Cowgirl Fun!

Who knew?

2008-09-12T06:07:00.000-07:00

Team Milram. Our brothers representing dairy farmers.

How cute- we are pink and they are blue.

Boulder Roubaix 2008.

2008-08-18T11:05:00.000-07:00

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!

2008-08-10T05:26:00.000-07:00

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

2008-08-02T07:39:00.001-07:00

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

2008-07-27T19:13:00.000-07:00

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

2008-07-22T18:45:00.000-07:00

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!

2008-07-14T20:29:00.000-07:00

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!

2008-07-11T15:35:00.000-07:00

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!

2008-07-06T17:00:00.000-07:00

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

2008-07-02T07:24:00.000-07:00

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

2008-06-28T11:28:00.001-07:00

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!

2008-06-28T06:18:00.000-07:00

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.

2008-06-27T07:14:00.000-07:00

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

hmm.....

The Motherland.

2008-06-16T10:42:00.001-07:00

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...

2008-06-14T20:51:00.000-07:00

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!

2008-06-11T21:40:00.001-07:00

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

2008-06-10T21:35:00.000-07:00

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...

2008-06-07T18:48:00.000-07:00

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!

2008-06-06T06:33:00.000-07:00

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!

2008-05-28T23:02:00.000-07:00

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

2008-05-17T17:40:00.000-07:00

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!

2008-05-16T05:04:00.000-07:00

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?

2008-04-28T21:34:00.001-07:00

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.

Kate, I saved you a bite.

2008-04-26T20:39:00.000-07:00

You got to have some humor when you just FROZE YOUR BUTT OFF in a race a the end of April? What is the deal weather people? I keep promising these girls that Boulder has great spring weather and then... snow, hail, sleet. ugh

Things you might see at paralympic camp

2008-04-22T20:01:00.000-07:00

Well, I just got back from a long camp with the Paralympic team. This is an amazing bunch of athletes who are training for the big race... the Games in Beijing.

On the track- Me and Karissa and the best mechanic, Todd

Anyone missing a leg?

Hand cyclist finds a snake... and picks it up!

I laughed for a while over this. Do you think the reason that Daddy doesn't have a name is because there are a couple different dads and we didn't want to confuse anyone? Or, is it because we aren't sure who Daddy is? Everyone else has a name, including the dog.

Karissa and I enjoying some sun in California!

Racing in Wisconsin

2008-04-21T19:48:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone, wow its been a long weekend for the Wisconsin cowgirls. On Saturday we went up to the Menomonee Park Criterium in Menomonee Falls. It was a rather early morning since we had to leave at 6 for the 8:30 junior’s race, but the course was fun. It was fairly flat with one or two small hill and lots of sweeping turns and ended up being more like a short circuit race than a crit. Marcie and I both raced juniors, it was a fun, but fast race, since the girls and guys race at the same time and some of the guys are cat 2’s and 3’s. Anyway I stayed with the main pack for the majority of the race along w/ Katie and Ashley from IS corp. At the last turn I dropped back out of the pack because I didn’t want to get caught up in the rather sketchy sprint which usually finishes out a juniors race and ended up taking 2nd overall for 17-18 girls. Marcie also had a good race she rode w/one other 15-16 girl off the back of the pack and ended up taking a strong 3rd in her age group.

Marcie during the juniors race

Next up for both of us was Women’s 4’s. There were some small attacks throughout the race that were quickly chased down, and the field ended up together going into the last turn. I was up near the front and as soon as we were around the corner everyone took off, and I was able to take the sprint. Marcie finished in the field with a solid 11th. Overall it was a great race for the Cowgirls.

