Labor Day Weekend

One of our good friends, Dave, extended the invite to his annual Labor Day Weekend party/camp-out/bike riding awesomeness in Calpine, CA. Randy and I left on Friday night and didn't get there until 12:30 AM. I woke up on Saturday at 7AM and went into the house around 7:30, talked to Dave and everyone who was there. I met some new people (Toni, Steve, and Jason ["Jay," Dave's son]) and said hello to Kathie (Dave's wife). Randy came in after me since I let him sleep in. Ron, Randy's dad, got there around 9AM, and we all got ready to go on a mountain bike ride... with single track. Have I ever done any single track? Nope! But I wanted to ride anyway.

Other riders came by, Janice and Jay. Toni took

pictures of us, where I'm smiling because I have no idea what ride I have ahead of me. We headed out, a total of 8 riders, on a track that Dave is bu

ilding, which was fun. The climbing has never bothered me, it's the technical stuff that does. I guess it's normal for a rodie (hah!). Out of the 8 riders, I was the least experienced rider, with a dozen mountain bike rides under my belt, which have all be done on the easy Granite Bay trails. The second least experienced? Randy, and he's been riding/racing mountain bikes for 21 years. Yeah... I know.

More climbing, some single track. I was feeling pretty good. I was actually able to go over some stuff thatwould have terrified me in the past! The warm up was nice, the ride wasn't being hammered, and I was enjoying the views and the company. The trails are really nice. The loose spots would sometimes throw me off, but it wasn't bad. We'd stop at certain spots and re-group. I found myself doing better on the climbing than going downhill on the single track. Like I said, the climbing doesn't bother me. The downhill single track though, not as bad as I thought it was going to be, but it was still something I've never done before and I was overly cautious at first. But, the more I saw the other riders simply trust their bike and let loose, the braver I got and the more I actually trusted my bike to go over obstacles (let's face it, you can never trust a road bike to do that!).

We had about 200 more feet of climbing when Ron heard a clank. Lo and behold, Ja

son's bike wanted to commit suicide. His front brake was gone. But, since I was with a bunch of mountain bikers, I got experience and witn

ess how prepared (ie they pretend to be pack mules since they carry EVERYTHING with them) and work their magic on something that has gone wrong. Ron walked a few feet away from Jason and his bike, and found the bolt that had fallen off. Lucky? I think so! So, they tried to put it back on, but one of the wedges was extremely bent, so zip ties it was! It was pretty cool seeing how they got to working on their bikes. Reminded me of when I broke my derailleur hanger on Iowa Hill and Randy turned my bike into a single speed. The only issue was that Jason didn't really have a front brake. Good luck on the downhill!

We got to the top and the downhill started. Itwas a blast and the fastest I've ever gone downhill on a mountain bike. It was cool just being able to go out there and let go! I had run out of water since Ithought the ride was going to be about 3 hours, but we were out there a lot longer. That'll teach me to forget my CamelBak!

After a bunch of downhill and a lot of riding, we got to Graeagle where Kathie, Toni, and Jay's girlfriend, Cathy, were waiting for us. My computer read 31 miles of riding. Now only was this my longest mountain bike ride, it was also the hardest and the most fun. Never did I imagine that I was going to be able to do all the stuff I did on that ride! Janice helped me a lot on some of the single track and the technical turns, which

was great to have another gal there helping me.

We all got back to Dave's and rested. Had some drinks and food by the campfire and talked a whole bunch. It was a fantastic night.

The next morning, Jay (Dave's son, not the other Jay), Randy, and I decided to do the Lakes Basin Loop. It's a 45-mile road ride with 4,500 feet of climbing. Randy then got a slow leak, was able to get it filled, and kept riding. Jason was a bit ahead, but as I was seeing him get closer, Randy got a flat. I got tothe Gay Eagle Lodge, didn't see him, so I turned around (for the second time) and realized that Randy's spare tube had a 3-inch slit in it... he had a defective tube! I tried to contact Kathie to tell her that we h

ad some issues since they were ahead of us in the truck, but the call wouldn't go through. I felt bad that Jay was probably waiting for us for a long time, but mechanicals happen. The good thing is that I decided to turn around, otherwise Randy would have had two bad tubes. We finally got to the top and told Jay our little adventure. We then headed down for a bit (after an 8-mile climb!) and then went up again for a short distance, which is when the fun downhill started. Jay then stopped at one of the views, which was gorgeous! He then took a picture of Randy and me with the view behind us:

We then headed down to HWY 49 and did that climb, which wasn't as bad as I expected it to be.

Jay had us stop at a view, where a Harley rider flipped Randy and me off (Jay was already checking out the view) and took some pictures. It was absolutely beautiful. A lot of people would probably hate a ride like this. There's a lot of climbing, a small shoulder on the roads, and the elevation really kills you if you aren't used to it. But all of that effort is worth it when you see the views that you get when you're at the top of your climb. It's, literally and metaphorically, breathtaking!

We got back to Dave's and ate some lunch and showered. Jay had to go to Reno, so good-byes were said and Randy and I waited to Dave, Steve, Toni, Kathie, and the dogs since they went on a hike. We made a fire, had dinner with some of Dave's neighbors, and had a great time around the fire. A lot of good stories, lots of great company, stars, and a fire... what more can a person ask for!?

On Monday morning, Dave, Steve, Randy, and I went on a 10-mile mountain bike ride. Dave was giving me some mini-lessons on how to ride over some of the technical parts of the trail. Some of them I was able to accomplish easily (though I was scared!) and others took me a little longer, but I was able to get a feel for what I have to do, and that's what's going to help me in the long run, I think.

When we got home, we packed everything and headed out. It was such an awesome weekend; the best Labor Day Weekend adventure I've ever had! I'm glad I was able to attend this and I'm so glad I was able to go on three great rides, meet new people, and have a lot of fun with friends. It's something I'll definitely cherish! And not only did I have a lot of fun, I learned a LOT of new riding skills and I surprised myself in that if I just stick to it, I CAN actually ride the dirt.

