Sorry for the delay on this post. Since I’m already at Sea Otter and a week has passed, I’ll make it quick. First off, I LOVE my Cannondale. It is absolutely amazing. It has really turned me into a better rider. I am not timid at all on descents and technical sections and really can put a gap on people on those sections. So the XC field was pretty big for a MSC, about 25 women. I was doing really well for the vast majority of the race, staying within the top 10. The only regret I had was that we were going so hard on the singletrack, it was difficult to look up and enjoy the beautiful desert. There were a few times were I was able to see the different colors of the desert and it literally took my breath away (well, what was left!).
Now comes the fun part of the story. Sometimes sports drink just won’t do it for you. Sometimes you just need water and for some reason, sports drink actually can dehydrate you more. It’s happened to me 2 other times. Yes, I said “other times.” 4 or 5 miles to go in the race. Suddenly I had no power. My back started to hurt and the cramping enveloped my whole body. I got really nauseated, couldn’t pedal, and couldn’t focus my eyes. I tried as hard as I could to go as fast as I could, but 6 pro women zoomed by me and there was nothing I could do. I was crawling by. I was off my bike, walking up the short hills that are usually a treat for me because I couldn’t pedal. I knew what was happening so I went straight the ambulance and I couldn’t stand up. The medics told me my coloring was really bad and they carefully laid me down on the stretcher and gave me an IV. It was amazing, I felt my body come back to life. I sheepishly exited the vehicle and was freezing and a bit embarrassed. But hey, I still beat 6 girls. 😉 I was disappointed with the mishap, but the reality was that I had a GREAT time for the majority of the race and I was doing well. I want to go back to Fruita, camp, and ride the trails in a non-race situation so I can enjoy the beautiful scenery.
Pictures don’t want to upload right now, so I’ll try later…. and give you a Sea Otter update. All I can say is my legs would not work at all on the preride yesterday, so hopefully they will be kind to me today. 🙂
Yes. It makes me sick. That would be a HUMMER pizza delivery vehicle… good choice to for gas mileage.
Being a dork, cooking my rice pasta on my camp stove in the hotel room. As Ace Ventura would say, “Yummy…”
Porta potties run out of TP pretty quick. You can never be too prepared. 😉
