SPANDEX RETROSPECTIVE

There are really no words than can express what this experience has meant to me. I hear people saying it was the best week of their life. I hear people saying that it is the best vacation they have ever had. And then I hear people that say that it has changed their lives. Now, I don't think I can say it was the best week of my life, but I know for sure it has changed me forever. And not just the week. Yes, those 7 days left a lasting impression on me, but it was as much the 5 months leading up to that week that changed me. It was the literal blood, sweat, and tears that meant so much. The ride was just icing.

When I signed up for this ride, my motivation was simple. I wanted to see if I could do it. I am a fortunate person. Many things in life come easy to me, and those are usually the avenues I peruse. But this did not come easy. This whole experience was an uphill battle from the minute I got on a bike (unsuccessfully (Kerry and Autumn I'm talking to you)).

But that's the thing. I think so many times in life we become complaisant. We get comfortable and repetition sets in and all of a sudden little problems and stupid issues and things you have no control over become huge. I needed to put things in perspective. I needed to push myself and see a bigger picture.

And for all the time, money and energy (and seriously, blood) I put into this I got back tenfold. It wasn't just riding into closing ceremonies. It was being able to look in the mirror at the end and know that maybe yesterday I was just a skinny blond girl from LA, but today I am a skinny blond girl that just helped raise $10 million to help people she doesn't even know. Not to mention knows how to ride a bike pretty damn well. No one ever likes to think of themselves as self centered or one dimensional and it's nice to be able to definitively and sincerely say "I'm not, look what I did." Even if it's just to yourself.

I had the privilege of meeting so many amazing people. HIV positive and negative. ALC is a community of such overwhelming positivity. It really is something that you have to see to believe.

Autumn said she didn't know what would happen to the blog now. Well, I think that's silly. She is already signed up and ready to go for ALC 10. I am so excited for her to experience all the things that I did this year and I know she will kick ass. And be way more pro than me. I expect every moment to be documented. As for me, I have no idea. Ask me when I finally catch up on sleep and laundry. I do know that I would not have traded this experience for anything from start to finish.

And just so you don't think we have all gone completely emotional on you... please enjoy with love from us ALC veterans.

-Caitlin

DAY 7: 62 MILES

I heard someone on Day 5 say it was like Christmas. I disagree. Day 7 was Christmas. My shower, my dog, and my sense of accomplishment was so close I could taste it.

I'm not going to lie. Breaking down my tent on the morning of Day 7 was bittersweet. There was a sense of finality about the last morning waking up to my tent neighbor faces and bundling up in everything I had in my suitcase to go to breakfast. It was...almost...sad. The minute my butt hit that seat though, I knew I wanted to get home and off of that thing. Like now.

For me Day 7 was not only finishing the ride, it was going home quite literally as we actually passed my apartment at the one mile marker point before the finish line. I knew most of the ride on the last day like the back of my hand. When we rode out of Ventura into Oxnard I was excited, when we saw our first 310 area code billboard I was ecstatic, and when we crossed into Malibu and Los Angeles county lines I almost passed out with joy. HOME!

The ride was pretty easy that day, although I was in a whole lot of pain. The pain in my shoulder was pretty excruciating and there were a couple moments I actually thought I would have to stop. However the idea of not riding up San Vicente into closing ceremonies was not something I would entertain, so I ignored it. Tara, being the genius that she is suggested that I take down one of the straps of my sports bra to relieve some of the pressure and it helped a ton. Leave it to Tara to think of brilliant ideas that relate to clothing removal.

Once we got to lunch (non sanctioned Malibu lunch) I knew there were a couple hills coming up that were going to be killer. So we skipped them by riding through the colony. These are the perks of riding through your own hood. You know the hill short cuts. I mean, I am generally a rule follower, but by day 7 it's like the last day of school. Behavior is questionable and all bets are off.

From about Cross Creek on I was running on pure adrenaline. I know every foot of that route. I greeted the Gladstone's 4 Fish like a long lost friend. OMG! Will Rogers State Beach, how I have missed you! I even took a hill on Ocean that used to give me nightmares with no problem. I was high on life and ready to be done.

The one final ride up San Vicente was a pretty emotional one for me. It was the street that Autumn and I rode down the first morning we trained (I should clarify: the first morning that I could actually get on the bike) and here I was riding up the very same street to finish ALC. Amazing. It was the easiest ride up San Vicente I have ever had, like the previous 6 days had just been the worlds best warm up for this hill.

Now, the VA is at the intersection of Wilshire and San Vicente so imagine my surprise when we are directed to actually turn down my street. No joke, we rode right by my house. And you know what was outside? Oh, I don't know...everyone I know wearing pink Team Caitlin shirts with signs yelling my name. Autumn had organized the whole thing and made each person a tee shirt to greet me. I love her. It was shocking and wonderful and I cannot even describe it. I pulled over and hugged and cried and held my dog and was in awe of the shirts.

But I had one more mile, so we finally rode into the VA, through the crowds and parked our bikes. It was like no feeling I have ever felt. I highly recommend it.

Team Caitlin groupies.

With my parents in my SWEET victory shirt. Too bad there was no glitter on it.

The Pos Peds at closing ceremonies.

MO's piece, slightly more poetic than mine: http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/outposts/aidslifecycle/

ALC pictures:

http://www.aidslifecycle.org/experience/photos/official-photos/day-seven/

-Caitlin

DAY 6: 88 MILES

Day 6 was the first day it occurred to me that this little adventure actually had a shelf life. 7 days seems like such an insurmountable task that it coming to an end was not something I really let myself think about. Night 6 was the last day in camp, and leaving camp that morning was actually pretty sad. But don't worry, I had 88 miles of riding to come to terms with my feelings.

On the morning of Day 6 I was really determined to ride as much as I possibly could. I went to Sports Med in the morning to get all taped up and got on my bike hoping for the best. By mile 5 I was already in pain. And was pissed. I decided to pull over and stretch. I cannot even express how much that helped! What I figured out was that stopping and stretching BEFORE my neck went into a massive spasm was really a good idea. Even if that meant stopping on the side of the road way more than I would have liked. By the time I got to rest stop 1 I thought there was a very good chance that I could do the whole day with this new plan, even if it meant I was the last one back at camp.

Day 6 was the best day of riding for me a far as scenery went. The Santa Barbara area is such a beautiful place with beaches and excellent real estate. So much more interesting to look at than mountains. Sorry. We also road on the freeway again. This time it was a much better experience. The road was actually flat which makes freeway cycling a whole lot easier. And here is the other thing about freeway riding: It seems a lot more efficient than taking some random windy back roads. And I do love efficiency.

The other best part about Day 6 was Paradise Pit in Santa Barbara. This is a non ALC sanctioned event with just the kind people of Santa Barbara organizing, baking and serving each rider as we pass through. I have to tell you that after riding your bike for 5 days, there is NOTHING better than all you can eat ice cream. And brownies. And croissants (I ate 3). I could have stayed here all day and eaten myself into a sugar induced coma but I was in a hurry to get back on the road. It felt as if the pain was something I was actually running from and the faster I went the further I got ahead of it. I realize that this is an absurd theory, but it got me through the day.

