My First Patrol

Wednesday June 25.

I headed out for my first patrol of Mill Mountain. Met Jen at the house to show her the new/old house, Gretta greeted her in the usual, spastic, I don't get any attention, way. We headed out through the neighborhood, up some alleys, through Wasena Park, on to Ferncliff Park. We had to walk the little section of Chestnut Ridge, then onto Fishburn Pkwy and from there to Woodthrush trail. We zoomed along Woodthrush...this trail is so much fun to ride. Fairly wide open, not many technical sections. We paused for a photo opp to show we were patrolling.

Nice Socks!

We headed down the remainder of Woodthrush onto Lower Star. This lower section really needs to be multi use as it is very wide & you can see far enough ahead in case you need to dismount. We hiked up the remainder of lower star to the parking area off of Fishburn Parkway. From here we debated on what to do. Neither of us was feeling great so we knew climbing Monument would not be an option this evening. We decided to head down to Sylvan Road, then climb back up to Car Trail...I mean Big Sunny Trail. I was climbing at a turtle's pace..I think Jen almost plowed into me I was so slow. We hopped on to Ridgeline or Riser..(I get the names confused)& got to the switchbacks. I coudn't do the first left hander so I moved to the side. Jen came riding up & cleared it like a pro! Wow...Where did that come from? Someone has been practicing her skills. Off she pedaled to leave me in her dust. It was ok..I needed a little break.

We continued up and came to the next right hand switchback. Once again, Jen the pro mountain bike chicky cleared it!....I've never seen her clear both in the same ride. It was awesome. I know I have switchback work to do!

...As we pedaled on we commented on how there was no one to Educate, Assist or Inform....as the placards on on bikes instruct us. As we pedaled out of Zoo Poo (Ridgeline) we happened upon a wayward turtle. I almost slammed into the back of Jen b/c she stopped so quickly to assist mr/mrs turtle. Here was our opportunity to educate, assist, and inform. Jen let the turtle know he/she was on a busy thoroughfare for mountain bikes & it would be best to stay to the edge of the trail so he/she didn't become the main ingredient for turtle soup. We asssited the turtle in getting safely to the edge of the brush. We informed him/her we'd be back to check on it. It was pretty funny. The turtle just looked at us like we were crazy.

We climbed up the path to the Star. It was pretty busy for the middle of the week. Probably 25 people or so in the 5 minutes we were up there. We met a firefighter from Turbeville (home of VA canteloupes)...Took some pics & headed back down the mountain. We had to avoid wayward turtle b/c he/she did not listen to us. We took a slight detour to go up the path to the zoo. Jen asked me if I knew there was a time capsule buried there. I said I never knew that...but then again have lived here for 10 years & have never set foot in the zoo either. We pedaled over to the time capsule. I took a couple of pictures.

Then we headed back down zoo poo to the four way. We then took monument trail the rest of the way. We encountered 2 other bikers on their way up. I knew who they were so they would not need any help from us. We zoomed down the rest of monument, back out on pavement, then headed past the hospital to the greenway.

While going through the hospital Jen said hello to a coworker who's shift was ending. We decided to check out the progress on the bridge which Carilion was building.

While were were hanging out we ran into a couple of guys who work for the railroad. We discovered one of them knows Jen's dad who recently retired from the railroad. Small world. We bid them adieu and pedaled back the greenway/neighborhoods to return home. It was a great ride. We did close to 17 miles when it was all said & done.

Burn - 24 hour race D List Team final standings

I went back out for another lap in the morning hours. After I completed the lap we were trying to determine how many more rotations the team would get in before the 11:59 a.m. cut-off. We were in contention for 7th place with another team. As we gathered more information on the results, we learned the other team was 20 minutes ahead of us in time and they planned on sending another rider before the cut off. We knew we could not make up 20 minutes so after hubby did his last lap, we called it quits.

Turns out we secured 8th out of 23 (?) teams in our division and we wound up 21st of 115 teams. Not to shabby for a bunch of 24 hour race rookies. Our saving grace was the RV and the fact we went into the race with no expectations except to have fun! I would definitely do another 24 hour race..provided I had a hooked up RV w/ a nice warm bunk and a great team.

Burn 24 hour Race - next report

After lap one concluded, I headed back to the RV to refuel & rest. I refueled with something..can't remember what it was..either pb&j or some type of energy bar. Then I laid down in the bunk to put my feet up for about an hour or so. When it was time for hubby to get ready for his lap, I decided to start getting ready for mine as well since I followed him in the rotation.
Got some more food, hyrdated, changed back into my riding junk & warmed up. My warm up consisted of riding around the pea gravel track & also riding up & down this hill which led into the campground. Hubby came through & handed me the baton . This was a much better lap because I had a feel for the course & the legs were ready. Surprisingly my legs felt better than they did prior to my first lap. Maybe riding helped get whatever junk was in them from the previous week. At the beginning of the lap, I still bobbled on the rock section covering the culvert. This was to be my nemesis all weekend on the course. I could do all of the other rock gardens which were more technical than this one. I don't know what it was about this spot but I just could not ride it.
I was able to pass a few riders this lap, thus maintaining or gaining position from my teammates earlier efforts. Towards the second half of the lap, I was trailed by a solo dude. He recognized my team taco jersey & we chatted for a bit. Turns out he reads hubby's blogs pretty regularly and when he asked my blog name, he recognized me as well. It's always fun to run into people who know you by your blog. Sometimes it can be a little unnerving but for the most part it's cool.
Nothing eventful happened in lap 2..I raced a clean lap and felt a little stronger. Passed the baton off to Skippy & headed back to the RV for more rest, refuel. As I rested in the RV, one of the gals put in a DVD to watch. I wish I hadn't watched the movie because it caused a song to get stuck in my head for lap 3. Alvin and the Chimpmunks Christmas song!!!!! AAAAAAAH....I still want a huuuuula hooop. It was a cute movie though.

