Who knew?

Team Milram. Our brothers representing dairy farmers.

How cute- we are pink and they are blue.

Boulder Roubaix 2008.

After Raining for 3 days straight (which is NOT normal!),

the rain hung around for one MORE day just in time for the Boulder Roubaix. I was planning on doing this race, but since it was raining, the thought about bagging it was looming about.... SO here is the short story...

I was working at the bike shop on Friday and this junior racer kid came in looking for leg warmers-- we joked about how much fun the race was going to be...

... the next morning I awoke to MORE RAIN. Sill raining... I was positive that the course was going to be miserable, so I decided before I totally bagged I would drive out to check out the condition of the gravel. I drove out to be slightly pleased, it was still hard packed- just really wet. Still not convinced I wanted to race, I drove up to the parking area to talk to some people... and guess what I saw. THAT SAME JUNIOR KID warming up underneath the back hatch of his parents' wagon. NOW there was no way that I could skip it.

The race was to be 5 laps, but was shortened to 4 because our lap times were taking so long. Only a few parts of the course turned out to be really mushy, otherwise for the most part, there was just a whole lot of mud spray happening, which made it interesting to draft. It stayed together for the first lap and then Mara Abbott rode away from the field. For real. I jumped on her wheel, but she kept motoring! She is super strong!

The race for me personally-- didn't go all that well- I am beginning to feel some knee pain after the 1st lap and I was hesitant to go really hard. ANYWaYS. It was really fun to be out with all those who showed up! Hopefully next year it won't be so messy! BUT, then again, isn't that what the Roubaix is all about??? :)

I was still able to smile after--- and if you're wondering, I and STILL cleaning all of my stuff! :)

Kate

National Champion!

We are so proud of our little Miss Anna! Congratulations on winning the 17/18 Road Race! We want a race report.

Seattle FSA Challenge

After Portland I went to Seattle for another couple days of track racing. Again, the weekend was awesome! The promoters did such a great job of bringing great athletes to compete, tons of fans, and perfect weather. I think there is something to drinking beer and watching track racing that brings in the fans!
The quality and depth in the women's fields for these two weekends was unbelievable. In Portland, there were enough women to split the fields into 3/4's and 1/2's and both races were full! In Seattle, we had record numbers on women enter and in several races had more in the field then the men's field!



Here is the quick rundown of races and results:
I had a huge result in the keirin placing 1st in a super strong field. The picture above is me making the move with one lap to go. I went super early and only won by a half of an inch. After placing 2nd to Monquie (the Canadian superstar) in every sprint event in Portland, it was nice to place 1st. As a reminder... the keirin is the event when the motorcylce paces you and brings everyone to speed and then it is a sprint to the end. Remember the video from Portland?

That same night, I got second in the Points race (an endurance event which I normally don't do great in.) I think I was still on a high from winning the keirin. Christine King (from the US National Team) won the Points race by taking a flyer off the front.
Saturday was the 200m TT and 500m TT in the morning. I was 2nd in the 200 and 3rd in the 500 and happy with both those results. The sprint tourney was ALL DAY on Saturday which was long and painful but I ended up making the finals against Monique. The finals were during the night session and unfortunately right after the women's scratch race. I choose to sit out the scratch race and be fresh for the sprints. I knew this would hurt me in the Omnium but I needed to practice my match sprinting with fresh legs.

As it ended up, I was 2nd in Match Sprints and 3rd in the Omnium after only doing 3 of the 6 omnium events. Another great weekend on two wheels!

Aside from the bike, I had a great time hanging with Heather VanValkenburg, Cristin Walker, Shelby Reynolds, and lots of other girls who ride bikes with no brakes! Thanks girls!

Cari

Superweek: week 2

Hey Everyone! After an amazing first week of racing with all the girls I went home for one day and then back to Superweek for the Women’s cat 3/4 series! I was really impressed with the size of the fields; it’s awesome that so many women came to race J! I’ll try to give a short summary of each day but everything has blurred together a bit.

07/22 –WDSC Cedarburg Cycling Classic
Today was the second day of the 3/4 series, but the first day that I raced. The course was really fun with a small hill on one side with an equal descent on the other side of the course and a slightly uphill finish. I got in a break with three other riders and we almost lapped the field but because it was raining we decided to stay in back of them. It was a fun race and I took second in the sprint.

