Two Wheel Love

Wow! That's all I can say...wow! 56.5 miles off-road with 11,500 feet of climbing. (I actually have a lot more to say, so keep reading...)

Dan (on my left) and me...as I finish VQ.

Photo taken by John Early (KeepsWhatHappens)

This entry is going to be long, so I'll break it up into 3 parts: pre-event, event, and post-event.

The Pre-event
The preparation for VQ had been going on for several months, and we were finally rapidly approaching the day, March 1, where we would prove it...were we ready or not? It seemed like our training rides with the Manns had been painful enough, but still, there was always a tiny shred of doubt lurking in the back of my mind. I raced last weekend at Fontana (my 3rd XC of the year) and was feeling some pain above my left knee in the inner quad area. I took most of the week off and only did a short workout on Thursday night. Dan and I got most of our stuff packed up on Thursday so we'd be ready to roll Friday after work. I bought a couple new things on Wednesday: a small commuter light, a bento box to store some of my food, and another water bottle cage. I installed them and everything was in tip top shape.

Friday night we drove up to Lake Forest and split a hotel room with Allison & Justin so we wouldn't have to drive up super early for the event. We had a quick visit from Andy & Heather (they are quite possibly the sweetest people I know), and we tried to get to bed early. I think I finally turned in around 9:30 and slept pretty much through the night. The alarm went off around 3:15, and I was pretty much wide awake. We sat around eating and making final preparations.

I had decided to forego wearing a watch or using a computer/Garmin. I actually did NOT want to know what time it was. I was concerned that if I wore a watch, I would constantly look at it, and the whole thing would become a sad mental game that I would lose. My ignorance of time turned out to work just fine, and I'm glad I chose it.

We drove over to drop off my car at Cook's around 4:15 or so. It was misting out, not at all what I had anticipated for weather. I had pretty much dialed my clothing routine in during our training rides, but I didn't want to stop to remove clothes (which I always had done during training) so I was a bit concerned about this new wrinkle...the rain/mist. We got to Blackstar and there were already many cars lining the street. It was so dark out. It was kind of sad because there were so many friends and STR folks out there who I didn't see to wish them luck simply because...I couldn't see them! I finished getting dressed and opted for this outfit: my Path woolie socks, XC shoes with toe covers, SheBeest knickers, Ibex woolie short sleeve base layer, Path XC jersey, PI wool arm warmers, Troy Lee gloves and no hat. I didn’t even pack any extra clothes except my shell, which I put on and then took off before we even started. I knew I was going to be hot by the time we started climbing, and I was. Might have been able to get away without the wool base layer, but I still don’t know?

The Event
Dan, Allison, Justin and I all gathered once we passed through the initial check-in. I saw Donna and Deb and that was about it for familiar faces…it was just too dark to notice anyone! Chris Vargas from the WS said a few words and then, before I knew it, it was time to get ready for the start. It all went so fast. I pushed up toward the front of the group and when the riders went off, I put it in my middle ring and started pedaling pretty hard. Dan was on my left, and I lost the Manns. There was not much difficulty going up the bottom of Blackstar. There were a lot of riders but everyone was pretty calm and orderly. I made it past any mud or ruts without a problem and kept a good pace up to the first switchback. I was already tugging at my zipper because I was so hot.

Pretty soon, Allison and Justin caught up with me, and Dan had already disappeared. The Manns kept it in a pretty tough gear, and I couldn’t hold on to the pace. At that point, I resolved one thing (something I had told myself before, but now, being in the heat of the moment, I became set on): I was going to race my own race. I would not try to hold anyone’s wheel or chase anyone down. I was simply going to go at my pace and be my own boss. I had no watch and no way to gauge time. I would only have myself and my body to listen to.

