Clif Pro Team Gift Guide

CLIF Pro Team Gift Guide 2016

With a little less than a month to go before Christmas, we asked everyone on the team what his or her favourite product was. Without further ado, here are some gift ideas for the cyclist or adventurer in your life!

Although we think these items would make for amazing presents, we still believe that inviting your loved ones to join you on an outdoor adventure would be the best gift ever! 

Happy Holidays to everyone! :) 

- From the whole Clif Pro Team family 

Katerina nash

• “ There are those days when you just want to leave your fancy athletic helmet behind and bring on some city style. You still have to wear a helmet because safety is very important and you don’t want to want to get hurt or be a bad influence for any kids along the way. So here is my favorite helmet to put on while heading out on my cruiser to run errands or to a coffee shop.”
• “ To complete your look you can pair it up with these Oakley glasses.”

Katerina always has some style... You can't go wrong with her fashion advice!

Catharine pendrel:

• “Look good. Feel good. La DND gloves are my favorite. Comfortable and great in a wide range of temperature conditions, these gloves hold up to a lot of trail time.”

Maghalie rochette:

• When I get my CamelBak out, it means that I’m in for a fun adventure ride. Just seeing it makes me excited for what’s to come. It is not fun to be starving or to worry about food and equipment when you are out on the trail. That’s why you need a CamelBak Pack. This one is comfortable, spacious and light… My boyfriend prefers the L.U.X.E one because it is a little bigger, but I like the small version.
• I also really love the Kara Jeans from Prana. They are ideal for travelling because they look great and make you as comfortable as if you were wearing jogging pants.

We also love the bright colours of our CamelBak!

Marla Streb:

• "My Fox Shox always make me smile.  When riding Fox, I float at peace through time and space, and this ultimately makes me feel younger and more attractive." 
  
  ...Basically, I think what Marla is saying is: If you are hesitating, get a full-suspension MTB. On the team, we race with the Orbea Oiz, but we also love the Orbea Occam to bring our trail riding to the next level! 

Chris Mathis (Team Mechanic and adept enduro rider)

• "I can't mountain bike without my Fox Transfer dropper post.  Its the most reliable, maintenance free, post on the market.  The best parts are the ease of setup and the cleanliness of the small remote."

Haley Batten:

• “I love the SIXS Range X Mix TBX Neck Warmer and FSX Ear-Guard Headband. These items offer necessary protection from the cold, whether it's rain or snow, all while being very comfortable and stylish.”

Andrea Waldis 

• "I really like the giro candela gloves (yellow black). They the perfect training buddy for trainings (cycling, hiking, cross country skiing) in cold conditions and winter. The colour is also really good for safety during morning or evening rides."

From the whole team:

Clif Bars: The new nut butter filled Clif Bars are amazing. They make the perfect stocking stuffer for the adventurer in your life!

Sock Guy: Everybody likes receiving a good pair of socks. With Sock Guy, you are certain to find a pair that will fit your loved one's style! You can also check out our CXFever team edition socks.  

***Get 20% off an order of CXFever socks when using this code: XMASPIMENTO

CXFever team edition socks - What the Clif Pro Team have been rocking all CX Season! Get yours :) 

Rain Jacket. Every good cyclist or adventurer needs a rain jacket, because you never never know what mother nature will throw at you. On the team, we use two different types of rain jackets... 

• Lombardia DWR Race Rain Jacket: We use this one when it's cold and raining a lot. The best part about it is the "butt flap" which really helps to keep you warm and keep your butt dry. It's the perfect "cyclocross pre-ride" rain jacket. 
• Pursuit Combatto Wind Jacket: We bring this one when you leave home and you are not sur if it is going to rain during your ride. It is light, windproof, waterproof and it packs in a tiny little pocket so it is super convenient to carry on a ride. 

Maghalie rocking the Capo Lombardia rain jacket on a cold and rainy ride. Look at that butt flap!

