Bike Lessons from Coach John Wooden

The people who turn out best are those people who make the best out of the way things turn out. --Coach John Wooden

A great section of flowy descent with banked corners at the Utah State Championship Race

Last weekend I finally got to stay home and race...well sort of. I only had to drive one and a half hours to race instead of the twelve hour trip we've done routinely over the last month or so. A new, well-organized, and fun series known as the Utah Championship Series launched its first race last Saturday at Lambert Park in Alpine, Utah. It was a circuit-type race consisting of four laps on about a 3.5 mile loop. It was similar in distance to the UCI sanctioned races that I have raced as part of the ProXCT series. However, the course was much different, in a good way! It started with a redline, full-throttle climb followed by a swooping descent with banked turns and all! The course circled around through a fun rocky section and back to the start/finish. The womens' field was not well represented for some reason. Only Sarah Kaufmann, KC Holley, and I stood at the start line. Too bad for those who couldn't make it, because they missed out on a great course! Anyway, the race started just as I expected with a hurried pace up the climb. My legs were ready for a break by the time we hit the top and the three of us were pretty much grouped together amongst a few of the expert men who managed to catch us early on. Sarah and I had ridden wheel to wheel through about 3/4 of the first loop when disaster struck! Near the mid-point of the loop I complained out loud about the sudden onset of shifting issues. Turns out my rear derailleur was jumping around because my rear wheel was moving about. This usually happens when an inexperienced rider fails to adequately tighten the rear skewer. Or, in my case, when I seemingly checked EVERYTHING on my bike to ensure proper functioning...everything except the rear skewer that is! In the middle of the rocky section, my rear wheel struck a rock just right and became dislodged. Thankfully, the wheel stopped rotating fairly abruptly and didn't come completely off. And furthermore my speed at that particular time was pretty slow. So simply put, I came to a halt and looked down at my skewed rear wheel not fully realizing that I was very lucky to escape injury. After a vocal outpouring of disgust, I struggled with the wheel and chain to replace it in the rear dropouts while using extra care to tightly secure the skewer in place. By then both Sarah and KC were no where in sight. I tried to take some deep breaths and prepare myself for a tortuous game of catch-up. It was not until the latter half to the final lap did I catch a glimpse of KC but was unable to reel her in before the finish line.

Sarah with her enormous check!!

Both my father and my college basketball coach were fans of the late UCLA basketball coach John Wooden. He therefore became a hero of mine too. Not so much for his unmatched basketball success, but more for his insightful theories about living a success life and being a good member of society. Both Coach Wooden and Coach E believed proper preparation was the key to success. One of Wooden's most famous quotes is "Failing to prepare is preparing to fail". Boy has that been resonating with me after the two avoidable mechanicals I've had this year. Odd, how those simple lessons are applicable to so many things in life!!

So to help me prepare a little better my friend, riding partner, mentor, and cycling guru Chad Davis offered to make a checklist of sorts. A quick run through to do before each race that hopefully will become routine after a few races. When I played basketball I had a pre-game routine and free throw routine... I need a pre-race, bike check routine! Chad chuckled when I dumped my sorrows upon him and he made me feel better when he told me that his coach had to give him a checklist after he experienced a slew of mechanical mishaps one season.

All these crashes and mechanicals are becoming all too frequent. I've begun to feel self-conscious that some people will start seeing them as excuses. They are coming to an end! Sarah tells me I have paid my dues to the bike gods and good karma is coming my way. And I'm doing my best to learn every bolt, screw, dial, skewer, etc to check so that my pre-race preparation is done before EVERY race! Because as coach Wooden says "Don't make excuses. Your friends don't need them and your foes won't believe them."

This coming weekend I will have a chance to try out my new routine. I'm headed to Fruita, CO to race the Rabbit Valley Rally, a Mountain State Cup Series race. Along side of me will be friends Chad and Tricia Davis, both banks of never-ending bike and training knowledge; as well as Amy Arriola, my emotional stalwart while we suffer through racing and the last few months of PA school together.