I made it past the speed bumps on Blackstar and then got shoved off into a big rut trying to give another rider room on my left. Got back on and kept going. My pace was pretty slow, and my gear was pretty easy. It always takes me a long time to warm up. Usually, I finish a ride much stronger than I can start it. I knew this was to be expected and just tried to keep humping up the hill. The Manns and Dan were long gone, but I certainly wasn’t alone. It was a surreal, beautiful sight seeing the line of bobbing lights above and below me. I felt deeply connected to the other riders, most complete strangers to me but yet bonded to me due to our love of the bike. At one point, Donna caught up with me and we leap-frogged a bit, but she was mostly out ahead of me by several bike lengths. I passed the huge washout at the top of Blackstar and found that the Warrior’s had done a lot of work to make it safe. It was light out by this point. I kept going, in an easy gear, up to Beek’s place. I caught a familiar face, Hugh, and waved to him as I went by. There was so much fog up on the hill, and in the end I think it worked to my advantage. We had ridden the Blackstar-MD-Eagle-Skyline-Blackstar loop during training, so I mostly knew what to expect. I was grateful for the fog, though, because it made the climbs less intimidating for me. Between Beek’s and the next peak, we climbed out of the clouds and the sun was shining. To the east and west was a view of the most surreal sight I’ve seen in a while… clouds…stretching out to the horizons and the peaks of the Santa Ana’s poking out like tiny islands in a vast white sea. Beautiful.
I kept leap-frogging with JCampbell from STR, and I told him about the story Justin had told me about Dave Zibriskie on one of our training rides. Right before a particularly steep climb, we all pulled aside to rest. Justin told me how Dave Zibriskie had bracelets made for his riding partners that said “Harden the Fuck Up.” I told JCampbell the same story before the same climb and he looked at me with determination in his eyes. I also ran into Jeff (sailcalifornia), and an STR lurker with a British (?) accent who asked me if I was sdyeti. Toward the top of the climb, I pulled slowly away from Donna and never saw her again.

The rest of Main Divide to the top of Motorway was foggy and intermittently sunny. The downhills were particularly sketchy due to the limited visibility. I knew I still had a pretty long pull left before Motorway. Surely enough, the climbs came in rapid succession, but they weren’t as bad as I had remembered. Once I passed the turnoff for Eagle, I began to feel like a blind rider. I had never ridden between Eagle and Santiago because of the forest closure. I didn’t do any of the guided rides and was going strictly on mental imagery of maps, stories from others, and intuition.

I finally reach the top of Motorway and there, in the mist, was Allison. I couldn’t believe I had caught up to them (they did take a break here, but I still assumed them to be far, far ahead of me). I had some hope of being on time rekindled. I saw OMR (Gregg), and in my haze, called him Gene! I corrected myself and rolled by. There were several slower looking riders ahead of me. I was trying to take some Endurolytes from my little packet and Jeff rolled by, asking if I was okay. I finally downed a few (along with a couple Advil) and kept going. My left knee/quad was beginning to twinge, and I became concerned that it would get so bad that I would be unable to continue. I thought, “Until it happens, I’m still riding.” I started the descent down Motorway, and my triceps were already starting to burn. Jeff was behind me when we came to what looked like a turn. I asked him if it was the right way, since there were no riders that we could see up ahead. He said he didn’t know either. That was the last I saw of Jeff since I put some distance on him in the downhill. The trail was choppy and rocky and would’ve been fun if I could have gotten a flow. Lots of riders pulled over to let me by. There was a guy on a ss hardtail that I followed for a long while. He was fast, but I knew I had to pass him eventually. I got by him toward the bottom. My arms were fried. My brakes were fading. I was two-finger braking. I never felt really sketchy, just a little. We came to the gates at the bottom of Motorway, and a WS member lifted my bike over the first. When I lifted my bike over the second and stepped over, my legs felt so bad. I rolled down to the aid station. It looked like mild pandemonium. Riders and bags everywhere. I saw Andy step up and take my picture. I said hi, asked him the time (8:10) and kept riding.

