The Other Half (Cycling Life Part 2)

My Little Barnyard

2009-11-12T22:00:00.000-08:00

Just in case you don't know, I've become quite the little backyard farmer. Last year I posted on my garden. Now in addition to growing my own veggies, I have daily fresh eggs as well. Keeping chickens and ducks is very simple, requiring almost no work. Here are some photos.

Sadness for the Helen's/Subaru/Gary Fisher regional mountain bike team

2009-11-09T22:38:00.000-08:00

Unfortunately, the failing economy has finally made it's way to our team. The team's contract won't be renewed next year. I feel very lucky to have been part of the team and intend to continue riding for Subaru/Fisher regardless. I was treated very well by John and Matt, the national team manager and mechanic and will show my support whenever I can. They helped me discover the awesomeness and excitement of mountain bike racing, which has provided some of the best experiences of my life. Thanks guys!!!

Just because I feel like posting again even though this blog is dead I'm sure to anyone who used to read it...So, to my non-existent audience:

2009-11-02T23:25:00.001-08:00

It's been a long time since I've been out on a mountain bike. For me it was first school, and then the fires ravaging the Angeles Crest that kept me off the bike. So Sunday was a great day, getting on my 29er again. I didn't know what to expect, given last month's fires.

Heading up Lower Sam Merrill trail, it started out same as always: every hiker never failing to obey their subconscious compulsion to "graciously" stop exactly in the middle of the most ridable line on only the most technical sections of the trail. But despite their ignorant "politeness" I was really happy to find that the trail wasn't touched by the fire the whole way up, and even happier to discover that my legs were still completely capable of taking me up that trail!

As a side note, mountain biking is amazing: even if you are already in good spirits, going out for a ride never fails to bring those spirits up even more!

Anyways, cresting Lower Sam and crossing Mt Lowe Toll Rd, I decided to head down Sunset. Apparently the Toll Rd acted as a fire break because the mountains were stark and desolate beyond that point. Everything was black and dead and brushless. There were two black crows perching in the most perfectly sinister position on a fire-blackened leafless tree, I was almost positive they worked for Sauron himself. Sunset Ridge Trail was covered in debris: dead branches, rocks, gravel, leaves and sand. But still somewhat rideable in sections.

And then I encountered the landslide just before the half-way exit point. SCARY AS HELL! I was in quite a dilemma as to whether I should hike my bike all the way back up the trail, which would mean I'd be up in the mountains by myself after dark without any sort of light or phone or... Or whether I should risk crossing the landslide to the paved road just on the other side. It didn't appeal to me to be the only living animal left up there at night with the dinner-less mountain lions, so I chose the latter. With each step I took across that sand, I spent about 30 seconds of moving one muscle fiber at a time and trying to shift my weight imperceptibly to minimize moving the sand under my feet. If I started sliding, I knew wouldn't stop until I was 1/2 mile straight down the steep canyon buried in rocks. After about 5-6 steps like this I get across to solid ground, only to find there is another, steeper slide just ahead. Now I'm between 2 slides, no safe way out. So I cross this one too, SLOWLY, SLOWLY, SLOWLY! Some sand is sliding a bit above and below me, and so I leap the last two steps quickly to get off. Whew! Just writing about it gets my heart beating. Sorry I have no pictures to illustrate my point!

I decided not to bother continuing on to El Prieto (my original plan) until I got some more trail condition info from someone...(Might I risk hoping that anyone is reading this thing??? Any current info?) I headed out Chaney Trail Rd, and lo and behold THERE are the forrest closure notices! Why didn't they put up signs for people coming from the other direction! Apparently the infraction I just committed is worthy of 6 months imprisonment and $5000 that I don't have...AND possible death by burying in the bottom of a ravine by a landslide. Hmm. It would have been nice if they'd made it clear not to go down Sunset Trail, just like they made it clear not to go up it. (Okay, okay, I know it is my responsibility to check trail conditions and access...and I can't guarantee I would've followed the rules anyway [sheepish grin] ;).

So that was my fun for the weekend. And fun it was! Thanks to my fabulous and trusty Gary Fisher 29er!

The Funniest Shit I Have EVER SEEN!

2009-08-19T01:27:00.001-07:00

Naked Crow

2009-07-28T23:47:00.000-07:00

The Naked Crow Mountain Bike Challenge was last weekend. For a little local, weekend-warrior dominated race, the course was decent! And the cash prizes didn't hurt-especially since no one knew about it and so there weren't too many to try to beat!

I'm still alive

2009-04-29T01:17:00.000-07:00

It's been a great big retarded amount of forever since I last posted. I heard all the cool kids weren't posting on their blogs either. But I guess blogging's coming back into fashion now.

Race season has been well under way, and that makes me happy :). Racing hurts, but that's one of the good things about it. It is really amazing what mountain bike racers accomplish on race day. I don't care if you get DFL, you are still a bad ass. What we put our bodies through is beyond what the average non-racer could ever even fathom. The pain and the courage, without relenting to the obstacles, Wow.

Props to all of you!

Vote!!!

2008-09-04T23:04:00.000-07:00

It's been weeks since I put up the poll on Lyle's hair, and according to the number of votes so far, I have reason to believe that no more than 2 people read my blog. For all I know, it's one person who voted twice. So, if you do read my blog, would you mind taking half a second to vote for me? Then I will know that I am not just writing to myself. :) ------>

Why do I look so retarded on a bike?