Thank you, Dave. This weekend was a blast!!

Bandit

Yesterday, September 1st of 2010, we took our dog, Bandit to the vet. He was 15-1/2 years old and very ill, so we decided that it was only fair for him. It was one of the hardest things I've ever had to do...

I've worked for vets, small and large animal. I've seen the procedure and I know what goes on, but this was so much harder. I didn't know the other pets, and it was very sad, I didn't have a connection with them. This time, as soon as I entered the vet's office, I couldn't s

top crying. It was hard not to.

My family and I have had Bandit since he was born.

He was no bigger than the palm of our

hand and was a fluff ball. You couldn't see his legs or anything! It was as if a fluffy thing was walking around, barking at everything. He barked at shadows, noises, wind, lint balls, and us. He was mean and bit me several times, would push me off of the couch, and would make me carry him on walks because he was too tired to move. He'd run around the house like a mad man for absolutely no reason, in circles, all over the place. He'd eat tomatoes and chili peppers that our neighbor used to throw over the fence when he lived next door to us. Bandit also loved dried up worms on sidewalks... yeah, I know. He didn't like his paws being touched. He'd howl if you sang or made high-pitched noises, but his howl was so funny that we couldn't help ourselves (think Steve Urkel howling). Cou

ldn't teach him a trick, except for "sit." Loved food, any food. He was confused for a "baby Saint Bernard" multiple times... one girl even called him a cat. My mom called him a termite because he was a wood chewer as a puppy. Anti-chew sprays attracted him. The only thing that worked for him was a really hot chili pepper. Still, what dog loves anti-chew sprays!? I called him my little Gremlin because he always made weird noises like Gremlins did.. and he was tiny and adorable one moment, and then BAM! He'd play around and go in "attack mode" and run all over the place.

Bandit was so full of character. He made us laugh a lot and provided us a lot of company. Even though he was a grumpy dog, anytime I felt sad, he'd come over to me and sit and lick my face (he was a licker!) and comfort me. He knew how to do it and was good at it.

I'll miss you, buddy. You'll always be with us. Hopefully your trip over the rainbow bridge was a fun one.

Rest in Peace, my little Gremlin. Thank you for all of the love you gave us.

March 1995 - September 2010

Winters Road Race

So, it came... and it went! It was my first road race ever, and after the preparation and all the nervousness I had about the race, I'm glad I signed up.

My class was the very last group to start. One of my Team Revs teammates, Pam, was in my class, too, so I at least had a familiar face in the group. The closer I got to the start line, the more nervous I got. A lot of the ladies in my group had a couple to three years of experience, and they were EXTREMELY nice and helpful. I chatted with them a bit, joked, got some tips from them (and from Heather Nielson, a CAT 2 friend of mine. Thank you!)I think that the cold weather got 20 degrees warmer once I was about to start. We got a brief about rules, some mentoring, and the whistle blew.

Off we went into a neutral start for half a mile. We actually got stopped at the intersection were the race starts because the pro men were passing by. We then kept going. I was usually within the first 5 women. Pulled once. Kept having to protect my front wheel because some of the less experienced girls were all over the place, but that was alright, I just kept my cool and didn't do any sudden moves.

The rollers started, and some turns. On one of the turns, a girl pushed another one into the other lane... with a truck coming. Lots of "shits" were being thrown out there. Another one hit another's wheel. More yelling and some "talking to." The feed station came and a girl (an experienced one) cut me off and nearly hit my front wheel, to where a "what the hell?!" was yelled by me.

The climb. Well, I stayed with the group for a while. Then I got dropped like a rock. Pam and I were pretty close, so I just kept her pace. The descent was fine, too. Easier than I remember, but I'm also comfortable with my descending skills.

Pam and I then worked together for the rest of the race. We made quite a good team, even though the winds were, simply put, a bitch out there. The fact that we had each other was good to give our legs a break and we were able to encourage and talk to each other. We had big groups and small groups pass us, some of which were scary because damn! I've NEVER been in the middle of a group that huge before!

The second lap was good as well. Harsher winds but again, we were able to get a break because Pam and I were working together the whole time. By the time that the last kilometer came, Pam said that she didn't have the legs for a sprint, so if I could have it if I wanted it. We decided to just cross the line together so we could show the Team Revs men that the women can join up and work as a team, too ;)

I learned a lot at this race:

- Riding in a group with unknown riders is scary, but I'm glad I finally "felt" what it's like to be in a group like that in a race setting.

- Protect your front wheel and handlebars at all times.

- Talk and communicate, even if you don't know these people.

- Work with someone if you can.

- Always take your registration confirmation.

As far as results, Pam and I got the same time and 10th and 11th place, respectively. 2:39 hours and a hell of a good time. Now that I got my first race under my belt, I'm very excited for my next race, which is Cyclebration.

Sly Park, Round Two and TT

Sly Park

Randy and I went back to Sly Park to camp with some of his family friends. There were a LOT of people along with 13 dogs. Yes, lots of barking. We also had to watch out for land mines... yup.

The first night we just hung out, ate dinner, hung around the camp fire. People drank and it was hilarious. I actually drank a beer, which took me forever to drink since it was a 40, but I still drank it. Got relaxed, that's for sure. One person almost fell on Randy. Hah!

On Saturday we went out on Mormon Emigrant Trail for an easy spin up. My legs felt like lead, but the more we rode, the better they felt. We did about 20 miles on the road that day. Then, we decided to go out on a mountain bike ride, where I didn't crash, and called it a day for riding. The rest of the time we hung out, chatted, ate good food, and hung around the campfire. We went to bed around 11:30PM due to having to wake up early for a 6:30AM ride we were doing with Noah from Team Revs. Problem: There was a baby that cried every effin' night at 3AM. Did I get sleep? Hardly. A bitchy morning for me was in tow.

