2017 Episode 2: Change of Pace

     This is another delayed post of the spring, but this is a "to be continued" piece so I have to make sure it's told!  It's a bit longer than most, not necessarily because I'm more passionate about this race than the previous post, but because that was one event and the days and emotions leading up to it.  This is one event but includes more than two months worth of training plus my rationalizations and emotions leading up to the event.  So without further ado...

     In the winter and spring of 2016 I started waking up early and running with my sister.  She was training for the One City Marathon and my friends and I decided that we were going to train for the One City Marathon Relay.  I used to run cross country in high school so I've always had a passion (or something) for running.  During the relay the though crossed my mind that a marathon in my hometown would be kind of a unique experience and would be really cool as a first (and probably last) marathon.  As the year progressed, the though kept creeping into my head and the closer the end of cyclocross season got, the bigger the though got.  After Nationals I just felt so fit, and so elated that I did what any rational person would do after finishing up seven solid months of non-stop training and racing.  I signed up for my first marathon with no real running miles in my legs since the previous summer and only two months to train!

Team Glittering Wives after the 2016 One City Marathon Relay...
the start of my marathon "career"!

     Luckily, I have a great cycling coach that went to school on a running scholarship.  Turns out he's a great running coach as well!  I had a couple friends that had decided to sign up for the marathon (Darren and his wife Helen) and since I work with Darren, got constant heckling about getting ALL of my workouts in and advice on all the small things I should think about...when I should get new shoes, what shoes I should try (Hoka Cliftons were suggested and turned out to wonderful clouds under my feet the whole time!), what mile is the most people's downfall on marathon day, stuff like that.  I had decided that a 3:45 finishing time would be achievable but still challenging enough for me.  After all, I haven't been running since June.  After I decided this another friend, Bruce, let slip during a conversation that a 3:30 finishing time (just over twice the time as my only half marathon the previous May) would be impossible.  That equates to an 8 minute mile average.  Well then.  If impossible it be, new goal it was.  I guess I got a case of the can't-help-it's...

     And so I started training.  Hour runs became easy days.  Saturday mornings started at 5:30am with a two+ hour run before working at the shop and standing on my feet for another eight.  I did treadmill workouts when I didn't have hills for repeats...those usually lasted for at least an hour and a half.  And I became good friends with the track at Warwick High School down the road.  If anyone is curious it's 0.5 miles short (which means 4-3/4 laps per mile).  I never run with headphones unless I'm at the gym, I drink water every mile, I eat a gel from my gel flask every 45 minutes, and I always run with my "fanny pack" that carries my flask and full size water bottle.  Oh, and I never double knot my shoes.  One guess as to which gave me a hard time come marathon day...

     My long run was 18 miles.  At my 14 during that run I thought it was a good idea to head off road, and found myself turning around and walking about a mile when my quad locked up.  New lesson, don't veer off-road towards the end of a long run!  I felt good though otherwise, and was able to finish the run feeling good.  But unlike most people, I didn't do anything longer before the marathon.  I just didn't have enough time between Nationals and marathon day.  Mike had everything I needed to do planned out seemingly perfectly.  Darren hinted that I was possibly going to regret not having done anything longer, if nothing else but to know that I can go longer.  But I was naively confident, and my goal ultimately was to finish this thing and not hurt myself in the process.  If, while finishing, I got to prove Bruce wrong about my finish time, then bonus!  Proving Bruce wrong also means that I put 5 minutes on the time that I need to qualify for the Boston Marathon.  Something that had never even crossed my mind until I started training for this thing.  So I finish, don't get injured, prove Bruce wrong, AND qualify for Boston.  Super bonus!

     Marathon day was fast approaching and the forecast called for possible snow that threatened to cancel the event.  I was dreading not being able to run this event.  The Shamrock Marathon was the following weekend so I had a backup plan, but that was another week of solid training that I don't know if I could've mentally handled.  Especially being in my taper week and getting excited about running my first marathon in my hometown.   There's something kinda special about that.  Plus it was another $100 for registration...  I spent the last few days leading up to marathon day obsessing over the pace chart (even though I knew exactly what average pace I needed), trying to decide if I wanted to go out fast, slow, or maintain pace the whole time, and of course with the weather all over the place, I obsessed about what to wear.  I was told by quite a few people to make sure it was something I had run in before.

     The night before, I laid my clothes out that I decided on, from my socks (Swiftwick Maxus by the way) to my hat.  I filled my gel flask, charged my Garmin, filled my water bottle, and packed my gear bag for pre and post race.  Chris and I planned to wake up at 5:15 and for him to drive me across town to the start at Newport News Park.

Pinned and ready to go!

     Without surprise, I woke up a few minutes later than I had hoped.  Partially anticipating that, I was glad to have laid everything out so I wouldn't be scrambling and we could just jump in the van and head down the road.  Because of the aforementioned delay, I was starting to panic just a little bit about getting there with plenty of time to check my gear bag and make it to the start.  A little unnecessary I realized because everyone was getting there as late as possible because it was so bloody cold (remember the threat of snow means that even though the little white flakes don't fall, it's probably not warm)!  As I popped out of the van, a familiar looking guy rode by on his bike.  Chris and I called for my dad before he got too far down the road (he had volunteered to ride his bike with the leaders) and my dad turned around and rode back toward us.  The both wished me a good race and I was off to shed some layers, check my bag, and find my support group.  I saw Courtney first, she was doing the relay again this year with Kim, Katina, and Noris (Noris took my place from the previous year's relay team).  We snapped a picture, complained about the cold, and waited for them to stage us.

Pre-Race Selfie!