2008-08-20T22:23:00.000-07:00

What's wrong with my posture or position or whatever????
RETARDED:

BAD ASS:

Hey Davis, any ideas?

Not DFL!

2008-08-17T22:02:00.000-07:00

In fact, even better--I got 4th out of 6 today! I have to say thanks, Chepe, for your coaching! It's working... I was only 1 minute out of standing on the box.

Sounds like Nationals were fun

2008-07-24T22:05:00.001-07:00

Sorry I missed it. Check out Joy's post: http://joyonbike.blogspot.com/2008/07/dude-is-that-magura.html

My Husband Has Become Unrecognizable (or ReRecognizable)

2008-07-24T21:23:00.000-07:00

Yes, it's true. The mullet and 'stash are gone. Unfortunately, we discovered that that's where manliness lies: in the hair. So, he'll be working on regaining his chuck-noresque strength on a strict regimen of deep conditioning the hair follicles to re-grow at warp speed. Wait, did I just say that?!?

I guess my sense of style has been completely brainwashed by Lyle and his cronies. Witness: here I am, posting this picture of Lyle with extreme PRIDE at his choice of sun glasses.

Lesson Learned

2008-07-23T23:05:00.000-07:00

I learned it is a bad idea to go to altitude, even just 10,600 when you're sick. It just makes you a LOT sicker. But our brief backpacking trip to Mono Pass in Yosemite was pretty despite me not being so:

Me before we got to the top:

Gardening

2008-07-16T12:11:00.000-07:00

Thanks to my mom inspiring me, Lyle and I are now eating lots of home grown organic produce from right out our back door. I recommend gardening to everyone. It's so satisfying and extra delicious. Check out the progression:
dirt
mud
little
bigger
even bigger
harvest!

By the way, this post very much relates to cycling. You should eat healthy if you want to get faster and it's hard to eat healthy considering what is generally sold in most stores. So, grow your own, you can't go wrong! (produce, I mean).

Sexy Smooth

2008-07-15T20:56:00.000-07:00

I can't resist saying more about my new "machine". It's so buttery, I just can't get enough of it! I'd recommend a 29er to anyone. Even short people-I'm only 5'1 and a half (very important, emphasizing that half inch, when you're short as me). It floats over anything rough and you can't even tell it's a hard tail unless you are actually sitting heavily on the saddle. It's actually smoother than my full-suspension Santa Cruz (and a 1.4 lbs lighter). I can't wait to race it. That'll be Rim Nordic on the 27th, and then Naked Crow Mtn Bike Challenge on Aug 3rd. See ya all there! (and then you can ogle over my bike to humor me).

Here's a cute non-sequitur picture to add interest, since this blog doesn't seem to be extremely interesting (but I better not hear anyone agreeing with that statement!) I snapped this picture near the Los Olivos race earlier this year.

My New Beauty

2008-07-09T20:54:00.000-07:00

Check 'er out!
And guess who the mechanic was that built her up...ME! Like Chepe said to Lyle after I told him I built it up myself "...uh...you better check that out cabron...maybe she go riding and 'kapow!'(with lots of arm gestures)..." Well, I'm happy to announce there was only one slight handle bar twistage on my maiden voyage. All the other bolts held quite nicely!

I'm lovin' the 29er so far. The main thing I noticed is that everything seems to roll under it really smoothly. I heard that tight switchbacks would be more difficult on a 29er because of the wider wheelbase, which I did notice would be true IF you suck at switchbacks. Basically I learned it's not the bike, it's the rider. And I am quite happy with the rider in this particular instance!

I can't wait to spend more time on this baby!

Birthday Bash

2008-06-29T23:15:00.000-07:00

We went tubing on the Kern for my 27th! It was pretty awesome:

This section of the river tried to eat us up but luckily a few of us made it out alive.

Unfortunately, there were some who were not so lucky:

Here are the survivors gazing over their conquered territory:

I asked the guys to strike the manliest pose they could. I think Lyle takes first place with the expression on his face. (He is quite competitive.)

We went white water rafting too, but a camera didn't make it onto the boat for your viewing pleasure.

Today (a week later), we attempted to go scuba diving. I got part way out from the beach when a particularly vicious wave with the mistaken identity of a washing machine scooped me up and battered me around as if it were trying to take out a particularly nasty stain. All it succeeded in taking out was my mask and snorkel, abruptly ending my dive right then. With that size wave, there was no chance of seeing the mask again. So, until next time. And now you are updated on the most recent this's and that's and whatchamahooza's of my life.

Lyle's Hair

2008-05-02T12:11:00.000-07:00

I think it's about time that I officially comment on Lyle's hair. I get numerous questions about how I feel about his current style as his wife and if I can't wait until he cuts it. (Like that even matters.)

Admittedly, the first time he ever grew the horseshoe mustache several years ago, I was embarrassed. But with the mullet and mustache, I've had a complete change of heart. Just think about it this way: chances are, you have a clean-cut, average hairstyle, or know of plenty of people who do. Now, how often do you get stopped in the street by a stranger who just HAS to tell you "I like your style, man"; or how often do you get invited for free margaritas and beers by a stranger (probably because having someone so cool looking at a party would up the status of it); and how often do you find out that two models were arguing about how hot your hair was after you left. I'm pretty sure probably none of that has happened to you. Don't you think that makes life a little more fun and a little more interesting?

Lately, with the summer heat moving in Lyle has been considering doing a "Pedro" move and giving it the chop. But, considering the above reasons, instead of looking forward to the day when I will have a normal looking, hansom husband again, I tell him not to do it. I'd rather have a awesomely radical looking husband with redneck hair who is liable at any moment to go blow something up just for the fun of it, or possibly go pick a fight with Chuck Norris just to show him who's boss. Wouldn't you?