Lap 3 would take me into the night. Somehow I ended up w/ the dusk lap. Riding into the evening w/ the transition from day to dusk has always been a challenge for me. I don't see very well at night to begin with. The transition time always seems darker for me. For this lap I decided to don my flower bra (Over my jersey of course). I was also going to wear my grass skirt but it kept getting caught in my spokes. Got my light ready, refueled & warmed up. HUbby passed the baton & off I went. As I started my lap some folks from another tent hollered "go get 'em girl!"...that was cool b/c I don't know who these folks were but they were cheering for me. Lap 3 was also a good lap for me. I don't think I was as fast as lap 2 because once nightfall came, the lines got really weird. I mentioned the log jumps & rock gardens on the second half of the course...if you weren't careful, you would end up on top of a log jump where you didn't want to be but the lines took you right to them. I ended up on a couple of bad lines and had to dabble to get back on track. The night time transition really slowed me down as well. I still was able to pass some folks though. Most of the ones I passed were the solo dudes...they were starting to tire. I made it back in w/ out incident & handed off the baton to Skippy. Back in for more food and extended rest.

For the overnight hours, I had expressed my desire to not do any early morning laps...for some reason the thought of riding at that time of night/morning just creeped me out a little. The boyz were great & doubled up on their nighttime/early morning laps to allow me time to rest. I went to bed around 10...woke up at 1:30 a.m., then back to get more shut eye. I was awakened around 4:30 A.M. by Moe (Skippy's wife). She said the guys were beat & I would proably need to go. She asked how I felt & I said "ok"...a little sleepy but the legs felt fine. Hubby also got up b/c he was supposed to do the next rotation. We were trying to figure out who was gonna go thinking the rider on course would take an hour. I ate something & changed & tried to get ready as quickly as I could. Unfortunately our rider was back at the RV before I could get to the transition area. We probably lost 10 minutes or so because of this. I felt really bad about it. I took the baton & rode back to the transition area, then back on course.

It was cold & dark on this lap...and not too many people out there. Those who were out were moving slowly. This was my hardest lap. I was not awake & not warmed up..not to mention the fact I was quite chilly. I had to push in some areas which was really frustrating. As I neared the check in point I noticed what looked like a beach ball on the side of the trail. Earlier in the race, the promoters mentioned something about the 3:00 a.m. hour being the magical hour or wonder hour...or something. As I continued, I noticed more beach ball looking things. They were grayish in color and became more numerous. At one point I looked up and noticed green Christmas lights in the trees. I thought..hmmmm Christmas in May. As I progressed further, I noticed streamers hanging from the trees and then a whole bunch of Aliens lining the trail. They were having a party & those of us riding in the wee early morning hours were invited. Now I know why Adam was so upset earlier in the evening. He had forgotten his tin foil to line his helmet so the Aliens wouldn't abduct him!....That made my night!...I thought that was the coolest thing. I was laughing out loud (no one was around) because it was quite a sight. As I continued down the switchbacks I noticed orange/pink pencils outlining the edge of the turn..I guess so folks wouldn't go over the edge.
I continued on through the checkpoint, greeted the fine folks out there w/ a chipper "good morning". They responded."where have you been, we've been waiting all night for you"...I said "I'm here now..let the party begin"....It was a good laugh. I told them I loved the Aliens..it was a nice touch. Through the second half of the lap, I got passed by a chicky who was absolutely flying. The best part is she had white handlebar streamers!...It rocked.
I also passed another 24 hour solo dude who was pretty out of it. I felt bad for him.

As I neared the end of the lap, the sun was starting to rise. The rooster was crowing again. Once out of the woods I felt re-invigorated....the fog was rising off of the lake & it was a really cool scene. As I came throught the transition area, I greeted the timekeeper w/ another chipper "good morning"...They probably thought I was nuts b/c I had a lot of energy for so early in the morning. I handed the baton off & told Skippy I can go again after his lap & let the boyz rest more.
more to come in another post

Burn 24 hour Race - Part 1

A few months back our friend Skip had the notion of competing in a 24 hour mountain bike race. At first I wasn't too keen on the idea but Skip pleaded with me. He said they needed someone with boobs to complete the team of 5. I reluctantly said ok....I didn't want to be the slow poke on the team and hold them back. Skippy just wanted to race for fun to see how we would do.
We assembled our team of 5....Skip, Chris, Adam, Hubby, and myself.
As time drew closer, we put together our list of stuff to take. Lots of food, water, Cytomax, snacks, more food, sleeping bags, camping gear, bike stuff (extra jerseys, shorts, socks, cool weather gear,helmets, lights, chargers, extra lights), bikes, tubes, tools, chain lube, ibuprofen, etc etc.
I generally stress out over details and this was no exception. It seems like it took a week to pack & get ready. Here is a pic of some of the stuff we had prepared:

Around Tuesday or Wednesday of the week of the race my hubby informs me that we will not have to bring tents. I asked how was that possible. Adam hooked us up w/ a 36 foot RV... Up until this point I was still not too thrilled with the idea of doing this type of event. When I heard about the RV..I was stoked! No sleeping in a tent on the hard ground w/ lots of noise all night, cold temps, no where to keep clothes dry& warm, etc, etc. This RV was the shiznit. It was so nice that we didn't want to race...we just wanted to hang out in the RV all day and watch dvd's. This thing slept 9 people comfortably, had a toilet, microwave, a/c, sheets, fridge. It was hooked up! When we arrived at the sight...I was a little on edge. My legs did not feel good all week. We had raced in Bedford the week prior and I just didn't recover right. When I rode Tuesday, the legs felt heavy and on Thursday they felt even worse. I was really dreading having to go out there & race for 7 1/2 miles at a time. My biggest fear was I would not be able to recover in between laps and my legs would just plain give out on me.
The racers meeting was at 10:45a.m. with a noon start. We decided our rotation would go as follows: Hubby, me, Skip, Chris, Adam. We would each do one lap until the overnight hours where Hubby & Skip would do 2 laps per rotation. The race started as a lemans start..meaning you have to run to your bike. We were allowed to designate a runner for this portion. Skip would be our lucky runner. Starting the race this way enabled some distance to be put in between the riders before entering the singletrack. Most people jogged lightly around the path before handing off to the riders. Most teams knew you can't win the race in the first 1/2 mile...but you can lose it!

