Human Zoom Ladies

Granogue

2010-05-06T08:14:00.000-07:00

This was the second MASS cross-country race for those of us that couldn't travel to the Danville race.

Course Highlights: The part where the beginners and the sport/expert/enduro racers went in different directions. That made me sad after the first lap when I realized how much more technical and uphill the part that I had to ride was.

Stats: 2 HZ ladies in the Sport 19-34 race, Ali and myself, Kristine in the enduro and at least 5 HZ men in a variety of categories. Ali and I lined up with 9 other women. Two of whom I found out live in the same zip code as myself.

Weather: Hot and muggy.

Summary: As usual, the start was fast as we all hustled up the road for the wide hole-shot. Ali was screaming fast as were a few other girls. I did my best to keep up with the front group in hopes of passing a bunch of them as the race got more technical. My hopes worked out and I got on the next fire road in a solid 5th position. Through the next few pieces of single track I got within chatting distance of 3rd place, though there wasn't a lot of talking and mostly a lot of quick turns and long uphills. As we came together through the end of the first lap, I knew that I needed to work hard all of the second lap to get past this girl and put enough time in to her so that she wouldn't out-sprint me up the long finishing climb. I did just that. It was just me, looking forward for Ali and behind for this girl, a Spokes racer.

I only ever heard of or from Ali twice, once at the end of the first lap as she cheered me on and again in a kind message relayed through my mom that I should go faster. She was hauling and there ended up being 4 minutes between her and 1st, and between her and I. I was pumped to cross the line in 3rd of 11, probably my best finish in a MASS race yet. It was hot though, and it was nice to lay around in the shade afterward.

In summary, at least 5 HZers took home plaques and medals for top 5 places in their respective races.

No easy races to warm up for 2010…Tour of the Battenkill

2010-04-26T17:07:00.000-07:00

I should probably start with a summary of my winter off season…after Reston, took a few weeks off, mostly to catch up for exams, then drove three bikes on the roof of my car into a garage, was without a road bike until Marchish, spent the first months of the year learning to delivery babies, spent another few weeks rotating at Friends psych hospital, then onto surgery…somewhere in there I rode a little.

I thought for a fleeting moment in January about racing Battenkill. But after my lackluster off season and my thoughts that I should probably study more, I decided to pass the opportunity and wait to race road for another few weeks. That was until a week before the race when our fearless leader, Kristine, told me it would be fun. I require little arm twisting for adventures and signed up that day.

The entire week before was sunny and 80s. Then I checked the weather on Thursday for the Saturday race…35, snow flurries. Awesome, not only was I not feeling like I had fast legs, but it was going to be freezing.

Friday – adventure time! - Luckily Kristine let me study a little on the 5 hour drive – pretty much up to VT. Got to the hotel in time to get ready to sleep – only to have a bachelor party reving up in the room next to us. Some highlights – “All I want to do is shot guns tomorrow,” “Is it bad that I don’t trust leaving my kids with my wife.”

Alright, time for the actual race…the weather was partially right – 35, no snow luckily. The course cruised, pretty quick pace, slight rollers for the first 10 km. Part of it went onto a dirt road – luckily it rained the day before so the dirt was really hard packed and fast. 15 km – hello, first climb – the pack split slightly. 20-30km punchy uphill followed by dirt downhill. I’d like to think I am decent on the decents thanks to lots of riding with boys trying to keep up, but the girls in the pack were charging, super aggressive on the downhill’s. 45 km – long, steep, 150-200 m climb. Then some more little punchy rollers. The course highlight began at 70 km – a 10 km uphill section mostly on dirt. Pretty brutal. Luckily the sun was out, the course was perfectly marked and maned, and all we had to do was pedal. Just when the course looked like it was done, at 90 km there was another 100 m climb. Finally a downhill and flatish finish. The women’s 3 field spilt up early and I stayed will a small pack for the majority of the race, minus a 15 mile section somewhere in the middle and the last 2 miles of the race. My race was fun, ended up nice weather, great course, great views. Kristine’s race found her in a police car…not for anything entertaining, but for a flat at mile 37 (I may have told her to bring a flat kit…) requiring a ride one mile down the road to neutral support. Not one to quit, she pounded the rest of the course and DQed herself at the finish for “taking a ride in a cop car.”

Battenkill – we will be back next year. Hopefully with more teammates, better luck, and fresh legs…

Fair Hill: Mid-Atlantic SuperSeries

2010-04-14T09:33:00.000-07:00

The roster is in, well, at least the first draft. We have 12 HZ men and women racing in the MASS this year. I think that 9 of us towed the line this weekend at Fair Hill in Elkton, MD. Almost all of us raced in the sport class races starting at 10:30.