The music was blaring over the loud speaker.  It was still dark and I was trying really hard to focus on not being cold.  The start corral had pace signs posted so you had an idea of where you needed to be among the mass of bodies.  When they called us into the corral I told Courtney to have a good run and I found Darren and Helen.  We were huddled together for a bit until people started cramming in.  Helen and I are about the same height so once more people started filling in I lost sight of her pretty quick.  Darren is a foot taller than both of us so I could keep track of him quite a bit easier.  Not that we were actually all planning on running together, it just helped keep me from getting so nervous knowing they were there.  The start was delayed a few minutes, a woman collapsed during the national anthem.  I'm not sure why, but she turned out to be fine and they got us back on track shortly after.

     Everybody was staring up the road, leaning forward.  It seemed that we all took a deep breath the second leading up to the start, anticipation setting in.  We all rushed forward together, with hundreds of Garmins chirping to confirm the start of the marathon.  I had decided to stay with the 3:30 pacer for as long as I was physically able to so when I found him I made my way to the backside of his right heel.  That was where I planned to stay.  Running through Newport News Park, the sun started to rise and I started to finally feel the blooding flowing through my veins and warming me back up.  The large groups after the first mile scared up some deer and they went galloping across the golf course alongside us.  It was really pretty peaceful for a few minutes.

     Leaving the park we crossed over Fort Eustis Boulevard and ran past my elementary school.  The first water station was immediately after that with volunteers from Woodside High School at the 2-mile marker.  The 3:30 pace group was huge.  There must have been 30 or 40 people grouped around one guy carrying that 3:30 sign.  The first 3 miles felt pretty good.  My shoelace came untied around 3.5 miles in so I was forced to stop and re-tie it.  I re-tied both of my shoelaces, just in case.  But since I NEVER had shoelaces come untied with those Hokas during the past two months of training, I thought it was a fluke, still didn't double knot them, jumped up, and kept going.  I consciously tried not to sprint to catch back up to the group, though that was pretty hard to do when you are focused on staying right behind a particular person!  I caught back up to the group pretty quick, went through the water station at mile 4 and started past what used to be my middle school.  There was some excitement building for me at that point because I knew at the top of the street I grew up on my mom was standing there with a cow bell cheering everyone on.  I ran ahead a bit, gave her a big hug, and thought again how great it is to run a marathon in your home town.

     The next few miles I started paying attention to everyone that was still in the group.  The numbers had shrunk considerably already, it seemed like only 15 or 20 of us were left.  One girl was up to the left of the pacer and had been there the whole time.  It was her first marathon also and they were holding a fairly steady conversation.  Another girl had a shirt that said "50 Marathons, 50 States, <4 Hours" but had been quiet since the start.  We passed the 6-mile aid station, entering the Beechmont neighborhood, and I thought about how much time I had spent on those roads.  Spending time at my grandmother's house, old friends' houses, our long runs before field hockey practice, and all my training rides that take me up and down those streets.  People were outside of their houses huddled under blankets cheering us on.  The 8-mile aid station with the first relay transition.  Excitement again because I knew my sister-in-law, Katina, was there with Courtney's husband Brandon.  Katina was running the second leg of the relay and they were both waiting on Courtney.  Naturally I had to stop and give them hugs!  I passed my friend Christina's house and was hoping to see her mom out but later found out that she was out of town.  My brother's house was next on the tour of my hometown, but he wasn't outside just yet.  As we got closer to the next turn I heard the drumline from my Alma Mater.  The Denbigh High School Patriots always had an awesome drumline and they were out here supporting all of us.

     I saw my friend Cameron riding opposite us at mile 11.  He had already been up the road to check on Darren and was coming back to make sure Helen didn't need anything.  He found me again at 12.5 miles and rode with me until the halfway point before riding ahead to find Darren.  The second relay transition was coming up at mile 14, and although Noris wasn't there just yet, there were loads of people out cheering everyone on.  It was fantastic how there were still so many people out when it was so cold!  We came through mile 15 and our group was smaller still.  Ten of us total and more than half were ladies!  We finally discovered that our pacer's name was Mike and as the group shrunk we all started talking him up more and more.  Good for me to help keep my mind off of getting tired.  The girl doing 50 marathons in 50 states was still with us, the other girl who was doing her first marathon, and a third that I had noticed earlier had been thanking every volunteer we passed...I could only muster a wave most of the time!

     We were in my neighborhood now.  The roads I run and ride and walk Zuma on every day.  It was great being so familiar with the route, I knew every turn, pothole, the crests in the road, and I was feeling great.  I found Chris on course, just where he said he'd be.  He was at the Lions Bridge at mile 18 where we had been married 2.5 years earlier.  He was on his bike and had brought extra water for me.  Since I had been drinking every mile I was almost completely out of water, even with having taken some at a couple aid stations (which I realized back at mile 16 I didn't want to do anymore because I had to use more energy to get back on pace after slowing down to take a cup).

The remainder of our 3:30 pace group heading down the service road.

We ran down the Mariner's Museum service road and back out onto the main drag.  We were 20 miles in when I realized it was my longest run ever.  And then I realized that my shoe came untied.  Again.  I stopped, again, to tie it, only doing the one shoe this time and still not double knotting it (don't worry, that's the last time I had to stop for it).  I definitely took my time catching back up to the group the second time.  I was starting to feel the miles.  The next few ticked by.  Mile 22 was the third relay transition where Kim would soon be starting, and also the point where Mike told us if we were feeling good this is the time to start picking up the pace a bit.  I told him I was very happy staying behind his right heel.  A couple girls went ahead, a couple started dropping off a bit, knowing that they were ahead of the pace they wanted and wanted to save some for the last few miles.

Still smiling at mile 20!

Catching back up after my shoelace came untied again!

