that Susan Lynch was somewhere behind me.  

As it turns out, Sue wasn't too far behind me at all.  I'm not exactly sure where we met up, but it was somewhere in the beginning of the second loop, and we spend a fair amount of time riding within site of one another.  It was alongside of Sue that I came to the wall of a climb that we got in exchange for ditching the big climbs that were in the first loop.  This is probably where I got the most negative, if you even want to call it that.  I never really got into any dark places, and I attribute that to the fact that the weather was perfect and I stayed hydrated and jacked up on caffeinated GUs.  I yelled at the hill.  I complained out loud and got very very annoyed at the hill.  The thing is, that doesn't really do much of anything to help.  Sue and I were both walking, and we both got back on our bikes as soon as it looked like there was any sort of traction to be had, but we both got really quiet as we made our way up that beast of an incline.  It was the sort of hill where you can't see how big it is because there are corners in it and every time you go around a corner it goes up some more.  Ahhh, here I am complaining again.  I just want to get across how big this hill was.  It was a very big hill.  There.  

So, I got to the top of the hill, and it's not really the top because it's a road or something that seems to go up some more.  I was waiting for a downhill, but I don't remember getting anything that really satisfied my desire to descend.  At this point, I realized I was pulling away from Sue.  I was digging deep.  I love her to pieces, but a race is a race, and I really really wanted to finally get a chance to drop her on a climb.  Somehow, I still had 'race' left in my legs.  Off I went, and I didn't really see her again until she crossed the line 6 minutes after me.  

I suppose the hardest part of the race for me was switching back and forth from fast fire road riding to slow single track. Shifting mental gears proved to be extremely difficult, and trails that I would normally find to be pretty easy to ride were extremely challenging.  I was a bobbling mess.  Regardless, I was still able to ride a lot of sections that others were walking, so I used that to my advantage.  

So, in all, it was a long day - 10 hours and 14 minutes - 5th overall woman.  4 pee stops, and I think 5 aid station stops, but I can't be sure.  The best pit stop was at the 100k mark where I got my chain lubed and had some coca cola.  I think I drank more soda on Sunday than I have in the past year.  During the race, I drank GU Roctane in very diluted amounts and tried to drink a bottle an hour along with a GU or some sort of food every 45 minutes.  Bananas, as in the 12 hour races, were a staple food for me.  They're just so easy to get down - I really couldn't handle having to chew. As far as pain goes, I felt relatively good on the bike with the exception of my knees (a lot of climbing will do that), and when I got off the bike, I had stabbing pain in between my shoulder blades.  I also became acutely aware that I had an epic diaper rash.  Amazingly though, I escaped the 100 miles with no saddle sores.  

Monday I was fatigued, but not in too much pain.  The diaper rash had subsided.  My biggest issue was exhaustion and getting moving after sitting.  Once I was up and moving, it wasn't horrible.  Tuesday I had planned as a relax and rejuvenate day.  I drove to Westport, CT for 90 minutes in an isolation tank and came out feeling 10 times better than when I went in.  In the evening I went for the weekly mountain bike ride out of DAS and put the hammer down a couple of times which felt surprisingly good.  By this morning, I was feeling much better.  I'm still feeling exhausted, but that's to be expected.  

What's next?   Oh boy... there's a lot going on right now.  I'll get to that some other time, but as far as races go, I have only the Landmine Classic on the 9th of September and then MTB race season is officially done for me.  I plan on doing some cyclocross racing, but that will have to be planned around the jam-packed fall semester of school and being a mommy.  

The morning of...

I've never done a blog post on 'the morning of' a race, but it seems that I might have something more interesting to say with my nerves being a jumbled mess.

Last week's race in Meriden, CT at the motorcycle club was The Wrath of the Boneyard.  It is one of my favorites.  I love the course because of its bony rocky nature, and I think that might be a deterrent for some people.  Personally, the more technical the course, the more fun I'm going to have; so bring it.

With no other pro/open racers, I lined up with the rest of the Cat 1 women and raced the same number of laps as them.  We started off fast; I set the pace hard to get myself a good lead before settling into a rhythm.  That's not usually my style, but I've learned to no let others get in my way when there's a chance the course might be technical.  It's the climbs that I seemed to fail at.  For the first few laps, Sue Lynch and I were back and forth, but when she finally passed me on one climb, that was the last I saw of her.  She got about a minute's lead on me, and that's where we finished.  We were also at least eighteen minutes ahead of the rest of the pack.

It was honestly a fantastic race.  Sue and I have been back and forth all season with our times being around the same.  The only time I ever seem to gain anything on her is when there are techy downhills involved.

I raced the 666 TT again this week too.   Despite fumbling through the very first tech section and not really feeling like I wanted to race, I managed to get into my zone and had a really fast and flowy run (flowy for a rocky wasteland of tech).  Week one's time was 44:54 (I think), week two was 44:24 (or around there), and this week I finally broke 44 and pulled out a 43:53.  I'm only doing one more week of this, even though it's a complete blast.   I need to chill out at the local shop ride a couple times before school starts again, and even though the TT is a barrel of laughs, I need to get away from 'racing' for a bit before the NH100 arrives (3 weeks from today... crap).

This week I am off on Wednesday, and I'm planning an enduro type of ride around the Arcadia/Pachaug areas.  I need a solid 6-8 hours on my bike, and it sounds like I'll have a couple of buddies to do it with.