So, his boldness on style piqued my curiousity and I decided to try it out with this hat (not like it comes close to the amazingness of his style).And guess what--it paid off! Just after this picture was taken, we were walking to our car in Old Town (Pasadena) when a valet parking attendant asked me where I was from. So, I was obviously standing out from the crowd or he wouldn't have even noticed. I told him I was from LA and he said he thought we must be tourists and that the hat was a dead give-away. Great Success! Maybe I should hire Lyle as my fashion adviser.

By the way, props to Team Bearclaw for knowing the definition of STYLE.

If any of this is of interest to you, vote in the poll to the right side of the page.

Race Update

2008-04-28T02:24:00.000-07:00

Well, guess what...I didn't take last place at Sea Otter! In fact, I beat not one, but 2, count 'em, two girls. That's all I was hoping for at Sea Otter, so I'm happy! Next time maybe I'll beat three...

In other news, I just did my first road race this weekend (Devil's Punchbowl). I found out that I am NOT a road racer. I'll stick to mountain bikes, thank you very much. Unlike mtb racing where you just ride as fast as you can for the length of the race, in road racing you actually have to THINK and plan and other stuff like that, like when to go hard, not getting dropped, and numerous other things I'm not even aware of.

By the way, if anyone can recommend a cheap coach or training plan out there, let me know. My budget is only about $50/mo so I'm not sure what I'll be able to find. But it's about time I had some advice on how to train!

Christmas in April???

2008-04-11T23:49:00.000-07:00

Lyle's super excited-guess why! This is appropriate behavior for Christmas, but somehow he's always a Scrooge at Christmas. Maybe he's saving it all for this day. Check his next post.

My Debut Into the Expert Field

2008-03-30T23:19:00.000-07:00

Well, I knew I wasn't ready to upgrade, but didn't quite realize how unready I was.

Cal State #1 Bonelli Park:

Keysville Classic, Kernville:

NMBS #1 Fontana:Oh, well, I'm just stoked to be racing. It certainly ain't gettin me down to not be podiuming. I now have something to grow into. By the end of the season I should be beating one or two experts and I'll be happy. With results like these, the only place I can go is up!
I'm starting to realize I need to actually TRAIN (like with an actual plan and some structure to my riding instead of just riding whenever) (oh, and having a coach probably wouldn't hurt!-seems like most all the experts do.)

In other news, this boy got a chance to stretch his legs out on some snow-less ground. Must be a relief to see actual dirt and flowers and temperatures above 50 or whatever you're getting!

The Subie Fisher semi-pro's looked pretty slick in arguably the best kit out there!

And to top it off, Matt sure showed those California pretty boys how it's done in Texas when he laid the smack down in Short Track today and took the bronze. It's a toss up what's better: his third place finish or some snazzy kits. I don't know, you decide.

Balla' Chicks

2008-03-29T22:29:00.000-07:00

I just have to mention when I rode last Saturday on our local trail (El Prieto) I think 100% of the girls on the trail that day were on single speeds. Me, Tanya, and Sarah. I didn't even see any guys on a single that day. Sa-weet!

Keysville Classic

2008-03-16T23:14:00.000-07:00

Holy crap that was tough! I raced up near Lake Isabella this weekend. My second expert race. Once again, last place (5th out of 5) but once again I'm fine with that and really proud of my effort. I finished only 40 seconds from 4th place. Even though I could see her ahead of me in the distance for almost the whole race, I just had nothing extra in my legs to put out to catch her. The experts are so fast and the race distances are so much more than I'm used to. My time today was 3:01. That's a long time to be racing for!!! But somehow all that suffering just makes me so happy after it's done. Yay, racing is so fun. Not to mention, the scenery around the Kern River is beautiful!

Racing at Last!

2008-03-15T01:06:00.000-07:00

I am so excited the mtn bike race season has officially begun for me! I kicked off the season with the first Cal State Series race at Bonelli Park. And it was my first expert race ever. I got 4th out of 4 but I'm still proud of my effort. I assumed I would get totally creamed racing with the experts but was only 3 min back of third place. So, not bad! Thanks, Dave for urging me to move up from the sport category. Otherwise, I probably wouldn't have done it.

:) (That's me smiling for the love of the sport!)

P.S. Thanks, Banner for being the photographer! Much appreciated.

Short Story by Travis Warner

2008-03-02T14:39:00.000-08:00

One Night In L.A.

They spoke in foreign tongue as we drove into the night. I was tied
up like the others of my kind in the back of a grey-white van. One
grim-faced and tired looking man sat watch with us. I didn’t know
where I was going and I wasn’t quite sure from where I’d come but I

knew they didn’t want me dead. My best guess was they were only
trying to cover up the trail.

Of a sudden the doors jerked open and I was thrown recklessly from
the vehicle into the early morning. The impact tore at my fibers
leaving me damaged and motionless. It was something I hadn’t
experienced before. I had only heard the stories which seemed to
lilt through the corridors like folklore passed down through
generations. I lay there motionless.

The sky grew light as I lay.

Some hours passed--how many I didn’t know. Slowly the birds began
to chirp, lending hope to my apathy. I was drifting in and out, in
and out, and then, finally, out.

