Wednesday, April 27, 2011

The Things That Hold Us Back

It's amazing what we, as people, will come up with as an excuse. I'm not even talking about the excuses we tell our peers, colleagues or employers, but the ones that we tell ourselves. When taking on new things in life we will of course face many obstacles, some mental and some physical. I would easily define myself as a "do-er." So when I find myself coming up with excuses, I try to find out why I am doing it, and how I can attain the goal at hand.

I've gone out biking a couple times recently, now that the weather in State College is starting to feel like Spring. Or it just skipped Spring altogether and suddenly it's late-July humid out with 80 degree temperatures and thunderstorms, but I'll take whatever comes my way.  Both trials were about an hour in time to Circleville Park nearby my house. Circleville Park provides a nice long macadam path to ride on, or paths that go into Patton Forest that are really easy starter paths; no rocks, no switchbacks and only 1 or 2 fallen trees. Although I'd consider my trips short, I have learned a couple things, that I must overcome.

Clearance and Proximity
I'm that person on the roller coaster that keeps my hands up until the car goes under a tunnel or overhead beam. I know, in my head, that engineers spent a lot of time making sure that there is plenty of clearance for people to raise their arms while coaster cars whiz into tunnels at 65 miles an hour. But there's something in me that just can't keep those arms up. Applying that to mountain biking, I'm deathly afraid that I will just ride right into a tree, ala george of the jungle, because of misjudging how much space I have on a particular path. I enjoy Circleville because of this. I'm not really trying to tackle any crazy obstacles yet, but learn paths, and space, and passing courtesy because I know I will get passed.

 Those are trees. They might want to hurt me?

The Opinions of Others
My first trip out to the woods was very very exciting for me. I was on my own, and I enjoy being by myself because ever since I was a toddler, my mother can attest, that I would never want help. EVER. "I can do it myself" I would exclaim and feel that the reward was even greater because I figured things out on my own. Granted as a twentysomething now I know when to ask for help, but the idea of reward still stands true and feels really good when you do something on your own. On my second trip Tom went with me. I felt miserable. Maybe it was the mood I was in that day, but I felt the pressure. I felt like he would judge me, and that I was probably doing everything wrong. Funny thing is - he's not a judgmental person. If anything he wants to help me and encourages my little biking endeavor. Sometimes I think that it's not biking I'm afraid of, but my boyfriend. I'm fine when I bike with Rachael, or with my friend Erik back in Allentown. Put me with Tom though and I feel like a dork. This may be because I tend to put him up on a pedestal. Oddly enough I don't have a solution yet for this one. I'm kind of stumped. at least I know that it is something I need to work on. I need to focus on enjoying myself and not worrying about others opinions. I also think that biking with people of my skill level will help with this.

At least I'm wearing my helmet.

My Bike. Past and Present.
In an earlier entry I mentioned how my bike is too large for little old me. When I had turned the size of my bike into a big enough issue Tom resolved that we should get a new one for me. From there I wasn't sure what to do next. What size is right for me? Where should I get a bike from? Should I buy one that's put together already? Would he want to build me a custom one? What do I know about this stuff? All  know is that I want it to be comfortable and look pretty. I looked for a little last Autumn, but felt like I shouldn't be unhappy with a gift, and that I could make my bike work. Shortly after starting this blog, Tom approached me with "If you're really serious about this biking thing we CAN get you a new bike." We've made the decision to sell the old one, and now I want this - which I won't get quite yet, but can't wait.

 That is a Women's Trek Skye S in LAVA BLACK. 
I'd put all my green accessories on it, of course.

Timing and Priorities
When I moved to State College I started the year off with 3 part-time jobs and the sad grim hours of winter. Now the days are longer, I only have 2 part-time jobs that I barely work at, and am searching for employment. If I had all the time in the day I would love to bike ride more. Unfortunately, the beginning of May is traditionally when I start gardening all my summer veggies, so I'm trying to prep the planters and garden now. I hate to feel like I'm racing the daylight, and my other daytime activities include; playing with the dog, taking him to the dog park or for walks, trying desperately to spend quality time with the boyfriend before he leaves for work,  grocery shopping, doing dishes, and wasting way too much time on the internet-although this can always wait til the sun goes down. Tom just recently got into a work out routine of strength training/weights alternating every day with bike rides. He always picks places that I want to go, but then tells me he doesn't think I'm "ready" for them. Well, I'll show you! Sometimes I get too discouraged to go bike riding. Where's my motivation? Besides, I like riding by myself anyway. Again, I need to just get out and have some fun. I might end up getting a full-time job soon and then who knows how much free time I'll have. What if this happened?