The start of the sprint

At the finish :-)

Day two of this weekend was the Great Dane Velo Club Criterium (#2) and the weather could not have been better. It was a high of 76 degrees and sunny. They day started with the juniors race which was once again fairly fast, I lost the pack and the beginning of the race and so I was on my own for the first half but then as I was being lapped L one of the guys kindly pulled me back into the field and I sat in for the remainder of the race. The Cowgirls ended up taking 1st in the 17-18 Girls and 2nd in the 15-16 girls.
Next up was the women’s 4’s for Marcie, it was one the biggest field that race has had all year, Marcie had a good race, but we don’t know where she finished yet. After 4’s I didn’t have to race till 5 so I took Marcie on a ride around Madison and we put in some quality homework time before heading back to the race.
The Women’s Open was a great race, the first several laps were full of lots of small attacks and it was tough, I sat in, chased the attacks and just kept wishing the a break would make it so that things would settle into a rhythm of some sort. Eventually an attack was successful and I made the break along with Sarah from PRC, Rachel and Katie from IS corp., and Kristin from Kenda Tire. We worked well together and kept the break going till the end. I ended up being the last one around the corner before the sprint and subsequently took 4th. Not to bad for my first women’s open race, I learned a lot, including that I need to work on my sprint.

Overall it was a great weekend for the Wisconsin Cowgirls, I'll post pics from Great Dane tomorrow!

Life with Dogs

2008-04-20T05:47:00.000-07:00

I was sitting in the yard last night with a glass of wine, a newspaper and my camera. I was relaxing after a busy day of riding and some gardening. I had the camera because I was wanting to get a photo of the sun setting behind the barn. The dogs started playing so I took a few self portraits. Here's what it's like when the team isn't around and I'm alone here with the animals.

I didn't get much reading done and never did get a photo of the sunset. Anyway, me, Coop and Gabs are sending good Gila thoughts for the team next week.
Talk soon.

More Mini

2008-04-18T15:00:00.001-07:00

Mini misses Clare, too.

Mini

2008-04-18T08:09:00.000-07:00

I think we all miss our little Mini.

Does he miss us?

I doubt Gabby misses him.

Wait... that's not Mini.

two more Wisco photos

2008-04-11T21:17:00.001-07:00

Photoshoot funtimes! Here's Becx-- smiley as usual! She's sporting her new sweet hair-do from our on site beautician :). Well done... I think she is about to go hop on the bike for some nice individual shots!

Clare... the female Vinokurov...

This photo acquired from: http://www.mtbtr.com/haber/haberliste.asp?habergrup=YOL1
Just compare the photos... the glasses... the blood... the gloves? (oh wait...)... need I say more??

Kate Ross Warmes Up To Tom Ashbrook!

2008-04-11T21:05:00.000-07:00

I was stuned to find out that Kate likes to warm up to Tom Ashbrook! Tom Ashbrook, an awared winning jurnolist and radio talk show host, provides a lively forum which discusses and debates, bringing callers from around the country and the world into the conversations.

This is what is playing in Kate's head during racing. I guess by listening to Tom Ashbrook, Kate may feel she is finding depth of knowledge and perspective into womens cycling that most of us would not bother to learn.

Photoshoot Shenanigans + wisconsin extras...

2008-04-11T09:19:00.000-07:00

Last weekend, the cowgirls headed to Wisconsin for their annual team photoshoot for the Wisconsin Milk Marketing Board! We had a most excellent weekend at Rebecca's farm in rural Wisco-- 'going home' for me (even thought I still manage to get lost on rural roads in central Wisconsin), and it was Leda and Clare's FIRST time in Wisconsin! (they did confess to me that Wisconsin is far superior to all states in the universe... not really).

I am sure y'all want a photo tour of our weekend. It all began on Thursday when we left DIA and landed in Milwaukee. Missy and Cari were our drivers for the weekend and Cari WAS EXTREMEMLY dissapointed that they had no yellow SUV's to rent. (I think she'll get over it though). Arrived at Becx's Sunny Hill Farm and met the Gabby, the Pup, and all of the other animals.

Leda liked the pupps and also lounging with them! I think she really wanted

to just curl up and fall asleep here!