Once back in camp I called Autumn (!) as she was slated to come out to Ventura for the evening's candlelight vigil. Not only did she come, but she brought my sister. I generally hate surprises (Really, I'm not one of those people who say they hate them and secretly love them. They genuinely give me anxiety and I hate them.) but this one was totally awesome. It was so fun for both of them to see what I had been living all week, and what Autumn is going to live next year. I think the whole ALC metropolis is something that you really have to see to believe.

When it got dark, we were all given candles in paper cups around them to guard them from the wind for the vigil on the beach. Now this particular night my sister, Autumn, Tara, Ivy, Ethan and I were hanging out with our new friend and tent neighbor Jay. He was with us as we walked down to the beach and sat silently with our candles in the sand. Now Jay is HIV positive. He is also one of the most boisterous, full of life people you could ever meet. On this night however, sitting one the beach with thousands of lights surrounding him it was impossible to mask what he was feeling. And he had no reason to anyway. Tara and I sat flanking Jay, a freind we had only known for 5 days, holding his hands and crying with him. I can olny imagine what he has been through, what hundreds of our fellow riders have been through. But on that night, maybe more than any other night on the ride, we were there for each other in a tangible and meaningful way that is difficult to articulate.

At a point, people began to stand and move towards the ocean to extinguish their flames in the water. This is where the real beauty of ALC came in for me. Tara, Jay and I head towards the surf, still very serious and solemn ready to put out our candles. Tara and I lean down and plant our candles in the sand so the water can wash away our flames. Except for that it doesn't. The wave doesn't come right away and Tara's paper cup starts smoking. At first we all noticed it, but not wanting to spoil the moment ignored it hoping that the ocean would come and put it out soon. But it didn't. In about 30 seconds the entire cup/candle goes up in flames and Jay comes to our rescue by stomping the whole thing out. Of course this happens to us. So there we are laughing so hard we can't even speak after we had spent the last 20 minutes crying. This dichotomy was ALC for me. It was sublimely ridiculous and I loved it.

Ivy called it Pleasure Pit. That name works too.

Eating ice cream makes me happy.

I wasn't the only one that had to take a day off! MO did too! http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/outposts/2010/06/aidslifecycle-the-undesired-day-off.html

ALC pictures: http://www.aidslifecycle.org/experience/photos/official-photos/day-six/

-Caitlin

DAY 5: 67 MILES

Whoohoo! Day 5! Red Dress Day! Awesome! Except for that time the medical team told me I couldnt ride anymore and sent me back to camp at mile 11...yeah.

Backing up. Red Dress day is the 5th day of the ride every year and the concept initially was to have all the riders dress in red so it looks like one long AIDS ribbon coming down the road. Fantastic imagery. Well, add in some fab gays and "dress red" day becomes Red Dress day. SO much better! The best way to describe this day is a bike ride meets

Cirque d'Soleil meets Gay Pride. Some people have on a red jersey, some wear a red dress (yes, men and women) but some people's creativity and flair really is outstanding. Being as such, I thought this day needed a longer blog post, with a lot more pictures. I mean, amazing, right?

And lest you think that Red Dress Day is an easy, BS day of riding, please note it is just as difficult as the rest of the days. Only in a dress (or a tutu as the case may be).

The morning of Day 5 was a late one, what with all the costume preparations. It took us quite a while to get out of camp and my shoulder starting hurting almost immediately after getting on the route. At first it was a dull pain that I just figured I would deal with for the rest of the day. But within 2 miles is became a burning pain, and then it started to shoot down my arm into my hand and then, horrifyingly, my hand started to go numb. Well, as I have stated before, numbness is not really good for breaking. Or steering. So when I saw my teammates Tara and Ivy on the side of the road waiting for me, I pulled over and flipped out. The flipping out was partly due to pain, partly due to fatigue, and mostly due to panic that this meant I was not going to be able to ride anymore.

Once my lovely friends saw the state I was in they flagged a sweep car to take me to the next rest stop...against my will. Fortunately the fabulous Princess Sweep team picked me up, complete with tuts and tiaras and graciously swept me to rest stop. Once I got there I avoided the medical tent entirely until Tara dragged me over and made me lay out to the Med team what was going on. Once I did, the super nice Medical person I was talking to pretty much told me I was done for the day, and possibly the next day too. And then...I cried.

The thing was, as much as riding my bike is a pain in the ass, and as much as I would prefer to go back to camp and sit and eat until everyone else gets back, I didn't spend the last 5 months training to sit in a bus. No. Unacceptable. I was going to finish the ride in it's entirety, even if it killed me. But all of a sudden I was told that would not be the case. I was given a hug, a bag of ice, and told to wait for the bus to come pick me up and take me to camp. Thank goodness Tara was in a similar situation, but with her knee so she was there to wait with me. We waited for the bus for an hour and half. In which time we watch hundreds of riders in red costumes eat and chat and stretch until finally the last one left, they closed the rest stop, packed everything up and left. SO DEPRESSING.

The rest of the day was not that eventful. We got on the bus, ate lunch, longingly watched the riders ride by our windows, and got back to camp. Bright side: there were no shower lines.

While at camp I had a lot of time to think and I really had a personal epiphany. I realized that we were not riding to say that we rode 545 miles. We were riding to raise money and awareness and create a community for those living with HIV and AIDS. We were doing this for people who can't ride 10 miles let alone 545. And we are doing it for the Positive Peddlers who thank you for riding for them every time they pass. Basically, I needed to get out of my own head and see the bigger picture. My injury and failure to finish Day 5 were really not what was important. The $10 million we raised was important. My ability to ride was icing.

So after coming to this realization I was able to enjoy my day off. Tara and I took long showers, went back to Sports Med/Chiro (they LOVED us there) and generally had a nice day. And I was pleaently suprised to find out that Day 5 turned out to be the most difficult day of the whole ride thanks to 40 mph headwinds that made riding even downhill almost impossible. Yay for debilitating neck injuries!

I learned two things on Day 5. #1 was sometimes you need to get over yourself. #2 was try not to have a breakdown on the side of the road in a tutu. You look ridiculous.

Tent city + red dresses

Just a little mid ride stretching. No big deal.

Yes, they have cleats attached to the soles.

Red Dress Day goes pee.

Totally appropriate head wear.

This is dedication, even though I really hate crabs.

Cray Cray Red Dress Day. Ivy, Caitlin, Ethan, Tara.

ALC picture: http://www.aidslifecycle.org/experience/photos/official-photos/day-five/

-Caitlin

DAY 4: 97 miles

After the fun that was Day 3 I had to really check myself on the morning of Day 4. Following several self affirmations and deep breaths I was ready to have a good day. And I did! Like Day 3, Day 4 started with a big hill (0r two). Unlike Day 3, The Evil Twins did not make me want to chuck my bike off a cliff. Hooray!

