Welcome to Razorback Country!

So we're down in Fayetteville, AR for the Joe Martin Stage Race. After driving through non stop rain on Wednesday we were very happy to have things dry up for yesterday's short 2.5 mile uphill time trial. We've got a strong team put together for the race and everyone put in some great efforts in the first stage. Anne finished 9th followed closely by Lee in 11th. I ended up 15th, 52 seconds behind the leader. Today's road race has the potential of shaking up the GC so now we have to work to keep our riders up front for some good finishes.

Here are some photos of the team prerace.

Amy


Andrea


Anne


Mike

Lee
We've been having a lot of fun thus far. Our hosts, Marion and Carolyn Smith are absolutely amazing! They even welcomed us with T shirts and hats from the University of Arkansas - we're officially Razorback fans now! Thanks guys! Carolyn went to Texas A&M so the schools have to get equal wall space :)


They've both been unbelievable hosts and have fed us lots of great food and they have two cute daschunds too! They cooked up a wonderful fajita dinner for the whole team last night and there were lots of laughs! The food was so good and Kat kept us doubled over with her stories. Here's a photo of her with some of her props.


We finish pretty late today and have an early morning road race tomorrow so I probably won't get a chance to update until after that. Looking forward to some good racing!

42 degrees, raining, and windy

Doesn't that sound nice? That was what the weather decided to dish up for Saturday's road race just north of Madison. I must admit I was a little frustrated but I certainly wasn't going to let it get the best of me. I pride myself on my overly optimistic attitude and there could have been a thunderstorm . . . or it could have been snowing. The weather this year has been moody so it wouldn't be out of the question :)

I was impressed with the number of women who showed up despite the conditions. There were just over 20 riders at the line and it was good to chat with the hardy gals. A relatively short road race - 2 laps of a 15 mile course with two pretty good climbs per lap. Julie F from Planet Bike went hard from the gun and we were strung out on the cross wind section. She got a gap at the base of the climb and my teammate Mo helped to bring her back. Over the top of the climb there were 7 of us together with some distance on the main field. Working together in an organized fashion proved a little difficult but we finally managed to put more distance on the field. In the cross wind section our group splintered and 3 were left - myself, Julie, and Trek-VW rider Jill. We worked well through the rest of the race and soon the dropped riders were out of sight. Coming into the finishing head wind straight I stayed sheltered and both my breakmates admitted they didn't realize this was the finish until we were about 200m from the line. At this point the drag race began and my positioning helped me to take the win. It was a great race and fun to be in the break with such strong riders.

It was nice to get a win in my last local race before heading down to Arkansas for Joe Martin this week. I'm really excited to head back to Fayetteville for my third edition of this stage race. We've got a really good team put together and I'm hopeful that we can animate the race and execute some good team tactics. It'll be great to be back racing an NRC event and I'm looking forward to seeing my teammates!

Today was beautiful out and I went for a nice 4.5 hour group ride. Lots of good climbing west of town and it was fun to ride in a strong group. It's nice to get to ride with Dave and the guys - plus Jill (who recently moved here from FL) who rode awesome. People are always surprised that we have climbs like Blue Mounds around here - a sustained (and steep!) 15-20 minute climb. Nice way to spend a Sunday.

School has been pretty chaotic as I'm trying to prepare sub plans for my two week absence and get caught up on grading. With just 6 weeks of school left the kids are getting antsy and a bit lazy - especially my seniors. I'm amazed how many students are "sick" on Friday afternoons! They're great kids though and it's been fun seeing them go through all of the college acceptance drama and nervousness.

I'll try to update when I'm in Ar-kansas - first big racing adventure this year! Should be a blast!

Iowa City weekend

Had a good weekend of racing down in Iowa City. Driving down there Saturday morning I knew it was going to be a rough day on the bike as I was blown all over the road in my car! I even put the bike inside but the 25-30mph sustained winds were too much. It was ridiculous but at least the sun was out and the temps were in the 50s. I had two teammates in the race - Mo and Jess both traveled for the race so it was great to represent for Team Kenda Tire.

We had a field of about 15 and the race would be 4 laps of a 12 mile circuit. After riding together as a group the first lap (thanks Jess for all of your hard work in the head wind!!) Sydney from Revolution jumped in the cross wind section and I went with her. It took me a bit to get to her but the two of us now faced three brutally windy laps together if we wanted to stay away from the field. A little earlier than I hoped but it's always more fun when you're racing hard. The cross and head winds were absolutely crazy - I guess it was a good thing the wind was so sustained rather than just gusty or we seriously might have gotten blown over. Minute by minute and lap by lap we made it through. I was pretty cooked and Sydney was taking longer pulls at the front ensuring our break would stick. She's such a powerful (and nice!) rider and I had no problem taking the first loser position to her. Mo put her head down and battled the elements to finish 12th. Jess was pretty blown (literally) after keeping the pace hard the first lap and decided to save her energy for Sunday.