CamelBak: Personally, I think everyone on the planet needs a reusable bottle that they can carry everywhere....I don't really like buying plastic bottles. For that, the Podium bottle is always a great stocking stuffer! They are great quality bottles and the fact that they are lockable make them even better for travelling - you don't need to worry that it will squirt all over your stuff! 

Pedros: The chain pig is awesome. Always the first step when we clean our bikes to make sure our chains are clean and shiny. It is so simple to use and it works great.  

Feedback Sports: The Omnium Portable Trainer from Feedback Sports is hands down the most convenient trainer we have ever seen. You just take off your front wheel and clip your fork on it and you are good to go. The best thing is it's size; you can pack it in a small bag, it weights nothing and it doesn't take up any space. We use it all the time to travel to races for our race warm ups.

Stages: The Stages Power Meters are obviously great. They are light and work really well. It's cool because you can change them easily from one bike to another and they are very precise. On the team, we are lucky to be using them on our mountain bikes, cyclocross bikes and road bikes. We have them for training as well as for racing and it is a great tool to measure your fitness, measure the needs of a race or to put more structure in your training plan. 

Garmin Computers:

• On the team, we like the Edge 520 for racing because it is smaller and lighter and gives you all the info you need.
• However, when out on long training rides, we like using the Garmin Edge 1000 because you can map rides in it and it will tell you where to go at every corner. It is amazing for adventure rides - especially because the software can see many trails and a lot of small dirt roads. Also great when travelling and you have no clue where you are!
   

Maxxis: Maybe a set of fresh tires for your favorite cyclist? That's one gift you can be certain he/she will use at some point. On the team, the Ikon is a very popular choice. Although we also use the Pace a lot for racing. 

Happy holidays everyone! :) 

12 things I love about the van

After my friend Luke posted about our van, a lot of people asked me some details about how the van is set up. Since I can't give everyone a real-life tour , I thought I would make a little list of my 10 favorite things in the van. However, I ended up having 12 favorites... 

So here are 12 things I love about our "Rolling Pimento" van. 
 

Solar Panels and Goal Zero Battery :

We have two 100W solar panels on the roof of the van that power a Goal Zero battery (Yeti 1250 Solar Generator). It’s literally the best thing. We have enough power to power the fridge, the lights, the fan, our computers and phones and from time to time, we can even crank out an espresso. Obviously, it's also eco-friendly, which I think is pretty rad. 

The lights:

We have a stripe of lights that is taped on the ceiling and go around the whole perimeter of the van. It is awesome to have good luminosity in your “rolling house” and the best part about those lights is that they use approximately 0 to 0.5 W of energy to work. With a little remote, you can easily change the intensity of light depending on the time of the day and how you feel.

The fridge:

We use an ARB fridge. It’s a great fridge because there is enough room in it to put food for 2 people for about 2-3 days. It doesn’t use much energy…I’d say about 40W during 30 seconds, once every couple hours. The best about this fridge is the way it is set up. It’s on a little plank with wheels, so we roll it in and out of a “slot” to use it - it's easy and room efficient. Thanks to the genius guy from who we bought the van!

The “Swivel bike rack”:

You want a bike rack but you also want to be able to open you back doors and have access to your storage? You need RAK Attach. It’s a swivel attach that can go with any kind of bike racks and it allows you to swing the bike rack out of the way when you want to open the back doors. 

The Swivel passenger seat:

Talking about swivels, the seat one is pretty convenient. Swivel it around and you’ve got a pretty sweet “hang out” area. Hard to understand how great it is until you actually swivel it for the first time and get to hang out in the living area.

Hand pump sink:

Ours is linked to a 5 gallons water tank and we use it mostly to wash the dishes. Honestly, if I had to do it again, I’d make the sink a little bigger (big enough to fit a plate in it). But it is still great to have it even if it’s small. We don’t have a grey water tank; instead, there is a little hole in the van and the water drops directly outside. It’s cool because we never have to empty a grey water tank. However, we make sure to not throw food scraps or chemical products in there.

