Cowabunga! Sistas Roll, Rise & Bump through the Cowichan Valley

Armed with the most optimistic weather forecast we could find, 11 of us set out on Saturday for our tour of the Cowichan Valley. Nine sistas, including Trudi, Carol, Sharon, Jenn, Victoria, Jennifer, Julie, Shawn, and me (Linda) and our two honorary brothas, Steve and Brent, caught the 8:40 am ferry from Brentwood Bay. We ended up riding about 72 kilometres, instead of the original 60, because the group rode together like a beautiful machine. In fact, we looked so hot that a couple of times people cheered for us. It could also be that they confused us with the Tour de Rock:)

We had great weather for the ride: no rain, no wind, and a comfortable temperature for riding. It was not a wine tour, it wasn't even a whine tour -- everyone was mel-low! No one even complained when the intrepid leader missed one of the first turns! And we didn't call inclines hills, we called them rises!

We rode mostly on back roads, which as you know have good and bad points. Good, in that there is little traffic, bad in that they tend to be bumpy. We definitely had a few filling-loosening, chamois-bumping experiences.

After zig-zagging back and forth through the valley, we stopped in Cowichan Bay for coffee and snacks. Then, it was the climb up the big hill of the day, which everyone handled beautifully, after a few OHMYGAWDs and various other similar expressions.

We made the 1:50 ferry with time to spare, and spent the return trip nice and cozy in the "lounge" which is a big improvement over the one in the old ferry.

Thanks to everyone for participating -- it was a most enjoyable day.

CHECK OUT THOSE MAD SKILLS....

...is what they'll say when we blow past them with our elbows out. :) HOLLA! to BILL FRY and JAMIE, RYAN AND ALEX from our TREK PRO CITY MEN'S RACING TEAM for putting on a wicked fun clinic today at the skate park in Vic West. It had everything: great instruction, fun times, and a few ditches and some metal to give it that real " hard core death trap" feeling. Sistas HEART our Brothas. Ryan...let me know when you want to hold hands again. :)
xo Robin

PRO CITY SISTAS...INTERNATIONALLY KNOWN!!

Because that's what happens when the SISTAS travel to a foreign country...or down the Oregon Coast...either way...THANKS to Linda and Sharon for their updates. Great job ladies!! Sharon...don't be better than me when you get back :) xo Robin

"Hi Robin:

We're in Bandon, a sweet town on the Oregon coast. It's our layover day so riding is optional -- yay!

The training has really paid off. Sharon is amazing! She celebrated her 6--th birthday by riding 144 km! She is passing people on the hills!

On Monday, we were in Cottage Grove, the town where Animal House was filmed. We went crazy and had two beer that night!

We have three more days of riding before finishing up in Sutherlin, our starting point. You would love this ride. 2200 super friendly people, great scenery, challenging rides, and a beer garden and live music every night!

Here's a couple of pictures. Note how the sistas' kit goes so nicely with the blue room, aka porta potties.

The cheering section at the finish line in Cottage Grove.

All the sistas should come next year!!!"

Linda & Sharon

My First Big Cheque!!!

Swim, bike, run.… does that make me a tri geek now?? Hehe. I did my first ever Xterra race this weekend in Whistler, BC !!! Not sure if I already have racers amnesia or what, but I had a great time. Painful yes, but it was a lot of fun, and I only mildly embarrassed myself in the swim.

Okay, ya, the swim......this was basically my second swim in the wetsuit and probably my sixth swim since I decided this is what I was doing.… and my first mass start swim (yuck!!!). First 50m of the swim actually went really good and I was thinking "wow, maybe this won't be that bad". Then someone's foot knocked that idea out of me and replaced it with a throatful of lake water. So in the middle of the swim I come to a complete stop, sputtering and chocking. Didn't take me long to remember i was still in a race so I got moving again, but all that drowning I was doing took a lot out of me. All I could manage to do was a little breast stroke and yes, I did some backstroke in the race. Finally I got my rhythm back, only to realize the group I was swimming with had completely missed the first bouey!!! Doing extra distance was the last thing I needed, but I turned around and swam back…ugggg. I did notice not everyone was silly enough like me to backtrack back on course. Finishing the first 750m we had a short beach run, the most painful 30m ever, then back into the water for a second lap around the lake. My second lap went much smoothly and I was a little surprised when I made it to the bike to find mine the last lone bike of the pro rack, haha.

