Cal Aggie Criterium

I decided that I was going to race the Cal Aggie Criterium two nights before the event. I signed up, decided that eh... just another race. Went to bed just fine.

The morning of (January 29), I was freaking. It was wet (super foggy), and uh.. it's a race! This would be my second crit and I still have no fucking idea what I'm doing. Got up way too early (about an hour before my alarm), ate, freaked, got my kit on, brushed my teeth and did all of that girly shit, freaked, got my bike and gear ready, and freaked some more.

I got lost in the park because I'm awesome like that. I eventually found the crit because derp, road closures. Signed in and freaked some more. Texted Heather who gave me some good tips. Bumped into Reese, a Team Revs teammate who was racing the Master's 4/5, also bumped into some CSUS teammates. Then I bumped into my ladies TR teammates. It was Karen's birthday, Andrea was debating the race, Andie signed up. Eventually, Andrea and Karen caved into peer pressure and signed up.

Goal: Don't crash on the wet asphalt.

At the line up, I was nervous. Really nervous. It was wet and I've never raced on wet asphalt before. It started and off we went. There were a LOT of sketchy riders. Hey, whatever. I eventually decided to yell at Andrea to get on my wheel because we were going to the front. I pulled for a few laps, in which I was dying in because WTF dude I've never ridden up front in a crit or that aggressively. At that point, I didn't care if I blew myself up too much, I just wanted to get out of the sketchy field and if one of my teammates could take advantage of that, then awesome! The group did its natural rotation, and then I attacked again. I wanted to be up front because some of these chicks didn't know how to handle their bikes worth shit. Corners? Forget about it. Whatever. A couple of UC Davis girls were all over the place. At several points, one of them was close to hitting my front wheel, to where I told her to watch out. In all honesty, I wanted to say, "Hey, bitch. If you hit my front wheel and take me down, you're coming down with me!" I went with "I'm on your right..." I kept calling my lines on the corners. Hell, I was talking a lot because I didn't want to crash. The point of me calling my line was so that they didn't bump into me. The point of me calling my lines was not so that these chicks would take them!!!! Hey, it happens.

We kept on going and on the last lap, I made a stupid move and got boxed in. Shit. I couldn't find a way out. I decided that on the last corner I'd attack any opening, and I did. Problem? A UC Davis chick cut me off before the sprint. Damn. At that point, I knew it was over, but decided to take a bit of a sprint to at least move up in placings. It's racing. If you don't have your tactics down, you'll get no where. Brute force will only take you so far! I learned my lesson in this one. Pay attention, dip shit!

At least I learned what to look for and what to expect. It's only my second crit so I'm still not sure of what to do and, most importantly, when to make a move. My cornering and bike-handling skills are better than I thought on wet asphalt. This was a good first crit of the year. I feel like I have the strength, though I can get stronger. Now I need my tactics!

Results? Out of a field of 30 women
Andrea: 14th! Chica was on fire!
Me: 18th
Karen: 22nd
Andie: Unfortunately flatted.

Lessons:
- Keep talking and communicating. No matter how annoying it is, it'll save your ass.
- Don't attack so soon.
- Keep track of where the other chicks are so you don't get boxed in.
- Be confident on those corners. They're never as bad as they seem.
- Sprint. Fucking. Harder.
- I love me new wheels.

I think that if the TR ladies can get some tactics together, we'll have an amazing team. For being so new, we're already showing a lot of potential. Thanks to Reese, Mike, and everyone who calmed us down and helped us out, and more thanks to Reese for letting me use his trainer to warm up a bit. And thanks to Heather for all of her help! She's amazing!

Next race is a collegiate race. The UC Davis collegiate race. Hey, Aggie chicks, watch the fuck out.

Wheels

After nearly 3 years of cycling (My "anniversary" will be in April!), I decided that I wanted to get new wheels.