RIDE BIKES EVERY DAY!!!

The Support of Friends and Family
Now someone might be confused and wonder why I consider this an obstacle, or "opportunity for growth." My friends and family tend to not understand why I'm suddenly doing this. Ever get really excited about something and then go try to explain it to someone who has never heard of what you're talking about? They usually don't get equally excited, and that is the situation I'm facing at the moment. Friends have been supportive for the most part, but like to crack hipster jokes at me and other "supportive" things. My mother asked me "Do I wear a helmet?" which I thought, "Is she really asking me this?" and then said "well at least you're not one of those CRAZY bikers." To which I asked her to explain but she changed the subject. I want to say she was referring to bmx.

My mom thinks I do this. HAHA I would do that. 
Just to get a reaction from my MOM.

What frustrates me most is that I have all these hang-ups. Why can't I just get out there and ride? I can't wait til the See Jane Ride rides start. Looking forward to being around a lighthearted group. I think in time, with more and more rides, I will be able to let go and have more fun. Because if I wasn't having fun, I'm not sure why I'd be doing this.

Sunday, April 24, 2011

Dogs and Bicycles

Consider this a lighthearted post, as I haven't made great strides in riding lately. I've had some progress but thought I'd spend the time to fill you in on some more fun biking-related stuff.

I think bicycles and dogs go together like french fries and ketchup. Sure you don't need ketchup to enjoy your french fries, but it can make them so much more fun. If you're ever down at Freeze Thaw Cycles you might run into their customer service representatives, Salsa and Bosco.


Salsa getting some water, by A. E. Landes Photography

Bosco - sportin the HAWK

What I love about these dogs, is that they're not just shop dogs that sit around. These are also dogs that you'll run into if you're out on the trail. They love biking just as much as people do.

Bosco out with Harry and Chris

When we moved to State College, Tom and I decided that we were ready to get a puppy. When we were thinking of breeds and qualities we were looking for we definitely wanted a dog that we could train to be a bike dog. We would need a pup that liked to be around people, perhaps a herding dog that could handle a bunch of bicycles, and a dog that would have plenty of energy and endurance.

brace yourselves... for cuteness

ready?

ready??

ready???

I don't think you've prepared yourself yet, for how cute this is.

I warned you.

This is our Australian Shepherd, Vali. He is now 4 months old and when we first brought him into the house, one of his favorite things to do was go over to the bikes and chew on them. We took this as a sign that he happily accepted his future role as bike dog and would love it(or that he was teething). We've read that it is best to not over-exercise a dog or do any strenuous activity until they are at least a year old. We probably won't take him on a ride until then. There's always time now, however, to get him socialized, and used to bikes as well as other dogs. He is pretty smart and learns things really quickly. As a shepherd, he already loves herding and today we took him out with the bike for the first time to see how he would react.

Chasing Tom around. Bite his tires!

It was very successful. Once he wakes up from his nap, I'll try to ride around this time. He really is an amazing dog, and I'll be sure to update here and there about his progress. He still has yet to meet Salsa, Bosco, and also Sebastian, another shepherd that rides with us.

Sitting pretty.

Do you know any awesome bike dogs? Some breeds aren't cut out for it, but I've read that it's never one particular breed that's great at it. It's all about how you train them. Let me know if you see any bike dogs out there!

(not mine). from flickr

Friday, April 22, 2011

Change of Mind, Heart, and Gears.

When I moved to State College, I told myself that I was going to use my bike more than ever. I originally planned this when I thought I'd be living closer to downtown. I live about 4 miles north, which isn't too far away, but far enough that I have to go up and down a couple hills to get where ever I'm going. Hills are the enemy. I don't think I've mentioned how incredibly out of shape I am, and couldn't really tell you when I was last "in shape."

I did have some pretty sick abs when I was 9.