Sunday was a crit in downtown Iowa City that had a technical .8 mile circuit that included a fast descent and a short steep climb every lap. My kind of course. From the gun it was pretty strung out with Sydney and I at the front pushing the pace. A group of seven emerged after a few laps and then Sydney attacked with only myself and one other girl able to go with her. The third girl refused to work with us and wanted only to hang onto our wheels for training. Slightly frustrating and Sydney jumped on the hill, I let a gap form hoping the third rider would help close the gap but no dice. In retrospect it was stupid on my part to let that gap form. It was unlikely that our third break partner would step it up and I was left to chase super powerful Sydney for the next 12 or so laps. We (rather, I) couldn't catch her but luckily we stayed in front of the chase group. Another second place finish. I was happy with the result but it would have been great to try and go for the win. You live, you learn ;)



Jess was patrolling back in the chase group and when the time came she won the field sprint for 4th! Way to go! Monique also raced well and hung in for 10th. Always fun to be racing with teammates.

All in all it was a great weekend. The promoter (Mark) of these races is super supportive of womens cycling and offered us up a great prize purse as well as a nice introduction before Sunday's race. In order to increase our field sizes we need promoters that offer a beginner womens race in addition to an open race. And throwing out some cash to try to get more women out is always looked kindly upon :) And we will try to be supportive of events like these in the future by coming back and encouraging our fellow racers to do these races as well.

One more week of teaching - a local road race on Saturday and then it's off to Arkansas!!

Spring is FINALLY here!

So the snow has finally melted and the temperatures have warmed up in Wisconsin. I say good riddance to winter. Don't get me wrong - I enjoy the season and the snow but this year it hit us a bit too hard and stuck around a bit too long. It feels good to not have to wear multiple layers when heading out for a ride though.

I've been enjoying the early season racing and have done the first few Wisconsin Cycling Series events. It's nice because the races are close by and we've been getting a decent field of riders in the Womens Open events. After getting in the break each race I've managed a 2nd, 1st, and 3rd in that order. It's fun racing against my friends and the racing has been good and aggressive. I've also jumped into a few category 3 mens events just to get some more intense efforts.

Two weeks from today Joe Martin starts in Fayetteville, Arkansas so that will be my first NRC event of the year. I'm really looking forward to heading down there for that race as 2 years ago it was my first stage race ever. It's a well put on event and is lots of fun. It even has an uphill Time Trial which is sure to be a leg burner. I'll be down there for almost two weeks with a bunch of teammates who will also be racing the Tour of Arkansas the weekend after Joe Martin. I'm just about counting down the days. Teaching is still going well but the break will be nice!

I'm headed to Iowa this weekend for a Road Race and the Old Cap Crit. I'll have a few teammates down there and it will be nice to get another road race in. Unfortunately those are generally few and far between in the Midwest. I'll try to remember my camera this weekend!

I am a bad blogger

As if you actually needed me to spell that out for you. I don't think I have that many loyal readers anyway but for what it's worth I apologize for my lack of updates. Hopefully as we delve deeper into the bike racing season I might be motivated and find the time to try to post more often.

North Carolina was fantastic. After not going there last year it was so nice to be back riding in the beautiful mountains. It was a lot of fun staying with the hodge podge mix of alums and other random riders in our cabin on the mountain. The view was worth the long and winding gravel road and the unfortunate need to drive down said road every day to ride our bikes. Someday I need to go back in the fall when the scenery (and probably weather) is even better. Maybe I'd even consider bringing along the mountain bike for some off roading.

Teaching has been going well. I can't believe how quickly the weeks are flying by. The lesson planning and paper grading have been dominating a lot of my time but I've been enjoying getting to know all of my students. Some of them are pretty challenging but I feel like we're making progress. We're in a Genetics and DNA unit right now and I really like this stuff so it's been fun trying to get them to understand some of it.

