On Awesome Friends and new TT bikes!

This is the TT bike I will debut at Kern next week! I was lamenting yesterday, on the morning group ride (the same one where we almost got tickets) about how I was going to have to buy clip-on aero bars for my bike for the TT at Kern and for the Team TT championships. David, the guy I was talking to, just happened to have upgraded to a new TT bike recently, and still had his old one! And secondly, we were about the same size! So he graciously offered to loan me his TT bike (the one pictured above)! Cycling friends are the best...I mean, how often is it that people you only know from group rides (ok, and camping at Sea Otter) offer to loan you multi-thousand dollar items to go race with?

I went and picked up the bike last night. The only sad part about it was how sad his poor son was about letting the bike go! The child is nearly 4, completely adorable, and was happy and willing to talk to me...until he realized that I was taking the red bike with me! Upon hearing that, he started crying...it was really sad. I tried to explain (as did his father and mother) that I was only borrowing it, and that I would bring it back...but it didn't really work. His dad put it in the car and that was that. Poor kid...

Another friend of mine loaned me the carbon wheels...and now I'm all set! I brought it to the bike shop today, got it all set up, and took it for its inagural ride this afternoon. tomorrow it will go on a longer ride with some real efforts...

Anyway, I'm excited about my new toy..even if it is only a loaner. Maybe he'll make me a good deal on it...

Ciao!

why couldn't they just go for donuts?

This morning, on our group ride, we had a run in with the local law enforcement...it was on the way back, after a lovely group ride, on a really warm sunny clear day. We were all having fun, and we were cooling down and chatting as we rode back. We made sure to stop at the lights in Summerland, notorious for bike tickets...although we didn't see anyone. Sometimes we see the cops there, as they like to catch cyclists (nothing better to do I guess). When we do see the cop on his motorcycle, and we are stopped, he always makes fun of us, saying things like "wow, cyclists stpped at a light, it's a miracle..." and things like that. Today, he must have just missed us, and decided to come after us by going on the freeway. We were headed back towards SB coming up to a stop sign, when someone alerted--MAKE SURE YOU STOP...there's a cop on the freeway... He was looking in at us from the freeway...(we were on a frontage road)! The front people didn't hear in time and rolled through...the rest of us stopped. Sure enough...at the next freeway exit we hear the sirens. He ended up just going after one guy...and the rest of us got to go. Ack! That was close!!! I guess it pays to be wearing the jersey of the ride...so that you won't be singled out! :-)

close call...I really didn't need to start out my day with a $200 ticket!!

A bit frustrating that they don't have anything better to do...where are they when cars do stupid things? Picking on the bikies is just not fair.

Ciao!

Mechanical Issue Solved!!!!

Okay..so this is a tad embarassing...after switching out the following:

1. Large Chainring
2. Chain (from slightly used SRAM to brand new Shimano
3. Cables (pretty worn)
4. Little twisty thing (sometimes known as a 'barrel adjuster')

My bike finally works again! I'm quite certain now, that it was just the little barrel adjuster that was broken! I noticed it being a little 'loose' during the sea otter road race (when I was dropped and had nothing better to think about except why my bike wouldn't shift properly), and I just suggested that it be changed out after numerous other things had not worked. What was happening is the following: The bike would perform perfectly in the stand, and the cable could be adjusted correctly and all shifting would work fine. Then, a few shifts into the race it would stop shifting (i.e. the barrel adjuster was not holding the cable tension and it would slowly change (i.e. shorten) throughout the race), causing immense frustration from me. And then to compensate I would slam the shifter and because I was worried about it not shifting and I had the stop set too far out, the chain would throw right over the top (I have a compact, and a standard derailleur, so there is a gap between the chain ring and the derailleur--a gap that a perfectly tweaked chain can sneak through)! It all makes so much sense now. I have a brand new barrel adjuster (free from LBS-thanks Dave) and all is well!

So now my bike works perfectly...and I am trying not to think about what those races would have been like if I had had such nice crisp shifting then! I do think the Shimano chain ring and shimano chain did improve the shifting as well (although my bike does look silly with shimanos titanium-y looking chain ring, vs. the black carbony FSA crank...).

I will chalk this up to in-experience...and hope that everything I have learned about bike drivetrains will help me or someone else some day! And I'm sure that my trusty bike appreciates all the TLC it has been getting--it has been spotless and sparkling for weeks now!

Ranting about it made me feel better :-)
Ciao!

On Not Racing

So this weekend there was no bike race! Ack! I was in withdrawal for awhile...but instead got to spend most of my weekend on the bike anyway, so it turned out well.

The weather could not have been more beautiful. The only downside is that due to my fair complexion and ability to burn/tan easily, my cycling tan gives away my addiction way too easily. I even have tan fingers with a big line where my short gloves end! Ack...I'm so not a fashion statement these days! But those leg muscles....

Anyway, I re-converge. So this weekend I got to remember how much fun the social rides are! (and tiring, too!). On Saturday, I started out with the normal Echelon ride. It was much bigger than the last few times I had attended, probably because there weren't any nearby races on Saturday. That ride is a reasonable pace through Santa barbara and Goleta, and then there is a rolling section that takes Cathedral Oaks out to Glen Annie, where there is usually a sprint. This week, the speed was not crazy--I was able to stay up near the front without working too hard. I like to be up front cause its' usually safer...but due to the slower speed this week we were all bunched up leading into what is usually the final sprint. As luck would have it, some contact was made and a couple people went down. No one was hurt though, and we were reminded that this really IS a training ride...and that the sprints don't matter THAT much! That excitement passed, and a small group of us headed out to Refugio road for some extra miles. It was a good ride, and I was pleased to see the fitness jump I've made since the last time I went out there. We were going at a reasonable tempo pace, and I didn't get dropped like a rock on the freeway like I used to! I was able to hang in and take advantage of the drafting and felt strong the whole ride. My total for that ride was about 65 miles. It was a beautiful day to be on the bike.

