Junior Track Nats '09

I don't even know where to start. Nationals were not what they were meant to be, at all. The day before it started I began to feel a little sick, and by the time racing started, I pretty much just wanted to curl up in a ball. Riding the track made me want to die, but I had to just try and do my best.

My first event was my 500m. I've never had any luck with this. I've never broken the 40 second mark, and I seemed to be on track to riding a solid 39. I felt decent, but my legs just didn't have any go. I came out of it with a 40.5 and a 6th place. After that, I just began to feel sicker and sicker. I had my mass start test later in the session, and that was the only way I was going to Moscow. I knew that I had it in me, but I felt so awful I didn't see how it would happen. After many tears and much indecision, I decided to to just give it a go, I had nothing to lose. Bob and I decided that if I was slower than a certain time I'd sit up. Sure enough, I was way slower than that time. I just called it a day and packed up to get ready for the scratch race.

In 2008, I placed 2nd in the scratch race in the 17-18 age group, I really felt that if I played my cards right I might be able to see a repeat. I felt better, so I just put my head in the race and gave it a go. I rode the race the best I could. I went to go, and I just didn't have my jump. Last year, when I went, that was it. It just wasn't the same. I still managed a 4th place finish right at the line with Shelby Reynolds. My bike throw saved me. I was very happy with my medal at first, but the more I thought about it, the less pleased I became with it as I realized I had done so much better the year before.

I rode the Team Sprint with Tara McCormick this year. Tara is a 13 year old beast from California. I have never seen a girl annihilate a field the way she did. She broke the national record in her 500. She rode a time that would've won the 17-18 women's field in an 84 inch gear and she lapped her field twice in the points race. If that's not a beast, I don't know what is. We ended up qualifying third, and we were pretty confident that we would maintain our position. Unfortunately, as the day went on I began to feel sick again. As an added blow, Tara crashed in her scratch race which was right before our Team Sprint bronze medal ride. We settled for 4th place which was pretty decent with all the happenings of the day.

My pursuit qualifier was the morning of the 3rd day. During warm up, I did a flying 1k with Bob timing me, and I was right on. I went up to the line feeling very confident in myself. My first km was awesome, right on target time for a 2:45. It's that last km that always gets you. I ended up riding a 2:48. That put me into 7th overall. I was pretty happy with my performance though. I had given it all I had, I don't know if I've ever pushed myself that hard in a pursuit. I rode the same time I did last year as well, with much less training. I think I had a pretty good ride.

The keirin was in the evening. I saw this as my last attempt to get a jersey. Bob told me exactly what I had to do, and I executed it perfectly in my heat and qualified for the final. I raced the keirin final tactically better than any other keirin I have ridden before. I put myself in the perfect position (after a little bumping!) and when the motor pulled off, I was 2nd wheel. When the girls hit it, I had nothing. I just hung on for the ride and finished 5th. Once again, immediately afterwards I was ecstatic with my tactics, but as it set in that I had been on the podium in 3rd last year, I wasn't so happy. For some reason, this hit me extra hard. I had really seen my self succeeding in this race.

The final day was the points race. I was totally expecting the usual ride from the group. Coryn would attack, lap the field once, and we would all just roll around and sprint once in awhile when they rang the bell. I was so wrong. We actually raced for once! After the first sprint, Gabby attacked and everyone was waiting for Coryn to answer, so I just hit it. I held off the field long enough for me to take first place points. That set me up in a medal already, so I just had to pick points the rest of the race to keep it. I ended up in 5th, but I was actually proud of this one.

I realize that I haven't had the time to train that everyone else had, and what not. I know all of that, and I'm constantly told that I impressed people with the vast improvement I made in the 10 weeks leading up to Nationals. I'm impressed as well. It's just not the way I envisioned my last year as a junior. I saw myself winning a national title, vying for a spot on the worlds team, I came home with 4th and 5th places. It was a bit of a letdown.

Overall, the 17-18 women rode brillantly. The times were much faster than in years past, and the races were competitve. Good job, girls!

Also, I'd like to thank Bob Biese. He has been a great friend to me for years and was an awesome coach for me while I was at Nationals. He helped me keep my head on and do the best that I could. It really wouldn't have been possible without him.



