Next Stop... Dalton, GA

After my accident in March, my life changed.  It’s been a difficult journey filled with some highs and the lowest of lows. 

I will forever be thankful to Kathy for putting me in touch with Saul, who surprisingly became a close confidant during my recovery.  After that first phone call from him a week after my accident, I wouldn’t have predicted that he would have such a profound impact on my recovery and my outlook on life.  Honestly, I only vaguely knew who he was at the time of our initial conversation.  Imagine my surprise that after a month and half, I’d be changing my vacation plans to include a trip to Georgia to meet him.

Those who know me know that I could care less about meeting pro cyclists, current or otherwise. So yes, this was something that is completely out of character for me, but I knew that it was now or likely never. 

Once the decision was made to go to Georgia, I also decided that I wasn’t going to be public about it.  I told a few people, including my mom, mostly so that someone would know where I was.  For some reason I felt a little uncomfortable and wasn’t ready to field questions about this guy that I was going to Georgia to meet, since most of my friends wouldn’t understand my strong emotional need to meet him given that they had no idea who he was or what my relationship was to him.

I arrived in Dalton late Monday night after USPro.  The following morning was filled with me nervously prepping myself for meeting this stranger that had changed my life in unimaginable ways. 

My recently acquired lack of inhibition (thank you TBI?) lead me to give him a long hug within the first few seconds after I pulled up at his house.  For me, it was like greeting an old friend.  For him, it was probably more like the awkwardly long hug I’d promised him a month prior.

At some point, he sent a tweet and Facebook update saying that he was with me.  Shortly after, I started receiving messages of surprise from friends that had seen it and had no idea that I was meeting him.  The cat was out of the bag.  There was a picture later in the afternoon as well, followed by more shocked responses from my friends and tweeps questioning what I was doing there.

Out of respect for his privacy, I won’t rehash every detail of our day together.  However, after a relaxed lunch with his parents (wonderful people!), we got hopped up on caffeine (dude brews a mean cup of coffee and I’m spoiled for life!), he attempted to fix a scratch on my rental car (such a gentleman!), and then we drove up to Chattanooga where he showed me around the city, including, of course, a bike shop (yes, we’re both bike nerds!).  

We walked around, chatted, and pretty much just spent time getting to know each other a little better.  He was friendly, outgoing, and I think he could sense a bit of nervousness or shyness in the way I spoke and in my body language.  For the most part, I concentrated on not being the complete spaz that my friends know me to be, although I’m not certain I was successful.  Thank goodness he can carry a conversation! 

I can’t remember exactly what he said to me in our last minutes together, but I told him he was going to make me cry, which he did.  Being highly emotional on my best of days is hard enough… but this was emotionally painful.  It could have been any number of things most likely related to my brain injury or new medication; I’m not sure.  Simple fact is, I had a difficult time holding it together while we said goodbye and didn’t want to let go.  I completely lost it once I got back to my hotel room.

I hope this is a sign that we have a strong enough bond for a long friendship.

Oh, and at some point in the day, I volunteered for his Race Across America team for next year.  I don’t know if he’ll take me up on the offer of soigneur duties, but it should clear up any questions as to my current level of sanity.

Where to Start?

I’m so overwhelmed by the last couple of weeks that I don’t even know where to begin.  Logic tells me to rehash the good stuff in chronological order, but even then, I know there’s enough material for a few blog entries.  Yes, my vacation was that exciting.

I started off in Greenville, SC.  Well, not really, I started at home, but my first real destination was Greenville for USPro.  I’ve never been and since they moved the event to the first weekend of vacation, it only seemed appropriate that I make the cross-country flight out to South Carolina to see the race.

Yes, completely reasonable to fly several thousand miles to watch a bike race.  Nothing strange about that at all.

I was greeted at the airport by D’Andrea and Anita.  I’d never met Anita before, but I’ve met D’Andrea a couple of times.  Despite this, I feel like I’ve known both them forever.  It’s amazing the bonds people can form over social media and a shared love of bike racing and argyle.  Upon arrival at the hotel, I was greeted by even more people, there was alcohol involved, laughter, fun, and then some much needed sleep.