Cross-country category: Sport Women I
Course Highlights: A stream crossing, a metal grate over a log (note the following picture courtesy of http://www.delmarvaphoto.com) and the fast sweeping corners.

Stats: 2 HZ women, Ali Flis and Caitlin Thompson in a field of 9. 2 laps of 7.5 miles each.
Average speed: 12+ mph
Weather: Sunny, highs in the 60's, perfect for a mountain bike race

Well, it was by far the most exciting mountain bike race that I have ever entered. As we got up the road on to the single track, I was sitting 8th. Twenty minutes of standing in the corral sure had not helped me stay warmed up. I made it up to 6th within 10 minutes, powering through some straight single track. Then I could see Kat from C3 Sollay. She, Ali and I all duked it out in the MAC cross series. I guess it was time for round 2. I got past Kat on a tricky bridge that she decided to walk and I finally caught up to Ali, who was 4th, as we she was cruising to the end of the first lap. Sitting in 4th was tough because I was fairly certain that 1-3 were up the road, but I could see Ali and Kat right behind me. Ali got past me as we pulled through the start calling at me to get on her wheel. Kat got past me soon after that as well. Back in 6th I hung on to Kat's wheel like white on rice. I got around her one last time but knew that if I didn't drop her then, she'd pass me at the finish. Then I caught a tree with my bars and somehow ended up with a bar-end sized bruise on my tush. Hmmmm.... Anyways, tried to sprint out in front of Kat, for 2 seconds. Then she hauled past me and I'm fairly certain I crawled to the finish line, exhausted.

Official results aren't up, but Ali got 4th and I got 6th. Great competition, awesome race. Can't wait for Granogue and the Stoopid 50.

In it to win it!

2010-03-23T12:38:00.000-07:00

Philly Phlyer TTT- March 20th

Weather- amazing

Course - Memorial hall heading west -> sketchy turns-> sketchy turns-> down Black Rd -> Left on West River -> turn around at Fall's Bridge -> back up Black Rd.

We wanted to show everyone exactly what we've got. We entered 2 teams: a team of Cat 2 riders (Kristine, Andrea, Thea, and myself), and a team of Cat 3 riders (Caitlin, Ali, and Victoria).

We all had somewhat of a haphazard morning. Most of us were up really early, and none of us got much of a warm up. As we were standing around chit chatting, all of a sudden the official called us to the line with 30 seconds to start. I don't think any of us were ready to ride, but we were certainly ready to kick ass! We navigated the sketchy turns to the best of our ability and headed down black road to west river safely with the help of some great communication. With some short strong pulls, we passed one team on the way to falls bridge and another on the way back, but our sights were ultimately on the Cadence girls who won last year. They weren't in sight, and frankly, I'm not even sure if they started before or after us.

We managed to "always ride through the pain" (imagine music in the background). I got dropped at the bottom of Black Rd., but the others finished together, with a time that was faster than all other women's TTT teams (including the collegiate teams).

The cat 3 team finished strong in 5th place.

All in all - it was a fun morning and great to be with teammates and friends!

Sunny Day. Sweepin' the Clouds Away

2010-01-20T15:29:00.000-08:00

We in Philadelphia were graced with lovely weather for most of MLK weekend. I hadn't been on my road bike in over 80 days. And no, I didn't count. My training log in Excel did it for me. But i had the pleasure this past weekend of riding not once, but three times.

On Friday I got out my friend Charles and we did a short 75min loop. And darn, 75min was tiring. And yes, that little n belongs there, it was not a 70mi ride. I wish I had the time and energy for that. Saturday I had to be at detention all morning, allowing the temperature to reach a lovely 50 degrees before Bianca and I embarked on our 2+ hour ride. Sunday was gloomy and wet, so I had a lazy day. But Monday I got out once again with Victoria and Sarah for another 2+ ride and a great post-ride snack at Ants Pants Cafe on South Street.

I am grateful for my friends, the weather and my trusty road bike. We will all meet again once I get my life back in balance. Somehow, this winter/spring has found me with the following commitments: planning a wedding, buying our first house, planning a school trip to Liverpool, training for a half-Ironman and pretending I'm training for bike racing season. Oh right, and work as a high school teacher. Looks like cyclocross might get the most attention this year (besides the tri, of course).

Whitmore's Landscaping Supercross Southampton Race

2009-12-01T11:42:00.000-08:00

I know what you're thinking - that race happened over a week ago. Yes, today it is the 1st of December, and the races were on the 21st and 22nd of November.