I have a 2009 Felt F75. I originally had the same bike, only the '07 model, but it got stolen from the shop I took it into to get a tune-up (I now do my own). The dude is awesome and obviously replaced it with the '09 model. Okay, an upgrade. Problem? It's a fucking tank. Last time I weighed it, the scale read 22.5 pounds.

Stock wheels: Felt Hubs/DT Stainless Steel Spokes/Mavic CXP-22 Rims, 28H front/32H rear. I did the Death Rid on these babies. Please note that I am not a climber by any means of the word. I suck at climbing. I love climbing, but I suck at it. I have the ass of a quarter horse. But for not being a climber and riding a tank, finishing the Death Ride is one of my proud moments.

I also upgraded my crank to a compact full speed ahead. I never knew that carbon cranks were so effin' nice.

Now the question: What wheels did I get? I got a set of Williams 19's. Not the "fanciest," but I'm cheap... and I have books to buy... and a horse to take care of. Okay, enough with the excuses. My main concern was, "What if I made a mistake." These wheels were the perfect first buy for a rookie like me. They don't break the bank, which is cool when you're going, "OMFG I DON'T KNOW WHAT THE FUCK I'M DOING!!!!"

They got here within 2 days of ordering them. Damn. Grabbed the box and asked, "Uh, are they even in here?" They were. And they looked pretty. I was as excited as a fat kid in a candy store and took a picture of them. I then went over to the boyfriend's where I used all of his tools (because I can) and put in one of my cassettes (11-28. Shut up my fat ass needs it for the hills), and put on tubes and tires. I was happy with the aesthetics of them.

Took them out for a test ride on the hills the next day. Yeah, I felt the difference. I did some repeats on the neighborhood ass-kicking-I'd-like-to-die-now-PLEASE hills. These wheels are significantly lighter than my tanks, so I thought that handling on the downhill would be a bit sketchy. I ride like a bat out of Hades on the downhill... but I tried it. At 48.2 mph, they were still amazing. They felt steadier than my tanks. Turning at 48 mph was like rolling on velcro with a cool velcro suit on. Dude, they STUCK. Impressed, I was.

Today, I took them out on the flats. I rode to school and back, with a 15 pound backpack and dense fog. 51 miles. Fantastic on the flats as well. I mean, wow. Sprinting was great. It took little effort (compared to the tanks) to get the wheels going. Smooth and quick to respond. Super happy with this.

I have a criterium this Saturday (I got conned into this!!!) - the Cal Aggie Crit. I'll be racing as a Women's Cat-4 (durp) so I'll definitely get to test how well this velcro-wheel works. These will be my racing/climbing wheels, while the tanks will be my training/every day wheels. I'm happy with this purchase. If anyone is looking into buying a set of wheels but have no idea as to what to get/do, I'd say these are good wheels to go for. Plus, their costumer service is amazing, which is the reason why I bought these and not a set of Eastons.

Mac Update

A lot of you know that I've had an on-going battle with my horse's, Mac, weight. He was at a "facility" in Granite Bay where he was put with two other horses, STILL charged me as if he were in a stall, and fed just enough. Unfortunately, my horse is very picky with his hay and he's not very food-motivated (unless it's a carrot). My horse started to lose weight, and quickly. The other two horses would gobble the food up and Mac, being a slow eater, barely got any.

The owner of the facility told me that he "was eating $200 worth of food." Bullshit. If he were, he wouldn't be so god-damn skinny. I got fed up. I packed up his stuff and left (which she wasn't very happy about. A boarder who was overpaying just left!)

He went to the place where I worked and lived at the time. Things got sour there (aka the "boss" went batshit insane) so I had to take him out. A lady leased him, so, reluctantly, I let him go to her house. He was STILL skinny and the lady didn't do what I told her would work to make him gain weight. The lease didn't work out, and I took him to Knicker Knob Stables, where he currently is.

Here he is when he first got to Knicker Knob, probably a month or so after his arrival date, at 854 pounds. He had gained about 60 pounds at this point. Yeah... he had GAINED 60 pounds when this picture was taken.

