New Training Toys

A few new toys that have made training soooooo much more enjoyable this year:


These little treats have been in my pocket all winter. They are great for backcountry ski tours (they don't freeze) and they don't stick to your teeth like super glue. I also munched on them on all my long rides in Tucson. I can't picture myself downing them during a high intensity xc race, but they will for sure accompany me in my longer races this year, like the Leadville 100 or the Intermontane Challenge. They come in cola flavor, too. I wasn't at all a fan of the cola. Lemon's the bomb.


I believe what the box says. Thanks to Bergy and the Fitzys for tipping me off to the AeroPress, the little plastic wonder plunger that makes the best cup of coffee on the planet (yes, far superior to the french press). I'll definitely tote this travel-friendly contraption to all my races this year. I got mine at Amazon, but locals can pick one up at Pearl Street Bagels (they were out when I went looking).


Nate got me an iPhone for Christmas and it is the best present EVER. I'm not much of a gadget person, but I am way into efficiency. In Tucson, this was the only thing in my pocket on training rides. In the past, I had carried 1) a cell phone 2) an ipod 3) directions to my ride 4) a list of my intervals for the day and 5) a camera. Now, I have all that clutter one tiny little toy called the iPhone. It allows me to map my rides, tap my training plan into the notes, take photos, play music and to ignore phone calls and emails. Plus, I installed the coffee finder application, so I can find the nearest coffee shop with one touch.

New product should be rolling in soon for the '09 season, so hopefully I'll have some fun stuff to review on my next warm-weather training expedition.

Afraid of Outside?

Nah. It's not so bad here in the north-country :-) I made it back to Victor from Tucson just before dark on Sunday. My welcoming committee consisted of a blinding snowstorm, a smiling husband and a hysterically happy dog.

Although the high was 5 deg. at the top of the pass yesterday, we still motivated for a nice afternoon tour to hunt down some powder (we didn't have to look for very long.) What I've realized about Jackson Hole is that the winter here is only rough if you lack the umph to get up and go out and play in what ever the weather has decided to do. So, to no surprise, I was quite happy with the day. We just went out prepared-puffy coats, tea and Buffs (don't knock 'em until you've tried 'em). Plus, I had a new pack to try out that Nate ordered for me while I was away. I also got to try out an Avalung for the first time. It was kind of weird skiing with a hose in my mouth, but it's certainly a piece of equipment that I need to become comfortable using. After reading all the reports of how much longer skiers/riders can survive a burial if they have one, it seems like everyone should be using them when traveling in avalanche terrain. Nate has one that is built into his backpack, which is pretty cool.

We got another great sunset for the drive home, too. I don't think I have ever seen a vertical rainbow before.


But, it's -7 out right now. Thankfully I have hours and hours of grad. reading to do-I shouldn't be tempted by outside today no matter what the thermometer says.

That's a Wrap

My Tucson training camp is coming to a close. I may get a quick dirt ride in before I leave tomorrow, but after riding for 4 hours in the pouring rain today, I'll likely opt for a few more hours of sleep before I set off for the 17 hr drive if it's still pouring in the morning.

It's been a great 2 weeks filled with of lots of long, hard miles. Although I'm pretty tired, I feel like I am leaving with a solid foundation for a great 2009. So, I'm ready to go home to Victor. I miss Nate, I miss my dog and believe it or not, I miss skiing. Apparently, it has snowed a total of 5" in the Tetons since I have been gone. I couldn't have timed my trip to the desert any better. Except for the rain today and yesterday, it's been 75-80F and sunny here for 2 weeks straight and the Jackson Hole forecast is calling for a foot of snow this weekend. Perfect.

Time to trade this for this:

Take a Hint from Idaho

Finally, someone has caught on. Go Montana!!

http://www.bikeradar.com/news/article/no-stopping-montana-cyclists-20024

Thankfully, I live in the one state in the USA that does not require cyclists to obey traffic rules like cars do. Instead, we can use our own judgment-we are allowed to treat stop signs as yield signs and can actually proceed through a red light (after stopping) if it is safe to do so. I know there are obvious positives and negatives about this proposed legislation. But, I have to say, it's really very nice to live and train in Idaho because of this law!

75 and Sunny

My time in Tucson has been splendid. Between riding a total of 31 hours, keeping up with my schoolwork and feeding myself, there's really been no time to do anything else but sleep and read a bit. The perfect training camp environment: sleep, ride, eat, repeat.

The weather here in southern AZ has been abnormally warm and believe me, coming from somewhere that it was -26 when I left, no one is appreciating the weather more than me! No matter how many times I apply spf 50 my biker tan is coming back in an even more brilliant format than before. Sweet. Now maybe when I am in the gym doing really strange, non-traditional weight work people will recognize me as one of those silly cyclists and stop gawking at me.

Here's what I have been riding this week:

Tucson Mountain Park. Great singletrack, perfect hardtail territory.

Golder Ranch's "The Chutes." There's a penalty cactus on
every inch of that trail. Makes it all the more exciting.

