Racing.

What is it about racing? It's addictive, like really, really addictive. Riding is addictive, too, but in a different way completely.

This past Sunday I got to go to a cross race (as a spectator), I blogged about that a couple of days ago. And here I am blogging about it yet again. Beating a dead horse? Maybe, but there's more to it. These are thoughts I have to somehow try to capture before they vanish and I move on with my life forever forgetting the unique feelings surrounding this past weekend.

In essence, I realized how much I feel at home at a race. It could be seeing familiar faces, but there was a time when I went to races and I didn't know anyone and enjoyed it just the same. When I first started racing, I'd go to races not knowing anyone, I raced alone and then spent hours watching the rest of the races. I'd cheer for a familiar jersey, but essentially I was alone and having a great time. I felt a sense of belonging there. As much time as it wasted, it felt like it was time well spent.

There's something about the people, the scene, something. It's universal and found everywhere so far I've looked. I don't particularly like to be a spectator at much of any other sport or activity (ice hockey being a rare exception) and I don't like attending fairs or festivals (though curiosity will often get me out for a couple of minutes, but I don't like to stay long.

Just one of hundreds of fans out spectating a CX race in Boulder in 2009 (Grand Prix of Cyclocross). It was a long trip just to watch people I didn't know ride their bikes. I remember how glorious that day was and how glad I was to have been there.

Before I ever raced or even rode a bike, I liked watching races and enjoyed going out to them (once I realized it was a sport - yeah, it took awhile). Of course, I prefer to go and compete. CX and mountain bike races are an exception because it's nice to not be nervous about it - just watching and cheering is better. But I'm thinking more and more about getting back into racing and if I'm going to do it, I need to commit pretty soon to training for next season.

I have nothing to prove, nothing to gain. Yet I really feel the need to go back to being out there and being competitive once again.

To be continued...

A Visit and Some NECX

Got a visit by a Denver friend, Vera, today. Nice how the visit corresponded well with a 2-hour bike ride and her sister getting to visit a friend who's from here.

The leaves are nearly at their peak right now so it was a good time for her to come out. I was interested in seeing what she found cool about the area - many of the things that I thought were cool when I first got here, but have not become accustomed to (old, big houses, landscapes, historic sites). She was remarking on a house and it happened to be the Orchard House (where Louisa May Alcott wrote Little Women, it's like that around here, there's a lot of history and interesting stories surrounding many things. People from here are tired of it all (not all of them, but seems to be what I'm finding), but those of us from somewhere else are fascinated by being in a storybook-like place.

After riding and parting, I got my CX bike ready to go and, for the first time since I got the road bike, left it behind in lieu of the Honey. I've been missing the Honey and the many cool rides I did on it last fall/winter so today was an excuse to at least get on it for a few minutes.

The pro CX race in Providence today is a big deal race, 2nd only to Gloucester here. I'm judging from what I've heard from cross racers on this one. I hadn't seen a CX race in New England yet, I've only ever spectated/raced CX races in dusty Denver and Boulder.

Today's weather was *perfect* for a proper New England CX day; it was the mother of all muddy races. Temps were cool, it rained almost the whole time (it started raining the moment I pulled into the parking lot 15 minutes before the women's Pro race began).

The mud.

The course. It was a really, really cool course & a really beautiful park. I wish I'd gotten a chance to ride the course when it wasn't slick-as-ice mud. I pre-rode a little, though made the mistake of starting at the most difficult part (off-camber & muddy, a huge section).

Honey bike happy as a honey bike can be. Dirt and grass on its tires without being given a mud bath.

It was great to be out there, I particularly enjoy spectating sports I don't like to play. Got to see former teammate Kate P from Boulder, many people I know from riding & the RSC,  & Andrea, RSC's former mechanic, who had a fantastic race--it was about time I saw her race after talking about it for two seasons. Next year: Gloucester.

I had no reason to go home so I stopped to do a little shopping, reading and eating. Traveling for bike stuff two weekends in a row. Squeezing it in before the bad weather hits.

Finally, Mt Wachusett

One of my summer riding destination goals has been Mt. Wachusett. For a variety of reasons, it didn't end up happening until yesterday. I'm not a fan of taking back roads in really out of the way places when I'm riding alone, so I took the fairly busy 62 out and back. Then, when I realized that I didn't have the maps card in my Garmin 800, it turned out to be my only option. These back roads are impossible to navigate without detailed maps. Maps on my phone helped me get my bearings and know where to find a big mountain.

