The First 100 Miles

David vs. David

I want David Cook to win.

There, I said it, I'm out there.  David Archuleta is very sweet and he has a lovely voice (he reminds me of a baby Josh Groban) but David Cook is hot.  He's Randy Jackson, "that's a hot one tonight!" kind of hot.  He's what's current kind of hot.  And he's just good old fashioned hot, hot.

He's my new Blake Lewis.

He won't win though.  David Archuleta will win.  And that's okay.  Cook will have a fabulous career without the burden of the now infamous prison-like Idol winner contract and I predict that he'll eventually even give Chris Daughtry a run for his money when it comes to former Idol contestant record sales.

The worst part of Tuesday night will be cringing as poor Cook has to sing whatever sappy power-ballad the Idol producers have chosen for the finale song this year.  Remember poor Blake having to struggle through "This Is My Now" last spring?  Ouch. 

Perspective

Perspective - we all need a good dose of it every now and then.

Just as our friend Tim has settled nicely onto the path towards a promising recovery, another bright light in the cycling world has been hit with the worst news that anyone can ever receive - his wife is dying.

I've never met Elden Nelson (aka The Fat Cyclist), or his beautiful wife Susan, or any of their stunning four kids, but I have long been a huge fan of Elden's blog, his writing, and his infectious spirit.  For ages now Elden has struck an incredible balance in writing, on one hand, some of the funniest pieces on cycling I've ever read and, on the other hand, some of the most touching and personal accounts of his wife's battle with cancer.

Even though I have never met anyone in the Nelson family, I openly wept at my computer twice this week as I read his posts about finding that Susan's cancer has moved to her brain and that, according to their oncologist, they are now "out of options."  Susan has only a few more months to live.

As I mother, my first thought was of all the milestones in the lives of those four kids that Susan is going to miss.  I thought about Elden and what the future will be like for him raising those kids on his own.  I thought about my own kids, my own husband and my own health - I think it's impossible for any of us to hear a story like this without doing the same.

There are literally hundreds of comments on Elden's blog offering thoughts and prayers from every corner of the world.  The whole Nelson family is very loved.  These are good, good people going through something that is truly unimaginable to someone who's never been there.  These are strong, courageous people.  These are people who deserve so much better.

But these are also people who have taken their love and their courage and their spirit and created a huge, positive energy in the universe and no matter how long or short Susan's path may be, her spirit will be remembered for much longer, and will continue to impact and influence even those who - like me - never had the honor of meeting her.

Sending Best Wishes

Many of you are probably familiar with Tim Jackson (aka Masiguy).  Tim is not only the brand manager over at Masi but an excellent writer and a true lover of all things cycling.

Tim had a nasty fall on Tuesday while riding at the San Diego Velodrome and banged himself up pretty badly.

This photo was shamelessly stolen from Kathleen's blog.  Kathleen visited Tim at the hospital this week and anyone who wants to get a better update on Tim's condition should visit her place as she has an excellent post about how he's doing.

Thanks Kathleen for the updates and when you see Tim again please send my best wishes and my heartiest hopes for his speedy recovery.  I hope that everyone here will also send happy thought Tim's way.

Here We Go Again

Oh God, now we're going to be flooded with Google searches on "Boonen dating rock."

Winter Is Over

Ah, is there anything more wonderful than the return of the warm, sunny weather after an unusually long, snowy, cold winter?  Well, you people down in CA wouldn't understand but there are some other folks around here who know what I'm talking about.

The thermometer is soaring here, the sun is out, there are guys building a new deck in my backyard as we speak, I did a 55km (34 mile) bike ride on Sunday, and my husband had my kids out skateboarding yesterday - all is right with the world.

Are my kids cool or what?