Lining up in Cedarburg

07/23 – Volkswagen Whitnall Park Road Race
My second day of the 3/4’s series was a circuit road race with a small climb up to the finish (YAY!). The course was fun and right from the gun there were lots of attacks, I did my best to follow them but nothing really stuck. The end of the race came down to a field sprint with one girl off the front (for some reason no one knew she was gone . . .oops!) and I came in 4th.

07/24 – Racine.org Criterium
The Racine criterium was a super flat course with four corners and a good headwind on the finishing straight. The backside of the course was a bit bumpy but I found a good line so it wasn’t a problem. Going into the last couple laps everyone was together. I attacked with what I though was about half a lap to go ... but it turned out the announcer had told us the wrong thing and it was 1.5 laps to go but I managed to hold my gap on the field and win my first superweek race.


The Podium in Racine
07/25 – Chase Food Folks and Spokes Criterium
One again the course in Kenosha was flat with four corners and a bit of wind . . .I'm sensing a theme . . . it was a tough race and I made a big effort to get a break going but nothing could stay away so with about half a lap to go I prepared to attack but just as I was about to go someone came up the other side, I chased her but ended up second.

07/26 - The Great Downer Avenue Bike Race
Once again today the course was very flat with four corners, although one of them was a v-turn. I got in an early break of about eight and we made it stick. The finish came down to a sprint and I was about two inches from winning but took a solid second once again.

Apart from racing this week I had a great time watching the pro men’s races and hanging out in the SRAM neutral support pit with Jose and Chris who were amazing.
Anna

Alpenrose Challenge

While the girls continued tearing it up at Superweek, I went to give it a try in Portland. The Alpenrose Velodrome Challenge was 3 tough days on the track. It was so great to see such a tough women's field. For the first time, the promoters had to split the Women Cat 3/4 from the Women Pro/1/2. There were enough women for 2 HUGE fields!


Friday was the pursuit in the morning and the 500m sprint at night. I opted out of the pursuit since I have never done one and thought sleep would benefit me more after traveling on Thursday. In the 500m I finished 2nd behind Canadian superstar Monique Sullivan- this ended up being a theme in the sprint events.

Saturday was a long day; I think we were at the track for over 12 hours with about 1 hour in between sessions. The morning started with the 200m TT which seated us for the sprints. I made it into the sprint finals with little problems and got handed a wake-up call by Monique in the finals. Hmmm... I know what I need to practice! Also on Saturday was the 5 mile scratch race. This was a super fun win over a tough field. P.S. A scratch race is like a crit on the velodrome. Basically, after 5 miles the first one over the finish line wins. I sat in good position for most of the race and didn't panic when attacks went off the front. It ended in a bunch sprint which, of course, I love.

There was a nasty crash in the men's keirin on Saturday. The local news crew was there and caught it on video. Don't watch if you are scared of the track. Luckily, everyone walked away. The bad news is there was about $15k of broken bikes/wheels/computers/etc. I don't know why this is one of my favorite races.

Sunday was the keirin, miss and out, and points race for the women. I won my qualifier in the keirin putting me in the finals right away. The miss and out wasn't as glorious. I actually dropped out and decided to save my legs since I didn't feel like I had it in me to place well. I felt pretty good in the keirin final but still came in second to Monique; this race was a little more respectable then the sprint finals. She is super fast and fun to race with. I am trying hard to talk her into moving to Colorado to train with me :) The last event for the women was the Points race. At this point, I was exhausted (6th day out of 7 of racing) and tallied the Overall Leader's Points. I was winning and the only person that could beat me was Jen Triplett. If Jen won the Points, she would win the Overall. I rolled the dice and did not race the Points. Thanks to Shelley Olds for taking control and winning the Points race because I ended up winning the Overall too.

Thanks to all the Alpenrose folks for having such a fun and supportive race! See you guys in Seattle next!

Cari

Richton Park!

We landed in another awesome host housing situation! How do we get so lucky? Dan and Susan live in Naperville and are our most gracious hosts! They cooked up a full-on breakfast and also a dinner too! We couldn't do what we do with out our hosts! THANK YOU so much!! :)

We kicked superweek off tonight with a criterium in Richton Park. It is a new addition to this year's superweek -- and it was an excellent addition at that! The course was fun and most of the people who lived in the neighborhood were out enjoying the race-- always nice to see. The course consisted of four left turns with a couple of chicanes thrown in. The back straight had a nice head wind and some of the corners could be considered, well, undesirable. But nonetheless... we did 50 laps and it was a beautiful day.

