Carol - Saturday.  Cassandra was very thorough in covering our ride so I have little to add, however, she does do the chicken well.  I do have to say that we did have one scary moment not reported in her post.  On the way back we were crossing a very narrow bridge that has a ninety degree turn at the end.  We were about fifteen feet from the end when a group started on the bridge coming directly at us.  The second or third woman in the group went wide in the turn and had to put her bike down so there wouldn't be a collision with us.  I can't believe that Cassandra didn't fall since she stopped so fast.  Not only did she stop fast but she stayed clipped in and balanced there.  I think she surprised us both with that unplanned trick.  Way to go baby!!
The only other point she neglected to write about was the hills you must ride to get back to her house....WOW.  I'm not sure how she rides it all as I was a little intimidated on the last couple since they were so steep.  I still do not feel totally confident riding hills with clips but I'm sure that will come with time.

Cassandra: This past Saturday mom finally got to come down to Seattle and ride my main training route with me. We didn't start out under the best conditions. We had been sleep deprived the two nights preceding our ride, the first night because we were trying to share a bed because we had three people staying in my one-bedroom apartment, and the second night because we were out dancing at the Little Red Hen. Add a couple of drinks into the mix, and we were starting out Saturday in good, but not great, shape. We had originally wanted to set the alarm for 7:00 am, but after dancing we compromised on a 7:30 am wake-up instead. It took us almost an hour to eat, pack food, ready our biking gear, and pump up our tires. But we finally were on our way at 8:30 am. We pushed our bikes up Harrison, the short and yet very steep hill by my house, and then cruised down 23rd Avenue on our way to the Burke-Gilman. Because I knew the route, I rode in the lead position and cued mom on where to turn, where to slow down, etc. I developed the "chicken method" for cuing mom to clip out of her pedals. It involved unclipping both of my feet and waving them in the air like a chicken. Mom thought it was pretty funny :-)

It was nice to be able to show mom my Burke Gilman - Sammamish River Trail route. She quickly became acquainted with one of the trail's quirks, many tree roots that cause for a very bumpy ride. I have to say, it is nice to have a paved trail to ride on, but riding over tree roots can be very frustrating.

We took our first break almost 11 miles into our ride, at a bench overlooking Lake Washington. We refueled and rehydrated. I, for my part, was trying to do a lot better as far as my hydration level was concerned. We had coconut water in one of our water bottles each, to see how it worked at replacing our electrolytes and fluids. I liked it more than mom did. The coconut water tasted very sweet. Mom plans to try it again with orange juice or some other kind of juice to cover the taste of the coconut water.

We took another couple of short breaks on our way to Marymoor Park, but our longest break was at the park. We pedaled up to the Velodrome and watched a bunch of inner-city high school students learn how to pedal on the banked track. It definitely looked tricky. Mom and I talked to the coaches and found out that the group we were watching was from the Major Taylor Project, which is sponsored by the Cascade Bicycle Group and teaches local high-schoolers bike skills. They do several field trips each year, culminating in the STP. This year they expect to have 40-50 students doing the STP. What a cool organization!

As we watched the kids we ate our lunch. I had made peanut-butter agave sandwiches for us and brought raisins and nuts, and mom brought sports jelly beans and sports fruit chews. I really liked the honey flavored chews she found.

Our way back was uneventful. Mom waited a little too long to refuel and lost some steam, but the food finally kicked in a little bit after our last stop. On that stop I tried "goo," which is an energy-fuel and electrolyte-replacer that is exactly what it sounds like, goo. Or, slime. The texture was a bit weird, and I didn't feel a huge surge of energy, but I think it did help refuel me for our way back.

The ride was fun, but the recovery was up there too. Actually, the recovery may have been better than the ride :-) While mom showered, Dennis and I made coffee and pancakes with fresh bananas and pear compote. It was so yummy. I wish I could end every ride with pancakes!

Mom and I tried to look at our calendars to see when we can ride together again, but we didn't come to any big conclusions. I think we are going to have to play it by ear and make plans spontaneously. There are less than 2 months to go until the STP!

Sidenote: I should explain why no one has heard from me in a while on our blog. I had a very stressful two weeks with school and going to Las Vegas for Kelsey's birthday party, so my bicycling pretty much stopped for those two weeks. Bad, I know. But it was better than losing my mind or having a nervous breakdown :-) Sometimes life just doesn't fit into your training schedule.