I have a question for all you uber-experienced riders out there.  During my ride on Sunday the toes on my left foot kept going totally numb. It was really uncomfortable and made the ride less enjoyable than it otherwise would have been.  I did a post on numb toes over at PinkMTB when I was writing for them and I remember people telling me then that it could be due to shoes being too tight, improper bike fit or a whole host of other things.  Any suggestions out there?  I don't think my shoes were too tight and I know my bike fits.  Maybe my socks were too thick? I wasn't wearing cycling socks.  Or maybe because the temperature was a little higher on Sunday than on my previous rides this season?

Leavin' The Lights On

I have to say that I'm truly overwhelmed by the messages that I've received since my post earlier this week about pulling the plug on the First 100 Miles.  I'm honestly touched by how much so many of you enjoy this place.  It's been hard for me too because, as much time as this thing takes up, I also have had a lot of fun here and was sad at the thought of that part of my life being finished.

So, here's my plan.  We're leavin' the lights on as Darren (RipCurl) so eloquently put it in an email earlier.  I've already paid for the Typepad account for the rest of the year and I think that in my line of work it's probably not a bad idea to maintain some sort of web presence where people can find me, read my work and contact me if need be.

I can't put the time into it that I used to.  I won't be scanning CN and VeloNews and other cycling news sites every morning to get the news and come up with topics to write about. I won't be looking through picture archives to find good photos.  I may do some of that sometimes, but it won't be a regular thing.   You guys can visit as often as you like and chat about whatever you like - as always.  I'll post when I can about whatever I can.  I'll keep you up to date on my progress towards that century and the rides with the new clipless pedals.  I'll let you know how the book's going and if it ever gets published.  I'll post links to any other writing that I do and I'm sure I'll have something to say here and there about Mark Cavendish, Tom Boonen and whoever wins AI.

This will give the IA regulars a place to chat.  It gives me a place to write and promote other writing that I do.  And it means that our little family can stay in touch.

So the porch light will stay on.  I hope you'll swing by every now and then to stop and talk a while.

The End of the Road

Well, I suppose we all knew this day was coming but now here it is.  I'm sorry to say that I've decided to pull the plug on the blog.

As most of you know, I started this blog as a kind of shelter for myself and some great people who were told that they didn't really make the grade when it came to quality comments over at another cycling-related blog.  We came together here, out of the elements, and formed a little community - a family if you will - where we could talk about everything from cycling to spandex to American Idol without fear of being judged. 

The blog took on a life of its own just as I was making some pretty huge changes in my own life by finally getting up the nerve to call myself a Writer and taking the plunge of quitting my job and starting up my own business.  It was an exciting and terrifying move but the support and encouragement that I received here made it so much easier to survive those early weeks and months.

The business has been up and running for almost a year now and so far, so good.  But, running my own business is just one of the things that make demands on my time these days.  I also have a 5-year-old and a 3-year-old who often enjoy it when I leave the computer every now and then.  I'm working on my first novel - something that brings me enormous joy and what I hope to one day make my living doing.  And, I'm also trying to work on my own fitness level by riding and running as much as I can now that the warm weather is here.  That's a lot of stuff and they still only put 24 hours into each day - some of which I need to use for sleep.

I've been burning myself out and so I've come to the point where I've had to take a long, hard look at how I spend each hour of my day.  I can't do everything so I need to cut out what I can.  As much as I've enjoyed the blog, and as grateful as I am to have been able to meet so many wonderful people through it, I just can't keep giving it the time that it needs.

I don't want to leave everyone homeless so the site itself will stay up for a while in case anyone has any ideas about a new home - maybe there's a blogger amongst us who would like to take over the torch?

And I'll still be doing some writing about cycling here and there.  I've already talked to Cathy about helping out with US Cycling Report and I'll still do some stuff for Ride-Strong.com.

I want you all to know that, as much as I've given to this blog, I've gotten ten times that back in the friendship, laughter, education, and support that you all have given me along the way. 

Thank you all so much.

Break-Up

Trek confirmed on Tuesday that they are going to court to try to end their contract with Greg LeMond and stop manufacturing the LeMond line of bikes.