At this point, the dreaded Maple Springs climb was my next obstacle. Allison was right in front of me, and Justin was right there too. I tried to eat a part of my Uncrustables and kept riding. I was alternating between HEED, water, and occasionally, Perpetuem for liquids. Pretty soon, the Manns were way ahead, and I lost sight of them. This turned out to be a very dark time for me. My left lower back was having a jabbing pain. I couldn’t feel my feet (I had lost my left toe cover somewhere on Blackstar). I kept going up the pavement in my granny gear. I considered going back to the aid station. I thought of quitting and was in pretty bad spirits. I got passed by a lot of people. Finally, for the first time in the ride, I got off my bike and walked. My back instantly thanked me. My feet finally started to get some circulation. I came to a switchback by a creek-crossing and got back on the bike. I knew that if I could just make it to the dirt, I would be okay. Pretty soon, Luke passed me. We chatted for a second or two, and he slowly pulled away. I could see him out ahead for a long time, and very gradually I lost sight of him toward the top of Maple. Rachel aka Wrecker also caught up to me, though I had passed her on Motorway. I had the same few guys out ahead of me for much of the climb, but mostly, I felt pretty much alone.

Finally, I broke through the clouds and could see the ridge up above, knowing that Main Divide was up there. I felt hopeful. I had made it through the darkest time. The sun was out, and I started to see pine trees. I was energized. I tried to pedal mostly in my middle-3^rd gear, but my left leg wouldn’t allow mashing any hard gear. I backed off. After what seemed like forever, I made it to 4 corners. I kept right on rolling through. From here, I pushed a nice gear most of the way to Modjeska Peak . I found a rhythm and was able to hold it most of the way. I knew that the first towers on Modjeska were only a prelude to Santiago , so I kept it all in stride. I was completely ignorant to the time or my overall progress, but I didn’t seem to care. The only thing that was really bothering me was my ass. My new saddle was hurting me, and I had to keep shifting to relieve the pressure. I rounded the corner at the top of Modjeska and there it was… Santiago with its long switchbacks and numerous towers. I knew the lure of the peak but also knew that looks were deceiving with Santiago . I was pleasantly surprised by a nice down-sloping section and put it in my big ring and hammered across, trying to “make up” time. I passed a couple guys walking and remembered to eat a bit. I was really enjoying the scenery since it was all new to me. I was soaking it in. By this point, I was rocking out to my iPod and was in pretty good spirits. I enjoyed a brief tailwind going up the peak, but as I rounded the next switchback, I was slapped with a headwind in return. I had to get off and walk for a minute or so to stretch my legs but I got back on pretty quickly. Finally, finally I made it to the descent. There were a couple guys resting on the ground eating snacks, and I wanted to join them but kept going. I ate the other half of my Uncrustables, took some Endurolytes, and made it cautiously down to Upper Holy Jim.

At UHJ, I stopped to drop my saddle a bit. Got going quickly, knowing that the clock was ticking. I had, quite possible, the best ride down UHJ, ever. The WS had done a fabulous job making the trail very rideable, and I cleaned almost every switchback. A few guys pulled over to let me by, mentioning that I seemed to be going fast. I had also put my fork up to 130, which helped slacken it out a bit and take the bumps better. I had a moment of sadness realizing that if I was doing Counting Coup, I’d be almost done. I got to the bottom of UHJ and with my lowered seat, struggled over to Holy Jim. I walked down the entrance (even though it was cleaned up a bit and I could have ridden it, just maybe not today). The photographer was there, capturing every exciting step! A rider behind me tried to ride down it and ended up shooting off the trail, but he saved it. I went ahead, and then had to walk up that stupid little climb at the beginning. The rider behind me (I’ll call him XC guy) went ahead. Very quickly, though, I caught up to him. There was a lot of traffic on HJ today…hikers, other bikers, even a group of Boy Scouts (wondering why anyone, seeing the vast number of riders coming down the trail with number plates on, would’ve kept going up the trail…you know, it is SoCal, where a lot of people seem clueless about obvious things!) I passed Rachel again (she had crashed on Motorway and was taking it easy on the descent). Compared to the last time I rode down HJ, this time was nearly perfect. I was going pretty fast, flowing the trail, making all the trick, techy parts. I kept my XC guy ahead of me, in my sights, the whole time, which helped on the switchbacks. I tipped over again in the same switchback as last time, and wasn’t hurt, just floundering around.