I found these photo's on facebook. They were taken by William LaRoque.

I have alot to look forward to, though. Next season is a whole new game in U23s. Already I've made some progress towards having a more successful 2010 season by being invited to the Elite/U23 Women's Developmental Camp at the Olympic Training Center in Chula Vista, CA. Hopefully, I can my mark here.

Final Days of Preparation

One more day until Nationals start! I got a good track workout in on Monday. I pretty much just worked on starts and the line for the mass start test. My starts have gotten so much better, I'm really happy with it. My mass start test on the other hand, is crazy. The first 500m is so fast, I'm gonna have to have everything go right to get close to it.

I went on a recovery ride down to Redondo Beach today with Bob. It was really nice to just get out on the road and chill. We went to this really nice coffee shop, and relaxed, which prepared me for the laundry mishap that happened this afternoon. My Dad was being nice and decided to wash my bike clothes for me. Unfortunatly, he washed them in warm water and made the colors run, so all of my kits were pink. I do love pink, just not where it doesnt belong, haha. Luckily, my dad found some color taker outer and we used that and it corrected the damage.

Tomorrow is race prep, then packet pick-up. I am so ready to start racing.

California!

I seriously wish I could live here. This is the best weather ever. It's hot but not too hot, it's not humid, it's sunny, it doesn't rain. What more could you ask for? Except for roads to ride on and maybe a backyard.

I got in yesterday around 3:30. Traveling with a bike is no fun. It was so difficult to get it checked and then trying to maneuver it while we were trying to catch the shuttle, it was crazy. My back is so shot from carrying bags and everything. The plane ride was lovely though. I got to watch House and Confessions of A Shopaholic, so I was happy. Once we got our car we headed to our hotel. It's so close to the track which makes it super convenient.

I got on the track today. I love it so much! It's so fast and smooth, I'm in no rush to return to T-Town. My legs are sluggish from flying, but I should get over that soon. I think that my form is good and I'm excited to see what I can achieve out here.

Tonight I'm going to watch the Junior Omnium at the track and see how they do it on the West Coast. Tomorrow I have a track session in the afternoon and then Tuesday I'm riding to Redondo Beach with Bob in the morning. I'm pretty pumped to get on the road, actually.

That's my quick update. Nothing too exciting yet, that all starts on Thursday!

It's here!

I'm leaving tomorrow morning for LA! It feels like I should have so much more time because Nationals were so late last year. I really wish I had more time this year. I've put 110% into this, but I know if I had a little more time it would make a huge difference. I know that I have done everything right and I just have to make sure I race with my head.

I'll give you a quick rundown of my racing schedule:

July 2nd
AM: 500m TT
Mass Start Test ( A flying 2k that could qualify me for worlds)

PM: Scratch Race

July 3rd
AM: Team Sprint Qualification (still looking for a partner!)

PM: Team Sprint Finals

July 4th
AM: Pursuit Qualifers and Final

PM: Keirin Qualifer and Final

July 5th
AM: Points Race

I put in a good race on Tuesday. There are two more girls from New Zealand who arrived on Monday, and Cath Cheatly came back this season so it was real racing! It was good to actually have a field.

I'll try and update this daily while I'm at Nationals, but sometimes things get a little crazy!

11 Days To Go!

I can't believe that Nationals are so close. It doesn't seem like it was that long ago that I was just doing my first race of the season. I will be flying out the morning of the 27th and racing starts July 2nd. I have been working so hard the past couple of days. May Britt's been pushing me so hard. I did a 30 lap points race behind the motor with Ryan and Nick on Monday. I honestly didn't think it was going to be that bad... boy, was I wrong! I couldn't see straight for an hour!