Trek President, John Burke, said that the reason for the decision was two-fold.  First Trek doesn't want to be associated with the negative comments and continuous doping allegations by LeMond about Lance Armstrong.  And, second, they didn't feel that LeMond was committed enough to promoting the bikes.

According to VeloNews Burke said, "Greg's public comments hurt the LeMond brand and the Trek brand.  Despite our repeated efforts to persuade Greg to focus on selling his bikes, he continued his personal attacks."

The funniest part of the story is the response from the LeMond camp which came from LeMond's attorney Denise Rahne who said she was "surprised at the company’s public response to what had been a private dispute."  Wow, if that's what LeMond considers private, imagine if he wanted to go public!

My question about all of this is how much of this move was a decision by Trek and how much was a demand from Lance?

Great Ride

Well, I survived my first ride of the season.  Not only survived but I had a fabulous time!  The weather was warm and sunny and we did a nice 40km (25 miles) with a stop halfway for snacks.  It was just the perfect day for a ride and my new cycling club is full of the nicest, most laid-back folks.  It was a real pleasure to ride with them and I'm looking forward to many more group rides this season.  This club does a century ride in early August and I'm feeling like I might just be able to do it this year.  Maybe this is the year that I finally achieve that goal.

And, it was also my first ride with the new clipless pedals (I'm sure you were all losing sleep wondering how I did) - I didn't fall off!!!  Now, in the interest of full disclosure I have to admit that I did go out the day before the ride, just for about 10 minutes down to the park, to try them out before I used them on the longer ride and I did, in fact, fall off.  I was doing fine, clipping in and out with no problem.  Then, at one point, I came to a stop with my right foot clipped out and safely on the ground.  I then decided to turn left and head back down the path the way I'd come and as I turned the bike left to push off again I forgot that my left foot was attached to the bike and I went down on my left side.  I bruised up my elbow a bit and put a little tear in my bike seat but otherwise I was just embarrassed.  The next day I was fine for the whole ride so, I'm hoping that was my first and last fall.  And, the falling and the nervousness aside, I just LOVED riding with the clipless pedals.  It made the ride so much smoother and I was able to be so much more efficient on the bike.  Hills were easier than they've ever been before.  I really understand now why everyone tells me they would never go back.  I feel the same way.

And yes Cat, today is my 33rd birthday.  Thank you for the good wishes.  And yes, happy birthday to Paula too, I think hers was over the weekend. 

A great ride and a birthday, what more could I ask for?

Shaking Off the Cobwebs

Planning to get out for my first ride with my new cycling club this Sunday.  I can't wait.  The forecast is for beautiful, warm, sunny weather.  It's just a 38km (24 mile) easy ride to shake off the cobwebs and get the bike going again but I'm still counting the sleeps. 

I'm really looking forward to riding with this new cycling club as well.  It was such a pleasant evening last Monday when I went to their first Meet and Greet of the season to introduce myself and sign up.  Is there anything more inviting than a group of cyclists sitting around a table with some cold drinks and hot munchies?  Over the course of the evening, as I met and chatted with the veteren members sitting at my table, I loved that the discussion was all about riding; funny stories about rides gone bad, fantasies about new bikes and gear, and good-natured ribbing about the quirks and habits of other riders.  No one asked anyone, "so, what do you do?", we all knew the answer - we ride bikes!

This will be my first ride with the new clipless pedals so wish me luck!  I'm going to head out on my own on Saturday and try them out so that I can hopefully save myself a little of the humiliation of using them for the first time in front of a group.  I'll humiliate myself in front of the geese down at the park.

Thank you to everyone who sent me tips and their own stories about switching to clipless.  So far I've learned that I must clip out BEFORE I stop, I have to start out with the pedals as loose as possible so that it's easier to clip out quickly, and that I WILL fall over at least once or twice. I can't tell you how helpful it was to hear that everyone had a hard time when they first started out with these things.

I'll let you know on Monday how my first clipless ride went.  Hopefully I'll be posting from here at my desk and not from a hospital room ;)