He was staring blankly down at me. No words left his lips. There
was only the soft beating of the lawn sprinklers as they passed back
and forth across his pajamas. By now his coffee was cold but he
didn’t seem to mind. He didn’t seem to notice. All he could do
was
stare.

He seemed unmoved by the story told on my disheveled face. The
blankness consumed him and then me. He seemed to stare back without
sympathy. A hint of boredom and disinterest seemed to flicker across
his face a moment but that was it. Emotionless.

I began to question the humanity of Man. How uncaring and unmoved
he was in the face of tragedy. How unsympathetic he was to the
horrors before him. Murder. Rape. Chaos. Death. These were the
things of which man was made. Not kindness or brotherhood. The
society had been stripped of him. The world had become a
conglomerate of “I”s. There was no unity, no shoulder to shoulder

effort to keep a man sane. No effort to better himself or others.

Here I was the face of tragedy and need lying at the feet of a man
with the power to listen. And yet I seemed to stare back with more
wonder than he. His face changed from boredom to annoyance at the
sight of me. I was but a routine problem in his busy life. He had
better things to do than listen to my story. I didn’t dare break my

stare. My only hope was to penetrate into the depths of this mans
heart and perhaps evoke some semblance of philanthropy.

It seemed a lifetime of silence before the man finally bent down and
grasped me in his hands. He turned and carried me out of the
blinding sun and into the warmth of his home.

“Deloris! Didn’t I tell you to cancel our fucking subscription to

the L.A. Times?! You know I hate the crap they print! Nothing but
bad news and more bad news!”

I was thrown recklessly into the eternal silence of a nearby
wastebasket never to be heard from again.

Stupid Rain!

2008-01-23T19:49:00.000-08:00

Just when I finally get into gear and start actually riding my bike, I get foiled by the rain. How am I ever going to get fast enough to race as an expert this season if I've wasted away half of the winter training season slacking off, and now when I get serious about it, the weather has other plans for me? Damn, Davis, how do you DO it?!?!?!

Storm the Beach

2007-12-16T23:03:00.000-08:00

Here's a quick post:
It was slow and sandy, lots of off-the-bike trudging, but I still got 2nd. Racing is fun! :)

Bakersfield Race

2007-12-04T22:12:00.003-08:00

Well, now that Lyle mentioned my blog on his, I'd better update. The racing in Bakersfield this weekend was really fun! I got to hang out with pretty much the whole Team Bearclaw.
(I know, I know, ladies, you're jealous, but try to keep your fainting to a minimum.)

(This one's my favorite Bearclaw:)

Watching the pro women's race was awesome! Carolyn Popovic made winning by minutes look so easy! She put on quite an impressive show in the last two laps, pulling ahead of Coryn in the beginning of the 2nd to last lap and steadily increasing the gap until she was 1-2 minutes ahead as she crossed the finish line. Wow! (By the way, for any of you who don't know it, Carolyn is the nicest racer on the circuit.)

The Elite men's race was pretty fun to watch too. I got the dollars flowing out to the racers at Sunday's race.I can't think of a better way to spend a few bucks. Us spectators should do that more often in our local races!

In my race I got 3rd. It was fun! The girls ahead of me easily dropped me but I was able to hold off the girl behind who was hot on my heels for the whole race.

I officially started a daily bicycle commute to work last week. Luckily the weather has been strangely hot so riding at 6:30 in the morning and again at 6:30 at night has been so far, bearable. Hopefully I will have the discipline to keep it up since it will be my only form of winter training. And I'm definitely late in starting that up. It's 2 hours each way so maybe that'll be enough to get me up into the Expert category for the mountain bike season next summer. :)

Thanksgiving

2007-11-29T22:54:00.000-08:00

I forgot to put this up last week. This is kinda like what my Thanksgiving was like. I got to see my dog, ride horses and hang out with friends.

Dog Sitting!!!

2007-11-25T23:12:00.000-08:00

Send 'em my way...I can't resist!

The men in underwear, I mean, not the puppies. (hah hah)

In other news, I had fun "photographizing" today. No racing for me this weekend.

Whirlwind

2007-11-13T22:20:00.000-08:00

That's what Sunday's race was for me. I wasn't going to race because I was going to be working all day. But then, as a fluke, I didn't have anything to do at work for a few hours. It was perfect timing. I had just enought time to race home, grab my bike, drive the 30 minutes to the race, get my number pinned on and turn the pedals for a few minutes before my start. (Thanks to Jesse and John for getting me going!)

Then there was the race:

As soon as I finished my last lap of the race, I got back in my car, stopped at a friend's house for a shower on the way back to work, and was at work 3 hours after I left.

I didn't even know how I placed.

I've asked myself several times why I did it. There's no prize money in my catagory. I'm not in contention for series leader. The actual fact of pushing your body that hard for 40 minutes of strenuous work is just painful. I really had absolutely nothing to gain from it. So what the hell? Are we bike racers just a little bit crazy? Anyone? Bueller?

Speaking of Women...

2007-11-08T22:59:00.000-08:00

anyone into cheerleaders? Or are they too skinny to be sexy? You decide.

My Monthly Update (heh, heh, I know it should be Daily)

2007-11-02T00:40:00.000-07:00

Sorry to have left everyone hanging about the "new girl in town", but unfortunately she was gone almost as soon as she got here. Luckily I have her bike as collateral. I'll let you guys know (Alex, JMcK) when she gets back on the condition that you guys jump right on it/her (ha ha). Oh, check out the previous blog-I was able to add a picture of her. Because blogs are meant to be a completely honest, truthful, and fully complete account of life right?