     Mile 24 was just Mike and myself.  And Chris was of course still pedaling beside us.  I talked to Mike as best I could to try and ignore how tired I was.  The wind was picking up as we were getting closer to the water and I stayed as close behind him as I could without stepping on his heel.  I learned last year at the half I did that drafting works in running too!  I discovered that Mike had done over 120 marathons and he was trying to become part of the Clif Bar Pace Team.  I hope he makes it because looking at our splits afterwards he really deserves it!

Keeping pace with Mike 24 miles in!

     I was getting really tired by now.  Everyone told me about mile 23 would be when I hit a wall.  But I really didn't then, it was more like a little hill.  I saw the Mile 25 sign and my left quad locked.  That, was the wall.  The pain shot all the way down to my foot and I just knew there was no way I could finish.  I thought how bad it would be to stop and maybe I could walk the last mile, but Chris and Mike kept talking to me to the next corner where cheerleaders from Heritage High School were out yelling for us.  It gave me some renewed energy and we rounded the penultimate corner.  I could see the last corner and just knew there was only 0.2 miles to the finish once I turned it.  My dad was riding backwards on the course looking for me when Chris started yelling to him that I was going to qualify for Boston!  Mike was telling everyone we passed that it was my first marathon and I was going to qualify for Boston!  I turned the last corner and with Mike telling me to go I started to pick up the pace just enough to open up a 10 second gap on him.

Mike telling me to pick up the pace into
final corner!

Side by side with Mike heading into the
final corner!

FINISH!!!

     I finished my first, and what is turning out NOT to be my last marathon in 3:29:39!  I finished 6th in my age group of 26, 18th of over 160 women, and 60th of over 360 total!  My Boston Qualifier time was 3:35:00.  So.  I qualified for Boston with minutes to spare, I didn't get hurt (my quad wasn't all that bad at that point with the distraction of finishing!), and most importantly proved Bruce wrong!  BOOM!  My mom and sister were just beyond the finish waiting for me along with my niece and nephews, Madilyn, Evan, and Quinten.  Darren was with Cameron waiting for Helen and they both congratulated me on something Darren would later tell me that he though was way more impressive than winning nationals (he's a Xterra National/Pan-Am Champion so he knows what it takes to win nationals)!

     The next few hours were a blur.  It took about 10 minutes for exhaustion to set in.  I began to realize how cold it actually was outside and started to shake uncontrollably.  Chris went o get the van as close as possible and when he got back we started making our way back past the finish line where we saw Helen had finished a few minutes earlier.  I remember she looked like she could turn around and run back across town to the start!  Maybe she didn't feel that way but she certainly looked way more fresh than I felt!  Chris helped me walk back to the van, load me up, and drove me back home.  There may have been a conversation or two started but I have no idea what there were about and whether I helped finish them.  We pulled up in the driveway and as Chris was helping me toward the house I had to stop to let all the fluid and gel I had taken in the past 3.5 hours come back up.  I managed to make it into the recliner and was in and out of sleep for the same amount of time that I had been running.  I was done.  All that training and I can finally relax.  I had finished and am ecstatic about how well I ran!  Id didn't take long for me to decide that I'm going to register for Boston, and I can't wait for that trip next year.  Darren and Helen both shattered their BQ times so I'll get to hang out with them too!  Until then though, I have a whole cyclocross season to plan and focus on...but at that point it was time for a brief hiatus from training!

     Thank you, as always, to my husband Chris who has helped encourage me, walked Zuma when I had already trained for two hours, and stayed by my side when I started to doubt myself.  Stoop, thank you again for coaching me and helping me achieve another year long goal.  Darren and Helen, thank you for your encouragement and helping me to realize exactly what I had gotten myself into.  My sister Beneline, for being my early morning running buddy.  The Glittering Wives/Happy Feet relay team for getting me to run the relay the year before and putting the thought in my head.  And of course Bruce for giving me the added motivation!

     I didn't really do much else this past spring again until May, but more on that in the next episode.  Thanks everyone for reading...sorry its a long one!

Stay tuned, Episode 3 is coming up!

2017 Episode 1: Mission Accomplished

     So I stalled posting this after Nationals.  I typed this up, and while trying to find pictures to post along with it (and realizing I can't actually find many) I kept delaying.  I got to the point that I wasn't sure that I should actually post it anymore since Nationals seems so long ago.  But here I am, convinced that maybe someone would like to read about it.  Plus there's some other things that I've been wanting to go on about that I feel like I can't without posting about this one!  So for those who aren't tired of hearing the story, or haven't yet and want to...

     Two years ago I never thought that I would actually ever win a National Championship and wear a Stars & Strips jersey.  Two years ago I also drove to Austin for my first ever National Championship race and got dead. f'ing. last.  It was a very humbling experience but a trip that I don't regret taking in the least.  Then last year I discovered that I didn't have to race the Elite race and train to try and get a top 25.  I discovered that I was just old enough to do the "Baby Masters" (30-34 age graded) race.  So I did that.  And I got third.  And I looked at the jersey while standing on the podium and realized that I really, really wanted one.

     I got in touch with Mike Stoop and after discussing my goal and race schedule with him, started to seriously focus on and train to achieve that goal.  I've had very consistent results this year, better than last year, and was really looking toward my goal.  After NCGP in December however, I started getting a little anxious about Nationals.  It was coming up really quickly and I don't think I was expecting the season to end so soon.  What if my training wasn't enough and what if I didn't put in enough effort during training to get it done.  I was hoping for a top 10 at NCGP and I didn't get it.  I tried to not be disappointed, after all it wasn't Nationals and wasn't my A race.  But it placed a seed of doubt in my head about whether my effort was going to pay off.  But Mike obviously knows what he's doing, otherwise I wouldn't have had some of my best results to date while working with him.

