Year's End

So I haven't written in my blog, in 4 months.  There are several reasons.  1) I have never been a consistent log keeper, 2) I have a hard time keep track of how long it's been since I've done things (blogging, emailing, calling friends).  and 3)  I was kind of disappointed/embarrassed.  Disappointed in my women's group first meeting, and embarrassed that school derailed me a bit.  I continued working out with Rhi, but I didn't ride like I should have.  My women's group first meeting was a flop.  I had one person show up, and that one person was a bit, well odd.  Needless to say, I was disappointed.  I will try again in the spring, hopefully with better results.

On the upside, we have shifted to winter and our bikes are in the basement on the trainer.  I did get on it today, and will try and do more.  I'm on the fence about doing BAK again this year.  I have a month to figure it out.  I'm hoping time on my trainer will help me figure out if my tailbone is up for it.  It feels much better, I've been very careful not to do exercises that seem to aggravate it.  And to be honest, I am afraid I won't be able to do it again.  I know I said it wasn't a failure last summer, but I do feel like maybe I should have just toughed it out.  But then I think about the pain I was in, so I have mixed feelings.  I'm hoping that it will be better now that I know what to do.  And I am much stronger.

So here is it to the New Year and continued resolutions!

Chicken Ride 2014

What a crazy year.  Last year, we did the Hudson Chicken Ride and it was miserable.  Well at least for me.  I learned the hard way what bonking was, the wind and heat were not on our side and I wasn't quite in shape for this long of a ride.  The long route of the ride is 54 miles.  Last year was a test to see if I would survive the mileage, this year we thought if it's gross and windy we are doing the short course.  We waited to decide the morning of, seeing as weather forecasting in Kansas is a bit of a guessing game.  Now if you're not from here, or don't live here, you won't understand that.  But we've had days that the forecast said no rain, and it poured all day.  Anyway, we lucked out this year.  We had very cool weather, starting the morning in the upper 50's and ending at noon in the 80's.  With a slight wind coming from the northwest to push us back the last quarter of the route.  Perfect weather.

I just am in awe of how much can change in a year, a month or a week.  This years ride I was on my road bike, last year my hybrid.  Makes a difference.  This year the mileage shouldn't have been intimidating because I'd already done higher mileage days before.  However, with my new saddle, the tailbone issues, the ankle issues and not having rode high mileage I was a bit nervous.  Here is the outcome.  Yes, I am out of shape...bad.  I kinda quite going to the gym after school got out, my excuses are laziness and my workout buddy went to China.  I say excuses because that's what they are, and honestly if I'd known that it would make the large of a difference I would have been more motivated to go.  The strength training had helped with my lower back fatigue, my shoulder fatigue and my endurance.  I knew on this ride that I was not up to par.  Lesson learned, I guess.  On the bright side. no ankle pain and only minimal tail bone pain.  I'm pretty sure that I bruised the bone somehow and it's just not completely healed.  But I can tell you not hurting for several hours or days after the ride means that the seat is doing it's job.  This is also one of the few rides that I've finished that even though I was tired, I was in a really good mood when we finished.  I attribute that to two things, eating consistently on the ride (No Mental Bonking) and this being a benchmark ride for us, knowing how much I've improved over the last year.  *Side Note: the awesome weather and not fighting the wind also helped.

I'm now going to talk about clothes and gear.  A few things you should know about me is that I don't like to be cold, and I sweat a lot.  This can actually be an interesting problem because once you are sweaty, it makes you cold.  Anyway, I just want to show you what I wore yesterday.

Now the top half is SheBeest.  No that is not a long sleeved jersey, but actually my short sleeved Bellissima Wings jersey with SheBeest Armwarmers.  Now whoever invented the armwarmer is a genius.  Basically, they are sleeves with elastic tops that you put on to keep you warm and as the day gets warmer you can take them off, and they fit in you back pocket.  I'v actually used them quite a bit on my longer rides, and they come in handy.  There are many different brands of these things, but this is the only pair I've owned.  I think I've talked about them before but thought I'd review.  So far they haven't stretched out and are still very snug, with no slipping during use.  If you try a pair for the first time, you might be uncomfortable as they are tight, that's how they stay on, but I don't feel them after the first 5 minutes or so and they are quite comfortable.  One thing my friend Melanie (bike shop person) has said is that these don't have the rubber grips on the inside like many other brands.  This is something I'm grateful for as I'm sure that would catch all the little hairs on my arm.  Anyway, if you find you too are having this cold to warm problem, check them out.  I love mine.  And again, thank you to whoever thought them up.

Okay, legs.  It's August and we've had a very mild summer.  Like I said, we started the day off in the upper 50's.  So no shorts for me.  Underneath my capris, I'm wearing a Pearl Izumi padded Liner (thank you TJ Maxx) and I got my super cute capris at my local Walmart last week.  This whole outfit is getting very close to being matchy-matchy, and I like it.  Just a reminder that your workout stuff doesn't have to be expensive, but if you sweat, I would look for performance fabrics, makes a difference.   

Lastly I want to talk about headbands.  As previously stated I sweat, a lot.  It's gross, and runs down my head and into my eyes.  Now if you've never had sweat in your eyeballs, feel lucky, it hurts and stings.  So my first solution was the cotton head bands from Walmart, then I tried the thick terry cotton workout bands from the 80's.  The thin cotton ones, only worked for a bit.  The thick terry cotton ones worked while in the gym, but were too thick for my helmet and didn't dry out very fast.  As in took almost a week to air dry.  I did some research online and found a website of a company based in Colorado called BolderBands.  They are cute bands and they work!!  Not only that but they dry super fast.  It can be super soaked, but left to dry on my handle bars in the Kansas wind and sun and they are dry in about 20 minutes or so.  Great product, they are going to be offered at the Buckle soon, so start watching for them.  They are about $15 each, but I loved them so much that I have 3.

Anyway, I wanted to share some of my thoughts from this ride and share some insight about clothes.  Below are some pictures from the ride and links to the places where you can find some of the stuff I talked about.

SheBeest               BolderBands         WalMart Capris

I got the husband to take a selfie after the ride. :)

Chicken Ride Mascot Painting

All about Chickens

New Seat, Fourth of July and Foam Rollers

I couldn't take it anymore.  I drove to Manhattan to get a new seat.  Melanie showed me two different seats and suggested maybe that the problem was that I didn't have enough support.  So we tried the Terry Rosie Saddle.  It has a cut out but it's not as severe.  Well, I think this is the seat.  Although my tailbone is still tender, I'm pretty sure that it's from previous damage, as it hurts when I sit on the couch too long at the wrong angle.  I will give you an update in a month or so.