In cycling news, I went for my first "worthy" ride yesterday in a long time. I've been working a lot and kinda let my post-race-season break turn into a mega slack fest. So finally I did a ride longer than 1 1/2 hrs of "easy and fun". Not that I rode hard, which I definitely didn't, but at least it was for 5 hours. I headed up to the top of GMR from my house, and back.I had to ignore the "forest closed" signs due to the fire danger, but I knew that in the current condition I'm in, I wouldn't be able to pedal fast enough to generate sparks flying off the back of my wheels and light a new forest fire. Although that would've been pretty cool. (Not the fire.)

So today, my knees are creaking like they have arthritis. I probably should've eased into the longer rides instead of shocking my legs. Oh, well, they'll get over it. And they better get used to it!

On another note, pretty soon I'll have the complete women's kit for the Subie Fisher team! For those of you who don't know, it's pink, yellow, brown, and awesome. I got the jersey from Jon a few months ago, and now he will be mailing me the shorts. (By the way, this kit is completely exclusive since they didn't make any for sale, only a few were made for the 3 or 4 team pros. I really hope I don't look like a poser!)

Heather sure knows how to wear it!

Oh, Boo-ooys...

2007-10-06T19:10:00.000-07:00

Guess what I just found! Blond hair, about 5' 2" and knows a person not by their name but what bike they ride. Sound interesting? Thought so. So all you bachelors out there who love their bikes as much or maybe more than they love the ladies, listen up. She's single. But probably not for long, considering mountain biking is her life and I've personally never met a chick who rides who is not already attached. They're few and far between. This particular one races pro so chances are she can keep up with you.

I'll leave it at that. Those who are worthy already know how to contact me.

P.S. Here's her picture:

An Attempt at Redemption

2007-09-06T23:58:00.000-07:00

I know it's pretty unspeakable how lax I've been at keeping this blog up to date. So, here's a quick post to try to redeem myself to any slight degree. It might have never happened except then I found out people actually READ my blog. (Brian, thanks for the nudge.)

I'm not even going to try to bring you up to date from the last blog because since then, we raced in North Carolina, then came home briefly for a race in Altadena, then Colorado, then came home again only to turn around and head out for the Strawberry Music Festival in Yosemite. We're finally home for a civilized amount of time. I think we don't even have to go out of town until the holidays. Yay! (Don't get me wrong--this summer has been awesome!) Since pictures tell a pretty good story, I'm just going to dump a bunch in the blog to save on words.

Here goes:

I know funny pictures and story is way more interesting to some of you than clouds and trees, but since this is MY blog, and I happened to find the scenery amazing in Colorado, that's what you're gettin'.
Snowmass Village, Colorado:

A little end of season fun:

Fruita:

Cherry Lake (just last weekend):

I can't guarantee new posts right away unless something interesting happens and I'm inspired. That's my disclaimer.

The Bishop Pad

2007-08-03T00:39:00.000-07:00

Between Vermont and North Carolina we stayed with Jeremiah and Erin for a few days. They gave us such awesome hospitality!

There was barbequing:

And tandem riding:
(That was a first for both Erin and I)

They took us on some fun trails. Apparently this trail is rideable:
I guess it is if you're JB, one of the best technical riders in the country!

Lyle found the perfect glasses to go with his styling new bag:

But most importantly, we learned of Jeremiah's secret between-race training routine. Some may seriously doubt my integrity in leaking this information into the public eye, but it's too priceless to keep it under wraps: So that's how he builds up his fast-twitch muscle fibers! I believe coaches all over the world will start prescribing bunny chasing to their athletes the second I hit "publish" on this blog entry. We'll see, but this may revolutionize the world of cycling training. Especially since he used this exact technique just days prior to winning the Sugar Mountain National Mountain Bike Race!!! (Way to go, Jeremiah!)

The Naked Crit

2007-08-01T23:45:00.000-07:00

I'd heard about the "Naked Crit" from Lyle before but it's hard to really believe it until you see it. Well, I witnessed it and can vouch for the fact that people actually get naked and race thier bikes that way. They don't even seem to mind that they have an uncomfortable bike seat up their crotch. Who knows, maybe it's more comfortable that way. I didn't test the method out so I really can't say.

I had to moderate and edit the pictures so as not to embarrass/incriminate too many people. However, there was a pretty good turn out. Maybe about 15 entrants.

Most of the girls there were from the Velo Bella team. Thier team manager was there and told me I should come to the dark side. Hmmm...

It was an after-dark, unofficial, unabashed race around a gravel parking lot. And I can only assume there was confidence-boosting assistance in the way of alchohol. But there was prize money! Maybe that's the way to go. We don't have crap in the way of prize money in CA races. (Meaning exactly zero.) So I guess there's definitely something to be said for bootleg races. I don't know exactly how much but it looks like quite a wad in the "referee's" hand.
The "Wieeener":

If anyone objects to their picture being posted, let me know and I'll delete it. But it's hard to believe anyone would care since they all specifically opted to strip down and ride around in front of a crowd of at least 100 people, with lots of cameras flashing and car headlights blazing.

Shuper Duper Shimano Reps

2007-08-01T21:04:00.000-07:00

National Championships race report continued...