Sunday started with the South Carolina State Road Race.  Actually, that’s not true, it really started with a somewhat awkward conversation with Davis and Taylor Phinney in the hotel restaurant about a butt pillow that was given to BMC’s Chris Butler by a Diva, but I digress.

During my first full day in the South, I was floored by good old fashioned Southern hospitality when the owner of the home in front of which we set up camp at the state road race, graciously offered us the use of his bathroom throughout the day.  Really… how cool is that?  And yes, we did take him up on his offer on numerous occasions.  

The real party started Sunday evening.  It involved chalk, a rather large group of cycling fans, and Paris Mountain.  I was there to cheer on my NorCal guys so some riders who normally wouldn’t find much support so far from home got some customized art up on the hill.  Of course, photos were taken, pics were tweeted, riders were thrilled, and lives were changed forever.  Okay, maybe that last part is a bit of a stretch, but you never know.

For Max Jenkins and Chris Jones of United Healthcare 

Paul Mach and Andy Jacques-Maynes of Bissell, but I couldn't forget Ted King even though he doesn't live in NorCal, he does occasionally train here

Monday, of course was the big day - my first national championship.  After properly meeting Davis Phinney that morning and gushing ever so subtly about how much I was enjoying his book (more on that in a later blog), we headed downtown to set up for the race.

Early on, my friend, Dan, directed me to where the riders would be signing in and I would be able to get some great photos, and if I do say so myself, there was mucho success.  I went out of my way to personally wish my NorCal guys luck, by name, and got quite a few bright smiles of surprise.  Or maybe it was fear when they realized they recognized me from local NorCal races and they worried that they were being stalked.  I may never know…

Taylor Phinney seemed relaxed after a less than pleasing time trial on Saturday

One of my favorite shots - Tejay van Garderen leading a group into a turn

(Long sentence alert!)  Toward the end of the race, after a long day screaming for Ted King who coincidentally made the late break to eventually finish third overall (which we all know is the best), thanks in part, I’m sure, to my screaming, Becky’s hand knit socks, and JTKatz’s jar of Spekuloos, I was handed a press pass and practically thrown onto the course with the legitimate photographers (deep breath!).  Again, it’s that Southern hospitality rearing it’s oh so pretty head.

Because of that borrowed press pass, I was able to get shots like these:

The sprint and photo finish between George Hincapie and Matthew Busche

Ted King was thrilled with finishing on the podium... very excited for him! 

Matthew Busche was interviewed on stage as Ted King and George Hincapie shared a few comments

Going to USPro was an incredible experience and I was constantly reminded about how cool it was that an American was guaranteed to win.  What I saw of Greenville and South Carolina was beautiful even though I nearly became a puddle in the heat, which wasn’t that bad until you factored in the humidity. 

My vacation had gotten off to a most excellent beginning.

The rest of my photos can be seen here: Sign in and call ups; race and podium.

Postcard Perfect Fondo

Subtitled: Levi, a Few National Champs, McDreamy, the LCC, and Me
Sub-subtitled: We Now Know What it Takes to Beat Alberto Contador

A few weeks ago when I rode with Chris Horner he said to me, "Levi is always bragging about the weather in Santa Rosa, but everytime I'm there it's pouring rain."  His loss because while Chris was off racing in Europe, he missed some weather that was far from the sucky Tour of California and training camp downpours he's become accustomed to experiencing.

Another year of Levi Leipheimer’s King Ridge GranFondo is in the books. A day of fun in the sun and puke dodging descents. I can’t help but to feel a bit saddened by this. Well, the fun part, but I can do without the puke aspect of the day. I’ve been looking forward to this event with a mixture of excitement and trepidation since registering last December. Yes, that’s right… I hadn’t been looking forward to it since last October immediately following my first participation.