Becx had us to help out too! Betsy and Missy had a TRUE farm experience. They opted to help Becx do some shoveling. They look tired in this photo! BUT, I'm sure that they won't have to do their back exercises or curls after shoveling. :)

Much of our time at the farm was spent preparing meals! We like to eat, a lot. And we definately ate some excellent food... including some veggie bean burgers AND AUTHENTIC, PABST-BOILED, SAUERKARUT-LADEN BRATS! Yum. You'll see that Betsy is an excellent onion cutter, she isn't even crying! Special note: Betsy has owned her gorilla t-shirt since the sixth grade!!!

In this photo of Cari and Missy... You'll notice that Missy is happy, Cari is not (cari's new fav photo shot). You'll also notice that Missy is enjoying a brat, Cari isn't. See, you all should realize that eating authentic, pabst-boiled, sauerkarut-laden brats just makes you happy. Yum.

PS... I didn't have access to any chillin' at the farm photos of Becx OR Clare... just know they were there and are awesome!

Time for photoshoot photos....

Time for make up. Missy is getting dolled up here. Nice! Since she wears make-up ALL the time AND gets her Nails done ALL the time, she was our makeup vetran. Look how happy she is to get powder... except I think the only real powder she has been experiencing in the past couple years or so is white and fluffy and accumulates to make a nice blanket to ski on!

This is what happens if you end up taking a photo of a photoshoot. Your flash will set off all of the other flashes in the entire set. My personal words of avice... don't take photos of a photoshoot... OR simply... turn off the flash.

Cari was thrilled to find an entire plate of cheese curds that she could enjoy.... check out the photo... cheese curds and coffee. Yum.

There was an actual cow mascot. I don't know what to say about this photo. I am wearing the cow's glasses... and that cow has a huge head.

Cari has the actual cow suit on... and she and clare are flashing some sort of cow sign... unfortunately we had to leave the mascot suit at the studio. We were thinking our Team Mom (Greg) could wear it to give us handups. There's no missinga big cow holding a waterbottle on the side of the road.

Marcie and Anna! Posing for the camera. Nice! Where's Sabrina!?? :)

What a great weekend! Watch for more photos!

Forgotten Tucson Memory...

2008-04-07T22:18:00.000-07:00

Although we DID go to Wisconsin for our Milk Marketing Board photo shoot, I do not have access to any photos for the weekend... BUTTTT, I really wanted to give y'all an update. So we'll go for flashback to a couple weekends ago...

Kate's FAV... Bio Lesson time!!

Meet Opuntia bigelovii:

Yes, it appears to be cute. Yes, it appears to be cuddly. But watch out...

These spines do a number of critical things for the cacti...

1 the spines protect the stem-- they are dense making the cactus look "cuddly"

2 it protects stems from herbivores AND sunlight-- acting as shading agents for the stem

3 the spines are very sharp and barbed

4 unfortunately, the teddy bear cholla's flowers do not produce seed... which is an indication of the importance of the cacti's ability to "JUMP" onto other modes of transportation (then to be dropped on to the ground somewhere else... and then to grow into an entire NEW cacti). Amazing.

So here goes... scroll down to see what happens when an unnamed individual's foot gets too close to the Teddy Bear Cholla or "JUMPING" cholla... We won't mention names, but Leda was still riding, Clare and Kate were eating and Missy was probably fixing Clares bike... So that leaves one person (initials CH)...

Here is Cari's foot. Note that this cacti chunk is EMBEDDED into her foot. She is making some funny sound... I thought she was giggling until I realized she was actually in pain!!!

Take another look. Not only did she get ONE cacti chunk embedded in her foot, but not long after that one sunk it's BARBS into her foot... so did another cacti chunk.

Here goes... I came to the rescue. It took a pair of pliers to get these things out of Cari's foot. It took 3 tries to PULL them out. More like yank... Barb is right, that barb was lodged into her foot. We later found out that it is good to carry a comb with you in for this specific reason. Either that or a pair of pliers. Either way they won't (and didn't) come out early. Missy had some 'biofreeze' on hand and Cari rubbed the afflicted area with this 'special' ointment... she felt better.

