Portsmouth

On Sunday I headed to Portsmouth for the final crit of the season. It's always a fun race and Susanne Delaney does a great job of promoting it. I got lucky number 13.



The race itself was pretty hard. I managed to hang in with the pack but didn't have the juice to move around much or stay in front. I had a bad feeling going into the penultimate corner on the final lap: it was off-camber, leading people to drift off their lines, and we hadn't taken it very hard on previous laps. I was next to Sam when she went down (fortunately no serious injuries) and briefly locked up my rear wheel when I slammed on my brakes in the turn to avoid her. I still managed to finish in the pack though for a very satisfying end to the season.

Afterwards I got a chance to walk around Portsmouth and chat with JD. Here he is hard at work while the men's race finishes.



David Rizzo posted some photos of the women's race on Flickr.

Swimming, swimming, in a swimming pool

So, I went last night to try out Minuteman Masters on new swimmer orientation night. I thought there would be more talking/touring, but instead we did a shortened workout (probably 1500m). Of course I should have gotten in the pool for a few weeks in advance to get ready, but instead this was the first time I'd swam (with the exception of a few days in 2003 after my shoulder separation) since 1995/96. Because I am a procrastinator like that.

Back then, I swam for a few months for the age-group team at Hickam AFB, where I was the only swimmer old enough to drive. I also swam briefly during my freshmore year in college with the age-group team that practiced at the same pool as the Univerity of Hawaii team. I was never fast enough to get out of the slowest time bracket in any of the events, but I remember really enjoying it.

I think the practice went pretty well, though it took me a long time to feel comfortable breathing. Things got better after the coach helped me make small adjustment that stopped the "OMG I'm drowning" feeling during backstroke. There's nothing like being in a group to make you push yourself. There is no way I would swim 1500m or do stroke drills or use a kickboard on my own. I'll probably sign up officially next week. I'm very slow but my stroke mechanics are okay. Though we didn't do fly and I'm pretty sure I will need to relearn that from the ground up. Not that I was ever able to swim more than 50 yds of fly at a time anyway.

The practices are at Hanscom AFB, which means I have to drive at 14 mph everywhere to be safe. The Air Force takes traffic safety VERY SERIOUSLY.

I'd totally forgotten what it's like to exercise with my upper body. I could barely lift my arms after we were done. In fact, I think my left pec is actually SWOLLEN. Ow.

What next?

The track season wrapped up with a Sunday full of racing (Sept. 7) and one final Wednesday night (Sept. 10). The Sunday races in particular were so much fun. I had a great day and posted the fastest flying 200m time for the women. I had some decent results in the many events of the day: 500m, scratch race, points race, team pursuit, match sprints, and keirin. It was pretty tiring and many days later I still did not feel recovered.

Below is a video of one of my first attempts at keirin a couple weeks ago. It took me a little while to warm up to it but it's actually pretty fun. (Thanks for the video, Mark Bowen.)

Last week I did what was probably my final group ride of the year. Even though the CRW groups started at 5:30 p.m., we barely finished before dark, and the crowd was pretty small. This Sunday will be my final crit of the season.

Up next, of course, is cyclocross. I was registered for my second race of the season last weekend but wimped out because I hate riding in rain and mud. So we'll see how long my 'cross season lasts. ;) Obviously I'm not really committed. True 'crossers love the mud.

I've been trying to think of other things to do to keep myself busy in the off-season. I've picked up a knitting project (finally, my sister will be so pleased) and have been devouring books. Two recent faves are Heat and Sweet and Low: A Family Story. I'm looking into joining a swim team (I tore the house apart last night trying to find a swimsuit I purchased in 1998) and I even bought a cheap compass so I can try out orienteering. Sadly, I'm not so great at self-directed exercise; I'm hoping that having a plan to be someplace for a specific event will spur me on.

Blunt Park

Again, we have some belated blogging. The day after D2R2 Ed and I did a 'cross race in Blunt Park in Springfield. It seemed like a good idea when we pre-reged and less so after we finished up D2R2 with cooked legs on Saturday. But we raced and both felt much better and had more fun than we expected.

Sadly this the best picture I got of Ed because I didn't know about the "sports mode" setting on our camera.



Before the race, I saw Laura Shuford, who remains one of the very nicest people I've met through bike racing. It seems to me like just yesterday that she was pulling me around during the circuit race at Green Mountain after we both got dropped (she because of a mechanical, me because I was out of shape). But it was not yesterday; in fact she now has three kids. The oldest is 5 and the youngest is 1. Wow. It was wonderful to see her again and meet her gorgeous children.

After that I had the luck to be near Meg when Eric Marro offered to do a lap of the course and show us the good lines, hazards, etc. This was super helpful and made me feel more confident about the twistiness and frequent dismounts. In fact the course was kind of like a clinic for 'cross skills.

I lined up next to a woman with a figure-eight shoulder brace on. She told me that she had a broken collarbone and that if she crashed again, she would have to have surgery. So my mission was to get as far away from her as possible so that I would not in any way be responsible if she crashed. I rode as hard as I could and was pleased that the mounts/dismounts went okay, though I had trouble steering my bike through all the twists and turns. But I was pretty happy with how it went.





Here's a picture of Ed taken as we were packing up. I love it when he wears this shirt.

D2R2

Finally I've got some time for my D2R2 report. Having never done a randonee or a long-distance off-road ride, I developed a mild obsession with equipment. What should we use? I consulted with MegA and Kerry and studied photos on MegA's blog and Solobreak. I learned a bit about rando bikes from my friend Robert, who recently did a 200k randonee on an IF fixed gear one day after he had surgery on his elbow.