We now have a new tradition for our Fourth of July.  Last year, Jason and I sneaked out to Sterling for 20 miles and it was awesome.  This year, my brother Jon and his wife Brandy joined us.  I say Brandy joined us but really she decided she'd rather run a 5k than ride her bike.  I think she's crazy, but I hate running.  What I didn't realize was that it was her very first one, and I am proud of her.  So the three of us rode the 20 mile ride.  They do this ride every year, the same route.  It was windy this year, but an otherwise beautiful morning.  I did get a bit grumpy because I felt slow, but looking at my Endomondo, I was doing my average.  Jason was just super charged and I couldn't keep up.  Overall, it was a good ride, I've added pictures including some of a dust cropper that was flying by as we rode.

Saturday the fifth, Big Poppi's had another Liv/Giant event.  It was about foam rolling.  I was super interested, so I bribed Jason with trail riding.  If you haven't tried foam rolling, I highly recommend it.  It works out your muscles and gives you a bit of a workout.  I am using mine to work out my shoulders and upper back.  I also found many other muscles that were sore, which I was surprised by.  The lady who ran the clinic said that many of our muscles do more work to compensate for other muscles that don't do their job properly.  It was very interesting.

Overall, I'm back to cycling.  I feel better, no ankle problems and only minimal tail bone issues.  My goal this month is to ride every day.  After a month of less activity, it's taking a little more motivation to get going but I sleep so much better when I ride and that is enough to keep me going.

Morning sun

Pretty field and clouds

Panoramic view!

Jon and his cookies

Jason eating a cookie.

Pretty field and tiny airplane

Airplane!

Jon (left) and Jason (right).  Ahead of them was a kid that did the whole 20 miles on a steel, single speed, banana seat bike.  That kid is my hero.

E-Motion and Sports Injuries

Well, I took almost two weeks off my bike.  Friday I hopped back on it, with a little apprehension.  My ankle no longer hurt but I was worried about my rump.  I decided to go for 20 miles.   I had signed up for a 64 mile ride the next day and wanted to see how I felt.  Overall it was a good ride, except for my tail bone.  My ankle seemed fine, not protesting the activity so I thought, I'm good to go and I can deal with the tail bone discomfort.  At least for Saturday.  I did text Melanie to find out about their saddle testing program, there simply has to be a better way.  Well Friday night, Jason loads the bikes and we prepare for an early start.  It was a very pretty morning, and I was ready.  We spent the first 7 miles riding along with a friend of ours from Claflin, he was doing the shorter route of 25 miles.  We then turned north into the wind, which was supposed to be coming from the south.  Then I started to feel the twinges.  I tried to keep my feet level or drop my heel as I pedaled.  It was getting worse and I was getting discouraged.  I get quiet and Jason says "hey I have something that will make you happy." I'm skeptical because he doesn't know my ankle is acting up.  Then he tells me, "I see a muscle moving every time you pedal, that I'm pretty sure wasn't there before." AWESOME, I have new muscles!  So we keep going. I finally told Jason to stop at 17 miles.  I told him about the ankle.  He told me he'd talked to the chiropractor about it and that I needed stop when it hurt or I could do serious permanent damage.  And because we live in the day of smart phones we looked up the tendinitis again.  Turns out you just can't hop back on a bike and do what you did before.  You're supposed to work back into it gradually and take care of the ankle as you do it.  I did neither.  Jason turned around and headed for the truck.  Hanging out on the side of a country blacktop is lonely and slightly embarrassing.  Then you have to tell people, yes you're fine, your husband is on his way.  Thank goodness for smart phones and Pinterest.  About an hour and a half later, Jason is back to get me.  I apologize over and over again.  I felt like I'd ruined his ride, and I was so disappointed in myself.  He said he was kind of proud that I had a sport injury, which I think is crazy.  Why?! I ask him.  Because only athletes get sports injuries, and frankly that made my day.

So I am taking a few days off the bike again.  I will be nicer to my ankle and ice it after I ride.  If that doesn't help, I guess I will go to the doctor and get some professional advice.  I've also made plans to go to Melanie's shop, I've got to do something about this seat issue.

Until next time, I leave you with a few pictures that I took while waiting for my knight in shining armor :)

Reflections

Well, it's been 3 days since I came home from BAK.  I'm not sorry for my choice to come home.  The next day the BAK riders had to to deal with massive amounts of rain and wind.  The organizers had to get a bus to transport people due to the dangerous conditions.  We got a call from Jason's boss, who had originally called to tell him that I was crazy for being out there, but then told us how he was seeing cyclist crash on the highway.  I had tried to call my Mom the night before with no luck, so when she called that night she'd worried all day that I was out there.  She was very happy that I had decided not to continue.  The rest of the Cycling 6 all rode through it, in the rain, all the miles.  They are made of tougher stuff than I or are more willing to take the abuse.  Probably both.

Something that I didn't mention in my last entry was the pain in the back of my ankle the last 10 miles or so of my ride to Spearville.  I'd really tried to ignore it, but by the time we'd gotten home, I could barely walk.  I iced it and of course looked up common bicycling injuries on the internet.  Achilles Tendinitis is what I'm pretty sure it was, it either hurt or felt weird when I moved it.  Weird as in feels like your ankle had sand in it.  Even if I had been enjoying BAK up to that point, my ankle wouldn't have allowed me to continue.  As it was it took 2 days for it to quit hurting when I walked.  This is something that I am going to have to be more aware of.

I've already signed up for another ride, it's in about a week.  It's a 60 mile ride, it's local and I hope it will be fun.  I've also decided on some new goals.  I'm going to try and do a smaller tour next summer.  I really feel that I just picked the wrong year for BAK and/or too much too soon.  So I'm going to try the Kandango tour that is 3 days long and about 200 miles or so.  It is usually scheduled the end of May.  I'd also like to start gravel riding.  I want to ride dirt roads and possibly take my good camera along, enjoy the scenery around me.  I think part of my issue from BAK was that I was too focused on the end of the ride, getting to the destination.  I'm not sure if that was due to the weather or my perception of what the tour was about or both.  Jason feels that my lack of enjoyment might have been his fault, that in the evenings I just hung out with him instead of finding new people at the schools.  I have mixed feelings about this.  One I didn't really want to deal with the gym and the communal showers.  I really needed his support the first long day and I genuinely enjoy hanging out with my husband.  However, I understand his point about meeting people, even though I find that somewhat uncomfortable.  He thinks that if I'd found people to ride with during the day that maybe it would have been better.  I agree with this point, riding 60 to 70 miles basically by yourself isn't fun.  I think in a few years I might try it again, I don't know.  I would like to mention that once the tour left my hometown, after the rain, they seemed to have had beautiful weather and wonderful rides.  The pictures that have been posted look like a completely different tour than how it started.