Women's 3/4 Race

Course Highlights - a lot of running, some steep hills, and otherwise fast grass sections

Stats - 15 finishers Saturday, 13 finishers Sunday w/ 3 HZ/PBR women (Caitlin, Ali, and Bianca)

That means, on Sunday the HZ/PBR women comprised 23% of the field!

Weather -Sunny!!! Overall, it was chilly to warm up, great to race, with a nice ending of a little cold weather post-race hack

Here's the the DL (down-low/low-down/whatever you want to call it)

Day 1 - After getting a relatively good position onto the course (behind the super-fast girls, in front of others), the race started off well. I got behind Ali and kept her line for a while. Despite a few "yard sale" moves, she managed to get even farther ahead of me. Her style points proved worthy, and she finished 9th. Caitlin put her mountain bike skills to work - making it over a steep mound every time without getting off thus propelling her ahead of others, and into 7th place. My less-than stellar technical skills required me to run more than others, and after 5 1/2 laps, I managed to not get lapped and finished 10th. Did I want to get lapped? Kind of. It was a long, hard race, but a lot of fun!

Day 2 - The course was in reverse. There was more running, but fewer laps. Ali, Caitlin and I got good starts, and were close together throughout the first 2 or so laps. I got to throw some elbows and block for them while running which was fun, and having 2 good lines to follow was beneficial for me. I managed to fall farther behind Caitlin and Ali, though, when I ate it over the barriers (see photo). All of us finished together well, with Ali in 6th, Caitlin in 7th, and me in 8th.

All in all, the weekend was a blast (except for having to study). It was the last race of the season for me, and a good one to end with. Though my travels this past summer didn't help me get any faster, cyclocross was still a lot of fun. Its been a lot of fun having so many HZ women on the starting lines, and hopefully the year to come will be just as fun!

Race Report - coming soon!

2009-11-23T07:12:00.000-08:00

This past weekend, Andrea, Ali, Caitlin, and Bianca raced the Whitmore Super Cross in Southampton, NY. It was a blast, and the report will be posted soon (after my test tomorrow)

Mercer Cup destroyed me.

2009-11-19T13:06:00.000-08:00

Women’s 3/4

Course Highlights: muddy muddy mess

Race Stats: 30ish starters (1 HZ/PBRer)

Weather: misty and muddy

The Low Down: I was not a huge fan of the course. Pretty unexciting (sorry, Mercer Cup organizers – the event was awesome though). I was pretty nervous all week for the infamous fly over so I made sure to pre-ride the entire course. Luckily the course did not have the fly over but the fly over may have added some spice to the race. And maybe the course was not that bad, it easily could have been how lousy I was feeling that made it seem worse. Our drive down consisted of some fevers and chills followed by some nausea – an excellent start to the morning before a race. My legs really did not cooperate as I tried to keep up with the allstars in the race. Overall there was lots of mud, flat straight aways, a set of barriers, and a two step run up.

Summary: Muddy day, feeling sick, paying for it the rest of the week.

Racing both days this weekend may have not been the best idea for my health as I was sent home from the office with a self diagnosed acute bronchitis and some antibiotics.

Recovered, mostly, and looking forward to another racing weekend, hopefully a little more inspiring racing this weekend but of course it will be loads of fun…

Mercer Mud

2009-11-15T16:55:00.000-08:00

Women’s 3/4

Course Highlights: mud. more mud.

Race Stats: 33 starters (2 HZ/PBRers Ali and I)

Weather: Sunny, warm. No extra layers necessary.

The Low Down:
The course was tough. A fast road start led on to muddy grass. The course has cool 180s and fun twisty turns. These lacked the fun factor when it turned in to long running sections. I think I got off my bike 5 to 7 times per lap. And we only did 3 laps. The bikes were also holding tons of mud so every time I ran, I lacked the energy to shoulder it. Next year, my TV time will include bike lifts during commercial breaks. I ate it at least 4 times. I also broke my helmet. Second helmet broken in my life. Both due to mud. Second helmet that I've broken because I landed on the back of my head. It's amazing what slamming to the ground can do to a helmet. Maybe that's why my head also hurt.

The most exciting part was that Ali and I sprinted for the line. Sort of. I led us on to the pavement, but she just motors so much faster than me and while I was trying to speed up, she sped by. Darn. I need to train with her more. Nice work girl.

Summary: I think I do better in the technical courses that are still mostly rideable. I can turn in slippery mud, like Granogue. But my muscles just don't power as fast as I'd like through the sticky mud. Plus, I need a pit bike. Hint hint. Cough cough.

