The End of the Beginning

And so we wind down this first month of 2013. The last month or so has been packed with ups and downs, new beginnings, the ending of one era and transitioning to a new one. In between all of that, I've had the typical comedy of errors and hijinks that most people who know me have come to expect.

First, as I mentioned in my last post (over a month ago! i'm such a terrible blogger these days), I took on a new-new position with a new company. In between jobs, I had the pleasure of living the life of a wanna-be pro cyclist. I told my coach that I had free time and she accommodated me with back-to-back 3-4 hour rides for about 2 weeks. As an aside, by "wanna-be pro cyclist" (WBPC) I mean the pro-cyclist life without the sag support, daily massages and chef-prepared nutrition. So, pretty much I was just an out-of-work chick who rode her bike a lot.

Anyway, she made sure I didn't overdo it, as I am prone to do, but we did load up the base miles. It was a strangely liberating feeling with just me, my powermeter and my ipod for hours on end. The only downside is that there are only a couple of routes out of town (that I know) so by the time I started working again, I was ok with the "break" from MacArthur/Poolesville/10am routes.

Somewhere in those two weeks, the boy and I made the trek out west for the holiday. I continued the WBPC routine out there with the compliment of a couple indoor rides due to snow. On our way out we happened upon an unexpected snow storm somewhere around the VA/WVA line. It was awful - borderline blizzard conditions. All kinds of crap from the road was being kicked up (snow? ice? rock salt?) and I could barely see the one lane that was still passable on the 3 lane highway. I'm not a wuss driver -I raced sprint cars in a prior life! but this was bad. We made it safe and sound, only about 2.5hrs later than we hoped, but I swear that took years off my life.

The next day we went out to the car only to realize that one of those flying objects actually broke through glass. I needed a new windshield. Progressive was awesome and set up something for the day after Christmas. Only it snowed that day and none of the back roads were viable. In the meantime, the boy was going to take the car to town for last minute shopping but ... it wouldn't start. Nothing. Not even pretending to turn over. We put the car into the garage and hooked it up to a charger- it would start but once we turned it off - nothing. So we jumped it and took it to Advanced Auto. One guy tried saying it was my starter but thankfully another, more experienced, guy said no, I just need a battery.

In the end, my souvenirs from this trip were a new battery and a new windshield. Sorry, I didn't get you anything. If it makes you feel any better, I wound up having to replace my brakes and rotors after this trip as well. This was a very expensive trip - next time I'm flying.

I leave you with some random pics from the past month or so. 

Winter Wonderland - Snow for Christmas in Kentucky. 

The boy helps celebrate the beginning of the Month of Wendy (MoW)

Look to the right of the trees. Two snow-people, hanging out after the rest of the snow melted. Taken in Poolsville area.

Holiday breakfast by the boy. Yum!

I raced one of these! Of course, it was a lifetime ago but ... I'm not a wuss driver!

TGIF 12/14/2012

Must resist temptation

Well then- where did the year go? You blink and race season is over. Next thing you know, you're trying to avoid the egg-nog and Christmas cookies. Or maybe that's just me. People at work right now are just DYING to catch me with a sugary piece of something but I'm holding strong - so far.

Went out for groceries and came back with this!

Last I left you, I was headed out for my first dirt ride on my super awesome cool SuperX cross bike. As is the norm for me, I didn't tip toe into the affair - I dove right into what turned out to be a 4 hour trek with two fabulous teammates. After a short stretch of road leading out of Loudoun County High School, we made a right turn and promptly hit a downhill washboard gravel road. I'm glad there wasn't time for pictures because the look on my face was probably something between wanting to cry and being constipated. We survived, though, and throughout the ride I got more and more comfortable with gravel and dirt. Mission accomplished, albeit with a few wrong turns and a few extra miles.

For the record, road names on google maps are really just suggestions in that area, which is just plain mean as we all know I'm directionally challenged in the first place. 

I think it's a left here. Maybe a right. 

Kelley and I have also made it out to a few of the Evolution Team rides. These are advertised as "Zone 2" but - either my zone 2 is super low or this is false advertising. I am fairly certain it's the latter. Anyway, these rides are keeping us honest - painful at times but nothing beats the post-ride "We did that!" feeling. Oh - and the "We earned lunch!" feeling is pretty good, too. 

December 1 marked the beginning of "real" training so I'm making friends with the rollers for early morning and/or severe weather workouts. P90x stuff is off the table now and it's time to really get moving on the bike (pun intended). The good news is that, as of TODAY, I'm off work until Jan 2nd. If the weather plays nice, that should be a decent kick in the arse for me.

One might ask, "But PlainJane, why are you off until Jan 2nd?" Because today is my last day with this particular company. I will miss the 2-metro-stops commute but that's pretty much all I'll miss. I have had a bit of a ride trying to find a work-home since I left Baltimore and I'm hoping that the third time is the charm. Here's hoping!

In the meantime, I'm taking advantage of the break to ride, relax and reset - after all, the Month of Wendy starts in two weeks!