I'm off to Winsted this morning with my number one fan.  She's all fired up for the kid's race, so at least one of us is in race mode.  Winsted Woods has been a slippery mess the past few times I've raced there, so this won't be anything new. I'm actually looking forward to the challenge of slimy rocks and roots rather than the loose sandy corners we've been seeing most of the season.  Here's hoping for a safe and fast race today...

Time Trialing, Cow-biking, Time Trialing

I'm finding myself in a block of racing/busy right now with no room to budge.  Beginning last Tuesday, the Arcadia Time Trial Series picked back up again with the most technical MTB time trial around.  It's one of those courses that can and will break anyone who falters in the slightest way.  This race will run on Tuesday evenings through the rest of July, and I intend to race each week.  At the same time, there are back to back races on the Root 66 Race Series every weekend now through August 5th.  After that I have a Sunday off, and then it's time for the New Hampshire 100 miles.  The weekend after that, I'm looking forward to getting away to Maine to witness one of my favorite couples when they tie the knot, but that brings the last week of August along... school begins again.  Fortunately, my one last summer hurrah comes Labor Day weekend with the annual 'DAS and friends' trip up to Kingdom Trails.  I have classes the Friday that we leave, but I'm hoping to strike a deal with my professors so I can get on the road early enough to get some riding in when we arrive Friday.  

So, in the meantime, I'm attempting to work 6 days a week at the post office, and I'm hoping to get back to processing firewood again soon (maybe I'll write a blog post someday to explain what exactly goes on with that monstrosity of a job).  When I'm not working, I'm trying to spend time with my daughter doing fun summer stuff, and when she's with her dad, I ride.  

I'm getting offtrack... life is busy, big deal.  

The Arcadia Time Trial... Last week I went all out.  We pre rode the course beforehand at a pretty good clip, and it was hot out.  Needless to say, I didn't hydrate enough and after a long ride home staring at blinding headlights, my headache had quickly evolved into a migraine.  No sooner had I gotten home when my stomach decided it was time to purge...  I spent the rest of the week meeting the goal of drinking a gallon of water a day and hoping not to overheat again. 

Despite overheating last week, I managed to crank out a pretty fast time.  My time was comparable to last year, but the course is extended by a few minutes.  I'm definitely riding way faster than I was last year.  

In the days following my overheating episode, I did some resting, a short, fast, climby ride on my singlespeed, and some exploring around Nathan Hale.  Getting back out on the singlespeed felt crazy and foreign, but it was soooooo fun!  

Sunday's race was in Keene, NH on the new course at Stonewall Farm.  In the past, the Root 66's Bikes for Bovine event was made up of this one really long loop that had an awful fire-road climb and a long stretch of rail-trail with only a small amount of single-track.  This year's course was an impressive array of tight twisty trails that swooped up and down, back and forth, and dipped through small lines of rocks.  It was perfect!  

The race went okay for me after the first 1 or 2 laps.  It was pretty hot out, and I hadn't ridden the course before, so I had no idea how much climbing was out there.  As it turns out, there was a lot.  I felt myself starting to overheat on the first lap, and after Tuesday, I was a little freaked out, so I dialed my effort back quite a bit...  so much so, that the other girls got quite a lead on me after just the first lap.  Coming through the feed zone after lap 1, I poured a bunch of water over my head and pounded some Accelerade.  I took the opportunity to eat the one GU I had packed (epic fail on my part... I usually race with at least 3 GUs in my pocket), and a little ways into the second lap, I started to feel like I was going to be okay.  For the rest of the race, my speed gradually increased, but at that point, there was no catching back up.  At least I didn't overheat, and immediately after crossing the finish line, I went and laid in the nearby stream.  I was pretty dirty with all of the dust sticking to my sweaty self.  It actually looked like I'd raced a muddy one.

I finished in 3rd (there were three of us).  Crystal Anthony was up a good ten minutes and Kate Northcott about two minutes.  I need to get past my crappy first laps and start rocking them instead.  I think the time trial is helping with that though.

So this week, I got to Arcadia early, and rather than pre-riding the entire course, I cut through some sections and practiced some of the tough technical sections to see where the best lines were.  There are still a couple that I can't quite get, but I actually see where the best lines are and can get part of them.  Maybe next week I'll dial in a couple more.  This course is definitely not one for the roadies.  If you can't ride tech, you best know how to run it.  

Photo of TT peeps  stolen from my buddy Mike's Facebook page.  Thanks Mike.  

I started off hard, but I had it in the back of my mind that I didn't want to overheat.  I consciously tried to breath out the heat and drink a lot.  Also, I soaked myself with water before I started, so I had the cooling effect of a wet jersey to assist me.  I was riding a little sloppy at the beginning, and having forgotten my gloves, I was having trouble gripping the bars without sliding my thumbs into my shifting levers.  Finally, after going over a log, I slipped and hit the lever in mid-air, freaked out and grabbed my breaks, and sent myself over the bars into another log.  My bike landed on my head and back.  Luckily, nothing was too busted.  My knee took a beating on something hard and my hand landed on the log, but I was still able to ride it out.  I ended up with a time a few seconds faster than last week despite feeling slower, crashing, and fumbling my way through lines that I rode easily last week.  

My right hand is swollen in the padded area at the base of my thumb and my knee has a small cut along with some bulbous swelling.  It's funny, but this is the same injury on the same hand that I got at the same time last year...  HAH!  At least I know it will go away.  I'm going to use the trainer the rest of the week... (maybe).

I'm looking forward to Sunday's race in Meriden, CT.  It's got lots of rocks, and it's one of my favorite courses.   Here's hoping my thumb is more happier about pushing the shift lever by then.