The day Murphy's Law applied

I have seen some crazy crap on my rides: a dead boar on the side of the road (yep, no joke...), a scooter that we were passing as we rode along Peachtree St. (!!), a gruesome car accident (still dream about that one), bike crashes (I know...BORING!!!), children throwing rocks at us as we pass, and more wildlife than I can remember (turkeys, deer, birds, turtles, frogs, lizards, cats (they're wild too...sometimes), horses, pigs, snakes, etc. etc).

Today I can add two things to my list: three deer attempting to run over a paceline of 8 cyclists (I swear they were aiming for us!) and the collision of three bikes - all of which managed to stay upright. Oh, and I should mention that one of those three cyclists in the collision somehow put his foot through the front wheel of the guy behind him, taking out two of the spokes on his Zipp 404s. After we changed wheels and rode the remaining 20 miles home - we realized that the guy who put his foot through the Zipps - he had two broken spokes on his rear wheel and rode all the way back!!!

What a crazy day man...the fun never stops!!

For all of these things, I am Thankful.

On any given day, it's easy to forget that my beautiful daughter is the result of a marriage to a man I try frequently to forget. I often forget that my husband is the most supportive man I've ever known; I could never be who I am without his support. I have an almost three year old son who smiles more than any child I've ever known and loves his sister so fiercely that he I hear him tell her so at least 5 or 6 times each day. He brings each of us more joy than we've ever known. I am married to a man who is giddy when I'm near and makes me giggle more than anyone I've ever known; I love to giggle and feel happy. My husband is an amazing artist and I am lucky to be exposed to such talent; I could watch for hours on end as he creates beautiful drawings and paintings (each greater than the last). I am fortunate that I have a beautiful home in a friendly neighborhood where my daughter can ride her scooter safely without me having to worry. My parents are still a very big part of my life, along with my sister, my mother and father-in-law and my sister-in-law who is also my friend. I have a family and they love me for who I am - how awesome is that!?

On any given day, it's easy to forget that I have career that brings me a significant amount of joy; despite the stressful moments that I face each day. My boss is approachable and supportive and her boss is understanding and knowledgeable. I am blessed with co-workers who keep me sane, even though many of them may actually be less sane than myself! I am fortunate to work in schools where the teachers I work with love children and come to work because they want to. It's nice to have a job where I know I make a difference each day, even if I don't see that difference in my bank account each month.

On any given day, it's easy to forget that I have two best friends who support me, overlook my idiosyncrasies and insist that they love me - even when I'm not being lovable. One supports my obsession with life while the other supports my obsession with cycling which takes up a whole lot of my life! I am fortunate enough to have forged friendships with people who I suspect I will still talk to on the day that I draw my very last breath. Without them, I'd certainly occupy a lonely and uneventful existence!

On any given day, it's easy to forget that riding my bike is a privilege that isn't afforded to everyone. I am good at riding my bike - more importantly - it makes me feel free and at peace with every pedal stroke.

For all of these things, I am thankful. I pray that each day forward, I will remember to be thankful.

Rain Outs Suck!

Nothing stinks more than looking forward to a ride, driving at break-neck speeds to get there in time and then watching as the rain clouds roll in. Why does it only rain when I have time to ride?

A "Membership Drive" and other random thoughts

What a relaxing weekend! I spent Friday afternoon w/ my husband and my best friend, Saturday I went on a good 50 mile ride in perfect temperatures, followed by a party in the evening to celebrate my best friend's birthday. Today I cleaned house, shopped with the "most boring man" and cooked a delicious seafood paella for dinner. What more could a girl ask for?

Well, how about a buyer for my Jamis? I may have one...but I'm not as happy as I should be. You see, my dh and I have made a financial commitment to get out of debt as quickly as possible. So selling the Jamis makes this easier since I could apply what I make from the sale to what I still owe on my new bike, right? Well....sort of. You see, I don't want to sell the Jamis and I'm not being offered what I decided to ask for it (which I think is a very good price - a steal, as a matter of fact). The bike has sentimental value and although I don't ride it, I don't really want to get rid of it either. I posted it on Craigslist because I feel like it's unfair for me to have it sitting around when selling it would pretty much pay off my Ruby. I gotta keep thinking on this one...maybe I should try ebay?

And while I have your attention, could someone tell me what is the big deal with Vampires? Dh tells me that women love vampires and my recent survey of Borders tells me that he must be right since the teen section (which is geared towards girls b/c boys don't like to read apparently...) AND the romance section AND the sci-fi/fantasy section all seem to be oozing with books about vampires. Not to mention the number of vampire related T.V. shows on lately. I have to admit that I just finished watching season one of True Blood with dh and although I think most of the acting is really bad, I look forward to the next episode. I never realized vampires were such a big thing...?!?!