Hopefully hitting up the rest of the MAC series this year. Ali and I are keeping each other motivated to "kill it". Or at least keep ourselves in the top ten for the season while still having a blast.

Ali!

2009-11-09T16:31:00.001-08:00

She's currently ranked first in the nation for cat 4's for cyclocross. Someone needs to upgrade :)

Fair Hill CX

2009-11-08T18:17:00.001-08:00

Women’s 3/4

Course Highlights: Barn through, massive sandpit

Race Stats: 20ish starters (2 HZ/PBRers Me, the Caitlin)

Weather: Sunny, questionable arm warmer weather, definitely overdressed if you opted to wear a wooly baselayer

The Low Down: Another perfect cyclocross day – sunny, brisk, Fall weather. I enjoyed sleeping in until 7 and not having to wake up before the sun to drive a hundred miles to race for 40 minutes…

Caitlin and I were representing the HZ/PBR and both received call ups to the first row – yes, it may be because we race more than most, but we will take it. After the starter said “go” (really, no whistle) the field sped up a gradual incline on road before cutting into the grass. The course weaved and turned, Caitlin took off like a rabbit and powered through the course. I slowly watched her pull away and fought to hold my position. We made our way through the barns and over barriers and to the massive mostly rideable sand pit. More winding and turning and a few falls later managed to finish bike and person in one piece.

The women’s elite race featured 3 HZ/PBRers – Kristin, Nikki, and Kristine. Right from the “go” Kristin and Nikki were off the front along with Dede (C3) and Arley (Hub Racing) – Kristine was sitting strong in the second set of riders. The race got exciting when Kristin took the lead into the sand pit and did not look back. There was no catching Kristin as she rode the course flawlessly. Nikki held her own in the battle for ¾ and Kristine continued the PBR tradition with a top 10 performance.

Summary: Great fall day + turny grassy (no mud!) course + post race apples with chocolate dipping sauce & oatmeal craisin cookies courtesy of my parent and inlaws + Kristin taking the elite win = another great cross adventure

Here is the VeloNews summary: http://www.velonews.com/article/99919/scherz-gavin-take-7th-round-of-the-mac-series

Spring Mount

2009-11-08T15:53:00.000-08:00

Spring Mount CX hosted by Philly Ciclismo
Women's Elite Open

Course Highlights: 2 small creek crossings and a volleyball court of sand

Race Stats: 12 starters (1 HZ/PBRers, me)

Weather: Mid 60s and sunny.

The Low Down:
I had literally looked up everyone that had pre-reged to get some sense of how the small field was going to stack up. Luckily I didn't put money on my predictions because a few surprises were in store. My goal was top 1/3 as usual.
I went out hard and found myself immediately in 6th with 2 girls right in front of me. I made it my goal to get in to 4th and have my eyes on 3rd by the end of the 2nd lap. Well, I was in 4th for about 100 yards before I realized that Tammy was much faster than me and deserved to be riding that spot. I tried to hang with Tammy who encouraged me to work with her to catch Lisa. However, that didn't work out. Instead, I found myself drifting back in 5th spot. I thought I'd be okay there as long as I kept pushing. But instead, the QCW team was not going to let me relax. Abby from their team was catching me with every lap and I was trying my darndest to hold her off. She had a solid cheering section. Luckily, I kept my transitions smooth since there were at least 3 remounts per lap and held her off for 5th. The last payout place. Now I can say that I won money in an elite women's open cyclocross race. I bought some Dairy Queen to celebrate.

Summary: The course was tough. It was not the dry fast course that I expected since it was warm and sunny out. The mud was tough to slog through and stuck to my tires making the bike heavy. I would love to go up against that same group again on a Saturday and try my hand against Lisa and Tammy again. They were fast.

Beacon Photos

2009-11-02T16:01:00.001-08:00

Nate took some awesome pictures at Beacon this past Saturday. Here are a few of those of us he caught on film. This is me. I must look so sad staring down those barriers. Everyone else should have to add another beam to even compare to how I feel. My knees can't even see over those things. And I had to go up them next to Kathrin who is about a foot taller than me.
Here is Sara. Hopefully enjoying her first cross race. She rocked.
Bianca, showing off her long legs and ability to go up the 2 annoying stairs after the beach. I couldn't bring myself to include the picture of me at the same steps pushing with one hand off of the my leg to step up.
Ali, super focused, as she approaches the ampitheatre.

