Beyond Tough

So I thought I've been having a hard time lately training for my century... today I read this article in SFGate, about Jon Withrington, who, just 2 months after completing chemo for non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, is now training for the Death Ride: Tour of the California Alps. Truly amazing and inspiring.

Jon Withrington with his wife and daughter

Point Reyes and Environs

This past Saturday we started our team ride from the Bear Valley Visitor Center in Olema. One thing I noticed while driving there that morning was a formidable hill less than a mile from the starting point. I thought to myself, "Are we gonna have to climb that hill later? Nahhh... that's not the route I remember from before." Lesson: If you feel compelled to wonder, it means you will end up doing it.

Listening to nutrition clinic pre-ride

(that's me on the right)





I did this 40 mile ride during my first season with TNT, and what I remember were great views and a super-hard climb somewhere along the route (refer to paragraph one). But being the seasoned cyclist that I am (proclaimed with swaggering bravado), I was not too worried about a 40 mile ride. Hmmm... I did not, however, factor in the weather, my lack of proper clothing layers, my lack of sleep, and an extremely inconvenient climb at about mile 7.

When I do these longer rides, I really feel like it takes 15-20 miles for me to properly warm up. But on this ride, I don't feel like I ever warmed up. The climb at mile 7 was more difficult than I imagined. I was tired, sluggish, feeling every extra pound on my body. On climbs like this I always question why I ride... a thought I dismiss when I remember my health. Sure, I'm struggling. Blood vessels feel like they can burst and the top of the hill is nowhere in sight... but I always have the option to simply unclip and stop if I want to. It's not like chemo. I have options.

Putting that first climb behind me, the rest of the ride was just okay. Such a contrast from last weekend's ride when I felt really strong. I'm sure a lot of it had to do with sleep deprivation, and the chilly weather that eventually turned rainy. I didn't have the right jacket with me and rode too cold the whole time. My descending was sadly sub-par, too. I kept neglecting to get into my drops and then suffered when I had to use a death grip to brake- and with little effect given the wet weather.

We eventually made it to that hill I remembered on the drive. I had steeled myself for it and was pleasantly surprised to get up it easily! I remember this hill being really unbearable my first season, which was an affirmation of my progress over the past two years. There was a potluck at the end of the ride, and I had a nice time huddling with the coaches and staff (we were the only ones that stuck around), trying to keep warm and dry while we waited to cheer in the last team.

Keeping warm with Coaches K. Sue and Steve, waiting for the last team...

... and here they are

An Open Letter to Blazing Saddles

Dear Blazing Saddles,

I feel that your customers are not understanding the rules of the road and common bicycle courtesy. As an avid cyclist I'm all for encouraging people to bike, and think it's great that tourists want to rent bikes and enjoy the outdoors... but enough already with hazardous (mostly) Euro-tourists almost running us locals off the road!

In my experience riding over the bridge to Sausalito, I have encountered:

• Blazing Saddles cyclists riding 3 and 4 abreast, almost forcing me into tourists shooting photos along bridge rail
  
  
• Blazing Saddles cyclist bombing downhill to Sausalito on wrong side of road, barely dodging cyclists riding slowly uphill, swearing while she did it


• Blazing Saddles cyclists abruptly stopping with no warning at bridge exit, causing pileup to ensue*


• Absolutely no response from Blazing Saddles cyclists to basic call-outs like "on your left" (I understand there may be a language barrier, but I've encountered no response to my bell and universal shouted warnings, either)

* When this happened, I unfortunately had to stop myself, which led my friend riding behind me to stop, which led to being yelled at by a jerky roadie who thought it was our fault- "That's a bad place to stop! A baaaadd plaaaace to stop!!" As a person with a fair amount of pride, I was truly mortified.

Additionally, I often see Blazing Saddles cyclists doing these things:

• Riding with seat way too low = knee pain


• Riding up impossibly steep hills given their bike setups

After witnessing all this time and again, I feel the need to air my concerns. It is my hope that you are briefing your customers on these points, but I feel like something is just not sinking in.

Sincerely,

Cherylismo!

Hitting The Wall and Paradise

Calveras Road, Sunol - 30 miles

I've got two more training rides under my belt since my last post. Two weeks ago we headed out to Sunol to ride the popular Calaveras Road. I've done this ride many times and it's one of my favorites for a number of reasons: it's scenic, rural, has little car traffic, some climbing, rolling hills, and fast descents.

Ah, lovely Calaveras Road...

I could feel my strength gaining on this ride. After all, I've been training solidly for about one month now. But I was quickly slapped back and reminded of my apparent lack of conditioning when I attempted to climb a short optional hill, affectionately referred to among local cyclists as "The Calaveras Wall."