Oh, and bitchy I was! I didn't eat breakfast in the morning, due to feeling like a damned zombie and never wanting to punch a baby so hard in my life (this is a figure of speech, people. Don't go all "OMG YOU GONNA PUNCH A BAYYYYYYYBEEEE???" Sheesh...). Met up with Noah and, to our surprise, Lance as well. We started riding up, nice and slow, the way I like to warm up. It was pretty chilly. Lance had darted in front of us and was a bit ahead. Noah, Randy, and I were catching up in the mean time. The ride was pretty good, not too cold after a few miles on climbing. Then the real climbing started. We caught up with Lance and then went ahead of him. He said that the steeper climbs were harder for him (ummm.. I think for everyone!). My rides are always no drop rides, so we'd wait for him whenever we couldn't see him behind us.

HWY 88 came up, and we decided to definitely go on it and ride towards Silver Lake. We rode, and climbed, and chatted, were afraid to get hit, but that's what happens on those highways. We got to 8,000 feet of elevation and we decided that, yup, we'll go down to Silver Lake even though we're going to have a horrible climb back up. Down we went.

At the lodge in Silver Lake, we got water and rested a bit. We saw people throwing axes and looked like rough mountain people. We were in spandex. Lance started ahead of us while Randy, Noah, and I were taking our sweet time. We decided to head out. The climb wasn't as bad as I thought it was. It was a steady climb... with motor homes coming close to us. We didn't get hit, which was awesome (derp). We caught up with Lance and went head. Finally we hit the summit again at 8,000 feet. The downhill-[ish] started. At the turn, we also heard lots of gun shots, which is typical for MET. I have posted pictures of me wearing the Team Revs jersey. It looks like we have targets in on our chest and back... and there are gun shots, and we're in spandex. Four people in spandex with targets on. Food for thought.

No, I'm kidding. But it's still funny to think about.

We turned onto MET again and had some climbing to do. We obviously didn't have enough. After a few miles back into MET, we started the downhill/rollers. Randy's bike was being a prick, so he couldn't go too fast (no 50 mph, haha!). I got into Noah's draft, and because I'm short and he's not, I didn't have to do much of anything! A few more little speed bumps, some more fast downhill, some sketchy parts, and we were back home. No accidents and no technical issues except for Randy's bike not liking life at the moment.

Overall, it was 65 miles and about 6,700 feet of elevation gain in 4 hour and 59 minutes of riding time. Sweet! It was a good ride. I was less cranky the more I rode, too, which was fantastic. We went back to the campground after we dropped off and said our good-byes to Noah and Lance. Everyone was there. Some packing, others drinking and chillin'. Awesome times. We packed the bikes up and headed to Randy's parent's, where we showered, ate, and I passed out on the couch for an hour.

Time Trial

Unfortunately, due to lack of sleep and some stress, I started to feel really sick. My throat was hurting during the MET to Silver Lake ride. I took Monday off, and decided to Time Trial yesterday. The wind was brutal, I was feeling ill, but I went anyway. I talked myself into going. The way out was painful due to the headwind being so strong. The way back was nicer, but it still hurt. I looked at my speedometer and I was going around 26mph, which I haven't really done on the way back on the TT. It was the fastest so far. I sprinted to the finish line at 29.1 mph, whereas last week I could only sprint to 27.2 mph. Overall, it was better. My time, even though I was sick, is the best I've had this season! 27:41 minutes. My goal is to get a sub 27-1/2, so I'm getting closer. Practice, I suppose. Practice.

I still feel sick, but maybe an easy spin will help ;)

Winters Pre-Ride Report

Now this... this ride was something different! The only "road race" I have done in the past was the SF Triathlon, and that was more of a circuit race and I (obviously) wasn't working with a team.

We met at Steady Eddy's in Winters at 7:45AM (I had to wake up at 5:45[ish] AM on a Sunday. Wtf, mate?) and had some caffeine. After 3 hours of sleep (eff you, allergies) the night before, I needed it. At 8:15AM, we all started to get together in the parking lot and rolled out.

The whole team stayed together on the first lap. Matt L (designated team capitan for this ride) gave us tips, techniques, proper etiquette, what to do, what not to do, when the pace was going to pick up, etc. There were 11 of us, I think. The first 10 miles had rollers, flats, more rollers, and annoying wind. When we got to the climb, that dreaded climb that sounded as if it were worse than Iowa Hill came up, I didn't realize I was on it. So much for this horrible hill in the race. It wasn't bad at all, it was mostly all in my head because OMG HILL (you'd think that I'd be okay with hills after the Death Ride).

The descent can be a little sketchy if you suck at handling your bike. There's one shady spot that got me at first (no depth perception for those of you who don't know, hurr hurr. Shadows confuse me. I know how my horse feels...), but I followed Randy's line because he doesn't suck at handling his bike, so it was all nice and dandy. We met up with Pam, Steve, and Don G. The rest of the team were waiting for Barbara. The five of us at the bottom decided to head to the rest of the course, where Don, Pam, and I didn't take a turn and went up some little hill but didn't see Steve nor Randy behind us, and that's when Don's lightbulb saved us all. We turned around and went the correct way (Randy and Steve asked a Davis guy if we had to turn or go straight... we had to turn). We rode. It's pretty flat. William came zooming by the other direction. Waved. We got to the end of the first lap and we waited for the rest of the team.

When some of the members came, Matt told us that the reason that Barbara took so long was because her cleat broke, but a mountain biker had a shop in his CamelBak (typical, pfft) so he helped her out. We all came back together and started planning the mock race.

Rnady, Pam, and I were in a "team." Mike and Steve were in another one. The five of us were to be in the breakaway. There was the main group and Matt and Rob were in the chase. Off we went into the breakaway. We kept a good speed. When the rollers started, the pace slowed down, I saw a gap between Mike and Steve and went through it. Randy followed. The two of us broke away from the break away. I've never been in a break away so most of the time I was "wtf do I do? Kay... go faster.." Randy and I kept taking turns pulling. Around mile 8, we saw the group about a minute or so behind us. Yeah.. they were catching up quickly. The group caught us around the middle of the climb, which hell, for a two-(wo)man break away, it wasn't bad! That and I suck when there's any sort of wind, so I was sort of happy. My heart rate was at its threshold and holding on for dear life, but it's all good.