     I got sick the week before Christmas and had to miss a few workouts.  I couldn't believe that all the work that I put into the season was going to be meaningless because of a stupid cold.  I made sure to rest and hydrate as much as I could so I could recover as quickly as possible.  When I started feeling better I was on the bike making sure I had every workout in.  The van got an oil change, Zuma had her reservations for boarding, and I had a packing list that was two pages long for everything I could possibly imagine needing.

My 2 page packing list included 4 sets of tubulars and 2 sets of clinchers,
2 helmets, 3 pairs of riding shoes, a tent, propane heater (the forecast was 26 degrees!)
and of course my bikes!

I was as prepared as I could possibly be.  Nothing I did at this point (or weeks before at NCGP) would make me any more prepared.  Nevertheless I was so nervous I was almost sick.

Cyclocross Nationals Day 1... 2 days before my race.

The holeshot on Tuesday...it was way muddier by the end of Wednesday!

     Chris and I got to Hartford on Tuesday to rain and mud so deep that seemingly 50% of the course was unrideable.  I knew that Thursday everything would be frozen at 8am and the course would be completely different.  There was no point in pre-riding the course at all.  I did get to walk around and see how steep the levee was and where all the off-camber sections were so there was an advantage to getting there that early.  Chris and I went out to dinner with friends and I came home for one of my last trainer rides of the season.

Pre, Pre-Nats Dinner with the housemates!
Photo: Michael Carey

Tuesday night we received an email that the course had changed to shorten lap times.  On Wednesday Melissa Seek and I planned to get to the course early to pre-ride before the men's Masters fields and Collegiate fields started.  We were hoping for a slightly more frozen course so we get some idea of how the course was going to ride.  But alas, the ground was still sloppy muddy and gave us no idea of how much riding we would actually be able to do during the race.  I got one and a half laps in before they closed the course and I spent the rest of the day setting up the tent, riding the trainer, picking up my numbers, and relaxing.  I had no desire to pre-ride any more because I knew the course would be nothing like it was that day after a twenty plus degree temperature drop.  We ate dinner back at the house we rented for the few days, and received another email that the course may change for Thursday's races.  We would find out what the course was going to be when we lined up at the start.

     We got to the course at 6:45 Thursday morning.  The sun was still not up all the way, and temperatures were several degrees below freezing.  I got onto the bike as soon as I could.  I needed to dial in tire pressure as quick as possible.  The ground was frozen solid.  The ruts from the previous days of racing were etched into the ground with what seemed like concrete.  They were deep, solid, and I was bottoming out my tires and slamming the carbon rims into everything.  I was very cautious going through on my first full pre-lap and started getting really nervous again.  Chris put 24-25 psi in my tires and I went off for a partial lap which made me feel a quite a bit more confident through a lot of corners I wasn't previously.  Amazing what a difference of two psi makes.  The morning went by much quicker than anticipated and I felt rushed getting changed and getting on the trainer and properly warmed up.  I got off the trainer, Chris helped me change front wheels on my race bike (after realizing that the wrong wheel was put on), double-checked tire pressure, and rushed off to staging.

Call-Ups
Photo: @usacycling

     I've never had the first call-up in this big of a race.  I rolled up to the start line, wherever I wanted, checked my starting gear, pulled my jacket off, checked my shoes, started my computer and looked down the starting straight.  The officials gave us final instructions and told us they were adding in a large piece of the course that had been previously removed.  A large section that although we had seen, had not had the opportunity to ride under these frozen conditions.  As soon as the whistle blew all my nervousness dissolved and I was focused on riding as smooth and hard as possible.  I got the hole shot and put my head down past the pit where Chris was yelling for me.  I got to the levee first and decided to take the low line before climbing diagonally up to the high line.  This whole section turned out to be like sightreading for me.  Remounting, I tried to pedal with both feet as much as I could, unclipping my left foot and "skateboarding" only when I felt like I may slide out.  This section of the course was really where I needed to be smooth if I wanted to stay in front.  The off-camber section had changed slightly from the morning's pre-ride, taking us into another off camber, and a steep, switch-back descent.  We headed into a wooded section that had the days before been a long pool of mud and standing water, but this morning was a frozen path.  The grounds crew had driven the gator on parts of the course to help pack it in before the freezing temps, this was a section that riders could benefit by riding its tire tracks.  Coming out of the woods the race took us straight up the levee, with a 180 degree turn back down to the right, another 180 degree turn this time to the left and back up, and the a 90 degree left turn that ran us off camber and back down the levee.  I tried to maintain my speed back into the woods and riding past the pit I yelled to Chris and assured him that the tire pressure was good.  I got through the barriers, over the flyover, and into the start without any issues.  I didn't know what kind of a gap I had, I just kept my head down and kept digging.

Riding the top of the levee.
Photo: @cxmagazine

     My second lap was a little messier than my first.  Laura van Gilder was yelling for me before I got to the levee.  Laura van Gilder was yelling for me!  How cool is that?!?  At the top of the levee some guy was riding beside the course on the road yelling for me to keep it up.  I started losing traction and he started yelling at me to relax and settle down.  On the off camber I reminded myself that smooth is fast and felt comfortable again on the descent and through the wooded section.  On the second half of the climb back up the levee I turned the bars too tight and I was on the ground so fast I didn't realize what happened until I jumped back up.  Heading past the pit my left knee was throbbing from where it hit a frozen rut.  Behind the boathouse my handlebars got caught in the tape.  I tried riding through it but they were pretty tangled and my shoe hit the post in a way that the BOA dial opened.  I couldn't go anywhere without my shoe falling off.  I didn't have an updated time gap and it felt like ages before I got clear again.  I think it ended up being only 5 seconds or so that I lost but at the time it certainly felt longer.  I found out later that Jared Nieters had gotten a video of it and posted it on Instagram.

