"I think we can see Mexico from here..."

Some people are cranky-pants in the morning. I am not!!

Pictured here to the left is me (and Cynthia's husband...) getting ready for some racing action.

Now I truly hate doing race updates, so I will stick to vital facts.

Time: 7:00am
Place: So close to Mexico we all got texts from our carriers that we were being charged International rates.
Otherwise known as Boulevard...
Temp: 36 degrees
Conditions: Steady heavy rain with standing water and strong winds.
NICE!!!!!!


I have a tendency to over heat on the bike, so i opted for base layer, bibs, jersey, arm and leg warmers and wool socks. Oh, and a produce bag. Its not weird at all...Thanks to Brian M, this thing saved my vital organs.

Serious! The items that i thought i would lose were my feet, hands, and face. No biggies there...

Really though, there were times my whole body was shaking uncontrollably with cold. Maybe that's how my Garmin calculated the 2,800 calories burned.

My face hurt soooo bad because it was being pelted with ice cold rain. I looked at the girls with long sopping wet pony tails and actually thought i had the better end of the deal.

My nose was running uncontrollably and my eyes probably looked like I had been balling. That's hot, I know. But simply breathing hard wreaked havoc on the respiratory system.

Everyone finished safe, barring a few near-death encounters with the front grill of the Border Patrol trucks - LAME-O...

For the first time ever I had a very calculated plan and well, it worked.

Sometimes we set goals. And then we forget about them because they are so far-fetched or take so dang long to come to fruition. Well, four years ago when I got shelled off the back at BLVD, I vowed to win the dang thing. And although I did not remember that pact until I crossed the line, I realize this is something that has pushed me on many levels.

High light of the DAY, better than winning, was having brother Jeremy out on the course with teammate/hommie Tricia. They were giving us splits, encouragement, and cheers. At one point, we had up to 3+ minutes on the field!

Hopefully Tricia's shoulder will be fully healed SOON so i can have a teammate in the pack!!

Oh, my cute outfit for the road sports my FAVORITE coffee shop and local hot spot STELL and the best ever bike shop which i can walk to from work! Redlands Cyclery USA! And a lot of great riders and friends!

Dang, I totally lied about this being short, but I am still refusing to dish on the race itself!!

With 12 minutes to warm-up I realized i had broken my helmet in the car. AWESOME!! That is SOOO pro!! Tricia quickly coughed up hers, because she knew the rain water would wash my sweat out. It worked like a charm!

Also, the kits aren't in yet, so I made a pit stop at Christie's house Thursday night and she ponied up some goods! This is the first bib i have worn and i think i am hooked! It is a size smaller than I usually wear, so i was a bit self-conscious that the side panel no longer said Redlands, but yelled REDLANDS!! Who can really tell at race pace though...

Thank you girls for sharing!!