RANDOM B-DAY PICS

Happy Birthday part deux

So I get home from work and plan to spend a quiet b-day w/ my hubby..going out to dinner, no big plans. When my hubby arrives, he asks if I want to see my b-day gift. I said sure!..(in my mind I was thinking it would either be bike stuff or a new golf bag I've been eyeing) He can't get the gift downstairs so he leads me up the stairs telling me to keep my eyes shut. I enter the room & lo & behold....a brand spanking new set of women's golf clubs. Not just any old clubs..Adams Golf clubs..complete w/ the hybrid clubs, a big ol driver & everything I need to improve my game.....oh..the set came complete w/ a really cool bag.... I was floored! totally unexpected! I even cried a little....

So off to dinner we went. We ate at this new place downtown called Trio Bistro. I had many co-workers raving about this place so I thought we'd give it a try. It was pretty underwhelming. Places like this are quite fancy..high dollar menu items, blah blah blah..you'd expect the royal treatment when dining at this type of establishment...We ordered our entrees to find out they don't come w/ salad..you have to order that separate. So we ordered the $9.00 Greek Salad and split it. The salad was not so great...they didn't put any dressing on it. Next came the entrees. Hubby ordered a Salmon dish w/ a horseradish vinagrette dressing. The portion was huge and pretty tasty. I had crab stuffed shrimp...this was also good, very filling. The bill came to a total of ...well, let's just say I would never go back to this place. The bill was high for 2 salads & 2 entree's and water!...the service was lacking. When I go to places like this, I want to be wowed! I want to be treated like I'm the best guest ever. This fell far below my expectations. The waitress barely came over to ask how the food was or if there was anything we needed.. She didn't even recommend anything from the menu....underwhelming.

On the way home I got to talk to my dad & his beautiful bride..I told him about my day so far..getting the call from my brother to extend his deepest sympathies on the loss of my youth and so on. Dad asked if we had any other plans..I told him no..we were just going to go home & hang out w/ the dog & call it a night.

We got home & opened the door to the house. The light looked really weird...really dark and I thought something was wrong with the light bulb. Then the eruption of screams & "surprise!!" "Happy Birthday" It actually scared the crap out of me & I went back outside. I headed back in to a room full of close friends singing Happy Birthday!....Tears again...jeez I'm sappy...anywho, my sneak of a hubby planned a surprise party & kept it a secret for a week. Originally he was going to be traveling to Charlotte, NC for a trade show and would have to leave on my b-day. I was bummed out but understood. The plan was to go to dinner Tuesday night. Well Tuesday night came...the phone rang & he took the call outside. When he came back in he said "guess what?" I said "You don't have to go to Charlotte!" He said..I still have to go..but not on your birthday...so we can celebrate on the regular night. Little did I know that he had concocted this story to not have to go to Charlotte. and he had all of our friends in on it! How they kept it a secret from me, I'll never know. I kept asking everyone where they parked because I did not see any cars on our street.

What a great day!...I never expected to be getting a brand new set of clubs..let alone having a surprise party to boot! Wow! I'm still a bit overwhelmed but really enjoyed this milestone day! Once I get pics up I'll post em'

Well, gotta run..I'm tired & now that I'm older, I need my beauty sleep.

Hippo Birdie Two ewe

Happy Birthday to me
Happy Birthday to me
Happy Birthday dear me-e
Happy Birthday to me....

Today celebrates a milestone b-day for me. I've been pretty low key all day..then some co-workers found out & had to sing to me at the tops of their lungs. It was fun seeing the reaction on their faces when they found out my true age! Biking keeps you young.

Heading to Sugar Mtn NC this weekend to watch the pro guys and gals duke it out at the NORBA nationals. The course is 3 miles straight up & 3 miles straight down. I don't see how they handle the climbs..but then again they're paid to ride! Hope to have pics up after the event.

Off to eat some b-day cake!

Commonwealth Games Race Report

Carvins Cove…Sunday, July 15

Today was going to be a big test for me…it was my first single speed race ever! I tried to stay hydrated all week and rested as much as I could the day prior to the race. The morning of the race I was a bag full of nerves. I couldn’t figure out why I was so nervous…it’s my “home” course, I’ve ridden the trails tons of times, I was probably going to be the only single speed female so all I needed to do was finish.