Sea Otter Recap

Everyone always told me Sea Otter was a huge event, but WOW! I was totally amazed by how many people attend and the multiple activities that are simultaneously occurring. The venue was completely packed with vendors, media, racers, spectators, etc. The other thing everyone warned me about was the infamously cold, wet weather that usually graces the Sea Otter goers. Quite to my surprise, the weather was pretty good. Beautiful sunshine the entire time and temps in the 60's with a cool ocean breeze that was chilly at times, but for racing it was perfect. Northern California will always have a special place in my heart from the countless fun times I spent in the bay area and Sac-town with my aunt Mikan, but Monterey/Carmel...oh my! The green rolling hills overlooking the ocean is an amazing sight. It was no accident that they chose the Laguna Seca area for this grand event.

Sea Otter Bridge

The weekend actually started on Wednesday with Brandon and I once again loading up the trusty Suby-Ru for another long road trip. After dropping off our pooches to their doggy-sitters (thanks to my mama, Sara and Brett) we made the 13 hour jaunt across windy Nevada to NorCal! We arrived at the team house in Seaside  to pretty much fall into bed. Thursday morning we made our usual Trader Joe's stop then made our first attempt at the Otter madness! I'm pretty sure that the biggest challenge of Otter is parking. You'd think that by driving a giant Sprinter van with Team Jamis plastered on the side would be a dead give away that we were not spectators but participants! Never the less, we were sent to three different lots before we were "allowed" to park the damn thing! We finally did some pre-riding on the dirt portion of the XC course which was basically the short track course. I was warned that the XC course had some road sections, but I was shocked to find out that probably 1/3 of it was on the road!

Since the pro women were racing the first stage of their race, Brandon and I decided to watch our god friend Nicky and her Primal/Map My Ride teammates race the crit. It was nice to chat with Nicky at the Primal tent afterwards since we hadn't seen each other for awhile. The day passed us by quickly, I felt like I had done nothing but run around all day so we decided to head back to the house and relax.
Its so nice to have a kitchen while on the road. We were able to stay in, cook, and have dinner with my teammate Thomas Turner, and Jamis gurus Sal and Tim; all of whom Brandon and I had just met that day.

Friday morning was short track day! Racing short track the day before XC was a new experience for me.  In the two previous Pro XCT races, XC was first. In hindsight, I liked this much better. It allows me to get the jitters out during ST for the next day's XC. Because Otter is such a big deal for sponsors and media, EVERYONE is there. The start list was packed with superstars--nothing new from Fontana and Bonelli! To make the race even more challenging, the course was really short and a little bit interesting due to some sections having only one good line for the 30-some odd riders to negotiate. I new the first corner was going to be trouble. I was a sharp left hand, uphill, off-camber turn immediately after a wide fast section. The upper part of the turn was in deep, mushy, muddy grass. The lower side of the turn was dry but more technical. I knew the group was going to explode there because the first 10 or so girls were going to ride it clean but a crash here was inevitable! My call up was surprisingly good, I'm not sure how it happened, but hey I'll take it! I was mid pack at the start and chose to take the lower dry section of the corner. It was no surprise when the race came to a screeching halt at the first corner and I was off my bike running the first hill. I couldn't help but chuckle out loud! I rode as hard as I could, but after a very short 9 minutes, the race officials began pulling riders. Seriously!?! Thirty-some riders started this race and after nine minutes only 12 girls were allowed to finish the race. The short course and the crash at the first corner allowed the leaders to circle around too quickly so lapped-traffic was an issue quicker than usual. In short, that was the most expensive ten minutes I've ever spent on a bike and the shortest race I've ever done!