But I get a head of myself.… no one told me just how hard it would be to walk let alone run out of the lake. Pulling myself out of the water I was thinking "smooth, fast transition onto the bike, no problem"........pulling my arms out through the wetsuit I miss judged the set up from the beach to the grass, yup you guessed it, I tripped!!!! Arms stuck in the wetsuit I fell flat on my face and T-Rexed around on the grass for a couple seconds before I could get myself back up!!! Haha, I really hope someone got that on tape!!!! Transition wasn't so smooth either, buckles on bike shoes are not the easiest thing to do up while you're trying to go fast!!! And my honey stinger sponsor Clay was standing there cheering, and more then likely laughing his ass off at me the whole time…way to impress the sponsor!!!!

The bike was a hundred times better. Once I managed to get my gloves on, which was another difficulty, and get moving I felt pretty strong. And this course is a mountain bikers course without a doubt!! Tight and technical and lots of bridges....yippee!!! I started the bike the 13th woman (last pro) and finished the bike in 3rd place......unfortunately my great transition time is added to the bike time so it really doesn't look ad impressive as it felt.

Heading out on the run I really didn't know what to expect, but I knew Danelle Kabush was hot on my heels. This was a really tough run up and down a lot of great and very hard mountain bike trails. Danelle caught me really fast and passed me like I was crawling so I ran in fourth place for most of the run. Had a couple good tumbles on the run.…tripping and staggering all over the place. An finishing the damn run on a long downhill!!!! Super yuck!! There is an art to running downhill fast and I don't have that yet. With less then a km to go Emma Garrand caught me, please let me note she is a runner, and I lost fourth by 9 seconds!!

So all in all, I finished 5th in my first Xterra and had a blast. More then a little cooked right now, but excited about learning how to swim better. When you start more then 8 minutes down right off the bat it's a long day of catch up. Huge congrats to Mel McQuaid grabbing another Canadian Championship title very handedly! And to fellow mountain biker Brandy Heisterman who had an awesome day in second place. Mountain bikers 2 Xterra Pros 3. Not too bad

Now I'm getting myself in cross shape for Cross Vegas in 9 days, yikes!! But first I'm going to enjoy an ice bath back at Alta Lake in Whistler!

Huge thanks to all my sponsors for helping through the weekend. Pro City Cycle, Lazer Helmets (which are actually very easy to transition with, VellendTech for my Sidi shoes, Genuine Innovations, Oakley and Planet Foods with all the Honey Stinger products that helped me get through the day. Also a big shout out to my mechanic Regan, Pro City Sistas Jen for the awesome wetsuit (though I think I needed the model with the built in propeller ) and my mentor and superstar Mel (thanks for the gentle nudge to give it a try)!!

PRO CITY SISTAS...CONGRATS ARE IN ORDER!

Clearly everywhere! Saturday you might have spotted us at the VELODROME cheering on the PRO CITY MEN'S RACING TEAM at the track. Congrats to TOM for picking up a BRONZE MEDAL at the Provincial Championships! Congrats to US for standing around and cheering everyone on. AND....CONGRATS TO OUR RESIDENT PRO - PRO CITY SISTA MICAL DYCK for placing 5th in her first PRO Triathlon this weekend in Whistler. She better be taking me for dinner with this money she won. xo Robin

PRO CITY SISTAS...now an INSTITUTION

Because once we stand near the sign...it's ours. Stamped it no erasing. HOLLA to everyone who came out yesterday and rode down to William Head. Jen rode so hard, she ripped a tiny hole in her new kit. That's what happens when you're hardcore. :)
xo Robin

Sat Aug 20'11 Ride

Great ride today everyone, nice to be out in the sun!

PRO CITY SISTAS...LET'S RIDE!!!!

Not that we weren't already riding, but now that the new kit is here, we get to look hot WHILE we ride. Check with Trek if you don't have your kit yet, or let Bill know if you need a different size. Then wear it everywhere you go...including to bed. Obviously. xo Robin

Salt Spring Adventure

Ya, that's right, 9 and a half hours in the chamois!!!