The Evil Twins are a set of hills that are a lot less steep than Quadbuster, but a lot longer in milage. At the top of the second hill is the half way to LA mark and much celebration. I was worried after my experience the day before that I had lost my hill climbing talents. My experience on The Evil Twins relieved my fears though. I rode up those hills with my new friends (!) Karl and Frank and we sailed up with no problem. It was much easier than I thought it was going to be. When we got to the top, I was thinking "was that it??"

I am not sure why The Evil Twins required a name but the huge mountain on Day 1 didn't, but whatever.

Once we all reached the top of the second hill we got in line for the HALF WAY TO LA picture. The line took forever. Seriously. I think we waited for an hour and a half. But we had to get the picture, right? I think it was worth it, even though it took so long we almost had to be swept home because rest stops were starting to close, which made me SUPER nervous. I HATE being late.

There was also a nice long descent. About time.

The unfortunate part about Day 4 was my shoulder really started to hurt. If you have been keeping up on the blog (which you obviously have) you know that I have had shoulder/neck issues for some time now. I have been working on it with a PT, Dr. and Acupuncturist, but I knew it was only a matter of time before it would start to bother me. By rest stop 4 on Day 4, I was done. Thankfully my friend Marni was there when I decided to take the bus home with 15 miles to go. She assured me that it's OK to take the bus when in pain. The ride is about challenging yourself, not killing yourself. You don't want to jeopardize the whole rest of the ride because you wouldn't take care of yourself one day. This is a hard thing for my type A personality to accept. But I took her advise and got on the bus. And when I got back I went to the Chiro/Sports Med tent and based on what came later, thank goodness I did.

All in all Day 4 was a pretty good day. The weather was nice, the ride was nice, and I learned about recognizing my own limits. Just a normal day in the neighborhood.

Crays make it half way

Line for the picture. Longest line of the whole trip.

Really?

When LA tries to go camping.

MO gets it together for Day 4: http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/outposts/2010/06/aidslifecycle-a-fleet-of-riders-halfway-to-la.html

ALC pictures: http://www.aidslifecycle.org/experience/photos/official-photos/day-four/

-Caitlin

DAY 3: 67 MILES

I am not going to lie. Day 3 was my least favorite day of riding. My distaste for Day 3 was three fold: Quadbuster, freeway, cross winds. Gross.

After two really long days, a 67 mile day seemed like it should be positivly easy. There was one catch. The most feared hill of the ride, Quadbuster, was right at the beginning of the day. Now, I have tackled some pretty big hills in my training. Probably hills more demanding than Quadbuster. But please keep in mind that when I was killing myself on the way up to the conservatory or wherever, I had not spent the two days previous on a bike covering about 190 miles. This adds a level of difficulty to any hill that it is not easy to prepare for. And aside from that...the hill was long and steep and I did not like it. I heard a lot of "it's not that bad" and "it's easier than they make it out to be." FALSE. This hill sucked and in what was probably 15 minutes that felt like about 2 hours I made it up that crap hill. I stopped twice to catch my breath and swear, but I did not walk, which was what my goal was. So, good for me.

And another thing. Once you get up to the top of this mountain, you think there is going to be a nice decent right into a rest stop, right? FALSE AGAIN. I don't understand how it's even geographically possible, but there was almost no downhill to what was a seemingly endless uphill. Unfair.

The second nasty part of the day came when we went on the freeway the first time. When I tell people I rode my bike on the freeway they always assume it's some back country highway, or that lanes were shut down to accommodate us. No such luck. We are riding bikes on the 101 freeway. As bizarre as that sounds...thats as bizarre as it was.

As scary as that is, the freeway part was not the bad part. The bad part was the quality of the road. The lanes seemed as if they had been repaved recently. I am pretty sure the shoulder, however, had not be maintained since 1932. There were cracks at least 2" high every foot. Horrible. I don't have a mountain bike! The Skinny Bitch is not equipped to take on terrain like this! But don't worry, if you fall, it's not like you will fall into heavy oncoming freeway traffic...oh wait! When I returned to camp that night I told the Bike Whisperer that if my ovaries are damaged from this ride due to poor terrain, she owes me one baby which I will collect in 5-7 years.

The third and final nail in the coffin for day three were the cross winds. Headwinds are great, tailwinds are hard, but crosswinds are going to knock you flat on your ass on the side of the road. They were so strong on he last leg on the ride that I felt like I was leaning horizontally into them, straitening up when a car comes by and blocks them, and then immediately leaning over again when it passed. I mean...seriously. I do not weigh enough for this.

The landscape was not really my thing on Day 3 either. A lot of rolling golden fields etc. etc. Not that I don't appreciate it, but I bores me a little. It was also really hot, but I probably only noticed that because I was so cranky from all of the other elements of the fun day.

Now that that's all out of my system, I can say I did enjoy some things from the day. Our lunch stop was in Bradley, California and the entire town puts together a BBQ/fundraiser catering to ALC which funds their sports and scholarship programs for the year. It was great to feel like you are helping out yet another group of people, and I got a cheeseburger. What's not to love?

Also, I got into camp pretty early Day 3 and was actually able to relax a little which was awesome. You cannot know how amazing just sitting on grass and stretching feels in that situation and finishing at 4pm meant I had some time to do that. And I had time to eat TWO dinners! Very luxurious.

In all, I can say that if I do the ride next year (ummm...right) I may get sick for Day 3. Just saying.

Cheeseburgers in Bradley

70 miles of this? Really?

ALC pictures: http://www.aidslifecycle.org/experience/photos/official-photos/day-three/

-Caitlin

DAY 2: 107 MILES

I think the morning of Day 2 was one of the more difficult moments for me of the entire ride. It's when the insanity of what you have set out to do really hits home. You get off your bike after day one, througouly satisfied, feeling good, and no sooner have you contently fallen asleep than you have to wake up and...do it all over. Only this time for longer. Are you serious. You are tired, you are cold, you are sore. You think: There is no possible way I can do this. For instance, as I was riding my first 20 miles through some farmy looking land just south of Santa Cruz I considered faking an illness. I thought of what I would say to donars, friends and family when I unceremoniously bailed and flew back to Los Angeles, where I BELONG. But I made it to rest stop one. And this is where I realized my most vital ALC strategy: I cannot look at the day as 100 miles, or 10 hours. I have to look at it as how many miles/hours it is until I can stop, refill my water bottle and eat another pop tart. And that is exactly how I functioned for the rest of the ride. "8 miles to more food" or

"15 miles to sun block reapplication."

Now, Day 2 was my first century. I had several opportunities to participate in centuries before the ride, but to be perfectly honest I just had no interest in doing so. And I have to say that unless your century includes fried artichokes, otter pops, and home made cookies, you can keep it. This is my kind of 100 miles. And each of these little (non official) stops are not only what made my first century doable, it made it fun(ish). And a woman baking 3,000 cookies for all ALC riders and dancing bear fairies (don't ask) handing out otter pops is also what makes ALC such a wonderful experience. I was so glad that, even though I was alone and too shy to actually make eye contact with anyone most of the time, I stopped at every one of these stops and experienced them.