Call-ups at the start of STXC

Saturday was XC and I was excited to be on my new 26" hard tail. It was my first race (well unless you count the 10 minutes the day before) on that bike and my first race on a hard tail too. I figured since the course had so much pavement and fire road I wouldn't be missing my dually. Unlike the day before, my call-up was nearly last. Damn those UCI points! Oh well, since we started with a long road section, there was plenty of room to move up and the group stayed together until we hit the first off-road section. I figure Kathy Sherwin's wheel was better than most so I did my best to follow it until the first gated S-turn. Man am I glad I followed Kathy! Once the group got off the road and on the grassy section, there were two trenches that ran across the entire track. They were only about a foot wide, but they were major wheel-eaters if you missed timed the bunny-hop. As I was tethering myself to Kathy's experienced wheel I heard the sound of carbon mashing to my left. As I looked over I saw bodies and bikes airborne! Whew, its about time it wasn't me involved in the crash! I found myself in a good group the as we rounded the second of seven laps. I was feeling good and was very happy with my placement. But, all things must come to and end! Even though Nicky had reminded me the day before to use my road tactics, I let myself get gapped off the group just enough that by the time we hit the road section I was too far off to catch the fast moving group. Those of you who know anything about road riding know that one person left out in the wind will NEVER catch a group! They just continued to gain speed as I worked twice as hard to keep them in sight. BIG MISTAKE! Basically, I screwed myself by committing the cardinal sin of road racing--falling of the back! For two laps a tried to play catch-up while I rode the road section alone in no man's land. The one break I did catch came by pure luck! Georgia Gould had flatted a couple of laps into the race. On the road section of lap 5 she caught me and another rider. I jumped on her wheel and enjoyed a free pull to the group ahead of me as we hit the dirt. Then I watched as she effortlessly rode me off! Well, it was nice while it lasted! Unfortunately by the time I got to the group, it had broken up quite a bit since lap 3. I was able to hang with them and even pass a couple of riders. By the last lap I was blown! I gave it my all chasing Sarah Kaufmann but in the end had no gas left in the tank. Another lesson learned. I can honestly say that this is the first race of the year that I had a chance to make or break my own race. This course favored riders like me because it kept groups together longer due to the long road sections.

Despite the fact my error was a race breaker, I learned...once again! And I made it through the weekend without a crash or mechanical. All-in-all I had fun, I'm no longer a Sea Otter rookie, my family was there to see me race, and I have another big race under my belt. If I can just continue to improve and not make the same mistakes twice, hopefully my name will move up the list on those paper results!

Pre-XC at the Jamis tent

We finished up the long day with a party hosted by Jamis's owner, Karen. It was held at a beachfront house on Ocean Ave in Carmel! AMAZING! I got to hang with such an amazing group of people and talk and laugh until early hours of the morning! The food was fantastic and I had no problem enjoying some wine! I couldn't help but smile as I took a moment to absorb the situation and remember how lucky I am to be part of Team Jamis!

Team Jamis ride in Santa Cruz

The weekend was capped off by a team ride in Santa Cruz and some team photos. What an amazing experience riding through the redwoods--even though I was on a hard tail! I couldn't imagine being able to ride those trails everyday. Hopefully I can get my hands on some of the photos, however unless you can ride the trails yourself, photos just can't do it justice. It was really fun to see all the guys outside of the competition scene and just hang out and free ride. I can't believe the guys didn't fall over laughing when the Santa Cruz "troll bridge" swallowed my front wheel and caused a ridiculous endo! I would say that they were just being polite gentlemen and not kicking a damsel in distress while she was down...but let's be honest, I've spent enough time with these guys to know they just waited until they got in the van to bust out laughing! I'm so glad I've have such good teammates!! : )  What happens in Santa Cruz stays in Santa Cruz, right guys?!!

Santa Cruz riding! Just above the infamous "Troll Bridge"

Off to Sea Otter

Well it has been an incredibly long 3 weeks since my last race at Fontana. I've managed to stay healthy for the most part and have been finalizing the last couple of tweaks on my bike. In addition, I've been putting in some  quality time pedaling. Despite quite a bit of rainy weather, the Shoreline trails have ranged from a few mud puddles here and there to amazingly tacky and fast. The road bike has also been out a bit due to the Rooster's/Biker's Edge team starting their group rides, a perpetual torture fest week after week chasing the Cat1/2 roadie guys!

A few of the local O-Town riders out for the weekly group ride. Don't worry, I didn't make my cute dog chase us. He just likes to pose for pictures!

I'm feeling well and hoping that all crashes and mechanicals are behind me and I've received an outpouring of support and well-wishing from my friends and family after my last sob-story post! How could I not feel good going into this weekend? I'm pretty excited to be submerged in the famous Sea Otter environment. I've always wanted to make the trip to Monterey as a spectator so its pretty cool to finally be attending.

I'm also pretty excited to have my dad in the mix of spectators! Oddly, he has never seen me race a mountain bike. He was exposed to cyclocross in his own backyard last fall at Moose Cross in Victor, Idaho but because of his busy summer work schedule and "life's curve balls" we've both had the last couple of  years, it has just never happened. He also sounded pretty excited when we talked on the phone today, but I think he is a little giddy about the "conveniently" close proximity to Pebble Beach golf course! He is after all a golf pro jonesin' for warm weather as the everlasting Winter continues to dump snow in Jackson.

