Roadside Find

Captured this picture on the ride to work last week. It tickled me that someone took the time to so nicely place the newspaper. I hope the home owner found the same humor in it.

The weather this time of year is just gorgeous. I'm enjoying riding and being outside. Yeah for spring! Too bad people keep talking about how hot it's going to get soon. Don't talk, just enjoy.

Safe Journey

My brother-in-law, J, left for Afghanistan yesterday. He'll be deployed there for six months. Luckily Karen and Madeline got to spend some time with him before he left. We will all miss him a lot.

My Birthday

On Wednesday, March 11th, I turned 32 years old. Birthdays aren't usually a big deal for me, but this year was a big deal. So many people made me feel really special this year. I'm so lucky to have so many friends and a wonderful family who love me!

On my actual birthday, Chris, David, and I went out for sushi. Then we came back to the house and shared a bottle of champagne. The conversation was flowing as were the drinks. Before we knew it, it was 3:30am! I haven't stayed up that late in ages. I joked that I was laughing in the face of 32 and acting like I was 21 again. All the great conversation made it a wonderful night!

This year I was showered with gifts. Everyone was so generous. It was especially exciting that so many of my gifts were bike related. Perfect!

Chris got me flowers and panniers (bags for my bike). Chad and David got the rack that the bags hang on.

Karen got me a pendant with a bike on it! (From leilacools.com)

My parents sent money, which is probably going towards a new set of tires.

On Saturday night, we threw a birthday party with Sunny, a friend whose birthday was also in March. We held it at a park, where we drank beer, ate birthday cake, and played bike games. Chris and I even made a pinata that looked like a bike. The weather was perfect and I had a really fun night.

You can see all the pictures from my birthday party. But here are a few of my favorites.

Thanks again to everyone for making my birthday special!

Comments

75 Mile Ride

Last Sunday Chris and I took our longest bike ride to date. We rode a total of 75 miles over the course of the day. This was a training ride for the MS150 ride we're doing the last weekend in March. (You can sponsor me & which raises money for a great cause!)

Start: 8:30am at Our House

We rode from our house to the Trailhead Bike Cafe (11 miles). At Trailhead, we met up with Celeste and Josiah who were going with us on a 55 mile loop within the city. Dave & Chad showed up at Trailhead for coffee & breakfast. Chad couldn't ride because of a recent bike crash he's still recovering from, but David ended up joining us for the first part of the loop. Then he had to leave us to go to work.

Before we left the bike cafe, the guys got silly on the four person rental. (Some day we're going to rent this bike.) We officially started the route at 10:30am.

Here's the loop we took within Phoenix. It was a really nice route. The first half was along the Arizona canal. Due to the tunnels that go under the roadways, it's a pretty fast and easy ride. (It's always easy when cars aren't around.) Plus, it was really beautiful.

We rode this route clockwise starting at 16 Street & Glendale.

We stopped for lunch around mile 28. We ate pizza and enjoyed the great weather. It was a much needed break. I'm still figuring out the right mix of food and snacks for longer rides like this. Water is easy, drink lots! Food is a bit more difficult to get the right amount and type.

After lunch we all felt more energized. I started feeling fairly worn out around mile 44 so we stopped in the shade in front of someone's house. Shortly after that we stopped for gelato which also helped a lot!

By the time we got back to the bike cafe, we were all pretty worn out. It was 5:00pm, Chris and I had ridden 65 miles total. Celeste & Josiah had ridden 55 miles. It had been a full and successful day. We were all very proud of ourselves.

Chris and I still had to ride 11 miles back home. We rested for a bit (and probably should have eaten something) then headed off. That last 11 miles was definitely tough for me to start, but once we were on the road, it was OK. I rode pretty slowly though.

End: 6:30pm at Our House
After a shower, I planted myself on the couch. Chris was nice enough to pick up dinner and we relaxed the rest of the night. When I got into bed, I did have a tough time getting my legs to relax. After a little Advil, I was able to sleep soundly.

I'm very proud of my longest ride to date! I'm confident that I'm ready for the MS150. I'm now planning on riding all 150 miles (instead of 105 miles originally). Since it will be over two days and fully supported, I'm confident I can do it. I'll just need to be a little more conscious of food and my energy levels. I will also take Advil earlier rather than waiting to feel the pain.