     I collected myself after my shoe incident, finished out the lap, and put my head down through the start/finish with two laps to go.  People were yelling for me at the top of the levee, I heard my name from different spots of the course, and I stopped paying attention to what anybody was really saying.  Chris yelled something about champagne from the pit, I yelled back to remind him I still had a lap and a half and that I wanted a time gap.  Maybe I didn't yell...maybe I might have snapped a bit in my excitement...  He didn't give me one but instead said to just keep going.  My legs were feeling great and I had one lap to go.  I've had a lot of races where I tell myself at some point to not go backwards.  Don't get caught.  I don't know if there was any race where I was more focused on just going forward.  I finished up my final lap, came into the finish straight, and posted up.  I had finished my season, and accomplished my goal.  I am a National Champion!  Someone from USA Cycling stopped me after the line and got an interview with me.  A guy from CX Magazine took my bike so he could take pictures of it.  Another guy from CX Magazine wanted to interview me.

2017 USA Cycling Women's 30-34 Cyclocross National Champion!

     I was, and even months later still am, elated from that morning's events.  I set a goal an entire year before, focused and worked toward that goal, and finished the season off by achieving that goal.  I could not be more excited to have finished off the season on such a big high and I'm really looking forward to next season!

     Thank you, everyone, for being so supportive of me this last year.  Christopher, I am so very thankful to have you by my side through all of this.  To all my family and friends that I had to skip out on plans to go ride or race, thank you for putting up with me.  To my coach, Mike Stoop, thank you for focusing my training and helping me to reach my goal.  Thank you all again.  I think I may be my biggest critic and the encouragement and kind words that I received from everyone went further than anyone can imagine.

Thank you, also, for reading.  I'll have more later in the week!

2017 Episode 2

Summer Series Announcement

     I haven't posted in a while.  Not that I haven't wanted to or haven't had anything going on.  I just delayed the first of several things I wanted to ramble on about and subsequently have delayed everything else.  I've actually had a few significant happenings this year, and with cyclocross season on the horizon I know I'm going to want to move on with these posts.

     I think I'm wanting to do a mini-series of the past few months, compressed into a few weeks.  At least one post a week, maybe two.  If y'all want to read it, great!  If not, that's okay too.  This way though, I'll be able to read it in the future and remember what happened when my memory gets even worse than it is now!

     So stay tuned, I'll post 2017 Episode 1 soon!

Capital 'Cross Classic

   I added this race onto my racing calendar a few weeks ago, when I realized that the end of the season was coming much quicker than I anticipated.  I've done a few local races, and a few UCI races, but no regional races, so I wanted to get one end before the end of the season, and to give me another opportunity with a larger field.

    I went into the weekend feeling that I could do well and was really looking forward to racing at the venue.  I haven't raced there in several years, and I have always thought that course was designed with a great mix of elements (both technical and power oriented).  This year it was changed a bit due to some work being done to the waterways in the park, and although I thought there were a bit more fast, straight, power spots than I was expecting, it was still a fun race, and one I'm going to try to keep on the schedule again for next season.

Thanks to the folks from Capital Cross for the barrier prime!
I think Chris deserves it though for working so hard for me
in the pit!

    The race started on a slight uphill paved section with some grassy 180s into a fast, paved downhill.  I took the holeshot, and bombed the downhill into the first off-camber section to take the "barrier prime" (the first rider to cleanly clear the barriers on the first lap).
Across the dam we went into the Capital 'Cross Stairs and the band kicked it into high gear.  The crowd was great, the music was loud, and I was realizing that I felt pretty good.  We went through the Mini-Chute, up the Zombie Killer climb which was short, steep, and soft, and into the campground climb.  The course took us into The Chute the was twice the length of the aforementioned Mini-Chute, with very fast, flowy corners that took you back to the bottom of the course and across the dam again.  Going down The Chute, my rear wheel skipped up and I drifted through one of the corners.  I knew I was taking those corners faster than I had planned to and ended up with a really wide line coming out of it, feeling like I was going to slide out in the one semi-slick section of the course.  Across the dam and past the second pit entrance there was one more off-camber section before we dropped into the pavement and up the start/finish hill.

    I knew I had only a few seconds on Allyson behind me in 2nd place so I was really trying to focus on being as smooth as possible and to push myself more than usual on the power sections.  I was heading under the finishing truss, stood to push the pace, and I started to notice the rim was hitting the pavement.  I couldn't believe it.  I got to the grass section and just started to go backwards while trying to ride it out to the pit.  Allyson came around me and I almost rolled my tubular through one of the corners.  I didn't have much further to go and I really didn't want to run downhill on pavement so I kept trying to ride it out.  But halfway down, for fear of ruining Chris' carbon rim, I got off and shouldered the bike.  I ran as hard as I could with my bike on my shoulder.  Ten more people passed me before I made it to the pit and as I grabbed my pit bike, I realized that I was going to have to dig to get anywhere near the podium, and I was quite certain that there was no way I'd be seeing Allyson again until the race was over.