Yesterday, I motorpaced in the morning and then I did Tuesday Night Racing. Over the past two years, Tuesday nights have become much more intense. It used to be that a Tuesday was nothing like a Friday Night Race, but now they are easily comparable. Anyways, my legs were pretty tired from Monday and the session in the morning, so I didn't have alot to play with. I got 6th in the Super Sprint Elimination (which is 1/2 miss'n'out 1/2 scratch race). I almost made it to the scratch race this time, but I tried to shove myself on the bottom again, and it didn't work... again. For the Tempo, I really just tried to sit in and get some speed in. After that we had a Flying One Mile, May Britt told me to not even worry about it, but I ended up getting Dana's wheel and sprinting to 5th place. The final race of the night was a Points Race. I got 1 point on the last lap, but that was pretty much all I could do. I'm not really worried about my form. I know that two weeks out from nationals last year I was suffering, and it paid off. I trust May Britt, she knows what she's doing.

On the line before the one mile.

Dana and I are going to be in California at the same time! I'm so happy because I'm the only member of Young Medalists/Team Dual Temp heading out to track nationals, it will be nice to have an honorary team mate and training partner for a few days. We're hoping to go and watch the Manhattan Beach Grand Prix and check out the SoCal race scene... and of course see Iggy.... hahaha =)

It's been awhile....

It has been quite awhile since I've done this. I think I started off too strong and then got bored. Since it's summer and all it does in PA lately is rain, I think I'll try this again?

This time in two weeks I'll be in California for Junior Track Nationals. The weather hasn't been cooperating with my training though. It has rained almost every day, it is a little ridiculous. We have been getting some racing in, though. There's been three Tuesday Night Races and we just finished up our second Friday. I haven't had a lot of good results, but they have been improving with each race, so I'm hopeful for Nationals.

Opening Night at the track could have been better. It got rained out on Friday, so it ended up being Saturday. I raced at the Race Avenue Criterium in Lancaster in the morning. It ended up being my most successful 1/2/3 race by far. For the first time since Junior Nationals, I felt like I was in a field that was actually my level. It was so nice to be able to race instead of hanging on for dear life. I was in the front of the field most of the time. I tried a few attacks, I got off for a lap, which is the only break away I've ever been in, and had 5 seconds on the field. I got caught, but I was still pretty proud of it. I set the sprint up pretty well. I was 3rd wheel coming around turn 4. I got nipped at the line, and had to settle for 4th. Overall, it was pretty good and I made $60 which was very nice. I'm planning on hitting it up again next year, it was a wonderful course and a well run race. Afterwards, I went home, ate, showered, took a nap, and then set off to the track. Since the racing got moved to Saturday, a lot of girls weren't there because they were preparing for the Liberty Classic on Sunday. It ended up being only 8 girls. Being so close to nationals, I wasn't content to roll around the boards for 15 laps. I raced really hard, which didn't result in the best finishes, but I got my workout in for the day! Most of the people in T-Town went to watch the Philly race. Honestly, I couldn't bring myself to do it. It is always a great time, but knowing that I could've raced but was unable to because of the accident made it bittersweet, and I really didn't want to go through that. Instead, I stayed home and put in some more road miles so I can be in a postion to race in the Liberty Classic next year.

The Festival of Speed this past Friday was largely uneventful. I didn't make the Keirin Final or have any other really outstanding results. I went off the front with Kim Geist in the Point-a-Lap and picked up one point which ended up getting me 5th place.

I have pretty much made up my mind to scratch road racing for the season. With the timing of the accident, I just didn't have time to work on my form. I will be concentrating on road when I get back from nationals and may be attending Kristin Armstrong's Developmental Camp in Boise to work on some of my road form and help me to decide whether or not I'm going to make the trip to Oregon for Road Nationals.

Dana has finally returned from California! I am so glad to have her back, I can only handle so many training sessions alone. Unfortunately, she leaves again for LA on Thursday, but I'll be there for a couple days while she's there, so that should be fun.

Well, I think that's it for now. I'll try and keep it up this time.