And racing has started! March 29 was the first race of the year for me - the Hillsboro Roubaix in southern Illinois. It's a road race with a 22 mile circuit that the women did twice (unfortunately it was shortened from the 3 laps last year). There was a great turnout for the race with about 40 women at the line. A lot of strong Midwest teams were represented like Team Revolution, ISCorp, and Mercy. I had a few teammates as well with Catherine, Jess, Monique, and Imelda coming out to race. The race was aggressive from the gun with several breaks attempting to get away in the first lap. I was in a couple of those that got pulled back and eventually Bri (from Revolution) and I were off the front and I was fading when several riders (including my teammate Catherine) bridged up to us. I couldn't hold the pace and unfortunately fell back into the first chase group. As usual there were some wicked cross winds but my chase partners and I worked together in a paceline. About a mile from the finish I attacked them at the base of the climb and was able to solo across the line for 9th. A little disappointed I couldn't stick with the break but I know my top end form needs work this time of year. All in all it was a really great race and the competition was top notch. Congrats to Bri and Team Revolution for the win. Unfortunately Catherine dropped her chain coming into the finish otherwise she would have likely been in the mix for a podium spot.

The second race of the year should have happened last weekend but the course was still snow covered so it was canceled. The weather was sunny and in the mid 60's so it was a great excuse to go for a long ride instead. Dave and I actually got out on a group ride together which is something our schedules rarely allow. It was a great ride and I'm getting a nice defined knee warmer tan line on my calf - the status symbol of many Midwestern cyclists.


Also last Sunday I had the honor of being one of several teachers in a womens racing clinic put on by Capitol Velo Cycling Club. There was a good turnout and we had a classroom session in the morning followed by some on the bike skills work outside after lunch. It was a lot of fun and great to see so many women interested in possibly doing some races. Men still really dominate the sport of cycling and I hope that the numbers become less lopsided in the near future. By making racing accessible and showing women how fun it can be we can get them to give it a shot and hopefully stick with it. The clinic was a blast and I want to thank Amanda for putting so much time and effort into making it happen!

Our moody spring weather is back and possible snow showers are predicted this weekend. There's a crit here in Madison on Sunday so I'm keeping my fingers crossed that it will at least be dry out. I'm looking forward to getting some more races in and getting ready for a busy late spring and summer schedule.

Thanks for checking in and taking the time to read! I'll try to have more pictures next time!

Quick Photo Update

No time to really write up a recap of the week so for now I'll let the pictures do the talking. Great week of riding in North Carolina - had mostly fantastic weather and lots of sun. A much needed escape from snowy cold Wisconsin. I'll write more later!


Debbie and I outside of the NOC on Day 1


The view from our cabin




Jess, Debbie, Mary, and me on top of Wayah Bald in the rain



Classy


The ice covered trees on top of the Cherohalla Skyway


myself, Kat, Debbie, and Jess outside of the NOC on our final day

Spring Break Countdown

Sorry for the lack of updates. Teaching and training have been keeping me plenty busy. Teaching is going really well - I've got some great students and it's been fun trying to get back into teacher mode after having been just a daily sub for a couple of years. All the lesson planning, grading, and just daily chaos of being a teacher have definitely kept me on my toes! After three weeks I'm starting to feel a bit more comfortable but I still have moments of feeling a little overwhelmed. It really has been fun though and I'm grateful to have this experience. Hopefully it will help me in the future job hunt!

My new training routines are starting to feel normal and getting up at 5AM doesn't feel quite so bad. It's finally stopped snowing in Wisconsin (I know I've just jinxed us now) but it's still pretty cold and many of the roads are wet/icy/sandy. Rideable though. I have now ridden my bike outside a whopping 8 times this year - 6 times while in CA and twice here in WI. Jeez - how pathetic is that! But soon the trainer will get neglected in the corner again and spring will truly be here.

Speaking of Spring next week is spring break for the Madison schools and I'm getting out of dodge. I figured taking on the teaching position made me worthy of making the trek to North Carolina for a week of solid riding in the beautiful mountains. I started going to NC when I was a student and on the UW cycling team and this will be my third time there. A bunch of students will also be down there and stay at the Nantahala Outdoor Center. The last few years there has been a group of alums who rent a cabin for some extra space. I know . . . we're old - we just prefer to not partake in the occasional shenanigans of the college kids.



Here is a picture of such shenanigans from back in the day - Tank and I having an apple juice drinking contest. Good times but like I say - I'm too old for that now.

I've had a lot of fun in NC though and I look forward to returning. The University of Wisconsin cycling team introduced me to racing and I haven't looked back since. It's a fantastic organization and the members put a lot of themselves into the program.




So I'm counting down the minutes practically until departure time on Friday. A few of my Midwestern Kenda teammates will be joining me in addition to some alumni. Hopefully the weather holds out and we get some spectacular days on the bike!