The field turned to be about 50 riders deep, with some talented riders showing up. During the race, there were a couple minor attacks and a couple gaps, but nothing would stick. With about 15ish to go, it seemed as if everyone knew that it would come down to a field sprint- which it did. Cari had a great wheel to follow and ended up 3rd- Kate 22ish and Clare 24ish. It was a good race to get our legs under us.

Clare had a nasty crash with about 20 to go. She was off the front with one other girl and while glancing back to check their gap, the girl in front of her slowed down a bit... she ended up overlapping wheels and went down hard. She trashed her helmet and scraped up her back/hip/knee. Ouch. She got back in and continued to race. I'm sure she'll feel it tomorrow. :(

Until tomrrow!
~~Kate

P.S. Cari wants everyone to know that the podium consisted of girls who race the track. (Cari has highjacked Kate's computer and hoping Kate doesn't notice this.)

Superweek Preview!

This weekend, the Cowgirls will be heading to the Chicagoland and Milwaukee areas to participate in Superweek! The P,1,2 women race during the first week beginning on Monday, July 14. We'll participate in 7 days of racing!

Here's the line up:
Monday: Richton Park, IL
Tuesday: Bensenville, IL
Wednesday: Bensenville, IL
Thursday: Shorewood, WI
Friday: Ripon, WI
Saturday: Waukesha, WI
Sunday: Evanston, IL

For more: click here: Superweek!

We'll be updating regularily!


~~
tutu--- kate

Headed to Cape Town!

Congratulations to Missy!!! She was selected to coach the Junior National Team for Junior Worlds in Cape Town South Africa! I don't know about y'all, but I'm excited! She is heading out this Tuesday and will be gone for the next couple weeks-

Congrats and thanks for being an excellent coach!

(hope you like the photo... Missy is probably laying down the law in Europe somewhere...)

~~kate

Kate's dream car

After having the privilege of renting one of these fine machines in Minneapolis, Kate has moved the scuba yellow Chevy Cobalt to the top of her dream car list.

Photos from Grafton finish

Kate chasing the break in the last couple last.

Dig in Cari!

Clare is just as excited.

Nice hat!

Sheboygan and the Giro de Grafton!

Hi All! Last week we extended our stay in the midwest so we could participate in a couple races in Southeastern Wisconsin. The Giro de Grafton and Sheboygan are some of my favorite local crits from last year and I was pleased when I found that I was able to make it this year!

The city of Grafton really put on a good show- with a couple of bands in the middle of the course and an excellent team of people doing some announcing. The woman's field was not huge, but it was a very competitive field for it's size. We had a full cowgirl team-- Clare, Anna, Cari, Becx and I-- I must note that it was Rebecca's first race of the year... and her first bout of 'speedwork' for the season. We worked well together-- the race was very active. There were plenty of attacks and small breaks, but nothing was able to stick. With 4 to go, there was a lul in the race and the pace slowed a bit. We used the next couple laps to get the pink leadout train ready to roll. With one to go, one woman attacked so I covered it- now it was up to Clare to fight the crowd and get Cari up to the line!

All was excellent. Cari took the WIN and we were stoked. After the race, we hung out for some extended chamois time and passed out about 200 lip smackers and some little tubes of Udderly Smooth... I met some cool women who were interested in the entire process of racing and had more questions about riding, etc--- they were excited to get some lip smackers.

Next after the race, we made our way to the Comfort Suites in Sheboygan. It was cozy in one room with 4 people and 7 bikes. I don't know how, but it worked. :)

Sheboygan had a beautiful day last Sunday. The weather report stated that there was a 30% chance of thunderstorms. Like Grafton, Sheboygan had bands rockin' their town square all day. It seemed like a pretty cool town event. Anna, Cari, Clare and I had some hours to hang out and lounge. Our race began at 3... just in time for the rain to strike. The course was the shape of a rectangle... wide open 4 corners, the wind being a factor on the back stretch. As all the ladies went to the line, the rain came down harder... I had to shake my head a bit to remember where I was.... flashbacks from Nature Valley! The race began on time, people were taking the corners pretty easy. There were some feeble attacks, but everything was brought back. I happened to be on Kristin Wentworth's wheel when she gave a good hard effort to get away from the field. For me, it was easy to take a few pedal strokes and get on her wheel. Soon enough, we had a group of 5 and a pretty big gap. We worked it for a while and the break stayed away. (Don't forget it was still raining).