You could say that fitness was an objective - shape up, be healthy, feel better about myself. I also considered that biking would save me some money. I wouldn't use my car as much and I would spend less on gas and maintenance. I'm also a tree hugger so somewhere in there I'd be helping the environment. I think just about every person that starts to ride a bicycle has these same goals in mind.


Another goal, as previously mentioned, was to get closer to Tom, and make new friends. I still saw the bike community as an intimidating group though. Especially because the people we tend to hang out with aren't just bike riders for enjoyment, they also build, repair, race and design. They know what they're doing. I get lost listening to them converse. I won't even try to keep up with that. I knew there must be other people out there that were riding just to have some fun(not that the above group wasn't, just that they came off as a little too intense) but I wasn't quite sure how I'd meet them.

I'm not the greatest at making new friends.

 Last week I came across a listing on Craigslist looking for women who would be paid to be on a street team for a bicycle club for Blue White Weekend. We were to pair up with a buddy and meet for information that Thursday at Panera if interested. I checked out their website and they seemed pretty cool. Just a nice little group looking to get out and bike, get in shape, eat healthy and be healthy, and have some fun along the way. I am also desperate for money since leaving my last job, so I thought that this could be good. I sent Rachael the link and pretty much forgot about it, after realizing my other job interfered with the time that they would need me. Thursday rolled around, and Rachael texted me asking if I would be going to the meeting that night. I thought what the hell, it had been a while since I had a Panera tuna salad sandwich. I also thought it would be a good idea to see what this group was all about.

I got home from work about 5:30 and the meeting was at 7. I told Rachael that I would ride my bike to her house and we would ride up together. I know this town by car, for sure, bike is a different story though. There are many bike paths that I'm not quite sure where they lead, so I had a pretty roundabout way that I had planned to get downtown. Not even a mile from my house I noticed that my tires were low on air. I started to question whether I should continue, whether I would make it on time, and how easy it would be to just drive my car downtown.

I forced myself to continue, thinking that even if I missed the meeting I would still be able to say I biked a bit and got to know the area a little better. I made it with 15 minutes to spare and I felt really really good. The meeting went well, and I got to know about See Jane Ride. The more that I learned the more I simply thought that joining this group was a no-brainer. I would be able to ride more, see more things, and MAKE FRIENDS! The woman who led the meeting, Dana, explained that the group is for woman of all skill levels, no pressure atmosphere and go at your own pace. This was so appealing to me, especially because it was opposite of my previous feelings of the skilled bikies I hang around with.

You mean I don't have to feel like I'm anchoring everyone?

After the meeting we rode back to Rachael's and I let my adrenaline high take control of my thoughts.

YES I WILL JOIN THIS BIKE CLUB!
SEE JANE RIDE IS AWESOME!
I WILL BE AMAZING!
I WILL MAKE FRIENDS!
I WILL GET IN SHAPE!
I WILL LOVE MY LIFE!

and somewhere in there I thought, if I really am this serious about it, and I stick with it, maybe I should have a landmark goal in mind so that when I reach it I will feel as though I've really succeeded. That thought was followed by;

I WILL COMPETE IN THE COAL CRACKER CLASSIC IN SEPTEMBER!
and I'LL START A BLOG TO DOCUMENT MY PROGRESS!
to the point where I jokingly said to my boyfriend, I'M GOING TO BE INTERNET FAMOUS!

uuuuhhh yeah.

The culmination of it all. The conception and birth of this idea, this blog. And believe me, I'm very very excited. Now all I have to do is wait for amiable weather conditions and we'll get down to business.



SERIOUS business.

Tuesday, April 19, 2011

Defining "Bike-Friendly"

I hail from the land of Allentown. It was one of those cities that boomed during the industrial revolution, built on the foundations of cement, iron, and steel. Now it is known for traffic, bums, crack busts, and a terrible public school system. However, the city isn't completely without benefit. It has many parks and recreational areas, and isn't too far away from some forests and mountains, ones that I grew up on. Oh and Yacco's.

I almost wish that billboard was real.

Now, I've never had that big of a problem with Allentown- in fact I love it. While many consider me a "towny" there are plenty of people that feel like Allentown is a trap, and they constantly speak of life outside the Lehigh Valley. My boy Tom, and his brother, Ed, don't hold much favor for the city. When we lived there Tom was jumped once by 3 guys and had his beloved Bontrager stolen from the back of his car that was broken into. Traffic makes it hard to bike anywhere and motorists are not the friendliest here. Both boys were sick of their jobs, and wanted a change of scenery.

