Family Fun!

This weekend I was a busy girl incased in a vehicle for most of it. It was fun though. My brother and sister-in-law from San Francisco are here now for good! They came in Friday night with their sweet pup Luna in tow. Alex and Kate have both been in SF for the past 7 years. I promise to put some pics up soon showcasing my big happy Apking family.

The four of us and our 2 dogs drove up to Cincinnati on Saturday for a family dinner celebrating the wedding of Smap and Alex's other brother Jay. Jay and Leslie were married in December in Knoxville. Most of the Apking relatives reside in Cinci, so they decided to have a reception there this spring. It was so nice to see all of Smap's family. They are a lot of fun to be around. I am quite the lucky girl to marry into such a great family! I am also quite lucky to have two great brother-in-laws who have two awesome wives who I have so much in common with and really enjoy being around. Plus, Leslie is 7 months pregnant with my first niece or nephew. I am so excited to be an aunt for the first time. Smap and I drove home with the two dogs. Alex and Kate caught a ride back with the parents so they could hang in Cinci for a shrimp boil. We needed to get back to get stuff done. Luna decided the back of the subaru was just not good enough for her, so she decided to climb onto my lap in the front of the car. I couldn't take it, so I climbed in the back with Ippon. It was actually quite comfortable laying in the back with the big dog.
I will post some good shots hopefully tonight. I know I always say I am going to post pics and rarely do, but I definitely will for this past weekend. We had a really good time.

19.5 Days!!!

It's the FI-NAL COUNT DOWNNNNN.....too bad I don't have the music to that song.  Yep, I am counting the days until SCHOOOOOOL'S OUT FOR THE SUMMER!  I really am excited.  

I am also excited to get my new kids next August though.  They are always so scared and timid on the first day of middle school.  It is just so much fun to watch them grow and change in so many ways.  Some of my girls were SO little on the first day of school, and now I am looking up to them...and some of them even wear bigger sizes than me....under wear included!!!  It is so crazy, but I love it.  I have some favorites that I don't want to leave because next year they won't even acknowledge me...they will be tooooooo cool.  Maybe some day they will come back to see me.  I can only hope.  

Not much going on in my world now that my Cohutta has been accomplished.  It is time to set another goal.  TOO bad I can't run anymore because X-Terras would be so much fun now that I have the whole mountain bike thing down pat.  We'll see.  I guess for now, I will just savor every good ride, swim, book, and time with family, friends, and of course my Ippon (see very bottom of this blog).

Peace.

Happy Earth Day!!! ...what we do for our earth.

In recognition of Earth Day today, I rode my bike to school, then to work at the bike shop.  Wait a minute....I always ride my bike to school. 

 So, unfortunately I didn't get to do any good for the Earth today besides the normal stuff I ALWAYS do....

I don't let one piece of paper touch my trash cans at home or in my classroom (I usually take paper out of any trash can I can if no one is watching too..people already think I am pretty weird....I can't help it that I care), I allow my kids to use scrap paper from the office and I have them to do their work on it instead of running copies, I reuse my baggies until they become sticky, I go around the school turning off lights continually, we compost everything we can in our kitchen (I usually bring home my crap (I'm not being literal) from school to compost too), we have all the special light bulbs, we turn off all our electricity in the house including our hot water heater when we are out and at home, we have solar panels fixed to our roof to run our tv in our kitchen, we recycle all things in our house, we have been updating our appliances to be the ones that are the most energy efficient etc...  

I can only hope that what I do in my classroom every day rubs off on a few of my kids.  I know it has because I have had a few parents tell me about their kids demanding their families to do the same.  Just another reason for me to explain why I need to be in a classroom.  I don't only teach 6th graders to read, but I also teach them to care about our earth.  I can't recall one of my teachers ever recycling, commuting, or even talking about healthy lifestyles.  Maybe a few will listen.  Let us hope they do since they are our future.

 HAPPY EARTH DAY.

Time to get back in the saddle!