With about 6 to go, I was taking my turn around the last corner- my wheel slipped out about 8 inches... I was able to hold it out, but it was a close call. This hung in the back of my mind for the rest of the race! 2 more laps went by and we lapped the field. There were a couple minor attacks from some of the riders in the break to get away from the field, but nothing stuck. Cari told me to get on her wheel and she got on Clare's... Clare ramped up the speed and eventually peeled off the front. In the first corner of the last lap, the back of the field went down... including Anna! :( We kept the pace high and Cari led me out for the last stretch and the other girls in the break began to sprint as well. I went to hop on a faster wheel, but I was entirely way over geared-- pushing a huge gear while everyone spun behind me. Bummer! I ended up 5th, but I learned a ton!! The race was hard and Super fun... especially with such stellar teammates!

Anna made it back to Madison, Cari and Clare drove through the night back to Boulder, I hitched a ride to my friend Chris's house in Milwaukee--- Thanks to all of those who gave me rides!!! Dave and Evan, Scotty P., Dave E, Dr. Doug from Ceaderburg, junior racers from the Baraboo Sharks-- Chris S. Thanks for letting me use your rollers AND also to Wheaton-Fransician for letting us hang in your tent at both races!

Someone will post pictures soon-- I didn't get any photos! :(
Clare and I are off to Estes today for a nice long ride!
~~
kate

Frosted Shreaded Wheat.

Clare just informed me that she really wants some frosted shreaded wheat. She says she "really misses it."

hmm.....

The Motherland.

Gabe and my Dad came out on Father'd day to the Stillwater Crit to support the cowgirls. This Crit had a Massive climb that averaged 18%... and topped out at 22% at one point in the climb. Thanks to my Pa for some good photos!

Cari and Clare looked pretty good considering they both like climbing as much as Clare likes eating the skin on peaches... The girls did well on a tough course-- with no surprise, Kristin Armstrong rode away from the uber strong field that was assembled at Nature Valley this year. I am pretty sure she finished every race except for the Minneapolis Crit alone, at the front... uncontested. Fascinating.

Here is a true PF (pain face). He looked like this EVERY time up that climb. Ouch. He is probably still sleeping today...

This guy truly has too much energy left for the end of this Criterium. 12+ times up this climb and he can still do a wheelie. The first thing I thought of was this "I need to practice." Crazy.
Big shout out to Max-- THANKS FOR HELPING US!!! He wrenched for us this weekend, keeping our bikes in excellent condition for the races! This photo was taken at the Minneapolis Crit, with his wife! She is awesome-- when it rained during our warm up, she held up an umbrella for me!

Last but not least... I'm in Platteville, WI right now hanging out at Badger Brothers. If y'all didn't know you can actually get beans w/ our pictures on it. Today when I walked in, I saw a little display with the "revolution blend-- Team America's Dairyland" Coffee!!!

You can order your own Revolution Blend HERE!!!

Just wait for more news from The motherland.

~~ until then~~

Kate.

Catch up...

We are lame and have no pictures... yet! I actually have pictures but don't have the cord to connect the camera to the computer. ugh

Day 2 NVGP:
Weather was much better, thank goodness. It was a 60+ mile RR with a circuit finish. Our "neutral" start was a joke. First, the officials led us the wrong way and over some wooden bridge where we are promptly slammed on the brakes when the officials learned we were going the wrong way. Turn around.... and sprint for a better position. Then the officials car needed to get thru all of us and almost crashed into the Toyota United team's RV. Things didn't calm down from there for the remaining 1.5 miles of neutral start :) After neutral was over, it was on because QOM points were 2+ miles in. The pace was high and it never let up- the rest of the race.
Once we hit the dirt road and circuit, the field blew up. OUCH!

Day 3 NVGP:
The day started with a short TT along the river and ended up this killer hill. Funny thing about today was that some people decided to save their legs and "roll it." Well, there are time cuts in every race including the TT. So, if you are 120% outside of the winner, your race is over. A lot of top girls did not make the cut this morning. Wow!
I guess the officials extended that limit to 125% based on the fact that 1/3 of what remained in the field would have been cut in the TT. Even then, a lot of girls missed the mark. Kristin Armstrong killed the TT and won by about 45 seconds. She is like that smart kid in class that totally messes up the curve and gets a 100% on the test. She is ramping up for Beijing and looking real good!