Randy and I kept working as a team once the group swallowed and left us. The way down the hill (which I led the second time) was a lot easier. No wrong turns. I messed up once with Randy's signal to pass him so I can pull. Durr. I didn't see his elbow signaling me. Oops. I pulled after I went "??? WAT!?" and he corrected my dumb ass. I pulled for a bit, died a little inside and then Randy led the rest of the way in. We saw Don E spinning in and Randy asked, "wasn't he in the group?" I figured he flatted again (turns out that was the case). We got to the finish line and after realizing that I didn't die, spun back into town. Randy gave me some tips on what to do during the race. We decided that we may go back to work on some strategy. Mainly, eff the breakaway until the very last lap by the lake.

We got our crap back into the car and we headed to Guadalajara in Davis. I had a torta (holy hell haven't had one of those in YEARS. Made me miss Mexico!) and we chatted. Apparently Matt thought that the group was going to catch the breakaway way before they did. Yay! We then told stories, laughed, poked fun, the usual crap that goes on with the non-stuck up cyclists (c'mon... we all know who those are). Probably because we had a lot of cyclocross and mtb'ers in the group... and ones that JUST started road racing (me), so our head hasn't gotten too big for our helmets (good thing they're adjustable... ahem).

All joking and sarcasm aside, the things I learned were priceless:

- Breaking away hurts.

- A two-man break away will get swallowed up.

- I now know what it feels like to be swallowed up by the main group.

- Working in a team is essential!

- Without communication, you're nothing out there.

- Hills are never as bad as people make them out to be.

- I can keep up a decent pace without an iPod.

- My bike sucks because it's heavy and has heavy wheels, but it's fantastic when I get those things rolling on the flats!

- The wind will suck, but it won't kill me.

- I can, in fact, survive a "race pace," even though I felt like I have died a little... or a lot.

This was a great experience. Thanks to Matt for organizing this. I know that it can sometimes be like herding cats (at least with me.. woo attention span!). The race will also be a good experience. I don't expect a lot from it except to get some good experience for future races. I'm looking very forward to it!

Team Revolutions' Annual Camping Trip

What a weekend it was!

Randy and I got there Friday evening. A bit late, but we got there. We situated ourselves, talked to Chandra and Rob and Randy's parents, ate dinner, and went to bed.

Saturday

Randy and I went to ride Mormon Emigrant Trail. The ride out of Sly Park was enough climbing for me (no, I'm joking..). We then headed on to Sly Park Rd. and on to Mormon Emigrant Trail. Always a fun climb! All 25 miles of it. I decided that I was going to work on speed, so I started to do some intervals on the harder climbs. The Death Ride got me working on a slow-and-steady, but since the Winters Road Race is coming up, I need to work on speed. 15 miles into the ride and I was bone dry.. No more water for me. So, we turned around. I didn't realize is was so hot! Either way, it was a good ride.

After we got back, we ate some lunch and got ready to kayak. This was my first time ever on a kayak, so I was really excited. We got the tandem ready and into the lake, and I didn't know how to get in and I was freaking out that I was going to tip over. We didn't tip over, and it was hot, so going into the lake wasn't going to be that big of a deal. Randy told me that I pedal too fast so I had to slow down (I was excited! Like a little hummingbird on crack). He weaved around brushes and rocks and freaked me out on purpose, so I splashed him. We also had the treat of seeing the bald eagle that lives there! It was a great sight. Saw some thunder clouds, but no thunder. About an hour later, we went back to shore and put the kayak away.

Bistro 33 catered our diner. Now THERE'S some awesome camping food. It was fantastic, especially after the workout we had (mostly because I was running around like a hummingbird on crack... maybe I should have hung out with the Team Revs kids). Dinner and dessert! Yum. It was Jeanie's birthday, and Big Boss Mike was giving a speech. He said that he and his family had a gift that Jeanie would really appreciate when someone yelled, "A new bike!?" Lo and behold, it was a brand new CycloCross bike! How awesome is THAT!? The kids were racing around the campground, then the adults got on their kids' bikes and raced, too. How many, "Oh crap! My kid's brakes don't work!" we heard was priceless.

We went to our campsite and hung out with Roger, Lisa, Randy's parents, Chandra, and Rob. We told jokes, talked, joked more, and so on. It was a great night. We all decided it was time to go to bed at 11pm. We had a ride in the morning!

Sunday

We woke up, got the mountain bikes ready, and went over to Jeanie's campsite. She wasn't ready for the ride (she thought it was earlier than it was), so we chatted for a while and then headed out. The ride freaked me out, and within 2 miles, I crashed once into some bushes. At least they broke my fall. Then, we headed up to the Flume and I crashed where I couldn't see how deep the sand was (remember, I have no depth perception). That one hurt a lot. I decided to turn back because I was slowing Randy and his dad down a LOT. So back to the campsite I went, though I wish I could have gone further, but I felt really bad about being so slow on the MTB. People saw me come and and said, "Girl, you're a little dirty!" Yup, I was very dirty! A little scrape on my elbow but nothing huge. Some bruises and lots of fun. The good thing about me turning around is that those thunder clouds came back, and it was thundering! Lighting, thunder... Randy's mom and I decided to tear down the campsite and Randy's and my tent. We did that just in time because it down-poured for a (really) short time. It all works out! The guys came back and we packed up the bikes and went to Randy's parents' house. Showered, ate lunch, hung out, and then came back home.

What a trip! I loved it. I'm so glad I joined Team Revolutions. What an amazing team! I don't think other teams are like this. I know my collegiate team doesn't do stuff like this, we just train and race. Thanks to Mike B for creating such an awesome team and for Jeanie for coordinating the trip. You guys are simply awesome. Oh, and how can I forget.. Bistro 33 for all of the awesome support!

I can't wait for more fun times and next year's camping trip!