I'm a firm believer in reflecting on your experiences.  And although I didn't finish the BAK tour, I really learned a lot from it.

• I can do at least 73 miles in a day, in unfavorable conditions 
• Eat on long rides, even when you don't feel like it.
• Attitude is everything
• Remember the small victories

Day three

Today started with a plugged nose and a stomach in knots.  I woke up anxious about the day but got going anyway.  Jason took me over to the school, where I dallied until there was no real excuse not to get on my bike.  I drank my coffee, chit chatting with my college friend, basically avoiding my bike.  I finally just got on with it around 7.  I was pleasantly surprised when my tail bone didn't start screaming immediately so away I went.  I was passing people like a pro.  However, I did almost get run off the road by other cyclist crowding the shoulder, twice.  I made it to Montazuma by 10, it was about half way to Dodge City, which was where we were eating lunch that day.  The day was again cold, damp and dreary and I was grateful for my hoodie and wishing I had leggings.  At Montazuma, I texted Jason my progress and told him I thought my tail was doing better.  Then I got on my bike to find that it was tender.  I think that because it was tender yesterday it was still sensitive because I could position myself on my bike and ride with no pain. It was just rough getting on the bike and getting going.  By the time I reached Dodge City I was doing well and proud that I didn't feel like I was dying.  I met Jason for lunch at a place called Taco Jalisco.  If you get the chance it's amazing!  Once lunch was over I had roughly 15 more miles to go to the end of the route.  I did have Jason take me past the denser traffic areas and drop me off.  And I set out for Spearville.  I felt strong on this part of the ride and it went pretty quickly even though the should was really rough.  I rolled into camp at 4 and went looking for Rhi and company.  Apparently they were napping hard core and it took me a good half hour to find them.  We then strolled around Spearville, which is a cute little town.  While walking I asked both Joan and Rhi, what exactly was the fun part of BAK.  I was really struggling with the idea of doing that mileage again and again for then next 6 days.  They said it is fun when the weather cooperates.

The problem today wasn't that I couldn't do the miles.  Today I did 74 miles, now I know I'm more than capable. But it wasn't fun.  I wasn't enjoying it.  So today was my last day of BAK.  We're heading home now as I type.  I am sorry if I let anyone down but honestly I think I would hate my bike and biking by the end of this trip.  I just think it wasn't something for me.  I will still continue to ride around my area and do day rides but the day after day thing just isn't my thing. 

I will continue to blog about my biking experience and my general training as I feel that it has improved my life and well being.   I leave you tonight with some pictures from Spearville.  And I hope that if you're interested in doing a long tour that my experience doesn't dissuade you, you may enjoy it.  Speedy turtle will ride again and that is a promise.

Day 2

Depending on what time of the day you asked me changed how I felt about the day.  Starting out it was very cold and I got a late start unwilling to leave my warm bed when it was so dark and thunder was rumbling.  I will say that waking up to the sound of coffee brewing is nice.  Jason took me up to the school so that I could eat before heading out.  Rhi and Joan had left really early and we passed the rest of our group on our way to the school.  I did get to catch up with a friend of mine from college who is also doing BAK.

On the road, it was calm, cloudy and dark. The first part of the route was the longest at 18 miles.  During this part I was already thinking about what I was going to write tonight.  About how calm you can feel pedaling and passing other cyclists.  I wish I could capture this feeling and keep it for when I need it.

I made it to the midway point by 10:30.  Had some delicious peach cobbler, called the husband. I felt at this time I was doing well.  I was having some tenderness in the tailbone area but thought I could deal. So I refilled my water and headed towards the next stop.  It should have been easy, 13 miles or so. But honestly it was rough and my back end was really starting to scream.  Now I was basically riding on my own and my  brain isn't always nice to me so the doubts set in.  The next stop finally got there.  I stop, have a snack, refill my water and go.  Only 15 miles left.  I was wiggling in my seat now.  And the road wasn't straight, you'd see the town and then the road went the wrong way.  Seemed like the longest 15 miles.  I got to the last town at around 1:30.  I was so happy to get off the bike.  Called Jason to pick me up. A shower should help, right. And it did, to a point.  I am nervous, anxious and scared.  63 miles should not have been that difficult for me.  The what ifs won't leave me alone.

I did get a nice distraction going with Jason to Liberal to the air museum.  He was so excited to see his favorite planes and they were cool.  There are pictures below.  Then we stuffed ourselves at Applebee's and headed back.  At this point it was a good day again.

I had to go to the general meeting at 8.  While waiting I heard from Joan and Rhi (both BAK veterans) that today was rough for them too.  Then the meeting started.  Apparently we were the only ones who had a rough day, everyone else was positive.  Then they talked about the miles and the weather situation. Hello anxiety.

At this point a normal person should stop and not tell you about the next 15 minutes while Jason drove us back to the camper.  But I want to be honest here and say I had a mini meltdown.  I'm scared.  What if I'm in pain all day tomorrow or the rest of the week. What if I can't do this, quit, or fail.  I tell you about this not for sympathy, no one forced me to take on this challenge. I tell you for two reasons, one so that if I make it and inspire someone else I want you to know that it's okay to be scared.  Two, is to tell you that having a strong supporter or supporters help.  Jason is my hero, and I am blessed to have found such a person as him.  He told me he knows that I can do it because I'm me.  I ask him why is he so confident when I'm me and I'm not confident at all. And then he asks, when I have you ever decided to do something and not completed it.  I didn't have an answer.

And so while I am still sore and anxious, I feel that Jason has a point. 

I leave you with pictures of the air museum and with hope that tomorrow it won't look so scary.

Day one

Well, the camper made it to Elkhart.  It pulled so nicely, and we had no wind to fight.  We left early (OMG WE WEREN'T LATE).  We made it to Elkhart in good time, got lost in Elkhart and decided that the phone was lying about where the RV park was.  On the other side of town from where we thought the set up place was we found it.  We dropped off the camper and headed to Pizza Hut for some food.  We were sure we were going to be late meeting the other people in our group at the border however we ended up waiting on them which worked in my favor for sunscreen application and food digestion.  However at this time the lack of wind became blustery at an 18mph south wind.  Now, usually there is a pretty welcome to Colorado sign at the border.  My first BAK we start on a highway that ends in a dirt road with a sign that says leaving Kansas and nothing else.   I told Rhi that it was so sad that Colorado didn't claim it.  Well the route was only for 18 miles, but the wind was against us.   Going across the wind I lagged behind but my group waited for me at the turn to the south.  I have this to say, drafting is awesome. It helped tremendously.  We got back to Elkhart and it was good.  Tomorrow is a longer day with 62 miles.  Will post pictures later, and pray for southwest winds. 🐢

Be Prepared!!