Ouch. Cari reached rockstar status that day! Watch for a Wisco update soon! :)

~~niteynight.

kate

Tucson, stages 2 & 3... Weekend Roundup

2008-03-31T21:06:00.000-07:00

Stage 2- Road Race
We knew coming into the RR that we needed about 30 seconds to claim the leader’s jersey. Clare and Leda were our best options for capitalizing on this type course and Sunday’s circuit. Therefore, Missy’s plan was to set up Leda and/or Clare to be in a break.
There were sprint time bonuses on the first lap, only 4 miles into a 60 mile race. America’s Dairyland had to get these bonuses no matter what, we needed to help our overall GC positions. Missy’s instructions were for Kate and Clare to stay at the front and set up a lead out for the time bonus for Cari or Leda. As it turned out, Cari won the sprint with a great team effort leading her out.

Cari looking strong in the field.

The rest of the first lap was a pretty easy pace with many teams not wanting to work in the wind. On the second lap, Leda’s fierce competitiveness introduced itself to the women’s peloton. She attacked in the hills and that was the last we saw of her that day. Leda took one Colivita-NM girl with her and had three other girls in a hot pursuit. Luckily, Colavita-NM couldn't stay with Leda and quickly made her way back to the main peloton. To the benefit of Dairyland, Clare was in the group of three pursuing Leda. So, the group of three “chasing” was really only two girls chasing and Clare sitting in. Cari and Kate controlled the main peloton, chasing down any potential bridgers and prevented the chase group from organizing. As it ended up, Leda was long gone and ended with a lead of several minutes. Clare saved enough energy in the chase group to take the sprint for 2nd place. In the main field, Kate practiced leading Cari out to win the sprint for the main field nabbing 5th place.
America’s Dairyland ended up 1st, 2nd, 5th, and 12th.

Clare, she just finished applying some Lip Smackers... or waving to the crowd...

Stage 3—Circuit Race
Going into this morning’s 7 lap, 39 mile circuit race, Leda had a comfortable lead of about 4 minutes. Clare was in third place—only 32 seconds down from second place. Our goal today: get Clare into 2nd place overall. In order to do this Missy devised the PLAN. Cari and Kate were to control the field for the first 3 laps. At 3 laps, there was a sprint time bonus and Clare needed this bonus to claw her way to 2nd place overall. All was good and the lead out went as planned. Their lead out was so good, Clare and Leda had a gap from the field… which was enough to work with for the rest of the race. Cari patrolled the first chase group and Kate patrolled the main field. To wrap up today, Dairyland came out on top. 1st Clare, 2nd Leda, 3rd Cari, and 11th Kate.

The team enjoying the Tucson morning sun after a sweet, sweet win! :)

We all think Leda looks great in yellow.

Weekend Overall GC.
We had a great weekend, making a plan—and communicating to execute the plan. Our team used team tactics and worked together to get the overall win, second, fifth and eleventh places.

Our Host family! Thank you so much for sharing your beautiful house with us!

Tucson Cycling Classic Road Race!

2008-03-29T20:26:00.000-07:00

Today was an excellent day-- We began our day at 3:30 am... in the dark. Our race was about 45 mins away, and we arrived at the start at 5:15 am. Check out some warm up photos.

Here's Leda warmin' up... She had a good enough warm up to ride in to #1-- riding for 30 miles by herself!!
Kate warming up. Yes, in the dark, in a Safeway parking lot.

Missy getting us ready. We really don't know what we would do without her. (But if you look closely, it may look like she is putting tags on our wheels, but she is really checking out what is left in her beer stash in her Trader Joe's bag...I guess it is what gets her through 3 hours of waiting to give us handups).

The race went well today. Leda #1, Clare #2, Cari #5, Kate #?. I (kate) led Cari out for the final leg of the race, needless to say my legs were pretty worked!

Here is the 5 of us at our Host's house. It is a most excellent house and very comfortable! We will post more photos tomorrow-- including a photo of our most gracious hosts!