My Bike's Anniversary

One thing I forgot to mention. On July 10, 2010, I had my bike for a full year. My original bike, a 2007 Felt F75, got stolen from the shop when it was getting a tune up for Death Ride 2009. I got this bike, a 2009 Felt F75 (the shop replaced it), on July 9, 2009, half an hour before I was to leave for the Death Ride. Yup, Death Ride 2010 was my one-year anniversary with this bike.

In one year, I put 5,800 miles on this bike.

It's a heavy bike and it sucks when I have a lot of climbing, but it's been a good bike. It handles well and I've learned a lot on this bike. I'll most likely get another Felt in the future (one that weighs less, though!). Now it fits me (it didn't last year), I like it a lot more.

This was just pretty much me bragging in the, "Hah! I put 5,800 miles on my bike in a year!" sense. I think it deserves bragging rights ;)

On Bikes and Horses

So, one of my Team Revs teammates asked me to re-write up the etiquette that bikes should follow around horses. A guy scared a horse and it bucked off his rider on a multi-use trail, and even though it's multi-use, I just went to an immediate "Oh crap!" because horse people are crazy when it comes to the safety of their horses. If my horse were to get hurt because of some carelessness on etiquette, I'd go crazy on them. Hell, I HAVE. Most horse people treat their horses as if they were their CHILDREN. There are the assholes who mistreat them and abuse them, but that's a different story.

I posted on the team's forum. Here it is:

"First off, congrats, Jack! I'm glad you enjoyed your first mountain bike ride! While I haven't been out on the dirt much, I'd be lying if I said that I'm not getting addicted. This asphalt rider enjoys dirt, too! Jeanie mentioned to maybe post about the etiquette again (I posted about it last year, too) on your thread, so here it is!

We ride a lot in the Granite Bay/Auburn/Cool area. There are a LOT of horse people in these areas. Auburn hosts the Tevis Cup, a 100-mile ride that has to be done in 24 hours or less. Horse people are serious in these areas! The Granite Bay trails are right by Boarding at the Lake and Los Lagos Equestrian Center, so you'll see some people riding at all hours of the day (night time rides are fun!).

While it'd be nice if everyone had an awesome, calm, and experienced horse out on the trail, and while it'd be nice if every horse person knew how to handle/control their horses, it's not always so. I've trained a lot of young horses out there and the only way to make them experienced and calm is to take them on the trail. I did that with my horse. I've heard a lot of horse people complain about mtb'ers out there not yielding, coming up too fast on horses, spooking them, etc. Fact is that out there, horses have the right of way, and while it's annoying, it's the way it is. There have been a bunch of complaints about rude riders out at Granite Bay recently

So, you encounter a horse. The etiquette is:
1) Yield. Like I said, it's annoying, but it's better than getting ticketed or having people complain to the rangers and then having the rangers threaten to close the trail to bikes. The older the horseback rider, the more they're going to stick to the "rules" and the bigger chance of them complaining. The younger the rider, the higher the chance that they'll want to race you and your bike (I do this all of the time!). I yield to bikes when I can and because my horse is well-trained, and if possible, a race would be in the books

2) If you see a horse, TALK. Say "hi" or "how are you." As much as I love horses, they're not the smartest. They can't focus on objects quickly, so they spook. They're prey animals and it's wired in them to flee if they think something will attack them (dogs, bikes, cars, shadows...). This can be dangerous to riders who don't have good riding skills or if they don't have an independent seat (meaning that it takes a LOT for them to get dumped). Once a horse hears the voice of a human, they most likely calm down.

3) Ask if it's okay to pass.

4) Be aware on sharp turns where you can't see ahead. If you run into a horse, hit one, etc., you're in for a world of pain, and not just physically. Horse people get MEAN if their horses get hurt (even if they don't get hurt, but more-so if they do! lol).

5) Some of us train TWO horses at a time. I've done it, especially with bran new horses. I ride my experienced horse and lead the other horse. That can get tricky and please, please COMMUNICATE. It's safer for you and the horses and the handlers.

I know it's annoying to have to stop, but it's a lot easier to stop a bike than a 1,200 pound animal that could freak out. One kick from them and you'll be off of the bike for a long time. I ride with mtb'ers while I'm on my horse. I've taught kids and I teach them to share the trail, but unfortunately the older generation of horsemen/women don't see it as we do (basically fun because we get to race!). I enjoy the distractions because it desensitizes my horse to chaos, and it helps when out on races or competitions. I take it as a training tool, but again, not everyone sees it that way. It hurts a lot to get dumped off of a horse... it hurts even more if they step on you. It's dangerous because the rider can easily break something and the horse can take off and run into a busy street (again, they're prey animals).

Just be friendly. The friendlier you are, the bigger the chance that someone will return the smile. Please communicate. The trails will be a LOT more fun if we all cooperate. The more we cooperate, the less tension the disciplines will have, and the more fun we will all have. Horses will not be leaving the trails and neither are bikes, so we might as well all get along! And if you ever see me out there and you're up for some racing, don't be afraid to ask "

I'm just hoping that this gets through people. It'd be nice if people would get their heads out of their asses (and this is to BOTH disciplines) and just cooperate. People are going to wind up losing, and from what it seems (I've volunteered and have been talking to the rangers at the parks), the Cool/Granite Bay areas are going to cater to the horses, which would be a shame, because those are awesome trails for both horseback riding and mountain biking.

Hey, let's hope that people start to cooperate. I can spread the word all I can. I love BOTH disciplines, so I'll do my best to educate people!

Death Ride 2010 Report

Oh, man. Where to start?

Randy and I left for the Death Ride on Friday. We got

to Turtle Rock park where I got my number. After that, we went to the campsite (Hope Valley RV) and got ourselves situated into the trainer (Randy's parents let us use their trailer. How nice is that!?). Found a card that Randy's parents wrote for me on the table! We checked out the campground and then headed into Tahoe, where we had dinner. I decided that I wanted to see what Carson Pass was like, so we drove up the summit. Now, the grades don't seem bad, but it's pass #5, after 100 miles of riding, and lots of wind. I knew it was going to suck, but I didn't think it was going to be TOO sucky. Haha...