Smap and I went to the Dogwood Crit yesterday to cheer on the local talent. Usually I do this race, but I had negative desire to race this year. It was really nice just hanging out with Smap, Dave Holmes, Tim and Lindsay, Missy, and all the rest of our friends from the bike shop, etc. Too bad there wasn't a big showing for any of the fields, it was a perfect day for a crit because it wasn't hot or wet.

I'm ready to hop back on the bike. I am looking forward to my nice comfortable road bike today. The weather is beautiful and I couldn't imagine doing anything else with my time (after school lets out of course). I can't wait to get back on my single speed also. Once again I am SO glad I did not ride my Rig at the Cohutta because then I would be pissed at that bike for a while. I can't have that.

Cheers to spring time riding and warm sunshine!

COHUTTA 100 2008

Well, my "milestone" race was a success because I finished it....all 100 miles.  There were points during the day that I was not so sure... at all times I had either (or all at the same time) mud in my eyes, back and knee pain, or bonkedness.... There were moments yesterday that I kept saying to myself, "pain is weakness leaving my body".  I said it over and over again.  

So, a lot of funny things happened during my milestone journey weekend.  First of all, I took Friday off of school to get a camp spot at the Thunder Rock campground.  I met some cool people there just hanging out.  Too bad I didn't get any photos...I thought about it, but just spaced on getting the camera out and, it would have been really cheezy for me to take some guys' photos when I first met them.  So, I finally ended up camping next to Tim and Doug from Jersey.  Super nice fellas....come to find out I was looking in the race bible and Tim's mug was showcased amongst the spotlighted riders racing in the 100!  So, I had set up camp next to a pro.  Pretty cool.  Also pretty cool that pro mountain bikers are WAY cooler and laid back than roadies and tri-geeks... Tim had some really cool dreads that I would LOVE to have, but I will probably have to wait until I get tenure at my school....I don't see my principal appreciating a teacher with dreads.  I am already crossing the line with my recycle bins,  chacos, and my very casual style. 

Anyway, so to the race...Floyd did show up, but I didn't see him.  Smap did....the word was that Floyd was wanting to bail on the race after 30 miles....he was supposively asking for a beer at the 2nd rest stop.  I tried not to think about beer....it was a long day.  I did see a dude I was riding with stop to smoke a cigarette...of all things to want during a bike race...

So, it took me 11 hours and 39 min's.  I had originally wanted to aim for 10 hours. I was on course for that too, but I obviously didn't train nearly enough to accomplish such a time goal.  You live and learn.  Carol Ann did an impressive 10 hours and 20 or so min's I think.  Floyd did 8 hours and 15 min's....a girl actually beat him.  Word is that Floyd finished and immediately had someone hand him a beer and he walked down to sit by the river.

This race was mentally and physically VERY tough.  The first 10 miles was a muddy single track due to an intense rain storm that came through very early that morning.  Lucky me, I had a some idiot come behind me on the tightest single track within the first 4 miles of the race and take me and himself out while he tried to pass me (he took out another guy too come to find out)...nice start to my race.  I had no idea what kind of impact this actually had on my race until WELL after I finished....

Pretty much the first 50 miles were climbing...at one point, Jen Smelser got up with me and then I left her.  The last thing she said to me was, "Nice ass"....I thought she was being friendly because we say that crap to each other...I made a comment to her and just kept riding.  Around mile 30, some random came up beside me and just told me, "hey, I have some duct tape"...I answered him, "good for you...what are you going to do with it?"...I had no idea why he was giving me this random piece of information.  Then I get back from him, "you might want it to fix the hole in your shorts"....I feel my arse and pretty much the whole left side of my arse is bare!!! I had NO idea.  I declined the tape because I was comfortable with it the way it was and if these guys had never seen a piece of arse before, then today was their lucky day.  Plus, I was climbing and did not want to stop!  So, every time I stopped I would just joke about it with all of the volunteers and randoms rejuvenating.  I had no idea that the rip would grow...well, I tried to just ignore it.  It grew and it became painfully obvious that maybe I should have taken a piece of tape when I had my chance.  As luck would have it, Smap and Jay (Jen's hubby) decided to hang out at rest stop 4 (mile 65)...thank GOODNESS.....I had new shorts!!!    I saw Smap and he was like, "I bet you want your shorts don't you?"...he did even know about the rip.  He was thinking I would want them because of all the grit from the morning.  The grit can cause great pain (we found this out at the Black Bear Rampage last summer).  So, I not only changed the shorts, but gloves and socks.  I was a new woman....not really.  