The ride was as much about time to myself and doing something good for myself as taking advantage of the nice fall day to see the colors and breathe fresh air. Riding twice in 3 days seems excessive, almost something I don't deserve. However, I do and I have tried to give all of myself to work concerns, leaving very little left. There is always more to be done, I will get behind as a result, but considering how many nice days (and nights) I've missed in order to do important work things, this is fine. Lately, I haven't been sleeping well. Part of this is missing bike rides. They are necessary for physical and mental health.*

Prior to last week, I'd gotten so behind in reading that it was another extreme point of frustration. I used to be in good habits where this was concerned, but those went up in smoke when I left simple Denver life. I hate not knowing what's going on in the world or being versed in a variety of random stuff. Last week I made a point to take an hour or two almost daily to read the Wall Street Journal and any magazine or book that caught my attention. Taking an hour or two out of a 15-hour work day is completely justifiable and I reveled in it.

As for the time I'm not sleeping, I'm stuck in Tyler Hamilton's book The Secret Race. I didn't know that I wanted to read it because hearing the truth about doping can be depressing and, of course, doping is a reality of the sport (I don't approve in the slightest), but it's been obvious for years of what's been going on. When I raced at national-level races, I never suspected teammates or opponents of doping. I'd like to believe that it really wasn't that prevalent amongst women pro racers as there's no money in the sport for women and taking something body-altering like easy-to-get testosterone isn't something most women would want.

I raced against a woman in Italy who I was told failed at least 2 drug tests in her pro racing days. She was a national champion and I almost always took second to her. I didn't care if she was beating me because of her natural strength or some sort of performance enhancing drug, she was the better rider who had more road beneath her than did I. It was obvious that I was clean and I was respected by the guys out there for knowing how to race and maintaining some level of femininity, strong yet able to put on a race face at the same time. I still smile inside when I think of what it was like finishing a Gran Fondo. Whoever I was racing with/against and I would always shake hands and congratulate each other on a fun race. The guys were so chivalrous and respectful, opposite Italian stereotypes. I did see some amateur (younger) men dope in the Italian peloton and it is as easy and inexpensive to get as the stories tell, what I saw was testosterone and heard believable stories about specific riders on steroids and EPO.

The effect of Tyler's book is having is an unexpected one, it's making me think about racing. I don't want to go back to racing like I did it before, but I would like to regain my race form. At least thinking about racing helped me to get back into the training mindset yesterday when I was riding.

Yes, I'm back to training base miles. If I can get through the winter and get on the trainer some, I will be race-fit come spring. I'm not committing to anything here, but talking about it out loud is the first step.

First stop: bathroom break, double espresso and an apple treat at the cafe in Maynard. Cute place, full of people. I like Maynard since it's full of old factory buildings, perfect loft opportunities.

Then there was view after view. One thing Massachusetts has going for it is trees - everywhere & very densely packed. Sometimes there are too many and one can't actually see anything. Yesterday there were nice breaks in trees, a good balance between sky, tree and land.

 I'd wanted to make it to Wachusett, and somehow did at about 3:45, too late in the day for this late in the season. Clouds that looked like they contained snow hovered over the mountain.

 Skiing will be happening here soon enough!

Road just prior to the summit. It was steeper and longer than I'd remembered it.

Is this the best water fountain ever or what? Dog, hiker and cyclist all get to be hydrated comfortably. Thank goodness for this as I was completely out of water when I got back to the base of Wachusett.

 

I was also starving. The town of Sterling is probably about 10 miles from the summit of Wachusett. By the time I got back here, I didn't have much left in the tank. 

This pizza establishment didn't have slices of pizza left at 5pm. Yes, it was getting late, I had to eat and it needed to be fast. The man who ran the pizza shop was great. "You tell me what you want, I make it." This was the best sandwich. It's as big as it looks. I ate the whole thing. He heated veggies over the grill, added mozzarella, salted, peppered, drizzled with pizza sauce and stuffed the bread. Go there. He was so nice and accommodating and he saved me from grabbing a Monster and Clif bar from the neighboring convenience store. (Nothing wrong, though, with the Monster and Clif bar, really...they've saved me on many occasions when a bonk was moments away.)