PRO CITY SISTAS...IN IT FOR THE LONG HAUL!!!

112kms. UNEXPECTED!! It all started with Minda showing up at 6:50am with COFFEE BIKE (THUMBS UP!). Seems like a great idea...until it gets all over your frame instead of your mouth (THUMBS DOWN). After a quick bike wash at Trek, we THOUGHT we were going to Cowichan yesterday, but thanks to a FERRY FAIL at Brentwood Bay(THUMBS DOWN), we ended up heading for Sidney and hopping on the boat to SALTSPRING ISLAND (THUMBS UP!). Thanks to LINDA, we went through all the back roads where there was very little traffic and grabbed lunch in Ganges at the market (THUMBS UP!). Linda bought plums and we couldn't eat them all (THUMBS DOWN) but Minda brought a BACKPACK and carried them home(THUMBS UP!) On the way back on the ferry, we were happy (THUMBS UP) but tired (THUMBS DOWN), but luckily I was able to stay awake long enough to get photos of Phil and Victoria stretching (THUMBS AND BUMS UP). Now my legs are tired (THUMBS DOWN) but worth it for such a wonderful day.
Also, an extra special welcome back and congrats to PRO CITY SISTAS resident PRO SISTA, MICAL DYCK for being such a big deal and WINNING the Transrockies TR3 race last weekend in Fernie (THUMBS UP!). She is still beating me up the hills...and I just can't understand it. :) xo Robin

Sweet Singletrack in Fernie

I can't believe it's that time of year again already!! Transrockies!  Yippee.  I've opted for the TR3 this year instead of the full seven days of riding.....which I'm actually kinda sad about because the course in the Kananaskis uses all the best trails!!!  TR3 this year is all on the super duper awesome trails of Fernie!!!  Oh how I love Fernie riding:)

After a big mint chocolate chip ice cream with my old TR and BCBR partner and his wife last night, and a delicious organic supper with my folks, I was stoked and feeling good!!  Day 1 was a 32km (my gps says 34km) TT with 1 min gaps.  Based on UCI points Catherine Vipond started ahead of me and Jean Ann Berkenpas behind me....and Mel McQuaid somewhere in the mix behind her.  400m out of the gate I heard the train blowing it's whistle as is rolled through town and right over the course .... Uggh.  Thankfully they let me start again and reset my time,  but now Catherine had a 6 min gap on me...outta sight outta mind.

I had a great start, feeling strong climbing up the first hill,  yup starts are my forte.  Up over the first climb, crossing a chunck of road about 10 mins in I go to shift into a harder gear in the back ..... And nothing.  Ahhhhhh what the????  It's like the shifter is empty, pushing all the way through the lever but nothing is engaging. Big double BOOOOOOO.  Stopping quickly I can't find anything jamming the derailluer, so I give a little sob and a swear and come to terms quickly with the fact that I'm running a really expensive two speed for the next 30 km.  Thankfully the my big ring is only a 38 tooth (which is pretty small) so I'm able to use my big ring a lot.  

I'm stuck in the second easiest gear in the rear, so glad it's not one of the harder gears or that first climb would have double sucked.  Long uber steep grind of a climb, almost 500 m in about 2 km.....ouch.

As I crest the mountain I switch to big ring and I loved the super fast steep technical descent....didn't even need to pedal for most of it.

Through the feed zone, thanks poppa for riding out to give me a feed, the up into the second half of the course.  This half is a lot more rolling and fast, with some short hard steep climbs and fast open sections.  I was definitely hating my gearing on the flat to slightly downhill road section!!!  Haha it's probably the only time you'll ever hear me wish for a climb.  Spin spin spin tuck spin spin spin tuck.  I was looking over my shoulder the whole way running scared.

Looking at the profile, the majority of the run back into the finish was predominately downhill, and this spin spin spin thing was just wearing me out.  By tightening the cable on the barrel adjuster I was able to get my chain to stay in the fourth gear in the back.  Once I got it there I didn't want to risk changing gears again so I was really suffering on a couple of those final climbs haha.  Regardless of the gearing these trails are incredible!!!!  And way more fun this year when they aren't so soggy and so slippery that you end up tripoding everything like last years TR.