Tomorrow is the Circuit, starting again at precisely 6:41 am.

too tired to write more!

Cheers! (pronounced cheez mate)

Our Return to Tucson!

2008-03-27T20:56:00.000-07:00

We made it down to Tucson! After 13 hours of driving (thanks Missy and Cari!!), we arrived at our host's house. Steve and Patricia have been excellent and they have a beautiful house filled with plenty of bicycle related art! Very cool! We were all impressed to hear that Steve hasn't driven to work since 2005-- a 16 mile commute ONE WAY! AND Patricia rides her bicycle to work everyday too-- even when she is on call and is called into the OB emergency room at 3 am!Definitely inspiring and very cool!

Today was a beautiful day in Tucson. We had a nice morning eating our favorite team breakfast-- oatmeal. Our mission was to pre-ride the TT course for the www.TucsonBicycleClassic.com . It is a short 3 mile tt course that begins with a nice descent leading to a long climb, into some rollers, ending with a decent climb for the finish. Very short! The course is near Gate's Pass and Saguaro National Park west-- big Saguaros everywhere. Remember all the cacti pics???? There are going to be some more! Be prepared to see Cari's foot.....

Until tomorrow. Good night!!!

Easter Weekend Racing in Colorado

2008-03-23T19:32:00.000-07:00

This weekend, the four Colorado Cowgirls got in on some local racing. Keep in mind that for local racing, it is always pretty interesting in Boulder to see what kind of field comes out of the woodwork. It might include the US National Road Champion at the front and the Geelong podium Aussie tucked in along with our newest addition, Leda, in the early break!

Coach Missy's Pink Cow Train (PCT) at the front starting to pick up the pace and put everyone into a spot of bother!

Another fun day at the office in the Colorado sun! We are fast, stylish, and having lots of fun!

Jack Russell Terrorist

2008-03-22T08:08:00.000-07:00

While you all are out riding and racing, I'm stuck here in Wisco, with a fresh 7" of snow on the ground and a crazy puppy. If you think life gets tough, here's what it's like cleaning the house with Mini Cooper.

I started by sweeping the kitchen floor. Here is Coop, helping by clamping on to the bristles and being dragged around the floor. It's sort of an added feature: sweeping with dust pick up at the same time.

I had to get some horse hair off a saddle pad so here is Cooper, aiding (not) in that process.

Then Lindsay came downstairs with her slippers on. Coop loves slippers. Especially if the feet in them are trying to walk.

Next we move to laundry.

Once I got the sheet unhooked from his incisors I quit doing housework. I'm stuffing him in his box and am going out to clean the chicken coop.

Good luck at the races today. I'm working on hopefully the last of the bike adaptations. This time of year is really a challenge: swapping out cranks, handlebars, this that and the other thing. Thanks all of you for your patience as I sort it out.

toodles.
becx

Sequoia Criterium.

2008-03-21T13:26:00.000-07:00

Now that Im feeling better I want to tell you about the Sequoia Crit. Ill keep it brief, It was hard, fast and risky, I have the scars to prove it.
Cari was out in full force that day, she was up there in a good position throughout her race but unfortunately had a mechanical and was told she could not get a lap out and could not finish the race.
As for me, I made the mistake of stepping back from the situation at the beginning of the race and letting the other riders take control. I was not in there for the ride I was there to race so after my first crash I got a back pocket full of HTFU! (Which is were I left my gloves, Greg). So I started to race, unfortunately again I crashed by being on a bad wheel which led me into a gutter. The last lap was fast and I was trying to get into a better position, I was coming towards the last corner really fast and as I was about to take it but there were bikes and riders spread along the pavement. The riders in front of me slammed on their breaks and so did I which made my back wheel slide out and caused me to crash hard on my hip. So I didn't finish the race (Sob).
So all in all , it was an experience and I have learned allot and Im honored in being awarded the Tyler Hamilton award from Greg, he knows I've trained for it coming down from Jamestown, literally.
Also I would like to thank Mitch Friedman for posting the photos of Cari, Kate and myself on Cycling News. Cheers!