Then, it was time for the water-crossings. I walked across the first one. And the second one. By the third and fourth, I rode across as much as I could to try to save time. My left foot got soaked, then my right. HJ was a blast, though, and I was making up a lot of time (the Yeti turned out to be a blessing because I could take bigger hits with confidence and ride faster down the technical). I felt like I was flying, in the true sense of the word. I felt like I was experiencing mountain biking, in its purest, most amazing form. Bliss. At the last water-crossing I saw Hugh and a box of Uncrustables on the ground. He took my picture and asked if I wanted one. I declined, saying I had one so to save it for someone else. Before I knew it, I was at the parking lot and Aid Station #2. I just happened to see Justin pulling away from the station and yelled his name twice. He didn’t respond. I finally yelled “Bucky!!” He turned around and motioned for me to follow him. I yelled that I needed water. There was some confusion because a WS volunteer steered me left (so I could get water), but I just wanted to know the time. I shouted, “Am I on time?” Someone reminded me, in my foggy state, that yes I seemed to be on time but that would be determined at the bottom of WHT (the actual cutoff). “XC guy” graciously helped me get some water (thank you so much), and I stopped to refill my pill packet and eat another Uncrustables.

I knew that the worst of it was behind me. I knew Allison & Justin were not too far ahead, and I felt an odd calm. On one of our training rides, we followed this route (up Trabuco, then WHT). I had had a terrible time of it, walking about 80% of the way. Strangely, as I started to retrace our route, I knew I would be fine. There were many of the pro riders coming back down Trabuco (they were finishing), namely Leslie and Pua. I said hi to both and was glad to see them. Many of the guys did nothing to yield the trail. When I was able to, I pulled off if I saw them in time, but there were some close calls. Funny how trail etiquette meant very little to many of these folks. I walked a few short sections of Trabuco but rode about 90% of it. I was stoked. I came up to the cutoff and yelled out, “Did I make it?!” The WS volunteer said that yes, I did, with about 25 minutes to spare. I was elated! I knew that the rest was going to be fine. I had made it. I came up the trail a few dozen feet and saw Allison & Justin standing there, waiting for me, and taking my picture. We all hugged and shed a few tears. I was so happy to have make it there and found them.

Our celebration was brief, though, as we knew the HAB from hell was upon us. I tried to focus on just moving forward, and that helped. I only stopped twice. I ended up chatting the whole way up with Ernie, a triathlete from Temecula. A & J were just slightly ahead, and Rachel caught up. She must have been rocking up the climbs! Ernie and I passed the time by telling lots of stories. Before I knew it, we were at the top and reaching the station at the top of WHT. I passed on the offer for a burger, but slurped down two cups of Cytomax and ate a piece of a Clif bar. A & J had kept going, but I had a sense I’d see them again. I tried to keep a good pace over to Trabuco, and about halfway there, I saw the Manns again. They towed me up to Trabuco, and I gave a good sigh of relief…all the climbing was over. We still had the technical descents of the trail ahead, and I had been slightly concerned about my energy level…would I be fresh enough to make it safely down the trail? Turned out that yes, I was super fresh indeed. I railed down Trabuco and had a great time of it. I felt so strong, so confident. In fact, it turned out that yes, I finished my ride much stronger than I had started it. I went ahead of A & J and just ripped down the trail. I sustained my only injury of the day, though. A pretty big rock (baseball-softball sized) got kicked up by my front wheel and spun backward, only to tag me hard in the left shin. Ouchie!! Got down to the bottom of Trabuco and waited for the Manns. We lifted our bikes over the gate and then, the race down the road was on!! We saw Gene at the bottom of HJ (turns out he had flatted), and he quickly distanced us.

I was surprised at the terrible shape of

Trabuco Creek Road

. Big holes, mud bogs, and deep creek crossings were everywhere. It felt like being on the worst road in a foreign country. I knew the road was 4 miles long, but it seemed never-ending. I was riding really strong for the first half, but by the second half, I was fading. The Manns and Ernie put a little gap on me, but I kept going until the finish. Final time was about 8:47, far under the 9:30 I had wanted to get. It was all kind of a blur. I was smiling and so happy to be done. Strangely, though, I didn’t feel entirely drained (maybe I still had something left?). I immediately looked for Dan, and there he was…smiling and waiting for me. He kicked ass and finished about an hour ahead of us…what an animal!! We all hugged, got our pictures taken, and chilled with Ann & Andy, Heather & Andy, Jeff, Jordan , etc. and sipped on some beer. Everyone took such good care of us…I was so touched.