At the "otter pop/water stop" there was also an additional attraction worth mentioning. Tucked back in what looks like a parking lot is a lovely old mission that every year lays out a blank alter cloth and asks ALC riders to leave thoughts, prayers, and musings. Once all the ALC riders sign it, and the madness it packed up for another year, the mission uses the alter cloth for the rest of the year. This simple gesture is really the kind of thing the ride is all about. Bringing people from all walks of life together for a cause that transcends all social groups, lifestyles and geography. It was beautiful to see.

I also have to say that the dancing men in tutus handing out icy treats in front of the mission housing said alter cloth is also what ALC is all about. An ludicrous balance of ridiculousness and sincerity. A big dose of purpose, with just enough humor mixed in to keep you going. That juxtaposition would continue to appear throughout the week.

I have to confess that it wasn't until about mile 60 that I really realized that by completing all 107 miles today I actually would be able to say I had done a century

(plus 7). I know that seems obvious, but I was preoccupied with a couple other things, OK? I never, in a million years, thought I would be a person that would say "Oh, yeah. I've done a century." Things like that are for people that do marathons, or triathlons, or The Amazing Race...not me. Except: yes.

Setting up the tent that night wasn't so bad. I was on a century high.

People who ride bikes like fried artichokes.

Nerd.

Cookies!!!!

Michael seems to have slacked days 2 and 3, but here are the ALC pictures:

http://www.aidslifecycle.org/experience/day/two.html

-Caitlin

DAY 1: 79 MILES

I have to say that I slept like a baby the night before ride out. Maybe it was that I was at peace with my fate, maybe it was drugs...who knows? I have figured out though, waking up at 4:30 sucks no matter how well you sleep.

Anyway, 4:30 rolled around and I got up, put on my DAY 1 OUTFIT and said a silent prayer that I survive the week. I want to interject here that all 7 of my outfits were specifically planned, organized, and packed into 2 gallon zip locks in my gear bag. No can ever say I was not prepared. I also want to point out that DAY 1 jersey was a gift from my co-workers at the Juice and it was, as you can see, a custom job with my name on it, and what you can't see: completely glittered out. It was glorious.

Opening ceremonies was short and sweet, but not so short that we could forget what the purpose of the event was. A riderless bike is walked through the ceremony as a symbol of all those that are lost to AIDS, and I cannot think of better motivation to ride the next 7 days than that imagery.

I will admit, however, that as motivated as I was, walking outside and seeing the foggy cold and realizing for the next week that bike OWNS you was one of the most intimidating things I have ever faced down. The only thing I could think was that everyone around me was in the same boat. If they can do it so can I...right?

And I did. All 79 miles (and some pretty big, surprise mountains). Day one included the glory of my first rest stop snack binge, my first lunch eaten alone (like a 7th grader with head gear...I told you, I don't make friends well) and the first day of realizing that this challenge was going to be so much more mental than physical it actually scared me. The scenery was very beautiful, and we were next to the ocean most of the time, which I much prefer to...not the ocean (more on that to come). The fog and moisture killed me. Despite all of these things, I rode every mile and actually made pretty good time back to camp with all kinds of cheering, friendly faces.

Now, there are very few things as satisfying as finishing a ride like that so it's great to get home and...have to lug you crap for a mile and put up a tent alone...and then shower in a truck. Let's just say these things took a little adjusting to. But I figured out the tent and the showers and finished my first day. I asked myself countless times on day 1 when the fun part starts. Little did I know.

Entering Opening Ceremonies

At least it was sunshiny and pretty that day...right.

I also, because I am the most thorough person ever, give everyone a little additional coverage.

Michael Owen of the LA Times was also a rider and wrote a piece to recap each day. I am including this because he is, undoubtably, more articulate than I am.

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/outposts/2010/06/aidslifecycle-takes-off-for-la.html

Also, I am including the link to the official ACL pictures in case you are interested in seeing more images than the three I stingily provided:

http://www.aidslifecycle.org/experience/photos/official-photos/day-one/

-Caitlin

PREGAMING

On Thursday 6.3 I flew (on a one way ticket) up to SF to begin my little adventure. My very good, wonderful, and patient friend Eric volunteered (kind of) to take care of me for the weekend, and thank goodness for him. He picked me up from the airport, made sure I was fed, transported, and distracted just long enough to see me off to ride into the sun...rise.
On Friday we went to the beach to do a little communing with nature and deep breathing. I needed a lot of those things to stay calm and not to totally freak out from nerves. Also I got my nails done. I discovered my camera was broken, so the rest of the trip was captured by my nifty new camera...picked out by Eric because I was in no state to make decisions (although electronic decisions are never really my thing).
So on Saturday it was time to head to the Cow Palace for orientation. Yes, this whole thing started at a place called the Cow Palace. Ridiculous.
Anyway, I drove (!) Ivy, Tara and myself over to Daly City (!) to be oriented. All prepared with my plastic sleeve of paperwork, I was ready for anything. While there we watched a safety video, turned in forms, bought tee shirts (that was just me???) and got our tent # for the rest of the week. Very exciting!
It was all a little bitter sweet for me to go through all of this without Autumn. I actually cried during the safety video (Autumn LOVES safety!) and had to straight lie to the tent people (oh yes, my tent mate will come pick up her tags soon!) and it was very hard not to have her there. Being that scared and nervous and excited is something only people in that position could really understand and it was really difficult for me not to be experiencing it all with her, the only person in the world who could really understand just what I was thinking. It's hard to readjust your thinking when you have planned something one way for so long, but it was what it was, so I just had to deal with it.
On I went through the day and checked into my hotel for my last night on a real bed. It was glorious. Waking up at 4:30 the next morning: not so much. Time to begin!

Our wonderful and amazing friend Chris made this little sign to make sure everyone that wasn't riding this year would be there with us. Autumn is on there on the bottom corner. Don't worry, I cried. Love you, Chris.

Tara and Caitlin. Cow Palace rock stars.
-Caitlin

DONE AND DONE

OK, folks. I am back. It took me a couple days to decompress (and sleep) but now I am back at work, back to life, back in LA, and off of my bike. It's a strange feeling to go back to normal life after such an abnormal experience. It's really strange to think this time last week I was riding a bike on the 101 in some random place I have never heard of, population 42. It almost seems a little like a weird dream, but then I look at my glove tan lines, or my calves, or my photographic evidence and I know it was real. Really, really, real.
So, because you all have been such dedicated blog followers, I feel obligated to give you a comprehensive recap of all 7 (really 8) days of this adventure. As noted in the past, Autumn is much better at this kind of thing than me, but I will do my best.
I will say that it really bothers my OCD self that as I post all 7 days they will show up in reverse order, but that is the nature of the blog and posting them backwards makes my head hurt, so I will just have to deal. Enjoy!
-Caitlin

Caitlin is a Hero

She's back!!! And in one piece and doing amazing. OMG. You should see her muscles!! Seriously. Anyway, I'm sure that it will take a few days, but she will blog and give you her highlights. Until then, here's a look at the welcome we had planned for her and the other riders:

We had such a great time waiting for Caitlin to roll by -- the 1 mile to go corner went literally in front of Caitlin's apartment, so we spent 3 hours cheering for the riders and making sure they knew how fabulous they are. When we finally saw Caitlin, with her ribbons in her hair, I'm not sure what the rest of the group did (I managed to gather 12 friends and a few strangers wandering by to wait on the corner) but I made a complete and utter fool of myself and screamed at the top of my lungs. And when my dear friend got off of her bike to say hello again, I dissolved into tears and hugged her tight. She is amazing. She is a Hero.

