Spring Break, BABY!!!

I never really DID spring break in college, but this year, i am going to live it up! The number one, top of the list perk of being a teacher is ALL THE HOLIDAYS!! With graduate projects turned in and the office door locked, let the good times roll.


HIGH LIGHT OF THE WEEKEND: ERIC DAVIS!!!! nOw this is a myspace site, which i am totally anti!! BUT, Christie and i went to the end of the Redlands Classic on Sunday just in time for the start of the Handcycle race. YOu guys have GOT to check out Redlands Classic Gallery for criterium photos, Eric is the girl with the yellow bike, blond hair.



I was SOOOO stoked to walk to the line and hear her name called. She was a year behind me in undergraduate school, a PE major like me. Since then, she has become paralyzed from the waist down, her myspace explains more. It was awe-inspiring to watch her fly around the course, by only the strength of her upper body!

This VERY small picture is of Tyler Blackwelder (l) and Willie Stewart. Tyler and i go way back to working at summer camp in northern Idaho, then playing basketball for the same college. He coordinated getting the Handcycles into the RBC, and Willie heads up a foundation called Team PossAbilities - awesome, check it out

These are the Handcycle guys out on the grueling time trial course!!

Emily Van Meter, pro mountain biker and New recruit to Bear Naked Cannondale, tackling the Time Trial at the Redlands Bicycle Classic. I love it when people i know are racing, and she did awesome! 33rd General Classification when it was all over, not bad for an event that began with 117 top pro road women in the country!!

























ON A PERSONAL NOTE:.....tHE Mountain biking season began today in San Dimas, CA for myself and the rest of the local racing crowd. The prerace jitters were exceptionally high for everyone. There were many wild cards entering the scene, and speculations of covert training ops by more than a few.

Things ended up going pretty well. This event was a break through event personally, which just proves that getting actual sleep, eating well, and training in a cohesive manner, really does pay off! The conditions were perfect with hard packed trails even though the sun was beating down quite severly through the layer of smog.

It was awesome to see everyone again, it always feels like a high school reunion. Carolyn was even back from the east coast and the new upgrades to expert, Vanessa and Stacey did an awesome job. The pace of starting with the pros is shocking every time! Such a different ball game.

Thursday, it is off to the Phoenix area for a bit of national racing! Yehaw!

freak on a leash: Jason enjoying his time as i was out tearin up the dirt!

Spinning Wheels

Fightin' for the red team. So far, my new most favorite bike.
By Monday I will be sporting the new COLE wheels, made out of Organic Carbon, whatever that is. They are under my desk right now, but they need brakes and cassette to be runable.

Comedy of Errors

I think i read that book in high school, or at least the ClifNotes.




Sometimes things just aren't meant to be. Nothing huge goes down, nothing horrific derails the plans, it is just a steady stream of small pebbles that collect, and knock you gently off your path. If you look at them one by one they are omens or nuggets of direction, you choice to pick them up.


Ok, so i left my helmet at home on day two for the stage race, thus not racing and getting bumped out of the event.

The whole thing ended up for the best i feel, now focusing on the start of the REAL season at Bonelli park next weekend for Cal State Mountain Bike race #1!


New Rule: When riding the Postal Loop or anything in Angeles Oaks that can be accessed via Lock Leven, i must ride from the house. This is 3 mile one way, 10 minutes to get to the trail head, 30-40 minutes to get back, depending on how extreme the center action was.





Dinner: Hay bales and green sticks. Actually, Shredded Wheat Cereal and grilled asparagus. yum.





BBQ; We have been cleaning the yard! The summer kitchen is looking better and better and with the warmer temps, HUGE options of dinner on the patio!!


CLimbing: Many people ask me what Jason does when i am out training, racing, or driving around to the two affor mentioned activites. From time to time he will join me on a ride. But, he has found that Frustration Creek (and no that is not the name of a ride with me) is a 5 minute drive from our house with some "epic" climbing. These photos were taken yesterday with his friend Jason. Looks too high for me! Plus, i wouldnt want to hurt my delicate hands.

The PETS: Photo #1 Timbers first week at home.

Photo #2 Yesterday, under the table. He has a lot more growing to do too!

Big, Squishy, Liars

The weather guys, that is. They said this weekend would be cool, high seventies max. Today clocked a high of 98 on the 10 freeway, not a good way to start a stage race.


San Dimas Stage Race: The fact that the word stage is used, means i have to go back, and then go back again. This particular event is on the road, which could quickly become a four letter word.

TT: That means Time Trial for you non-bikers. It is over, not as fast as i hoped, not as slow as it could have been. 30/47 which means i am still alive and can fight another day.

Tomorrow is a road race which should be quite the cardio fest, followed by a crit on sunday. The only thing that scares me is that the crit is sponsored by a hospital. Go figure.

I just keeping thinking that my actual season has not even begun yet, so just chill.

Bike Fit: Yesterday i got my bikes fit, which created this huge question mark in my mind for what could have actually happened last season. A lot of things were fixed and many more were braught to my attention to fix on my own. Unfortunately, due to poor timing, this took place yesterday, filling my head with way too much information today and forcing me to ride in a position i have never felt before. Better now than later i guess.

The Team Redlands boys in the form of Trevor, Matt, Jeremy and then guys i dont know, are also doing the event, so i can at least see a few familiar faces as i traverse the roads between the starting line and the finish flop on the ground. I must say, this road scene is pretty crazy and very, extremely, emensley different from that of the mountain bike world. I will hold my head high with my mountain helmet, mountain shoes covered with dirt and speckled with my last nose bleed and home that nobody notices my down hilling gloves. Actually, it is too hot to wear those, but i can only find one of my "I look like a roadie gloves" so now the hunt is on!

Chaos, Joy Style

LACK OF TALENT, TALENT SHOW:
sO, I work at this school and we had a talent show on Saturday night. The theme was the 60's and well us teachers all had to do an act. Now i got ASSIGNED.......did not choose, never would have, Puff the Magic Dragon to perform with Dozer. Lets just say he did NOT want to wear wings, but he did wear the horns, although he was moving so quickly, nobody really got a good shot of him.

The Plan: To minimize pets exposure to the masses, i skipped out Little Red Riding Hood style with a basket of flowers. I held up a sign that said "Have you Seen my Dragon?" and looked out into the crowd. Then i had two girls run behind me screaming and flaling their arms, running from, the Dragon. Then Jason let Dozer go, and he was supposed to come to me. This is when the plan went south. He ran everywhere. The guy with the spot light followed my chase around the gym as we finally ended on the cat walk, where he would perform NONE of the tricks we had practiced. We quickly made an exit through the nearest door.

But come on, Dragons arent supposed to do what they are told. And i dont think Puff was a good Dragon, at all.
And yes, tht is my outfit!

Photo Thief

Nothing too grand is going on in my Villa, so i stole pictures from my brothers blog! This Suzanne and Pet #4 I can't remember his name, but he is the new one that rings a bell when he needs to go out and pee. BUt the cool thing is she had her own room in the hospital she actually works in with a heap of flowers and the pet was allowed. That is the coolest thing ever!! It seems she also got to wear "normal PJ's" which is always a plus!

This is a shot of their back yard, you can't really see the detail, but they put in an "Aspen grove" and created quite the dog sanctuary with flag stone laid as a path to get there.


Suzanne graduated with her nursing degree in December!