The next day we all went to tool around on some short and sweet little non-muddy trails:

Then guru Mary and assistant guru John showed us some yoga moves:
But the next morning was my first ever short track race. I still had a non-functional deraileur, so bright and early I headed over to the Shimano tent. First he tried adjusting it. No go. It was bottoming out on the frame. So then he was going to put a shim in to move the whole mechanism away from the frame just to get it rideable for my rapidly approaching race. In pulling off the cranks, he discovered a totally rusted-in bottom bracket. He tried with all his might to get it out. Then there were 2 mechanics trying to wrench it out. Finally all three of them were at it. (Quite a scene!) Then the Fox Shocks guy came by with a torch just in case. Instead of the bottom bracket crying mercy and giving up the fight, it went ahead and broke the wrench they were using! We realized that if it came out, it certainly shouldn't be put back in again, so I went off in search of a new bottom bracket and deraileur. I came back empty-handed just to find out they had prevailed over the bottom bracket by standing/jumping on the wrench. But now we had nothing to put back on the bike and my race was in 1/2 hour. It must've been my lucky day because the Shimano mechanic went and dug around in his truck and came out with a brand new bottom bracket and a set of XT cranks--much better than what I'd had on there. And they wouldn't let me pay, they just hooked me up! So I was finally on my bike with 10 minutes to warm up before the race.

The race itself should've been an embarassment but I actually had fun (during the 4 minutes I lasted). I managed to do 2 laps and then was pulled. I didn't mind because the catagory was Open Women (all the non-pros) so I was mostly racing against Experts. All us Sports and Beginners were creamed and pulled instantly. Oh well, still fun.

After the race I loaded up the Shimano guys with cookies and coffee, the only sort of payment they would accept.

Lyle was killing himself in his short track race but a lot of the other guys just had more power. He got 13th and stayed in for 20 minutes before the pull. He did way better than me!

Lyle and his coach:

Watching the pro races was awesome. It seems there is so much more integrity in mountain biking than road biking. I don't even want to think about the disgrace being brought to cycling by those roadies and all their doping and cheating. Check out the statement JHK is making on his socks:
Then I saw similar socks on Jeff Kabush the following weekend. You guys rock for that! The only way to keep the sport clean is by internal peer pressure, so thanks!

National Championships for Walking in the Mud (er...Mountain Biking???)

2007-07-29T20:51:00.000-07:00

Well, just before Saratoga Springs, we went to the Championship race for the year. I easily qualified because all it takes is a top 10 finish at any NORBA race. Well, considering the fact that the biggest turn out I've seen this year in my catagory at ANY race has been at the most, 7 racers, I couldn't help but qualify. Anyone who entered in my catagory and age group (Sport women 19-29 yrs) quailfied for the National Championships. That same situation pretty much applies to every women catagory except pro.

So, let me just take a minute to rant about the catagory divisions. Considering the fact that there are 4 catagories for women (Beginner, Sport, Expert, Pro) and only about 10% of race entrants are women, that leaves hardly any girls to race against. But of course we cant race against the men because they are like another species when it comes to cycling fitness and speed. Anyways, then they go ahead and divide us up by age group as well, so not only are there 4 catagories, but about 50...Beginner Women under 18, 19-29, 30-39, 40-49, etc. If anyone who actually makes any decisions about this happens to read this post, PLEASE consider just doing away with the age divisions all together! It doesn't actually make you feel like you accomplished anything when you get on the podium and get a medal at the awards ceremony for getting 5th place in a field of 5 girls!

So that's how I felt about this race. I got 5th out of 6 girls. One away from DFL (dead f---ing last). So, I didn't even bother going to the awards ceremony for my medal. This is my starting line-up:

Compared to Lyle's:

See, they're a little more sensible with the Semi-Pros because there is no age group divisions with them. All ages are combined.

Anyways, back to the race report. I was in Vermont pre-riding the course for a whole week before the race. It rained every day but only for a bit and stayed ridable despite the mud. The course was sweet and fun and technical, and I'd gotten it to the point where I could ride almost the whole course.

Then, come Thursday, the rain really hit:

That picture was taken while I was sitting in the car procrastinating my Thursday pre-ride for the last time before my Friday race. With the rain pouring down, all my previous pre-riding was useless since the trail completely changed character. All the lines I'd picked through the technical sections were now the wrong ones. I was riding through rivers, not trails. Little did I know that was much better than it would be on race day.

By the following morning the mud had dried up slightly to be super sludgy and slippery and peanut-buttery but really deep. Here's a typical section of trail after the conditions had improved quite a bit:
The mud completely destroyed my front deraileur within the first 10 minutes of the race. Then, coming up to the muddy uphill singletrack, since I had been used to actually riding it the earlier days, I kept trying to get on my bike and ride it. But it was impossible to ride and I ended up getting further and further behind the front 4 girls who had dropped me earlier. I was wasting time getting on and off my bike. When I finally figured out it was much faster to get off and walk it, the girl behind me in 6th had caught up and then shortly after, passed me. As I was slogging through the mud, I kept thinking "umm...isn't this supposed to be a mountain BIKE race???" After cresting the hill, I decided to just ride it for fun and not be disgruntled and miserable, and ended up passing the girl who passed me just by riding the singletrack descent. So, I got 5th out of 6 and a ruined derailieur.

To be continued...

Saratoga Springs, baby!

2007-07-24T10:48:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we went to Saratoga Springs, NY to ride with John. It was such an awesome trail system!!! Really technical but almost everything was rideable if you put your mind to it. There were non-stop roots on every inch of trail but it was dry and in good condition. There were even little wooden bridges like you see in pictures of north-east riding. And there were lots of little logs lying across the trails to ride over. That's the first time I've tried riding those. We don't have that in CA. It was fun! If you want to try out some awesome, epic riding, go to Saratoga Springs. After the ride Lyle and John were even talking about buying a "summer house" there.