    I can honestly say I don't remember every single detail of the race after that.  Chris yelled time gaps and places to me every time I passed the pit.  The band seemed to be deafening at the top of the stairs, and there were bubbles...so many bubbles.  There was so much traffic with the shorter laps and big fields in a couple different racing categories that it was hard to tell who I was catching and who was being lapped.  I know I made some passes on some of the technical spots that were a little more risky than I usually do, especially when I was getting close to the two that Chris was telling me were sitting 3rd and 4th.  I know I caught Alex Campbell-Forte and Lyndsay Bayer at the Mini Chute and the Zombie Killer climb, and Lyndsay rode away from both of us on the campground climb.  I caught her again going down The Chute, she rode away from me again across the dam, I got close to her after the pit, she rode away from me through the finish truss, I caught her at the barriers.... we all see where this is going.  We did this accordion thing for the last two laps.  I caught Lyndsay where I excelled at all the technical features, but her road fitness is just unbelievable and she rode away from me as soon as the course opened up.  There is a reason that she is at a pro level on the road, and it showed Sunday.  Even if she hasn't been riding as consistent as usual, she is still amazingly strong.  (If you don't know who she is then you should probably check out her blog...)

Congrats to Allyson Tufano (Sportif Coaching Group/Patapsco Bicycles) on the win, Gabriella Stern (Vanderkitten CX) on 2nd, Lyndsay Bayer (Hagens Berman) on 3rd in one of her few cross races, and Alex Campbell-Forte (Vanderkitten CX) on rounding out the podium!

    I finished the fourth on the day, and although it was not the place I was hoping for, it was certainly a very beneficial race.  This turned out to be another weekend that I learned a lot about racing my bicycle.  Just goes to show that eighteen years of racing bicycles doesn't mean that you still can't discover something about yourself.  I took risks that I don't think I would've taken otherwise.  I know now that I can take those risks.  I also managed to not panic and get to the pit as fast as possible when I discovered my flat.  Something else that you don't know (or forget) you can do until you need to.  And staying focused after a mechanical is, I've discovered, much more important if you're digging to make time back up.  Always things that are great to know you're capable of, the unfortunate thing is there's only one way to figure out if you're capable of those things!

    All in all it was a fantastic day to race my bicycle and what a great event that was!  Thank you to everybody that put so much effort making it a great event and I look forward to doing it again!

    The NCGP UCI race weekend is coming up in Hendersonville, NC...stay tuned!

#mermaidwinery #tradewindsracing #super8cx #capitalcross #crossishere #cyclocross

#toomuchsuper

     Actually, as difficult as this weekend was, I had a blast and there wasn't enough "Super."  I went into the weekend really expecting a top 15 for both days.  I did not get it.  Neither day.

Bib # 15 represented my goal for the weekend.

     Saturday was an exceptionally beautiful day for the weekend before Thanksgiving.  Mid-60's with crystal clear skies.  The field was 45 deep, and everyone was fast off the line into the first corner and onto an off camber followed by a few more off camber 180's.  Every corner was followed by a climb that was longer than I wanted it to be and the downhills were shorter than I had hoped.  The technical features were few and far between.  Even the stairs that were in the middle of a long climb, did little to help separate those that rode them from those that dismounted and ran them.  At least that's how I looked at it.  Everyone around me seemed to be riding up these climbs without great effort and I was struggling with every pedal stroke.  I finished 16th on the day and was trying to find reasons for me not to be too disappointed.  I decided, though, that Sunday was a new day.  And if the weather forecast was correct, I would be getting a chance to play in the mud (which I love to do)!

Snow-capped mountains while driving to the course.

     I was pretty excited when I woke up Sunday and the ground was saturated from the rain (and snow) from early that morning.  However my dad (travel buddy and pit crew for the weekend) and I got to the course and the sub-freezing temps and howling wind made it a little less exciting than I had initially thought.

I kept reminding myself that Nationals are in Connecticut in January! #crossishere

I actually had the best start on Sunday that I've had all season.  On the same off camber as Saturday's start (except extra slick) everybody in the first 10 spots took the high line one after the other after the other.  I was the first person to take the low line, and found myself 6th wheel after a crash on the high line held a few people up.  The first few turns I felt great.  I was certain I could maintain the effort and get myself another top 10.  The next few turns I found myself spinning tires and going backwards.  It didn't matter who's wheel I followed, I couldn't stay on it.  I handled my bike in the corners well, but through the straights I was losing time.  There were people sliding out all over the place, but I still wasn't making up ground.  I changed bikes every lap and kept Dad busy with the pressure washer.  Two laps to go I had him drop the pressure in my tires and when I changed bikes half a lap later, it was night and day.  I finally felt like I could get somewhere.  Maybe it was mental, I don't know, but I managed to make up two spots after that.  Had I still had another half lap I could have maybe gotten another one or two; there just wasn't enough real estate at that point.  I finished Sunday at 19th place...barely squeaking into the top 20.

Post-race pic with my pit crew.

     Dad did a great job as my pit crew keeping my bikes as clean as possible for me every bike change.  And considering we never practiced bike changes, actually pulled it off fairly seamlessly.  Supercross was not my A race for the season (actually not any of my B races either).  I was not training for this race specifically, and I can't expect to have a great race every time I toe the line.  Yes, I'm a little disappointed in my results, but for me not to take anything away from the weekend would be a wasted trip.

  So a few things I learned on the weekend:
-13 psi is not too low for some conditions.  Its really important to experiment with different pressures more during my pre-ride.  Especially when the conditions are the way they were.
-I raced with leg warmers for the first time in a UCI race and they didn't get in the way at all...extra clothing is not necessarily a bad thing when its warranted.
-Having your pit crew make changes to the bike in the middle of the race is something that should be done without hesitation.  If it will help then do what needs to be done.
-The race is not over until the line.  Keep making adjustments until something works and keep pushing.
-Longer toe spikes are a must for conditions like Sunday.
-Being able to feel your toes and the bottom of your feet is crucial, even more so when there is a lot of off the bike involved.  I should really keep that in mind when putting my kit on before a race.

