Five Years

   Last week, I hit my five-year anniversary of racing triathlons. That's just crazy to me, as I still feel like a newbie sometimes. Even yesterday, I kind of felt like I forgot how to swim. Anyone else get that feeling? You're in the pool and you just kind of feel like you're just flopping around out there? It's a joy, let me tell you.
   As with joining East Nasty, I have to blame my friend Holland on my interest in triathlon way back in 2010. While I had been toying with the idea of doing a tri for a few months, it wasn't until Holland planted the seed of signing up for Ironman Augusta 70.3 that I really started taking the idea seriously. (Sidebar - I love crazy friends who encourage me to do crazy things with them.) I soon registered for the Cedars of Lebanon sprint tri as a training race, which was held in August at that time. It was a 300 meter swim, a 16.5 mile bike and a 3 mile run. I had three goals for this race: 1) Don't die, 2) Run the entire run portion, and 3) Finish under two hours. And though it was incredibility hot and really hard, I accomplished all three and finished in 1:41:55.
   Since that August day, I have finished a full Ironman, four 70.3 triathlons and numerous Olympic and Sprints tris. I have crossed a finish line on a red carpet to thunderous applause from spectators, and I have cried alone in the middle of a park because I just couldn't run another step. I have questioned my sanity and life choices many, many, many times. I've learned that nothing tastes better than a cold Coke after a 80 mile bike ride in 95 degree weather. I can tell you the location of every bathroom and mini mart in all of Nashville, because you never know when you're going to need one during a run. I have had fish nibble on my toes during an open water swim, and thankfully, have avoided any run-ins with snakes, leeches or alligators. I can talk about races, training, paces, swim sets, heart rate and my favorite flavor of Gu (Salted Caramel) for HOURS. I know who Chrissie Wellington, Mirinda Carfrae, Andy Potts and Craig Alexander are. I have looked at a workout and thought "there is no way I can do this," but then go do it anyway. I have pushed myself further than I thought I ever could and now dream bigger because of it. I've gained strength, support and inspiration from the amazing friends I've met along the way, and hopefully have given some of that support back to them.
   It's been a wonderful journey so far, and I'm looking forward to where else it takes me.
 

First finish line to Ironman.

Bike Camp

   A few months ago, I joined an all-female cycling club - The Tennessee Women's Cycling Project.  They are a group of women who love riding and racing bikes and want to promote the sport in any positive way possible. My friend Kathy M. is one of the Board Members of TWCP and thought I might be interested in joining them. They have both a race team and a club team, and since the thought of racing anything other than an individual time trial (like we do in triathlon) scares the bejeezes out of me, I joined the club team. This past weekend, TWCP had their training camp in Chattanooga. And even though I'm just a club member, I went along for the fun.

   I met up with race team member Katelyn on Friday afternoon and we carpooled to Chattanooga together. Chattanooga is only two hours away, but we ended up rolling in around 8:00 pm due to the time change to the Eastern time zone. We were a little concerned about dinner since we had a seminar starting about that time, but Kathy happened to be picking up Mexican food, and she brought us both burritos. Thanks, Kathy!
   The seminar that night was on goal-setting: short-term, long-term, realistic goals and crazy goals that get you into doing things like an Ironman. I little out of place because I don't have a huge goal for this season. IMCHOO kind of took a lot out of me. But I was assured by everyone that NOT having a huge goal and riding / running for fun is OK too. Weird to think I have to be assured about something like that, but as a habitual goal-setter, I do.
   After the seminar, we just hung out for a bit and headed for bed. In theory, we were going to get up early and start riding, however, the forecast called for rain in the morning. Sure enough, when we got up - it was raining. Womp. Womp. So we hung out a bit more and waited for the worst to pass. We also took some team pictures. I know it doesn't look like it, but it was COLD out there.

Love these kits! (Photo courtesy of Angela Lee and TWCP)

SQUIRREL! (Photo courtesy of Angela Lee and TWCP)