I had a set of lights on me - Nightrider 600 lumens, a single-unit (battery and light together) for the front and Knog Blinder in the back. Both worked on pitch black roads (no eye strain for me & I was obvious to cars) and were easy enough to take with me without being a burden. I'd sacrifice no more than 50 lumens to be adequate in such conditions. Night riding is an endless serene world without stress. I highly recommend it and I miss it when I can't do it.

My beautiful bike (yes, I've been keeping it clean now that I'm not scared of cleaning it) is riding as great as ever, offering the most wonderful, easy, zippy-yet-comfy riding everywhere I take it. I can thank it for 82 miles total yesterday, 4,900 feet of climbing and benefits to which numbers can't be attached.

Picnic with a Bike Ride to Make People Hungry

Saturday was a fun road trip to a bike ride and picnic near the Quabbin Reservoir organized by Rapha Gentleman race teammate Todd and his wife, Sue.

Dena, super woman endurance rider, and I headed out of town at 7:30am with bikes and bags of gear. It was oh-so-reminiscent of days of old when the car was packed up [far too early] with teammate or friend to head to a race 1-5 hours away. Fun times & always nice (vs awful during commuting, for example) experience in a car.

My phone and camera ended up being left in my car as I had too much time to get ready. So I doddled and never really focused on the task at hand until we were riding and I realized my mistake.

Everything everyone said about the hills is so true - you go up for 60 miles in rolling fashion (so not steady-state up, but constantly shifting while going up, the road looks flat, yet it's still going up...) Oh yeah, the last 20 zipped by in what felt like 2 minutes as they were all down (thank goodness!) Wait a second, there were hills and a few small mountains, but the guys had a different definition of what these were. I heard many lies told out there. "Just one more little hill coming..." So why was I earnestly wishing for a crank with a little itty bitty cog on it, then? 

Long story short, it was an awesome (HARD) ride, but with stops for food (carrot cake, a fine energy snack) and a jovial bunch of riders, it was a fine day. The ride was one I was really in need of since I hadn't been on a bike for awhile and was starting to wonder if I could do it. Having a day when I could just be one of the bunch and an unknown entity was a level of relaxation I needed. I wanted to ride my bike and feel it fly over the road, not talk about its components. The other riders and I didn't even swap names until we were done with the ride for the most part.

And after the ride, there was chili - vegetarian chili - and an enormous spread of food so tasty, I could understand how this was billed as a picnic that just happened to have a ride prior to it. Very hospitable hosts, a Saturday circumnavigating the Quabbin (which we only got a little glance at during the ride, so it really wasn't the point of anything, just a big obstacle to ride around), good people, food and fun adventure...something that I'm glad to have taken the day to experience.

George Howell Roastery Tour

Today's day off was punctuated with a good tour and cupping at the George Howell Coffee Company in Acton, MA. We've been serving George Howell's Terroir coffee since the beginning of the Ride Studio Cafe due to its high quality and local presence so it was about time that we saw George Howell and the George Howell family (employees all seem to have longevity here, so not only is it a family business, but the employees appear to have become family, too). We've met many of the people of George Howell and are very fortunate to have a GH employee on staff at the RSC (Sal), so we have been fortunate to build a solid relationship with them over the past 2 1/2 years. Seeing them at home in their test kitchen and in their environment helped put their coffee in context and a new light.

We saw green beans being turned into coffee beans and then got to taste nine different coffees next to each other: from sumatra (wet climate & low elevation yielding earthy flavors) to the Lenana, the highest in elevation (~5000 ft), fruity: ripe blackberry in this case. 

I enjoyed hearing what George Howell had to say about each coffee as we were tasting - he didn't hold back his opinion about each and seemed particularly fair in discussing the coffee other very well-known companies serve.

People would love to learn coffee from this perspective - I'm hoping we'll get to do more with GH at the RSC where it comes to cuppings and brewing methods.

Just another day "off." I really need to take off the barista hat and re-enter bike land before the off-season is officially upon us.

An Interview Question

Today I interviewed with someone last week for the Cafe.