So spin spin spin tuck spin spin spin tuck, spinning in fear looking over my shoulder the whole final stretch into the finish!!!  Yippee I survived!!!!  And I actually did a lot better then I thought I would pulling off the first stage win :).

 Yah clean jersey for tomorrow!! And a new rear shifter.....upgraded from a 2 speed to a 20 speed....

Can't wait for supper I'm hungry!!!!

HOLY HAT!!!

Well well WELL. Remind me not to schedule a ride on the MALAHAT the first day back after 2 weeks of vacation...but whatever!! What an AWESOME day for a trip up the Hat and around Shawnigan Lake! Great day...great ride, great people, great fun.
SUCCESS! Pro City Sistas: 1; Malahat: 0. xo Robin

Fartleks are Fun! Thursday, July 28th

A beautiful sunny evening at UVic provided perfect conditions for a series of fartleks around Ring Road. The happy fartlekkers are, from left to right: Minda, David, Carolyn, Sarah, Marianne, John, Cindy and Linda.

Triple Point Hilly Waterfront Ride, Tuesday, Aug. 2

Garmin Connect - Details

Another great Sistas' ride! The two Davids, Gerry, me and a new rider, Leslie, left from the shop and rode the waterfront. We had a short detour at David's request to see the tall ship from Chile docked at Ogden Point. Nice tailwind after the breakwater and we arrived at Starbucks, Cadboro Bay, at the pre-arranged time of 6:25. There was quite a gang waiting there: Jenn, Victoria, Cindy, Trish, Carolyn, Sarah P., and Minda. We rode Ten Mile Point, up and over Wedgewood Point, Queenswood, Gordon Point, then at the corner of Ash Road and Torquay made some critical decisions - Minda was up for one more hill, so some of us rode up Ash. The rest of the gang headed back out to the peninsula. The temperature was perfect, there was no wind, and very little traffic. The company was, as always, sublime.

Mellow 100K Summer Ride to Sooke Potholes

Finally! A genuine summer day: no wind, no rain, and over 20 degrees. After an early start to watch a bit of the Tour at the shop, a group of us headed off to Sooke Potholes. About half the group opted to ride on the road after Langford, the rest of us continued on the Galloping Goose. The views of Matheson Lake, Roche Cove, and the Sooke Basin were stunning. We kept the pace mellow, the conversation warm and encouraging. Laura and Victoria had never ventured into this neck of the woods. It felt like a real holiday.

Once we reached Sooke Potholes, we ventured into the river for the rumoured benefits of cold water flushing of lactic acid. Whether it worked or not, it felt great!

We never did connect with the road crew, although a few texts were exchanged. The four of us headed into beautiful downtown Sooke, and tried out a great cafe that I had read about in EAT magazine. It's called Stick in the Mud.http://www.stickinthemud.ca/ The service was friendly, the food fresh and healthy, and the coffee strong - a perfect 3 for 3.

After refuelling and relaxing, we headed homewards. Laura got a flat on the back tire shortly after leaving Sooke, but Marianne and I tackled the job in no time flat:) We made the 50 km trek back to Trek in fine spirits. An altogether quintessential summer day!

Esquimalt Lagoon..why you gotta be so bloody windy??!!

CRAP! Lucky 13 of us braved the wind tonight to do the 3 Esquimalt Lagoon Hills. All in all, a great ride. Linda even managed to run an errand while we were up there (extra hard core up another hill), but the extra intensity was too much for her trusty horse and she ended up with a flat(back tire OF COURSE)!! Next time we're bringing sails for our bikes and letting the wind do all the work...stamped it no erasing!! xo Robin

Claremont Ridge Hilly Ride by les55bike at Garmin Connect - Details

Claremont Ridge Hilly Ride by les55bike at Garmin Connect - Details

Okay, here's my first post ever. And, here is my first sharing of my Garmin info. Don't be too judgemental about the cadence and heart rate, okay?

It was a fun night, complete with cheering sections at the top of each hill! Another great ride with the sistas (and bro's)

HOLY HILLS!