The Wall is short- only .4 miles, and really that's all you can handle since it's a 15% grade. I'd done it once before and remember it being hard, but not as hard as it was this time! Thankfully no other riders were close enough to hear me gasping for air and whining while I grinded up this hill, my body contorting in pain as I yanked on my handlebars in a bid for momentum, red-lining the whole way. It was really awful and I almost bailed out twice, but some misguided part of me wouldn't stop trying to pedal and slalom up the hill.

As you can see in the first photo below, not everyone on the team was able to ride up The Wall. For comparison, photo two shows pro riders ascending The Wall during stage 3 of the 2009 Amgen Tour of California. Hey even those guys look like they're riding pretty slowly up it. Okay, but the difference is that their slow is probably 12 mph up this hill, while my slow is 3 or 4 mph to bike-almost-falling-over-from-lack-of-momentum. You could have beat me walking on this one.

photo by Garrett Lau
http://www.flickr.com/photos/garrettlau/sets/72157614001932867/

Paradise Loop from San Francisco - 42 miles

Last Saturday we rode over the Golden Gate Bridge and did the Paradise Loop- another one of my favorite rides. I love the fact that I didn't need to drive anywhere- just rode my bike to the meeting point in the Presidio and did the ride.

The Paradise Loop takes you over the bridge and down into Sausalito. From there, you climb a moderately challenging hill along Camino Alto. Eventually you make your way to Paradise Drive, a rolling, winding road in the hills. I pushed it pretty hard here and really felt for the first time this season that I'd got my mojo back.

When you emerge from the hills, you drop into Tiburon, where everyone stops at Caffe Acri for an obligatory bathroom break and espresso. I always enjoy seeing cyclists here in their gear, relaxing on the patio with their croissants and lattes- it's oh so Bay Area, I think, and it's the kind of riding you look forward to once your training season is over.

After prying ourselves from the comfort of Caffe Acri, it's back to the roads and trails skirting the Bay. I was pleased with myself for drafting off three faster guys on my team, averaging 17 mph and not getting dropped. You then hit Sausalito again and begin the slow climb back to the bridge. The thing is, it's much windier in the afternoon and therefore much more of a challenge getting home. The bridge has crazy wind, and if that isn't enough, you have to deal with all the Euro-tourists on their rent-a-bikes, dangerously riding three abreast, one hand on the handlebars, one hand holding a camera, completely oblivious to oncoming bike traffic. I've had a close call here once before, but this time made it back unscathed, and beat the rain. All in all, a really lovely day.

Caffe Acri in Tiburon

30 miles down, 70 to go

Getting back in the saddle has been a challenge after months of wedding planning, skipping the gym, and holiday eating! I've been hitting spin class pretty hard, and as I type my legs and back are aching in a rewarding way.

Training

This Saturday we'll ride 30 miles- a little less than one third of our ultimate distance of 100 miles that we'll ride in June. I've got a great group of new teammates and am happy to say that a few close friends have even joined and will grind up the hills alongside me!

True Stories

So with all the training, it's easy to lose sight of my primary purpose here: to raise money to help cure cancer. Lance does a really good job of it, and with your help, I can too in my own way. We have a few people on our team who are our Honorees. These are people who are currently undergoing treatment, or are leukemia survivors. Some of them even ride with us. One of these people is Sheryl Braum. I had the honor of training with Sheryl last winter for the Solvang Century, and also celebrated her 5 year "re-birthday," which marked the 5 year anniversary of the bone marrow transplant that saved her life. Today, Sheryl rides cancer-free and with just one working lung. I think about that a lot when I'm struggling and swearing while riding up a hill with my two good lungs!

Sheryl with teammate Dan

Fundraising

So far I've raised just over $500. I need to raise at least $1500 by May 21st. I know financial times are tough, but if could get enough people to donate even just $10, I can easily reach my goal. Think of it as one less fancy cocktail on Friday night, or maybe 3 less Starbuck's Frappucinos! Also, some companies (like Google and eBay) will match your donation, so ask your employer!

DONATE

So I've got a thing for skulls and pirates. Even tough can be cute.

Ever wonder what the cyclists in the Tour de France do when they need to use the bathroom? They certainly don't get caught at the outhouse!

So it begins

Welcome to my cycling blog, wherein you will find details of my obsession.

Right now, I'm participating in my third season cycling and fundraising with Team In Training. So for the next few months, most of my posts will be related to that. I'll be riding 100 miles around Lake Tahoe on June 7th.