Mother's Day and the Cascade Chainbreaker

Our packing is becoming more efficient each week.  I actually had the boys and my own clothes packed by Wednesday as I washed the ones from last weekend and then just re-packed them into our duffel's.   Having the clothing and bedding taken care of, I had more time to prepare our food for the weekend.

 I marinated and cooked chicken drumsticks the day before so we could stop half-way to Bend and picnic on cold teriyaki chicken and homemade potato salad.  I washed and chopped veggies for Saturdays breakfast scramble, and made a large spelt-berry salad for lunch.  We eat good.  And I don't think I forgot anything this time!!!  We even had maple syrup and fresh strawberries for our Sunday oatmeal breakfast!

Our pit stop.  Picnic dinner in the snow park.

Two boys and a balloon.  What more do you need?

We arrived at Tumalo State Park at about 8pm on Friday night and were surprised at how full the campground was already.  We found a great site with plenty of large boulders for the kids to play hide-and seek, but boy was it dusty.  Alleck had fun playing Star Wars in the boulders and Keller kept himself busy chopping firewood.

Our campsite at Tumalo State Park

We woke after a good nights sleep, and enjoyed lounging around the camp.  We walked around the campground and scoped out the "best" sites for when we return later in the summer.

We made our way to the race site at about 1, and I pre-rode the course with a couple guys from Team Dirt while Trevor pre-rode the kids course with the boys.  My high school friend Shawn Blount and her two girls came to meet us at the course and rode a bit with us too.  Super fun to see the kids excited to get dirty!

Trevor has been dealing with a pinched nerve in his back/ shoulder area and realized in riding with the kids that racing would not be a good idea.  He struggled with  this decision though, as he loves to race his bike and the Chainbreaker course is one of his favorites.  After a restless night of sleep, and with the sharp electric pain running down his arm, he concluded that he should rest on Sunday and enjoy the race as a spectator.  This worked out well for me, because he and the kids were cheering loudly "go mama!!!"  every time I came into the spectator zone and he was even able to take some good photos and video. 

Kisses from the kids before the race.  I love how we are all in Orange and Black!

This race was awesome.  I come away from it with a huge smile on my face and a boost of confidence.  From the start, I felt strong. At the gun, I jumped out of my seat, and once I found the proper gear, I worked to grab the wheel of Meagan Chinburg who was on the wheel of Alice Pennington, who was on the wheel of Beth Ann Orton, who was on the wheel of Sue Butler.  I was in the LEAD train, heading up a gravel road and I was drafting!!!  This is what I have been trying to figure out since my first Cat 1 race two years ago when I was left in the dust as all the fast girls disappeared.  I must admit that this was a VERY exciting place to be and I did my best to hang on.

A few yards from the trail head Alice attacked to get behind Sue heading onto the double track.  As we made the left turn, Meagan looked over her shoulder at me, and pulled off to the side to let me by.  This took me by surprise, as Meagan is pretty damn fast so I was not quite expecting that.  Now the pack was down to four with Sue leading Alice, then Beth Anne, and then Me. Yes I was there!  I think I will forever remember that feeling of utter joy and excitement at being able to ride with and watch Sue Butler and Alice Pennington as we all bombed the first descent of the day.  Two of Oregon's most accomplished mountain bikers that I have until now only seen before and after a race, NEVER during!

 We all came into the spectator zone together following the 3.5 mile start loop and began the section of the course that I think of as a "carnival." Its so fun, with lots of winding up and down and all around and is flagged off with colorful ribbons.  Riders everywhere and spectators too, ringing cowbells and cheering loudly.  I was excited to come into this zone, knowing Trevor and the boys were there waiting for me.  I felt so proud, like a kid really, as I was tempted to yell to Trevor "Look at me honey!  I'm riding with the fast girls!!"  He tells me later that he felt just as excited as I was, to see me ride like that.  That feels good :)

Well, that moment of glory was short lived, but I tell you it still feels good.  I love mountain biking and triathlon for this.  There are SO MANY things to work on all the time.  So many areas to improve upon.  For me, the confident "endurance" athlete, speed and sprint work has been a new venture.  My body is very comfortable finding a pace and sticking with it for a very long time, never reaching the lactic state.  XC mountain bike racing is about being able to stay lactic for a while, then recover a bit, get lactic again, recover a bit..... and on and on.  When I first began racing this was completely untouched territory for me, and quite honestly pretty scary.    Thanks to Karen DeWolfe and the HOTV runners track workouts, I am now learning how to feel the pain!  Interval and speed workouts have really helped me to get comfortable with pain.  Sometimes pain= pleasure and in this sense I would have to agree. 

As I fell off the back of that lead group, I just settled into my own pace.  I spent the bulk of the race just trying to maintain my place, knowing there were plenty of fast girls out there trying to chase me down.

I came across the finish line, and was so happy.  I was the 4th overall woman, and 1st Cat 1.  I was quick to share the excitement with Alice and Beth Ann at the finish and had Trevor snap a photo.  I love the XC race scene.  We are all, of course laying it all down out there on the course, but as soon as we cross that line, its all about laughter and conversation.  I love sharing these race experiences with my teammates and fellow competitors.  Its such a great community.

Three KONA girls.  Alice Pennington, Me and Beth Ann Orton

Alleck and Keller on the start line

The best way to spend Mother's Day was watching my boys navigate the "carnival" during their race.  This is really the only kids race of the series that actually takes place on the adult course.  My kids have been looking forward to this all year!  It is a joyful time, watching these kids with huge smiles on their faces challenging themselves by riding up hills and down rocks and over logs.  What a treat!  Again, the boys were beaming, and Alleck just could not stop recounting his race experience to anyone who would listen.  It felt so good to see so many of our teammates out there offering cheers and words of encouragement to my kids.  Really, I had tears in my eyes from the beginning.  Just incredibly happy.

So that about sums it up.  Another fabulous weekend full of fun, family and friends.

We head out Friday for the Spring Thaw race in Ashland!