The Post-Event
We decided to ride back to O’Neill to get food and a ride back to the truck/car. My left hip flexor, left knee, and the tops of both hamstrings were in pretty bad shape, but I made it over pretty quickly. We got a couple bites of chicken, rice, beans, and tortillas before I had to load up and get a ride back to the vehicles. Justin and I went, while Allison & Dan stayed behind to eat and try to stay warm. My feet were so wet and cold!! Regina gave us and about 5 other folks a ride to Blackstar. We got in the truck and drove to Cook’s where Dan and I had parked early in the morning. I put the heat on blast and zoomed back to deliver dry clothes to Dan. I quickly changed and warmed up and went back for more food. I brought out the brownies I had made, and they were gone in a flash!! We spent a long while chatting and hanging with the STR posse, our friends, and comrades.

Dan and I at the post-race shindig, gettin' our grub on!
 

So, fast forward to this morning. What hurt yesterday hurts worse today, but I know it will all pass. Four years ago, when I heard of Vision Quest, I said, “I want to do that someday.” Well, the day has come and passed. I was successful beyond my dreams. The importance of this milestone is still sinking in, but I do know that I have accomplished something that most people would never consider even trying. I now know the power of setting a goal that is just far enough out of reach that you have to work really hard to get it, and finally seeing that goal come to fruition. I know that I have now pushed myself further physically, mentally, and spiritually than ever before. To the Native Americans, a vision quest is, in its most simple terms, a turning point in life. When I tell my friends and family about my Vision Quest, relive the pain and the moments of serenity, and tell them about my feather, they will likely not fully comprehend its importance. It’s more than just a bike race, I’ll say. They’ll nod in agreement. The only one who knows my Vision Quest, at its deepest, purest level, is me…and that’s the way it is supposed to be.

What will the next adventure be? What will be the next goal? Of course there has to be a “next”…there will always be a “next”. I will ponder my feather. I will let my spirit guide me.

Well, I was trying to be creative with my title and cram my last two or three weeks into one title. How'd I do?! (Rhetorical...) :)

Thanks to whoever reminded me that I've not been posting very much. Between STR, finishing my on-line climate change course (woohoo...now I can move over again on the pay scale!), trying to wrap my head around VQ, and work...there hasn't been much time left. Ah, let's see (play the weird flashback thing from the movies now...)

Two weekends ago Dan and I went out with Allison and Justin for our last VQ training ride. I can't believe I made it the whole way! 46 miles...9500 feet of climbing. 11 hours on the trail with 8 hours of pedal time. I was actually reminiscing about VQ the other day....let me explain: about 4 years ago, when I moved to AZ and started to meet some people from SoCal, someone mentioned a ride called Vision Quest to me. I hadn't been riding my bike for very long at that point. I thought "someday, I'm gonna do that ride...". Fast forward 4 years. I have my number plate, have been training, and I think I'm mentally ready. Our rides have brought up practically every emotion I can imagine. I have run the gamut:

"I feel great and could keep going forever!"
"This sucks...why am I doing this?!"
"One more hill...I can do this."
"F#*K this!"
Tears.
Deep introspection.
Pondering the meaning of things that one only has the chance to do when one's ass is glued to a bike saddle for 6-8 hours.
Rocking out to my iPod.

I had a relatively good ride going up SJT and started to fade at the bottom of HJ. Realized my fork was set at 130mm when I was about halfway up the trail. D'oh! Had to deal with a couple riders who didn't yield the trail. Cleaned The Wall...improvement, big time! Down WHT, up Trabuco...painful. I freaking railed down SJ, though. Sooo much fun! Short-ish ride on Sunday at Ladera with the STR crew. Left quad above my knee = pain!