Each team member was equipped w/ a timing device which we wore on our ankles. We also had to keep track of a baton. Each rider kept the baton in their jersey pocket. At the conclusion of each lap, you would enter a transition area where your time would be tracked w/ the ankle bracelet & then the rider would pass the baton on to the next rider .
Hubby was the first one off. I'd be next. We gauged each lap would be roughly 40 -45 minutes so once he took off, I ate, changed, hydrated & started to warm up. I kept track of the time so I would be in the transition area as hubby came through. Skip & Moe spotted hubby coming through so I got ready to go. The lap started off in a grassy area which turned into a woop section. They a slight uphill over a culvert. The culvert was lined w/ rocks which I stared too long at and ended up having to foot out. It caused 2 guys behind me to get all screwed up. They were not at all happy with me...I apologized profusely to them. Then I quietly reminded myself that you cannot win a 24 hour race in lap 2. We took a left hand into the singletrack. The left hand turn was pretty loose so you really had to be careful. It wound back & forth along a creekbed, then it seemed like switchback after switchback. The first section was a gradual climb. I wasn't quite warmed up so it was a bit of a struggle at first. Eventually you dump out on top of a hill where you can look out & see the campground. Then down a fun downhill, through some berm turns, a crazy rock garden which really wasn't bad if you kept up your momentum, more switchbacks & burm turns. Then more gradual climbing. I kept getting passed by people so I was feeling bad b/c we were losing ground. My legs still didn't feel great so my pace was a little slower than I wanted.
About halfway there is a checkpoint where you called out your number. Then comes the second half of the course. This was sooooooo much fun. All of the gradual climbs & switchbacks paid off. There was some fireroad, more switchbacks, rock gardens, log jumps, etc. This is where you could really make up some time. You had to be careful though because some of the turns put you into obstacles & things that if you were not paying attention, you could really get hurt. At one point I ended up on this log ramp when I wanted to go around it. That's how quickly some of these things came up. The second half of the course took you down near this lake. There was this deafening sound the whole time. I thought they were spring peepers...but spring peepers stop peeping from time to time. This noise was constant, loud & deafening. (I think I said that already)...Turns out they were the 17 year cicadas..& they were everywhere.
There also must have been farm nearby because I kept hearing a rooster in one section. Weird. Towards the end of the lap, the course was winding and fast. more burm turns & you could get some serious air on a couple of jumps. Then you dumped out into the camping area, rode a pea gravel road which dumped into the grass...then you meadnered for a bit on the grass until approaching the transition area. The last couple of miles was my favorite part of the course because it was so fast. As I neared the transition area, I grabbed the baton out of my jersey & handed it off to Skip. Off he went.....Now I had to rest and get ready for lap 2 in a few hours.

Fat Tire Frenzy Race Report

Saturday marked the 2nd race in the VA Derailer Series. This race is held at Falling Creek Park in Bedford, VA. We couldn’t have asked for a better day for racing. Light breezes, sunny skies and temps in the low 70’s.
We arrived at the parking lot to find more cars than usual. We met up w/ the clan from Team El Toreo, registered, changed, warmed up. Etc. When we lined up for the start, they decided to start all of the sport class w/ the single speeders. I was the lone chicky single speeder again. I joked w/ the guys that the smell of testosterone was overwhelming. I decided to start behind the sport guys b/c I knew I could not hang w/ all the geared dudes on the grassy, slight uphill start. As we dumped into the woods it became a bit of a cluster b/c there are a couple of sections which are steep causing riders to dismount. Conditions were slightly muddy but it was the type of mud that makes you slide everywhere…sort of like peanut butter.
As we continued in the woods, I caught up to 2 Vet Sport men. One let me by but.when I got behind the other, he was just piddling. I asked if I could pass….he responded by speeding up to pull away from me. Must be something about the male ego & not wanting to be beat by a girl! We dumped out onto a gravel fireroad. This was slightly uphill but nothing major. I decided to pull up alongside the dude who wouldn’t let me pass to see if I could get a reaction. I did not utter a word..just pulled up slightly ahead of him and kept a steady pace.….sure enough..he took off again. I love playing mind games w/ some of the men b/c their egos just can’t handle a chicky riding stronger than them.

We twisted and turned down through the woods, up & over a couple of logs (I chickened out so I hopped off the bike to get over these), more woods, creeks, switchbacks. Climbs. At one point we climbed up a trail which dumped out into a fast, fun downhill section. The other Vet Sport who I passed caught to me up before the downhill. I let him go ahead of me since he had gears & was about 50 pounds heavier than me. I didn’t want that following me down the hill. We then rode through another field, then back into the woods for more twists, turns, climbs, creek crossings.. At one point there was a nasty, muddy creek crossing. I caught up to the first vet sport who had sped off. He looked like he was slowing so I took advantage of an opportunity to pass him in the muddy creek.
I did not see him the rest of the race so I’m not sure if he had a mechanical issue or what. He seemed to be riding strong up until this point.

My second lap was a bit slower than the first lap. My legs tired & I walked many of the uphills. I came in right at 2 hours…a little slower than I had hoped but it’s all good. At the end of the race I went back down to the start/ finish to catch the end of the female sport race. My buddy Jen was flying down the hill w/ another chicky friend, Gina. Everyone was screaming and cheering..telling Jen to pedal & telling Gina to catch her!. Jen won by a mere 4 seconds. It was quite a finish.

Team Taco had a decent showing this race:

Me – 1st place (and last J ) female Single Speed
Hubby – 2nd Place Male Singlespeed
Jen -1st place women sport
Yenski -1st place male expert 36 -49
Adam (adopted team member) – 1st place Clydesdale.

Next up: Burn 24 hour race….yup..24 hour race!

Va Derailer Series Race #1 - Danville

Southside Scramble May 3, 2008

This was the first race of the year for me and the first in the VA Derailer Series. I wasn't sure how I felt about doing this race. It seems the past couple times I have been down to Danville, some type of bad omen goes with me. A few years ago during a pre-ride, I was attacked by yellow jackets & stung 4 times. Then two summers ago at the race I had heat exhaustion following the race. At least this year it was held in May, not August when temperatures can get in the 100's.

