From NY to TX...

Post-race hang time with Ameerah

After about a month off of racing, I had a blast returning to the crit scene in Binghamton, NY for the Chris Thater Memorial.  My folks and I made a road trip of it and I was happy to spend time with them and ride my bike too.  The race was fun and I felt decent.  Was getting excited for the sprint finish and had good position into the last corner.  Not sure why the rider in front of me hit the breaks, but she did and that doesn't usually help when going for the sprint.  A little history, Chris Thater was one of my first NRC races when I started...and I've done it several times.  I don't think I've ever been allowed to finish the race though.  (Dropped & Pulled) This course was always tough for me.  However, not this year.  I managed a top 20 result... 11th.  Definitely always aiming for higher, but content.


A SUPER MEGA THANK YOU to Joe Mai for getting the race machine all fixed up and ready to rock!!!  Joe's the best.  If you ride these sweet roads in Western Mass, you should stop by Joe's Garage.

Heading out on one of my favorite rides...

After Chris Thater, I returned to SLC for a few days then was packing up the bike again to head to Austin, TX for the Tour of Austin.  This is my impression of Austin so far:

: D

Honestly.  What a neat city.  Whitney always spoke highly of the cycling community here and now I can see why.   This city loves riding.  Any kind, any speed, for any reason.  I've been very impressed.  

Biking in the city

My celebrity host has been showing me an awesome time.  She's famous.  I'm sure of it.   Kim has been such great company.  We rode over to the Driveway series on Thursday night to check out the course.  We have a midweek race series in SLC too... but not like this!  The Driveway seems to be equal parts suffering and equal parts partying.  Music, drinks, food, and lots of folks having a good time, enjoying each others company, and enjoying life on two wheels.

So the official race weekend kicked off with a 3.4 mile circuit race around Austin's Formula 1 track today.  Pretty darn cool.   As in awesome.  With a steep hill after the start finish line, the blazing sun, and a good sized field of fast women, this race sapped the energy right out of my legs.  Polly kept warning me about the heat here.  Glad she encouraged me to fly in a couple days before the race to get well acquainted with it.  I wasn't completely shocked when I lined up today for the first race, but 102?!.  I'm sure it was actually hotter on the track.

Circuit of the Americas

The women here raced aggressively.  A break of 3 went fairly early on the hill, but it didn't appear to have the right team representation.  I didn't attempt to bridge across immediately because it seemed as though the big field would bring them back over the course of the downhill.  My mistake.  Apparently it was the right combination of riders up the road.  They stayed away to the finish and I started preparing for the field sprint.  Within 1K to go, the notable sprinters were pretty much lined up across the road.  I don't remember who jumped first...but it was a drag race to the finish.   I avoided crashing when another racer cut diagonally across the road in front of me as everyone started to sprint.  I thought there was a chance I could make up some ground, but in the end I wasn't going fast enough to come around Jen McRae.  She won the field sprint coming in 4th and I finished in 5th.

SKINourishment tent!

I was glad to get out of the heat and enjoy the company of the wonderful SKINourishment team!  Also, super thankful for Polly's cheering and the wonderful and amazing new Cross Fixe Muscle Paste.  Made my legs and back feel ridiculously good.

Polly and Cristi

The good stuff.  Food grade!  

Next race tomorrow!  Stay tuned.....

A break in the silence

Greetings from UT!  I've been enjoying a nice break at home.  The past few weeks have been spent visiting with family, heading out for some fun riding, and generally enjoying the last little bit of summer.

Some highlights:

• Hanging out with the rad folks of SKINourishment, Inc. at the OR show in SLC! After talking with her on the phone all season, I was thrilled to meet SKINourishment's Creator/Founder Polly Glasse in person!  I had an absolute blast...can't wait for Tour of Austin next week!   

Team SKINourishment: Polly & Kat!

•  My folks were in town!  Enjoyed a fun-filled week of Bee's games, High West Distillery, Utah's Natural History Museum, mini-golf, and being dive-bombed by hummingbirds in Big Cottonwood.  

Good times in the Big Cottonwood Canyon

• Tour of Utah spectating!  Managed to catch 3 stages this year.  I rushed to the capitol building after work Friday to catch the last couple laps of the circuit race.  Saturday, I joined Tiffany, her husband Steve and friend Justin, and Theresa Cliff-Ryan and her husband Gary for a ride.  Tiffany and I continued to the top of Guardsman to cheer on Jens...that was my objective at least!  Here's a video clip...I'm not sure Jens Voigt is in the video, but I was cheering for him anyway.  I just got so excited.  What a character.   

Guardsman Pass: Kat & Tiffany 

Sunday, Matt and I rode mountain bikes to the race.  We ended up watching just after they came over the final climb and started to descend down into Park City.  The ride was sweet...not the best place to watch from though...mostly because there were some zealous spectators around us and I don't mean the fun variety.  I mean the policing variety.  Some lady told me I couldn't be on or near my bike because I might try to jump in the race.  The actual police officer marshaling and I had a good chuckle over some of the ridiculousness.    

En route to the final stage... 

• I survived my first encounter with a rattlesnake. Funny thing was I started out for my ride heading up Rattlesnake Gulch.  Didn't see a rattlesnake.  Despite the name of the trail, the thought of seeing a rattlesnake didn't cross my mind.   Ironic.  After getting on the Pipeline Trail, the thought did cross my mind and I kinda lost it.  Somewhat irrationally...I essentially stopped riding because I was super anxious.  What if I saw a rattlesnake hanging out in the middle of the trail?  What would I do?  Is there a safe distance to pass a rattlesnake?  After being paralyzed with fear for a couple minutes, I told myself to get with the program and continue with the ride.  The next half hour I enjoyed the beautiful scenery pictured below... 

Then I was hammering out of the woods around a bend, and sure enough a huge a** rattlesnake is crossing the trail right in front of my wheel.  Did I scream like a girl?  If a girl screams like this...

....then yes, I did scream like a girl.  It happened super quickly...no time to hit on the brakes...it's very possible I severed the snake from its rattle.  Or the rattling I heard meant the dude was super angry at me for scaring it.   While I hoped I didn't hurt it, I was terrified and I didn't stick around long enough to find out.  I booked it super watts style down to the road.  Last mountain bike ride for a little while at least...

Tomorrow, I head east to race in the Chris Thater Memorial.  Let the end of season racing block begin!

Welcome Bell Lap Coaching!

I wanted to take a moment to recognize a new official sponsor of the team!  Many thanks to Bell Lap Coaching for their support!  Founded by Steve Weller, Bell Lap Coaching brings a practical and scientific approach to training.  Steve coaches riders from all levels and offers a variety of coaching packages to meet your needs and assist you in achieving your goals!   

Steve has coached me as a sponsored athlete for many years now as I've come up through the ranks of cycling.  He has been instrumental in helping me make the transition to the professional level and I can't possibly express how important his coaching and support has been to me.  I've always been especially appreciative of his encouragement and his talent for creating challenging and realistic training plans which make it easier for me to balance my cycling goals with work, school, and family.  Steve has a wonderful perspective on cycling and life, and he has a sense of humor which makes him a joy to work with!  If you are in search of a coach, I highly recommend Steve Weller with Bell Lap Coaching.  Go check him out!  http://www.belllapcoaching.com/