Pics from the rides:


(taken by Allison on the way to Trabuco from Blue Jay)


Dan, goofing around on Main Divide


Last week, my aunt and uncle from Boston came out to San Diego (he is an M.D. and was attending a conference). Skipped spin on Monday to rest the quad. I did a few quick circuits of weights and the elliptical machine. Went out to eat Wed, Thurs, and Friday...way to throw off my eating! Friday I turned 29!! Woohoo! Dan took me out for dinner and was very thoughtful...gift card for the GAP, gorgeous flowers (yellow and purple orchids), and had my Master's diploma and National Board Certification properly framed. What a guy!


My Birthday Flowers

So, this past weekend was the 4th race at Fontucky. I decided to race the Yeti but brought Tani's Chunk Rat (29er SS) out just in case. Loved the 29er part. Not so in love with the SS aspect (and I have a SS of my own...trying to sell it). It was fortunate I didn't race the Chunk because the freaking tube exploded 5 minutes before I went to stage for the XC race. I really wasn't jazzed on racing the Yeti. It's 28.5 lbs or so. I fooled with the lockout during the whole race. My bottle was too low to reach at speed (fine when I'm meandering up a slow climb but not when hammering on the course). I had Allison in my sights for the first 2/3 of the first lap. Then she disappeared and took off. She was really fast this week, BUT I also was faster than 2 weeks ago (by 2 minutes). Managed to hold off Sarah (XTERRA girl) until midway through lap #2. She passed me up the paved climb and then inadvertantly went off-course by the sand. I passed her, she held my wheel up the big climb, but then I gapped her on the downhill. Finished a minute ahead of her. 



The pic above was taken by Mudman...I like it! Makes my legs look strong.

Allison and I skipped DH practice. Dan ended up jacking up his arm and so didn't finish practice or race. We came out Sunday to watch the races, and I took pics the whole time. The day started off soggy but finished with the sun out?


Me from Winter Series #3...okay, so I only did the little drop but that's where I was comfortable at the time :)

On the way home, we went to the Tustin Brewery to celebrate Andy's birthday. $2000 was raised for charity. I won a Crank Bros. multitool and a t-shirt (gave to Roger).

So, I sit here after a week of just light yoga, no spin, no riding. It's been a busy start to the week. I intend to do a light workout tomorrow after work and then start packing for the drive up on Friday night. Can't believe VQ is upon us already. It seems like so long ago that we talked about it, then registered. I was going to do CC, but it was full when I checked. Dan wanted to do VQ. I reluctantly signed up.

Now, I feel like I've made a transformation.

I've accomplished things on my bike I only ever dreamed of.

I've done my longest ride ever (46 miles). I've climbed higher than ever (9500 in one day).

I've learned to like hills and embrace the pain.

I have made some wonderful friends.

I have found the spiritual with only two small rubber contact points on the ground.

Rocks have hurt me and thrilled me.

The sky has shone on and rained on me.

I have found out what grit I am made of.

I have the feather in my hand.

Wow...really hard for me to remember to blog...I have to get better about it :)

Anyway, what to say? The weather here has been pretty psycho lately. Lots of rain. And more rain. Trail riding at LPQ or Rose Canyon is out of the question because of all the water. Been going to spin on Mondays and then doing the stationary bike at our gym one other day. I did a weight circuit Monday and today and also ran for a couple miles (with intervals). Monday's spin class was super tough...I couldn't let up for a minute!

Decided that I'm racing Fontana this weekend but only doing the DH. I need a break from the XC. Yes, I want to challenge myself and see if me bettering my time 2 weeks ago by 11 minutes wasn't just a fluke, but...I was really tired once we got to the DH. So, it's not going to help my VQ training at all, but that's what I've decided.

We did a semi-long ride on Saturday with the Manns (and Leslie, Carol Ann, and Jeff for part of it...damn they are fast).
 