Went to the trailer and decided to get some shut-eye. I had set up my alarm, but we were in a canyon with NO cell phone service, so I thought that my phone's battery was going to drain due to it searching for some service. So, I set up my heart rate monitor's watch, my phone, and Randy's phone. 4AM was my wake-up time. I kept waking up but felt like I was getting enough rest. We wake up to Randy's alarm at 4:15AM. Wtf? Turns out my watch's alarm didn't sound, I forgot to take my phone off of vibrate (wtf? Really, now?), and Randy's alarm decided that 4AM was too early, so it decided to go off to the 4:15AM one. Holy hell.. At least I woke up!

I got ready. This time, I didn't forget to Chamois my chamois (this is relevant later), We got to the start, where parking was already hell (at 5AM!) and got my bike ready.I then went to the Turtle Park entrance, where I saw a bunch of Team Revolutions guys there. They started right at 5:30AM. I was waiting for some other teammates, and I waited until 5:45AM, but I decided to start. Randy rode with me until the rider check-in before Monitor/Ebbett's. He said "good luck" to me and off I went.

Passed Markleeville. Oh, Markleeville. A small town at about 5,500 feet of elevation with a population of 200 people. Road closure. Yup.. the passes were closed to traffic and ready for us. Cut-off times were posted. This was going to be work!

I started Monitor very nice and easy. My HR was high, but it's always like that at the beginning of a ride and I didn't feel like I was over-doing it. I felt like I was going snail-slow, but it didn't matter; my goal was to finish, and this was pass #1. A mile into the climb, I saw people already taking their layers off. Good thing I only took arm-warmers as extra clothing! Going up the climb, I saw a Team Revolutions teammate, doing the same "slow and steady" pace.

The summit of Monitor. Great! One down. Got my sticker, some food and water and went down. Unfortunately, a lot of people have poor bike-handling skills. Braking too hard, swerving, etc. But, I'm confident with my skills, so I went down. 47mph. 20-ish minutes to go down 8 or so miles. I got down, my second sticker, got some food and water, and took pictures. A lady saw me take pictures, so she asked me if I would take a picture of her. I gladly did and then she offered to take my picture, but I didn't need to take pictures of how I went from "looking fresh" to looking like crap, so I declined. I then decided to head up the second pass.

The back side of Monitor sucks. It's longer and it screws with you. I got to the mid-rest stop and I got some water. Headed up and I was taking pictures while riding, and one guy rode next to me and said, "Here, give me your camera" and took pictures of me! How nice of him. I then rode away from him and got up to the summit again. Stopped for a bit and got some water and decided that I needed to pee since I haven't in about 3-1/2 hours. Um, ouch! The stop of Monitor is pancake flat and it's where the helicopter is parked. A helicopter, you say? That's how gnarly the crashes get.

Mmkay, down I went. People were cheering at the bottom and I took a left to go to Ebbett's. There was a water stop a bit past Wolf Creek, where the volunteers were dressed as pirates! So much fun.

Ebbett's. Pass #3. This side of Ebbett's SUCKS. I went up at an easy pace. Took some pictures, ran into some Teammates. Then, the tough grades started, and that's when I said, "Shit... when will this END?" when I knew exactly when it was going to end due to the pre-ride two weeks before the ride. At the time of the pre-ride, there was a lot of snow at the summit. Not this time! Only two weeks and most of it had melted. Took some pictures of the lake and headed all of the way up to the summit. I sat a bit and I guess spaced out because a gentleman asked me if I was feeling okay. I said that of course, I was just spacing out. I remember thinking, "I'm up here... two to go. I can do it." I then bumped into a bunch of teammates, said hi, and went down to Hermit Valley.

Got my fourth sticker. Rested, drank a Sprite, ate a little, and decided to

pee again because I hadn't in a while. I started talking to Team Revs' big boss, Mike, about the CycloCross team and then decided to go up. The back side of Ebbett's is much easier. It's a steady climb and shorter, so I was able to get into a rhythm. I took some pictures again and went up to the summit. Bumped into my teammates. Went down and another rider who wasn't too skilled at descending pushed me into a pot hole. The good thing is that I never felt out of control and I was able to get out of it just fine. The bad thing is that, dammit, she pushed me into a pot hole!

The lunch stop was at Wolf Creek, but I didn't stop and eat because my stomach was feeling weird. So, a teammate and I went off to Turtle Rock. We passed Markleeviile, where its residents were on the sides and cheering us on! How awesome is that!? It was encouraging. Up Turtle Rock and I saw Randy and my parents cheering me on. I stopped to get fresh water bottles, where I found out that one of my cages broke. Lame. I was able to hole a bottle, though, so I just put a new bottle in, chatted, and headed off before I decided that 4 passes was enough.

At the junction of HWY 88 and 89, there was a rest stop, where I bumped into even more teammates and chatted with them. I got hosed off, which felt GREAT after 90 miles. Cold, but great. I started up the grade...

What a painful section. I started to feel it, though I don't think my body was feeling it much, it was my mind. It was all games from here, and I wanted to give up. My legs felt fine, my hear rate was low, but for some reason, my brain was telling me, "This is too much. It's over."

But I kept going. I stopped once, had to sit down because I got dizzy, and two gentlemen talked to me. One of them had done this ride before; this was his friend's first time. He said that Carson is the pass where people break down and give up. He then asked me if I wanted them to hang out with me for a while and if I had GUs. I told them that I was just going to take it easy and that I had enough GUs. Up I went again up the Pickett's junction rest stop. I had a Sprite due to feeling as if I was going to bonk and I think that that saved me. I sat, chatted a bit, and decided to start back up.

Nine miles to go.

It was relatively flat for 5 or 6 miles. Then, the last 3 miles. Holy. Hell. Again, mind playing tricks. I felt fine. The only part of me that hurt was my ass, but that's expected. I stopped. My water bottle cage broke. Damn. At least I was close to the top.. or so everyone said. I kept going. Stopped about a mile and a half (without knowing) from the top. I walked about a tenth of a mile, and I'm not ashamed to say it. I got back on and started to play games again. Every landmark I saw was my next goal. Tree, got

it. Rock. Got it. Sign. Got it! And kept on going.

