Amazing Weekend...

Truly.  It was one of the best weekends I've ever had.  It started on Friday and hasn't quite ended yet.  A few highlights...

Lunch with Special A on Friday!  We had a lovely mid-day meeting as her carpeting was getting installed.  It was great to see her (as always) and spending an hour or two just nomming on some delicious lunchies and chilling out together is always fantastic.

Then, to Saturday.

For my birthday, my Mom and Dad bought me some tickets to see the Phantom of the Opera on Broadway in New York.  I've been itching to see this again.  The last time I saw it, I was 15 or 16 years old and it came through Detroit on a tour.  I was enthralled.  Truly.  I just remember the intensity of it, and the tears that I couldn't hold back at the end.  It's such a beautiful story and I wanted to see it again. So, I begged and begged and finally got tickets!

I got to take two dear friends, since Mr. Porkchop is disinclined to appreciate sitting in an audience like this.  So, I decided that we would make it truly awesome and a day that none of us would forget.  I told them that I would take care of everything and just to show up at my house at 11 for departure.  When they arrived, THIS was parked out front.

Who needs to drive themselves to NYC, when we have a friend with a stretch Expedition Limo?  Awwww, yeah.  I packed us up some yummy food and we hopped in for the trip up.  It was the best decision, ever!  Thank you, David!!

The show was even more amazing than I remembered.  Spending the day with these girls and seeing such an amazing show was the best birthday, ever.  

But, the best weekend wasn't over yet!!

Sunday morning brought warm temperatures (finally, but unfortunately not permanently) and sunny skies.  So, obviously, a bike ride was in order!  I hit the road with my favorite little Jersey contingent of pedalers and we did 40 gorgeous miles.  We laughed, we avoided ginormous potholes, and we spotted a splendidly beautiful bald eagle.  It was a great ride.  

Tonight, my friend Sara comes by for dinner.  Sharing yummy noms on a warm Sunday evening with the windows open and fresh air coming through the house.  

Perfect end to a perfect weekend.

Upping My Game

As the weather continues to thwart any hope of getting outside on the bike - I admit that it's possible to do so, but bundling up like the Michelin man just to risk sliding out on a patch of black ice in February makes zero sense to me - I'm lucky to have teammates that are willing to suffer away in a variety of indoor locations.  In the past two weeks, I've trained at Twenty20 - the BEST shop around - my living room, my training center, and in my bed - I had a phenomenal race related dream the other night.

I continue to feel stronger each day.  I am working with my really awesome PT again to increase my flexibility and strengthen my leg.  So far, I'm feeling like we're on the road to somewhere good...the road to a place where I can hop into a race, suffer with the best of them, and come out unscathed on the other side.

I'm looking forward to the start of the Spring Series races.  Not because I'm super anxious to race again, but because I'm looking forward to being with the team, with friends from other teams, and just back into what feels comfortable.  Yeah, I guess I am a bit excited to race again.

I've been thinking a lot about my goals for this year.  They are, in fact, quite simple.

- Race injury free.  Accidents happen.  Sorry, Mom, but it's a fact of what I love to do.  But, they are also avoidable.  I have a good sense for sketchy riders and situations and I've avoided plenty of crashes due to simply being observant and aware.  I will hone that skill with ninja prowess this year.

- Race for my team.  With the past two seasons fraught with injury and just crappy luck, this year will be the year of the team.  The year that I set aside everything and just focus on being the best leadout rider I can be.  The best field controller, the best break shutter-downer, the best chaser, and the best teammate that I can be.  It's going to be all about listening to what the other girls need and doing everything in my power to make that happen.

- Be happy with whatever happens.  I will stay positive and I will let nothing bring me down.  No one.  No thing.  Nothing.  So, if you're planning to come my way with any sort of negativity... I would advise you do redirect course and go elsewhere, because the Chop ain't having it this year!  Only good. Only happy.  Only positive.

Knock, Knock. Who's there? WINTER.

So, it's winter.

Just in case you didn't know.  Or, in case you've been holed up so nice and warmly inside your home that you haven't noticed the snow outside.  Again.