Question: How would you handle a situation where people are lined up for coffee, someone comes in wanting to buy a bike, someone else is there to pick up a bike, someone else has a flat tire and the cash register freezes up.

Answer: This afternoon when I was barista, a similar situation unfolded. Someone ordered two pourover coffees, someone else came in to demo two bikes, someone else came in to buy two tubes, a couple came in after being out of town for three months and wanted a drink and to say hi after the long time away. Everyone who'd been sitting with their drinks needed to pay prior to leaving. I secretly wished they'd just leave, as uninterrupted time with a customer is always more valuable than the few dollars I'd be handed.

Answer?! There is a way to handle this situation as the situation somehow went away, but it's a blur. Dishes didn't get washed but everyone, somehow, got taken care of. I think the candidate's response was good and somehow thinking about his answer to the question made me a bit more conscious of the situation as it was unfolding. Maintain composure, perspective and acknowledge the importance of the time of each customer who is waiting.

Cool Bike Ride & First Century for the Seven

A long day in the saddle means not much time for anything else and I'm anxious to get to other things still considering I feel approximately 2 1/2 years behind in a few areas. One day, however, did me more good than had I spent it doing anything else.

Today was the first century for my new, awesome-awesome-awesome Seven bike. It's odd that 100 miles feels almost trivial on this bike. I step on the pedals, it goes; it cruises over everything (lots of rough pavement) without notifying me of what it's dealing with at street-level; it climbs without holding back and descends with confidence. After 100 miles, my body feels good, nothing hurts. Today was a base-building ride, so I was really watching my heart rate and keeping it aerobic, so it was the kind of effort I should have been able to maintain where it comes to fitness.

At no time did I have to rearrange my hands on the handlebars or stretch in the saddle. Titanium is a very special material & having a bike that is properly engineered and made out of it is such a treat. (Not all titanium bikes in the world are awesome like Sevens & I shudder when people think all ti bikes ride similarly.) I didn't have to get used to my new bike, it was just perfect from the first moment I rode it. It didn't even occur to me until later today when asked how the bike did that it's still new and I should be paying a bit more attention to it. I still appreciate it as new, but I have an affinity/particular protectiveness of it as if it and I have done 10,000 miles together already. I believe we're nearing 700 miles and 6 weeks, though I have to check my odometer to be sure.

Here are a few pictures from today's ride. It took me down through Boston, past Harvard, then MIT (where there were students pouring out of its buildings), through Allston, across the bridge to Brookline, down through Hyde Park into JP (Jamaica Plain) through the Emerald Necklace, into the Blue Hills, back into the Blue Hills, then south through Canton into Sharon, up through Norfolk, Medfield, into Dover (ice cream stop), and as direct as possible from there to Lexington.  The day wouldn't have been complete without a post-ride Ride Studio Cafe hot chocolate for recovery & relaxation. I was lucky to make it 1/2 hr before it closed. The ice cream came when the day was hot and hot chocolate was when it was chilly. I think fall has arrived. 

Central Square - every time I'm here, I think I need to move to this bustling mini-NYC.

 MIT & too many students.

Heading over the bridge to Boston. So gorgeous.

From Jamaica Plain, entering the Emerald Necklace. Such natural beauty. The many forests I rode through were so peaceful & significantly more beautiful than this intersection.

 Beautiful park.

It was hard to capture this scene completely - bike in the foreground & Boston in the background with lots of greenery in between. Perfect combo & my favorite scene today.

A Little Talk

Every single day is an experience. Oh the tales that can be told about each day - there's so much, it's impossible to capture. Too important to write down the highlights & not forget some of the small things that comprise each day that help inform decisions of the next. So, so many of the small details add up to be big ones, I am seeing things add up.

Yesterday
Dear blog reader: if you ever feel the strong desire to go back to school as the solution to being in a job or profession you're not completely satisfied with, might I suggest starting with the really inexpensive Toastmasters. If there's one thing I've ever done that's paid off many, many times what I've invested, it has been this. Off my soap box, paying a lot of $ for formal education typically doesn't make sense if one really wants to learn; there are 1,000 ways of doing it for little to nothing. I used to wake up uber early to prep for and attend a 6:30-8am Toastmasters meeting every other week. Once it's possible to give a well-constructed, organized speech of 7-10 minutes in length at 6:30am, no speech after that can ever be seen as challenging.