We are down to less than 48 hours until the start of Bike Across Kansas.  It has been decided that we will all meet at the border at 3pm Friday.  I have spent that last few days getting things around.  We still have lots to do but the camper is clean and I have maps for the route.  Actually getting the route maps eased a bunch of anxiety.  I know it will still be challenging but seeing the route broken down into smaller bits helps.  Tomorrow is the major preparation day.  I have laundry, packing, shopping and setting up the camper to do.  But the fun stuff is ready.  I have turtle nails (pic below).  I have our team shirts.  Can I just say how excited I am to actually be on a team!  And we have matching tshirts!  All the riders have pink and the support has grey.  Pictures are below, and I would like to say that Jason chose what went on the back of his shirt, and it was so cute.   Rhi also gave me a basket of goodies and some serious encouragement.  I am so blessed to have friends like her and everyone who is rooting for me.  And of course my biggest supporter Jason will be with me the whole way.

I can honestly say I'm excited and ready to get started.  And when I finish it will be a feeling like no other and that is what I will try and remember on the rough days.

My nail lady is so awesome for giving me turtles!  Thanks Lori!!

Team Cycling 6!

This is my mantra!

Rhi is so sweet!

 

8 days and counting or the Barton County Tour

Rhi and I went on a 50 mile ride.  Ellinwood to Great Bend to Hoisington to Claflin and back to Ellinwood.  It was actually a good ride.  We got coffee first thing. Yum!  Now, I had made a mistake the night before and adjusted my seat again...bad decision.  So at the coffee shop, I asked if they had a hammer.  A hammer you may wonder.  Well, my seat tilt gets stuck, like crazy.  Even when there isn't a screw keeping it all together, it's stuck on there.  So you need a hammer to loosen it to adjust it.  The coffee shop did not have a hammer.  So we checked at the Kwik Shop, they did have a hammer.  Ah Relief.  Now I'm going to sidetrack here because I'm weird.  Neither place asked why I needed a hammer.  Maybe this is a more common occurrence than I realized but if I were in their place I would wonder what the hammer was for...  Anyway, we had very little wind and averaged about 14 mph.  Not bad in my opinion.  And one of these years I will learn that sunscreen is necessary even before noon.  I'm not burnt, but pink in some spots.  I have no one to blame but myself.

And now the countdown...

Well, it took 3 seats but I think I've got it figured out.  I ended up finding the same seat I had but in a thinner model.  I hope this helps.  I have to recondition my butt and the seat but I don't think it's anything that will cause immense pain.  There are literally 10 days until Biking Across Kansas.  (breathe, 1, 2, 3)  Everyone is so very positive and supportive.  I wish I was as confident in myself as they seem to be in me.  But here's the thing about doing something you've never done before, it's kinda scary.  And anyone who tells you different is, well braver than me.  I wonder why my dog is so skittish and I've just come to the conclusion that he takes after me.  Outside my comfort zone, and my anxiety kicks in...and I'm an over thinker so that doesn't help.  So I'm trying not to think about it while also trying to get things prepared.  It's weird.  But I think it's like when I went trail riding for the first time.  Yes the hill is scary, but you're only going to get hurt if you freak out and bail half way down.  So, take a deep breath and hold on.  Then you're on the other side of the hill, wondering why you were so terrified.  Ahh inner monologues you have with yourself.  On the flip side, I can't die on BAK because How to train your dragon 2 comes out the day after we finish...so there's that.

All my coworkers say they will read the blog for BAK updates.  I think it's going to be a HUGE contrast from Rhi's blog.  One she's an english teacher, so she articulate.  I tend to babble. Two this is her sixth year doing it, and thus she's not scared.  But we do have a timeline for BAK's now.  I met a woman a while back who said she'd get a bike tattoo when she gets 10 BAKs under her belt.  Not a bad goal in my mind and Rhi agrees.  So here is the schedule: 5 BAKs = new bike (Rhi just bought her new bike so she's on schedule), 10 BAKs = tattoo.  We will have to see if Rhi stays on schedule :)  If I get that far, I should make a new schedule, wonder what I should do for 15 BAKs...

Any way, I will leave you will my excitement over a cartoon that is coming out, because in reality I'm a 10 year old masquerading as an adult ;)

Sand Plum Classic

Well, bike fit makes a difference.  I am faster, however my bike is completely different now causing a whole new set of issues.  The problem that sent me to the bike shop to begin with has not been solved.  My legs still went numb after 35 miles.  So the search is on for a new saddle.  We did the Sand Plum Classic last Sunday.  It was a really nice ride with great SAGs.  Unfortunately, Kansas can't decide what time of year it is, so it was 102 degrees during the hottest part of the day.  Luckily, we were done before it got that hot, but it was toasty.  Jason thinks I could have kept up with him had my legs not started falling asleep and loosing power.  My brother Jon did this ride with us.  He finished but I think it was harder on him than he will admit.  For my part, it was rough simply because of the leg discomfort.  I had thought of stopping but decided that if I just kept my legs moving I would be okay.  And I finished, without any breakdowns, no doubt and that was wonderful.

So back to the saddle issues.  I think that my endurance will improve if I could my seat figured out, I could go for a lot longer.  So I went to the local bike shop.  I love Big Poppi's but it's two hours from my house.  So to Golden Belt Bicycle Company in Great Bend I went.  They told me that the seat I had was poor quality, to which I had mixed feeling being told, I loved that seat and it wasn't cheap.  But they gave me a nicer seat that they had in the back for a pretty good price.  It's a Serfas Carma seat.  The gentleman put it on for me and the told me he tilted it down just a bit. * I will state here that I sometimes think other people have no idea what they are doing and that I know better.  It's a character flaw and usually results in me doing it the hard way first before finding out that the person I thought was dumb knew what was going on the whole time. I thought the guy was crazy because my seat is usually level. *  So I rode it just the way he put it on and it's so very different from my other seat, very hard.  I was sore in new places, so I put the seat level and tried riding again.  HORRIBLE.  I am now hurting 3 to 4 miles into my ride.  So maybe tilting it down is the better idea.  Today, I will adjust the seat again and see if it helps.  I honestly don't know if the seat will work, but I am going to work with it for a while.  I can't tilt it down too much or I will slide down the seat, so it's a trial and error sort of thing.  My only hope is that I get it figured out before I ride 80 plus miles.  Anyway, if you are reading this and have had saddle issues, please let me know what you did.  I'm thinking that if I can't get this one to work, I will be spending a good portion of money to get a new one and hope it will work.

