Training Log Archive: OutdoorsMama

Jammed in a lot of reps with Smith machine, kettlebells, resistance bands and that $#&+ hamstring machine.

Dang, these are fast games.

I can see the humour in this now.

Today was the first underground CX race of the season. These are the races where the entry fee is $20 to cover buying some caution tape and fund a significant donation to the local ALS society, and a six pack of interesting beer......which I picked up at the grocery store last night on a jaunt with my 3 speed (not much room for other groceries, as 2 X 6 beers fills the little panniers on that bike).

There were to be 2 races.....the B race for 30 minutes, then the A race for 45 minutes (you can decide which one to go in). I was going to ride the SS in the B race, then do a couple laps of the A race with the Warbird just for fun. Rain was threatening, but the temperature was tropical. And this is all of 12k from home.....I would normally ride my bike there, but since I wanted to take both bikes, we drove. Anyways, that much beer is kind of heavy to haul around.

As I brought the SS up from the basement, I realized that Paul had put different pedals on it. Different, as in pedals that are SPD on one side and flat on the other (like I have on my touring bike). He had got these with his last bike, and must have swapped out my normal double sided SPD pedals out to put them on his bike. So he was kind enough to find a set of regular double sided SPD pedals and the pedal wrench and put them in the car (and I am still trying to figure out why, if we have an extra set of double sided SPD pedals in our collection, why did he put the one sided ones on my CX bike?????)

At the "pit" area (doubling as the spot where the chili was cooking and the 6 packs of interesting beer were accumulating) I went to swap out the pedals and realized that they are the type that need a big Allen key to switch, not a pedal wrench. I asked the most likely guys in the crowd if they had such a beast with them, but no luck. These new pedals clung tightly to the cleats on my shoes, even after rotating the tiny set screw as far as possible towards the "-" (I had my bike tool with me). I did a couple test laps of the course with the SS, and my biggest fear was falling off and not being able to unclip in time, and breaking my leg. Then I did a lap with the Warbird, and the fat, cushy tires were lovely to ride through the mess of black walnuts that had fallen from the trees. And the disc brakes were so much more responsive than the rim brakes on the SS. (those laps aren't logged).

And, due to an impending downpour, the organizer decided to just do one combined race for 45 minutes, rather than two races. So I had to decide which bike to use. I literally went back and forth.......I really wanted to try out the SS, but the fear of not being able to unclip was real. So I went with the SS. Then, less than 5 minutes before the updated start time, I realized that I had an attachment on my bike tool that WOULD allow me to swap pedals after all!!!!!! So I put a lovely, worn, double sided, set of SPDs on the SS, and lined up with the half a dozen women at the back of the pack.

I was in the middle of the women, when we hit the first walnut patch. Think of riding through a mess of fist-sized ball bearings. Somehow, my chain came off in here, as I bounced around. Huh? And I had properly jammed it, so took what seemed like ages to put it back on the gears. But the gearing was good.....not quite enough for the lap on the high school track, but just fine for the undulating terrain and the one and only relatively steep hill. Lap 2.....the freakin' chain came off again as I rode over some bumpy roots (I steered clear of the black walnut mess this time). I passed the gals on mountain bikes, but some of the guys who would normally do the A race were passing me like I was in the wrong race. Which I was, since we were all in the same race. Lap 3 went fine, and that was when the beer handups started. Much appreciated, as I was getting a dry mouth by then. Lap 4.......just past the pit area, but before the black walnut mess, I thought I was working really hard. And then I was working very, very hard. My back brake had jammed. Seriously? I fiddled with it for what seemed like ages, then got it down to a dull rub. Paul came up behind me in this lap and said "your rear brake is rubbing". Yup, I'd noticed. As I finished Lap 4, the rubbing seemed less bad (or I had gotten accustomed to it), but I dropped in at the pit area and grabbed the Warbird (I was the only one with 2 bikes). Lap 5 and Lap 6 on the Warbird went well, and only a couple more A-race type guys passed me and I passed a couple guys on mountain bikes and a couple women. Thankfully, they hadn't run out of beer handups.

After more time than I have ever spent in a CX race, it finally came to an end. I had not expected to make the podium, but found it odd that the woman who came in third was one that I had passed two times out there (she may have passed me when I was wrestling with my rear brake, so maybe the net passing count was just one time). Maybe whoever was keeping track of laps had also been looking after beer handups and lost track.

Anyways, now to figure out how to keep the chain on the SS, and stop the rear brake from attaching itself to the rim at inopportune times. Because I am going to do this again......at some point this fall!

One other thing ..... I had forgotten chamois butter so borrowed Paul's. It was Euro-style. Apparently I am not the only female to not appreciate Euro-style chamois cream.

When we got home, we spent some time on PI decontamination. Yup, the run up was infested with it

I only felt like a dufus about 25% of the time out there, which is pretty good for me.
Monday nights are typically the inverse of that.