People kept coming down. I was pacing a guy behind me, when another guy coming down said, "Just around the corner, guys! You're almost there!" When I heard the guy I was pacing say, "Just around the corner, just around the corner. What corner? There's been five fucking corners!" I had to laugh. Another guy comes down, "Quarter of a mile!" It wasn't. It was about a mile. I cramped. I've never cramped before, so it was a "WTF!?" moment. But I decided to spin it out. It helped. Hah.

I got to the summit. Oh gods. I got there. I went to the sno-park, which

was a few feet descend from the actual summit. I got my fifth stic

ker, my pin, and a bunch of congrats. I did it.

I walked around for a little and nearly cried because dammit, I got to the top of the fifth pass even though I wanted to give up. But I didn't. I was officially a five-pass Death Rider. I walked to get some water and some watermelon, and one of the gentlemen who had been encouraging me on on the whole ride saw me and said, "There she is! Well done, young lady. You did your team proud." I smiled, said thank you. Sat with some

gentlemen and chatted a bit. Signed the board and took their picture (They bashfully said, "I know we just met, but could you take our picture?" I, of course, did!).

I decided to go down. I had 20 or so miles to go (though mostly downhill) and I had 55 minutes to the cut-off of 8PM. Down I went. Got behind a woman who SLAMMED on her brakes on a completely straight part of the road, so I had to slam mine. Good thing I sat behind my seat because I would have gone over my handle bars at the speed I was going. That was fine. Passed her as soon as I could and started the fun downhill. Passed a few more people. Reached a good speed. Got to a relatively flat area; had to pedal. Boo. Got to another steep part. Saw the entrance of the campground. Tempting. Very tempting, but went on due to not being able to tell my parents or Randy where I was. Down, down, down. Turned right to head to Turtle Rock. Up. Yup... after riding 120+ miles, you had to go UP! Spun the uphill. The very last part before a rider heads to the entrance of Turtle Rock is a good little hill, though by the end, it felt like I was going up all five passes again. I spun it out. I kept thinking, "Oh, maybe Randy parked at the bottom since this is where I started!" Nah. A guy behind me said, "Ugh.. more up." To which I replied, "Well, there wasn't enough before." We laughed. I saw the entrance, sped away, and saw Randy, who took a picture of me.

I was done.

I asked Randy if my parents were still here. The answer was yes, but my mom had apparently been freaking out. Why? This ride was absolute carnage. Going up the passes there was ambulance after ambulance. Cops speeding away to crashed. The helicopter got good use. A report that said, "Rider down in critical condition, but recognizable." His bike was in pieces. A girl went down coming down Carson. No apparent explanation, so it was assumed that she was just too tired and probably hit something and unable to control her bike. Another rider with IV's. A lot of reports being radio'ed in saying "Rider down." Yup... a good reason for a mom to be freaked out. I rode over to them. She saw me. I took my helmet off. Nearly cried because HOLY SHIT I FINISHED!!!

I started cramping. Another WTF!? This is the first time I've ever cramped! Then again, it IS the Death Ride. Randy pulled a chair out for me and I sat. I couldn't take off my shoes, so my parents tried. They've never taken cycling shoes off and were tightening them. Randy took over. My feet were free. I cramped again. Chilled for a bit, then decided that I wanted to get the form for my Five-Pass Jersey. Got it. Got some food. Couldn't eat it all. You'd think that after burning 8,012 calories I'd want to eat. Nah. We decided to go back to the campground. I started to get light headed due to my glucose levels hitting the ground. I laid down while Randy got his car. Mom helped me out, told me that I was finally able to beat my mind games. Got in the car and we went to the campground.

I took a shower, drank some orange juice to get my glucose levels up, and rested. My body was never felt just exhaustion. Randy then went on a drive to get some cellphone reception to call his parents and I fell asleep.

This ride is the hardest, most humbling experience I've ever had. It was amazing to get to the top. The best part? I was able to beat my mind games. My body can take it all. Hell, my body would have been able to take another 2 passes, but my mind has always played games with me. But, I gave it the bird and decided to keep going, because if I didn't, I would have kicked myself so hard. My mind games are slowly going away. Two victories in one ride.

Death Ride 2010. What an experience. No bees stung me, my bike fit, and I had good training for it. I'm happy I didn't listen to those, "You're over-traning!" comments and I'm glad I took rest when I needed it. I think I did the right thing.

I finished. On my 22.2 pound bike, an EpiPen, and a bunch of nerves. I was done after 13 or so hours of riding. And I'm damn proud. I couldn't have done it without Randy and his parents. His parents let us borrow the trailer and gave me a lot of encouragement. My parents for being there for me the whole way, for picking me up when I needed support, when I felt like my world was going to fall apart, and for being the best parents a girl could ask for. Randy, for showing me how a good team works, for training with me, helping me with my bike handling skills, all of the encouragement, for being with me on every single step, and for being my personal mechanic of the ride. My whole TEAM! Without them, this would have never happened.

It may be a, "So... you finished a ride. A not-so-special ride. So what?" I tried this ride last year when I was in absolute hell. I wasn't able to finish last year due a bee sting and my bike being bran new at that time. My mind was tortured. This year, being able to defeat ALL of that was an accomplishment. Not only was I able to finish a ride that I wasn't able to the year before, it marked the fact that I was able to get out of that bad time in my life and that I didn't break me. In fact, it made me stronger and more knowledgeable. I defeated ALL of that.

Do I want to do this ride again? I said, "Hell no!" going up Carson, but looking back, I think my time could improve. Death Ride 2011, here I come! But before then it's the Winters Road Race on August 28th!