50 Year Trail in Catalina State Park. It actually took me about 50 minutes to pull out the 7,3829 cacti pricklies that found a home up in my leg after this ride.

Gates Pass Area from Tucson Mountain Park

Looking down on Mt. Lemmon Road. 27 miles of picture-perfect
climbing on the road made Saturday's 90 mile ride a "rewarding" day on the bike.

The other Mt. Lemmon Rd. The control road up the backside of Lemmon is awesome. 26 miles of easy climbing made for a very different experience than the day before. Me, a full hydrapak and a fully charged Ipod made for a great day of chillaxing in an easy gear for a low Z2 endurance day. Eric doesn't really believe in basemiles in the traditional sense, so I find that when I do get the rare day of "just ride as you feel" I really enjoy it!

Looks like someone forgot to lock their car at the trailhead. Oops.

Today is a rest day, so it's off for a 2hr easy road spin and a massage in the afternoon. I haven't gotten a massage in ages, so I'm hoping it's a good one. Even if it's not, you can't beat $45/hr. I love the big city - Trader Joes and cheap massages make Amanda a happy gal.

Almost There

11 driving hours down, 6 more to go tomorrow and I'll be in Tucson. These shots aren't fantastic, but that's what I get from an iPhone going 75mph..

Somewhere near Page, AZ

Clearly Cold

It was hard to get out of bed yesterday knowing the temperature at the airport was a balmy -26. We had returned from dinner over in Jackson the night before to find that our pipes were close to freezing solid. Poor Nate was down in the basement at midnight wrapping heat tape around our pipes, so I knew the morning forecast of frigid temps was probably a sure bet. But, it was a gorgeous bluebird day, the first in weeks, so I patiently waited for the mercury to rise before heading outside.

I slathered Maddy's paws with paw balm and headed to Teton Canyon. TVTAP does a fantastic job of grooming for skate and classic skiing around Driggs and Alta and Teton Canyon is my favorite place to skate. Wildlife encounters are pretty much guaranteed, dogs are allowed to run freely and I always run into lots of pals on the trail.

Maddy on the move

Skating the westside of the Tetons

It had warmed to a scorching 4 deg. when we pulled into the trailhead. Unfortunately, my wax job (or lack thereof) was NOT helping. That's the thing with wax-it's either right or really, really wrong. The track was so sticky and slow and trying to glide pretty much guaranteed that you would fall flat on your face, but I stuck with it anyway, used the classic track a bunch and enjoyed the first sunny day in the valley in weeks. We saw 4 moose and didn't freeze to death - a good day indeed!

Maddy didn't seem to care that her hair was all messed up and frozen. It's a good look for her, I think.

Bring on 2009

Happy New Year everyone!

Thinking back on this past year puts a huge smile on my face. So many things went well in all areas of my and Nate's life it's almost hard to say goodbye to 2008. I'm typically a very forward-looking person, but if you had told me at this time last year that I would have quit my fantastic job as the Development Director of a cycling/pedestrian advocacy organization, joined a pro mountain bike team and started a masters degree program in Sports Psychology, I would have had a hard time controlling my laughter....I guess the joke is on me :)

I wouldn't want 2008 to go by without extending a HUGE thank you to my sponsors. The Kenda-Titus-Hayes team received generous support from lots of incredible companies. My teammates were great and I got to spend my first year as a pro mountain biker well-supported, allowing me to focus on simply riding as fast as I could. We were also incredibly fortunate that our title sponsor, Kenda, is one of the most supportive companies on the face of the planet of the entire mountain biking community. It is amazing to me how many races, athletes and events that Kenda sponsors. They truly believe in supporting mountain biking from every angle and also happen to make really, really good tires. They are a company that I am very, very proud to represent.

Of course the biggest thanks goes to my husband, Nate, for working on my bikes all year long and for being my most tenacious supporter, my loudest cheerleader and my favorite riding partner.


I'm happy to report that I will be riding for Kenda again in 2009. We also have a new bike sponsor: Tomac will be supplying us with these and these for bikes this year. Holy sexy looking bikes! I'm putting together the race schedule right now, but I am for sure planning on attending most of the new pro xc schedule races, the Firecracker 50, the National Championships in Granby, CO and a few stage races. I sent off my registration for the Leadville 100 yesterday, so I'm crossing my fingers that I will make it into that lottery.

As for the game plan? Well, thanks to my saint of a coach, Eric Orton, I don't have to worry about much. I am so incredibly fortunate to have a coach who knows me well, whose advice and direction I trust 110% and who listens to me. I know there are a lot of good coaches out there, but I can't help but feel like mine is one of the very best. I've learned everything I know about training from him, but I never feel as if I am being told what to do. He just has this incredible way about him that makes me feel as if everything I am doing is my own idea. He always encourages me to be the one driving the process. Pretty rad guy to have around!

Who knows what 2009 will bring? It's hard to imagine it topping 2008, but I'm up for the challenge.