That night we had a downtown Minneapolis crit. Fast, fast, fast. 25 laps of a fun, flat crit. Thank goodness the weather held out and we had no rain for this crit. The field kept together and it ended in a sprint finish. Brooke Miller won in a super big sprint- she is smart and powerful. I have to say too that she has one of the best lead out girls in the country- Lauren Franges. Those girls are good- they were patient and conservative while they sat in with Cheerwine's lead out train. Lauren got in a good position in the last lap and Brooke took the win. (P.S. Brooke was real close to not making the time cut this morning. Lucky girl!)

Day 4 NVGP:
A RR today- about 90 miles that finished on a circuit. The wind was a larger factor today then on Thursday so positioning was everything. Nobody managed to get away until the circuit and Kristin Armstrong once again proved her dominance. 90 miles made for a long day so we were forced to end the night tonight with some Culver's ice cream. I think that is the only reason I am still awake right now- sugar overload!

Clare, Kate, and I are all learning a ton and growing as cyclists. Sometimes it is hard to put it all in perspective when you feel so out numbered and, frankly, weaker the the others. But, we do realize that this field is the strongest this country has to offer. Every team in the US brought their full squads. It is still a good day when you can end it with ice cream and a couple good laughs.

More tomorrow!

Cari

It is a mess!

The weather and the race.



This morning it started raining and then pouring. It let up slightly before we raced but started again when we were all freezing and waiting at the start line. The race starts and immediately the field splits and spreads. Crashes. And then the mayhem... yes, it had not quite started yet.

The course was super small (1k) and we had 140 (maybe 150) participants. Add in the rain and the metal manholes on every part of the course... mayhem. People were being pulled.... people were crashing... people weren't listening to the officials... people were crashing more. Basically, the short story, it that it seems like the whole race will be nullified. The results won't count towards GC and everyone will start tomorrow. We think. Let's put it this way- I think there were only about 30 people who finished the race for real. (Some people were told to quit but kept going... I know because they were in my group.... we were all pulled.)

So, super strong Kristin Armstrong made everyone look silly tonight. Shoot- if I had the strength and stamina to ride away from all 140+ people, I would do it too. It must have been way safer up there by herself.

The men's race was called early because the motor ref crashed. Yep, the motor crashed because of the super slick roads. I could only stand to watch the men's race for 5 minutes and I saw 6 crashes. NASCAR on bikes!

Crossing our fingers for better weather tomorrow!

Minneasota Fixed Gear Classic

This year, the promoter of Nature Valley (which is now called Great River Energy Bicycle Festival... whatever) decided to include 2 days of track racing to the total event. What a cool idea!
Clare and I went straight from Tulsa up to Minnesota on Monday, stayed with our friend Neal until Friday, and then on to the National Sports Center for the weekend of racing. What a great event! The racing was fun, the weather treated us nicely, the crowd was impressive, and we had good results. I want this weekend again... every weekend!




A view from the infield.




Race? What race? Clare and Chiappa. Ya, he is fast.




Flowers for the ladies!




A minor crash in the Miss and Out. I was able to complete the rest of the night's racing but screwed up my chance at winning the overall. ugh! Now, I just get better before the road races start... tomorrow!

Cari

More Tulsa...

Good luck to the Girls racing on the track this weekend! TEAR IT UP!!! I'm can't wait to hear how it went!

Here are more photos from our tulsa tough weekend: Missy and I went crusin' around during and after the storm-- total carnage! The city of Tulsa banded together to put our race on-- ON TIME!! Seriously, after how the weather was that morning after Anna's race, I didn't think we would race. Trees and powerlines down, power out, dirt, sticks, leaves, powerlines littered the course. Luckily with a quick re-route the course was up and going and we got to race! Awesome-- Thank you Tulsa!

Riverside Crit Pro men's race-- Missy, Cari, Anna and I found a drive way to sit on at the top of the major climb- There was a huge party going on... another announcer who offered crowd primes and cheeseburger primes. Totally fun place to chill at.

Anna was almost sat on. We saved her...
You may have thought this guy was straight from the Tour de France-- under his Mexican blanket he was wearing a pair of black breifs... hilarious. He definitely knew I was taking a picture of him... even though I was trying to be incognito. hmm...
Santa even showed up. This guy was pretty cool. He rode this crazy cruiser around with a sign that read "will dance naked for $1" AND from what I have heard from the Tulsa locals... it is true.

Up next-- Fixed Gear Fever for Cari and Clare and Tour le Ubikes for Kate... THEN-- Nature Valley!

Until then, keep it real.

-Kate

Tulsa Tough and Beyond!