Team Revolution's Bistro to Bistro Ride, Father's Day Mormon Emigrant Trail, and Death Ride Pre-Ride

June 19th: The Bistro to Bistro Ride

Fred Haines, owner of Bistro 33 and one of our biggest sponsors, held a ride for Team Revolutions. There were three possible routes: 15 miles, 40 miles, and 71 miles. Randy and I did the 72 miles, which was riding from Bistro 33 in El Dorado Hills to the Bistro 33 in Sacramento and back. The route was the easy, low-key American River Trails (lol at ART being "low-key"). Our first rest stop was at Folsom Bike and Grind, where they had coffee, bars, water, and a bunch more for us. There was a second stop at the Sunrise park, where Bistro 33 had some food and water for us. We got off on Guy West Bridge and headed through a bit of Sacramento to get Bistro 33 where there was a bunch of yummy food and water.

This ride was a relaxing one for us. We took our time and had fun socializing with out teammates. At the end of the ride, Bistro 33 in El Dorado Hills had an after party, which was fantastic! We had a lot of awesome food, good music, drinks (both boozed and non-boozed.. which I had the non-boozed because of this damn Death Ride!), and good times. Fred knows how to throw a ride and party!

June 20th: Father's Day Mormon Emigrant Trail

Randy's dad, Ron, wanted to do a ride for Father's Day. As Randy's parents live right by Sly Park and MET, we decided to do that as an easy and enjoyable ride.... HAH! MET is a challenge for sure, but it's a great ride! We headed out and had a good time. Turned around at a good spot so we could go back to the house and have lunch with the Glaeser family. I was getting some good speed on the downhill when I realized that the guys weren't behind me. So, I turned around. Turned out that Ron had gotten a flat and told Randy to go get me. Randy and I rode for about 2 miles (I was a good ways away, apparently!) and when we all met up again, we rode back and a much reasonable speed (no 48mph for me! My highest speed that day must have been 46).

The good thing is that I wasn't struggling on this ride at all. Last year, I was struggling with 30-25 gearing and exhausted by the end. This year, I was going at a very comfortable "spinning" cadence with 39-28 gearing and still had energy. I think it's a great improvement from last year! While this wasn't a hammer-fest ride (hey, we gotta enjoy our families on rides, too, whether they are hard ones or not!), it was still great to see that I was able to feel and ride much better than last year.

I went to wish my dad a father's day that evening, too, who was doing a lot of studying for another certification. Every man celebrates differently, I guess, haha.

June 27: Death Ride Pre-Ride

Yvette, Jason, Randy and I decided to ride a few of the Death Ride's passes. While it's only Yvette and me riding the actual Death Ride, we had some good support from the guys. We rode both sides of Ebbett's first, which are passes 3 and 4 of the ride. I went out a bit too hard on the first hill, so I decided to take it easy for the rest of the ride. Both ascends went great, when we saw an SUV with two road bikes stop by. Lo and behold, it was two Team Revs teammates, Pam and Steve! The team had done a pre-ride the day before, but we couldn't make that, so we went the day after. They stopped and gave us some of their left over water, at least to those who didn't have an 11-pound camelpack like I did!

The second descent was a bit shadier. Even though I had zipped my jersey up, I had a big fly into it and bite me. I had to come to a full stop and see what it was. I was freaking out because I'm very allergic to bees, and a bee sting is what ended my Death Ride last year, besides the fact that I'm at the top of a freaking mountain with only an epi pen and a bike to get me to the car! Cell phones? Hardly any service. Jason saw me pull up and stopped to see if I was okay since Randy had told him I'm allergic to them. Randy was in front of me, so he didn't realize I had stopped until he looked back and saw that Yvette was passing him, so he turned around (yup... CLIMBING Ebbett's again. What a great boyfriend!). I rolled up to Jason and told him that I didn't see a stinger, so it may not have been a bee, but we'll see in 10 minutes. Yup... there was a bit of nervous laughter. I rode to Randy and told him what happened, which he then decided that we were going to ride close together (even on the hard descent) just in case I had to get stabbed with my Epi pen. I didn't. It luckily wasn't a bee, but I decided that I was going to zip my jersey all the way up, as in chocking all the way up, to take that risk out.... at least from there. I still had my arms, legs, and head.

Up to Monitor we went, and I decided to take Monitor REALLY easy since it was really hot and I still had 8 pounds of camelpack on my back. Yvette and Jason took off, Randy and I stayed back and took it nice and easy. It was a comfortable pace, we were able to talk and laugh. When we got a bit over mile 4 into the pass, we saw Yvette and Jason pulled over on a side road, and I asked them what was up. Yvette was out of water, Jason had a bad head ache. Randy was low in water, and I still had nearly 2 bottles (maybe 3/4 of each filled) and some of my camelpack. I told them I was taking it easy because 1. It was hot; 2. I was keeping my target heart rate; 3. I've had heat stroke twice, I know when it's coming, and I wasn't going to risk it when the ride is less than two weeks away. The decision was to turn back, though I was ready to do the rest. It was a good decision. We had two rides with no water (I gave Randy some water from my Camelpack. Yvette said she didn't need it for the descent), and one rider with a head ache. So, down we went. We stopped in Markleeville to rest (Okay, I wanted to rest because my ass was killing me... will never forget to Chamois Butt'r my chamois!). Two miles of easy climbing later and we were back at Turtle Rock, where we started.

It was a great ride and I'm glad I went to pre-ride the passes. I know exactly how I'm going to start the ride. The elevation didn't have any effect on me (good ol' elevation training has paid off). I think this ride will be painful, but very doable.

After, we all went our separate ways and we stopped at Randy's parent's, where we had dinner and hung out a bit. Then came home. It was great being over and talking about bikes, the outdoors, and any random subject that came out! Definitely a great dinner and fun times.

I'm glad to have some great support on this ride. Randy will be going to the ride to be my "mechanical and beer" support. I haven't been drinking at ALL because of this ride (ever gone bar hopping with friends and just order a soda? Yeah, you get teased, haha!). When I roll to the car at the end of the ride, I will have that beer handed to me and I'll chug it. I may pass out on the bike, but dammit, it'll be worth it!

Let the countdown begin!