Clare

Newest Team Member

2008-03-19T18:22:00.000-07:00

As per Rebecca's brilliant idea, my mom worked her seamstress magic to come up with a jersey for Abe! (Thanks, Mom!)

Abe's favorite Lipsmacker flavor is Banana Berry.

A good cyclist always carries a snack.

Sequoia Classic

2008-03-17T13:06:00.000-07:00

Some weekends are better then others. Period. Don't get me wrong- we had some bright moments and good laughs. We always do.

Missy, Clare, Kate, and I (Cari) went out to California to join in the torture/fun of a 40k TT and a 40 mile crit.

Here are some shots of us on the TT course on Friday:

Saturday was the TT. Let's just say that in the US when they offer big money )$10k) for a TT, all the TT girls show up. So, for me, this was about challenging myself. Before Saturday, I had never done a TT longer then 36 minutes and only have done 4 time trials ever before. Ever. So, the challenging course with hills and the inexperience killed me. Every time someone passed me with their fancy bikes, disc wheels, and aero everything... I got a little more discouraged. I think Cyclingnews appreciated America's Dairyland heart for competing in less then desirable aero get-ups because they posted quite a lot of photos of us. We may not have won but we made Cylingnews!
Sunday we lined up for a crit with about 90 other girls and the toughest field I have seen. Here is my race report. Clare will post her own soon and Kate has a great take on the race that she will post shortly.
I couldn't have been more excited (and a little nervous :)) to be in this field. The course was technical and flat- I like it! The first 30 minutes or so, I felt pretty good; I was up front and staying up front. The pace was kept high and there were several attacks from many of the teams- High Road, Cheerwine, Aaron's, Proman, etc. That is when crash #1 went down. Off to my right, I saw a Vanderkitten girl slide in a corner. She started the mass party with the pavement. I was about the 4th one to hit the ground and it ended up being about 50 or so total held up in the crash. Ouch. Really ouch. Only about 15 or so girls made it through. The rest of the field headed to the pit. My confidence was affected for about 3 or so laps and I spent too much time and energy hanging in the back for those laps. But, I got back in the swing of things and made it back to the front half. With about 20 laps (out of 57) to go, I hit some bumps pretty hard. My saddle came loose and ended up pointing straight towards the sun. I don't recommend this position; you can't ride your bike like this. I headed to the pit for a free lap and a fix. This is when the official (I am going to be very politically correct when describing this conversation) informed me that this was not considered a mechanical. Sorry, no free lap for you. Um, really? That stinks. (Use your imagination on how this conversation really sounded.) So, they will fix your bike because you obviously can't ride but you get no lap. Your race is over. Whatever.
Ok, the positive notes: I learned that I do have the ability and confidence to stay with this type of field. I know I have some work to do on the fitness side of it. It is one thing to hang and it is another to have a sprint at the end or to be active in attacking/chasing/etc. We had a blast this weekend. Traveling with these girls is a riot! We have so many photos to share that we will post this week. I love this team!

Cari

Great Weekend of Racing

2008-03-10T19:40:00.000-07:00

Kate Said:

This weekend, the Colorado Cowgirls represented the team well, with nice finishes in the Frost Bite Time Trial and the Denver University Criterium. The time trial was a definitely a test! It consisted of a 6.5 mile out and back course only five miles from Wyoming. There was a cross/tailwind on the way out and the course seemed to fly by… and then we turned around! The wind blasted right into our faces and made for a treacherous, grueling, mash-fest back to the lovely orange cone by Buckeye road. I am not sure about Cari or Clare, but I was very happy to see that cone! Clare brought in a 3rd place, behind Meredith Miller and Georgia Gould! Nice Job Clare! They "think" Cari finished 4th right behind clare and I finished 5th.

Clare Said:
Last weekend was our first races on our fixture and I might say that it has started off really well! Last Saturday was the Frostbite TT which was a flat 12 mile course. I immediately thought, "Ill do this in about 30 minuets"! When Kate and I arrived to the race I got out of the car and felt what everyone does not want to feel when about to do a TT, WIND! "Well there goes my chance of doing a 30min TT", I thought.