 When I think of Allentown and bicycles, I think of this.

and this.

Summer rolled around with some visits to my friend Rachael who had just moved to State College, PA with her twin brother Chris. The Ruhl twins rode their bikes everywhere, as you could in State College, with nothing more than a couple miles away. I was inspired by the area, so accommodating to cyclists and pedestrians. Allentown was quite the opposite. While things were in walking/riding distance, a smart person wouldn't try to wander around in Allentown.

 This is Rachael. She will stab me when she realizes I've used this picture.

Chris and Tom got to know each other a little better with each visit. Tom was also introduced to the Ruhl twin's roommate Justin, one of the owners of FreezeThaw Cycles, an awesome bike shop downtown. We played around with the idea many times in the Ruhl's kitchen. It went something like this -

"Wouldn't it be lovely if you and Thomas were to grace us with your presence in State College more often?"
"Why yes! By what means doust thou suggest?"
"Surely, you should'st move your belongings, as well as residence to this fair town?"
"What a marvelous idea! But what of our occupation?"
"Thomas is of a qualified nature to work at the bicycle shop come spring. His skill shows much promise."
"Splendid! it shall be done at once!"

All of my memories are Victorian. We did drink a lot of tea that day. Anyway, after it was suggested, almost with jest, it became a very possible reality for us. We wanted to move to State College. Well, Tom for certain wanted to move, I simply wanted to be supportive. Not quite sure of what my own intentions would be, once I got there.

"Won't life in State College be grand?"

Now I live here. State College, the land of happy bicycles. What most people would define as "bike-friendly." What makes this town bike-friendly you ask. Well first off, there are many places that sell, repair, and service bicycles.

FreezeThaw Cycles Downtown. There is also Eddie's, and The Bicycle Shop.

Regardless of whether you are downtown, or on the outskirts of the city, there are bike paths going every which direction. 

Along Blue Course Drive

Always a place to lock your bike. Bike racks are all over downtown, and near grocery stores and apartment complexes.

Look at all the bikes making friends!

Most importantly would be the attitude of the people in the community. These cyclists don't just ride "cause it's cool." The town consists of mostly college students, who may not have a car. There's also plenty of mountain biking enthusiasts in town, because outside of town we are surrounded by 215,000 acres of the Rothrock State Forest. I think the town itself is a better place because it embraces it's bicycle community. For the record, it was the largest factor in considering moving here.

Monday, April 18, 2011

BE the Bicycle

My biggest obstacle I face is wanting to tell every story all at one moment. Please bare with me kind readers. I need to ration my entries =)

When the warmer weather of 2010 rolled around I started to accustom myself to the idea of my new bike. I knew that I wanted to spend more time with my boy, get in shape, and see new sights in a different way. We walked our roommates dog, Rascal, around the neighborhood, and in doing so discovered a nice little park nearby with a bike path. The path was pretty tame, except one part where you had the option of fording a river. Clearly this was awesome. I got out to ride a couple times, fell in the river twice, but felt sad without Rascal. My outdoor ventures remained walking the dog, and barely riding my new bike.

 This is Rascal, upset that I was attempting to ride my bike,
instead of taking him for walks.

I faced riding my new bike with optimism. While I faced many obstacles - my bike was too big for me, I didn't have a helmet yet, the seat hurts my hoohah, the area I lived in was also bicycle-challenged  - I was determined to overcome them. I coped with this as I tend to do with all things, by making it mine. Personalization is something I do as a roundabout way to possession. By declaring something mine I can take ownership of the situation.

I think back to acting classes in high school. "BE the bicycle Megan, BE THE BICYCLE."

an example... When I was a teenager I had a guitar. Decorated to say, "this is my guitar." Could I play guitar? NO. 

Complete with butterfly transfer decals and glow in the dark frets. 
All I could play was the Meow Mix theme song and the 007 song. 

And how might this guitar relate to my new bike? Well.... I did the same thing to it. Thought dressing it up nice would make it more for me.

Green was a lovely accent color, so I got some pretty star handle grips, a mint green light(for night riding) and a green bottle holder.
Conveniently the water bottles at FreezeThaw (my friends' shop) are also green.