ALC9 raised over $10 million. There were just under 2,000 riders, 200 or so Roadies and even more support staff. They rode for 7 days and changed lives.

One of Caitlin's new friends, Jay (whom I met at the Candle Light Vigil in Ventura, CA on Night 6...Caitlin will give more details, but the dark pictures above show the 3,000 people gathered on the beach), stopped at the corner to say hello. After chatting and laughing with him for awhile, I asked him why he decided to ride in AIDS/LifeCycle. He told me that he rode this year because he has been HIV+ for 10 years, so he rode to celebrate living this long. I asked him if he would ride again. He said, "IF I make it to 15 years, I'll ride."

Red Dress Day!

Day 5 on the ride used to be known as "Dress Red Day." And then, a lot of fabulous (read: gay) men decided that it was more appropriately called "Red Dress Day." Mind you, this was the first thing we were told to plan for when we signed up for the ride. There is a lot of preparation that goes into Day 5 and the wearing of a dress whilst riding a bike.

Here is the outfit that Caitlin sported today; isn't she adorable??

~~Autumn

Day4: Put it in the Books

Caitlin is officially over half way home! How amazing is this? Our Caitlin. Our shoe loving, tv watching, cheeseburger eating, tracksuit making, dog obsessed Caitlin has officially ridden her bike halfway home from San Francisco in order to raise money and awareness to fight HIV/AIDs.

Here is a shot of her and her teammates celebrating at the halfway point:

Day 4 wasn't without its pain for Caitlin. Unfortunately, her neck problems she's been having since the first day we got on our bikes flared up and she had to break a little early today. Understandably, Caits is disappointed and mad that she won't ride every single mile, but she had to put her health first so that she can ride the next 3 days. She planned to get some Physical Therapy attention tonight and rest, and will continue to get Therapy treatments twice a day on her neck until the ride is over.

I can't wait to see her on Saturday! Can you even imagine what she's going to have to tell us when she gets back? Here are some more pictures that were taken at Opening Ceremonies and on the route by fellow riders:

~~Autumn

2 Days, 188.4 miles and another Monday at Work

I heard from Caits today! She called to announce the finish of her first Century. I am SO PROUD. And, I am not just a little bit jealous. She sounds good. She sounds tired and overwhelmed, but good.

I asked her if she was having fun. There was a long pause, a lot of umms and finally, "I feel really good about what I'm doing." So there you have it. No fun, but not terrible. I think that's progress!

She's got 5 more days and lots more miles and lots more peanut butter and lots more nights in a tent. She claims she's a pro at setting it up by herself. I also heard that she has a fan club of this jersey: The day Caits left for San Francisco, you know, to ride her bike back, her co-workers gave her a "legit Juicy biking jersey with glitter and everything." She wore it Day 1 and apparently it was quite the hit with all the fabulous gay men she is now friends with.

Meanwhile, I'm holding down the fort in Brentwood. No surgery date yet.....yeah, frustrating would be the nicest word I could use. But never fear, Dr. Name on the Door has stepped in and is helping this show to get on the road. I think that the whole team at Vargo PT made me take for granted good service, attention to detail and care for their patients......not everyone/not every office operates the same way. Hopefully, July will be the month for back surgery! (an explanation point doesn't really make it better)

I miss my friends. I miss the pain of lots of miles on the bike. I miss....sigh. Can you miss something you've never done? I'm not sure, but I am sure that I would rather be in a tent right now than in my comfy apartment. I miss Caitlin.

But she's doing so awesome! And she is going to have amazing stories to tell.

~~Autumn

SPANDEX D DAY

Well this is it everyone. One more night in my bed (and morning with my blow-dryer) and I am off to San Francisco. You know, to ride home on a bike. Even now writing that seems ludicrous. No one can ride a bike form SF to LA. Impossible. And if they do they are like some crazy athletic masochists who think pain is fun. Not me. No way.

Except: YES.

There was no way for me to know when I signed up how much of my life this whole experience would consume. There was also no way to know how much it would change me. I really don't have the word "can't" in my vocabulary anymore. For example, next time I think "I can't achieve ______" or "I can't possibly be as good as ______" I have some ammunition to fight back with. In my head. Sometimes my head can be a scary place. I clearly am a little crazy, but you catch my drift.

Among the many things that this experience has given me including confidence, friendship, humility, and some killer leg muscles is a sense of purpose. Not everything in my life is the way I would like it to be. And I often have a hard time reconciling that. But now I can look back at the last 5 months and know that instead of sitting around, watching TV and hoping life spontaneously gets better I spent it making myself a better person and making the world a better place. Not too bad, if you ask me.

Now let's get real. Am I scared? OMG. Absolutely. I basically am an emotional disaster right now vacillating between hyperactive anxiety (ah! port a pottys!) and tears (Autumn! where are you??). I have never been so far outside my comfort zone in my life. But I just know/hope that it will be fine. And maybe even better than fine. I mean, people allegedly have fun on this thing, right?

The support I have received from my friends and family in the past several months and especially the last couple days has really been overwhelming. Never in my life have people said that they are proud of me like this. And I am proud of me too. And I am proud of Autumn and I am proud of us. It's weird. I am never this positive about anything. But I am absolutely positive about this. Even if the biking kills me. Or the socializing kills me. Or the showers kill me. I don't think I will ever regret how I spent the last 5 months.

But really...stop asking me if I am going to do it next year again. I only have so much rainbows and butterflies in me. Let's not push it OK?

See you in SF!

-Caitlin

RIDING SOLO...AND RIDING DIRTY

I have been meaning to blog about Saturday, but i am kind of busy with getting two weeks worth of work done in 3 days (stupid job) so I have been slow. I will keep if brief as it is already past my bed time.

On Saturday I set off all by myself on my very first solo bike ride. Ever. And I rode all the way to Dana Point. Autumn was there as my sweep vehicle and brought me a cheeseburger in Huntington and picked me up in Dana Point. She is my everything, what can I say. Gina was also a great navigator when necessary. It takes a village to get me where I am going, apparently. Autumn and I had planned to do this ride together, but with her injury it never happened. So I decided what better way to end my training than attempt the ride alone.

Never in a billion years would I have thought I would do anything for 8 hours alone, much less on a bike. Even a month ago doing this alone was never something I even considered. But I knew I COULD do it, so I really couldn't justify backing out. And I am very glad I did it. 75 miles (give or take) later I was tired and satisfied and ready to go to San Diego for some cheese and wine and pool time. A perfect weekend.