Riding in Kansas is beautiful.

A Quick Note about Fit

Last week I went and had my bike fitted for me.  I was shocked.  Turns out that my seat was REALLY low, almost 4".  It's crazy how different my bike feels, and it's not even done.  Jason was worried when they said that they would have to order parts to move my handlebars.  He was worried that my bike was too small for me.  Turns out its not the bike, it's me.  I'm between sizes.  I would have to make a small bike feel larger or take a larger bike and make it feel smaller.  I have long legs, a short torso and short arms.  The gentleman sizing me said "thank you for giving us a challenge." I don't think he meant it sarcastically at all.  I am a challenge to size to a bike.   He also said that most people have their bike seats too low and when they are adjusted most people gain 2 to 3 MPH more.  If you're curious about your fit, go get a fitting, they are worth the money.  Or if you think you can do it yourself, there are directions online.  Your knee at the lowest part of the rotation should be at a 30 degree angle.  When I get the handle bars adjusted and can ride it complete, with no wind, I will let you know about any changes.

Smoke, Wind and Sunscreen

Disclaimer *Remember when I said I have a tendency to ramble?  Pretty sure this post is a ramble fest :)

I'm really proud of myself today.  Yesterday, Jason, my brother Jon and I all did the Cabin Fever Ride in Wamego, KS.  Jason and I were doing the 60 mile ride and Jon was doing the 36 mile.  Let's start with Friday evening.  Jason and I got off work, packed up everything and headed to Manhattan.  We were excited for our first long ride of the season, and the weather forecast looked promising.

Now if you don't live in Kansas, you might not understand why on some non windy days farmers start setting things on fire.  First let me reassure you that they are not just pyromaniacs, but the that the process is necessary and important part of maintaining the prairie.  You burn off the old, so that new can grow and so that the old stuff won't start a wild fire during the thunderstorms.  I bring all this up because it's that time of year, and with no wind it meant all the smoke was just hanging around.  And it got worse as we headed towards the Flint Hills.  We got to Manhattan and there was a very dark haze in the air.  As someone who has allergies, contact lens issues and sometimes asthma, I was concerned.  I have never seen the smoke so bad.  The weather forecast said that the wind would stay down through the next day, meaning that the smoke would still be hanging around in the morning.  Gross.

We stayed the night at my brother's house.  The next morning we all got up and started getting around.  Water bottles, helmets, snacks and all other necessary items.  We then headed to Wamego for breakfast.   Breakfast was part of the ride, so I was excited.  It was pretty good, there was biscuits and gravy, egg casserole and sugary rolls.  My good friend Melanie was there to take pictures.  She and her husband help run Big Poppi Bikes in Manhattan.  If you need a friendly bike shop, you need to go there.  Melanie was commenting on my jersey.  I was wearing the one Jason got me for my birthday, along with my Shebeest sleeves.  She really liked it and was wondering where I got it.  Ebay, and it was probably from China.  We discussed the women's bicycling clothing industry.  We both agree that they need to make plus size clothing with real sizing.  There is nothing worse that normally wearing a 2xl tshirt and having to wear a 5xl in bike clothes.  Not good for the self esteem.  She actually gets to talk to the people in the industry so her voice gets heard.  I love that she's advocating for me and others like me.  Jason and I have even joked about making our own jerseys, he had trouble finding them that fit as well.  Men's jerseys are sized for little skinny guys, not big guys with muscles.  Jason also gets frustrated.

Side note on clothing.  Did you know that they make nerd athletic gear?  My brother came to the ride wearing a red underarmor shirt with a spider-man symbol on the front.  Very cool.

Any way,  we are all getting ready for the ride when we realize that the weather forecast lied.  The wind had come up and was blowing.  On the plus side, no smoke.  We set off, out of town and straight into the wind.  For about 3 miles or so, we just fight the wind, and then we turned.  Someone asked me later which is worse a cross wind or a head on wind.  I feel that a head on wind is worse.  Cross winds can be brutal too and apparently someone wiped out after getting hit with a gust.  They came away with a scraped knee.  Wind is a tricky thing.  The first quarter of the ride was really nice, beautiful country.  And although we were fighting the wind and going pretty slow because of it, we knew we'd fly back the other direction.  As we were riding, Melanie was parked taking pictures.   Jason is not a big fan of pictures, and for some reason thought that sticking his tongue out would dissuade Mel from taking them of him.  I seriously doubt it and when I get a copy of the pictures I will post it.  And we ride.  The fun part of these kinds of things is that you meet others who are also training for BAK.  There is this very friendly community of bicyclists who always seem supportive and encouraging.  It made me feel better, knowing that they are so friendly.  At the 2nd SAG, is where we left Jon.  It was his turn to ride back.  We still had 10 more miles or so, all against the wind.  At this point I would like to say, that I was feeling pretty good.  Took off my sleeves and went searching my back pockets for my sunscreen.  The sunscreen I made sure to grab when we packed yesterday.  The sunscreen that was still packed in my bag at my brother's house.   I told Jason, that I was going to regret taking the sleeves off.  But it was hot, and I was willing to risk it.  (When I say risk it, what I mean is guaranteed sunburn.  I have fair skin there is no maybe if I don't have sunscreen.)

Okay, back to the ride.  The Flint hills area is beautiful.  I would love to go ride this route again, preferably when I'm not fighting a 20-30 mile per hour wind.  But by the time we reached the last hill before the last SAG, I was having less than fun.  I've been more miserable on rides but my feet and legs kept falling asleep this time, it was weird and uncomfortable. This ride had something none of my other rides had before.  Lots of support vehicles monitoring the route.  Since we were the last ones, we had a personal escort following us.  I really didn't care for it.  I know it's nice and all but I felt like it was the vulture waiting to pick off the weak animal at the back of the pack.  This is my own thinking issue, and the gentleman following us couldn't have been nicer. It was just a constant reminder that we were the last ones out.  Team Turtle was living up to its name.  When we came back the other way it was a different story.  I think it took half the time to come back than it did to go out and we reached the middle SAG in record time.  While there I complained about my feet and legs.  The middle SAG was being run by Melanie's husband Aaron and the Big Poppi Bus.  He said I need to get my bike fit check and maybe a thinner seat.  I could be squishing arteries in my legs causing the numbness.   I told him I'd be into the shop soon, this whole legs numb thing is not good.