Sunday was another Echelon ride, this one organized out in the Valley. We did a nice figure-8 type loop around Los Olivos, hitting towns including Los Alamos, Sisquoc, solvang, and the wine trail of foxen canyon. Also a lovely ride, good pace, strong people to draft off of (key for me) and a lot of lovely climbing. My legs were feeling a bit beaten up by the end of that ride, as I had done a lot of climbing this weekend...but it was all fun. I met some new people (one of these days I'll actually learn the NAMES of the nice people I ride with), and had a great time. And plus, it's all good practice for Kern...as I'll have to get used to the repeated beating up of my body on that one!

So...although I didn't race this weekend, I did have a lot of fun social time on the bike..and I realized that I had kind of been missing that when I race all the time! I guess it takes a balance...just like most things in life.

Ciao!

Cycling and Life..waxing poetic

so, I find myself not racing this weekend, and am using a little of that extra time I have not driving to the middle of nowhere to reflect on what cycling has done for me in the past 9 months. Last month, Trek had a contest where you had to write a 500 word email about what cycling has done for you. They seemed to be looking for women to test new products, be part of ads, etc. I certainly don't think I won the contest....but at least I can re-use the essay I wrote on my blog! :-) Of course I had a feeling I wouldn't win..because all the photos I sent them were me on my Giant Bike...not exactly showing brand support..oops!

Without further adieu...(with a few extra comments added in parenthesis):

Why would I be a good choice for a “Women Who Rides?” Well, because I love what cycling has done for me. In the past 9 months I have 1. Bought my first real road bike 2. Ridden about 6000 miles, 3. Finished my first race (and wasn't last...) 4. Placed well in every race I have entered, 5. Achieved the best fitness level of my entire life 6. Encouraged many other people to become passionate about cycling (the LBS loves me...I give them lots of business by convincing everyone around me to buy fancy bikes), 7. Crashed and came back stronger (broken collarbone, grade 3 separation, 1 broken rib, 2 weeks off the bike), and 8. Love to talk about bikes and all things cycling!

By many measures, 3 years ago I was successful. I was 31 years old, a tenured professor of Mechanical Engineering, living in Santa Barbara, and yet I was suffering from undiagnosed hypothyroidism. I was so tired all the time, about 30 pounds heavier than I wanted to be and I just attributed it to overworking. Thus began a journey of treatment, which was resolved in 2005. Now, you may ask, where does cycling fit into all this? This is where the story gets interesting!

Once I got my energy back, I started running to lose weight. I was running so much that I was a bit worried about ruining my knees. I had friends who cycled, and so completely out of the blue, on the 5th of July in 2006, I bought a road bike. The very next day, I headed for the biggest climb in the area (known for it’s similarity in grade to Alp d’Huez), and up I went! It was exhilarating. The next week, I showed up for the local racing club ‘women’s ride’, and had a blast. A couple weeks later, I went on the co-ed club group ride, and surprisingly could keep up on that, too! So of course the next thing to do was enter a race! It was the end of the season, but exactly one month to the day after buying my bike, I completed my first road race. It was a Pro/1/2/3/4 race with 4s scored separately, and little did I know how hard that would be! I ended up in 6th place, and completely hooked on racing!

In the fall I went to camp, and trained hard all winter, and have had good placements in my races so far this season and I'm having a great time! I’ve done a lot of things in my life, and I love to talk with people about most anything. Cycling is this huge new thing in my life, and a new outlet for stress-relief and enjoyment, on some of the best roads in the country. I have new friends all over the country that I would never have known without the bike (and even more through the blogs). I can’t even remember my life before cycling. I can’t believe what I had been missing out on for so long!

So why should I be a Trek ‘woman who rides?’ Well, because I ride! And it has changed my life.

ps. and on racing notes (since i'm not racing this weekend, I have to salute the people who are)... at the Tour of the Gila, my friend and mentor Dotsie Bausch won stage 3 yesterday! Yeah Dotsie, and best of luck in the GC (she is currently third after 3 stages). And my friend from bike camp, Christina, is racing the 3/4's race there, and after stage 1 yesterday is in third place! Yeah Christina! (she always could smoke me on the hills..)

On Looking Fast

Thanks to Steve Weixel, my first stage race led to some nice cycling photos, if not the GC result I was hoping for! My friend, Ginger, upon seeing these photos, sent me an email saying "you sure look fast!" upon which I replied "well, maybe some day I will actually BE fast AND LOOK fast" to which, she replied "I didn't mean to say you WEREN'T fast already!"

Looking fast is half the battle, right??


Ciao!

Friends and weird places

Sorry for the lack of blogability this week--I've been at a nsf workshp in Reno. Let me just say that if you're not into gambling, Reno is really not a fun place! I couldn't even find good shopping, which is pretty much my second addiction (after bike racing). However, some of my really good friends were here, and so it was a good time to catch up (and play with mac photobooth).

I have also enjoyed 2 days off the bike! Ok...so I haven't really enjoyed them, but I'm trying to remember the mantra "your workout is only as good as your recovery" and thinking good recovering thoughts...

I am, however, craving my ride tomorrow...and also craving the cool SB air, the smell of the beach through my bedroom window, and the 6am cold wet nose on the face wakeup from my lovely early-rising irish setter, Aidan.

Ciao!