Nemo Shower:

Here's how it works: You pump it with a little built-in-foot-pump, it builds some pressure inside the reservoir, and you can enjoy a nice shower with good pressure! You want it hot? Just add some boiling water in the reservoir. This portable shower is the best. It doesn’t take much room in the van and it is enough for about 6 showers. After that 6 showers, you just need to fill it up again. You can’t beat taking a shower outside under a sky full of stars!!

The fan:

We have a roof fan that we use quite a lot to freshen up the air. However, if we could, we would have AC in the van. In the summer it gets really toasty in there. It is fine to sleep at night because we crank up the little fan, but during the day, honestly...just get AC! That's the next upgrade we need to do. 

Talking about temperature, another good thing to have is a little propane heater. When you sleep in cool places, it can be fun to turn on Mr. Buddy a few minutes to warm up the van while having dinner or before going to sleep.

Mosquito net:

They make some really expensive mosquito nets for Sprinters, but we just made our own and it was super easy. It’s awesome to have when it’s mosquito season; it allows you to enjoy some fresh air without being eaten by the mosquitoes.

Bed:

We use this queen mattress. It is comfortable and it folds on itself so it is super easy to store. If you want a van, my advice would be to have a bed that is easy to build at night and to store in the morning. You’re going to do it everyday, so you don’t want it to be complicated. Ours never completely goes away, so we can leave the pillows and blankets on it during the day. However, when it is folded, it takes up only half the space of when it’s 100% opened, so we still have a lot of free space in the day.

BBQ:

If you like cooking and eating good food, having a portable BBQ in your van is a good idea. When we are in the van, we eat outside most of the time, so having the BBQ allows us to diversify the way we eat a little bit. Not only can we grill things, but we also put our cast iron inside and close the lid of the BBQ to use it as an oven.

Storage:

Now this part is the most important of all. If you ride bikes, you want to have enough room in your van to store the bikes inside. Even if you have a sweet rack, sometimes you will have to store them inside, so make sure you have enough room. Our storage is at the back and it is located under the bed. Here are a few tips we found to optimize the storage:

• Bed height: Make sure the bed is high enough to put bikes under it. Or low enough so you can sit on the bed without hitting the ceiling with your head… One or the other. Don’t put your bed at a middle height, because you won’t be able to sit on the bed or put bikes underneath.
• Hooks: Drill a bunch of hooks and use bungee cords to hold your stuff in place in the back of the van. Bungee cords are simple to use, they don’t take up any space and they are versatile.
• Bike tools: We installed some tools on the doors (see picture) and it is super convenient to have access to tools easily.
• Nets: They are good to store your stuff and they don’t take up any room. Not just in the storage area at the back of the van, but even on the walls inside the van.
• Cupboard + drawers: If you have a cupboard, it’s awesome if there is a drawer in it. It facilitates the access to your stuff. We have a cupboard/drawer with all our utensils and plates and another one that we use as a pantry. If you have drawers, make sure you have a way to close them tight; we use a magnet system.

The Driver: 

All in all, the very best thing about having a big van is that it allows David and I to go on small trips and adventures without having to go in hotel rooms, but while still being comfortable. But, the VERY, VERY best thing about it, is that it makes long distance driving way more fun... The truth is, I rarely have to drive because David does most (read all) of the driving. That means I can just prepare lunch, stretch and hang out in the living area while he drives! :) 

Basically, my advice would be: if you are thinking about it, just go for it and get one. But don't quit everything to get a van before trying it first. Personally we prefer using it only for small trips. That's just us though, do whatever floats your boat! 

Click on the photo below to see the whole picture gallery :) 

Photo from Luke Batten

The BBQ

Making pizza

David taking a shower

View from the swivel seat - Bed open

Inside the van- view from the swivel seat.

Some storage

View from the bed

View from the bed

Bed folded

To fill up the water bottles

View from the back

Storage area

Storage area +tools

Rolling Pimento

Reading outside - Thanks little lights!

The swivel rack! Photo Luke Batten

Come take a tour!