Race Report #1

Last Saturday morning my dad and I made the trip to Philly, so I could participate in my first race of the season. I raced the 2/3/4 category at the Philly Phlyer. I was very focused on the task at hand. I can tell I'm going to do well when I'm quiet. I don't know why but sometimes everything just clicks, and it did for me on Sunday. I think it was because I knew that I had to do well. If I hadn't, I would've been very discouraged and I doubt I would've decided to race the rest of the season.
Anyways, the race was a 2 lap 6 mile circuit with a couple small climbs. My field was about 15 girls, I think, which is actually pretty good for a rainy day. I was very nervous about the climbing because it irritates my back. I was sitting on the start line thinking "I really don't want to do this", and before I knew it, we were off. Immediately, two team mates attacked and my racing instincts kicked in. I got right on their wheel, but they sat up as the field rejoined. A couple miles later, the one team mate attacked again and Katie L. followed. I knew that the other team mate in the field would block for her, and since I'm unsure of my form right now, I sat in and waited for someone else to make a move. Taylor attacked to chase down the break, and when she was caught I immediatly countered her and bridged the field up to Katie. The race was rather uneventful from that point forward. Katie made some attacks but they never really formed into anything. Coming up the hill for the last time, I was climbing in the front, I shifted back to third wheel for the final off-camber corner and the sprint. I waited for the girl in first to begin her sprint, and when I finally went I was surprised with the lack of power I had. It was like I stood up to go and nothing happened. Needless to say, I dropped back a few places and ended up with a 5th place finish.
I am very happy with that result. I was expecting to get dropped and have a horrible ride, but I didn't. I climbed much better than I expected, in the top few without much trouble, and I still knew how to race well. My back did begin to bother me part way through, but I was able to push it to the back of my mind. I even finished in the prizes, so that was nice =)
Coming up this weekend is the Philly 2-day. The first day is a circuit race in Fairmount Park followed by a crit on Lemon Hill the next day. There are already 27 girls signed up for the womens open, so it promises to be a good race.
On another good note, I may be done with rehab soon. Jay at rehab said that I seem to be doing well, and there's not alot more they can do. It's more of a waiting it out thing at this point. So, even though they aren't saying I'm cured, it's still a relief to hear I've been making progress.

Philly Phlyer

So, the Philly Phyler is this weekend, and I think I'm actually going to give it a shot. It's a women's 2/3/4 race, so that's probably better than 1/2/3 and it's a 40 min circuit compared to the other 44 mile road race going off on Saturday. So, wish me luck!
I got on the track for the first time last week. It didn't hurt as bad the next day as I thought it would. I had so much fun! It made me love to ride again, I forgot how fun it is. I'm thinking that I'm going to put more focus onto the track and crits than the road.
So that's my quick update! =)

P.S. Happy Birthday Evannnnnnn!

SATs kicked my butt.

The weather had been so nice lately, I got in alot of miles last week, so that's good. Wednesday at physical therapy, Jay did something different with my back, and it kind of messed me up for the week, but it feels a little better now.
I had my SAT on Saturday. Oh my god! I hate math, it's offical. The reading and essay were a piece of cake, but I had so much trouble with the math. Sitting in a desk for four hours didn't really agree with my back either. I totally crashed afterwards. I ate a Panera sandwich in like, four seconds, and preceeded to sleep for the next 4 1/2 hours, and missed my training. Not good. Sunday I thought I would attempt the derby. I was out in Topton when I saw Juan going the other way, so I turned around and rode with him over to the crit. Juan always tell me to stop worrying about where other people are and just worry about myself, and I think this time he is really right. I can't control what happened to me, or what happened to other people. This season is going to be all about me doing the best I can do.
Other than just more outdoor riding, the weather brings about something else, the end of ski season! I went to work on Sunday night, and it turned out it was my last night for the season! I'll probably go back next year unless I find a job in the Fall. I just dont see how I could work year round and still ride. When I'm in season I have nooo time.
Prom is May 22nd. I'm planning on going with my boyfriend, Evan. He just hasn't asked me yet, but I'm really hoping he comes up with a super cute way to ask me. Prom would make me feel alot better, I think. My scars on my face really bother me, everyone says they aren't even that noticable, but they are to me. I think getting dressed up and everything would feel so good. We want to go to the beach afterwards and stay over at his grandparents house. My mom isn't too into that though....
At school the other day we were talking about hosptials and we started talking about bathrooms. I had to tell everyone how I had to use a bedpan for three days. That was probably one of the worst parts of the whole ordeal. Of all things, you dont expect to lose your ability to get up and use the bathroom by yourself.
Alot of my friends got their papers for the National Honor Society, but since I had to drop trig because of the accident, I won't be able to particpate. I'm really really upset about this. I would've made the cut for sure if I hadn't had a W/F in trig. There was no way I would've been able to get through with missing so much and then all of my appointments.

