Amy's Goals -- met at Bariani!

Team Velo Girls member, Amy, recently participated in the six-week Tri-Flow Women's Development Racing Program. Here's her report from her first race:



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First things first: Happy Birthday to my sweet Delaney! 7 years old; I can't believe it!

Bariani Road Race (as in Bariani Olive Oil):

I was nervous the whole 2 hour trip to the race. To be more accurate, I've been nervous for the last 2 weeks, feeling the passing of time acutely. I keep thinking about this crazy bike year: Last year at this time, I was a committed recreational rider (newly picked by Trek to do this blog!), and thinking that anyone who raced was either super-fit or just plain crazy. And there I was a year later, on Saturday, in the car on my way to my first race...nerves and anxiety on full blast. On Friday we had hosted a birthday party for my daughter and ten of her friends, then my two-year-old appeared to have the stomach flu. Not the most relaxing or focused way to spend the day (and night) before my first race, but perhaps it took my mind off of my worries. Saturday morning, I finished prepping my gear, and Declan looked well enough to leave with the grandmas (who had both flown in to celebrate Delaney's birthday) which meant Chris could come with me (hooray!). In the car, despite the deliberate non-cycling conversation, I kept focusing on one aspect of the race: would I be able to clip in to my pedals and at least leave the start line with the pack?

Read the rest of Amy's race report along with her photos here:

Amy's Blog on Trek Women Who Ride

Registration for the next six-week Tri-Flow Women's Development Racing Program is now open. As an added bonus, we'll be working with Kristin Keim, professional bike racer and Sports Psychology PhD candidate. The program is limited to 10 women and you can register here: https://www.signmeup.com/68201

Sand and Climbs and Sandy Climbs

Here's a race report from Team Velo Girls member, Cristina, from the CCCX race on March 14th. Medals are cool and so is Cristina!



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Hey Y'all, here's my race report from our most recent Mountain Bike race, last Sunday.

How did I spend MY first morning of Daylight Savings? On my bike, of course!

Crystal clear skies, fresh seaside air, frogs croaking in the ponds, and the buzz of neighboring Laguna Seca. That's what racing at Ft. Ord is all about. Oh yeah, and sand... and climbs... and sandy climbs.

We had two racers in the Beginner Women's group of 4 ~ Edith and myself, while Carolyn rocked it in the Sport category. This race was a little longer than the previous race @ 17 miles. The 3 lap course consisted of many mean dirty climbs, swoopy hard rutted downhills, fast ice plant infested meadows and a couple sneaky sections to keep us on our wheels.

After my previous experience racing at Ft. Ord, where I took it easy and just cruised the whole time, finishing with the desire to do another couple laps, I thought I should actually "try racing" this time. So my first lap was fast, but tough. I powered up all the climbs (no cylcocross style run-a-bike for me!), bombed some jarring downhill, and cranked my way along the flat sections. I finished the first lap feeling tired, but pretty good. Lap 2 caused me to question why I didn't fuel better before the race. Pedaling on, I tried to hydrate myself better and slowed my pace a bit... remembering at each death-climb that I had to do this one more time. Lap 3 came with a crash: zero energy and total body ache. I wanted to quit. I stopped, listened to the frogs, gazed at the trees, and made mental notes about proper fuel and hydration for next time... duh.

We all finished our races, Edith and Carolyn both knocked out 3rd places in their categories ~ with some super fit and challenging ladies racing against them. I did finish, took 4th out of 4, and actually got a medal.... my first ever medal for anything athletic. Thank you, CCCX, see you next time... and next time I promise to be more prepared.

-Cristina.

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spring is in the air!

and that means it's time to bring back our weekday evening rides! Velo Girls will once again be partying in the PM on both the asphalt and the dirt:

Dirty Velo Girls dirt ride: starting Thursday, March 18th!

It's time to get down + dirty with the Velo Girls. Join us on this all-levels, beginner-friendly dirt ride at Arastradero Open Space Preserve in Palo Alto. Mountain bikes + cyclocross bikes are welcome. Post-ride, we'll head over to the Alpine Inn for recovery food, beverages, and girl-talk! RSVP to dirtyvelogirls@velogirls.com


Midweek Madness road ride: starting Wednesday, March 31st!

Join us on this fast-paced Velo Girls tradition (since 2002). This ride focuses on group riding skills and high-intensity training. Rolling from Woodside Town Hall promptly @ 6:00pm. RSVP to coaching@velogirls.com