Oh ya, the blog...

Once upon a time, there was a blog that was neglected. Often, it was forgot about completely. The blog never did anything wrong. It just sat there, waiting to be loved. Once and a while, someone would look at the blog, but it went a long time looking exactly the same, so people lost interest and the blog got more and more neglected. 

You see the owner of the blog tended to forget about the blog completely.  Busy with coaching, splitting/stacking wood, enjoying #hermitlife at home, hanging out with friends, and eventually getting back to training, she didn't feel the need to update anyone on what was going on. Life was going on and extra time on the computer didn't seem necessary.

Some things, however, seemed very blog worthy-- but for different reasons never got posted.
ALP Cycles Coaching is kicking ass and growing, but this news didn't get put on this blog- it went on another blog...
2014 kicked off in 2013 with UHC training camp. This is definitely blog worthy, but due to contract obligations, nothing will be posted until Jan 2014.
34 years old happened-- at training camp.
A sweet snow bike happened and has been getting used.
Training has been happening. Racing in 3.5 weeks (what?)!

Photos of blog worthy things-- sponsor correct.

Birthday celebration. My new teammies treated me well. 

 Birthday espresso and baked goodies. YUM!

 We were in Arizona. Lots of cactus, sun, and good rides

 Fancy hotel

 Pretty lake view. We were to take photos here, but the Johnny Law didn't like us and instead of saying "cheese" he gave us a ticket.

Stay tuned for more blog worthy info-- and to not let this blog feel neglected.

Another Powers

We went to Florida.
He Who Must Not Be Named's sister was getting married-- to a Powers. That's right. No relation to me. Just seems Harrods are attracted to Powers'.

It's been a while since I have been to Florida, so I did my best to see the sights.

It started with "The Best Coffee in St. Petersburg". 

I think not. It was nasty. I walked a long ass way on concrete and in the sun to get there. It was disappointing.

 Next was the Museum

 I never knew geese tucked their heads in to their wings.

 Horse petting

 Pelican. Though, I've been told they are mean, so I'll call him a Pelican't

  The wedding was super fun. These are the groomsmen waiting for the Powers Groom

 It was a bit weird to be at a Harrod Powers wedding that wasn't mine. But, it was fun and someday there will be another Harrod Powers wedding.

2013 XXX Cyclocross Extravaganza

A couple of years ago, for the first XXX, we invited some local Boulder "CX guys", who upon completion of the ride determined it was too hard and too rocky for their delicate bodies and bikes.

They weren't invited this time. Only tough and fun people were invited- i.e.- our friends from not Boulder.

 

 We made 3 "loops" - each loop being hard, steep, challenging, and fun.

Honey going down Honeybadger. The whoopdies at Valmont are nothing compared to Honeybadger's whoops.

Yep, it was fun. And hard. 4km feet of climbing in 28 miles all above 8,000ft.

 In the end, there were 5 of us left and Ned Brit Peter won the Pink Wool Jersey.

We celebrated at the Double-A with a BBQ, chips, and beer-- and roasted veggies from Tups garden.

The XXX rules. I'm looking forward to the next edition, whenever it happens, and rest assured no softies will be invited.

Tony P, thank you for your really nice comment on my Crit Nats win. You're kicking butt on your bike riding! Keep it up. Keep riding, keep getting healthy, and keep having fun! See ya next year. 

The Off Season Continues

Is it weird to enjoy the off season so much?
Well, weird or not, I'm happy and having fun.

CX bikes in the snow is Fun! And good for bike handling skills

 Hiking is Fun! Especially with a friend and nice weather.

 Hiking with doggies is Fun!! Even if she barks at all white people.

 Creating a new logo for ALP Cycles Coaching is Fun and Exciting!! We're growing and it's awesome.

 Splitting and stacking wood is... not as much fun but needs to be done (and it helps prevent the off season fat layer from forming on the body). All finished, we have 17 stakes of split wood for this winter. WOW!

A Change of Pace

The season is over. No more races. No more training. Done.

I like the "off season". I like not racing and I like doing non-bike racing things. Things like drinking wine, hiking, skipping stretching, or not doing anything at all. 

I've had two awesome hikes this past week.

 The first was to Blue Lake. Due to all the canyons getting flooded, there are no Boulder people anywhere. It's great. We had the trail all to ourselves.

 Hike #2- up Hessie Trail. Again, not a person in sight. We did have some wind, and snow.

 It was awesome.

Being a "normal" person for a while is pretty nice. Hanging out with friends is more fun when you don't have to do intervals the next day. Splitting wood is more fun when it's the only exercise you'll get for the day.

Cheers to the off season.
Shot out to Dr. Andy at Peak Sports Chiro. He fixed me up yesterday. Seems like forever ago, but I crashed myself twice in one day in France and got a little jacked up. Dr. Andy is pro at un-jacking and I feel much better. Thank you!