So its back in the car for our third trip to California in about a month's time. It's pretty sad when I drive to Las Vegas now I think the seven hour drive is "short". Speaking of Vegas, I just got back from a road trip there about 48 hours ago. A few of my Rooster's/Biker's Edge buddies went down to compete in the Xterra West Championships and I figured I would tag along and get out of the rain to ride in the sunshine. On Saturday I rode at one of my faves, Blue Diamond. I met up with my friend and fellow racer Erica Tingey and her hubby for a morning ride. It was most enjoyable to ride those fabulous trails in such great company! Later that afternoon I caught up with the triathletes to pre-ride the Xterra course. I'll be politically correct and just say it was less enjoyable than Blue Diamond...much less. Not because of the company with which I rode, but because of the terrain--I'll leave it at that! Those of you who have participated in that race know what I mean!

Erica and I at the top of Techno

On Sunday morning as the Tri-geeks took the plunge into the freezing cold Lake Las Vegas, I mounted my trusty road bike for a spin around Lake Mead. It was nice to spend a little time soaking up the desert sun, listening to some music, and not having to worry about cars speeding by. Since it was fairly early and cold by Vegas standards, there were very few people on the perfectly paved bike path which made for sightings of jackrabbits and coyotes. One of the best sights however, were blooming cacti everywhere. Spring is such a great time to visit the desert! After my calming stroll, I returned mentally refreshed and ready to cheer on my friends as they crossed the finish line one by one. I felt quite content as we made the "short" seven hour drive home!

Lake Mead

Feeling both mentally and physically refreshed after my long three week break from racing, I once again have high hopes for the Sea Otter races. Yet another new race to add to the list! I'm looking forward to meeting some of my other teammates as well as some of the Jamis folks that Jason speaks about so often. I just hope I eventually get used to the pace of whirlwind race weekend trips dispersed throughout my medical career!

So Cal NOT So Nice!

Another long road trip to California done! This time we went for the 2nd Pro XCT race of the year held in Fontana. I was definitely ready for some redemption after my performance at Bonelli Park. With my hip healing up well and my sniffing nose and cough all gone, I headed back to So Cal with certain expectations. Brandon and I jumped into the loaded Subaru after work on Thursday and began the long haul. We drove until late in the night and finally could go no further than lovely Barstow, CA! After oatmeal and a chai latte from the trusty Starbucks we trudged on through the misty rain that settled itself into the San Bernardino valley and finally reached our hotel in Ontario. Rotem and Adam had arrived the night before and we all joined up to head over for registration and pre-riding. Being the greenhorn, I had no idea what to expect from this race course or how it would handle the rain. Turns out the rain was a good thing, it made the dirt nearly perfect. I suited up and was ready to rid my legs of the 10 hour drive I had done the night before. Rotem, a great teammate and overall nice guy, offered to show me the ropes on the first lap. He warned me prior to our departure that the climbing started near the beginning of the loop and that it was steep. Boy, I sure did under estimate his definition of 'steep'! After about 5 minutes in, I was in my granny gear "warming up" on about a 20% grade. Rookie mistake #1 of the weekend!

Ok so right off the bat I know that this climb is going to be a giant cluster on the first lap and my position is going to be key. I put that in my mental file of "important things to remember for tomorrow's race". Once we got to the top of the monster climb the trail had a few little rollers followed by a long fun descent. I discovered by surprise that there were two short but very steep shots down sand covered rock that could turn into trouble if I wasn't paying attention. Point #2 for tomorrow's mental file. Other than that, the dirt was tacky and really fun. Thanks to Rotem pointing out a few better lines and the rain calming down a potentially sandy mess, I was feeling pretty excited for the race. I had carefully made the necessary mental notes and was stoked to have a good spot on the call up list. The start list was stacked with the usual "A-listers", but for this race I was more focused on my personal goals and less star-struck than at Bonelli. My nerves were already way more controlled and this course felt way more comfortable.

I slept like a baby and was feeling good on Saturday morning, ready for self redemption. Thankfully, breakfast went down much easier than 2 weeks ago at Bonelli. Amazing how much just getting one race under my belt helped the nerves. Call ups began and I was second row...much better than dead last like Bonelli! I couldn't help but smile, it seemed like so many things that just weren't quite right at the Bonelli race seemed to be great here in Fontana! This was going to be a good race day!