This year is different though and I simply can’t wait to return.

I could barely make out the start from where I was staged.

Last year was rough. I was unprepared and unfamiliar with the route. I’d only been riding a road bike for a month and didn’t have proper training under my belt. After deciding to return for round two, I took my training somewhat seriously. This year, I was prepared. Unfortunately, I always ended up stuck behind people that weren’t prepared.

This was the first time I’ve ever dropped people while climbing. I’m not strong in this department. Far from it. However, while I was pushing myself uphill I repeatedly said to myself, “It’s just like the elliptical. It’s just like the elliptical at the gym.” Knowing I can go for a long time on the elliptical, this mantra seemed to work in getting me through some tough spots.

It’s also the first time that I’ve ever seen so many cyclists on the road that the entire peloton comes to a complete halt for no reason other than the fact that there were too many riders that either couldn’t climb or couldn’t take a turn on a descent. It’s bound to happen when you have 6,058 cyclists on the tiny roads of Sonoma County.

Postcard perfect day in Sonoma County!

Regardless of the difficulties on the road with traffic, everyone was incredibly friendly and I didn’t once have SAG have to ask me if I was okay. People remained patient and outgoing throughout the entire ride. Of course, the real fun began once I returned to the festival.

I quickly found Martha Van of Action Wipes fame and she immediately saw to my cleanliness needs by handing me a refreshing wipe before I met up with another tweep, Chris, for the first time at Mama Duck’s home (aka, the Action Wipes booth). We gabbed about the ride and how the day was going, spent some time lounging in the shade, and explored the festival.

At one point in the afternoon, Martha says to me, “Michelle, there’s Levi!” I turned around and eventually found him visiting with a group two booths over. Martha talked me into going over there to have my picture taken with him. The conversation went something like this:

Martha: Excuse me; can we get your picture?
Levi: Oh, sure!
Eventually the photo is taken and Levi thanks us for coming.
Me: No, thank you for putting on this event!
Martha indicating to me: She rode too.
Levi looks me over: Oh, you look like it.

As Martha and I walked away, I turned to her and said, “Did Levi Leipheimer just say I look like crap?”  Martha will tell the story differently, but I'm pretty sure it was my physical appearance he was referring to and not the fact that I was still wearing my gear.  I mean, just because I'm wearing the clothes doesn't mean I ride.  Maybe I wear those clothes to work all of the time. 

There was more hanging around (and some mild stalking of Patrick Dempsey) until eventually it was time for Levi to address the crowd. Of course, I sat there taking a bunch of photos.

Levi and Patrick Dempsey were interviewed after the ride.

US National Champion, Ben King shared a few words too.

  

Levi's wife, Odessa Gunn, talks about Forget Me Not Farm and admits that she's afraid of kids.

One of the funnier moments of the interview was during the Q&A portion when a fan asked Levi, "What does it take to beat Alberto Contador?"  Without skipping a beat Levi responded, "Andy Schleck."

Biggest regret? I didn’t get photos of the @LCC_Cycling members @GregKnottLeMond, @MarthaVan, @jaowen, @budzilla1, @ChrisAGriffin, @HomeInspectorSR, @experiement626, @SDVeloSocial or any of the other wonderfully friendly folks I met along the way.

All in all... it was a very good day.  Now it's time to start training for the Medio.

More photos can be found here.

I Owe Someone $10

About a month ago, pro cyclist Chris Horner of Team RadioShack announced that he would be riding the Clark’s Corner Cycling Challenge in Ione, California, on September 18th. Knowing that Ione isn’t too far away, I went ahead and signed up for the short 10-mile ride with Chris.

My biggest concern was that I was signing up for this chance to ride with Chris, but in all likelihood wouldn’t actually ride along side of him. I even joked, “$10 says I can’t hang on for more than 30 seconds.” Maybe I was expecting something like Levi’s GranFondo where the pros all started at the front and took off, leaving those of us at the back without a prayer of riding with any of them. (Skip to the end for the Cliff Notes version of this story.)