Anyways, I know I'm behind on posting. I'll put a post up about the race soon.

Some More Vermont

2007-07-16T20:55:00.000-07:00

We went out riding today and just happened across a complete trail system through the forest just minutes from where we are staying. It deserves some more exploration if we get time.

Here is a typical Vermont "back yard":

(See the horses in that photo--everyone's got 'em! I'm so jealous.)

A cool wall:

More local wildlife:

I will definitely be getting new tires before the race. It's been raining daily and the already muddy race course is getting muddier and muddier. Imagine riding through slick mud on these tires!

Out.

Vermont

2007-07-14T21:36:00.000-07:00

Well, we're here in VT, and holy crap, the riding is intense! It is so lush from all the rainfall, that there are so many roots which are fully exposed on the trails. It's some of the most technical riding I've seen. At least I have a week here to get used to it before racing on it.

I'm seeing tons of wildlife which I never see in CA. For one, there was a groundhog that popped up two feet in front of me on the trail as I was riding. I know of their exsistence, but had never seen proof before coming out here.

Also, I'd never seen fireflys before this trip. Pretty cool. Today there was a fully polka-dotted fawn with it's mom. And some kind of tiny brown snake with an orange belly and a little yellow diamond on the nape of it's neck. (If you can help identify that snake, post a comment.)

Gooseberry Mesa

2007-06-22T01:53:00.000-07:00

I can't let this slip by without a post. We camped at Gooseberry Mesa in Utah on our way to Park City for the race.

(Thanks for leaving a pile of firewood for the next guy--It was great since we rolled in at aroud 2:30 AM and didn't have any light to find wood.)

The riding was epic as expected. It's one of those incredibly unique places that only all the right people know about it, so that even though it's famous for what it is (incredible mountain biking), it's still completely isolated and empty of the crowds. We saw no one on any of the trails the whole 3 1/2 hours we rode that day. And it wouldv'e been totally cool to see people because they only would've been cool adventurous mountain bikers.

The terrain is so unique, you would never find anything like it except in Utah. It just awesome! Makes me see how much I need to work on my technical skills!

Some of the local wildlife.

Lyle's pretty skilled on catching these fast animals on camera! Here's from the drive back home:

Anyways, that's it for Gooseberry. Definitely a place we'll go to again!

Deer Valley

2007-06-22T01:22:00.000-07:00

The race in Deer Valley was pretty surprising! I didn't do so bad after all. While pre-riding the course on Thursday (my race was Saturday) I REALLY felt the altitude and the lack of riding in my legs. I was so tired, short of breath and slow! By Friday when I pre-rode again, I felt much better and things were looking up. Then Saturday I was as good as new! It was a bigger field than normal and I felt like that podium spot I won actually meant something (not like geting 3rd place when there's only 3 of you!) There were 9 of us this time. Yeah!

I was sitting in 4th on the last 1/2 lap just behind this girl in the Wheaties jersey:

Just at the crest of the hill I was able to squeeze out a burst of power in those last 3 seconds before it turned into downhill single track (which I certainly didn't want to be in the back for) and passed her in the knick of time. I couldn't have done it any sooner and actually held her off still. Then it was a matter of keeping her off and I managed to continue widening the gap bit by bit until I found myself crossing the finish line in 3rd. Not bad considering my prior few weeks!

Down With the Sickness

2007-06-05T23:44:00.000-07:00

Ugg. No riding for 1 1/2 weeks! I'm finally feeling better, but boy was that a long time to be sick and off the bike! Unfortunately Lyle is still under the weather. Deer Valley (Utah) should be interesting. At least we still have a week and a half to get back in the swing of things before having to torture ourselves once more during one of our weekend suffer-fests (otherwise known as a race). Here's Lyle looking particularly lively:

and me:

Castaic

2007-05-20T21:10:00.000-07:00

Let's see, what to say about this. Lisa beat me by only 8 1/2 min, not 10, so that's good! And if you look at the expert times she actually would've won the expert catagory, so I don't feel so bad about loosing to her. I ended up with 2nd and am cool with that. I was told that I was looking pretty good out there--like I was actually having fun! I guess I didn't put myself through a complete suffer fest and paced myself pretty well the whole race.
Here's me looking retarded on the podium (I just had my hands in the air).

In the last downhill singletrack I was riding really smooth and fast and put up a good lead for a few guys racing behind me. One of them was pretty impressed and shouted to me that he wanted me to meet his son. Sorry, I'm taken! All the guy cyclists I know want to meet some cool mountain biker chick to date but the thing they're missing is that the cool mountain biker chick is usually created by the boyfriend/husband. The way to do it is just find a cool adventurous chick and then introduce them to mountain biking. I'm pretty sure that's how almost every chick you see at these races got into it in the first place.

It was pretty dusty as usual.

Lyle had some pretty fierce competition:

Manny (the little guy in the Sho-Air kit) would've placed 2nd in the pro field with the time he put out. I guess that makes one more who should be seriously thinking about upgrading today!

I had 3 people to feed today with a total of 8 feeds. It was pretty stressful trying to make sure not to miss a feed. Imagine how brutal it would be on a blisteringly hot lap at Castaic with no water.