Start of Lap 1

The start whistle sounded and we were off. I held my position as best as I could remembering the 1st important point--position will be key on this first climb! Then, I made rookie mistake #2 of the weekend- I got behind the wrong wheel! Here we were on the first pitch of the long climb and I saw Carolyn and Sarah take an alternate line on the right side. For a split second I considered following but I stayed the course. Crap, wrong decision! I chose the line of girls who were rubbing tires ultimately causing all of us to clip out of our pedals and begin pushing our bikes! Ahhhh, how could I do this? This was one of the keys to my race, hold your position! As much as I told myself to "stay calm, its really early" I could feel my sense of urgency rise when I looked up to see the train of leaders nearing the top. I finally made it back on my bike and managed to climb a bit more only to get caught in traffic again. Erica Tingey and I had both gotten caught this time...2 rookies frantically scraping our way to the top. I couldn't help but laugh after the race when Sarah, Erica, and I sat around recapping our races and Erica jokingly had to remind herself during a suffer-fest that this was no I-Cup race!  Once again, I got a big fat 'welcome to the pros' reminder! We finally got to the top and got to breathe for 2 seconds while we enjoyed some fast flowy descents. Somewhere during the second lap I realized that my shifting was off a bit. It got worse and worse and by the time I got to the descent on the third lap, the shifter for my rear derailleur was able spin a 360 without changing gears-meaning I had 2 gears--Hard and hardest! Rookie mistake #3 of the weekend: Know your equipment and make sure it all works! All the things that had been going well at the beginning of the race had done a 180 and now not much was going right. Problem was, the things that were going wrong, were mostly self-inflicted! I jumped off my bike once I hit the feed/tech zone. Brandon looked at me in dismay. "What?" he blurted out! "I have no shifting. Do you have a tool?" I yelled back! I stood there hoping that from the time I left him at the start til now, he had underwent some transformation from supportive husband to super mechanic! No such luck, even the couple of mechanics who had stuck around the pit had no idea how to fix the problem. We did a run though of all the things we did know how but we could only get the derailleur to move up by a gear or two. There was NO WAY I could climb that hill for the 4th time in that hard of gear. I had to granny it the time before. A race official approached and asked what my status was. I looked at Brandon who was just as disappointed as I. "I'm out, I guess" was the only thing I could say.

Seriously! I had never experienced this in my 3 years of riding...not being able to finish due to crashing, mechanicals, or just plain being lapped by faster riders. We fortunately ran into a friend of ours in one of the team tents, who after tinkering with my bike for a few minutes figured out what had gone wrong. I simple screw had come loose. I DNF'd for a screw-I'm so stupid! He tried to make me feel better by saying that he had never seen this and we wouldn't have known how to fix it anyway. I thanked him and made my way to the car. Disappointment and discouragement! No other way to put it! I shed a few tears, took some deep breaths, and took in the encouraging words from my friends Sarah and Erica. Ok, I've had my crash and mechanical for the year! What I really needed was to finish a race-outright.

Sunday came along and my legs felt pretty fresh considering I only did 3 laps the day before. Goal for the day: finish the race! No mechanicals, no crashes, and don't get pulled! Just finish and not in last place.  I had challenge ahead of me once again starting in last place due to my DNF the day before, and on a course with little room to reposition yourself. But, mission accomplished. I did finish and not in last place. Though not a stellar performace, I finished. I'm officially 0 for 2 on finishing XCO races and 1 for two on short track. I have 3 weeks until Sea Otter, the next Pro XCT. I have a lot of work to do until then. I have to get faster, figure out how to turn off my pain receptors in my legs, and get back to being comfortable on my bike! In the meantime, I'll race the second I-Cup race in Hurricane. I'm hoping it will be a little like comfort food! A comfortable place and the friends with whom I learned to race.

Looking Back but Focused Forward

I've been looking back at the Pro XCT #1 race after having a couple days to digest the whole experience. I must say after reading Jason's post on the Team Jamis website (see link on the left) about the weekend, I couldn't have said it myself. So instead of trying, I'll steal a few of his lines that wrap it up perfectly. 

"Every race is a priority. Not every race can be a top goal but there are no throwaways when it comes to expectations and desire to perform, to push yourself, and to achieve.

