Winter Blues

Oh my, the time sure does fly… work has been hectic, and I did a stint on night shift before going (permanently) back to days so my days off were spent mostly sleeping.  I’ve been off of any sort of bike in over two weeks, and I feel like I’m going a wee bit crazy because of this!

So what’s been up the past few weeks?

1. I broke 1,000 miles on a bikeDecember 2nd I finally rode my 1,000th mile, woo hoo!  Considering I started out on May 15th with barely any ability to ride a bike after my 14 year bike-free stint, I’m pretty darn proud of this!  I went from not being able to ride 1/2 mile on Laramie’s Greenbelt to being halfway capable of suffering through 65+ mile rides on the road, and hammering the single track on my mountain bike.  Everyone now is asking me what 2013’s mileage goal will be.  I honestly can say I have no idea.  I’ll definitely be way above and beyond 1,0oo fairly quick into the year due to actually training, but other than that I can’t say…

 

2.  Ruby got a new look
My 38cm handlebars came in, so I decided to spice up Ruby – my road bike – a little bit with some pink grip tape.  Adding to the awesomeness, the mechanic at my LBS added some pink cable ends that he had laying around.  I never quite liked my bottle cages, so I added neon pink Specialized Z-cages.  Pink, pink, pink, oh my!

The handlebars feel good…so far.  I actually have not ridden the bike since the new makeover.  But on the trainer it felt more natural.  I also did some more fit adjustments, added MORE varus shims to my shoes, and hopefully got my knees in a more neutral alignment.  I seriously just don’t know what is up with them… damn knees.

All that needs changed now is that damn white stem…

3. New team, new kit, new excitement
Matt and I were fortunate enough to get added to the Spradley Barr Wind Chill Cycling Team based out of Cheyenne.  Matt’s been beyond delighted about it, and it makes me pretty darn excited as well!  We attended the fit kit party, where the fit kits were surprisingly good looking… no puke-like patterns to deter you from just stealing the fit kit!  Though we’re some of the youngest on the team (I’m pretty sure I am the youngest female), everyone was awesome and welcoming!  We ended up staying long after most left chatting up bikes and races and listening to stories of years past of Wyoming’s cycling history.  Definitely really looking forward to race season to start, and rocking my new team’s kit!

4. The Shiv
I can’t resist getting a new bike… so I dropped the ball and ordered me up a Specialized Shiv… just the base model, so it’s all “UCI/time trial” legal, because everyone knows I don’t like water and you can’t get me to run, so triathlons are out!  Time trial racing really appeals to me.  The only way I can think to explain it is that it reminds me a lot of drag racing, which I did a ton of back in my “younger” days with my little modded up car.  And I also tend to ride all out when I ride alone.  That’s why I’m such a Strava nut, there’s really only on and off, and no “well, let’s take it easy today.”  And I like the challenge of learning how to ride in a completely different position.  The bike still needs to be built, but I am looking forward to bringing it home soon and at least getting use to it on the trainer!  Then I’ll save up my pennies to upgrade the wheels!

5. 2013 race season planning
I haven’t wasted any time getting my races lined up for 2013.  Looks like my “season” will be kicking off with the Frosbite Time Trial on March 2nd.  Then mid-April I plan on racing in Fruita, CO on the mountain bike, which should be a nationals qualifier.  Last night I went ahead and registered for the Iron Horse Bicycle Classic mountain bike race and the time trial race, which will be over Memorial Weekend in Durango, CO.  (How cool is that?  Racing my mountain bike one day, and time trial the next!  Perfect blending of Matt’s preferred discipline and my preferred discipline!)  July is dedicated to the US MTB Cross Country Championships, where I plan on rocking category 3 like any proper beginner would!  In the back of my mind I am contemplating the Dog Dead Classic in Laramie in June and the Copper Triangle Ride in August.  Then filling in when my work schedule allows any races in between.  Whew!  I got my USAC license the other night which was pretty awesome, though for some reason they don’t list my team under my MTB license, only road and cyclocross.  Only huge disappointment is that since I turn 30 in October, I have to race the 30-39 category all year…

6. New car!
Nothing to do with anything really, but on December 1st I bought myself a new-to-me car!  My little Nissan Sentra SE-R is just getting too little for everything, so I got a 2009 Subaru Forester XT.  Now I have room for all my stuff, can fit a bike inside my car, and I have heated seats.  Heated seats being the most important thing 😉  It is a bit weird having a grown up car, but I have been enjoying it, and it’s been awesome for my long commutes to work.  Now I just need to get some cross bars for the roof rack so I can get it all swapped over.

I think that just about does it… since I haven’t pedaled in awhile, I am hitting the trainer hardcore in the next few days.  Cheyenne got about 15″ of snow yesterday, so outside riding is out (though I am tempted to see how the mountain bike does).  Guess winter finally arrived?!