You are alone with your thoughts for a long time when riding by yourself. I had a lot of time for self reflection. However, I don't really remember any of it. So I will write about some things I do remember: A LOT of hills in Laguna, I bike path with no mapped entrance that I had to sneak through someone's back yard to access in Long Beach, two weddings, one Quincenera, two dog beaches (this was especially brutal...i almost bailed and went to play with the dogs TWICE), two Catalina ports, many weight sensor intersections, one of which I had to run because mysteriously I do not weigh as much as a car, countless lazy beach people (aka me in a month), and a man dressed in a women's one piece with a skirt. Isn't California great?

Oh, and one more thing. Am I the only one who gets this dirty when riding for 80 miles? When I finish I feel like I rolled around in dirt for the last 8 hours. HOW do I get so dirty? I don't understand.

-Caitlin

BETTER PEOPLE AND ALL OF THAT

So, as all of you know I will now be riding AIDS LifeCycle 9 alone. Autumn put up a valient fight and a brave front, but she has to what is best for her and fix herself up so she can do all of the things in life she wants to do. Like ride her bike. And walk upright.

What does this turn of events mean for her? Missing something she has worked very very hard for and getting some kind of scary spine related surgery which renders her unable to wear pants for several weeks. It also means she has to face the fact that she cannot overcome this with just sheer force of will and accept her own vulnerability. These are not easy things for a person who never takes no for an answer and has accomplished so much by never giving up.

What does this mean for me? I will have to face my only fear bigger than riding a bike 600 miles on a bike: talking to people. I know the consequences of this turn of events seem unbalanced, but I can assure you...it is a disaster all around.

When I signed up for this I wanted to show myself I could do something amazing and learn a new skill and overcome obstacles. I did not, however, sign up for this to make friends. I don't want to be forced to be social. I don't like it, it's not fun, and I am pissed I have to do it. But, as Autumn and I have learned, the biggest challenges in life come from things you did not anticipate or want to do.

There is not much more to say about it. I am so, so sad that Autumn, by biggest supporter and other biking half will not be there next to me for this. And I am so scared about having to face something scary alone...but this is how it is, and I have to belive that it will all be allright. We are both going to benefit so much from what's coming...even if both our expereinces are excrutiating and uncomfertable. We will come out the other end better people and all of that.

Thats that. My remaining plans include training on Saturday, laying by the pool in San Diego Sunday, sending my bike up to SF Wednesday and have intermittent panick attacks between then and the 6th. Good times!

Oh and if you see me on the ride...talk to me. Becuase I can garuntee I wont talk to you first, but its not because I don't like you. I am not as mean as I look!
-Caitlin

Maybe Next Year.

I am laying in bed, looking for more pain killers while painfully composing this blog.

I will not be able to ride in AIDS/LifeCycle 9. The training has come to an end; my bike will be gathering dust for at least 12 weeks.

By Monday morning, the stiffness that started in my lower back during our ride last Saturday had turned into an inability to stand up straight, walk without pain or sit at my desk. By Tuesday, the degree of leaning and stiffness had increased, I was spending half of my day laying on the floor in my office and my PTs didn't have any answers. Thursday I visited a Spine Surgeon who recommended surgery as my only option. I visited Dr. Name on the Door who got me an appointment with a 2nd surgeon for a second opinion. 2nd Surgeon was more emphatic than the first; surgery was my only option. And surgery should be soon.

Its taken me a couple of days to have the courage to tell all of you....there's nothing much more that I can say besides THANK YOU for being the best group of friends and supporters ever. At the end of the day, I have to focus on the fact that I raised just over $4,000, picked up a new hobby and met amazing people. I also educated myself, and hopefully you, on the continuing need for safe sex education, HIV prevention and a cure. I don't think its fair that I will not be able to "cash in" on all of our hard work, and I don't think its fair that Caitlin will now be facing 7 days on a bike with a lot of strangers and no tent mate. This week, nothing was fair. Its not fair that Lexi hasn't woken up, and its not fair that my dear friend Erin was overcome by a rare virus. This week was hard. I'm sure things could be worse, and I am trying to focus on the fact that in 12 weeks, theoretically, I will be able to walk without pain, get through my work day without pain killers, sleep through the night and play basketball and ride my bike again.

In the words of one of Caitllin's best friends, Eric Irvine, "this was the way it was meant to be." Caitlin and I have to believe that. As I face scary back surgery, 12 weeks of recovery and Caitlin faces down this thing without her sidekick, we have to believe that somehow for some reason, this was how it was meant to be.

~~Autumn

WARNING: EMOTIONAL BLOG POST AHEAD

So fans, we have 18 days until the ride. Autumn and I have both officially raised our $3,000 fundraising minimums, filled out our forms and booked our one way plane tickets. We are actually doing this, fans. There is no backing out.
My mom asked me about 2 weeks ago if i though I was ready. I kept meaning to post something on here about how I didn't think there was ever going to be a time where I felt "ready." June 6th was just going to come and I was going to give it my best shot.
Something happened on the ride this weekend, though. We finished 65 miles and I didn't want to die. I actually felt like I could probably do 30 more. I felt...ready. Now, I have to qualify this by saying doing this once or twice a week is very different than doing it...for an ENTIRE week. But, physically I have come SO far in the last couple moths that I actually do feel physically ready for this. I actually feel as athletic as everyone always assumes that I am. Being mentally ready...well that remains to be seen. But compared to how terrified I was about doing this only a month ago, I would consider myself positively Zen. Like, I just know it's going to be OK.
I cannot tell you how much of this Zen(ness) has been a result of the support of my family, my friends and Autumn, my partner in crime for being so positive and amazing. As the big day approaches, it is becoming more and more clear to me that through this Autumn has become more than a friend, she a sister now. Sometimes we want to kill each other, but at the end of the day we have each other to lean on and I love her. We are quite the odd couple, and thank goodness for that. If I had to ride around California with another me I would off myself. She is brave where I am cautious, she is athletic where I am weak and I am mean...where she is...not.
These last couple months have not been easy for either of us. Contrary to what you might hope, life does not pause while you have to train for a 600 mile bike ride. We have both had some hurdles to jump recently and her perseverance in getting back on the bike (and out of bed) is inspirational. I don't know what the next 18 days will bring and I have NO idea what the 7 days after that will be, but I know on June 12th when I am riding up San Vicente to Closing Ceremonies Autumn will be right there behind me (we ride single file, of course). And we will have accomplished something so outlandish and unbelievable together.
Where has all of this sincere, emotional, vulnerability come from? I don't know. Perhaps I just know sometimes things need to be said, or perhaps they are repainting the halls in my office and I am high from the fumes. Either way...the best is yet to come fans! Thanks for staying tuned. You will not be disappointed in us!
-Caitlin