We are HORRIBLE about updating the blog in a timely manner. I am making a new promise to the blog stalkers... we are going to be better. Now that Anna reminded me of the username and password, it should be easier. :)

Tulsa was great- great races, great host housing, great fun, and bad weather. When it was scary bad storms, it was humidity so thick you could eat it with a spoon. Not to mention the heat!

Three crits- Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. They were fast and fun! We had some decent results as a team I don't have pictures but Anna will post some soon.

Oh, I should mention that this weekend was made more enjoyable with the addition of one of our junior riders- Anna Young. What a fun teammate she is... oh to be 17 again!

If you ever wonder what we do in our free time while we travel... this is it.


This is Anna being goofy while Cari searches the iPhone for something important.

This is Kate being goofy while Missy uses the iPhone for something important.

This is Missy being very important on the iPhone.

This is Cari finding something very unreal on the iPhone... back off Anna.

Do you guys get the theme? Anyone with iPhones is entertained while the others are left to entertain themselves. Speaking of entertaining themselves... where is Clare?

Cari
P.S.- check back soon because we have more to post!

Durango! And... off to Tulsa Tough!

The Cowgirls had an eventful weekend are are looking forward to a nice weekend in Tulsa. Last Friday, Missy, Cari and Clare headed to Durango and I met up with the girls on Saturday night. We raced the crit on Sunday and headed back to Boulder that night! An epic weekend.

Before our race the city of Durango had their cruiser race... and this group of pink ladies definitely stole the show!! Bettalicious. For sure! Clare tried to buy the leather chaps off of the woman on the right... needless to say, Clare doesn't own chaps... yet.

I don't know if you can tell, but this guy had the best kit ever. Fleece rocket ship full body pajamas, ski goggles, face mask, and a boombox blaring the song from Ferris Bueller's Day Off... oooooooohhhhhh yeahhhhh, chicka chicka. Classic.


Pre-race-- talking strategy. Clare was thinking about jumping in the ambulance with the guy who crashed himself after the finish.

Missy-- comin' out of retirement--high-stylin' pre-race.

The race was tough. It started out with a hot pace and we all kept working hard-- with incentive. There were plenty of primes-- including $100, $200 and more. Needless to say it kept the race fast and interesting! Cari finished a strong good 5th place and Clare and I finished behind Cari- Nice work ladies!

We're heading to Tulsa tomorrow-- Clare and Cari are driving out, while Missy, Anna and I are all flying in. Should be a fun weekend with plenty of action!


~~
kate

Lonely Cowgirl in Wisco

Hey everyone, sorry I haven’t posted in awhile. Today was the Denzer Delight Road race, in Denzer, Wisconsin and it was tough. It was a big field for WI and we all stayed together for the first mile or so, before the big hill. On the hill the field split up and by the end of the first lap I was in a leading group of 7. The second time up the hill the group split with two riders off the front and two off the back, and I was in a middle group of three. I was having trouble keeping up on the descents because of junior gearing and that combined with an unfortunate run-in with a masters rider we caught caused me to get dropped and I rode the very windy remaining lap and a half by myself the finish fifth. Tomorrow is Wheels on Willy in Madison, so I’ll try to post again after that’s over. Sorry no pictures for now but maybe tomorrow . . .
Good night all :)

Cowgirls at Gila!

Good morning! Although Gila was quite a while ago, we have had yet to give an update! It was a tough race with plenty of climbing, descending and beautiful scenery!

Missy and Megan Hottman (our most excellent guest rider) before the Time Trial.

This was before the criterium in Sliver City- Betsy was called up to the line before the race! She hung in the front group and rocked it-- Leda ended up in a break so Betsy helped Megan block for Leda to take 4th place. Nice teamwork Ladies!

Clare's coach, Bob Kelly who lives in Australia, was the DS for Tibco- so they were able to have plenty of hang out time and coachable moments like this one!

This is Betsy RIGHT after finish of the last stage-- at the top of a brutal climb! She was tired but managed to give me an excellent smile in in front of the ice cream store. Being a vegetarian, Betsy says she eats ice cream for protein!

A good weekend with plenty of fun times-- Looking forward to the next race. The Boulder Cowgirls have a couple local races this weekend and we are heading to Tulsa Tough at the end of the month. :)

Whose owns this guy?

Believe it or not, this guy turned up in my luggage a few weeks ago. Although we were confused, we thought it wouldn't hurt for him to join us in New Mexico. Please claim him though, he is awfully pushy.