Summer sun in March!

It's March, and it was 70 degrees today! How crazy is that? Monday I was all bundled up with a hat, gloves, and a coat, and today I got to go riding in shorts and a jersey! It felt so great. When the weather is this good, you can't help but be more motivated.
I had an off day on Friday, but there was no way I was going to stay inside! My friend, Ed, met me at my house and we went out for a pretty decent 2 hour ride. He's such a good riding partner, right now especially, because he's always keeping an eye on how I'm doing when we ride. He made sure we didn't push it too hard. Ed's going to Lehigh to be an engineer, and he let me look at one of his textbooks. I don't know why anyone would put themselves through that! It's all numbers and letters and words and crazy ideas, it made no sense! I'll take my business classes over that anyday! That evening, I went out shopping with my mom. You know your legs aren't as muscular as they were when you can find jeans that fit you in less than an hour...which is probably the only upside.
Today was ridiculously nice. The boys were all in Conneticut with Moonbeam at a training camp for the weekend, Dana's in California, and Toni has mono, so I wasn't sure who to ride with. Juan is sick so he didn't go, and I was hoping to ride with him, but we never seemed to be able to get in contact... I ended up calling my old coach and good friend, Bob Biese and went on a ride with him and his team. I time trialed over to K-town to meet up with the ride, and boy, was I in for a day. The longest/farthest I had ridden up until today was 25 miles in two hours. Today I did 53 miles in 3 hours. I also hadn't really done hills up until this point, but I did that today. I got my butt kicked. I should be in such good form right now, and I'm not. I'm getting constantly getting dropped up hills! I've never been a super climber, but I've never really been this bad before. It was a bit demoralizing, but it was still good to go out and get the miles in. The more I suck, the better I'll get, I guess. The weather made it worth it though, riding without 23487 layers is amazing. It's hard to watch other people get better when I'm not, but I must say, Bailey is looking very strong, as is Katie, but she always is!
I've decideded not to race at all this month and only a little next month. At the end of April, I'm going to decide what I'm going to make my goals for the season. Until then, I'm stil going to be very busy with my cycling, next week will be my biggest volume week since the accident, and I have the SAT next Saturday. Woohoo!

Snow Day, and some rethinking.

Monday was a snowday! I feel like we've barely had any this year, and I could sure use the break. Since my appointments all got canceled due to the weather, I decided it was time to attempt my rollers. In all honesty, I love the rollers. I have no idea why, but all I need is a good playlist and my track bike and I'm set for hours. While I was on I actually felt pretty good, but once I was done my back was in so much pain. I guess you use more back when you ride the rollers than when you ride on the road, especially because I ride without hands most of the time. I could barely fall asleep at night because it hurt so bad, and I had to call off my lifting session on Tuesday. I hadn't expected it hurt so bad after something so little.

Lately, I've been rethinking my season. I want to go to road and track nationals, but I'm not sure if I want to go under these circumstances. I feel as though I've lost so much of my fitness that I will not be able to outdo my achievements from last year, and that I will be good for getting hit by a car. I want to be good period, with no exceptions. I'm thinking about taking this year as a down year, or just staying around here and maybe trying to do some NRC races instead. I guess I'll just wait until the weather warms up, because maybe I'll be suprised with my fitness...

First Group Ride

Saturday, was my third time on my new Orbea on the road, and my first time riding with the team. I was a little apprehensive because my bike handling skills aren't exactly up to par and I'm easily scared, I guess.
In general, the ride wasn't too bad. We rode from our gym in T-town to Topton to do time trial efforts. My heart rate was 190+ the entire time, but I didn't get dropped! By the time we got to Topton I was exhausted. Dana and I just cruised around as the boys did their efforts. We rode from there to the repeat hill, which I wasn't going to do because of my back. Juan was kind enough to not let me pull this week because I got hit by a car. He's so sympathetic. I attempted Dogwood for the first time and made it up with very few issues!
I was exhausted after the ride and fell asleep right after I ate and almost didn't make it to work on time. I was so happy to be back with the group. Since the team is practically my family, to see them so rarely was really hard, it feels good to be back in the loop.
The Training crits started on Sunday, I don't think I'm going to be doing them this year. I might be doing Millport on the 28th, but my fitness isn't really where I would like it to be.