Fridge

Eden hanging out

The van - Luke Batten

Off we go! Look at all the bikes

Northampton International

This weekend, David, Jeremy and myself drove (actually, he drove and I was co-pilot) to Northampton, MA for the 3rd and 4th rounds of the Verge New England CX Series. 

We got to the hotel on Friday afternoon and received my new National Champion skin suit that Waldek had shipped overnight after spending 2 days sewing and preparing. It looked very professional. 

Waldek cut off the Maple Leaf off one of Catharine's LUNA skinsuit and sewed it on a new CLIF skinsuit with no rainbow stripes. What a dedicated man!! Thank you Waldek :) 

In short, it was a super fun weekend. I won on Day 1 and got 3rd the second day. The courses were fun, the energy and atmosphere at the event was great and I was happy to do honour to the Canadian Champion suit that Waldek had put so much effort in making. David was all smiles and kept my bikes rolling smooth and with no problems. We had good fun and I was grateful for the support I receive from Clif Pro team and from my friends and family! 

Now if you want more details on how it went, please see below. 

Friday: 

Drive to the hotel, get the skin suit. Impressed by Waldek’s ability at sewing. Get changed. Go for a fun ride in Vermont’s country roads with Dave and Jé. Take a shower. Eat Thai food….Mmmmm. Go to grocery store, hang out in hotel room, sleep. 

Saturday: 

Wake up. Breakfast. Barista coffee in the french press. Dynamic stretching. Prepare bags for the race and some sandwiches for lunch. Drive to venue. 

Pre ride once. Pick up + pin numbers. Pre-ride again. Course is fun and fast. Eat Luna Bar (Dark Chocolate Mocha Almond) , eat Clif Bloks. Warm up on FeedbackSport trainer. Eat gel. David puts 20 psi in tires. Go to start line. 

• Whistle goes off. 
• I get the hole shot. 
• Everyone is following me. It is windy. "Better not push too much and burn all my matches now". 
• Accelerate out of corners. “yes! only 4 of us now.” 
• Emma attacks. I follow. Separation is created. 
• After 2 laps, it’s only me and Emma. 
• We work together a little bit. She goes in front. 
• Emma HAMMERS the run-up. “Crap, she runs fast!” 
• I catch up in technical section in the woods. 
• 2 laps to go. 
• Exactly same thing happens… Emma SMASHES the run-up. “Crap Magh, you should have known!” 
• Emma gets a 2 bike length gap. 
• Emma slides in a corner in the wood section. 
• “Oh! here’s my chance” I go in front. Get a little gap. 
• Time to push it now. 
• “Just hold on until the end!” One to go. 
• Emma chases hard. “It hurts. But it’s okay. Just hold on”
• “I won!” Woohooo! (This is my first UCI CX win in the US!) 

David gives me jacket, a high five, water and recovery drink. Get dressed. Cool down with Dani. Receive a giant cookie on the podium! “I’m bringing desert to Taco night!!” David, Jeremy and I go to our friend Luke’s rental house for a Taco night. They are preparing everyhting. I want to help and offer to grate de cheese. Find out there is no cheese grater. I cut cheese in tiny pieces for 45 minutes. Eat delicious Taco meal with Dave, Jeremy, Luke, Dani, Tyler, Katie, Josie, Kevin and Jamie. So fun, they are smart and interesting and funny. Share the gigantic cookie. Clean up. Find the cheese grater “Can't believe it!”. Drive back to hotel. Happy about the awesome evening we just spent. Shower. Sleep. 

Sunday: 

Exactly the same thing as Saturday except I do laundry, David prepares the sandwiches and we listen to Christmas songs. At the venue, again, exactly same thing happens, except the course is different. 

• They say go! 
• I get third wheel from the start. 
• “Ouuuff, it’s hard” Not feeling awesome. 
• After 1.5 laps, “Okay feeling better now” 
• Emma, Ellen and I ride together at the front.
• "Emma is really strong today."
• It’s tactical. Crystal bridges to us and attacks. 
• With 1 to go, Ellen gets a gap. Me and Emma chase. 
• Emma bridges and attacks. I don’t quite get there. 
• Finally, catch up to Ellen with 3 min to go. 
• I kind of face plant in run up. 
• I lose Ellen. 
• Finish 3rd. 
• No thrilled, but not bad. I regret not trying to attack! 