So whether its your first pro race ever (for new recruit Kelsy), first XC with a new team (Ben), a wake up call that you’re getting old (Sager) or simply your first XC of the year in your new national champ kit (Rotem) expectations are high. When you don’t meet them – be it from a paper results stand point, or from a personal desire to push yourself – there’s a let down. Not a loss of momentum, but just not the instant feedback we all want as products of modern instant satisfaction.Because no matter how you end up, on paper or within your own journey, its hard work out there."  - Jason Sager    Thanks Jason! 

Start of the Bonelli short track race

Furthermore, on Sunday while preparing for the short track race I received a text from my dad (who has just discovered the text message!). I was once again a ball of nerves and still had a little hangover of disappointment from the previous day's result, but parents are really good at keeping things in perspective. His text simply read: "Eat up everything you are experiencing. Success is sometimes just doing it while giving your best". Just like his subtle messages given in the past, he once again reminded me that the journey is far more meaningful than the destination. This is something I try to hold close to my heart for my life in general, so much that I had a symbol inked on my body for a daily reminder. But as mentioned in the last post, as Brandon's loyal support is sometimes taken for granted while things are easy, the details of achievement (AKA the destination) sometime steal the focus of the big picture.

I guess the simplest result of all this deep thinking comes down to this: I didn't meet my expectations in the XC race, I did better than expected in the super D, and I crashed out of the short track race. My first pro races are under my belt, I learned multiple things in each race, and I'm doing the best I can with my current situation. But I'm not lowering the bar when it comes to personal expectations and therefore need to continue to improve my fitness and bike handling skills to acquire that coveted paper result and at the same time remember keep my focus toward the next race without forgetting to take a look around to appreciate the scenery!

Nurses Jason and Brandon cleaning up my new battle wound!

Short tack wound, Day 2

And That's How the Pros Roll!

Well, its all said and done. I've completed my first race as a pro! Wow! I hate to sound like an amatuer (ha ha) but I am blown away by the pace of the podium racers. I get it, they get paid to ride their bikes, don't have school 5 days a week, and have all been pros as long as I've been racing. However, these girls have some amazing legs and lungs!

The trip started on Thursday as we lolly-gagged our way to Hurricane and stopped for a quick spin in the JEM trail. This was the maiden voyage on a Jamis bike! I was stoked after the bike worked well and my legs felt pretty good. But, all to soon it was back to the van to finish the drive. On Friday we slept in and eventually rolled up to the venue for registration and pre-riding. You know you are a rookie when you get butterflies in your belly just showing up to the venue! After a short stint working on wheel-brake alignment, it was chamios-time and were off to test our legs on the course. After one lap on the short 5K loop I knew I was in for some pain! This course was world cup style- in a city park with short steep climbs and descents, and not a single flat section! Just a bunch of 1-2 minute interval hills. Not my style of riding...especially in March...for my first race! Before I knew it the sun was setting and my days of counting down were over, the long awaited day was upon us.

Saturday morning at 5 am I was wide awake and pumped with adrenaline. I forced myself to stay in bed until 7:15 and could no longer take it so I went downstairs for some breakfast. When we arrived at the venue I was pretty sure I hadn't eaten butterflies for breakfast though my belly begged to differ. I suited up and off to warm-up. The women's field was small, only about 20 of us. However, there were some big names with impressive resumes so I have to admit I was a little star-struck. Call ups began-my name was announced DEAD LAST! Welcome to the pros baby! I glanced down at my heart rate monitor to see that my nerves really were as bad as I thought. My heart was running at a cool 100 beats per minute, more than double my resting rate! Crap, I'm standing here waiting to go with a jacked heart rate and feeling like I'm going to pee in my chamios. The whistle sounded and finally the moment of truth had arrived. The pace was quick right from the start and my legs were burning after the first lap. With three laps to go I was blown, just hanging on for dear life. The course was really hard to find any flow because I was either throttled to the max or descending. With 1 1/2 laps to go I could hear the lead moto closing in - AKA I was about to get lapped! When I had about 1/8 of a mile left I turned around to see Georgia Gould. I had a decision to make 1) Sprint ahead and get to the start/finish ahead of her to suffer through the last lap or 2) step aside and let the champion pass for her celebratory finish and essentially get pulled from the race. I went for #2. I was blown and I still had super D and short track waiting for me. It was really nice when I returned to the team van with my head down and tail between my legs to have Brandon there with open arms just as supportive and proud as any other race. It's something I don't always appreciate when I win, but was essential today.

