Eddy's Sweet Corn Ride

For the last two years, I've had Eddy's Sweet Corn Ride on my wish list for local events. And for one reason or another (or just maybe lame excuses), I've never tackled the event. But this year, I signed up the Mister and he happily agreed (ok, maybe not happily, maybe more like he was resigned to do it). At any rate, we both had a wonderful morning cruising up and down some serious hills. And did I mention that the 25-mile ride we completed was my longest bike ride distance to date. But guess what? I had such fun doing it and found out that I was in better shape than I thought. So that means 25 is going to get crossed out and replaced with 30, 40 and hopefully a 50-mile ride. I couldn't believe how freeing it is to wisk downhill and I even rode down SEVERAL hills without gripping my brakes! And I rode up all the hills...not at a lightning fast speed, but I did it. I rode up one hill with two kids - seriously, they were like 12 and 14. We were a team. And that's what makes these kinds of rides so awesome.

Oh, and I learned to troubleshoot a bike emergency and I succeeded. My gears locked up. And since Greg had flown down the hill, he was nowhere to be found. I pulled over the the side, played around with my chain a bit until I figured out how "those parts work" and before I knew it, I was up and running. And boy did I have a lot of chain grease on my hands. Poor Violet, she looks like she got into a fight with preschool painters!

At the finish line, I asked some random stranger to take our picture. I told him where to tap on my iPhone to take the picture. He was completely insulted (but a good sport) and told me that he actually had an iPhone, too. Oh well, at least he snapped a nice pic of me and the hubs.

The finish line food was awesome - I had the veggie wrap, Greg had the pulled pork and we both had corn on the cob - Mmmmmm. Before departing, we picked up our "to go" ears of corn and sailed back to the parking lot. What a great way to spend a Sunday!

Quinoa, Only Yummy

Simple way to enjoy the healthy benefits of quinoa.

Boil 1 cup quinoa with 2 cups water (include a tsp olive oil, a little sea salt and a garlic clove). Simmer on low, cover and cook for 10-15 minutes till water absorbed.

Add diced peppers (green, red, habanero or jalapeño are good), corn, black beans, 1tbsp cumin, salt, pepper, chopped cilantro (to your tastes), and juice from one lime.

Great either hot or cold. During the winter, I'll even add diced sweet potatoes to the mix. Mmmmm...enjoy!

We're Not the Only Family with Crazy Travel/Fitness Goals

I stumbled across this blog by accident and so glad I did. Hubs is going to be crazy nervous when he reads what THIS family is up to! I don't want to give away the story, but this family is traveling BY BIKE from Alaska to Argentina! What an amazing adventure with kids. Check out their blog, if you have a little free time. If you're a parent, be sure to check out their "48 Tips for Bike Touring with Kids."

http://familyonbikes.org/blog

Tuesday's Sound Bites

Something new I'm adding to this blog - interesting music running, cycling, or maybe just to have in the background. I found this new artist and I'm loving her sound. Mr. Little Jeans was described as sleigh bells meets Aimee Mann. I was instantly intrigued. I loved her Arcade Fire cover, but enjoyed her cover of Beyonce's Single Ladies. Both are worth a listen. Enjoy :)


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7MaymsFzWKQ

Congratulations Meg on Your First Sprint Triathlon!

Well, she did it! Meg completed her first sprint triathlon - and with no training. My girl rocks. She sailed through the 1/4-mile swim with a time of 10:26, darn good for someone who was attempting her first open water swim. Good thing she's a high school swimmer in her "other job". I had given her some tips for transition knowing that she would finish significantly faster than me, but I couldn't believe how much of a run you had (with bare feet) between the swim exit and transition entrance. The bike portion was funny. Meg's bike is a Huffy from Target with 7-gears. Now, in spite of this cycling handicap (or as she put it: no carbon fiber!), she still managed to finish the 12.2 miles in less than an hour in 58:26. Her only cycling training was a couple rides with me through the Metroparks after getting a hot dog and ice cream at Sweetwater Landing. Way to go, Pumpkin! The second transition time was much better, although she and I both made the same mistake: knocking over the bike racks! Her run portion was her major weakness because she hates running. How is that possible with me as a mother? Oh, it is. But she never gave up and finished in 42:55. Meg completed her first sprint triathlon in under 2 hours with a time of 1:58:42. Congratulations, Megan! Best of all, she wants to do this again. Now that's my girl :)

This race for me was not meant as a "race", but to do with my daughter. But because I was in a different wave and knew she was a much faster swimmer than me, I ended up improving my bike time. My bike portion was at 15.5mph. Not bad considering I don't have clipless pedals. However, I did tell Greg that it's time for a trip to Century Cycles to get the pedals. They really do make the difference - and I want to upgrade to the Olympic distance. Hmmm...maybe even this summer.

My biggest complaint about this sprint triathlon was their management of the transition area. It was not well protected and visitors were allowed to roam and socialize. When I came back from the swim, a crowd had already gathered at the transition entrance making it tough to get through and find my rack. When I was exiting to tackle the bike portion, I had to yell "coming through." That's not cool. When I came back from the bike, a large group had my rack row blocked and I kept having to say, "Excuse Me" quite loudly to get people to move. My final gripe was part my fault. I listened to a guy in the transition area who pointed me toward the run (he was wrong-my fault for listening) and I ended up by the bathrooms with no signage and had to fight my way through the crowds.

NCN could take a cue from the Mossman Triathlon. The Connecticut race had great security for the transition area. All course markings were spot on. The volunteers kept racers and others away from the entrance/exit points and volunteers were constantly yelling to get you in the right direction. Kudos to Connecticut. Thumbs down to NCN on the transition.

Congratulations, Meg! Now it's time to find a bike with more than 7-speeds!

Swim Lessons, Course Surveillance and Power Outages

Thursday nights should never be this "action-packed." But in the course of 2 hours, Bridget had swimming lessons, my street had a power outage (which lasted a balmy 16 hours), and the girls and I scouted out the bike and run portions of the sprint Tri course. We dined by candlelight eating a nutritious meal brought to us by the fine dining establishment of Chipotle, spent a couple hours at my in-laws house only to get the call that our power was back on, loaded everyone and everything (2 kids, 2 dogs, 2 bags of frozen foods) back into the car, headed back to our casa only to find that the Illuminating Company didn't have ALL the power restored on my street. How does that phrase go - if it wasn't for bad luck, I'd have no luck at all!"

And best of all, Cleveland experience record-breaking temps this week, including Thursday! Lucky us!

Oh No, She Didn't

Meg is entering the wicked world of triathlons! As of a few minutes ago, she has committed to her first sprint triathlon - best of all, we'll be racing side by side. She'll kick my arse in swimming. I will hopefully catch up to her during the bike portion. Then we will run it in together to the finish line. Afterwards, we're going to be a part of a large picnic with friends and fellow racers - can't wait! The coffee and conversation after the Sunday race will be memorable. Go Megan Go!