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!

Goin' back to school

So not a whole lot of exciting things to update on. Wisconsin, or more specifically Madison, continues to lure just the right mix of weather to produce boat loads of snow. We're at a record breaking 80 inches for the year and another 6-8 is expected Sunday. I'm getting some quality upper body workouts in with all the shoveling - balance right?

Our household is finally healthy again so training is back into high gear which usually means two workouts a day. I can't take more than 2 hours on the trainer at a time. I've also gotten into a routine of going to the gym to lift and run on the treadmill. I feel guilty not running outside but I'm not a big fan of snow covered and slippery sidewalks. I managed a full hour the other day - kind of like a hamster in a wheel but my Ipod is my salvation.

The biggest news for me is that I've taken on a long term substitute teaching position for the rest of the school year. I've been a pretty casual sub for the past two years along with my part time retail gigs so it will be a huge change. It's an absolutely perfect scenario though and they're even willing to let me take three weeks off in May/June for racing. So starting Monday I'll be teaching three freshman Biology and two Advanced Bio classes at the high school down the street from where I live. Should be an interesting adventure and I'm sure I'll learn as much as my students do throughout the semester. I'm pretty excited about it and it should be a lot of fun. I'll let you know how it goes :)

No picture updates for now but maybe I'll bring the camera along tomorrow when we go skiing with some friends. Walking in a winter wonderland . . .

next year . . . I'm getting a flu shot

So I know much of the country is deep in flu season and for the first time in almost 10 years I got it too. And as if my suffering wasn't enough I had to pass it on to teammates and Dave. I'm not going to take full credit for giving it to the team in San Diego. It was just a mild little cold until Saturday when it started mutating into something worse. But it sounds like just a few were spared the evil wrath of the pesky little virus. I felt a bit like the monkey from that movie Outbreak. And unfortunately I had to miss my grandma's 86th birthday celebration for fear of infecting more. Sorry Grandma, Happy Birthday!

I'm actually feeling much better now but I spent 3 solid days of doing absolutely nothing on the couch and another few days laying really low. I did teach the last two days of the week which was perhaps a questionable thing to do in my health but I knew it was going to be an easy gig. The kids from the classes were mostly away at a convention so I supervised study halls with an average of 6 kids per class. And I tried really hard not to cough on them.

Now I'm watching Dave go through the unfortunate and uncomfortable motions of the flu. Chills, eyes that feel like they're going to pop out of your head, feeling incredibly weak, headache, nasty cough and congestion. It's not so fun and here's hoping you somehow escaped it.

I'm slowly easing back into training after a full week off the bike and am keeping my fingers crossed that mother nature will follow the Groundhog's Day prediction. Winter has been brutal this year in Wisconsin and it's possible that Madison may break a new snowfall record for the season. I've enjoyed a bit of cross country skiing but now that February is here I'm dreaming of March . . . and April. I'm just hoping for sun and temps above 40 for now - I'll take what I can get.

And hopefully my immune system is iron clad now. But I think I'm getting a flu shot next year just in case.