Preparation

2007-05-19T23:31:00.001-07:00

Well, tomorrow should be fun. I'll be racing Castaic Lake, an infamous course of extremely steep unending uphill. And hot too. If Lisa Crowe shows up, I'm sure she'll spank my time hard since she's been beating me by 10 min every race so far this year. I'll go for podiuming nevertheless. When I think about racing I wonder why I even do it at all. It's just unpleasant, hot, hard work that leaves you feeling sweaty and dirty, and feels like crap while you're actually doing it.

Fontucky

2007-05-07T09:40:00.000-07:00

Well this race was interesting. For starters, I went out to my car in the morning to head to the race and it was covered in tree limbs.

There had been heavy winds the night before and the tree I was parked under decided to fall apart right on top of my car. We managed to get the way cleared quickly and I still made it to the race with plenty of time to warm up. But then the race itself was a disaster. I crashed three times in the first 15 minutes in that treacherously deep "Bisquick" powder despite pre-riding everything perfectly the day before. (Well, I'm no pro but it was the 2nd time I'd pre-ridden it, so I'd kinda gotten it figured out by then.) I guess I was a little over-enthusiastic during the race. Those crashes pretty much demoralized me completely and it was hard to muster up any effort to catch the girl in front of me. And with such a bad start it was hard to stay clipped in and ride on the technical stuff (which was a good chunk of the course). So, soon the girl just ahead went completely out of sight. After finishing the first lap, I decided I'd had enough wallowing in misery, and with another girl sneaking into sight from behind, I pulled it together and started riding like I should've been all along. All the technical stuff that had shamed me on the first lap I was able to get the best of on that last 1/2 lap. So, I managed a third place finish in the end. It's a finish I'm not proud of, but not terrible all in all.

One more thing I have to mention--just that morning before I left for the race, Lyle warned me about the terrible condition the course was in and told me specifically to ride slow so that I would stay upright on those technical sections while the other girls crashed around me, thereby giving me a big advantage. Unfortunately it's not that simple, learning from others. I guess you just have to experience it for yourself. Racing is the best way to learn how to race. (Another thing coach Lyle tells me again and again.)

Maybe one day I'll be wearing the leapord print too!

Another blog for your viewing pleasure

2007-03-13T01:19:00.000-07:00

I pretty much already gave up on blogging but Lyle convinced me to give it another shot. This was my ride for the day:

In case you don't recognize it, this is past the top of GMR towards Mt Baldy. A beautiful road to ride!
And there you have it.

Excitement, excitement.

2007-03-09T01:53:00.000-08:00

Ladies, Fellas: My first blog ever! And today certainly deserves one. As I was out riding I was thinking I'd better pay attention in case something interesting happens, but I hardly had to.

I went for a road ride up the Angeles Crest, and just as I was starting up the mountain, I noticed a police car coming down. And then another. And another. Two motorcycle cops...then a fire truck...an ambulance. But that didn't really phase me and I shortly forgot all about it, since in fact that isn't all too uncommon in LA, and there are always plenty of cops on the Crest handing out their daily share of tickets.

But then, coming around the bend, there was Cal Trans blocking the road. Hmm... I figured they'd probably let me by. I was on a bicylcle and could easily go around some road work. But no. It was a car chase and the police were finishing up their investigation. I talked to the Cal Trans guy for a while, but to no avail. He was nice enough but couldn't let me by. Come to think of it, I am a girl after all, and it wouldn't have hurt to flash a smile and bat my eyelashes. Oh, well, too little, too late.

So, I get home, and Lyle is checking his e-mails. Huh, what do you know? Daniel was out there too:

"Today at around noon, I was riding up the first half mile of the crest and rocking out to a euphonious track by the band "Tool" on my iPod, when a car flew by at about 70-80mph. At first I thought maybe the car was going normal speed and I was perhaps traveling backwards at 60mph, but my computer did infact indicate i was going +11mph. The car was followed by about 500 police cars and police motorcycles with loud sirens and flashy lights - I guess they just happened to also be in hurry to get to where the fast car was in a hurry to get to. There were two helicopters in the air. The sites and sounds surrounding me almost made me feel like I was riding in the tour, and I was on a mega breakaway. Then, back to reality, I just happened to see my brother descending down the oposite side of the road - what a small world. He tried to turn around and chase me down but I was going way to fast for legs as weak as his, so he resorted to calling my cell phone. He suggested that the crest would not be the best place to be riding on a bicycle during a police chase, since it's already pretty sketchy under normal conditions. I agreed and turned around, turning my 80 mile day in to a 60 mile day, which was plenty enough anyways.

I'm not sure if it was televised, but if it was and you saw two fellas wearing PAA duds (one in last year's colors and one in the new), them there were's us.

Have a great day!
Daniel"

Anyways, Lyle and I opted for a mountain bike ride after that. We went up Lower Sam Merrill to the railroad ruins on Echo Mountain.

The days have been warming up (actually it was outright HOT today!) and it has officially become lizard season out on the trails (as if I'm some sort of expert). There was even a blue tailed snake-like lizardy thing which I was too slow to catch with the camera. But here's a snake I saw:

We headed over to Sunset trail and down, which I rode pretty well, but that's nothin'. We did El Prieto after that AND......I CLEANED IT!!! First time ever. And I did it like a pro. No jerky struggles fighting with the trail, just smooth sailing. WooHOO!

So that was my riding for today. Until next time!

(As an interesting side note, that didn't officially end my excitement for the day. While driving in my car afterwards, I got a flat tire. Lyle taught me how to change the tire and had me do most of the work. Better watch it honey. The more you teach me how to do guy things, the less I'll be needing your help. Wait a minute--that's good for you, huh?)