It WAS Tuesday so, so I don't know what I was freaked out for. 3 hills climbed! Amblewood and up Searide, Claremont and then Seapearl to Searidge followed by a beatuiful ride through Royal Oak led by Linda and Mary Ann. 10 sistas and 3 brothas out tonight...it was a great ride with a great group! We are officially a bike GANG now I think. At one point, I turned to ask Sara if she was enjoying the ride. She said she was but that she had no idea where we were. At which point I prompty broke the news that we are actually a biking CULT taking her to live with us on our new ranch in Waco. Of course I did NOT bring those directions, so we just went home instead. Whatever. Next time....RANCH IT IS...
xo Robin

Next time I'll bring a backpack....

...to carry all the stuff from my storage closet I don't need anymore. It doesn't matter...the dump wasn't open when we got there last anyway. Great hill climb up Hartland and then off to the Observatory for some, and Conway loop for others. We were joined by Stephanie from Calgary and Pat from Alabama last night! The SISTAS are now officially an INTERNATIONAL, UNITED NATIONS, FAIR TRADE CLUB....whatever that means. HA! :) xo Robin

GO AHEAD...BE A DYCK.....

....in fact, I recommend it, because clearly it makes you awesome. Mical Dyck, Shar, Chris, Minda and I tackled the Esquimalt Lagoon hills last night. ALL THREE OF THEM...which I wouldn't have realized unless Mical had made me ride up and down them. SUCCESS BY ALL...and we even made it back to the shop by 7:30! RECORD TIME...although, having said that...it WAS my first time doing that ride, so it may not have ACTUALLY been a record. WHATEVER!! I would like to take this opportunity to thank Mical for being the following things: an awesome cyclist, tall (and therefore an excellent wind block), and just a really genuine and nice person. I post this as she leaves today for some World Cup races over the next month (because that way I can talk behind her back.) HA! :) Sometimes you meet people who inspire you to be a BETTER you. This is how I feel about Mical. Many times I've considered throwing my bike into a bush on a hill, but then she's right there making sure I don't. Sometimes when things are hard, it's just nice to know there is someone right there beside you who is going to encourage you, push you, and help you through it...and then they buy you a burrito for lunch after. HURRAH! Not because they HAVE to...but because they WANT to. A toast: To new friends and new inspirations...because that's what the SISTAS are all about. And also to burritos...because they are delicious. xo Robin

Saturday Morning Ride

Yaaaa!!! 14 + Sistas and Brothers left Trek Pro City at 8:30 am this morning. A little Prospect Lake action, some West Sannich climbing, Mt Newton X Road crosing, Oldfield Road rolling and for a couple of us, Munns Road madness. It was great ride, managing to avoid the rain and bad weather. Oh ya, really wish I had the a picture of 4 women helping one of the men with a flat tire!!!

Thank you everyone who came out and enjoy the sun tomorrow!

WHERE'S CLIFF?

Because they don't make any bars called "WALDO," our second UNEXPECTED Cliff Bar adventure of the week happened during our ride out to Island View beach tonight. Trish "lost" her Cliff Bar on the Goose heading out. Almost 2 hours later, we FOUND IT AGAIN! Still in tact...ready for eating. It WAS open for some reason, but we figured it looked ok and Trish said she would just give it to her son. Tune in next week when I start purposely placing Cliff bars in weird areas. Check your shorts before you put them on.
xo Robin & CLIFF

Willis Point...we EFFEN WENT!!!

YAY! Mical made us a blog! Look at me writing on it! What a nice night for a bike ride up Willis Point (except that someone put hills on it and I didn't bring the car.) Whatever...we effen went! I would like to thank Laura for teaching us that if you don't wear a jersey, there are other ways to carry your Cliff Bar. Please note that Laura suggests using masking tape. Without it, your meal in a package WILL fall off in approximately 5 seconds. See you Thursday when I start taping chocolate milk and a bag of chips to my bike.

xo Robin

Hello Ladies

Yippee!! Our very own blog. It's a work in progress, but a start. Please feel free to post any exciting cycling stories, pictures, rides, news, etc!! And if you have any ideas to make this blog super cool, please let me know.

Happy summer and get out to enjoy the sun!!!