Yesterday I spoke to a group of 25+ women in business in Lexington. It was a 20 minute talk about who I am, what my career path has been to get me here and what is involved in the business I'm helping run and manage.

Key points were these:

- I have had no career path and I don't have a "career." My path has been one of my making as I've been following my heart, doing what I want to do--insisting upon it (to myself) even when I haven't been qualified (how many jobs have I ever done that I started off qualified? None that I can recall.) Then I have let things fall into place naturally from there. Now I have a lifestyle, not a career, not a job. The word "career" has never set well with me, I'm not entirely sure why. All of my other jobs have been jobs. Each has been a major player in my life and I have each to thank and many people have made a big difference, too. This is just the beginning and I am a beginner. Every day I begin again, taking on something that is new. I'm not an expert on anything, but if my story can inspire, I am happy to tell it.

- Community is critical and key to the success of the business. It's about connection with people, an individual approach, friendliness and inclusion. There is so much to this, but this is the 50,000 ft view.

- I described the business model to the attendees and the result. People connect, great ideas are shared, people are accomplishing goals they wouldn't have dreamed of weeks or months ago. Friends have been made, spouses have the space to thank as the place where they spend quality time together. High-end bikes and high-end coffee - the best in class is offered so as to create the optimal experience. The list goes on and on. I could go on and on. I often think of the Studio as a think tank, a retreat, an oasis from the realities of the outside world. I only hope that it inspires, helps others to think differently, rest, rejuvenate. It has been all of these things to me, but I'd like to see it be even more. The bikes go along with this very nicely.

If sniffing a crayon makes a person's blood pressure lower, then seeing or touching a bike likely has the very same effect - likely much more considering the emotions surrounding riding that almost every person brings with him or her from throughout life's major experiences where a bike had some role.

For me, crayons make my blood pressure higher. My worst grades in school came from coloring assignments as I couldn't stay within the lines and I found those assignments to be incredibly boring. I'm still upset about being reprimanded in Kindergarten for not coloring the drawing of the greenhouse the right way. I'm fortunate that I developed a healthy relationship with bikes as that was precarious, too. Most of my first bike-related experiences weren't great, to be honest, with my great experiences all coming once I was an adult. I only got a road bike after having to *really* be talked into getting it.

- There are daily challenges, but it's the passion that I have for what I do that carry me from one day to the next. How could anyone push through tough days if one isn't doing what one loves? It would be impossible for me.

Afterward one woman mentioned to me that it appears that I have no fear that typical people would naturally carry with them. I hadn't seen it from that perspective before. Have I gotten to the point that I see risk and am able to stare it down without flinching? Maybe in some areas, but I still have a long way to go. I have found that this is the most important factor in being successful in business. How does this translate?

See the goal clearly - invest all of the resources it takes to reach the goal - success is not guaranteed but it is guaranteed to not happen if it the goal hasn't been fully pursued. It's the investment of resources that is so heart-droppingly scary, but those who can do it are the successful ones.

Tired Ramblings, Sleeplessness and Productivity or Lack Thereof

On Sleep 
Last night I finally couldn't sleep. Usually I am out cold before my head hits the pillow - literally. Often I'm far from a pillow when I pass out for the night, if I'm so lucky to get to sleep for what is defined as a night on something that is soft. When I have a chance to sleep, I do. When I have to work, well, I have to work. I need to be working now and today I'm making a rare exception.

Work is Play
If my work weren't my play, it would just be work and I wouldn't be able to do it, I couldn't justify the time and the many cool things I'm missing out on. My life is very inexpensive. I have nothing to lose if I decided to take a fun, part-time job with the only purpose being to pay the bills and to pay for fun past-time activities. Good thing I can't do that because of my deep desire for fulfillment. I work really, really hard to keep work fun. And by that, I mean I try to stay as on top of things as humanly possible--by working when I should be sleeping. This way, I can look relaxed (usually) and enjoy the company of people when they visit the shop. I think being a relaxing environment and having an escape from the pressure and stress of everyday life is one thing that makes where I work different from almost all others. People feel this, it attracts them to come in and stay awhile.

Fulfillment
A note on fulfillment: The team and I received many thanks for the Vuelta breakfast we served up Monday morning. That is fulfilling. We are directly changing lives and I'm part of the team that is doing it.