    There were two routes available for us on Saturday. The first went up Signal Mountain and was about 60 miles. The second course was 30 miles and tooled around the hills near Signal Mountain, but didn't actually climb it. I made the decision earlier in the week that if it was raining, I was going to ride the shorter course. This was actually for two reasons. The first was because I know my skill set in cycling, and speeding down switchbacks on wet, mountain roads isn't part of my toolbox. Also, I also wanted to get a run in. I've had to miss so many runs due to the weather recently and I didn't want to go yet another weekend without a run. So, I bailed on the 60 and went for the 30 miler.
   I don't recall what time we started out on Saturday. It was later than planned, and part of that was due to me. You know that annoying person who shows up at events and don't have their act together? Yep - that was me. First off, I arrived at camp with a flat back tire. Dudley pumped up both of my tires before I left, but by the time I got to camp, the back was flat. So Neil (one of our coaches for the weekend), used the opportunity to hold a tire-changing clinic. While I know how to change a tire, he's MUCH better at it than I am, and I was happy to have him change it for me. THEN, my cleat on my shoes got hooked on something and I had to get those tightened (Thanks, Bill!). Finally, I got on my bike and remembered that I changed my seat for the trainer, and it was all wacky. Neil AND Bill helped me with that. Seriously - I was a mess. Fortunately, I got most of it taken care of before we were ready to leave, but still - I hated being "that rider."
   After we got all of my issues settled, we headed out. It was cold and drizzling, but the weather didn't look like it would be getting any better for a few hours, so we left. We got about a mile out before we ran smack-dab into the Chattanooga St. Patrick's parade. Oops. After a little detour, we were back on our way. The group rode together for the first six miles, and then split up between the long and short courses.

All smiles at the beginning of the ride! 

   There were four of us who rode the short course, plus Bill, a local friend who led the ride.  It was a bit of urban riding, but mostly we were on suburban or rural roads. Even though we didn't climb Signal Mountain, we did get hit some serious hills. According to Wendy's bike computer, we had 2,100 feet of ascending over 30 miles. As a comparison for locals - a round trip on the Trace for the first 13 miles (26 miles total) has about 1,000 feet of ascending. 

   After the ride, we were soaked and grimy, but I still had six miles to run, so I quickly changed and got running. We were staying about a mile and a half from downtown (at the Crash Pad - which was awesome), so I headed that direction and headed towards the greenway. The rain had finally stopped, but it was humid. The run HURT after all of that climbing, but I got it done. The best part of the run was on the way back when I ran into a fellow East Nasty, Daniel, who was visiting Chattanooga for the weekend. East Nasty is everywhere, y'all.

   The team had dinner reservations next door at the Flying Squirrel. It's mainly a bar, so the menu was limited, but what they had was GOOD. Lobster risotto anyone? Seriously tasty. After dinner, we headed back to the Crash Pad and devoured the biggest cherry pie I have ever seen. It was Pi day, after all (3/14) and it only seemed appropriate. 

   The next morning, most of us headed out for a ride to Raccoon Mountain (another group rode the greenway). We were going to follow the race course of one of the popular local races - River Gorge (I think that's the name of it). Fortunately, it was a beautiful day - sunny and in the upper 60's. Katelyn (my ride home) and I both needed to get back to Nashville, so we tried to adapt the route to about 40 miles, rather than 55-60. We originally thought we'd ride about 20 miles and turn around, but we were able to find a route that allowed us to ride with everyone for most of the ride, with the exception of the very top of Raccoon Mountain. This worked out great. Granted, it hurt, but it was fun and I'm glad I got to ride for the team a bit more than I did the day before. Well, I say "I got to ride" with them, but for the most part I was chasing people up hills. These ladies can climb!  

Taking a break before the big climbs.

Didn't make it all the way up - but most of the way!

   Our group split after taking the photo above. I had thought it was another 14 miles to the top. Turns out - it was only three. Had I known that, maybe I would have tried it. Granted, it was another 1,000 feet of elevation over that three miles. That would have been pretty painful...maybe next time.

   The main thing I learned while on this ride - triathlon race courses are WAY easier than cycling race courses. Yes, I know, we have to run after the ride so there is a reason for it, but WOW - I can't believe this was a race course. I am SO thankful the organizers of Ironman Chattanooga took pity on us and designed the route they did. It could have been SO much worse. 

   We had to check out of the Crash Pad before we left for the ride, but they were kind enough to let us shower when we got back. Seriously, the Crash Pad rocks. I was really happy I wasn't going to have to drive home with bike grit on me. 

   Overall, bike camp was really fun. Yes, the climbs hurt and I got dropped on almost every hill, but I couldn't really expect otherwise considering triathletes don't generally train on mountains. I also got to meet and ride with some fantastic and interesting women, which I loved. I'm looking forward to riding with them again soon. A huge thanks to the Board of TWCP for putting together an awesome weekend! FYI - the Tennessee Women's Cycling Project is still accepting club members, so if you're interested, let me know!  