I GAVE BIRTH TO A BICYCLE

Once again Autumn has beat me to recapping the very exciting day we had on Saturday. She is a lot better at documenting things in detail than me. I tend to remember only bits and pieces of riding my bike. Probably some kind of exercise related Post Traumatic Stress Disorder going on.
I have decided that cycling is like child birth (or so I hear). You are in crazy pain the whole time and you want to just die, and then 20 minutes after the kid is born you forget all about that pain and want another one. Or whatever. That is what getting on your bike is like. All I want to do is get off of of that stupid bike, until I do. Then I am like "Sure! I can do 60 miles, no problem!" No! Stop!
Anyway, what I do remember from Saturday is Autumn and I discussing that we both have internal wars going on for at least the first 10 miles (for me its more like 20) where there is, in our minds, no POSSIBLE way we will be able to complete the ride we are on. I often consider spontaneously contracting a disease or suddenly noticing my foot is broken. Or just quitting for no valid reason. But I have found after you warm up, both your body and your brain, to the idea of being on a bike for 8 hours, the time does not really go that slow. It really is more of a mind game for me. 80 miles sounds a lot less scary than 8 hours of exercise, so I am trying to think of it more in terms of miles and less in terms of hours of my life not spent doing something more fun...like root canals or feeding wild, ravenous monkeys or something. Ok, ok, it's not THAT bad.
What is that bad is some horrible little middle aged man telling you you look like you are "really trying." I know Autumn mentioned this in detail, but I have to reiterate the horribleness. Now if you know me, you know how much I like talking to strangers in the first place: There is a REASON I am not making eye contact with you. Now go away! Do I LOOK like I am trying to be friendly? (and you wonder why I am single!!!) But really, it is one thing for some middle aged, overweight creep to talk to you awkwardly when all you want to do is get home, but it's another thing for them to be patronizing, condescending...jerks (EDIT FOR AUTUMN'S MOM).
Do not come up to me and tell me I look like I am trying hard. I may punch you, or tell you I hope you die soon. I have not done one of these things before. You can guess which one.
Something else I remember from Saturday was that despite the fact the ride was pretty much exactly the same as the ride I did a month ago, I had no idea where I was. So basically I remember that I don't remember anything from my rides and therefore should not be put in charge of navigation.
I didn't ride Sunday,as it was Mother's Day observed in my family, but I did see Chris and Mel riding on PCH and ducked so they didn't see me because I felt guilty for not being on a bike.
In other news: I wore my bolero on Saturday. I tried to keep in on as long as possible in order to protect my arms from the harmful effects of tan lines on my social life, but Autumn didn't get any pictures. So sad for you.
-Caitlin

Luxurious Negative Blogging.

Happy Sunday -- aka happy laying in bed day due to a small setback with my back injury. Ouch. No worries; I'm visiting the Pain Gang (http://www.vargopt.com) early tomorrow morning. (Dr. Name on the Door do I get a free session for this shout out???....) I'm sure Mrs. Dr. Texas will give me an earful about my riding bikes. She prefers that I play basketball again, but I'm adictted to my bike so what can I say? Also, I have this small thing called 545 miles starting on June 6 (btw, the ALC staff left TODAY to start setting up for the event; can you believe its that close to the start date???). Regardless, I'm riding the miles to San Diego next weekend. As Caits and I have discussed, I will more than likely have to ride one or more days in pain come June, so I might as well get used to it. And, actually when my back flares up, slumping forward is my natural position; its just the getting off the bike and walking away that become a serious problem.

Anyway, we rode 65.55 miles yesterday -- from Santa Monica, to Palos Verdes, circling around Palos Verdes (taking a small non-sanctioned detour/getting lost) and back. We only stopped 3 times -- once at mile 40 for a lunch break, mile 50 for 3 minutes to chat with one of our bffs, Corey, and We made a new bestfried, Amy, who is awesome and I ate red velveet cheesecake and chicken madeira to celebrate. It was awesome!! Caitlin's riding abilities have really taken a turn and transformed in the last 2 weeks. She's so confident and in shape; its awesome! I'm so proud of her!! She hasn't admitted it yet, but I think she's on the verge of enjoying herself. We've already made plans to ride to the beach after ALC is over.

The highlight of the day was Caitlin's quote while we were riding through Redondo/Hermosa Beach. The city has put in a full-sized bike lane. Seriously, a lane marked for bikes as wide as a car. It makes riding much safer and much more enjoyable (until cars neglect to look at the writing on the pavement, tail bikers and then honk inpatiently....that's another story). Enter Caitlin and her words of wisdom: "The whole lane is for bikes? This is luxurious!" hahahahaha. I pointed out that certainly her world has been flipped upside down if now the adjective "luxurious" is used to describe wide bike lanes rather than clothing, shoes or coats.

The lowlight of the day occurred on the Bridge of Judging at about mile 59.5. It was so appalling that, while I normally would not call out people by name, I am furious and thus have pledged to blog negatively about this certain condescending man/bike shop guy that decided to almost ruin our riding high of the day.

So, we took a little well-intentioned detour on the way home (instead of trying to follow all of the twists and turns of the route map we took the strand (beach path) back to the starting point; as we had already gotten lost once from not being "able" to accurately follow directions, we decided to avoid getting lost again). As we're riding along minding our own business Old Ugly Mean Man sails by and shouts at us: "Come on girls. Put your head down and just keep pedaling." Annoying but whatever. Caitlin and I are easily annoyed and often vocal about it..... We precede to stop at the Bridge of Judging so that we can take pictures of the beautiful day and document our ride to share with all of our fans. Old Mean Man was waiting for us and/or following us or something and proceeded to impart all of us "riding wisdom" to 2 girls who "clearly" needed his help. He went on and on about how what we were wearing was wrong, how our grip was wrong, how he road more miles than us and so on and so on. At first, it was just an old mean man being annoying and invading our day, but then, Old Mean Man decided to be super condescending and ended by saying, "Well, you at least look like you're trying hard." Now, at first glance it may not read like a condescending statement, but you should have seen his face, the way he looked us up and down and the tone of voice. Condescending. And then, he said, "She [Caitlin] looks likes she's hanging in there but you [Autumn] look dead tired." Oh, excuse me for not looking well rested after riding more miles than I ever had before. Excuse us for riding to end AIDS and not doing it "perfectly." Excuse me for not being your definition of a "pro."

I will admit that I said some very mean things as we rode away. And I will admit that I was very thankful that I had a blog that I could take to. (Caitlin and I often, during our long rides, talk about how we're going to blog this or that or what should be noted about a ride. It helps get up a hill if you compose a blogpost in your head about how it is one of the worst 5 miles of rode within LA County (Palos Verdes Rd) and how the training ride leader responsible for the route map (Scott) so conveniently did not mark it as a "hill.") After I had yelled into the wind with a vengeance about the Old Mean Man who thought he needed to impose himself on us, I announced to Cait and the bike path in Marina del Ray that I was going to "blog negatively" about this man and his bike shop.