The other day, a man who had been crippled for 29 years and has walked for just a few months, came to us for a trike. We don't sell or build trikes, but we were the only hope to this man who could very, very slowly, walk from home to our shop. Jeff, our pro mechanic, built up the trike and we've been seeing this man riding all over town all of the time now. The trike is his new set of legs and it's awesome. Even though I didn't do much directly on that bike, it's hard not to feel pretty good about seeing the yellow of the trike streak by the window.

Cycling and Coffee Combo
Cycling and the subject of it, in general, is an escape. Life is too serious & people take it too seriously. Life is made lighter with good old fashioned time with other people discussing topics of relatively little consequence. And, of course, conversations are all made better if held over coffee. I've had many cups of not-good coffee in my pre-RSC life in order to reap the benefits of the conversation that comes with it. So cycling and *good* coffee in one space. Happy people.

Personal Life (?)
I need to spend more time in my personal life and I will be sacrificing my personal physical and emotional health and happiness a bit less this coming year. I've lost a few friends along the way and it saddens me deeply that I don't have more time for those left and for my family who are uber important to me. Recently I closed a door that I didn't have to, but it had "normal good life without time for the work I want to do" written on it and it was taunting me. I prefer not to be faced with the temptation. Some of the sacrifices of the first year have made sense. For two years running, not so much. My attempt is to keep moving toward the nirvana of business: one that is self-sustainable. No one person should be the make-or-break factor. In the business I'm in, I'm a cheerleader. I'm supposed to be a manager, thank goodness my title is curator because that's far more accurate; my personality doesn't go particularly well with manager. I'm not critical to the business, but I think my role is important right now. It will change in time and I hope to get to the point that I don't have to be physically present so much. 12+ hour days standing on my feet (there are more than I can count) will eventually get old and the changes I can make will be smaller. If I'm not constantly changing things, I get bored.

I miss my life some, but not too much. I think if you told me a year ago that I would have only a handful of weekend days off (note, I made my own schedule, so this is purely by choice) or almost no multiple-days off in a row a year ago, I would have died. Now, I've figure out how to enjoy that prospect. I like weekends because of the cool stuff that happens on them - I don't need the weekend. I do need some of the cultural stuff that happens on a Saturday or Sunday sometimes. I need social time away from work, but when I'm away, I need me-time so much more than anything else.

Since I've been in my new life a little over a year, it's given me a chance to look back on it a bit more, even though it's hardly anything to look at since it's flown by so fast. There have been many ups and downs, though so many more ups than downs.

The Glass: It's Full and Bottomless
Being unhealthily positive and optimistic, I somehow turn a less than positive situation into something that can be seen and felt as good. I think this is the only way I've been able to adjust to some of the changes I've had to make to my life. 

Back to Sleeplessness
I can't explain my sleepless night last night fully, but I do know that I had time to read 1/2 of a book. I haven't done anything for myself in a long time that has felt so good. Somehow, I wasn't completely wiped out today, though I got further behind than I would have liked. And now I'm wasting valuable time writing this instead of making progress on really important things.

Blogging, however, is something I want and need to do more of, I need to document more of what's going on and what I'm learning right now. It's rich stuff, every single day is a tremendous learning experience. I just hope I'm alive enough right now to really be drinking in this experience and storing away the things I need to accomplish great things in the near and distant future.

The future is a few hours from now, and I'm procrastinating.

Top 10 Reasons Why it's Great to be a Barista

10. Anytime you want a tasty drink, you can make it - any size, any special recipe.
9. No one day resembles the last.
8. Meet people from every walk of life.
7. Get to be an artist - latte art is art.
6. Create something with care and attention to see and taste an immediate result.
5. Not possible to get bored.
4. Learn a lot in a few ways: Talking with customers is always educational. Overhearing conversations is informative, and there is so much to learn about coffee, equipment, regions, roasts, roasting companies, tasting, etc, there's no end.
3. In a position of great responsibility.
2. Make people happy daily. Be appreciated and thanked, probably more than at almost any other profession.
1. Be part of the lives of others. Celebrate with customers as they have good news to share, watch their children grow, hear their stories of traveling the world, listen as they discuss their work, be introduced to their best friends, receive their advice, see their perspectives, make their friendship.