I'm not complaining, really.  After all, it is winter.  And, as a midwestern Michigander, I am well aware that winter means snow.  Lots of snow.  Just after I was born, in fact... this happened.

The great Michigan Blizzard of 19-something or other.

And, though I do not remember that particular storm, I have old family photos of me as a child, bundled up in the best early 80s snowsuit we could find, standing next to piles of snow in the driveway that were over 6 feet tall.  We used to have to stand out in the street and direct the car out of the drive because you couldn't see beyond the shoveled snow.  And, we nearly always had school.  Snow was just part of what we dealt with living in a northern state.  Though, I do remember school being canceled one day because the wind chill was 40 below zero.  That was a rough day.

Now, this post isn't designed to be "see how tough we were and how wimpy we are now."  Trust me, I don't like snow.  If I had my way, I'd be living somewhere with a 50-60 degree average temperature and no real wintery temps.  However, in a certain way, I'm really pleased with the wintery weather we've been having.  Though it may not be for the reason you expect...

See... I'm a tad bit behind in my training this year!  And, past "winters" have come and gone with lows in the 40s, not a drop of real wintery precipitation, and cyclists out on the roads training throughout.  This year, though... everyone's stuck on a trainer!  This is good news for someone like me, who is just starting to get down to brass tacks on the bike.  I'm not saying that I'll be with my peers when the first race rolls around - I'm certain that this year will be weekend after weekend of struggle.  But, I'm also pretty sure that I'll be less behind this year than I would have if we'd had a nice warmish winter.  

So, here we are... in the mid-Atlantic region where we have gorgeous springs and falls, lovely temperate summers, and winter.  So, Winter... do your thang.  Just stop doing soon, ok?  I miss the roads!

xoxo,
Choppah

The Day The Choppah Saw Her Shadow

So, I know that today is supposed to be all about the Groundhog.  But, I'd rather tell you a story about another hog-like beastie...

Ever since that fateful day in June, things have been a bit rough - physically speaking.  Though the initial pain of that crash was felt in the shredded muscles in my shoulder, the true injury was hiding itself away in my back.  The herniated disc was just laying in wait to screw up my 2013 season as bad as that damn pothole did in 2012.  But, the past is the past.  It's 2014 and it's time to put this surgery to the test!

Today, the Porkchop saw her shadow...atop her beloved bike...surrounded by some of the nicest and most awesomest people alive.

OK - I will stop talking about myself in the 3rd person now... totally freaky.

I found myself up early this morning.  Partially because the stoopy cats kept meowing outside the bedroom door and partially because I was so damn excited to be heading out for my first outdoor ride in over 5 months!

I donned my schnuggly warm VERGE leg warmers, ate my green eggs and rice, and got ready for the day.

It was beautiful out there.  Chilly but sunny, and surrounded by the Bordas, Hauber, and the Action Wheels crew, I felt comfortable, safe, and just really freakin' happy.  We did 45 miles.  Other than an exploding deraillure, it was an fantastically uneventful ride!  It was so awesome to be back on roads that I love and pedaling felt good and smooth and natural.

Perhaps the most wonderful part of my day was being reminded how absolutely miserable I would be without teammates.  As we are pedaling along, Kristin (who hasn't left my side since the ride began) says, "Are you getting a lot of wind on that side (of the paceline)?"  I said, "A little."  She says, "Do you want to switch sides?"  I say, "Nah, that's ok."  It's quiet for a moment and she says, "You know what, I'm not giving you a choice.  Switch sides with me."  So, I do... only to realize that I was working pretty daggon hard on that windy side of the road.  For the rest of the ride, she protected me from the wind like I was Mark Cavendish saving every last ounce of energy for a sprint on the Champs-Élysées.  It was so amazing.  Every time we turned a corner, she'd check the wind and make me swap sides with her.

THIS.  THIS is what teammates do for one another.

Oh, yeah... and they make the most delicious pancakes in the world post ride.

 PAMCAKES!!!  With REAL Maple Syrup from New Hampshire.

And, let you pet their cute kitty...

And puppy...

I don't know where I'd be without teammates and friends like those that I have right now.  I'd be a lot less happy, I can tell you that much.