The day was gorgeous when we got up. Sunny skies, mild breeze, low humidity, cool temps....Perfect for racing. When we arrived in Danville, their weather was much the same...maybe a little more humid.

Met up w/ team El Toreo, then we got registered. At this race they write your class & age on the back of your leg....for some reason they decided to make my age really HUGE on my leg so everyone who came upon me in the race would know to get away from the crazy old lady on the single speed. All our buddies back at the staging area got a kick out of it. Ha Ha...wait til you get to be my age!!!...Anywho...got a bite to eat, got changed & ready to go. Met up w/ the newest team member, my buddy Jen, and we rode the beginning & the end just to get a feel for what to expect. She came back in to get a bite to eat, I made a pit stop, then continued to warm up a little more.

We lined up for the pre-race meeting and once again, I was the only female in my class!..There was one expert chicky, one single speeder chicky (me), and 4 sport chickies and a few beginners. There were probably 8 or so singlespeed boyz....so it was me and the boyz again.

Really the only time I hung w/ the other singlespeeders was at the start...after that, I was all alone.

The starter counted us down and off we went..down the gravel road, right hand turn into the grass to the left hand turn into the trails. Down some dips, back up, down a few more, then twisty turny trail til we dumped out onto a gravel fireroad. I heard the siren sound again to start the sport men...I thought..uh oh..here they come..time to get passed. Sure enough once I was on the fireroad the first group of sport guys came upon me. There was plenty of room to pass to I let them on through but kept moving. Back into the single track where I stayed free for a bit but then another bigger group passed me. Oh well...I just focused on keeping a steady pace and doing well technically. I knew I would be passed my many others but it was ok.

Danville is the type of course where you are on the gas the entire time. It is tough in some spots because there are short grunts, followed by longer gradual uphills, then a downhill, then a steady spin again. Lots of tight twists & turns, creeks, wooden bridges, etc..then more uphills which open into wide open fields of nothing, back into singletrack, etc. etc.

At one point approximately 3 miles in I heard something barreling through the woods. I checked behind me to see if it was a biker but there was no one there. Out of the corner of my eye I saw it. It was a deer moving pretty fast..maybe 30 mph..scared out of its mind. I wasn't sure which way it was going to go, so I stopped to watch it. I've never seen a deer run so fast. There were 2 more behind it...one ran in the opposite direction & the other just stared at me as I went by. Yikes!.....

I plodded on..at some points I felt great, at others not so great. I had to walk some of the uphills simple because I could walk them just as fast as I could riding them & I wanted to conserve my legs as much as possible.

At 9 miles in, my legs started to cramp but I was able to keep well hydrated so while it was uncomfortable, it wasn't race ending. Towards the end of the course I got passed by a couple of beginners. GRrrrr. That was embarassing..but then again they had a shorter distance so I guess it really didn't matter.

I did finish so I got first in my class....(also last in my class since I was the only one!)...I felt great at the finish & finished strong. I think my average time was around 8 miles an hour which surprised me because every time I checked my Garmin it hovered around 6 mph. Oh well I"ll take it.

Hubby didn't fare so well. Apparently he crashed & got a mystery scratch/gash on his thigh. It's weird looking.

As they wrapped up the award ceremony, they called my name ..I didn't know what that was about until they handed me this huge trophy. Apparently I got overall Sport female winner since I raced the same distance as the sport women & came in ahead of them. Cool!..although I don't know what I'll do w/ this big friggin trophy.

All in all I was pleased w/ the result. I didn't have any weird omens take place this year and I got a goofy, anotomically incorrect trophy to boot. I may have also gotten some more chickys friends to ride with.

Ridin' w/ the boyz...

I've chased away the crickets from the blog & dusted off the cobwebs. Trying not to be a slacker on the blog thing but I sit at a computer all day typing...so the last thing I want to do is sit at a computer at home & do more typing. Yeesh!

Anywho...rode w/ the boyz on Sunday. We were planning a Cove ride but after all of the rain we figured that would be a muddy mess, not to mention the stream crossings being up.

Donnie met hubbie & I at the house. We single speeded it through some streets and alleys over to Wasena where we met up with Ron on his cross bike. Headed down the greenway towards the hospital. I was managing to keep a pretty good pace w/ the boys but was getting really tired quickly. I sat up and adjusted my pace to where I could breathe. We crossed over through River's Edge park, through the tunnel, out the other side and took more streets & alleys to Ferncliff Park. Rode up that trail, then up to Fishburn Parkway to hit Woodthrush on the other side. Woodthrush had a little mud on it but not much. The boys were riding very fast today. It felt like "race pace" to me, but then again, everything always feels like race pace when you can't breathe (asthma sucks sometimes) Donnie was such a good sport & kept slowing down for me. I told him to go on, I was quite used to riding along. As we continued, we passed quite a few hikers. When we got to the gradual, loose rock hill, then the steeper grunt, I noticed Donnie was hiking. I thought to myself...if I can do it, surely he can. As we crested the hill & got to the next downhill, we paused...Donnie's chain was very loose and every time he torqued on it, he was worried it would come off. We took some time to fix it..got passed by a hiker who we had just passed us After we got it fixed, we debated for a minute on our route. We decided to continue down to the Star trail and back up to FB Pkwy

Rode down FB Pkwy, took a left on Sylvan. As we turned, we noticed another mtbkr coming up the road. I told the boys the jersey looked like my fellow chicky rider, Jen, but I wasn't sure. We waited and sure enough it was Jen!...we rode up the road a bit until Monument Trail. I mentioned how the boyz were kicking my butt today. She had a ride planned in her head & was jamming to some tunes so we split off at Monument. Continued up the trail..had to walk one of the short grunts b/c I was getting tired. Let a couple more hikers by the fun zoomy part before you jump the sidewalk. Caught back up to the boys. We proceeded on to Car trail..then climbed back up the old road to do the zoo poo trail. then back down Car trail again, to another side trail which dumped us out at Ferncliff park.

We zoomed back through the neighborhood streets, back through River's Edge Park, through Wasena. When we got to Wasena, we took a different route because we wanted to head to Fishburn Park to see a new bridge being constructed. On the way we took 2 steep alleyways and the steep road which runs past Wasena E.S. Leave it to Ron to find the steepest climbs towards the end of the ride!...Oh well, that's what makes you a stronger rider.