Cool down, watch men’s race, podium. David packs up everything in the car. I try to help but I actually do nothing productive at all. David drives us home. Stop for Indian food. I reflect on the race and learn a lot from it. Listen to good music. I try to stay awake, fall asleep. I’m a useless co-pilot. 

All in all it was a great weekend!

Best trophy ever. 

Picture form Angelica Dixon. Happy to win the race! 

Good battles with Emma and Ellen this weekend. I wonder for how many more years the three of us will be racing together... :) 

Dream day at CX Nationals

“What a f**ked up sport you crazy people participate in. But man is it cool and energizing to watch!! It gave me chills.”  

That’s how my uncle, who has never seen a bike race before, described the event. And I feel like it sums up the weekend perfectly. 

This year, Cross Nationals were held in Sherbrooke, QC which is about a 2h drive from where I live. That meant that my family was there along with a couple of good friends, to watch the race and cheer. On race day, the conditions were cold and wet so it made the already hard course even more exciting. The atmosphere at the race was electric. It was cool to see so many people conquering the rain and cold to come out and cheer.  

Here is a little recap of how it went. 

On Friday, we went to check out the course and it was already a little bit muddy. When we woke up in the morning of the race, there was snow on the ground and the thermometer read around 0C. It promised to be an exciting day. We had breakfast, prepared our stuff and headed to the venue early so I could check out the course a few times before the start. Here’s a detailed and quick recap of how it unfolded… 

• Meet up with parents at venue. Build tent. 
• Tiny warm up on rollers. 1st pre-ride
• David washes bike.  
• Try to stay warm in car. Listen to Beyonce. David wrenches bike.
• Pre-ride with Ruby West. We exchange advice. I wash out a couple of times. We laugh. “Better crash now than later” 
• It’s muddy and hard. Freaking awesome. 
• Eat about a million Clif Bloks.
• Get changed in my dad’s heated car. "Sorry environment" (I turned on the car for a few minutes to stay warm). 
• David washes bike again.
• David puts embrocation on my legs (I know, what a guy.) 
• I touch my legs. 
• Put on eye contacts. 

Wait a minute…. Put embrocation on and THEN put eye contacts? 

• AAAAARRRRRGGGGGGHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!! OUCH F*&?(?E+&?E*##U*&&*??%9869!!!!!! 
• My eyes burn and cry for 5 minutes. 
• Listen to Beyonce until my eyes stop crying and finish dressing up for race. 
• Warm up on rollers under tent with Ruby West while watching Peter Disera rip appart the U23 men’s field.
• “6 inches, she walked in the club like no body’s business…” Beyonce is getting me pumped for the race. 
• Roll to the start line. 
• Mical Dyck gets the hole shot. 
• She slides a tiny bit. I see opening and get in front of her and Christel. 
• Get tiny gap. Slide out in off camber. “It’s slippery”. 
• Run.
• Sandra chases me. “Oh merde! Stay calm.” 
• Gap increases. “Don’t mess it up Magh. Focus” 
• Basically, the whole race goes like this: Run. Ride hard when I can. Go slow when it’s slippery. Run again. Slide out, “iiihhhhhhhh" save it. Slide out on other side “oooohhhhhh", save it ”phew”. Crash. "good thing I practiced jumping on bike on both sides”. Grind through mud.  "Screw it, let’s just run for a little bit." Etc…. 
• See the finish line. “WTF” 
• ARRRRGGGGHHHAHAHDGSDGSFUDSFKSDGFUDSF!!!! CAN’T BELIVE IT. Throw my hands up. Smile, yell, cry for 2 seconds. 
• Hug family, Dave and friends. Mommy is crying. Feels amazing to embrace and celebrate with my family. 
• Not too sure of my emotions.
• I’m National Champion. Feels so good. 
• Kind of flabbergasted for a few hours. 