He had the nerve to give us his card so we could contact him because we clearly needed his professional help to ride our bikes, and I was going to actually call him out by name in my negative blogpost, but I think the card is somewhere in my car and I don't really have enough energy (or the ability to stand up straight) to go get it. So I will just say this: "his" bike shop has 2 locations and something to do with TriAthlete Zombies.....I may have linked the website here.... http://www.triathletezombies.com ...... and I really don't like him or this shop or this website. Seriously, he was mean to us. And it was embarrassing and frustrating. Maybe I will also take to Yelp. Also, how has a man that works at a Bike Shop never heard of AIDS/LifeCycle???? Not legitimate.

The bright spot of this encounter was that we then discussed how no one involved with ALC would ever dream of being so harsh or condescending to us. Even in the beginning when we clearly didn't know what we were doing, and even now when I hold up the ride and come in last out of La Tuna, ALCers are always positive, always supportive and always happy to have Newbies around to share it with. ALC training ride leaders always tell us we're doing awesome. Everyone is so positive, almost to the point of naseau now and again, but after our encounter with the Old Mean Man, we will never again take for granted our friends and colleagues at ALC who have been so awesome through all of this!

So this is my luxurious negative blog. Not quite as luxurious as a wide open bike lane, but close.

~~Autumn

PS If you have not had the opportunity to joing our cause yet, Caitlin still has $300 to raise before meeting her minimum requirement. We would love to officially have all of our fans as part of the team of donors. Click on Cait's link in the upper right to help her meet her goal! Thanks!

Picture Pages, Picture Pages

Just a few pictures from our last 3 training rides. Please take special note of the following: the pro-ness, helmet indentations, BAGELS, Caitlin's muscles and heat blisters/rash.

ONE WEEKEND: MANY MANY MANY HILLS

There is something you realize when you start biking that you would never really think about otherwise; there are like NO flat roads in LA. None. If you want to ride your bike in LA you better learn to deal with hills, or you should just move to the Midwest now (I hear it is very flat there). Now, it's not that I like hills, nor do I ever think I will, but I fear I have found an inner talent: riding a bike up them. There is a large possibility that my tendency to beat everyone up hills is due to the fact that my bike and I are not very heavy put together, but I find it is also due to the fact that I am angry at the hill for existing so I want to kick its ass. I think I am also angry at bikes for existing and making me wear ugly clothes and ride them. So in summation: I am angry at the entire sport of cycling and all that it entails, therefor I am good at hills.
Autumn is way more thorough than me at weekend updates, so I will just give you the highlights of what was going thorough my head this weekend:
Saturday
1. "I hate hills."
2. "Why am I beating everyone up this hill??"
3. "Autumn is such a bad ass for doing this when she is at least 75% sick."
4. "I am in Montrose and not eating La Cabinita. This is just wrong."
5. "I am SO hungry. How many shot blocks is too many shot blocks?"
Sunday
1. "I want to go back to bed."
2. " Goldsteins is really good. However, they did NOT give me a Mega Turkey. Do I look like a Simply Turkey kind of girl?"
3. "I hate hills."
4. "I want to go back to bed."
Autumn has all the pictures from this weekend (and I am secretly hoping they mysteriously vanish from her camera) so I once again used my sweet illustrator skills to share the weekend with you. Enjoy:

-Caitlin

La Tuna La Sucks and other random musings...

Word. Mas apologies for the lack of blogging. We rode so many freaking miles this weekend and it caused me to be unable to type...literally -- my pointer finger on my right hand is still numb. Caitlin has been unable to blog because her muscles are too big and she needs a cheese burger. So I'm taking a moment from not-so-sunny Vancouver (I didn't ride my bike here) to update you on the comings and goings of the Spandex Gang.

Saturday invovled a 53 mile ride from North Hollywood, through some towns, over La Tuna Canyon, into Caitlin's old stomping grounds, down to the Rose Bowl, up a "1.2 mile climb" (nice try. more like 5 freaking miles) and back to North Hollywood. It was long, and it was intense. One word describes my experience: naseau/puke. About 1/4 of the way up La Tuna (I may be lying and it might have been about 5 pedal strokes in.....but you weren't there, so you can't judge) I pulled over to the side of the rode to watch everyone pass me and attempt to hurl up my electrolytes/shot blocks/insides. It was tragic. I will tell you that never in my life has exercising made me feel that terrible. It was likely a combo of the almost-mono like sickness I was sporting just last week (along with the pink eye), the inadequate diet I consumed the week prior and the sun. It was awful.

However, what was AWESOME was the supportive folks that were right there with me. My new friend and seriously pro kit Mel stayed with me, assured me that the top wasn't going anywhere and that I should just take my time. He could have flown up that La Tuna, but he stayed back to encourage me. He could have rode with his pro kit friends, but he stayed with out of breath, out of shape, sick me and smiled. It was awesome.

The even MORE AWESOMENESS occurred 2 minutes before I attempted my first puke fest on the side of La Tuna -- CAITLIN PASSED EVERYONE!!!!! I mean, last week I showed you her calf muscles and this week she went up La Tuna like a CHAMP. Like a CHAMP. I have never been more proud. And, in her words, she didn't "enjoy it" but she didn't necessarily despise it either. whoo hoo!!!! I will admit that for about 30 seconds I was pretty upset that I couldn't keep up, but then I realized what this meant for Caitlin and how much confidence and awesomeness she was going to get from tearing up that stupid "hill." (Its a mountainside, but whatever.) She kicked La Tuna's ass (sorry mom). And it was amazing.

We continued for some miles and then came to a climb that THEY totally snuck into the ride without really telling us about. Disaster again for me. Not so much puking this time, I just was slow as molasses and couldn't really get my body going. Actually, at this moment I am shocked I'm evening telling you about it, but blogs are for honesty, right? So, I sucked it up again; however I made new friends, Etti and Michayla (no idea how to spell her name -- sorry!), who waited at the top and told me I could do it. I'm not a person who likes to accept help; I like to figure it all out on my own. But this thing, I can't do without Caitlin and I can't do without our ALC friends to tell me I CAN. It sucked; not going to lie. But La Tuna La Sucked a little less because of the people who are involved with ALC.

Sunday Caitlin and I semi-rode the first training route I ever did. I say "semi" because Fancy Eric made some kinda mistake in the directions, which I forgot about until we were in some sketchy part of Alta Dena or something, and we missed a turn. Anyway, the ride was considerably easier than the first time I rode, and we got Mega Turkey Bagel Sandwiches from Goldsteins. WHat???!!??? Yes, sooo gooooooood. Caitlin and her new-found muscles again beat me up every hill -- except the one where she got bit or something on her head and had to stop in a flurry to scratch under her helmet....hahahaha....it was funny. Sunday was 27 miles, so all in all we biked it up for 80 miles this weekend! I think I need another cheeseburger from just thinking about it.

I'll post the weekend in pictures later this week so you have something to look forward to. Thank you again for sticking with us; the ride is about 3 weeks away and the reality is terrifying now and again. Can you believe how close it is? What are you going to do with yourselves when we don't blog anymore? What are we going to do with all of our free weekends? How will I convince Caitlin to wear ridiculous outfits that I can post on the internet? As Mr. Aalbers used to say in 7th grade geography, "We'll cross that bridge when we come to it."

~~Autumn