Another block of med school exams is done, doNE, DONE! I’m outta here, headed on a road trip to the mountains of North Carolina with the UW Cycling Team. Stay tuned for photos, storied of epic rides and surely, shenanigans!
Early Morning Ride – Success and Failure
I got out for my 6:30 am ride on Tuesday morning, as promised in my post about getting to bed earlier and waking up earlier. It was great to ride with Chris, despite the fact that we the sun hadn’t even started to rise when we were heading out:
Since I’m never up at 6:30am, I didn’t realize that the sun isn’t up that early! My bad! It was pretty cold, but as soon as the sun peeked out it started to warm up. I’ve been having problems keeping my Bontrager Single Pivot brakes that came with my Madone in adjustment recently. I literally have to adjust them almost every time I ride and sometimes they don’t stay for even the distance of a singe ride. Every bike mechanic I has talked to tells me they see adjustment problems with this brake set all the time and that there’s no good fix. Not great for racing, or trying to keep up with Chris who is much faster than me! I literally biked as hard as I could for an awful 50 miles and still couldn’t stay with him. My rear brake rubbed for approximately 90% of the ride, despite stopping and trying to adjust it. It was the longest, most exhausting 50 miles I’ve had in a long time.
I’m headed to spring break in the mountains in a week and I didn’t want to deal with this problem for the duration of the trip so I ordered a set of SRAM brakes through QBP that should be in before I leave next week.
I’m looking forward to putting this problem that has plagued me for almost a year behind me and say good riddance to single pivot brakes. If anyone out there is contemplating a Trek bike, get one! Just make sure you swap out the brakes and save yourself the headache.
Shamrock Shuffle Pic
A New PR!
Sunday I ran the Shamrock Shuffle 10K. My physical therapist is race director and had been telling me what a fun and relaxed event this is, so I just had to sign up! I definitely wasn’t disappointed; the race start was on one of the main downtown roads and Madison turned into a sea of green. Many people were wearing costumes and the crowd was definitely living up to the “Everyone is Irish on St. Patrick’s Day” motto.
I wasn’t expecting much for the race. The course had a few killer hills and I haven’t been logging that many miles – too much time studying, always the same excuse!
My friends that I was doing the race with are all speedy gonzaleses, so we edged our way near the front. I knew I’d lose them right away but I guess that’s my fault for hanging out with a college cross country runner, a Kona qualifier, and a pro triathlete. I can’t compete with that! 🙂
I felt strong for most of the race and even managed to negative split the second half which is a good sign that I’m racing smart and am still improving. I also liked that it was an out-and-back course so I got to see a bunch of my friends on my way back to the finish.
I finished in 46:43, good for a top 10 finish out of 420 women. This is a solid one minute PR for me, which is a great start to the season and something I’ll definitely be improving on!
Time for Change
As sit here studying and looking longingly out the window at the gorgeous 60 degree, sunny weather outside, I’ve realized it’s time to reset my sleep schedule. I’ve gotten in the habit of going to bed late (around 12:30 most nights) and getting up equally late (around 8:00 most mornings).
Now that it’s light and warm in the mornings, it makes more sense for me to do a workout in the morning before I head to class. Even if it’s just running a few miles, I think it will be an easy way to up the volume aspect of my training without compromising study time.
I’m kicking things off right tomorrow morning with a 6:30am bike ride! If you catch me online on Twitter or gChat past 10:00 tonight, tell me to get my butt to bed!
A Few More Photos from Lindsay Wilson!
Thanks to Holly!