I successfully managed to finish the @ 80 miles of ungodly fire roads to get to the last 9 miles of single track...to think I was looking forward to this.  It really sucked.. At this point, my mind had left me for thoughts of beer and relaxation.  My brain was no where in sight when it came to maneuvering the simplest trails I had ridden SO many times before on my single speed.  I was toasted.  I had two guys behind me on Quartz Loop when I fell over the side.  I just laid there and insisted I would be alright and that I should lay there for a good 10 minutes, but the guys picked me and my bike up and forced me to ride on.  I didn't get their names, but I really appreciate them.  It was so tough.....

After my first half Ironman in 2001, my mom said to me, "you will do so much better...I can't wait to come watch next year"... I told her she was CRAZY!!!!!  Until yesterday, that first half ironman was the HARDEST thing I had EVER done....but yesterday as like doing back-to-back centuries.  Smap even made a comment like, next year you will do so much better.  Crazy....I will start to ponder doing another later, but right now I am putting up with my aching knees and back.  I guess I am getting REALLY OLD.  

Cheers to Dave Holmes for your @ 8:30 on your single speed.  Tough guy!  I would still be out there if I had been on my Rig. 

I almost forgot....I called Jen on my way home to tell her about the funny story about my shorts.  Well, it had happened when that dumb-arse took crashed me at the beginning.  I guess something caught my shorts and ripped them.  Jen saw my butt, and that was why she made the comment about my "nice arse".  She didn't know that I didn't know that I had ripped them.  Pretty hilarious....once a blond always a blond...I just had no idea.   It really made for a pretty hilarious story.  I really wished Smap had had the camera ready at stop 4 to take a photo of the shorts.  Maybe I will wash them and try them on one more time just so I can record the memory of the shorts.  To make things worse, they were my all time FAVORITE pair!!! 

Oh well, lots of fun.  SEE YA!

Floyd will be racing the Cohutta!

Well, on Saturday I will be able to say I have competed against Floyd Landis and a lot of other greats! I know he has been "busted" for whatever, but I still like him. I can't wait to be at the same starting line with him. That will be no doubt the only time I may possibly get a chance to see Floyd on Saturday. The first three miles of the race are comparable to the first three mile climb of the Foothills Parkway I believe. I am sure my arse will be dropped instantly from that HUGE group of elite riders.

I just can't wait though....fun times approaching at rapid speed!
Rach

3 days away!

I don't know what I am more nervous about, doing well in the race or finding a good camp spot Friday morning down at the Ocoee? I always worry about the weirdest things prior to racing....a good reason why I don't do a ton of racing anymore. I am a stresser...stress about stupid things and lose sleep over them.

It is suppose to rain down there now... I just hope my brakes hold up as well as my contact lenses. Sometimes rain can be a good thing. Back when I did triathlons, I prayed for rain because I was stong on the bike in the rain and it just didn't scare me at all. I would listen to everyone in the crowd complaining about racing their bikes on the slick roads....I made it a strength and it worked well for me in quite a few races. So, I will keep a positive outlook on the rain if it comes my way on Saturday.

I rode an EASY 30 miles last night after school down on the boulevard. I think it may have been the first time I have ever been around the loop more than 6-7 times. I also have been riding my bike to school consistently....this is only to ease my guilt of having a car that contains gasoline. I will have to drive the Element after school though....It is hard to carry a 30 lb bag of doggy food on a bike and it is also hard to ride a single speed down to the mountain bike trail which is 15 miles away.

Cheers!!!!!!