One year anniversary of beetle burn :(

This is what was left of the poor beetle after the fire

Today is the one year anniversary of my horrible car accident. It happened out west in the Nevada dessert on my way home from the UBI bike school. I basically lived in my car for 5 weeks so everything was in it. Two racing bikes, laptop, cameras, clothes, etc. and of course the new bike frame I had just brazed. While eating a piece of toffee from the Rocky Mountain Candy Company my passenger side wheel drifted a bit on the narrow two lane highway. I panicked and over corrected the car causing me to lose control. The car started to spin, crossed the center line and I thought this was how it would all end. I went down a 20 foot gully --all the while sand flying up at the windshield and not being able to see a thing. It was the dessert so there was nothing to hit. I spun around about 180 degrees and came to a stop. Shaking I called Greg and started bawling my eyes out. I was 90 miles from any town--in the middle of the dessert--alone--with a car I couldn't drive out of the sand--and hardly able to believe I had lived to tell about it. He told me to call 911 and while I was on the phone with them (and still in the driver's seat) I heard a loud "whooosh" which ended up being the ignition of a flame from under the car! All at once I saw the front hood and passenger side of the car go up in a huge flame! I ran from the car not even thinking of grabbing my purse (ID, money, etc.) which was 2 inches from my hand. All I had were the clothes on my back and luckily my phone (which amazingly had reception--thank you Sprint) as I ran away from the burning car as fast as I could. I sat on the side of the highway and cried as my car and it's contents burned to the ground before my eyes. At that moment I was totally alone. No one came by and all I could see for miles was the dessert. I had no ID, no money and no way out.........

More on the rescue later. I thought I could talk about it now--thought I would want to--but I don't and I can't...... Ms. Beetle R.I.P.  If you want to see more horrific photos click here: beetle burn photos

Hard to believe there was a steering wheel and dashboard here

Maybe I should just become a time trialist?

Green Dragon, green bike, green MO before Whitewater RR

Well, I have been a bit slack in blogging since I have discovered Facebook but this should be no excuse for not updating this with the most recent exciting events! Of course there is nothing exciting to report but I did get back to racing a bit since my accident. Well--sort of. I don't know if you can call it racing but yes, I am back on my bike! Hooray!

I had been finally doing a bit of regular riding for a couple weeks--after a good 8 weeks off--when I found a local RR I decided to try. It was July 4th so I figured there wouldn't be many people there and I would be able to test my group riding skills and gain a little confidence back. I was really nervous but when I got there only 8 girls showed up at the starting line. Still, it was a talented group of women but at least the pack wasn't going to be too big for me. Then again there would be less room to hide from the wind. Also it was a 50 mile race so I knew it might be a bit taxing. Taxing it was but not all because of the distance. The race started with an ascent up a mile (long upgrade) hill and once the gun went off after turning the second corner this was the first thing we saw. Part way up--about a mile into the race--I lost my chain--over the big ring onto the outside! I couldn't pedal it back on so had to stop and by then the pack was gone. I was hoping for a courtesy wait by the girls but no such luck--they were gone. One stupid mile in!!!!! I was so mad and so disappointed because I had just wanted to test myself and see how long I could stick with the other girls. It was not to be. I TT'd for 49 miles alone with the pack dangling in front of me for the first 10 miles. Then they were out of sight and yet I kept on. Once lapped by the men I was given one less lap to go but towards the end saw a pace car behind me. It was the last lap so I thought they must have started the next race. Unfortunately it was the women coming to lap me. What???!! They had gotten lapped by the men too so why didn't they finish on the previous lap. I had to ask Craig and Rich what was going on when I got to the line and Craig said I could do another lap if I wanted but said it was at their discretion that they gave me one less. WTF? I just didn't get it and didn't want pity so opted to finish the whole 50 miles. That was the worst part. One more lap after thinking I was done but my head needed to do the whole thing. So anyway, I was DFL and not DNF so was happy about that but really upset that I had to ride that entire race alone. Oh well, there will be more races.

Kristin and I before the Superweek Shorewood Crit

On July 16th I decided to try my first crit. I wasn't sure if doing a Superweek pro race was the best idea but I had to get the fear and jitters out of me and the best way to do that is to get back on the proverbial horse--in this case my bike! Kristin and I drove down to Shorewood, WI and registered for the race. Because we were the first race of the afternoon they were still setting up the course so we got to actually warm up on the course beforehand which was nice. I bought some Lacrosse rib padding for kids and made a little makeshift hip padding out of it. I know I looked like a total nerd but I wanted to at least feel safe in case of any potential crash. It was a left turn course which was good but still, I padded both hips to be safe! :)

Me being a nerd with my hip pads! :)

I'm taking a mindfulness class for athletes so was able to practice some of the techniques I had learned in class the night before to keep myself relaxed. At the line there were about 40 women and I wasn't really nervous. Once we were off I felt ok even though one stretch was really bumpy and a couple of the corners were a bit tight. I know my cornering was a little tentative at first so even when riding in the middle of the pack a gap would open to the rider ahead of me and I had to waste energy getting back on the wheel. Eventually I found myself at the back and when Kristin attacked for a $200 prime mid way into the race I fell off the back. I ended up riding the rest of the race alone and they did not pull me so I got a finish place. Once again DFL but my head was happy I finished it. It was good practice in an elite group of riders from all over the world. I just wish my fitness would come back faster. I'm getting impatient. Kristin had a great race taking home $250 worth of primes and as always made the race exciting! :) It was fun to be back in the race atmosphere as a racer and not just a spectator but I will be happier when my legs can go a little faster. :) Or maybe with all this riding alone I am doing I should consider taking up time trialing!!!?  :)

Kristin showing off her prime winnings! Yay!

The weather has been horribly cold for July here and I haven't felt like riding since the race. I am not quite ready for fall yet but am going to grab a blanket and watch the Tour tonight! Now the real race begins! :)  Thanks for reading.