Euro Trip- Part 2

 Once we got to Italy, things got instantly better. We were in a 4 star hotel with good internet and a beach/ocean view. We were in town where we could walk to morning coffee.

The racing was better- minus the cars, which seemed to be everywhere. The peloton was smoother, the transfers shorter, the scenery better, and the temperature cooler. The helmet numbers, on the other hand, were not ideal.

Even Italian doggies were cuter.

 We no longer had to cook our own food. Though, due to the meat looking like this, I continued to stick to a plant based diet.

 Which included a lot of this type of food. Rice and ________

 I had a little more fun in Italy. My body stopped hurting from crashing, jet lag was gone, my fitness was getting better rapidly, I was enjoying riding my bike, and the small things like- internet, food, coffee, and communication was easier.

We had a nice last dinner at a pizza place that had great gluten free crusts. 2:45am wake up for a 3am departure for the airport to come home.

 I'm happy to be home. When I look back at my Euro experience, I have to admit, it isn't with fondness. I know some of this is due to it being the end of the season and I'm ready to be finished racing for now.

The racing made me fit, the racing will make me a better racer, but I did not enjoy it. This has been a tough reality to face and I'm not really sure what to think now.

I do know I'm still motivated to train and race next year. I still like winning races and having success as a team. For now, that's all that matters.

Here's to the off season.

Euro Trip- Part 1

 It all started nicely. Look I'm in France riding my bike. It's fun, it's pretty, it's all good.

Minus the sleeping arrangement with sheets big enough to cover almost half the small bed.

 Alexis and I went for pre Prologue Espresso- just like normal (though the flavor ranked one below nasty).

 We had nice team dinners and coffee together. 

Then it all went downhill-- and onto the right side-- twice. In one day.

 It sucked and I cracked.

 Everything hurt. My body hurt. It hurt to ride my bike. I wasn't sleeping. The internet sucked. The drives each day were long and windy, the and racing was hard with no success.

 I tried to HTFU. I tried to race my bike. I was sort of successful in that I won a trophy. Most combative of day # idon'tremember.

 But I was not having fun. This no-fun feeling has not happened to me for several years. I've made a point of making my bike racing fun. If I'm not going to get rich doing it, I might as well be having fun and enjoying my life as a bike racer.

Being in pain, away from home, not making money, and not able to have a chance at winning each day really made me think long and hard about "what am I doing here?"

Finally we finished Ardeche. We celebrated with grapes picked right from the vine,

 and beer and pizza- for me.

 We drove to Italy and I still had a bad attitude. I needed an attitude adjustment- ASAP.  I got one. Thanks to The Sister and her advice of "ditch the expectations and enjoy the experience", my trip has now turned into WWHD (What Would Heidi Do?).

If Heidi were in Italy, she would drink wine. Cheers.

Heidi would eat a chocolate croissant on the bike ride during the coffee stop (no the espresso is no good here. It's all over roasted and tastes burned). 

Here's to a better outlook for this week of racing, and here's to enjoying the experience- no matter what kind it is.
Racing starts this evening with a 2km TT. Yep, less than 3 min.

Changing it up

From a stage race (Elk Grove) to a 7.5hr mtn bike race (Leadville) to a crit (Fort Follies) to 2 European Stage races. This past month has been nothing but interesting--and fun!

I've enjoyed time at home, a vacation with He Who Must Not Be Named, riding mtn bikes, riding road bikes, and riding my TT bike. Though, it was a bit if a shock to the system to go from a 7 hr race to 4 minute intervals behind the moto on my TT bike.

Instead of calling the season over after Elk Grove, I've decoded, after 5 years away, it's time to go back to Europe and see how I fair against the Euros. Hopefully, I'll be better. More confidence, more race savvy-ness, and more maturity.

Thus, I'm on the bus headed to DIA. France first then Italy.
I'm excited.

What Just Happened?

 The past 5 days have been crazy-- in an amazing way.

First up, two days of mtn biking with a funny friend and He Who Must Not Be Named.

Then fly to race a Criterium.

 A kind of important criterium.

Crit Nationals in High Point, NC. 1.5 hrs of going round and round in circles trying to make the sprinters legs tired so my team has a chance at winning.

 Pre race focus-- I'd tell you what my mental mantra is before each race, but then I'd have to kill you.

The strategy kind of worked. The sprinters were afraid to make their own legs tired while Amanda Miller and I rode round and round for 80 min.

The result was very unexpected and I still can't believe it.

I am the new Criterium National Champion. Crazy. Freaking awesome-- but still crazy.
One of the coolest parts? The race director puts on races to raise money for MS. My team raises awareness for MS. Pretty sweet connection.

 To celebrate, we had a great team ride to Pilot Mountain on Sunday. I love riding bikes.

 To celebrate again, I didn't ride my bike today and instead when on a little hike around the house. Dang it's pretty right now.

This victory just proves that you should never count yourself out of a race. Anything can happen. Never give up.