Carol - Saturday.  I have looked forward to this ride all week researching on Map Quest to route my ride knowing that I wanted to end up on Lake Campbell to see my step dad Harold and then go take flowers to mom in Anacortes.  It seems that when I plan the ride all week that the day I'm set to ride I don't have much enthusiasm.  This was true Saturday.  I felt like I HAD to ride, which I hate to HAVE to do anything.  Also, it's difficult riding all day by myself.  According to Map Quest this was to be a seventy mile ride.  This would be my longest so far.  Since I was so unmotivated and it was to be such a long ride I had Rich take me to the top of Galbraith so I wouldn't lose my mojo before the end of the ride. Like always I rode my usual course down into Skagit flats and over to LaConner.  While in the flats I ran into another couple and talked to them for a few minutes.  They were from Seattle and had started out in LaConner.  It was nice to have some conversation for a few minutes and I actually started out shortly after they left and followed them to the big Avon Allen intersection.  They turned to ride down the highway while I continued straight on Avon Allen over to McLean Road. At the thirty mile mark I called Rich because I was pretty pumped that it had only taken me two hours.  I decided to celebrate and stop by Christensen Nursery to see if I would like us to come back on Mothers Day to make some purchases for the yard.  It was beautiful and definitely worth the journey back (in the car so I could buy something).  On to LaConner I went, however, instead of riding into town I rode to the bridge.  I knew that it would be uphill but I didn't realize it was such a long stretch.  I was happy though because I was still going strong.  Shortly after going over the bridge I stopped to make a decision as to stay on Reservation Road or turn on Snee-oosh Road.  Not knowing the area well I decided Snee-oosh Road would probably be less busy so even though it started out with a hill that would be the way I'd go.  It was at this time that I ran into the couple I had talked with earlier on the flats.  They decided to go the same way and find a spot to on the water to end their ride with cold beers.  So we started off.  I decided I'd lead since I knew the area a little bit from the Map Quest satellite pictures.  What the pictures do not show however are the hills.  Wow....so many hills....and pretty much all uphill.  I thought I'd have a heart attack climbing all those hills but I didn't want to look weak in front of my new friends so I kept peddling as fast as I could.  I have to say, I was so glad when I finally showed them the road to the beach that they would need to take.  At last I could finally slow my pace.  I rode further and all there was were more hills.  I finally called Rich to tell him not to leave yet because I didn't know if I'd make it all the way to Harold's.  This was by far the most hills I've ridden and it wasn't easy in the heat of the day.  Finally I reached the golf course and called Rich to let him know it was time to leave and come get me.  On I traveled to Harold's walking my bike up a quarter mile stretch that no one would be able to ride because it was so steep and then on to Lake Campbell road.  I didn't like this stretch at all because it's so narrow, a lot of traffic, and one big hill.  At one point on the hill I actually pulled off and waited for a break in the traffic so I wouldn't get hit.
I have to say that I was very disappointed at the end of the ride.  It wasn't my strongest and it certainly wasn't as long as I thought it was going to be.  It did help put everything into perspective though when we drove the back road to LaConner and really saw the hills and how it was never ending.  As Cassandra and Rich said...it was probably the equivalent of seventy miles in energy consumption just because the hills.

Total ride length - 55 miles
Total ride time - 4.5 hours
Need to pack more energy gel so I can fuel up better when I start to get tired.

Carol - Last Sunday I had set my alarm clock for 7 am so I could begin my ride early.  I had the best of intentions, however, Saturday was opening day of boating season and Cinco De Mayo.  The day began with the yacht club reception, opening ceremony, boat parade and finished with dancing.  A very fun day and a very long day.  Needless to say, I did not get up at seven on Sunday.  It was actually about 8:45 before I got on the road.  I also started out with a slight headache (I wonder what that was from).
Once again I rode down to Lincoln Street and up over Galbraith.  This is the first real ride I've taken with my new clips.  All was going well until I got to the end of Frasier Road where I stopped a little too fast and lost my balance almost landing in a heap on the pavement.  I decided that I would really need to concentrate on my stopping technique until mastered it.  Turning up Lincoln I continued on up and over Galbraith Mtn. This is the second or third time I've ridden that section and I noticed I did not stop as often and I rode faster then before.  It's always nice to see improvement since I've put so much effort into my training.  I continued on my usual route to Colony Mtn road and down to Skagit County, however, instead of riding to Sedro Woolley I rode down the Ershig Road and on to other rural roads that eventually took me to my friend Lindsey's house at the Burlington Country Club.  After consulting with Lindsey about her landscaping I headed out through Skagit flats towards LaConner then back over to BayView.  It was at BayView that I saw the most beautiful scenery of the day.  The apple orchard on the hill as you head back down to the flats was in full bloom.  The apple blossoms were pure white against the blue sky and behind the orchard stood Mt. Baker with just a few feather clouds around her top.  I sure wish I would have had a camera.  I stopped and took in the beautiful sight before heading down the hill to finish my last ten miles.   By this time I had traveled about fifty five miles so my speed had dropped a bit but I was still riding at about thirteen to fourteen mph which I happen to think is fairly respectable.  However, by this time I was actually looking forward to just being done for the day and I was a little bit tired, that is until three younger girls (maybe in their late twenty's) flew by me.  This really got my competitive juices flowing and I found myself trying to catch up and draft off them.  About the time I was close enough to start drafting they decided to pull off and eat some performance bars.  So I decided to pull off the road about a quarter mile in front of them have something to eat too.  We ended up playing hopscotch for the rest of my ride.  Sometimes they were in front and sometimes I was. It was a fun ending to a wonderful day.  As to my recovery, I didn't have any muscle fatigue or any other problems on Monday.  All the training is actually working.