Made it over to Fishburn...the bridge is really ugly. It connects the greenway coming from Patrick Henry HS, crossing Brambleton to Fishburn Park. They could have kept the area natural by cutting in a side trail and looping it around this ditch. It's an eyesore.

Not sure how many miles all that was because I left my Garmin at home. Doh!!!
Good ride...I"ve done more climbing this season than I did all of last year.

1st race is this weekend...Danville......At least it's not in August so the chances will be slim of high temps. Phew...tired of typing....

Moooving

Have been slacker again in the blog dept. We've been a little busy. We just completed moving into our new (old) home. Spent all of last week packing boxes, lifting heavy stuff, loading vehicles, driving to the new home, unloading, unpacking, moving the same box 50 different times. Phew.. It didnt' leave a lot of room to ride.
On Sunday, Chicky Jen and I met up for a nice spin at the Cove. Weather was rather chilly in the low 50's which really isn't all that cold but when we had 80 degree temps just a few days prior, it felt pretty darn cool. We stuck to the lower trails & did our "usual" loop.. Rode the road to the gate, onto the Fireroad, up Songbird, up Arrowhead, across to Little Bell, on to Schoolhouse, Enchanted Forest re-route & road back to the parking lot. Water was up in a lot of places. It was good to see water flowing in the creeks again. Made for a really nice, soothing ride. We stopped to take lots of pics along the way since it seems like forever since there has been water running.. We attempted some of the creek crossings but played it safe on most since the weather was a bit cooler. Had it been 70 degrees, I'm sure we would have blasted through those which we walked.
No real mishaps....although I was pretty kicked through the ride. I guess that's from all of the work I had been doing this week through the move.

It will probably take months to get situated in the new house but at least the kitchen is functional, we have a place to sleep, we have a washer/dryer so I can catch up on laundry and most of the clothes are organized and easy to find. We'll probably work room by room in between training, working, doing trail work, etc. etc.

Off to ride tomorrow at the Cove

Bike Sherpas

Saturday we headed out to Carvins Cove to rake leaves off of Hemlock Tunnel (formerly Clownhead). Approximately 10 folks showed up to lend a hand. 1/2 of the group had bikes, the other half hoofed it. We got down to the really steep section....I expected to find a huge rut under the three feet of leaves...but to our amazement there laid smooth, wide trail. Who knew after all of those years of riding the outside line that there was such gorgeous trail underneath.
Once we finished that section, we headed down to meet up w/ the crew who biked down. We came upon the bikes...but no people....weird...It felt like a newer version of Blair Witch Project. Being the nice people we are, Moe, Gary and myself decided to take the bikes down to where the crew was working...they had made such great progress that it would have been pain to walk all the way back to get their bikes. We each picked a bike and rode on. I had a bike which was waaay too tall for me and I couldn't reach the brakes. Moe rode someone's dowhnill bike which weighed around 500 lbs..not to mention the 100lb backpack that the trailworker had brought., Gary picked the bike w/ the bob trailer & rakes attached.

We caught up to the group....we all continued to rake..then Moe & I realized the bikes were waaay back on the trail again. So we decided to take a break from raking again and go retrieve the bikes. This time we had to make 2 trips because there were more bikes left. AFter the second trip we found a central location to leave everything so we didn't have to sherpa more bikes.

Once at the bottom of Hemlock Tunnel, we moved on to Araminta...this is a trail which has been neglected for many years. Fortunately we were able to find the trail bed easily...so we raked, chopped, and raked some more. We were cruising along until we came upon the creek. We had no clue which way to go. The trail just disappears. We sent a couple of scouts out to see if they could find it, but after about 1/2 hour of searching, no luck. A GPS and map will be needed along w/ some flags so we can mark the rest of the trail. THat will be for another day.

After the scouting mission, we decided to call it a day. We had been out there close to 6 hours and were pretty beat. The worst part was those of us who hiked..had to go back UP Hemlock Tunnel. After 6 hours of raking, hiking, sherpaing (that's a new word!),scouting, we were cooked. It took a little while to get back up the trail but we did it. I can't wait to ride it!

Crappy, Creepin, Coughin, Crud, Crap!

I thought I'd avoid it...I've been so good about washing my hands, disinfecting my work space just about daily, disinfecting the house, blah blah blah. So last week 3 people came to work coughing and hacking all over the place. One had the flu & was out until yesterday, the other had a sinus infection but is still hacking and the third never went to the doctor and was out Monday & Tuesday but came back today...still coughling...
So Monday I'm feeling good...then it starts creeping into my chest...little cough here,,,little cough there...I chalked it up to the carpets being cleaned at work over the weekend. Tuesday....a little more coughing..no head congestion though...weird...start taking dayquil/nightquil. Went for a ride...felt like crap. Got home, felt wiped out...went to bed. Wednesday...coughing more....hacking up stuff..gross, I know...took more niquil.....
Thursday 5:30 a.m......woke up coughing/choking/asthma attack....not good...haven't had an asthma attack in quite some time..let alone one that wakes me up in the middle of the night. They are awful b/c all I kept doing was coughing/choking & could barely get air in. Finally it subsided but having one feels like someone just beat the living crap out of you. Got back to sleep in time for the alarm to go off....
Downed some Dayquil, off to work.....felt like an elephant was sitting on my chest all day...had another coughing fit around 10....Called the allergist & was able to see him today!...

It's not the flu b/c I don't have the achiness although I did have a low grade fever 99.7. For now he doesn't want to put me on antibiotics...instead we're upping my asthma medication dosing for a few more days to see what happens there. If the fever persists (which it won't b/c it's already back down) then I go onto the drugs..... it's more of a croupy cough....he said it will probably take about a month to go away!...Yikes.. I hate being sick. I get angry when I'm sick . I get angrier when people are sick at work but yet they still come in. (I guess I could have stayed home today too...but they're already sick so what does it matter now..)...ok that was ugly..see I get angry when I'm sick.

Anywho...gonna up my asthma meds & see how we do. Creeping Crud sucks

Single Speedin....