In an interview Friday morning on a local TV station, Chris was asked a question that I submitted via Facebook. “Will you ride slowly enough for me to keep up?” Chris laughed and replied, “I can.” Being a teacher, I know there is a huge difference between “can” and “will,” but this didn’t make me any less excited that maybe my chances of keeping up weren’t as slim as I originally thought.

Though I wasn’t quite anticipating a ride on the scale of Levi’s GranFondo, I did expect there to be a couple hundred people there. Really, this was a chance to ride with the top placing American in this year’s Tour de France – an all around well-loved man with a constant smile plastered on his face. What cycling fan wouldn’t want a chance to ride with him even if the chances of riding with him were slim?

Keeping that in mind, and the fact that I’ve only ever been through Ione once, I headed up there in the morning and arrived about an hour early for the 11 AM ride. The plan was to get a chance to meet Chris briefly and have my picture taken with him. My mom is also a fan and I thought it would be funny to send her a photo of us without telling her any story of how it came to be.

When I checked in, I got a glimpse of the registration list. I was shocked to note that my class roster was longer than the registration for this ride. I have 31 students in my class. At that point, I realized that my chances of meeting Chris were guaranteed and the chances of riding along side of him were favorable.

Settling in to wait for the ride to start, I grabbed a coffee in Clark’s Corner and sat outside on the curb to enjoy it.

Chris arrived a few minutes later with a small group of cyclists, having ridden from Sacramento. I finished my coffee and timidly approached him, not wanting to interrupt the conversation he was having. Eventually I got my chance to meet him and have my photo taken with him then stood around and listened to him tell stories about his ride to Ione.

Chris chatted with fans, took pictures, and signed autographs.

Bikes outside of Clark's Corner - mine is on the far left and Chris's is right in front of it.

A little bit after 11:00, the ride started. The pace was quite slow and easy, but I was stuck behind three cyclists riding the span of the lane and couldn’t get by them to reach the front where Chris was mingling with some riders. After about five minutes, I found my way around them and quickly made my way up to Chris’s group, where I rode behind him for a couple of miles.

The pace was considerably slower than I normally ride and I found myself inching forward every couple of minutes and having to back off some. At one point as we were approaching a hill (not a real climb, but it was more than what I’m used to), the guy riding directly in front of me and next to Chris let off suddenly and dropped back. This was my cue to get out of my saddle and move forward in the group. Before I knew it, I was right along side of Chris, and even keeping up with him while going uphill. Before reaching the top, I did fall back from Chris but easily caught up with the group on the descent.

The weather and scenery were beautiful... I wonder what it looks like green.

As we were heading back towards Ione, I somehow ended up right next to Chris again. This time I ended up in a conversation with him. I kind of wasn’t expecting it, but I felt a hand tapping my shoulder as he was chatting away telling a story about his teammate, Levi Leipheimer. We chatted about the weather and I explained to him that the only reason it was nice was that everyone else was already in Greenville for the championships. We talked a little bit about the US Pro road race he’d be racing in the following day and I asked him how much travel he’d done over the last week, a question to which he didn’t know the answer except that it was more than normal. I’m currently kicking myself for not thinking to ask about cyclocross until I was on my way home.

The ride continued through landscape surrounding Ione without incident, except for the people we lost along the way because the rode in front of the guy leading the ride and took a wrong turn. As promised, I didn’t make Chris crash, nor did anybody else.

From the back of the group... not a lot of people at all. (There may have been some more behind me, but they were far back.)

He’s certainly every bit as friendly as everyone says he is. In fact, I think his approachability exceeded my expectations. He had a way of drawing people into conversations and making them feel like they were part of the group.  I can't believe I was part of that group.

I guess I owe someone $10.

When I arrived home, I promptly sent my mom a photo of Chris and me. She loved it and had a reaction similar to that of a 13-year-old girl if I’d just told her I met Justin Bieber.

More photos can be seen on my Flickr.