I know I've learned more just by being there and getting the experience, so to come out of the weekend completely disappointed is not logical.  I'm going into a rest week and then I start looking towards Nationals.  Capital Cross, NCGP, and the final, Rustbucket Race, will be leading me into it.  Here's to looking forward!

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!!!

#ucicx #supercrosscx #toomuchsuper #mermaidwinery #mermaidwinecx #tradewindsracing #procx

2016 Cross Season - 2 Months In, 2 Months to Go

     I'm two months into my 2016 cross season and I can't believe that there's just under two more months until Nationals.  The sad part is there are much fewer races that I'll be able to get to in the last two months than the first two.  This season has definitely been one for me to remember.  And as bad as my memory is, I'm kicking myself a bit for not doing a post more often.  If no other reason than to help me remember!  So without further adieu, here's a brief recap of my cross season to date.

Kicking off the season at Nittany CX.
#cxishere
Photo: Marci Fulton

Nittany Cross

There was a stair run-up, some barriers,and a couple
off-cambers that made things just a little more interesting.
#ucicx #nittanycx
Photo: Marci Fulton

Race weekend number one for me.  This was a full weekend of racing, and also UCI level racing.  Of course the first race of the season you never know where you'll end up.  I've been much more focused with my training this year, but you still don't know.  The race predictor shows what "should" happen (which for me was a 21st and 23rd finish for the two days), but you always want to beat your race predictor.  I went in with a goal I truly felt I could accomplish, top 15 for both days.  The course was pretty much flat with a few VERY small, punchy climbs, with a great mix of technical and power sections.  I ended up achieving my goal for the weekend, with a 14th place both days.  Something I was really excited about.

Roanoke GoCross

Those who didn't make the drive missed out on a very well balanced course.
#vacx #gocross
Photo: Marci Fulton

     This was my first time heading out to Roanoke for the GoCross race and I really enjoyed the course.  Those guys from the Deschutes Brewery team did a fantastic job with that race.  I wish more people would make the trip out there.  We had some power sections, some technical sections, a small sand pit, a flyover, and plenty of beer to go around!  It was a fun race and my first win of the season!

Richmond Festival of Cross

Alex kept me chasing her wheel on the
pavement at Bryan Park. #vacx
Photo: Oscar Ruiz

     Chimborazo Park and Bryan Park are two local races of the season that I have a hard time missing.  They are two completely different courses that make for a great weekend of racing put on by Altius Cycling.  Chimborazo this year was a muddy mess, but since I don't race in the mud very often, sometimes I have to welcome it with open arms!  I decided to race back to back in the Women's 1/2/3 and the Men's 3/4 putting me into a deficit going into Sunday.  Bryan Park, unlike the much more technical Chimbo, is more power oriented and over half of it this year was on the pavement.  Alex Campbell-Forte came down from DC for the weekend and kept me in the red during the power sections.  We ended up going into the barriers and last few corners side-by-side, I managed to squeak out the W after a sprint finish (I still think Alex felt bad when I kicked the barriers and almost fell face first!)

Charm City CX

     I was really excited about my results at Nittany, but Charm City left me on an even bigger high after coming out of the weekend.  I went in thinking that the power course that Charm City usually is was completely opposite of what I'm comfortable with.  I was hoping for a top 20, but was expecting a top 25 against a stacked field.  One that included the US, French, and British National Champions (Katie Compton, Caroline Mani, and Helen Wyman).  The weekend started with rain, causing the course to be slick and much more technical than usual.  

Unlike past years, the sand pit was one of my favorite elements of the race.
#ucicx #charmcitycx #playinthesand
Photo: Jason Calderon

I finished with a 13th place Saturday and couldn't have been more pleased.  Sunday was much drier, and definitely more power oriented.  Because of the C1 status, more UCI points were on the line, and the field was stacked a little deeper than Saturday.  I finished with a 20th place, but still not disappointed one bit.

DCCX

     Coming off of Charm City I was feeling pretty good about where I would finish.  I knew top 15 was achievable, but I thought that top 10 was definitely possible.  DCCX is one of my favorite courses and is definitely more appealing to anyone that has a mountain bike background.  Barriers, stair run-ups, log crossing, off cambers all appeal to me as a rider.  Both days I felt great, focused, and after mixing it up with some ladies I never though I could, left with an 8th place on both days.  My best UCI results to date!

The 180 off camber turn helped get me my best uci result to date!
#ucicx #shebelievedshecouldsoshedid
Photo: Marci Fulton

Tidewater MTB Challenge

     I took the weekend off of cross for my favorite mountain bike race (although I may be biased because I've been doing this race off and on for 18 years, and Chris proposed to me there 3 years ago).  Saturday evening I raced the Women's Short Track race while Sunday I raced the Women's Pro/Expert race.  I ended up 2nd both days, behind an extremely strong rider named Andrea Dvorak.  Haven't heard of her?  Check her out!  Thank you Steve for putting on an exceptional race every year!  Looking forward to next year's 30th anniversary!

VCU/Sweet Spot Cross

     The race at Richmond's City Stadium was tight and twisty with some different features including a short, but steep, climb with a railroad tie across the course. Sam Park did a great job as always putting the race together at a very unique venue.  The Women's 1/2/3 race resulted with me on the top step of the podium and afterwards I beat up on some guys and got 4th in the Men's 3/4.

Plenty of technical sections to keep everybody focused.
#vacx #vcucx
Photo: Marci Fulton

RVR Weekend of CX

     Rogue Velo Racing put on a set of races at Bennett's Creek Park and Mt. Trashmore this weekend.  I wish the overall turnout were better for this race because the courses were laid out quite well and the weather was just perfect.  I got the case of the can't-help-its because I again signed up for the Women's 1/2/3 and the Men's 3/4 on Saturday, making sure I wasn't going to have anything left by the end of the weekend.  

