Giving Back

Anyone ever ask you what your perfect day looks like?

I know mine.

It starts out with a long workout. Something that grinds me to the core. When I’m done I’m lit up like a Christmas tree. With a salt lick on my face.

Every muscle is tired. Not achy. Tired.

I’m relishing the thought of a huge brunch with my fave Kick-Ass coffee.

I’ve digested a lot of fresh air. I’m high.

Yesterday was the perfect day. I started out on road ride with my devote bike store, Pro City Cycle.

As we rolled out I heard, “mellow.” I was okay with that. I’d wrestled with getting my ass out of bed in the first place.

We carry on and I get yakking with another gal, Sandy.

Under an hour later we hit the turnaround for the mellow. I’m feeling I need at least an hour and a half so I bolt to carry on. Sandy joins me. We talk training. She’s doing a triathlon and says she’s got 2.5 hours to put in today. I’m in, but realize I didn’t bring nutrition. She’s got it covered. We’re on.

The perfect way to start the day. We spun 60 kms with a host of varied elevations and came back to the shop in 2.5 hours exactly.

It was a grunt. I hadn’t eaten breakfast and she’s way fitter then I am. But boy, what a delightful way to start the day.

We toasted a kick-butt coffee at the shop and hugged goodbye. She was off to her kids.

Something she’d said during the tail end of our ride really stuck with me. We were both so elated to start the day out so right. She then said something like, “Now that’s I’ve done something for myself, I’m ready to give back to my kids.”

I thought to myself, how sweet. You do something for yourself – like a wicked workout and you’re even more valuable to everyone else. So true.

For giving back.

About Bikes

Someone else's bike.

What I like about bikes:

• They respect you.
• They love you.
• They don't talk back.
• They never complain.
• They're always happy.
• They smile when you do.
• They help you stay fit!
• They can carry a lot.
• They give you the wind in your face.
• They guide you through all the fresh air.
• They're always there for you.
• They don't judge.
• They never let you down.

Just saying...

Life Cycles – The Movie

The venue was plush. I wasn’t expecting too much when I sat down in the seat for two with a holder for my coffee cup. But I was relaxed.

Once the grandiose HD Life Cycles movie began I had to resort to blindly writing my notes. I couldn’t dare take my eyes off the screen.

The narrator’s words immediately clung to my soul. Married with the high definition artistic portrayals of the manufacturing of a bicycle to start things off - I was completely captivated.

It was unimaginable for me that I could go to a bike movie – a bazillion of which I’ve seen on my son’s computer over the years – and be brought to groundswell of tears. How so?
There was a mingling of intensity shed on the story of life, sidelined with the great outdoors and of course a bicycle.

Human power. Capable of greater good.

The iconic pictures your mind dances with when the voice pitches in with “…mystery of what lay around the bend…” had me rattled. Honestly I got a rush.

“The bicycle our noblest of inventions…” okay.

I felt the rhythm. The visuals, the eye candy, the words, the music.

It all tugged at my heart strings. Truly a film with spirit.

Also purpose, flow, joy, interaction and instinct. It delivers balance. A bike and life. Intertwined with the sound of the chainsaw or the ching of a pedal to the medal. Take your pick. There’s the wheels of change. Construction, destruction then creation.

I loved the lines; “Bicycles are powered by the human motor,” and then the “Forces that aim to take it all away.”

What did I take away I think to myself as I amble out of the theatre with my son who claimed, “Awesome.”

It’s what I did today. I saw it, I felt it and I lived it.

Like the movie said - Life Cycles. It never ends.

N.B. Can hardly wait to own my own copy.

BC Bike Race Challenge!

Please note: due to technical difficulties, links for BC Bike Race were unable to be provided in this blog. Please visit www.bcbikerace.com for all the deets!

I’m up for the Challenge. I’ve been saying that for over three months now. My training for BC Bike Race Challenge course has also been a challenge!
Getting into the groove with the right bikes for me was a struggle. I managed with slicks on my old Rocky Mountain Fusion (19 years old to be exact!) to go solo on the roads early in the mornings. I’d get passed by packs of roadies with little giddy-up comments. Oh well, at least I was out there riding. Which is what Andreas Hestler told me from the get go. Get the miles on, bum in saddle.
My neighbours started to notice a difference in my schedule. Rather then waking up to get the paper at 8 a.m. I was coming in from a three hour road ride. Tired. Which prompted one idle remark from the male species, "Well at least you’ve got nice thighs!"
Thunder thighs they've now been named.
I have to say I’m pretty thankful the BC Bike Race starts in the summer. When my serious BC Bike Race training began in late March, the early morning rides were cold and dark. Lights were mandatory, so were arm warmers, footsy rain protectors, layers upon layers - even the long leggings.
As the weeks passed the days got longer, the early mornings got springier. But there was rain, lots of it. I’d attempted a three hour ride starting off in the rain one morning. Three pairs of gloves later I made it home. Frickin’ freezing. Lesson to oneself, wear all the gear before you leave and make sure it’s ALL waterproof.
The training program on the web site is great. But hard to follow when you’re working 8-10 hour days with an almost 2 hour commute. The only time during the week I could squeeze in long rides was if I got up at 4:15 a.m. The thought of me wearing the BC Bike Race belt buckle dangled over my head when I hit snooze for the first time. That usually got me out of bed.
It was super sweet once I got a properly fitted cross-country bike and started doing the Island Cup xc races. Even though I managed the tailgater spot for the most part, I could feel the improvement in my stamina and confidence in climbing up and in particular down. Practice makes perfect right!
The butterflies have already crept into my stomach. BC Bike Race is now three days away. I took up the Challenge, because I like a challenge. To be honest, I’m looking forward to living like a Pro: eat, race, eat, sleep, eat, race, eat, sleep, eat, race, eat, sleep for seven whole days!
I am no Olympian, I’m a 46 year-old mother with a spirit of a 27 year-old and mental madness to know I’ll find a way to get’er done, I know I’ll have to dig deep. No pain, no gain. Every step and strain you take today, is an investment in tomorrow morning’s strength.
Ready or not, here I come!

Be One With Your Bike

Funk is in and so is getting a professional bike fit. Wow what a difference a few good tweaks can make.
I finally took the time today to see the man in the know, Bill Fry at http://www.trekbikesvictoria.com/ also known as Pro City Racing.
No more get on the bike and ride. Now it’s get on the bike and perform!
They knew I was coming, I booked the appointment two days earlier. I roll in and my bike is fitted onto a windtrainer. Bill follows shortly. My shoes laced up he asks me to climb on. I sit and complain about what I know I don’t like. He watches me pedal. Like a good thinker he sits and analyzes. Then he takes out a long bendy ruler it looks like. Measures up my leg. Has me stick my pedal stroke in one spot while he dangles a plum line.
Out come the tools. The seat height changes. So does the seat positioning. More measuring. Another plum line. Then some adjustments to the handlebars. A tilt.
Now I’m sent out for a ride. My cockpit is tight. I like it. I do a block of roady and thank the dude. The true test will be to see how I perform at “Hard Rock Hartland.” The local trails also known as “The Dump.”
Night and day. I have a grasp for climbing, I am tilting in unison. I am one with my bike. What a difference a bike fit can make.
I return to spread my happiness. Stoked and ready for tomorrow’s xc marathon ride at the North Shore Bike Festival WOOT WOOT!