Going on the way out was a tail wind with a slight cross wind which was a breeze but on the way back felt like you were pulling a pile of bricks behind you! The wind was that strong.

At the end of it all I was hyperventilating for 5 min after the race and accepted the fact that I way get at the most fifth place. To my surprise I got third and I cant complain about that. My team mate Kate got 4th place and unfortunately Cari didn't get a time. Cari went off before me and my goal was to catch her. She took off like lighting, I looked at Missy and said there is no way I can catch her!

UPDATE!! Cari came in 4th with a time of 33:43! which puts Kate into 5th place. Sorry Kate but awesome job Cari!

Sunday was the Criterium at Denver University. There would of been about 30 to 40 riders who turned up to race. At the start line I whisper to Cari, "Im going to go off like a sprint, watch me". So anyway, the gun goes off and what happens? I lose my balance and almost tipped over my bike. I had to sprint anyway to get on the pack, I can see Cari up ahead turn her head around looking for me with this confused look on her face. I made an ass of myself.

After the first lap I decided to make the first move, I attacked and went away for about one and a half laps. I wanted to string out the field and tried to get back into a good position once the pack caught up to me. Unfortunately Kate got a flat tyre and was out for a lap. Cari made an other attack and broke away with two other riders, Kate and I made sure that no one tried to bridge it and closed down any attempts of a break from other riders.

It was a great day for our number one sprinter Cari coming first over the line and having a great result for the team over the weekend.

Many thanks to Missy whith her support and game planning.

Above is a picture of the Criterium circut.

hee hee hee

2008-03-04T07:26:00.000-08:00

My new laptop isn't here yet so I'm limited in what photos I have access to. This is one of my favorites from last year's photo shoot. Kate dropped her cup of milk mustache formula. Is that a great pic or what??

You can also imagine a photo of an excited Marcie trying on her new jersey for the first time. She was happy, as was Sabrina.

S'all I got for now. I will be in DC for two days. Toodles!

becx

Another Tiger spotted

2008-02-26T20:39:00.000-08:00

This time, I think he was waiting for us. Maybe stalking us? Almost as soon as we arrived, he showed up with his friend Stuart.

Clare, Missy, Kate, and Bunny... Cari is the team photographer.

Best seats in the house and for free.

Lip Smacking Fun!

2008-02-24T20:25:00.000-08:00

We love our new sponsor! Which flavor is your favorite? Let us know.

Clare's- Cherry 7-up

Cari's- Strawberry Gloss

Kate- Kiwi

Bunny- Skittles Tropical Fruit

Missy- A&W Rootbeer

Rebecca- Mango

Training in Tucson

2008-02-24T06:34:00.001-08:00

Kate Bonita at Gates pass showing her stuff.

The reason our 3 hour ride turned into 5+ hours. Can you say bonk? Never trust the free map.

The beautiful mountains!

How come we always take pictures with anything that has a cow? This day we rode to Biosphere 2... really cool.

You see anyone familiar in the background?

Rode over to say hi to Tiger on the 17th hole of Dove Mountain's Match Play Championship.

At the start of our Mt. Lemmon ride, here was the warning. "Snow Warning. Chains, 4WD Advised." Hmm... should we?

Cookies and pizza at the top of Mt. Lemmon. Oh, there was also lots of snow but no chains or 4WD needed.

We are happy now that we are descending! Three hours of climbing (7,344 total ft. of climbing) and less then one hour descending. Oh, team bonding.

Pure Goodness!

2008-02-21T20:20:00.001-08:00

This week has been like Christmas in February. Check out what we found under the cactus.

Team Mascot?

2008-02-21T08:08:00.000-08:00

Over coffee this morning, our team was trying to have a 'serious' meeting. Instead, this is what we saw outside our window. A wild javelina! We stalked it and chased it and had some good laughs.

