The meth bust

I didn't have as much fun as I had hoped this weekend in Methow Valley. Sure, I certainly had fun watching the races, supporting teammates, and enjoying sunshine and warm weather, but overall, I was a bit bummed.

I finished the TT on Saturday with a horrendously awful time that put me in last place by minutes. No surprises there really. The hilly course wreaked havoc on my hip and I could not get my heart rate up at all. It was strange to roll across the finish having barely pushed my cardio, but knowing I physically went as hard as I could. Hey, I had fun with it, cheered on other riders, and tried to take it in stride.

I started the afternoon crit but only raced two laps before pulling myself. I hung with the pack but had no acceleration, no pop, nothing, and it was clear the morning TT had fatigued my hip more than I thought. Sunday morning I woke up incredibly sore, so I took the day off and didn't even start the RR. I'm making progress in PT and after dealing with this injury for almost three years, there is no way I want to set myself back over a race I'm not even in contention for.

So sure, racing didn't go well for me over the weekend, but I expected that and I didn't travel to Methow to race. The disappointing part of the weekend to me was being razzed by some teammates about not finishing the crit and not starting the RR. I may piss off a few people by saying this, but believe me, it's really not my intention. I was asked more than once, "So how does it feel to come all this way and not race?" I was honestly a little shocked and a bit pissed.

I signed up for Methow way back in March not thinking my season would be derailed. Sure, I knew my chance of having a good race this weekend was next to zero, and I knew I wouldn't make it through all three stages, but I still wanted to go to have some fun, enjoy hanging out with teammates, and generally support the team. I was out there all weekend on every corner, yelling for everyone. I was at the finish yelling for ALL of our guys that rolled across, even Chris Hill who finished late in the day. I love the guys on our team, and they're all class acts. Maybe I took things out of context, but it really did piss me off and put a negative spin on a weekend that would have been a lot of fun.

I don't regret going because I got to reconnect with some racing ladies I haven't seen in a while, and it was good to chat with them. To be honest, I think I will start exploring some new teams for next year. I've been with Zoka/Cucina Fresca for three years and I love my teammates, but I'm tired of having no women to train with, no women to race with, and no women to travel to races with. I will get my hip back into shape and I'll be out there training this winter. I just hope to train with some ladies for a change and stop dealing with guys' bullshit.