100 Ways to Attack the Groin

This is hilarious.

And the outtakes:

The Sayings of Angie

Another fun cycling teacher, Angie, is also the mother of a high-school-age girl who runs, so she tells us sometimes about her daughter's adventures at track meets.

But also Angie tells us about her own adventures as a runner and cyclist. And when I say "adventures," I mean tough, hard training.

She told us the other day that right after class she was going to meet another cycling instructor, Chantel, to go riding together.

She added, "She's already been out there riding since seven o'clock this morning. She goes on these five-hour rides. I don't get that. I think riding a bike is hard enough, why would I want to stay on one for six hours? It's long, it's boring, it's painful, it's no fun. Why do people do that, anyway?"

(pause for ironic chuckle)

Anyway, here are some of Angie's motivational sayings from a recent class:

You're sprinting now. You're getting into the anaerobic zone. There is no oxygen for your muscles. You have to switch to another energy system, and it's painful.

I know you're having a hard time. You should be having a hard time.

Pick up the pace. Flush out those legs.

It's on you. Nobody else cares. No one shares the suffering with you. You're all alone in this room.

I'm talking about post-exercise. If you work hard in here, your body will still be burning fat cells two to three hours after we finish.

Your body is always stronger on the home stretch. The harder you work now, the better your body will work later.

Don't sink into the pain. Posture!

I'm looking for muscle recruitment. The more you struggle with those pedal strokes, the more you'll be building new muscle strength.

Faster!

The Sayings of Christina

Christina is the pregnant cycling teacher I mentioned earlier.  When I got home from the Huntsman 140, I was privileged to enjoy another class with her.

This must have been her last class before giving birth, because she said at the end, "I guess I'll see you...whenever." Someone in the class said, "Seven weeks?" She said, "I believe I said three weeks, but we'll see."

Then I heard her telling someone, "Yeah, I felt a couple of contractions there!" So, who knows, maybe she gave birth that same day.

Anyway, I loved her motivational sayings that day, including:

I can't break you down. You're stronger than that. All I want is your best.

Everybody wants a good looking body. That's why we're here.

(To a guy in the front row, looking surprised as she approached him:) Yes, I'm gonna pick on you. You're in the front row. You can throw up if you want. Just don't pass out. It tends to bum out the rest of the class.

(To the song "Legs":) Come on, you've got legs. Let's see you use them.

I'm a little more sympathetic toward my mom now. I've got two kids, seven and five, and I'm looking for a summer camp for them. I used to think my mom was so rude, putting us in camp, so cruel and uncaring. But I'm going crazy. You know, the constant fighting. "She's looking at me!" ... "She's breathing!"

I used to be that person in the back, barely looking up, never saying a word. And now I'm in front, with a microphone, talking constantly.

This is not a picnic. You're in boot camp. You're thinking, "I'm stronger than that. I'm better than that pregnant chick." Whatever motivates you.

Okay, give me 30 more seconds. It takes a lot of strength, I know it.

Nice job, guys. See, that wasn't that horrible, was it. (One person says, "No.") You'd BETTER say no.

Come on, out of the saddle! Pop up. Use your legs. Don't haul yourself up with your arms.

You've got to prepare yourself mentally. Now is not the time to say, "I'm tired."

I'm gonna be right with you.

Get uncomfortable. That's when it really starts. Harder! Stronger! You want this! The last half of the class is where you make the progress. Your body is desperate for carbs. You have to make the switch to a different form of energy.

It's mental. Tell yourself, "I don't care. I can do anything for 4 minutes."

Fact: We all hold out just a little bit. That's your mind talking. Keep going. The end is NOW! Those quads should be screaming bloody murder at you. Keep going. You know it's coming.

Huntsman 140: Our Acrazing Day

For now I'm just posting Laura's video. Later I'm going to write about training, and preparation, and life's lessons.

Also, I'll be writing more about this, and posting more photos, at Aunt Louise.

25 Miles Today

 Ellen, Neva, Laura, Louise, and Reo

(Today being Thursday, June 19, 20140---the last day to reasonably do a training ride before the big one on Saturday)

I think I look like a bug with my helmet and glasses, don't you?

We met at a hotel near the airport and rode from there to the marina at the Great Salt Lake, and back again. "We" were Sandra's five siblings, plus Jeff and Rachael (both of whom will be riding with us on Saturday) and Coralee (who will be volunteering at one of the rest stations and supporting us generally on the ride).

June 7: Riding 104+ Miles in Utah Desert

Neva and James and I joined the Huntsman Hometown Heroes on Saturday the 7th for a training ride. Here we are at the beginning, all full of smiles and energy. We kept the smiles throughout the day, but the energy diminished drastically during the second 50 miles.

Neva and James have ridden with the HHH group before; in fact, Neva is one of the team's coaches. But it was a first for me, and a chance to get used to the higher Utah altitude and heat before the Huntsman 140 on June 21.

Neva had brought a bike for me to ride, as well as energy drinks and an array of snack bars for us to share.

We rode on part of the same route we'll be taking for the Huntsman 140 on June 21. We started at a middle school just south of Salt Lake City to the town of Elberta and back, a total of about 104 miles.

Amazingly, James took these photos as we rode. He took his hands off the handlebars, pedaled up next to me and then Neva, said "Smile!" and snapped the photos of us, plus the view of the landscape we were riding through.

The HHH people call this section of the route, these long rolling hills through the desert just west of Utah Lake, "rollers," a good name for the rolling hills, and they say this is the most dispiriting. And we would agree with that.

BTW,  James's photos are on our Team Sandra page on Facebook. Check it out! All of us are training really hard. For instance, Ellen rode 55 miles that same day, from her home in Salem to the middle school where we ended up---an amazing and courageous ride. And check out one of Laura's rides, with life lessons. And Ellen has posted on the Team Sandra page a story about one of Reo's training rides.

Anyway, I'm really glad I did that ride! The elevation at Elberta is about 4,500 feet above sea level (actually, depending on which Web site you read, it's somewhere between 4,300 and 4,700 feet). And the elevation at Saratoga Springs,* which we rode through, is always listed as 4,505 feet. So we weren't at the maximum elevation we'll be at during the June 21 ride, which is about 6,600 feet. But it's about 4,000 feet higher than where I've been training here at home.

Note: The Arctic Circle in Saratoga Springs was/is like an oasis, as we spent a few minutes there washing the sweat off our faces and eating a chicken sandwich (James) and Moose Tracks Sundaes (Neva and me). The staff there were exceptionally friendly and kind to us, too. Maybe I'll stop there again on June 21.

The Pregnant Cycling Teacher

Tell you what, it made my day to find that today's 9 am spin class was being taught by someone who is about 8 months pregnant. When I got there, she was talking to a class member, about 7-1/2 months pregnant.

Then, as she started the class, she announced that she'll be here for the next 4 Mondays, then gone for 3 weeks, then back again. Someone said, "You could take more, you know. They give you 7 weeks, don't they?" And she said, "I only need 3."

Then she pushed herself as hard as she was pushing us. 

Like I said, it made my day.