The birthday party that I attended on Saturday night really got me thinking about my blog's readership. While I was there, a girl named Amy introduced herself to me. When I explained that I was the best friend of the birthday girl, she immediately followed it with "Oh, are you the cyclist with the blog that Heather links to? I read your blog and I really want to become a cyclist". Besides almost peeing on myself because someone I had never previously met admitted to reading to my blog, I got to wondering exactly how many people actually read my blog. I've hinted on more than one occasion that I actually only have two readers but I know for a fact there are at least three...or maybe even four! So I've decided to have a "membership drive" (Hey Roby, get it? LOL!!!). I need for every person who reads my blog to "follow me" or comment to this post so that I get a general count of how many people actually read my blog. If you have a google account and you are logged in, you can click the "follow blog" button you see at the top of my page and I'll be able to easily track my followers. Because some of my readers aren't bloggers (or tweeters, facebook users, myspace aficionado's, or even regular email users), I'll track you guys through your comments. So what's in it for you? Check out all of these great perks:

1) You get a 10% discount on all items purchased at Cristy's bike shop*
2) Free advice
3) Excellent discounts at local restaurants and retailers**
4) The good feeling of knowing that you are amongst a group of people who breathe AND enjoy reading my nonsense.
*Availble for online orders only, excludes the following: bikes, maintenance, sports nutrition, lights, clothing, saddles, water bottles, bike fitting, pedals, shoes, lubricants, tools and all other items.
** Excluding those that maintain reasonable security for their customers who are credit card users


So whose in? :) Seriously.

Love Is So Complicated

My first love was a Jamis Quest. Easily, the Jamis is the most comfortable, dependable, relaxed ride I've ever known. I like that it's there when I need it always feels like "home."




Then came the love affair with the Specialized Ruby Pro. Above all, the Ruby is a hot ride with it's all carbon fiber frame and Dura Ace components. It's fast, sexy and the one I always think about when riding crosses my mind.




Is it possible to love two bikes - each one in it's own way for it's own purpose?

I feel so unfaithful.

Post-ride Nutrition

No hay nada como una cerveza bien fría con un buen amigo después de un viaje de 75 millas!

Lemon Flavored Reflections

When the morning air becomes cooler and morning metro traffic becomes crowded with the sputtering, flashing start and stop of the big yellow school bus, rest assured that not only has school started, but that my life has become a chaotic series of events over which I feel like I have very little control. I do the job that I do because I'm passionate about improving education for children with disabilities, but there are days that the goals I'm trying to achieve become daunting and seemingly unreachable. Today was one of those days. My spirit is broken and instead of relishing the challenge I was given, I requested a meeting with the executive director, unloaded my concerns and ended up using half the box of tissues in his office and likely, all of his confidence in my ability to do my job.

As I drove home from the office 3 hours later than I had planned, I reflected upon the reasons why I became so upset. With each possibility that crossed my mind, I became keenly aware of the similarities between my passion for my job and my passion for cycling. Both activities bring me extensive joy and fatigue and engaging in both activities within the same day requires planning and strong organization. I am motivated by the growth potential I see in myself with regards to both activities, and despite the fact that I'm still working towards becoming "as good" as I want to be, I'm still successful enough at both that my self-confidence improves each time I engage in either activity.

But the problem lies in outpouring of emotion that I feel when I become stagnant and cannot produce the level of change that I equate with success. Today, I was upset that I had experienced only a 1% growth in Least Restrictive Environment (LRE) data at a school where I've worked hard to sustain a steady pace of improvement (despite the 13% growth I've experienced in two weeks at the school to which I'm newly assigned). Yesterday, I became upset that I was unable to sustain the pace needed to participate in one of my favorite training rides. In both activities, I've become stagnant and I feel ill prepared to produce the performance results I desire.

So when life hands you lemons, you make lemonade, right? Wrong. When life hands you lemons, you contemplate what you want to do with the lemons (make lemonade) and then you follow a methodical set of steps (a recipe) that ends with accomplishing your overall goal. As I thought about this saying, I realized that the importance is not the end result, but what you do to get there. Moving LRE is a lofty goal, just like winning bicycle races. If I am to accomplish either, I need to develop short-term goals and realize that performance is not only a measure of accomplishment but of the efficiency and reaction needed to fulfill a specified purpose. I need to go back to basics and make sure I'm using the right ingredients if my goal is to quench my thirst.