I turn to Chris after eating dinner and so delightfully say how I want cake. He says "you could make a cookie bar, that's sort of like cake". So that's what I did, I whipped up a chocolate chip cookie bar, but I was too impatient to let it cook all the way. I pulled it out of the oven when the edges looked cripsy and delicious and let it sit...for 2 minutes before I sliced in. One corner was amazing, but you know when you eat a cookie you can't just have one. So I went back for seconds, and thirds, and fourths, and..... then the cookie bar was gone and I thought I was going to throw up. That's when I had to put the sign on the fridge. I felt sick for 2 days. I didn't eat a cookie for an entire month, and didn't even bake cookies for 2 months!
You see...I have a sweet tooth, and it's a problem. I used to buy pounds of bulk candy at the store and eat it within days. I love candy, I love cake, I love cookies, I love sugar. I truly am a fat kid at heart. So now you see how hard it is for me to restrain from wanting to bake some cookies. If there are cookies on the counter I will eat them all. Dessert has no shelf life in my house.
I look something like this when indulging in a delicious treat
This obsession is why I have to exercise on a regular basis. Scratch that, I have to exercise for multiple hours a day or I would like this (blue and round, I would be blue because I am sad for being so overweight and round because clearly I am eating too many cookies and not exercising enough)
Poor cookie monster. My cookie eating training has been treating me pretty well in my recent bike racing endeavors. Lets start with the Bellingham Olympics (commonly called Ski to Sea). This was my second year in a row racing the Mountain Bike leg of the Bham Olympics, but my 6th year competing. Last year after the race I learned of something called "The Top Gun" I wanted that award from that moment on. The "Top Gun" is the fastest male and female for each leg of the race. I drooled over the idea of that award all year long. The problem? The women who received the award in 2010 is stinkin' fast! I could only idolize how fast and skilled she is on a mountain and cross bike. I just wasn't sure I would be able to beat her, but I still dreamt and drooled over the idea. Now I am not one to think I will win and put my hopes up to winning, I am just one to put up as much of a fight as I can in order to get the best result that I could for that given day. In order to put up the best fight I could I had to put on my serious game time face. I screwed on some aerobars onto the handlebars of my mountain bike, I brought my trainer to the staging area, and I even warmed up.
I should mention that the MTB Ski to Sea course is not a true mountain bike course, it's actually very pathetic, hence the aero bars. Cyclocross bikes are not allowed or else a CX bike would be the best best for the type of course it is. This year was the races 100 year anniversary since the original Bellingham Marathon, so they made the race 100 miles. The mountain bike leg was 20 miles, there isn't much you can do to make a ride from Hovander Park in Ferndale to the Marina in Bellingham 20 miles, without stupid pavement circles. The course had a lot of pavememnt, it was windy that day, so aero bars were actually quite helpful. I crossed the line and felt as if I worked my hardest and did all I could. As it turns out, all my hopes and dreams of being "The Top Gun" of the Bellingham Olympics came true! I was the fastest female "mountain biker" and came in 32nd out of 500 people. Pretty exciting if you ask for my opinion. Whenever I get my trophy I will take a picture of it and post it. Want to know what I ate the night before? and the night before that? Cookies, and cupcakes. MMM
Next up was the Leavenworth Bike and Brews Festival pat of The Indie Series. The course isn't all that exciting, but the environment and people are awesome. The course is a 4 mile hill climb up 1800 feet, half on a fire road and half on single track. Once at the top there is a raging decent with lots of water bars and 4 stream crossings. With the late spring and lots of snow melt, the stream crossings felt more like river crossings to me and even though it was 80 degrees outside, I couldn't feel my feet. 8 women lined up for the Open (Pro) women's category. I was nervous once I saw all those fast looking women, just don't come in last Courtenay (I have to talk to myself quite often). We were instructed to do 3 laps (that's 24 miles and 5400 feet of climbing) and I thought it wouldn't be too bad. The first lap wasn't bad, a little bit into the single track I was in 2nd place. I remained in 2nd place until about half way through the single track on the 2nd lap, where the girl who I passed on the first lap, passed me back. We kind of sort of were back and forth, and finally near the top on the 3rd lap she pulled away and my legs were tired. I finished in 3rd place by 14 seconds (but who's counting). I was proud of myself to finish the race in 3rd place, my first real test of racing in the Open women's field (meaning there actually was a field). I should also mention that the woman who won the Open Women at the Beezley Burn, and beat me by what was it....17 or 18 minutes came in 4th behind me, approximately 2 minutes back. Oh heck yes...watch out I'm coming to get you Open ladies. This race was also reassuring to me that I should be racing in the Open field, because had I chosen to race in Expert I would have won by too much. One last honorable mention...the women who won in my category won by 11 minutes...WTF? No one knows who she is. Mystery lady I suppose.
I am taking this weekend off of bike racing since I realized I have only had 2 weekends off since my first race this season on March 12th or was it the 13th? Next up is The Test of Metal in Squamish, BC. I am sure it will be epic.
I love the aero bars on the mtn bike!!
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