Thursday night we met up at Explore Park..The weather service was predicting freezing rain so there was a winter weather advisory out. I think this scared some folks from even venturing out after dark. I got to the parking lot & Skippy & Chris were already out riding.. My hubby showed up and we prepared to ride. Weather was chilly but not unbearable. Skippy & Chris rolled up to meet us...Chris got a call from work so he had to leave but the 3 of us who remained rode. I wasn't really feeling great on this ride but I figured I'd plod on. As we ventured towards the inner loop, my bike kept making this weird cha-chunk noise whenever I stood up on a hill. I was scared my chain was going to break. When we inspected my bike, we noticed the chain was really loose. None of us had any tools w/ us to try to fix it so we decided to head back. On the way back, Skippy kicked up this enormous stick into his frame. Luckily it didn't break anything. It was bigger than my forearm. As we descended my chain kept making the same noise. I was really worried b/c my hubby mentioned that I needed to be careful on a climb b/c the chain could come off, then I'd bang my knee into the top tube & stop dead in my tracks.

Shortly after he issued this warning, I had crossed the big wooden bridge and was starting the climb up the int trail....sure enough I took a pedal stroke, the chain came off, and I banged my knee on the top tube!...I shouted something about what a fine bike I had, then let out an "ouch!"...my hubby asked what was wrong....I told him I had broken my bike....He said "well wheel it up here so I can fix it"...I said "I can't, it won't move".... The rear skewer must have been lose and on the pedal stroke I pulled the wheel from the drop outs.....

We were able to get it fixed and we returned to the parking lot. By this time Skippy was cold and had already gotten in about an hour & 1/2 of riding so he was done. Hubby & I continued to explore some stuff on the closed portion of the park. We only rode about an hour & it wasn't much fun this night.

Saturday I took some pics of my hubby at the Falling Creek Bike Race hosted by Bedford County. It was a neat format, with less skilled riders getting a head start on the more experienced folks. THe course looked fun....I knew I wasn't going to race based on how I felt on Thursday..just wasn't into it...Hubby came in 5th overall..not too bad.

Sunday we ventured our for a ride at Mill Mountain..the plan was to do 3 hours..but we only ended up doing 2. We did some exploring on this ride as well..so we probably spent 20 minutes hiking, plowing through hub-deep leaves, and bushwacking. I was able to finally conquer a climb on the Woodthrush trail. I was so pleased...it's the first time I've done that complete climb on any bike..let alone my Single Speed. I guess I'm getting stronger which is good. The ride got cut short b/c we had to high tail it back to the house b/c we had a realtor coming to show it. I guess it wasn't too bad of a ride.

bummer

Been keeping a close eye on the news coverage of the fires in Roanoke County. When we hiked at Mill Mountain on Sunday we could see the plumes of smoke from the raging blaze. Monday night we took Gretta for a walk and could see one of the firelines from my house. I felt an overwhelming sense of sadness. As of this writing, the fire is only 30% contained and the wind has returned. We had some rain earlier today but I'm not sure it did much to help things.

The news release at 4:45 p.m. today mentioned that 50 National Guard members hand dug a fireline along......Gauntlet... which probably means everything on the Timerview side of the Cove has burned or will burn...which potentially could mean Trough, upper Hi Dee Hoe, Buck, Horsepen, and Gauntlet may no longer exist....ok..that's all speculation but it really puts a sick feeling in my gut...and to think at one point we were joking about the bears tearing up the signs. I hope they came out of hibernation to get the heck outta there!

Yes, I realize they are only trails and this is nature's way of taking care of things.. Fortunately no homes have been lost, nor have any individuals been injured. We have to thank the brave folks who have been out there battling this blaze which has burned over 2400 acres thus far..yes 2400 acres...that's a lot of land, trees, dirt, grass, leaves...

Don't know when the Cove will re-open so we can assess what's happening with the trails. At this point we can only wait and continue to keep the firefighters in our prayers as they battle.

I'm sort of rambling about nothing in this blog. I guess I just needed to write down how I'm feeling about it. Pretty bummed out....

things that go "bump" in the night

Ventured out to Explore Park this evening for our weekly ride. Since the temps have gotten colder, our numbers seem to be dwindling...tonight's temp was 33 when we started & 28 when we ended w/ high wind...fun.
Hubby, Adam, Brian (aka Snuggletruck), and myself headed out this evening. The pace was set by my hubby and was super fast at the start. I don't thing he realizes how fast he goes on his Single Speed since he's started training w/ the cross bike. You'd have thought he was racing.
Anywho..went out beginner loop, crossed the road & headed down the intermediate trail. The big wooded bridge had some snow on it but was very negotiable. I had some trouble getting up the other side this evening. I don't think I had recovered from Tuesday night's 2 hour ride at Fishburn...in the cold...... Anywho as we trudged up the intermediate trail I heard something in the woods which sounded like the cog of a bike turning. I stopped to shine my light in the direction of the noise & it stopped...weird...so we kept riding.
As we continued on the inner loop, we got to the section just before crossing Rutrough when I heard a fluttering sound in the trees. I was too scared to stop & look so I kept going. I asked everyone else if they had heard the noise & they just looked at me like I had 2 heads...
Proceeded on to the lollipop loop....climbed the big hill, yada yada yada.....
As we came back from the lollipop loop and crossed over Rutrough, Hubby stopped and was looking up in the tree at something looking down at us.....It was a big owl!.....it just sat there wondering why we kept blinding it w/ our lights. Finally it flew but did not make a sound. Eery. It's wingspan had to have been around 4 feet....He was big.

We reluctantly decided to take the outer loop back. I was having a heck of a time seeing the trail tonight. Adam was barreling down behind me so I had to let him go. I told him he was freaking me out too much!....as we proceeded up the babyhead section of the endurance loop the "woosh woosh" sound was back...only it was much louder & someone else heard it too!....Very freaky b/c we couldn't see anything in the trees... I think it was a terydactyl or maybe it was a sasquatch w/ wings.....I was scared it was going to pick me off of my bike & carry me away!

Headed back on the intermediate loop & heard the same "cog" sound in the woods....I think it was the trees rubbing together but it was another spooky sound.