We headed back to Wamego.  Cross wind pushing us all over.  And the ride began to feel like work.  Jason was worried for me.  I wasn't grumpy but I wasn't having fun anymore either.  And then we hit the fire.  A farmer had decided to burn the ditch by his house right off the road where we were cycling.  Now, I'm not a farmer but the strip he was burning was super small so I couldn't understand why he'd even bother AND it was WINDY.  Quarter mile of smoke to ride through.  Not fun.  We make back to where the wind would push us back into Wamego, and it did.  I don't think I pedaled for almost a mile heading back in.  We made it back to the finishing point.  They were packing up.  We were the last ones in.  We did 60 miles in 6 hours.  Not terrible fast, but when we looked up the wind speed we felt pretty awesome.  We fought a 20 - 30 mile sustained wind not counting gusts most of the day.  I didn't have a meltdown, and it was our longest ride ever.  We may never be the fastest but at least we finished.

Today, the only things that are sore are my sunburns (both arms have red sleeves) and my sit bones.  My body did great, my shoulders didn't get tense this time and my legs aren't killing me.  I think once I get my bike fit and seat figured out, I will have more stamina.  Yesterday told me that BAK is possible, I will make it and I will be okay.

Training Day

The year is going quickly.  Spring break is over, we have less than 8 weeks left in school, which means 10 weeks until BAK.  Time to start getting a bit more serious.  Saturdays original plan was to just work out with Rhi.  Then we thought, if it's nice out we should bike somewhere to lunch.  Then a crazy idea hit me.  I could bike to Claflin to work out, then I could get some serious mileage in today.  Ah, the ideas that come to you when you've had your second cup of coffee.  I had this idea about 2 hours before I was supposed to meet Rhi, which meant I had about an hour to decide if this was what I wanted to do.  Looking at the temperature and the wind, I thought I can do it!  My hope was that a 4 mph wind, 35 degree temp and sunshine would be okay.  I thought that the lack of serious wind and warm sun would keep me warm enough.  I can say, I should work on my thought processes a bit.   Although it wasn't horribly cold, it was BRISK.  I'm honestly surprised that I didn't turn around 3 blocks from my house.  It got better out on the highway, and with a tail wind, I made to Claflin in record time.

When I got the gym, I made Rhi wait to work out as I tried to get comfortable feelings back into my toes.  Even with wool socks, they were just too cold.  Everything else was fine.  When asked what I wanted to work out today, I simply said no legs.  I knew we were going to be riding and thought that was enough abuse for the legs for one day.  And so we did arms, abs and cardio circuits.  On a side note, my legs didn't like jump roping, even though they didn't feel cold, they felt stiff and protested the activity.  Once finished we decided on Holyrood for lunch.  Holyrood is only 9 miles from Claflin and as I had already bike 13 to get to Claflin, I was glad for the short distance.  It had warmed up, but it was still brisk outside.  I really think we had more wishful thinking for warm temperatures than actual warm temperatures.  We took the major highway to Holyrood.  I actually drive this quite a bit since it's where one of my schools are, but you never think of the hills the same way in a car.  And the worse hill isn't one of those serious grade hills, it's the kind that is long, gradual and never seems to end.  But from the top you coast all the way into town.  Time for lunch!  If you're local and have never had C&V's grilled chicken wrap, you are missing out.  YUM!  We ate, we rested, and I got a Powerade.  Rhi tells me she'll ride with me halfway to Ellinwood.  We decide not to stop in Claflin and go straight on through.  Now, if we do the math, I'm up to 22 miles already for the day.  My legs are protesting as we get on our bikes and start going back.  Now heading into the wind.  Honestly the wind wasn't bad, but it's just about all I can hear.  I'm starting to think my ears must be bigger than I thought.  When I ride, all I hear is wind...and it's hard on your mind.

By this time I'm starting to slow down.  I just don't have the power to go faster, so I fall behind Rhi, and then catch up, and then fall behind and then catch up.  We agree to take a break after we climb the overpass.  I was surprised when Rhi stops on the top of the over pass.  For those of you who are not local, there is a substantial shoulder, so we were not in any danger.  We're standing, I'm trying to stretch out angry leg muscles, and Rhi takes a picture of the view.  It's really pretty actually, something I'm sad I never noticed especially since I drive over it every day.  As we're standing there, a semi rolls across the over pass and the whole thing starts moving.  Kind of like a wooden plank that you bounce in the middle on.  I start freaking out, this isn't right, it's crazy.  Rhi says she wants to want for another truck, see if it will do it again.  We do, and it does!!! Creepiest thing ever.  Concrete is not supposed to flex like that, is it!?  I decide I want off the over pass.  And thus starts the discussion, does this happen on all bridges and overpasses or just this one.  The idea is kind of scary for me.  And so we head on.  We turn off to the Ellinwood black top and take another short break.  At this point, I'm really wanting to call Jason for a ride and am regretting the lack of padded shorts.  Rhi says no, I want to make miles and you will help!  She's going as far as the Peter and Paul Church before she turns back.  It's the mid point between Claflin and Ellinwood.  She encourages me, says I can make it...and then I will be too close to home to call Jason.  My rear end and shoulders beg to differ with her confidence, but we head on.  We get to the church.  Rhi says not to call Jason, I can make it the last 6 miles and when I do it will be a conquered thing.  I tell her I will do my best but I'm taking a break and pouring my Powerade into my water bottle, since I am now out of water.  I roll to a stop in the gravel/grass parking lot and watch Rhi turn around, and going with the wind head back to Claflin.  Ugh.  Six miles.  I stretch, I check facebook, I pour my Powerade into my water bottle.  Ugh.  Six miles.

I get on my bike, and start trudging.  The good thing is I ride this section of road a lot, so I know what's ahead of me.  One little hill and it's basically downhill from there into town.  I try and do what Rhi had suggested, breaking it into chunks.  One mile at a time  My back and shoulders are stiff, and my butt hurts and I am really hoping for a flat tire.  (I didn't have anything to fix a flat so I would have to call Jason).  I take a drink from the water bottle, YUCK.  My Powerade, which tasted just fine at lunch, tastes like gross Koolaid now.  I wish I had water.  Mile by mile.  I can see the blue water towers.  I am going to finish, not super fast but I will finish.  So I keep pedaling.  3 miles from town.  2 miles from town.  I'm in town.  Ellinwood is roughly 1 mile across, and I am on the far side of town.  I roll through town, wincing at the brick streets.  I can see my house!  I roll up to the garage, and there is Jason.  I'm so tired.  Jason takes my bike for me, I sit in the grass and stretch, texting Rhi, I made it.  I tell Jason I wanted to call him about 13 miles ago, he says I was only 2 miles from you at my parent's house, I could have come and gotten you.  Ugh.  It hasn't sunk in yet that I just did 44 miles, on my own accord, with no SAGs.  I head to the shower, AMAZING.  I take a brief nap.  I feel so much better.