Luckily I had some sweet gloves lying around, from when I was a cage fighter. 
I also found my name license plate from when I was a kid, and crashed my sweet red huffy.

I delayed buying a helmet. I attempted to get one when I bought all this other awesome stuff but couldn't afford the ones at the shop. I knew the world of biking was going to be expensive. I didn't even know what I was looking for in a helmet. If we have to get personal here, and we will, I think I didn't buy a helmet because I was scared.

I figured that as long as I didn't have a helmet yet, I couldn't do anything of a higher risk level. Probably the same reason why I won't go snowboarding without health insurance. It became my excuse for everything. I stuck to riding on the road, which was equally scary (grr traffic). As much as I wanted to venture into the woods, I told myself I wasn't allowed to without protection. Finally, when I thought I was ready for bigger and better things, I bought a helmet.

I think I've worn it once.

Friday, April 15, 2011

The Beginning of the Beginning

When I think of where to start I wonder how much is necessary to divulge. One must understand all my motivators in suddenly deciding to take on Rothrock State Forest and eventually the Mid-Atlantic Super Series. I simply can not use the excuse "I don't own a helmet" anymore. So the beginning of beginnings starts with my motivations, my intentions, my progress, and finally my results. Follow them, won't you?

It always starts with a boy, at least for me, it does. The boy I am with is a mountain biking phenomena. He's been hitting trails with the big kids since he was a youngin, raced competitively all over the mid-atlantic in his teens, and remembered him mentioning something about a sponsorship somewhere in there. He recently got back into racing last summer, when a old race route near his home town resurrected. Enter the Coal Cracker Classic.
 
He came in 2nd place, single speed expert class. It was at this moment that I knew that my guy was a hot shot. Hadn't been in a competition in 7 years and just shows up and womps into 2nd place.
 Here I am, trying to enter his great big world of biking, just to get closer, have more to do together. Now don't get me wrong, I consider myself an expert class ADVENTURER. Just not that accustomed to bikes.

Now without getting too far ahead of myself, I must tell you about christmas(or as we tend to celebrate, the winter solstice, but whatever.. I'll just say christmas).  I had previously dropped hints about wanting a bike, but never saying that I wanted him to get one for me. I always figured that I'd stumble across some old beater at a yard sale for 20 bucks. I'd take it home and fix it up, and have a happy little bike to call my own. Something like this...
My friend sam found this baby in a dumpster. Throw a basket on that sucker and that's what I'm talking about.

Well Tom(my boy), gave me some present hints. It was impossible to store at our house, so he had it kept at his mom's. He mentioned that he couldn't keep it at our place because it wasn't something he could hide. He'd probably have to get it a day or two before christmas. Here I am, the whole time thinking, he must have finally adopted a kitten for me just like I've always wanted. I came home from work that day to find this
 That would be a Jamis Allegro 1x Hybrid or my new kitten. Whatever. I remember being utterly disappointed. Thanks hun. I tried to hide my sadness. What am I supposed to do with a bicycle in the middle of winter? Why isn't this a kitten? Can I snuggle with my new bicycle? I was perplexed. I tried to tell myself it would be ok. I was like an animal approaching a foreign object. I smelled it, cautiously. "It's too big for me." I started crying. I think I ruined the boy's gift giving courage for any future holiday. He adjusted the seat. "It's too big for me." He adjusted the handlebars. "It's too big for me." He insisted we could get a different bike, but that is the very bike that I now proudly own, and ride awkwardly.

I think my real fear lay in facing that I knew I wouldn't be able to keep up with Tom. Regardless of how many times he kept telling me he enjoyed my company, even if I did have to stop and walk at every incline, I still felt defeated. Like I could never be on his level, or even on an intermediate level. I am a loser with a sweet bike, and I'll pretend I know what I'm doing with it. As time went by, I tried to accustom myself with my new ride. When summer came we went on some bike paths I could handle, but I really wanted to try the woods and forest trails. This was a far away thought as I still have yet to set tire into a forest.

Next time I'll tell you about my rivalry with traffic, my moving to State College, and surviving winter. After all that background info is established - The real GOAL and how I get there! Joining See Jane Ride and getting to the 2011 Coal Cracker Classic!