He's been there since the end of summer. Eating, being a horse, etc. And I've been able to enjoy my horse more than I have in the past couple of years (the chick at the Granite Bay place made my life a living hell). As of today, my horse now looks like this (see picture below), FULLY body clipped...

He's not eating $200 worth of food, yet he's gaining weight. See the bullshit I was telling you about? His weight right now is ideal, and I'm so happy I'm back at Knicker Knob. He's as happy as he has been in a long time. And why? Because we let our horses be horses at this place!

Sorry you had to go through hell and back, Spanky. I'm definitely apologetic for my mistakes. At least you're at a fantastic, safe place now... and we're not leaving!

First Race: TBF New Year's Duathlon

It was cold. Really cold. I almost bailed out. It's a free race and... uhm... it was REALLY COLD. Eh, I went because I said that this was going to be my first race of the season, so I went.

Met up with Randy at the Gold's Gym parking lot and rode in. I didn't want to wait in line and I'm cheap, so I didn't really want to pay the $10 for parking. I registered and saw a few Team Revolutions friends - Noah, Don G, Sheila, and new members as well. Some really fast new members.

My goal was to finish in under 1-1/2 hours, and to not walk during the run. Let's face it, I lost nearly 6 weeks on the bike because of my achilles, and I haven't ran in nearly two months... this was going to hurt!

The race was a 2-mile run, 7-mile bike, and a 2-mile run. I started the run and was freezing. It's frustrating, because before my polo accident, I haven't been able to have a good run. It sucks going from a really good mile time to not being able to do even strides. Either way, my hip didn't loosen up until AFTER the first run, which is pretty normal.

The bike was easy. That's where I got my time. I passed a lot of people and had to keep saying, "Rider left... rider left." Hey, I would hope that the bike portion is easy for me. Gotta say, I'm glad that the triathletes in Team Revs know how to handle a bike, because a lot of people on this course did not.

The second run was a lot easier since my hip was loose enough. My achilles didn't act up, either. So, I ran. I didn't have to stop due to pain, nothing of the sort, so by the end I pushed a little harder, and my achilles didn't hurt at all. I see this as a great success.

I finished the race is 1 hour and 13 minutes. My running time was the fastest it has been since my accident, which is about an 11-minute mile. No, it's not fast, and it's so frustrating because I had a 6-1/2 minute mile... It's getting there... it's getting there. I ran with my beanie. There was FROST on my beanie. Some of the volunteers even commented on it. Brr...

After the race, I chatted with some friends and Randy and I went back to our trucks. We ate at the Italian Deli there and then we went home. It was still effin' cold.

So, I did beat my goal. Hey, now that I know that my achilles will hold up, I'll be able to train for future runs and duathlons. This was a great first race of the season.

Spin Burger

A friend, boyfriend, and I went to Spin Burger in Midtown tonight. For those of you who don't know, the Midtown Bistro was turned into Spin Burger. Knowing and having gone to the other Bistros, I decided that I wanted to check this place out, so I did... with a friend and my boyfriend.

The place is cool. The seating sucks. You're really close to other people (as in practically sharing a table... that shit don't fly so well with me). The service was slow. Really slow. Maryann and I were waiting for Randy, so we decided to order our drinks (a soda and a water) and some sweet potato fries. That took a while to get to us. When the fries came, though, they were really freakin' good, so that was a plus. Maryann and I chatted, and the problem with the damn shared seating was that a lot of people (EIGHT PEOPLE) kept asking for our chair. By the last person who asked us, Maryann and I just said "NO!" to the "can we use that chair?"

Randy came and ordered his soda and we all decided to order then. Nothing major. We actually just had two of their "Spin Burgers" which, from my understanding of the menu, was their standard, and Maryann had a garden burger. Cool. That also took a long time to get. A really long time. Our drinks didn't get refilled quickly enough, and by that I mean that the glasses were empty for quite some time. The waiter came to apologize for taking so long, but we were having fun chatting and whatnot so whatever. We found it kind of odd that the place went from being a Bistro, with pretty good service, to a simple burger joint with terrible service (terrible as in slow, because the servers, hosts, etc. are really nice).