1 hour later, my really good friend and training partner Jeremy Martin won the men’s title. And for the second time that day (3rd time if we count the embro-in-the-eye situation), I cried and lost my sh*t. 

The best part about the whole weekend was being able to share this moment with people I love. The fact that my friend Jeremy won the men’s title made the day that much sweeter. Both of us, as well as our coach David, were overwhelmed by the love and support we received. It was pretty amazing and very touching to see how people were genuinely happy for us. That evening, we went out with pretty much everyone who raced that day, and celebrating with friends (opponents in the race, but friends outside the tape) reminded me one of the reasons why I love the sport so much; there is an immensely strong camaraderie between people! Our family also joined us and everyone had a good time.

All in all, I am super happy and proud that I achieved that big goal (and dream) of mine. But I think the emotion I feel the most is gratefulness. That win was a team win in so many ways. If I could, I’d split that jersey and share it with the amazing support crew that surrounds me.

The Clif Pro team and all our sponsors, my teammates who have been helping me, advising me, mentoring me and supporting me for the last 3 years, my family, my friends, my boyfriend and coach David who are by my side every single day, Beyonce for the pre-race good vibes and so many other people. I’ve had a lot of disappointments, but you guys were always by my side and helped me to keep my head up, keep working hard & well and keep believing, and it all worked out this weekend. Somehow, all the disappointments and hard work make that success taste just a little better. THANK YOU. 

Winning Nationals is something I have been dreaming of for a long time. It will be an honour to wear the maple leaf for the next year.  

Thank you again to all who made it possible. 

I'm off to wash the bikes with David now. As awesome as it is, at the end of the day, it's only a bike race and life must go on!  :) 

Cheers. Oh, and CXFever. 

Maghalie

**Note: The bullet point style of writing is an idea I borrowed from my friend Dani Mariea. Make sure you check her blog if you want to laugh! 
 

Me, Ruby and Beyonce under PowerwattsNord tent. 

Start. Tongue out, guns out. Is that the saying? Photo: Jean-Frédéric Grandmont

"just keep moving" Photo: Jean-Frédéric Grandmont

"Focus and don't mess up". Photo: Jean-Frédéric Grandmont 

Photo from: Pasquale Stalteri

I love these guys. So proud of them. Best day ever. 

Rej is happy. Thank you dad (mom was also happy, but she was crying so she isn't on the pic). 

Stole that pic from Pedal magazine. I think Pasquale Stalteri took it. Thank you Uncle Dan and tante Suzanne. xx

Cincy CX

Last weekend was the Continental Championships in Cincinnati. It is always one of my favorite weekend of racing, because the courses are super fun and everyone shows up. It was really great to spend time with the team again and to see everyone at the race. It had been a while since I had not been racing to one of these big events, so it felt really good to be back and feel the good vibe of 'cross races. 

Here's a quick description of how the weekend went. I tried to give as much details as possible with the least words I could.

Format of blog post was inspired by my friend Dani Mariea. Pictures are from Luke Batten, Waldek or Katerina. 

 

Friday

Wake up at 4h AM and David drives me to the airport. Eat overnight oatmeal in the Air Canada lounge and High 5 myself for preparing a breakfast! On the plane to Chicago: read, eat, sleep, land. Get on the plane to Cincinnati: Meet and chat with a nun (interesting lifestyle!), read, sleep, land. 

Meet Waldek at the airport and arrive to the venue. Build up bikes while grooving to Myron's jam at the Clif Bar tent. Pre-ride at Devou Park. Hang out sesh on the course with the Ten Speed Heroes. So fun, can't sop smiling. Quick shower. Go to restaurant for Waldek's birthday. He orders appetizers (yes, he had calamaris). We order rest of meal. All the strangers at the restaurant want to sign his Bday card. Quick stop at Whole Foods for tomorrow's lunch. Bed.