I thought the nerves would go away during my warm up but they never subsided. I ventured out on the road and immediately noticed something was not quite right with the bike. I thought it was an underinflated tire…checked the tires..everything was ok. I rode a little further and discovered my fork had completely lost all of it’s air! Oh Crap….I spun back to the parking lot & had my hubby do a little last minute maintenance. We got it re-inflated so off I went to finish the warm up. The weather was quite toasty..high humidity and temps near 90 degrees.

I came back to the starting area where we waited for 10 minutes while the experts were escorted down the road in the neutral start. The nerves were still there & I was not having a good feeling about things. I knew I had to pace myself because I’d have to ascend the 1000’ climb in 1 gear….the “pace car” came back & off we went. I hung with the group for most of the way but I had to spin myself silly to do it. About 500 yards from the entrance to the Cove, the group got away from me. I was killing myself trying to keep up so I decided to let up a bit to save some energy.

Through the gate, onto the fireroad and hard left onto Songbird. I kept 5 riders in my sites through Songbird. I absolutely love this trail. It’s not too hard and has a good flow to it. I zipped through all the downhill sections, and came out on the fireroad to make the hard right to continue down to Tuckaway. I got really confused because I thought the trailhead would come up quicker than it did….In fact, I turned around & pedaled back about 20 yards before I turned back around to get my bearings. The worst part is I helped mark the course so I should have known where this turn was. I pedaled in the correct direction & saw a couple riders up ahead turn down Tuckaway. I thought I could still hang with them so no worries. Through Tuckaway to lower Comet. I was flying through lower Comet..starting to feel ok when all of the sudden WHAM! Somehow my handlebars clipped a tree and I went slamming hard into the ground. It happened so fast that I was still clipped into the bike. I landed hard on my left knee & shoulder. It took me a minute to get clipped out of the bike. I had to be careful with my shoulder because I hit the ground with such force I was scared I may have done some serious damage. I moved my arm & it felt sore but not broken. I got back on the bike but had bllood dripping from my knee & I was feeling a little dizzy (I think I hit my head but I’m not sure)…

I came through to the fireroad. Donny & my hubby were cheering for me…I was laughing at my crash & they said I wasn’t far behind . On to the dreaded 1000’ climb. As I started the climb I was feeling a bit tired and overheated. I tried to keep drinking all the way up. Out of the saddle, in the saddle,,,on I trudged. I saw 2 sport guys just up ahead..I pedaled on but I did not feel strong. I think the early morning nerves & the recent crash were sapping my energy..not to mention the heat. Tuesday when I prerode, I was much stronger….I caught one of the sport guys & asked him if he wanted to trade bikes….he said “no deal”…rats!!...On I went…I almost caught the second rider as we entered the trailhead for Hemlock Tunnel (aka Clownhead)…The top of this trail is loose and rocky & full of ruts. I was proud of myself because I rode most of the top. I only had to walk about 20 feet or so. Down the steep section, through the lower woods. My legs felt heavy…like I could never really get them going. Almost to the end of Clownhead, I had another crash. Somehow a giant stick got caught between my fork & front wheel & slammed me to the ground..this time on the other side. Ouch!! I sat there for a good minute, frustrated at my ride and puzzled how this stick ended up in my wheel. I hopped back on the bike but I could tell the rest of the race would be a struggle to just finish.

I turned up the road to head towards Comet. There’s a wicked climb along this road which I had to walk. I turned down Comet & descended. I rode this very clean. As I continued to plod on all I could think about was laying down and taking a nap…right there on the trail! I was sooo drained. I tried taking in my gel..but it never kicked in.
I just could not get it going today. The heat was getting to me to. I kept drinking. I did not want to have another Danville incident (heat exhaustion) I continued on, remembering the spot I crashed on the first lap & took care to stay away from that tree!

Back to the fireroad & up the 1000’ climb for the second time. I had to walk about 100 yards towards the top because I was just exhausted. I was dizzy & my head was pounding. I wasn’t having fun & contemplated quitting altogether. I stopped at the trailhead for the Four Gorge (connector trail) and drank some water. I just wanted to get it over with at this point. I hopped back on the bike & rode Four Gorge. There were spots I was walking because I had nothing left in my legs. I came to the bridge crossing where Smiley & Brian were doing bike passing duty. As I rode away I heard hammering..Brian was also doing bridge work!! Too funny! On to Hi Dee Ho for the last descent. I think this was the fastest part of my race…I passed my buddy Jen (who got a gold for beginner women –CHICKYs ROCK!) I muttered something about the race not going so well…finally to the finish. My clock had my ride time at 2:04:00 the timers had it at 2:07:00…must have started early from the gate or something. AWFUL.. I was sooo disappointed…I really wanted to do better than this but it was not my day. I was thankful to just finish. Heat & racing are not a good combination for me.