My fave picture from Saturday:








And another...reminded me of MOAB! The solution pockets (swiss cheese) are so cool:



It only ended up being 38 miles and less than 7000 feet of climbing. Bummer. That's not enough, I fear. Truly, I want to do VQ but have very few expectations about the outcome. If I can't make the cutoffs, well, that's okay. At least I tried!! Sometimes I surprise myself though. I remember the marathon in October. I was 18 miles in and just put my head down and kept plodding along. I wasn't super fast, but I fell into a weird out-of-body state where my mind was not there. I was just a machine going along. I'm hoping that I can kind of do the same during VQ. The less mental I get, the better.

Sunday I went up to SJT with the Manns to climb up to Cocktail Rock. We didn't make it. It was really raining and gusting by the time we were 2.5 miles up the trail. I actually felt pretty good and wasn't totally exhausted. Climbing singletrack was so awesome for a change. Fire roads are :(

Went over and helped with Zoe's patterning today. She wasn't really crying, just kind of whining about it, but she's adorable nonetheless. Made dinner but also had some leftovers: stuffed peppers, butternut, sweet potato fries (mmmm...), and salad. Plus a glass of Pinot Noir. Am proud of myself because I came right home and worked out early in the afternoon. I can't do that every day because then I get stressed out in the morning. It's weird...I am super anal about my mornings but my afternoons are chill...I'm just like "whatever...". But in the morning, I need to have structure. I guess I just get more done and that's my productive time.

Gonna do some pm yoga and then wind down for the day!

Wow...keeping up with blogging is harder than I thought!

It's been a couple weeks, but here is the latest update on my "diet": weighed myself at the gym today (before spin class) and was 136.5 with clothes on, so I'm going to call it at 136. I was 146 when we got back from Christmas vacation (aka Sloth-a-thon 2007). So far that's ~10 lbs in three weeks. Not too shabby!

Dan and I have been doing a lot of spin class, weights, cardio, and riding/racing on the weekends. We raced at Fontana two weekends ago (Winter Series #1) and I did XC and DH. First XC race in 3 years!! It hurt like hell and I got beat by 8 minutes, but oh well! My competitor and friend, Allison, has been training harder than me, for sure. I just want to use it as VQ training and try to better my lap time this coming weekend (goal = shave 2 minutes off each lap for a final time of ~1:42).

Me (in the middle) with my best riding buds, Allison (L) and Nancy (R)



The downhill was WINDY! Lots of folks got blown over and had strong headwinds. I got pretty lucky and managed to pull out a 4th place finish (out of 10...woo hoo!) Michelle beat me by 10 seconds though...gotta work on closing that gap, for sure!

I made Mountain Bike Action's on-line summary of the race...it's actually a pretty good picture (though I was really going off my line at that moment but hey, nobody can tell, right?!) Here is the link: MBAction.com


Photo from mbaction.com

Anyway, we did a sufferfest ride this past Saturday with Allison & Justin...42 miles and 9000 feet of climbing. The route was pretty crazy (including a one hour hike a bike up West Horsethief) but we made it with a little day light to spare. Here is a pretty typical (but very beautiful) picture:


That's Dan and me at the top of Upper Holy Jim Trail in the Santa Anas.

Well, off to bed, with another busy week ahead, more training, and more racing to look forward to!

We landed really late Friday night (11:45) and got to bed even later. Woke up fairly late and went to Henry's to pick up some groceries. Everything I bought was healthy. Went home, cooked breakfast (spinach & mushroom frittata) and then hung around the house for a bit. We ended up going to pick up a new pack and riser handlebars for the single speed (because I'm thinking of racing it at Fontana this weekend...XC!! I can't believe it!) Ate really healthy on Saturday and paid the price Sunday morning...ya know what I mean?? I think my body was like, "What the hell are you feeding me? Oh yeah, good food."

On Sunday, it seemed though we would get a break in the rain so we met up with Allison & Justin for a spin around the Fontana XC course. We got up there around 9 and quickly suited up. Wow! I felt like utter garbage! My stomach hurt, too. That's what two weeks of inactivity will do to ya! On the climbs I felt slow. On the downhill sections I felt awkward. On the other hand, it was good to get the first-ride-back-since-vacation-ride jitters out of the way. About 1 mile from the end, it started to sprinkle. Then it started to pour. We were zooming along and getting really wet. At one point dirt flicked up into my mouth. Yuck.

