The bike race that wasn't

On Saturday, my roommate Jessica, our friend Paul and I headed up to north Georgia for the Georgia Games.



As you can see in the banner above, it's sort of Georgia's version of the Olympics. Jess, Paul and I were there for the Road Cycling Championships. Jess and I were riding in Women's Category 4, which was a 38-mile course, and Paul was in Men's Category 4, which was a 53-mile course.

Paul has a truck, so he picked up our bikes at 6:00 AM, and Jess and I rode up there separately in Jess's car so we wouldn't all have to squish into the cab.





We had NO IDEA what we were getting into! When we got there, we realized that we were all way out of our league--Jess and I moreso than Paul. We walked into a parking lot full of expensive bikes, pro racers, and frantic coaches.

We were tragically unmatched. Paul at least had appropriate apparel and shoes; Jess and I were wearing our running shoes and brought CamelBaks! We stuck out like sore thumbs as soon as we exited our vehicles. Even better yet, Jess doesn't have a road bike; she has a hybrid! We practically got laughed off the course before it even started.

Here we are getting ready to roll:





Most of the bikers competing were professionals. We were nearly the only bikers who weren't on teams, and we were probably the only bikers who hadn't been training constantly for months.

Result? Jess and I were dropped from the race in MILE 2. Yep, you read that right. Mile 2. Jess didn't clear the first hill with the main field, and when I told the support vehicles that I was going to slow down and wait for her to catch up, they went ahead and passed me.

Did we let it stop us? HELL NO. Jess and I finished the full 38 miles, not stopping once, and we finished strong. What do I mean when I say we "finished strong"? I mean that we finished the best that we could, and we were hella proud. We raced against ourselves, and, in the end, we still won that thing. 38 miles is a distance record for both Jess and I, and we ended up averaging a few miles-per-hour faster than we usually ride.

We showed up, and we did it. That's more than most people can say! (Thanks to Kristin for reminding us of that!)

Top-5 Lessons I Learned:

• You cannot be daunted by people just because they have better equipment. Anyone with money can buy a fancy bike; it doesn't mean they can use it. Could I have kept up with the main field of pro racers, with their fancy bikes, wheelsets, and shoes? Certainly not for the whole 38 miles, but I could have given them a run, even in my running shoes and toe clips. I have strength, and I have heart. Take that, schmucks who made fun of me!


• You absolutely cannot let people tell you what you can and cannot do. Only you know how much you're capable of, and you're probably capable of twice that much if you really want it. A friend of ours told Jess she wouldn't be able to do 38 miles at all on her hybrid bike. Not only did she do it, but she kicked ass, too.


• You have to push yourself a little to know what you're made of. How will you know how far you can go if you don't try to find that limit? I knew it was probably silly to sign up for a cycling race for a distance I had never done in training. How did I know that I'd be able to race 38 miles? I totally didn't! But I really needed to know if I could, and I knew I'd never find out until I pushed myself out of my comfort zone.


• You've got to know when to hold 'em, know when to fold 'em... You've also got to know what legitimate reasons for folding are. When I didn't see Jess come over the top of the first climb right behind me, I had a choice. I could hold back and wait for her, or I could catch up with the main field and trust that she'd catch up soon. I knew where my priorities were, though. Jess and I hadn't shown up to race the main field and sprint for first at the end--we'd shown up to finish the race. Riding with Jess was much more important.


• You have to own your victories. Yes, you may think that Jess's and my performance at the Georgia Games was embarrassing. Sure, we were dropped in mile 2. Sure, we were repeatedly made fun of by other racers and some of the volunteers and staff. But, Jess and I got up Saturday morning, drove to north Georgia, and finished a 38-mile cycling race. You can't take that away from us.

My unofficial 6th lesson is: Stick to running! Ha! At least for now.

Have you ever shown up to a race and found yourself tragically unmatched with the competition? What did you do?

Gearing up for riding

So, I have 3 exams down, and 1 to go! Law school can be such a pain. I mean, I like it most of the time, and practicing law is going to be much better than what I was doing before (I was a records clerk at an energy company in a previous life), but the schooling part is mega-stressful at the moment!

I took a break from studying yesterday. I had a 24-hour take-home final that I did from Thursday morning to Friday morning (yes, it took me almost the entire 24 hours to complete), so I needed a break from my desk!

I rode out to Stone Mountain and back, which is just over 26 miles round-trip for me. Stone Mountain is a granite outcrop near Atlanta, and there's a bike path that runs from my house to its surrounding park.



First, I had to gear up! I feel like I have a lot of biking gear, but all of it serves a purpose.

First, my Camelbak. I fill it with mostly water, a little ice, and about a cup of Gatorade.



Gatorade freaks me out because of the fake colors and flavors, but I haven't found a feasible cheap alternative yet. When you're biking in 90 degree heat, you need some help with hydration!

Next, of course, my beloved Garmin 305.



It's important for me to keep an eye on my distance and speed because I'm not a very experienced biker (I started just a month or so ago!), and I don't want to burn myself out by pushing too hard or too fast. Getting stuck somewhere between my house and Stone Mountain is NOT an option; those aren't the friendliest of neighborhoods.

Next, ginormous sunglasses and a bondi band.