I went back to the vehicle & stretched. My buddy Jen came over & tended to my wounds..my hand was tender from the fall so she hooked me up w/ some ice. She also took a pic of my bloody knee for posterity reasons (I think)….ewwwww. Thanks to El Toreo for hooking us up with some wonderful food..thanks to all the volunteers who put in a lot of effort in getting the course marked & ready to and for cheering us on. I medaled but it was only by default….there were no other chickys crazy enough to go out there on a Single Speed. Oh well, at least I can say I did it!....

Commonwealth Games Pre ride

Chris Clark (fellow team El Toreo member) and I pre-rode a portion of the XC course in preparation for the Commonwealth Games Cross Country race at Carvin's Cove this Sunday. I wanted to see how bad the 1000' climb to Hemlock Tunnel (of death...aka..Clownhead) would be on the Single. The climb itself wasn't so bad.. We got to the top of Hemlock Tunnel in 25 minutes..that's moving for me. The top of the trail is very sketchy. In past years I have been able to ride it..this year..I'm gonna walk it. The trail is very washed out with lots of loose, big rocks. I'd be quicker running it than trying to kill myself staying on the bike. I was able to do the rest of Hemlock Tunnel no problem...we then ventured on to Comet...I forgot about a couple of the tough climbs on this trail. I walked those as well. We went back up 1000' climb to the Connector trail (Four Gorge)..this trail is a ton of fun running from the 1000' climb. I'll be able to make up time at the end given the flow of the trail. It wasn't too bad of a ride..but it helped me finalize my decision about the Omnium in the Commonwealth games...I'm only doing 1 of the 2 races. I'm gonna try the singlespeed on the XC course. There's no way I could climb for 30 minutes the first day, then ride 18+ miles the second on the Single. Today I'm exhausted and my legs feel like rubber. I think the heat also played a factor in my fatigue today. It was around 90 yesterday & high humidity when we rode. Hubby is going to race too..but he's doing the hill climb on his Single...So I guess it will be "team Schimizzi" on Singlespeeds..just different days. Stay tuned for results.....

Single Speedin' at the Cove

They’re trying to kill me!.....

That’s what I thought to myself as I ventured out on the Thursday night Carvin’s Cove Ride. I took the “Hottie”..that’s my Kona Explosif reincarnated as a Single Speed now. I’ve got a sticker on it that says “Hottie”…Anywho…we started out the road, on to Comet, through Enchanted forest, on to Schoolhouse/Little Bell, then Arrowhead backwards. I was doing ok for the most part but felt like the pace was really, really fast. At one point on Schoolhouse, I looked down at my average speed and it was about 9.5 miles per hour!..that’s cookin! I thought is was because I had the Single Speed & I’m normally faster on that..but not 9.5 mph average fast!...I was ok until we started heading up Arrowhead in the opposite direction!...the first part is really loose rock & sand..I was spinning all over the place. Then through a big creek crossing, up another couple of huge hills, more creeks, more hills. The group was long gone and all I could think was that they are trying to kill me. The hills are “doable” on my geared bike but on the Single Speed it’s a whole different enchilada. I walked a lot of the steep hills b/c I did not want to blow out any knees or anything. That would be messy.

I caught back up w/ the group..My hubby mentioned he wasn’t feeling too good. I said it was probably because of the hammering pace he was setting. I think it’s an innate thing w/ men that whenever they get in a group & ride, they have to go fast to outdo one another. They don’t even realize they’re doing it. It’s weird.. Oh well..

We continued on to Songbird in the opposite direction. This direction is fun but a bit more challenging because there’s more climbing involved. After Songbird we went back up the fire road, to the 1000’ climb, to Four Gorge, back to the vehicles. Phew! I was tired. I definitely get more of a total body workout on the Single than I do on the geared bike. I’m enjoying the Single Speed for the most part..I may even race it this year…stay tuned……