I did 44 miles.  Longest ride since the Chicken ride last August.  I might survive BAK.

I also learned several important things:

• I missed my padded shorts, badly. 
• My legs were lying when they said they were tired.  They don't even hurt today. 
• I cannot skip sunscreen, even in the spring time...I have pink spots.  
• Powerade is not something I want on my rides.  I can't believe how gross it tasted when I wanted water.  
• Maybe I shouldn't try and do workouts and long rides.
• Rhi and I have decided it's important to go for small victories.  I did 44 miles but the last 6 were the hardest.
• I need to take more pictures and learn to enjoy what's around me.  Less focus on the physical demands and more on the journey.  Overall, it was awesome, and I have not one picture.

Next weekend I hope to do 50 miles.  In two weeks, I am signed up to do a 58 mile ride up in Wamego.  This is the training, but I will try to stay positive and over come.

Awkward but necessary

I've been thinking about this post for a while.  It's not about my progress or my biking so much but about details of things you might think about as you start trying to get into shape.  I'm only writing this because according to my Google statistics people are reading the blog, and according to the numbers it's more than the 5 people I shared the blog with so yeah! Today I would like to talk about women specific topics so gentlemen skip this post.  I find that these topics are taboo with some people and even I find it difficult to discuss with people I don't feel comfortable discussing such things with.  So with that in mind I would like to talk about Bras, underwear, padded shorts and bike seats.  Let the awkwardness begin!!

Bras - First off, everyone needs to go get fitted for a good regular bra...no excuses.  I was 22/23 before I actually had a good bra that fit properly.  Some women don't think too much about the bra they wear.  For those of us who are top heavy, it's a major concern to get a good bra that doesn't feel like you're going to give yourself a black eye walking down stairs.  For those of you who aren't so full on top, be thankful.  As a big chested girl, I find them to be rather a nuisance.  Not that I would change them but they can be a problem sometimes...any way.

 Let me share with you my first bra fitting at a proper shop.  I went in because my sister and I had had a discussion on the fact that my underwire poked out in the front.  It looked weird and it was pretty obvious it wasn't supposed to do that.  At the time, I was wearing a DD cup.  Went into a specialty bra shop and was fitted with a G cup.  I about died...I felt great because the bra fit perfectly and then freaked out because I kind of felt like a freak, I mean you don't hear about these sizes unless they are talking about Dolly Pardon.  After my initial panic, I bought two bras for about $100.  Yes, the price was shocking for someone who'd only bought the bras at Walmart before but I had the extra cash at the time so I did it.  After the first week, I felt I had made the right decision because they were super comfortable and everyone kept asking if I'd lost weight.  See if you put your breasts where they belong, you look slimmer :).  And thus began my life as a G cup bra seeker.

When I decided to get into shape, the bra thing was a big concern.  Sports bras are meant for high impact activities, and frankly I had nothing that would prevent injury in the event of a jumping jack.  So I went online.  I am posting the link to the bra I use because it's awesome.  If it works for me, it should work for you.  I have 3 of them if that tells you anything, and I do jumping jacks.  Awesome Sports Bra Link

Go get fitted, I highly recommend Dillards as they have larger sizes than JC Pennys.  If you have a true bra shop in your area go there, and no I'm not talking about Victoria Secret.  Victoria Secret only goes up to DDD and they will try and shove you into one...at least the store I went to did.  Dillards and Lane Bryant both carry larger sizes and will help you find a good fit.  You can also measure yourself and order online.  If you don't have a measuring tape, you can get a free one here.  Here are two bra specific sites that have measure directions, barenecessities.com and lindasonline.com.  I would like to note that I have checked sizes on these sites and then found the same bra on Amazon.com for cheaper.  Also don't be afraid to send them back if you don't like them, just double check the return policy.  If you have good bras please remember to hand wash (or the delicate cycle on your washer) and hang dry for longer use.  Okay, I'm off my soap box and on to underwear.  Btw, if you are chesty and haven't seen the busty girl problems cartoon, go here, they are hilarious and true!

The other three topics are bike specific :)

Underwear.  Frankly the only thing I can tell you is wear what is comfortable and beware of seam lines.  Once you've been on a bike for over an hour, you will find that the seams (especially the thicker seamed ones) will start pushing into you skin and make you sore.  And if you're wearing padded shorts, you shouldn't be wearing them at all.

Padded shorts.  This one is prompted from a discussion with my husband yesterday.  First, yes they help on long rides.  No they don't eliminate the soreness.  As my friend Rhi says, you have to condition your butt.  And lastly not all padded shorts are created equal.  There is foam vs. gel and they are gender specific.  As I had to explain to Jason yesterday, I have two pairs.  One that I bought that are for women and one that he bought that are unisex.  In my opinion, the unisex ones are little help to anyone.  The differences between them are placement of the padding.  Obviously men and women have different parts and there for need different padding in different places.  So I highly recommend going with the gender specific ones.   You don't wear underwear with padded shorts to avoid pressure points as previously discussed.  I also don't wear padded shorts unless I'm going more than 20 miles or so.

Bike Seats aka Saddles - If you're new to biking like me, you wonder what everyone is talking about when they say saddles.  I'm still confused as to why they call them this, as saddles belong on horses but hey.  The number one thing I hear from my non biking friends is that the seat makes their butt hurt.  Yes, yes it does.  But here's the thing, it does get better if you have a good fitting saddle.  The general recommendation is try to ride with the seat your bike came with.  If after a few weeks of consistent riding, the soreness doesn't go away, you should try a different seat.  I went a month on the one that came with my bike, and not only was I sore on the bike, I was sore several hours later on my couch.  Needless to say I got another seat and life was much better.  Most bike shops will help you find a seat that will fit you, don't be afraid to ask for help.  On a side note, mine has a ventilated area to help with sweating.  It helps tremendously, and no you don't feel the air coming through the vent, you just know you are less sweaty.

Okay, well I hope I have offered some good information.  All the information I have given has been achieved through personal experience and I am by no means an expert on anything.