I ended up ordering a pair of Michelin Dynamic tires for my 'cross bike in 700x28 on Kerry's suggestion. Ed used the ride as an excuse to order a long-wanted compact crankset for his 'cross bike. After reading this report, Ed suggested that we put the Dynamics on the front wheels of our bikes and Ritchey Speedmaxes on the back. We also used Rock Shox seatposts. We both had a low gear of 34x27. I used my road shoes and pedals since I knew those were dialed in and comfortable for long rides. And of course I borrowed some King cages from another bike. They're very durable and non-marking. We ended up being pretty happy with our equipment choices, although I wouldn't have minded an easier gear at points.

I made a very simple map holder with a ziploc bag and binder clips, which I would not recommend. Every time I hit a bump the clips let go. Ed's navigation system, based on Meg's from last year, was very useful and refined. He turned the cue sheet into a long strip of paper, then took a paper towel tube and cut two slits in it. He taped chopsticks to each end of the paper and fed the paper through the slits. He covered everything with plastic wrap and sealed the ends with packing tape to make it waterproof, then attached the tube to his brake cables with electrical tape.



The gear obsession was of course not really necessary. We saw a variety of bikes, all of which were successfully ridden to the end of the course as far as I know. A selection:

• - Mountain bike with smooth tires and an old-style aero bar
• - Cyclocross bike being ridden by a triathlete in a tiny tri suit (no pockets) with bottle ejectors. Guess who picked up one of the bottles and cages when it was duly ejected on the final descent.
• - Full-on rando bikes, leather flaps on the end of the fenders, Brooks saddles, riders with lots of facial hair and stuffed, saggy wool jersey pockets. Mustachioed men with mustache bars.

We saw some road bikes as well but the majority of people were on 'cross bikes with low-profile 'cross tires.

So finally, on to the ride. The first section was brutal: 12.7 miles, 2240' climbing. The climbs were pretty loose and by the time we got to the top of the climb before the first control my back was killing me. I found some old aspirin or something like that in my seat bag. Yum. Just before the first control we saw and heard a man bagpiping in his front yard.



After the first control we headed up into Vermont. Ed got these photos before and after the state line.





The second control was at the covered bridge on the Green River back in Massachusetts. Lots of great food at this stop. We corrected our roadie error of overinflating our tires and felt much better afterwards. (I also got a nice compliment on the team kit. Thank you, Brad Sheehan!)





After the bridge it was flat for 10 miles and I felt great. :) We passed a sheep who was hanging out alone in a yard, right up by the fence, baaing at us in a very territorial manner as we rode past. He was like a dog in sheep's clothing. We got to the third control, Apex Orchards, and enjoyed the tastiest peaches I've ever had.



The ride to the finish had a section that the cue sheet described as a "gnarly descent." It was in fact gnarly and I had to get off my bike a couple times because I was too tired to pick the right line. We got back onto roads that looked familiar and I was so excited to finish. Here I am covered with dirt. And I did not at any point fall off my bike.



The verdict: it was better than Cats! I would ride it again and again.

The numbers:

• - 5 25-ounce water bottles consumed (4 Heed including 12 servings of Endurolytes powder, 1 Sustained Energy)
• - 2 packages margarita Clif Shot Blox
• - 63.75 miles
• - 7780 feet of climbing
• - 5:20 ride time
• - 6:14 elapsed time (6:40 time limit)
• - 2 happy riders

My husband, the coffee snob

As we walked back during low tide from Salt Island to Good Harbor Beach in Gloucester, we walked past some Dunkin' Donuts cups. I stopped and turned around to pick them up. It was disgusting, but I am still the person who did a project on plastics killing marine mammals for the science fair in 7th grade.

me: I was going to leave them, but then I thought they might wash out to sea and I felt bad.

Ed: Yes, that's a tough call.

me: Really?

Ed: Does saving the planet outweigh the risk of being mistaken for someone who drinks Dunkin' Donuts coffee?

In the money

Yes, I was 10th, and yes, it was $20, but I was still pretty happy about my race at the Gate City Cyclone Crit last Saturday. The field was completely dominated by two teams, so I resisted the urge to chase anything down and instead concentrated on riding smoothly and feeling comfortable in the corners. Done and done. With one to go I tried to poach the NEBC train but I moved up too early. We got swarmed and I was too far back when the field sprint started, but like I said I'm still happy. It was a real confidence booster.

On Saturday night we headed to CT for an early birthday dinner for my sister-in-law, Liz, and a nice visit with the in-laws. I went to do the Tokeneke RR just 8 miles from my MIL's house. We were with the 55+ guys which made for a huge field (50 women, 20 guys). I went to the front figuring I might as well pull to Beach Rock Road if I could since I always get dropped there. However it was not totally downhill for that first 8 miles as I remembered. :) I made it about halfway and then stayed at the back, getting stuck behind some guy who locked up his rear wheel apropos of nothing just before the turn onto Beach Rock, a nasty, bumpy climb. After that I was alone and tried to ride my own pace. I really don't enjoy the climbing though. 2400 ft/22 mile lap, x2. It's all up or down. Around mile 15 I saw Ed riding around. He rode next to me to the start/finish and then I dropped out. I got the camera and we got some pics of my teammates while riding the course in reverse.

I've ridden by this building numerous times and it was fun to finally stop and take a look. It's part of the Saville Dam.



I was really suffering by the time we finally finished and seriously questioned whether I have the endurance for D2R2. But we kept checking the forecast and it's not going to be raining (fingers crossed) and we got some new equipment and we're going! I think it's going to be fun. Or at least, very bloggable.