See ya later our little friend! Come back and visit us- we are here all week.

Valley of Sun Race Report

2008-02-20T20:03:00.000-08:00

Well- that was that! It felt good to have my first race of the season under my belt. Valley of the Sun is such a perfect race for the early season. This year, our new friend Paco provided host housing for Kate and I. Not only are he and his wife Mary totally fun to hang out with but Paco was also the director of the race. He was so chill and not stressed the whole weekend... amazing!

Friday- chilly and a little rainy for the TT. I came in 14th. Ok for the only girl around with no TT bike and fancy-dancy wheels. It was nice to actually enjoy the pain of a TT for the first time ever. I have never been much of a TT person.

Saturday- perfect weather for the 50+ mile road race. The sweet and short story: the race was a tea party and I concentrated on staying in the front and away from the chaos. As instructed by Missy, I was in the top 10 each time up the hill. Since I am used to being dropped on every climb, I wanted to be in front so I would only get dropped to the back of the pack and not off the back like last year. To my surprise, I was able to stay in the front. I even managed to win the QOM. Wow- don't ever expect that again! Third time up the hill (we went up this hill 4 times), I flatted at the bottom. Oh no. After getting a spare from the neutral support, I TT back to the peloton. (This is what I get from the cycling spirits for always saying that I can't TT. They want me to learn the hard way.) I had about 5 minutes rest before the final hill and finish. I was convinced I didn't have any gas left so told myself to play smart and finish with the pack. Playing smart was easier then I thought by picking good wheels the whole way up the hill. Before I knew it, we were at the top and the sprint was on. I came in 3rd. Darn! I wish I would have trusted my fitness and had the mentality that I would be sprinting for 1st. It came as a surprise and it was too late.

Ended the day at 7th in GC. With time bonuses for both the QOM and 3rd place, I could only move up to 7th. Darn that TT.

Sunday- perfect weather for a crit. I listened to Rebecca and went for 1 early prime. Won my $50 bucks and then restrained myself from sprinting for any more primes the rest of the race. I wanted to win more then I wanted primes. As usual, they were throwing out big money towards the end and it was all I could do to not sprint for them even when I was in perfect position. The race had great action and was never boring. Attacks and primes were frequent but nothing got away. On the last lap, my old teammate and friend Betsy G. rolled up beside me. Oh ya! The best lead out- great wind up and perfect lines through the corners. Thanks Betsy! I took the win for America's Dairyland. Good day at the office!

Betsy G. racing for Helen's Cycles.

Overall GC- 6th. Next time I take the TT a little more seriously.

This picture is for Kate. She and I had a lot of fun joking about this little "interview" from Rock Racing. Let's just say that I don't think he got my humor.

More later from team camp!

Cari

Warm Weather Training

2008-02-17T09:21:00.000-08:00

Kate and I have spent the last week in Tucson, AZ getting some warm weather training under our belts and having tons of fun. After Kate drove from WI to Boulder, CO on Saturday, she flew to Tucson on Monday. She is quite the traveler.

Tuesday was a ride to Sonoita, AZ. We couldn't figure out why there were a million Border Patrol Agents passing us on the way down there. Was it because we were that close to the Mexican Border and this was normal? Or, was it because there was huge (2,200 pounds) marijuana bust in Sonoita? Um- yes. Wednesday Sonoita caught fire. I didn't realize the desert could burn like that. Thursday the fires were put out by the snow that fell on Sonoita. Looks like we picked the right day to ride there. I would rather run into 2,200 pounds of marijuana then fire or snow.

Some pictures from our adventures.
Sunny Sonoita, AZ.

After climbing and climbing, we were rewarded.

Random cyclist with no helmet (not smart) and snot on his shorts (gross.)

More adventures soon! I am finishing Valley of the Sun today and team camp starts tomorrow!

Cari

New Blog Home!

2008-02-13T15:38:00.000-08:00

Please... come with us. This is our new blog since we were having so much darn trouble with the last one.

Over the next couple days, we will have this one up and running.