I sucked down a much needed recovery drink and chowed down some food just in time for the pro men start. Three of my teammates were racing and I was wanted to sit in the feed zone to watch and rest up for super D. The longer I sat in the warm claming sun the less I wanted to suit up for super D. I had already suffered through my first XC race and now I had no idea what to expect from my first super D course. I reminded myself that it would be 10 minutes or less of suffering and then I could go to bed! Sarah Kaufmann and I sat atop the start laughing and chatting which helped calm my nerves. Honestly, I think I was less nervous simply because I was too tired to be. Anyway super D went well. There were fewer girls since only about half of our field showed up. I pushed through the short but hilly course as fast as my legs would allow and I finished with a smile on my face. It was a LONG day and we were all ready for it to end as we packed up the van and headed off to the hotel for a long awaited shower and dinner. On the drive home Sarah called and informed me that I had taken 5th place in the Super D race. Not too bad. It was nice to end the day with some good news.

All in all I had a great experience. I am a little disapointed by the XC result but its early season, it was my first pro race, and I made it out alive! I learned a lot from this race. But maybe most importantly, the fire is now buring strong to get back to training as to progress out of early season shape and into mid-season shape. Thanks for all the texts and calls before and after the race. I'm am truely lucky to have such great family and friends.

Yes, I'm in the granny gear! Jason has already provided a lecture in response to my wimpy-ness!

Brandon, can you pass the Dayquil?

Its been a steady diet of Dayquil/Nyquil over the past few days in the Bingham household.  Had I purchased a large chunk of stock in Vicks prior to the both of us being sick I'm pretty sure I'd own half the company by now. I think we're on the third box of Dayquil and second box of Nyquil and still going strong. Brandon and I are a sorry sight with our continuous symphony of sniffles, sneezes, coughs, and nose blowing. We've each taken a turn spending the night in the extra bedroom trying to be considerate for the other person, realizing that coughing or blowing your nose repeatedly cannot be achieved quietly - no matter how hard you try!

My morning dose of vitamins and cough meds!

I have been sick a ridiculous amount of times since Halloween. For the past couple of months I have been racking my brain trying to figure out why, for the love, have I been sick so many damn times? Honestly! I went years, yes years, without so much as a sniffle. Now I have been getting sick once a month for like 5 months straight. Well, I think I figured it out.

You see my life was pretty stress free up until starting PA school. Everyday I went to work at a simple, stress-free job and rode my bike when I felt like it, took naps- easy peasy! Then things changed when I tossed that carefree life aside for PA school. The first year of PA school I was a mess. Apparently I thought it would be a good idea to take cycling a little more serious at the same time I was going to change careers...for the record, not a good idea! Plus, I had a 2-hour round trip commute to SLC 5 days a week so that I could sit in a classroom for 8 hours a day AND I was a bit remorseful that I had thrown away a career that provided a perfectly good paycheck. Long story short, I cried...a lot! Brandon had seen me shed but a few tears in our five or so years together, so this came a quite a shock to him. However I'm convinced that all my crying was an outlet, although not the best, never the less an outlet for all that "stuff"! I never got sick that first year of school. As my first three semesters quickly passed I adjusted, learned to use the bike a little more as my outlet, and transitioned from the classroom to the clinical setting. I thought I was off the hook, smooth sailing, no more tears of stress- right? Well, this meant long hours in the clinics and hospitals, a masters project, and squeezing in just enough training to upgrade to pro! Well since then, there have been no tears, instead lots of coughs and colds! Damn! I guess the tears were good? I can't bring myself to reverting back in order to test the theory, crying is just not my style. However I'm at the breaking point. If I get sick one more time...I swear, I just might have to have myself a good cry! I willing to try just about anything.

On a more positive note (geez, I'm such a downer today!) Bonelli Park is this weekend. Brandon and I plan on packing up with Jason Sager in the Jamis team van and road trippin' it to California. Sunshine here we come! Not to brag, but the forecast is temps in the 70's and all sun! I can't wait to get out of the winter! Even if it is only for a few days. So, I'll continue to worship the sun and bike gods if my friends will send "get better" vibes in the direction of the Bingham house! Hopefully in conjunction we can put together a successful weekend.