Made it back to the car.....ate pizza, went to bed...The end
(will probably have nightmares tonight)
The end

brrrrrrr

had to get out of the house on Sunday...I feel like I"ve been couped up all week..hadn't been on the bike since last Saturday...so I braved the cold and rode for 2 hours w/ my hubby. We headed out down some alleys in the neighborhood..then rode the Rke River Greenway through Wasena Park. Headed over towards Rivers Edge & rode through the tunnel to the other side. Took another couple of alley ways to get to our first part of the ride..Ferncliff Park. We rode up this trail then crossed over Fishburn Parkway to tackle Woodthrush Trail on Mill Mtn. As we headed down Woodthrush I noticed a rolled up mattress stuffed inside a garbage bag.....there have been some homeless people setting up camp on this part of the mountain. My friend Paul Chapman, Mill Mtn Supervisor, has been working diligently to get these people off of the mountain....you're not supposed to camp out on city property...luckily we didn't see any of these folks..
We continued on..climbed the loose steep part..(I had to walk 20 feet or so), then jumped on the lower portion of the Star Trail so we could get back to Fisbburn Pkwy I had to walk part of this trail too.. We descended down Fishburn Pkwy, then turned left on Sylvan Rd and climbed the road to Monument trail where we started to ascend. This was very difficult for me for some reason. By the time we got to the Star trail intersection, my back was in agony. I kept plodding on, slowly......Finally made it to the zoomy part which makes the climbing worth it. We crossed over the road and headed on to Car trail. From Car trail we climbed back up the old road to the Discovery Center. Then we headed down the Zoo trail. I goofed on the switchback & had to walk it straddling my bike. I hopped back on..& kept going.
When we got back to the intersection where you can go right on Car trail, left to go to the road, or straight to climb..we decided to climb. so we could take Ferncliff trail back. ...That didn't last long...it was so icy & snowy that we made it about 40 feet & decided to take the road back down to pick up Ferncliff Trail (I know it's named something else but I can't think of the name so Ferncliff will have to do).....We dumped back on a small section of Chestnut Ridge Loop (shhhh!) so we could go on to Ferncliff. I sure do like the Ferncliff trail better in this direction..not as much climbing. We took a few more alleyways to get over to the Greenway and headed home. My legs started giving out on the Greenway...I was cooked so I pedaled the best I could to keep moving.
Total ride time was roughly 2 hours 15 minutes. My hubby continued on for about another hour. I didn't start to get a chill until my legs gave out....so I was dressed appropriately for the weather. I wore ski gloves b/c my other gloves just don't keep my fingers warm..surprisingly the ski gloves seemed to do the trick. They were quite cumbersome though. I need to get some warm winter riding gloves....
It was cold but it beats sitting on the blasted trainer for an hour!

Cylclocross w/ Team Taco

Went to Davidson, NC on Sunday to watch the boyz from Team El Toreo race cyclocross.. It was a looooong day in terms of spectating but the guys seemed to have a good time. Ron & Frank raced 2 races each while my hubby (the former Grizzly Adams) raced one.

It looks hard b/c each race is an all out effort from the moment they send you off the start. There were some gals out there too!...Go Chicky's....I give them a lot of credit...

Here are some pics.

New Year's Day ride

Met up at the Cove for the annual New Year's Day ride. A bunch of folks left from the boat dock side after a few photos, etc....probably 60 or so on this side & another 30 left from Bennett Springs. I rode w/ Grizzly Adams (hubby w/ a big stubbly beard), Chas, Brian, a few folks from East Coasters, and some guys who I've seen before but could not place their names...We probably had close to 10 or so in our group.

Headed out the fire road from the Boat Dock...felt like crap the initial 2 miles in...legs were really "thick" and the cold air was hurting my lungs. Once we hit the trails, I felt a little better...We rode Schoolhouse to Little Bell. When we came upon the intersection to Little Bell, we caught up w/ another group & waited for one of the riders to change his tire...This took a little while so my legs started tightening up . We got moving again and once we got off Little Bell, I was pleading w/ the group not to do EF. I was worried the stream would still be up. I won my case & we rode on to do Songbird backwards....felt ok on this trail..then the legs started getting heavy again. I don't do well with a lot of stopping & starting..I ride better when I go continuously.

I passed by my buddy Jen coming the other way...I shouted "having fun?"..she said she was having a blast....my crew continued on. Dumped out on the fireroad..hung around again...then on to Comet. When we got to the 4 way intersection, we met up with another group of our riding buddies...they started out on the Bennett Springs side and had been riding for a couple of hours. They followed our group for a bit..then we split off..they took Songbird and we went on to Arrowhead.

The group set a blistering pace up Arrowhead...I thought I was the last one but lo and behold, 2 more riders joined up behind me..On we went....I attempted a couple of the creek crossings & managed to stay dry..until the last one. I was feeling extremely confident in my bike handling skills so I decided to try the last crossing. I picked a good line..but was surprised that I had such a good line that I quit pedaling....I proceeded to "foot out" into the water BRRRRRRRR!...come to find out only me and Grizzly Adams tried the creek....I felt pretty good about that...the only chicky in in the group & she outdoes the boys...well almost!....On we went descending down the bumps and rocks back to the fireroad.

By this time the sun was ducking behind the mountain and the temps were dropping. We plodded along the fireroad....I thought we'd never make it back...my toes became numb but we kept plodding. We came upon a group we rode with earlier in the day..2 were riding bikes, the 3rd was walk/running.....Turns out he had major mechanical issues & a buddy of his was carrying the bike back!...Hope he compensated him well for all that effort.

Finally we made it back to the vehicles..Changed into DRY socks!!! and put on warmer clothing. Stopped for a bite to eat on the way home. All in all it was a good day for a ride! Happy New Year!

