You Can Call Me Jane

Wednesday was my first ride with the Janes of See Jane Ride! It was definitely a rewarding and cathartic experience.

My day leading up to the ride was a very hectic one. Everything from the dog accidentally getting kicked in the face, losing a tooth, bleeding everywhere, me running late, the printer not working(I had to print my trial pass), to almost running out of gas and getting a little bit lost. In the end I made it just fine, and was pretty psyched to go on my first ride. Jane was even there waiting for me!

 Jane, You don't know how much I need this ride right now.

The amazing Dana (co-leader of the Janes) waited for me and filled me in on some safety tips. I honestly don't know much about road or group rides, so now I do. As you may remember I am lacking a bike right now, so I was set-up with an awesome 2010 Cannondale Quick; part of the Jane's fleet.

I was looking forward to talking and chatting, and even hamming it up. I have a habit of coming off as anti-social because people mistake my shyness as disinterest, so to make up for it I try to be over-the-top nice. It turns out that instead of being a chatty Cathy(or should I say Jane?) I decided to sit back and take it all in. It couldn't have been a more perfect day.

 Happy little farms.

It felt so nice  to just let go. I had been waiting to get out there, especially not having a job lately. I'm turning into a complete lump. Thanks Jane for kicking my butt. The mileage wasn't bad, something like 5 or 6? I have a feeling road riding miles will not intimidate me much anymore, especially if they continue to be as nicely paced as this loop. A couple hills along the way - nothing too scary. In fact they were very rewarding.

Happy little hills.
 

I would have liked to get to know the Janes more, as I did meet a couple, but feel like the opportunity will arise soon enough. I did meet another leader of the Janes, Carla, and got to introduce myself to others that I know I will see again. You should check out the Janes either at See Jane Ride or on facebook, and they also write about our adventures here!

Have a goodnight Mr. Sun!

The ride was very easy going. Perfect weather; perfect day. Without getting too personal, I have a very strong spiritual/religious connection with the wind. A certain someone was with me there that day. I find that Nature's greatest gift is some wind through your hair. I couldn't have been happier.

Partly Cloudy

Since moving to State College I haven't had much luck in the employment category. I have my mascot job, which averages to 4 gigs a month and my BBW job, where they never put me on the schedule. I was working at a clothing store for some time, but the owner/manager was a monster and I didn't want to be around all the negativity.

I can relate.

I figured it'd be easy to get a better job here. All the students leaving at the end of April should make more positions available. I've spent the last 3+ weeks filling out applications and taking online virtual job assessments like a crazy person. I have retail and management experience(a lot of it) and figured I could settle down in just about any retail position.

So with being almost unemployed and having lots and lots of free time, I was biking a lot. I decided, because I wanted to get a new bike, that it was probably time to sell my old bike before I wear it out too much. I put it on Craigslist for $300 and sold it for $280 within the week.

This was how I felt when they took my bike away.

Now dearest reader, you might think, "but Megan, now you can buy your brand new bike!" Well, with all the debt I was slowly sinking into from seeing little to no shifts at work, I realized that my bike money would have to go towards life expenses first before I get a new bike. I just got slammed with an $800 car bill (new tires, inspection, and a new motor mount, if you must know). I felt so utterly upset.

If you're a believer in that phrase about closing a door but opening a window, the next day my friend Jess was moving out of State College. She asked me if I wanted her sweet huffy. Now, while it isn't a Trek Skye S, I figured it'd be better to have A bike than NO bike.

Rusted Everything?? I'll take it!

Not considering the huffy, I am currently without a bike. This is depressing especially with the weather starting to get warmer, Janes starting to go on rides, and less than 113 days away from the Coal Cracker Classic. On top of that the boy and I are having some issues, ones I don't wish to tell the internet. I almost considered moving back to Allentown. With all of this crap that is getting in the way, I still would try to compete in the CCC. SO without training as much as I'd like to be, I will still compete to prove it to myself. I have to.

 You will be mine!

On the upside, today I was called to schedule an interview with a lovely new interior design shop downtown =). Also, tomorrow the Janes are going on a ride, and while it semi-conflicts with my work schedule, I must attend! I was also given a free trial membership which is great! Even though I don't have a bike they can loan one to me for rides and I'm happy with that. I do believe that things will turn around.  I do believe that I can climb out of this debt hole once I get a nice job. I also believe that I will be on a bike again in no time, and you will see me this September at Bungalow Park at that starting line for the Coal Cracker.

An Ode to Threadless and Bicycles

I'm in the worst mood lately, so consider this entry for good measure. I have been making progress with biking and exploring new things, however I've been going through some personal issues lately and am having a hard time gathering my thoughts. 

The first 6 shirts can be found at Threadless. IF you've been living under a rock, or just aren't into t-shirts, Threadless is a lovely clothing company that let's artists contribute original designs, and let their customers vote on ones they want to be made into shirts.

 Liberty by

Kneil Melicano at Threadless

I'm not all about wearing bike shirts, just to say "HEY EVERYONE! Yeah I ride a BIKE!" But most of the ones I own are ones that I really like the art concept. I bought this one because I really like the symbolism of the phoenix.

Missing by Julian Glander at Threadless

This one I bought after Tom had his Bontrager stolen out of the back of his car. It's a sad sad thing when a bike gets stolen. I feel like this is the general thought that anyone would have towards a bike thief. Tom's a good guy though, and thought, that if some jerks stole it and tried to sell it, then maybe someone somewhere bought it and enjoys riding it. If YOU have ever had a bike stolen from you, check out the I Hate You Bike Thief blog/website. There are posters you can print to tell your local bike thief that he/she's a jerk face and reader stories that are HILARIOUS.

Have A Nice Day by Chalermphol Harnchakkham at threadless

I never bought this one, but think that it's really beautiful. I love nature, and I love bikes - the bird on the handlebars is a nice touch.

Bike Chaos by Fabio Franca at Threadless

I love this one. I wanted to buy it for Tom but he tends to like smaller simpler designs. I like it though =)

Color Wheel by Ross Zietz at Threadless

This one they just recently put up, I think it's pretty cool, maybe for some of you art majors out there.

Infinity MPG by Ross Zietz Threadless

This is Threadless' most popular bike design. I decided to show the tote bag, because if I ever do end up getting it, I'd get it on a bag or a water bottle, rather than the shirt.


Another one of my favorite shirts that I'll probably be wearing a lot this summer is this one

It's JANE! from See Jane Ride! (no, not the model, on the shirt!)

They also have a slamming shirt-dress that I want to get. Look look look at it!

These and other merch can be found HERE. I'd recommend it especially if you're an active sassy lady and of course if you love See Jane Ride.

Well hopefully blog, this will hold you over for now. Coming up soon -

-My personal beliefs regarding motion and why everything in my life needs to constantly be moving, and how biking fits into that.
- My progress so far, and things I feel better about, like evil hills.
-Ride soundtracks. I don't know if there's some rule that it's unsafe to listen to music while on a bike, (not being able to hear things around you) but I always have my ipod with me, and I'd like to share the tunes.
-Updates on some more adventures, Trips back to Allentown, and Vali's biking progress as well.

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.

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.

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.

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!