The Accident

To understand what I'm recovering from, I guess you'd have to know what happened, but first a little background on me:

I'm 17 years old and a Junior in High School. I've been racing my bike since I was 14. I'm an 8 time national medalist. I love racing my bike and have set high goals for myself. I am hoping to compete in Junior Track/Road Worlds in Moscow, Russia this summer. I would like to have a career as a professional racer and become a business major.

The story:

On January 4th, 2009, I met Toni for a training ride and we headed into the hills. As we were riding on Dryville Road, I think, I was talking to her about what colleges I wanted to attend. I was saying how Fort Lewis is so far away, but I love Colorado. The next thing I knew I was on the ground and I heard Toni say "Oh my god, Els!". I had no idea what happened, I asked Toni and she said I was hit by a car. I couldn't really believe it. I hadn't heard any brakes, or seen anything. The woman would later go on to say that she didn't see me because the sun was in her eyes (there wasn't any sun). I was conscious the entire time. I had bitten of part of my lip and all I could taste was blood. My hip and my back were in a lot of pain and I was worried that I had broken my hip or back. I didn't really cry because of the pain, but I did cry when I realized what effect the accident would have on my season. After what felt like forever my dad arrived and started to take care of the situation.

The ambulance came and I was put in. I had all of my winter clothes on that day because I had been so cold the day before. In fact, that morning I told my dad I was going to wear all my winter clothes. They cut everything off, that was one of the worst parts! In the ambulance I asked my dad about the bike, and the people in the ambulance told me it didn't matter, but my dad knew how much it meant to me. He told me that my bike was done, but he had already ordered an Orbea Orca as a surprise for me. Then I said "Daddy, I'm not gonna go to worlds" and once again the people in the ambulance said it didn't matter, but it mattered more than anything. My dad really didn't have anything to say to that, other than don't worry about that right now. Judging by my appearance, I'm sure they wondered if I would even be able to walk. I was flown out in a helicopter and rushed into the emergency room.
After countless tests, I was put into a room and finally had my face cleaned off. My lip was HUGE. I asked my mom to call Zach and Evan. Zach had already heard, and Evan was completly speechless. I don't know how I would react upon hearing that one of my friend's was in the hospital after being hit by a car. It took a few days until I was aware of the full extent of my injuries. The final total was 10 stitches in my lip and 2 chipped teeth, a broken left arm and right hand (which wasn't found out for a few weeks), two compression fractures in my vertebrae, and a bone bruise on my left ankle. All in all I was a very lucky girl.

Toni and Hannah visited me my first night in the hospital. I was so grateful to see them. Toni saved my life, she called 911 and my dad and handled the situation so well. In the end, it really brought us closer. If I could go back in time, I would never have her see that. It must have been horrible to see your best friend be hit by a car.
I know that I've already thanked everyone, but having people come and visit me made my days so much better. I know that everyone has busy lives and the fact that they could take time out to come and see me meant so much.
I missed two weeks of school, including mid-terms, and a total of 7 weeks of training. My whole life was put on hold because this woman couldn't pay attention for 2 seconds.
I was in a backbrace for 4 weeks. Let me tell you, it sucks. You can't really move and it makes you look weird, and its uncomfortable! The back injury was the scariest part. Everyone knows how vital your back is and how easily it can be ruined, I was very worried that it would happen to me.
I currently am in Rehab and have started training again. All I want to do is race my bike the way I know I can.

Purpose:

Since my accident 8 weeks ago, my focus has always been on returning to cycling. Since I love to write, and am constantly asked how I am doing, I figured I would start a blog. I'm going to try and keep this blog as up-to-date as I can to let everyone know how my recovery is going. So, I guess we'll see how it goes...