Yes, yes, the sunglasses might look ridiculous, but they stay on my face the best of all the ones I've tried. They don't slip when my nose is wet with sweat, and the ear parts stay firmly around my ears. I don't mind looking ridiculous! I've tried biking without sunglasses before, but I think it's just not a good plan. Being blinded constantly is quite dangerous!

The bondi band is a wicking headband. Never heard of bondi bands? Check out the website here. They keep the sweat from dripping down my face. I just stick the helmet over it, like so:



All ready to go!



Gear I don't have, but want: gloves, clipless pedals and shoes. To any of you bikers out there, do you think gloves and clipless pedals are totally necessary, or just good to have? Should I invest in them now, or is it okay to put it off for awhile?

I did most of the trail on Wednesday, too, but didn't get all the way to the end because the sun was setting. Yesterday, though, I left early enough to make it all the way to the park and back.

Yesterday's ride was MUCH easier than Wednesday's! I'm not exactly sure why, but I was much more powerful going up hills, and I kept up a much faster speed on the flat parts. I have some theories...

• First, it could be because I had Gatorade mixed in with my water in my Camelbak. You may not think this makes much of a difference, but I think I could actually feel the extra calories coming into my body! I think that helped with my muscle power, especially at the end.
• Second, it could be because I started using my lower handlebars when going up hills. I don't know if y'all use yours on a regular basis, but I just started using mine, and I love them! I feel like it forces me to use a different pedaling motion and thus a different set of muscles in my legs. If I put my hands down and my head down, I can power up hills like I never could with my hands on the top bars.
• Third, I know more about how to use my gears to my advantage. I'm still learning how to ride a bike properly, and that means learning how to choose the best gears for different situations. It's a learning process, and I know more with each ride I go on.
• Fourth, I knew the route better. Each time I ride the path, I know a little bit more about how to best attack it. I know when I need to shift my gears, when I need to be prepared to stop, when I need to drop to the lower bars, etc. It makes the ride much smoother. Many people might think that doing the same route over and over again is boring and tedious, but when you haven't mastered it yet, there's always something new to learn.
• Fifth, I properly carbed-up before leaving. On Wednesday, I hadn't really eaten enough during the day to fuel my body through a 26-mile ride. For me, that costs me about 1,600 calories! Yesterday, I ate properly in anticipation of that sort of calorie burn, and my muscles thanked me. Luckily bike riding isn't like running in that you have to pre-fuel with only foods that sit well in your stomach. However, you do need most of your fuel to be carby so that your body can burn it. My solution? Take-out Chinese food! Bring on the rice!

Anyway, it was definitely more enjoyable!



So, in case I haven't mentioned it yet, I'm going to be doing volunteer work in Haiti from May 12th to May 16th. I wish I could stay down there longer, but my summer classes start promptly on May 17th, so I just had a couple days free. I think it's going to be an awesome experience, and I'm super excited about going!

I hope that I'll be able to post again before I leave, but if I don't, I'll see you on the 16th when I get back!

First bike ride and new running booty!

Today was a bit hectic. I have a (fake) trial on Friday that I (and my witnesses) are tragically unprepared for, so I was working with them and working on the trial all day today.

Note: When I say I'm tragically unprepared, I don't really mean it. I'm a bit OCD and extremely type-A when it comes to work/school, so I mean unprepared by my standards.

Anyway, I decided to go for a bike ride this afternoon (a) to clear my head and (b) to keep my muscles working. I know it's an off day for marathon training, but I have trouble going a day without exercise.

I've been bike training at the gym for the last few months, but today I decided to dust my bike off and go for a real ride!



Isn't she precious? I got her off craigslist last fall. I love me a little vintage Raleigh action. :-)



The bike ride was awesome! It was a bit harder than I expected, but I enjoyed it nonetheless. I just did a 5-mile loop around the neighborhood, which was a nice little bike "snack," as my darlin' calls them. The only downside? Massive gusts of yellow pollen! Have you heard about our dilemma down here in the South? We're having pollen counts in the 5,000 range. Yikes!

This is what one of my roommates' cars. Holy moly!



I came home to the pleasantest of pleasant surprises. MAIL! I'll be the first to admit that I have a bit of an online shopping problem. However, I maintain that everything I bought in this last binge was necessary!

First, I got my Bondi Bands. Yay! No more sweat in the eyes for me! A wicking headband is exactly what I've been needing.



I also got this Gracie top from Bondi Band.



Good points: It has a pocket in the front for your iPod/phone and a loop on the shoulder to feed your headphones through. It's an awesome fabric and really supportive, too. Bad point: It's a little short for me. I have a long torso, and it barely meets the top of my shorts. I can wear it for running, but I can't wear it for biking because it won't cover my back when I'm bending over my bike.

From Running Warehouse, I got these fantastic Brooks Epiphany Stretch Running Shorts. LOVE them.



Also from Running Warehouse, I got two more toys that I haven't tested yet.

A Nike chip for my shoe with a wristband that records the data...



...and a CamelBak! Woohoo!



I'm going to have to do my long runs outside in the Georgia heat come summer because my gym ceases being open on Sundays. 20-mile runs in the Georgia summer? I'm going to need some hydration! Also, I'm going to need it for long bike rides. I've never been as thirsty as I was out on my bike today!

Must. Drink. More. Water.

What do you guys binge on when you have that itch to do some shopping?