Saturday

Me and Hannah have breakfast in the hotel. They have waffles, I am happy. Pack bags. Go to race site. Eat sandwich and pin numbers on. Pre-ride by myself. Hannah races at 12h50. She races really well and finishes 3rd. Everyone is happy- woot woot! Pre-ride with Katerina: Conclusions - 1. She is smart. 2. No more pre-rides, it is HOT! So grateful for Katerina's help. Studying of Junior and U23 men's race start.

Chris preps bikes. 18.5 psi. Drink slushy water at the start to cool myself down (Thank you Katka!). Based on early races and beginning of season studies, I purposely choose to stage behind Courtenay McFadden...

• She delivers and gets the hole shot = opening for me to move up from second row. Think to myself: "Nice work Courtenay!"
• Someone crashes. Tiny chaos... "Just relax and go around". 
• Katie is at the front... "Better get going, this is going to stick. Georgia would definitely go." 
• Opening to pass 3 girls before off camber: Take advantage of it. Bridge to Katie.  
• On Katie's wheel: "Hmm, she's fast." 
• After 3 laps... "It's really hot and I don't feel good at all. Want to stay 2nd, don't want to end up at hospital again". 
• Figure out a strategy in my mind. Confirm it with Katerina on the side of the course: "Stay calm, ride technically well, keep momentum, stop "pushing too hard". 
• Slip on a corner, Crystal passes me, I end up 3rd. PanAm Champs podium - cool. 
• Fun race, happy/grateful to be back racing and happy to share it with my teammates! 

Podium. We got chamy cream! Give my flowers to Waldek. Cool down for me. Team is tearing up the tents. Call David to share excitement. Cheer the guys race. Jérémy has a mechanical (Crap!) but he is riding so well and even bunny hops the barriers. So proud of him! Leave the venue and stop to a "very fancy asian restaurant". Katerina and I take a picture under a gigantic horse statue...We are at P.F Changs. Waldek orders appetizers. HE has calamaris. Waiter is horrible: Hannah almost dies and he blows Waldek's surprise birthday cake. Go to new hotel. Laundry. Waldek is awesome and gives me a massage. ZZZZzzzzzzzzz 

Sunday

Wake up and Katka is still sleeping. Try to be quiet, get downstairs to eat breakfast. Team goes to breakfast. Can't resist, I eat 1 pumpkin pancake. Pack bags, quick stretch, go to Kings Park. Pre-ride with Hannah and Katka. Pre-ride again with Hannah, Katka and Waldek. It's hot. Hang out in my sports bra and bag of ice on my head...Not classy, but it's hot. Pre-ride again. Chill out, prepare, mess around, wait for 3:20 O'Clock. Warm up. IT'S HOT...I stress out about the heat, talk about my worries to Waldek. We put iced water bottles on my bikes. I stop panicking. 

• Good start. Make front group selection. 
• Someone messes up on the little steep hill. I'm behind Katka. We all mess up on that lil steep hill. 
  • Spectator yells: "YOUR TEAMMATE DID THAT TO YOU". I laugh. 
  • First 2 girls get a gap after the steep hill. Not laughing anymore. 
  • Katka + Katie go away. Not able to bridge back.
  • Trying to be tactically smart for the rest of the race. 
  • Ellen Noble ends up beating me on that same little steep hill. 
  • Katerina wins! Wooo!! 
  • I finish 4th. Oh well. Lost podium, still happy! 

Post race stories with the Ten Speed Heroes. Cool down with Hannah and Katka. Call David to share excitement. Pack bikes, watch men's race. Drive to hotel. Go to Mexican restaurant. Have a sip of Margarita, already feel drunk. No more margarita. Katka gets massage, I hang out with her and Waldek. Can't sleep, too excited. 

Monday: 

Wake up at 5AM and fly home. Share excitement & good meal with Dave and family! 

Conclusions of the weekend: What a fun weekend that was! Excited for Nationals this weekend. I love my teammates. I love the 'cross scene. I love my family. CX Fever is so high.