The men's Bs race right after the women's Bs. We usually get to stay and watch them. Here Ken and Drew are navigating the ampitheatre steps full of bicycle-carrying men.As Nate said, the remounts make for awesome still photos.

Mud Fest

2009-11-02T16:00:00.001-08:00

Cat and Kitten CX presented by HPCX
Women's 3/4

Course Highlights: Up to four sections of running through thick mud.

Race Stats: 31 starters (4 HZ/PBRers, Ali, Sarah G, me and Victoria (incognito as Drexel))

Weather: Low 50s and mostly clear skies.

The Low Down: We lined up by pre-reg order which usually does not do me to well. But I got in line right behind Kim D and wasn't too worried about the first 500 feet. The gun went off and I was cruising until I realized the young lady in front of me had run through the tape causing me to have to dismount and go back under the tape behind her. There was so much mud on course that after the start there were 2 short sections that I found hard to ride and ended up running both. Then the course hit some steep uphill pavement before passing the finish line, which we would see 3 more times. The selections were made early in the race and I found myself near Ali and then trailing her. We could see Lindsey (Coppi) just ahead of us and I was trying my darndest to catch her. Ali and I cruised through the first lap or so together and then she crashed and had to use the pit. Luckily she got it back together and we rode the rest of the race together trying to catch another rider or two. Ali cruised past me right at the line, she sure is quick. Victoria and Sarah looked happy to finish. We all wished we wouldn't have had to pull so much mud out of our bikes as we rode along.

Summary: Awesome teammates + awesome fieldmates + cx = awesome. Always. + Kelley gave me a cupcake and didn't yell at me for detouring around Camden on the way home.

Other Lady Zoomers in attendance:
The usual suspects, Kristine, Andrea, Nikki and Kristin were all laying it down for those other ladies to clean up. Or at least, that's what I guess happened. It appears as if Nikki really slayed, nice work! I wish I could stay to watch them race more often, they are so fast.

Beacon CX - 10/31/09

2009-11-02T15:44:00.000-08:00

Women’s 3/4

Course Highlights: The one and only “Amphitheater of Pain” and long “beach” run

Race Stats: 30 starters (5 HZ/PBRers! Me, Bianca, Victoria, Sara S, and Caitlin)

Weather: 12 hour Indian Summer weather - just excited it was not rainy and muddy for once this season.

The Low Down: All week I was looking forward to the forecast of 72 degrees and sunny – a rare change of pace from the muddy, cold, rainy, overall misery of this season. However, when the alarms went off and rain was pouring, I was not happy. That may be an understatement, I was pretty angry – I just really like being dry and warm. Luckily, the 60 mile drive to Beacon proved the rain was only over Philadelphia. The race was cloudy, 70 degrees, and dry.

We were staged by order of race entry which worked to my advantage giving me a second row starting position. From the starting whistle, the race pace was fast. The start was a gradual uphill climb on road before ducking right into the woods – giving any road rider a decent advantage from the start. Luckily, I felt good from the go and managed to be towards the front when we went into the woods. The course wound through wide, flat, single track then riders shot down to the “beach.” I managed to ride the first 10 yards before having to dismount and run the remaining 15 yards. After more winding through the woods, we entered the “Amphitheater of Pain.” I heard dreaded stories of this infamous amphitheater. Let’s just say it lives up to it’s reputation. Trying to lift my legs up over the 2-2.5 foot steps was pretty painful. Luckily we only had to run up the giant stairs 4 times (maybe only 3, I try to block out those memories). After the first lap, the field was separated. Three women were off the front and I was in a chase group of 4. We were unsuccessful at catching the front pack but we had our own throw down for the next spots.

Yes, the racing was fun, but I always love watching our elite women battle it our in the A race. Kristine, Nikki, Kristin, and Andrea tore it up once again giving us something to train for…Great job to everyone out there racing and peddling fast…

Summary: Nice weather + great course + lots of HZ/PBRers out there = another great race day.

Welcome, Fall Team Ride

2009-10-25T14:24:00.000-07:00

Welcome to our Human Zoom Ladies team blog. As a team, we are going to try and post more often about racing, riding, and just having fun together. We want to share how much fun we have together and how we are just regular ladies enjoying our bicycles as often as possible. We are students, teachers, nurses, directors of non-profits and programmers. We ride bicycles for fun, health, and sport.

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Today 7 of the 12 HZ ladies got together + Nate to go for a ride. We cruised to Valley Forge and schemed up ways to make our team even better. We even stopped in some lovely fall foliage to take a few pictures (to be posted shortly). We are proud that the new team president is one of us and we are excited for cyclocross season, the off-season and the another year of racing.