Ride notes:
Average speed -14.2
Ride length - 65 miles
Actual ride time - 4.5 hours
I tried some high performance gel...it helped my energy level almost immediately with no stomach issues.

Carol - This week I'm trying to make up for my lack of miles last week.  Monday night I logged a quick fifteen miles in forty five minutes.  Wow...that was a sweaty ride on the trainer.  The shower sure felt good though afterwords.

Tuesday - Off to the gym to lift weights.  I worked hard on my upper body and then used less reps but a much higher weight for my legs.  I do believe this is really working as I've noticed the hill home is a little easier each time.

Wednesday - The skies looked grey when I got up but I decided to ride anyway.  I started off from the house and took my normal route to town then along the bay to Fairhaven and over to where "The Markets at Fairhaven" was.  It is now being improved so a farmers coop can go in.  I still manage the property so I thought it would be nice to duck out of the rain for a bit and visit the tenants.  After waiting out the rain I headed back to town and with the sky still spitting on me I decided to continue my ride even if it was close to town or through the neighborhoods I'm not very familiar with.  However, once I was through town I took off out to the airport and over I-5 through a very high traffic zone.  I mean more traffic then I thought I'd ever feel comfortable riding through.  It was so busy that I was afraid my arm would be hit if I signaled to turn into the left turn lane.  Since I value my arm (and my life) I decided that it would be okay to use the cross walk.  After crossing over the rode I could hear one of the local nurseries calling me.  I must stop here and say that one of the joys of riding for me is to check out all the landscaping and get ideas for my own yard.  I feel like I have been neglecting my flower beds since Cassandra and I have dedicated ourselves to this ride.  So this was my indulgence....go to the nursery and look at flowers...the only bad thing is I never like small plants that maybe I could bring home on my bike instead I always go for the big ones.  I sure did save a lot of money by not having the car.  Anyway, after a brief stop at the nursery I did a loop and visited Rich at work between classes. 
The highlight of my day was going to the bike store on the way home and buying clips for my bike.  Up to this time I rode in regular tennis shoes with regular pedals.  After getting everything set up on the bike they had me try clipping in and out several times. Not a problem.  I also bought a set of decksters, which is a clip-on platform so you can still use your bike with regular shoes.  These were a must since Rich has been riding on the trainer....and also for my confidence.  I had been apprehensive about using clips up to this point but decided if I was going to ride with them in July I needed to give myself plenty of time to get used to them.  I left the bike store with the intent of using the platform portion until I could practice more.  The only thing is that when I went to put my left foot on the pedal it had turned over and now when I put my left foot down it clipped in.  I gave a small sigh (okay a big sigh) and decided that I would give it try.  Low and behold, not a problem.  In fact, after clipping in and out several times on the left side I decided to try the right.  Again, not a problem.  By the time I arrived at home I was using both clips at the same time without any problems.  Now I'm excited to see go out again and practice more.

Notes:
Ride length forty miles
Average speed 14.5
Clips worked great
I need to remember to order our ID bracelet's this week.

Carol - Last week I had planned on taking a long ride on Wednesday because we were heading out of town for the weekend and I knew I wouldn't have the opportunity to log any miles.  However, I was derailed Tuesday when I went to my doctor appointment to get my prescriptions renewed for another year.  Evidently I needed a tetanus shot and they decided to update some of my immunizations at the same time.  I didn't think anything of it so I said that would be fine.  What a mistake....I remember now how fussy the girls were when they were immunized.  Wednesday I woke up with a very sore arm, the chills, body aches, and a fever.  I wined like the girls did when they got their shots so many years ago.  Okay, I'm a baby.....I'm just glad I'm up to date and don't need any more shots for a while.