We got back to the truck and it was really pouring! Donny, Tom, and Brittany were out there with the intentions of working on the 4X course. They gave up after digging some channels for the water. We got soaked. Then, it got cold. We changed up and headed to lunch at BJ's (minnestrone soup, quarter of a chicken breast sammy--too salty, 4-5 small french fries, and a nutty irishman coffee). I didn't feel too great about it, but whatever...I did okay despite the menu.

We headed back to Jeff and Erin's to visit and see Zoe. She's getting SO big! Watched the game and had pizza. I ate one piece, very slowly, and then scrounged some crust. Not bad considering.

I went back to work today...vacation is O-V-E-R. In a way, I was glad to get back to my regular routine. I ate really well today (no junk):

Breakfast: 1 egg, 1 egg white, whole wheat english muffin with reduced fat cream cheese & 2 small pieces of avo, tea with hemp milk, apple

Snack: 10 almonds, 10 golden raisins, 1/2 cup yogurt with a spoonful of apple butter

Lunch: 3/4 cup tofu sloppy joe on a small piece of wheat, 4 roasted brussel sprouts

Snack: carrots & celery sticks, orange, 1/8 cup goji berries

Dinner: big salad with vinegar & a little oil, very small piece of tilapia, 1/4 cup brown rice, 1/4 cup yogurt

It's hard because I was feeling kind of hungry by mid-afternoon but drank a bunch of water in anticipation of spin class. I've been off extra sugar and was feeling plenty energetic, just kind of a gnawing sensation in my belly.

I went to spin class and pushed myself most of the time. Slacked off on the resistance once but seeing all the sweat, I knew my HR was pretty high. Before that, I did the quickie circuit and 5 min on the elliptical. Not bad for exercise but I still want to roll my legs and do some yoga before bed. I started doing the Rodney Yee yoga for atheletes and did the tape the last two days. I am feeling pretty good and like I'm getting back in the swing.

I'm not doing the whole "diet" thing. I don't really need to lose a significant amount of weight, just a few pounds. I'd be happy around 138 or so. Right now (well, before the Christmas season), I was sitting at about 142-143. Five pounds. I can do it.

For me, it's hard. I'm not making excuses. I have a mesomorphic body type. I am very muscular and build muscle quite easily. My problem area is between my hips and knees, the whole upper leg area. This is where I hold onto most of my "extra weight" (aka fat). I really struggle to keep it off and was doing well at the beginning of December. Then, the last couple weeks before we left for the east coast, I gained a few pounds back. My weight is like a constant yo-yo. I had been eating lean protein, lots of fruits and veggies, and had been limiting my sugar and refined carbs. Exercising a moderate amount, with lots of riding and some weights (my mt. bike workout that combines cardio with weights).

Then, I started to trail off on my night rides and the weight came back. Partly the lack of night riding was due to the rains...Penasquitos was closed (and will still be because we are getting lots of rain this weekend). This is the easiest, most convenient place to night ride). Then, Dan's 575 was unrideable because his shock, then fork were blown (we couldn't ride together and I wasn't about to do any solo night riding).

I want to ride at least twice on the weeknights but the group rides were killing me. I wasn't getting home until 10-10:30. That's too late for me since I wake up at 5:15-5:30.

So, I want to start recording what I eat and how much I exercise so that I have a log to look back at.

Here goes (so far) for today:

2 cups of tea (black tea with half n half...not so healthy)
half of a blond brownie...they were in my mom's kitchen (that's why I don't buy that $hit because I'll eat it)
3 pieces of whole grain cranberry bread (buttered...ate out for breakfast and didn't ask for it dry)
2 eggs with spinach and mushrooms and a little bit of cheese

I am not very happy about this. I have already eaten several things I wouldn't have had I been at home (half n half, butter, brownies??!!??)

Update to follow tonight or tomorrow morning. We are flying home today and luckily have a non-stop flight from Hartford to SoCal. Less chance to eat unhealthy airport food.