Impatient for Spring

Today it was 70 degrees outside.  In Kansas, in February.  It was awesome!! I started doing the mental math at about 2 pm.  If I got home a X time and sunset isn't until Y time, then I would have this much time t ride and I could try and do this many miles.  Then I checked the wind...stupid wind.  It was blowing about 21 miles per hour...I tried not to let this deter me, I was hoping to ride 20 miles.  I had about 2 hours of light by the time I got home, so I was hopeful.  I got all my stuff together and headed out.  Heading straight into the wind, I quickly decided that if I made it to the church 6 miles down the highway I would be doing good.  So I putted along, slowly fighting the head wind and the occasional side wind that threatened to push me off the road.  I tried to keep the mind set that as long as I was moving, I was doing good.  Besides 8.5 mph isn't that bad...actually it is but I didn't want to kill myself trying to go faster. My legs were still recovering from yesterdays gym workout. It felt like what I would imagine biking through peanut butter would be like.  My thoughts during the longest 6 miles ever was that this is necessary training for BAK.  Also knowing that I would be going back home with the wind was going to make it easier.  And can I say that LOVE going with the wind!!! My top speed was 25.5 mph and it was awesome!!  So the ride back made up for the ride out.  The slowest 6 miles against the wind, and then probably the fastest 6 miles going with the wind.  Fun!! I know this is a fluke in Kansas for a day like this, but I am ready for spring!

Keep Calm and Try not to panic

Well, I've done it.  I've registered for Bike Across Kansas.  This is the 40th year for BAK and of course they went big.  I'm pretty sure this is the largest mileage map (547 miles) they've done, it's diagonal across the state.  But the good thing is that 3 of the over night stops are places that I won't have to stay in the gym (that's if Jason can't get the truck running).  I am a strange combination of excited and terrified.  I know this is mostly my brain freaking out.  Rhi told me to remember how much time we have until then and realize that what we are working on now is going to help later.  I think that all the hard work I've been doing will pay off as long as I don't let my doubts and fears control me.  It will be okay :) Take it one day at a time.

Procrastination at it's best

I'm procrastinating.  I should be working on my graduate work, but I don't want to...I will get it done, don't worry but I'd much rather write about my day that read 100 pages about technology and education.  Anyway, I am sore today.  All over.  It got better, but then we went driving through the Quivera Reserve for several hours and I stiffened up again.  I did get to eat at the Wheatland Cafe for the first time.  It was delicious, and I couldn't finish all my food but I wanted to.  When we got home, a nap was attempted.  However, a very grumpy miniature schnauzer simply refused to let us have a nap.  He grumbled, growled and generally made a nuisance of himself for about 45 minutes.  So we gave up the idea of the nap, and decided on bike riding.  We had discussed a 20 mile yesterday, and it was nice today.  So we ended up going 22 miles.  I broke my 10 mile record again, this time by a minute.  I had some help with a tail wind but I'm still happy about it.  Wind and hills still are not my best friend, but my general speed is more constant and I was still quite a bit faster even going against the wind.

One thing I do want to discuss is bicycling clothing.  First off it can be expensive.  I personally have fitted Danskin leggings from Walmart.  I say fitted because the loose ones catch in my chain.  Up until a few months ago, I didn't own a bicycle jersey, I now own two.  The Shebeest one posted last week and one Jason bought me off of ebay.  I would like to say it is not necessary to own a jersey, and they do run very small, not like regular clothing.  I also don't think they are the most form flattering things on the planet but the reason that I like my jerseys...POCKETS!!  They have pockets sewn on the back so you can keep stuff with you.  Today that meant tissues for my cold, and a snack bar.  I just think they are convenient and they are made of moisture wicking material which helps a lot.  Hate wearing a sweat soaked tshirt.  I guess my point is, you don't have to have the expensive bike clothes but they have their purpose and can be nice.

I'm posting my outfit today so that you can see what it looks like.  Now this jersey is one Jason bought me off of eBay.  I really like it, but it was short sleeved.  Shebeest has removable sleeves, which you see me wearing.  They don't slip and don't have any weird clingly stuff touching your skin.  However, I'm not sure if they'd be comfortable for someone with larger arms than me.  I know the elastic is tight so they won't slip but I wonder if I had thicker arms if it would be uncomfortable.  I don't feel them once I get them on, so they work great for me.

I'm babbling, I'm tired and now heading to a hot bath to help with my soreness and stiffness.  Until next time, enjoy the ride!!

Fun with Resistance Bands and Hula Hoops

I did something today that I would not have done a year ago.  I actually met Rhi at the gym to work out on a Saturday morning.  And I felt great about doing it.  Now Rhi told me that the ab work we did today will make me hate her tomorrow, but today I feel great.  While we were working out, we were investigating the resistance bands.  We both decided that we should research some exercises using them before we hurt ourselves just winging it.  While discussing this and in the process of putting the bands away, I managed to snap myself in the face.  Not my most elegant moment.  We also decided to do hula hooping, since it was Saturday fun day.  Turns out I can't hula hoop, I spent more time picking the silly thing than actually hula-ing. Anyway, it was good, even for a Saturday morning.

I also am so glad for the awesome weather we've been having.  Jason and I were able to go for another bike ride, a short one.  Jason was able to snap the pictures below as we were riding (not bad for just clicking over his shoulder). :)  It's supposed to be even nicer tomorrow.  Jason suggested possibly going for a nice long 20 mile ride if it's as nice as we hope.  I'm excited to be outside on these rare warm days, but I also know that Mother Nature is a tease, especially in Kansas where we have 60's one day and 20's the next.  I will enjoy it while I can though.  

  

Motivation is high

I feel so excited since Sunday's ride.  Seeing myself improve has motivated me to continue to work hard and push myself.  I've worked out twice with my awesome friend Rhi and even when I'm tired and want to quit, I remember the strides I've made, so that 30 seconds of jumping jacks isn't as bad.  I know that doesn't sound like much, but I hate jumping jacks....too much stuff moves, it's not pretty.  Any way, feeling really good about my progress and am motivated to continue.

Screen printing, head colds and improvements

It has been an awesome weekend.  I have figured out how to screen print using pantyhose. Had a few naps and the weather has been surprisingly warm for January.  Up into the 60's with the never ending Kansas wind.  So I decided to drag the husband out for a ride, even though I'm fighting a nasty sinus infection...cannot get my right ear to pop, and there are gross mucus issues.  So glad I went anyway!  We went south deciding to go with a cross wind, and I was pleasantly surprised at how fast I was going!  I've been doing weight training and indoor bike training to get better.  I've agreed to do Bike Across Kansas this year and decided I needed to train to become a stronger cyclist.  IT'S PAYING OFF!! I was able to go about 2.5 miles on average faster than my old average.  So excited.  I also got to wear my pretty long sleeve Shebeest jersey for the first time, I really think it did a good job of wicking away the sweat and was super comfy.  My only regret is that I didn't take tissues with me...ugh.  I wonder how I will do when I am completely healthy?! Totally Stoked right now!  I've added pictures of my screen print and my Shebeest Jersey.

Owl Screen Print "Just Wingin' It"

SheBeest Jersey