The food, I will say, is good. The burgers were good. Messy, but good. I mean, fuck, it's a burger. The fries are way too greasy. I mean, dude, I totally get that they're FRIES, but c'mon, there's a limit.

The place is loud, and I don't know why because the music wasn't loud... it was something I can't explain. So if you want a romantic date, forget it. And the food is fucking expensive for a burger joint. If you're cheap, forget it, too.

Okay, I would recommend this place if you're just out for the hell of it. If you have all night to just sit, chat, and take pictures, come here. If you're not on a tight budget, come here. If you want a good burger, definitely come here because they truly are good burgers. Do NOT, by any means, come here if you just say, "Oh hey! Let's go get a burger before the movie!" because you're going to miss your movie and you're gonna be pissy.

Randy, Maryann, and I went for coffee afterwards, so you know we weren't in a hurry to get anywhere. I think that the service didn't bother us as much because we had all night and screwing around Midtown was all we really planned on doing. I think that if we had something planned, such as a movie, we'd be bothered by the slow service. I expected the place to be expensive, so eh, I wasn't as bothered by that. Still, at least include the fucking fries. The burger was good, though!

I went online to check out the reviews beforehand, and I now understand them. At first I thought people were being way too harsh. I know a lot of people exaggerate on how sloooowwwww the service was. I'm usually pretty lax about it, but hot damn, this WAS slow.

You know, it was a good experience with good food. If you want a place to just sit, chat, catch up, take pictures, waste time, etc., go there. The food is good.

Resolutions vs Goals

Alright, it's day 3 of the new year. We all have resolutions, right? Lose weight, be nicer, be a better person, volunteer more, give to charity, lose weight, get faster, lose my fat ass, get a better bike, get a better job, lose weight, go to the gym more. Look, I don't really care what your resolution is. What I care is that the resolutionists go to my gym and crowd it even though we all know they're going to be gone by March... or at least until their personal training sessions are over.

No. We don't all have resolutions. I don't make resolutions; I make goals. And to accomplish my goals, I work my effin' ass off. It's the only way I can accomplish my goals, whether it's to lose 20 pounds so I can catch those skinny rodies on a hill or to work my ass off so I can get a better bike/set of wheels or components... or maybe to study more to keep my grades up. Whatever it is, it's not a damn resolution - it's my LIFE and I make GOALS in my life, and I work ALL YEAR AROUND to make them happen.

I go to the gym and I see a lot of ads for weight loss. "Work out! Accomplish that resolution!" Hah. Out of the hundreds of people I've seen (I've been going to the same gym for 12 years.. I've seen a lot of people come and go), maybe FIVE have actually changed their life to stay healthy. They don't just "work out," they train. Training is everything. Working out is just something people do to kid themselves into thinking they're going to accomplish that resolution. Well, they accomplish the resolution, but that resolution goes away, and they stop going to the gym. That initial motivation that people get in January dies and the 20 pounds they lost come back... plus 15 more. Sad.

What are my goals?

- Cycle 9,000 miles. In 2010 I cycled 7,548 miles. 9K is an achievable goal.

- Complete more endurance races on my horse. Two sports (once in which I ride in two teams), work, and full-time (plus) school is hard, but my time management skills are amazing. You should make yours just as amazing.

- Not die with all of the units I'm taking this semester.

- Race my bike more.

- Run a full marathon.

- Compete in more duathlons.

- Finish top 5 in some races.

- Go to more races, whether to race or volunteer.

- Be open to meeting new friends. I did this in 2010 and have met some AMAZING people. 2011 is no different.

- Keep being awesome.

More goals will come. I'll be a busy little bee. Join me in goal-making. Don't be one of those annoying resolutionists. Make it life-changing. My life changed so much in 2010, and really, change is one of the best things that we have.