Women's 1/2/3 start at Bennett's Creek.
#vacx #rogueveloracing
Photo: Erica Cline

I left Bennett's Creek Park with a 1st and 2nd place in the women's and men's races!  Sunday, Alex came down again from DC for the State Championships.  She came into the race at a disadvantage after racing earlier and winning the Women's 35+ state championships.  That gave me enough of an edge to pull away from her in lap 3 to bring home the state championship for the Women's 1/2/3!

     Thank you everyone for the great support and encouragement this year.  It's awesome when you realize that your hard work is paying off and I'm looking forward to the remainder of the season.  In case you're curious, I've been training with Mike Stoop since June of this year and I feel more fit on and off the bike than I have in a very long time.  I've had a coach in the past, but I'm far more disciplined than I was, getting my workouts uploaded and of course getting my workouts done.  Imagine that!  Having a specific plan and getting workouts in makes you feel fit and strong!  I realize though, that I could still tighten things up a bit, and since the season is over halfway done, now is a good time to start.

#cxishere #tradewindsracing #mermaidwinery #mermaidwinecx #cutawayusa #ucicx #vacx

Spring Racing and My Fellow Mermaids

  So this past spring for me has pretty much been a wash as far as cycling is concerned.  After cyclocross nationals I planned to take a couple of weeks off, and found myself running with my sister while she trained for the One City Marathon.  I myself was training for the One City Marathon Relay with three of my closest friends on a marathon relay team.  I got hooked running and enjoyed the change, and took more than a couple weeks off!
  I did my first off-road duathlon as a part of the Virginia Off-Road Series in Fredricksburg, which was extremely difficult but actually quite a bit of fun.  I probably would've enjoyed it more had I been riding a little bit more consistently!
  My sister and I then both signed up for our first half marathons (yes the same sister that just did her first full marathon).  We ran the Race 13.1 Richmond in May during a torrential downpour, and both beat our goal time, and both won our age groups!  I was worried that I would be miserable the whole time, but once I settled into a rhythm with the pacers I was with, I began to realize that I was more prepared than I gave myself credit for!  I definitely plan to do another one...and am looking to sign up for the full One City Marathon next March.  But I can't think about that now...cross is coming!

The Glittering Wives...we don't sweat, we glitter!

3rd Place Overall Women for the Fredricksburg Off-Road Duathlon

Race 13.1 30-34 and 40-44 age group winners!

  The Virginia cycling scene has been very small this spring, with several races I was looking forward to getting canceled or postponed.  That didn't help get me back onto the bike any quicker with any consistency.  The spotty road season for me started the day before the One City Marathon relay with the Shamrock Crit that happens every year because of the hard work of my fellow mermaids.  A couple weeks later the Conquer the Canal TT came around, a month after that the Richmond International Raceway crit was put on the calendar again after an earlier postponement, and yet another month later, in June, the Chesapeake Crit happened.

  The time trial I didn't expect much out of myself since I haven't been putting miles in, and I'm not a big fan of TTs anyway.  That was one I did mostly because I was off of work (which is how I treat most TTs)!  All of the crits I surprised myself because I felt so good during the race, and I have to wonder how much better I would've felt had I been running less and riding more.  Although I did enjoy running with my sister this spring!

Amanda and I at Shamrock

Crossing the line (and stopping the Garmin!) at Conquer the Canal

Gisela and I at Chesapeake

  I really started focusing at the beginning of June.  I found a coach to work with, and I feel more motivated and focused than I have in a long while.  I've come to realize that standing on the podium next to the stars and stripes is not where I want to be!  And making up that two minute gap to the 1st place gal won't happen with me pretending that I know what I'm doing with my training.  I feel more comfortable on my bike and more fit after this first month than I have in a few seasons.  This is it...cross is coming and this season is going to be fantastic.

  I have to attribute part of my motivation to the mermaids of Tradewinds Racing.  Even though we are a road specific team, I want to ride and race better because it helps the team.  Everything all of us do individually affects the team, and I want my actions to have as positive an impact as possible.  We have a much deeper roster this year than we have had in the past few years.  When I heard that we were getting more gals this season, I was nervous, not knowing any of them really well, and not knowing how everybody would get along.  I'm not a big fan of drama and I didn't want to have to think about leaving because the good thing we had going got muddled.

  But here we are now, over halfway into the season, and I am proud to be a part of it.  I think the girls are great.  They are talented, motivated, and truly wanting to learn.  I wish the calendar was thicker with races and more conducive to my schedule that I could make it to more.  I really want these ladies to see how much fun racing is when you have the support of a team behind you.  I was on Tradewinds the first year it started and I've enjoyed it all.  There was so much for me to learn that I wouldn't have been able to start and continue racing at the national level without being a part of it.  I learned so much about racing in the past few years because I've been on this team, and I want the new mermaids to feel that benefit as well.  I want them to be able to give back to the sport in a few years and pass on what they've learned to the next generation of mermaids.

Conquer the Canal TT 2016

Dinner at Mermaid Winery

Chesapeake Criterium 2016

Mini-Team Ride 2014

Richmond Crit 2014 

Celebrations at Mermaid Winery 2015

A whole neighborhood named just for us!

  So to the ladies of Tradewinds Racing (p/b Mermaid Winery), past and present, thank you.  I would not be where I am in my racing career today without you all.  I spend my road seasons (although shorter than I'd like this year) dedicating my race efforts to helping my teammates because that's the best way I can think of to repay the team.

#mermaidwinery #tradewindsracing #cxiscoming