Spoiled one

Tomorrow 12/31 is my "spoiled one's" birthday. Actually it's the anniversary date of her adoption from the Roanoke Vally SPCA. She was born sometime in October but we don't know when..so we use her adoption date as her birthday. She'll be 8. Hard to believe we've had Gretta 8 years now...where does the time go? Here's a pic of her chewing on her "birthday treat" and then chilling out afterwards.

bucks, trees, graves, creeks, rock sculptures and trolls

Went for a ride this morning w/ Jen at the Cove. Temps were hovering in the high 40's, low 50's along w/ a bit of wind....It would be chilly on the road but we'd be out of the wind on the trails. I didn't feel like climbing so we stayed on the lower trails today. My legs are still feeling the weight workout from Saturday and riding at Panapas Pond on Sunday. We headed out the road and made the left onto Songbird. About 6 1/2 minutes into the ride we had to do some log clearing on Songbird. With all of the wind, there was a bunch of stuff down. We laid the bikes down & started moving the log. I'm such a weakling..Jen was using her brute strength gained by moving patients at the hospital to push this log off the trail. It took a little more effort on my part but we got the thing moved. Jen then decided to act like a tree, so we captured a photo.


































Onward we went...twisting, turning, through the leaves. We got to a point where a log used to cross the trail....I was getting ready to dismount when we discovered it has been moved! Woo Hoo. Down through the zoomy section we went...We came upon the tree that is across the lower section of the trail. I think Jen underestimated the angle to get around this log & here's the end result:














We decided to go up Arrowhead...before ascending we took a detour to check out the Confederate grave. I'm curious to know the history of this person...maybe one day I'll do a little more research. The setting is quite serene...with the minor exception of the crazy mountain bike chicks taking pics of the headstone.
















We got to the first crest on Arrowhead & took a short break. I had forgotten what a pain that climb can be. As we sipped from our water bottles, I could see a large buck in the distance. We continued down the trail. I tried to ride slow b/c I knew buck would be hanging out. I came upon him too quickly & he took off. He was around 4 -6 points.. and he was chasing a doe. They scurried up the other side of the trail. We plodded on. Soon we came across another buck which was larger than the first. He was afraid of us too & took off. Got to the creek crossings...I was able to do most of them.....I cleared the one at the end....Jen commented "Well aren't you special"...that's only the 5th time or so I've been able to ride that creek and I took a bad line. Jen walked it..the entry is a little sketchy so I don't blame her at all for walking it.














We came out on the fireroad..on to Schoolhouse & Little Bell. I was starting to fatigue at this point...not enough carbs a few days prior to this ride. We rode along and came up to the "vista point" there's not much of a vista b/c there's no water in the cove! We continued on..debated on going down Enchanted Forest...we opted for the fireroad for a little bit, then decided to dump back down to EF. I'd much rather do the logs, roots on EF than ride the boring fireroad.



















Once we jumped on Comet, Jen pointed out the rock sculpture in progress so of course I had to take a photo.


















We continued on..my legs were shot so no Four Gorge trail for me. We rode back on the road...I noticed 2 trolls on the trees....I had never noticed these in all the times we've ridden by them. We rolled back to the vehicles..Jen had to go to work...I headed home to grab lunch & hang out w/ the pooch. Fun morning at the Cove!

Ridin at the Cove

I decided to take a "mental health" break this morning & joined my friend Jen for a spin at the Cove. Weather was great...high 50's, low 60's, slight breeze. We had tinkered with the idea of doing Hemlock Tunnel aka Clownhead. Jen had not ridden this trail before so she was up to the challenge. We headed out the paved road then started up the 1000' climb. I forgot how tough the first part of the climb was with only 1 gear...we trudged on...I stopped once or twice to snap some photos but we got to the trailhead in roughly 30 minutes. At the top someone had added a nice rock formation to the top of the sign:

We were a little pooped out from the climb but we ventured on. The top of this trail is a little loose in spots and it's covered in leaves..although you're not knee deep in leaves just yet. I managed all the switchbacks this time around. Jen walked a few but they were a little narly...we proceeded down to the really steep section. There was a friendly little sign on the tree warning us to turn back...Ha.

I could see the line to ride in this section but I could not manage my bike to get there. I kept ending up in the rut and the leaves were a little slick so traction was a bit of a challenge. We hopped off & walked a bit. We had to climb over a big tree which has fallen across the trail but were able to get back on the bikes at this point.

We proceeded down to the bottom of the trail.

There was some old caution tape on the trees left over from the Commonwealth games race. Why this was still out there after all these months, I have no clue. We decided to be good stewards of the trail & clean up this stuff. We contined on, crossing a couple of semi dry streams. We picked up more caution tape along the way. As we came out to the fireroad, we turned left and headed up towards the trailhead for Comet. When we arrived at the trailhead we debated on continuing up the fireroad to Tuckaway or tackling this section of Comet. We opted for Comet...Jen had not ridden this section of trail yet so it would be a good challenge. We descended quickly. There are a few spots in the trail which are very technical..I stopped along the way to let Jen know which line to take. When we got towards the middle of the trail, it makes a tight left hand switchback with no where to bail..so once you commit to it, you have to ride it out. What was funny is when I arrived I blurted "Oh Sh#^"...I made the turn..then watched Jen try it. She also blurted out "Oh Sh#^"at the same exact point I said it. Too funny! She made the turn like a pro. We encountered more caution tape tied on the trees so we proceeded to take it down. We ventured on and at one point we inhaled the sweet scent of bear poop & decaying leaves....It was quite aromatic! Jen reminded me we were approaching the area where she encountered 3 bears earlier this summer...so we kept calling for the bears as we rode throught this section of trail....we also joked that we had caution tape & we weren't afraid to use it!!!! (ok..it's no so funny now but it was funny when we were riding)

We continued on to the end of Comet & dumped back out on the fireroad...we headed back to the cars...Jen had to be at work at 2 and I had to spend the rest of the afternoon to continue my job search. It was a great ride..Jen did very well on the trails...maybe next time we'll do Gauntlet???

Ahhhh..the rewards for a fun ride....mmmmmm Smoooooooothies...

more spoiled dog pix

Since Gretta had chosen her "favorite" toy from the many I brought home, I put the remaining toys back in some bags & took them to the basement. I went down the other day to get something and Gretta proceeded to rifle through the bags and pick out another toy. She brought it upstairs with her...later that evening....

she fell asleep w/ it in betwen her paws...once again..the cuteness factor was raised another level.