   

The Day I Rode 100 Miles

   Yesterday, I rode my bike 100 miles.  Let me repeat that. Yesterday...I rode my bike...100 MILES. Even a day later, I still have a hard time wrapping my head around that. I know it's something that cyclists do all the time, but hitting the century mark is a new one for me.
   I've actually tried twice before to ride a century, but both of those ended early due to weather. The first cancellation was during the "Hope on Wheels" ride in Leiper's Fork, TN. I hit the 65 mile rest area when a torrential downpour hit. Very low visibility on a very hilly course. Knowing that Dudley was only a few miles away, I called him to come pick me up. I was a little bummed because I trained a lot for that ride, only for me to pull out, but I still think it was the smart thing to do given the circumstances. The weather was really, really bad and I just didn't think it was worth the risk to continue.
  The second cancellation was during the W.C. Handy Festival Bike Ride in Florence, AL. This time a tornado was coming through, and the riders were pulled off the course around the 72 mile mark. Up until yesterday, this had been my longest bike ride to date.
   The most current round of century madness started earlier this week when I received a text from my FTP training buddy, Jan. The entire FTP crew was already planning on riding the Bike the CRAM (Clarksville Rotary Annual Metric), but I was personally riding the 62 mile option. Sure, I toyed with the idea of riding the century, but considering that my longest bike ride this year had only been 60ish miles, I thought riding an extra 40 miles might be a little too daring. But Jan's text got me thinking. She was planning on riding the 100 miler, and so was Kathy. The CRAM route was famously flat...maybe I could hang with them and see how I did? If worse came to worst and I totally dying, I could pull over at a rest area and have someone drive me back in. Might as well TRY for the 100, right? So - I signed up.

It's just a little 100 miler.

   The day started at 4:00 am because Kathy was picking me up at 5:05. (Sidebar - I've GOT to find a sport where I can sleep in later. I'm naturally nocturnal and these crazy-early mornings are killing me.) The ride started at 7:00 and was about an hour away, hence the early alarm. 

   We checked in for the ride without a hitch. The CRAM is based out of a high school. You walk in the door, check in, get your shirt and that's it. No loud music. No crazy announcer. Just get your shirt and be on your way. It was a distinct change from the hoopla of the REV3 tri last weekend. Not that was one better than the other - just different.

That's a lot of arrows...

   Conveniently, the FTP crew met up at Kathy's car, so we didn't have to search for our group. Andrew did a quick roll call of who was riding what distance. Turns out, only three of us were riding the 100 - me, Jan and Kathy.  

FTP train a comin'!

   The century riders were supposed to start before everyone else, but we let most of the cyclists take off first. It can get a little dangerous out there with so many cyclists leaving at one time. I'd rather wait five minutes and miss the cluster.

   Kathy was the only one of the three of us that actually had the century on her training schedule, since she's racing Ironman Coeur d'Alene at the end of next month. She was using this as a race simulation and testing out her cadence and nutrition. My plan was to let her set the pace and I'd try to hang on as long as I could. This worked out great for me, because that meant I got to draft off of her. Normally on a ride like this, I'd do my share of pulling, but since I hadn't trained for the distance, I didn't want to burn out and not be able to finish the ride.

   Jan, Kathy and I rode along steadily along the beautiful Tennessee / Kentucky countryside. Both Kathy and I had done the 62 mile course before, so we were familiar with some of the ride. It's flat, but generally pretty windy. While the winds weren't horrible yesterday, we definitely felt them at times.

   One thing that is great about this ride is how well-supported it is. There's a rest area about every 10 to 15 miles. We skipped the first one and hit the second one, which was at around the 30 mile mark. I think we spent about a half-hour here because we ran into so many people we knew, most of whom were riding the 62 mile ride. It was a little disheartening to think about them being half-way done, while we still had another 70 miles to go. 

   After we filled up both our water bottles, and our stomachs, we hit the road again. I don't know what it is about rest areas, but I eat like I'm never going to see food again. I have food with me AND I know there is another stop in 15 miles, yet I still have to sample whatever is there. It's crazy.

   Somewhere before the next rest area, we picked up two more friends who were riding the 100 - Marc and Paul. Our little group stayed together for the rest of the ride. The miles ticked by one by one, rest area by rest area. We made a point of yelling out when we surpassed our previous individual ride records, celebrating the little milestones before achieving our main goal - the century.

   The last rest area was at mile 85. Getting off the bike at this stop was the first time that I really felt any pain. I had a hard time walking at first. However, the stiffness worked itself out quickly and I got back in the bike feeling good and ready to tackle the last 15 miles. I was really happy about how good I felt at this point. Baring an accident, I knew I would finish the ride. And even though I pretty much drafted the entire time, I was surprised at how strong I felt. Drafting or not, 85 miles is still 85 miles and I was relieved I was hanging in there.

   Unfortunately, the feeling only lasted for about five miles. It was at mile 90 that I hit the wall. I could still ride, but I REALLY wanted to get off the bike. Those last 10 miles seemed like it took forever. I was really happy when we finally turned into the Rossview High School parking area. We had done it. 100 miles.

Boom!

   After a few obligatory celebration photos, we headed in for the spaghetti lunch and ice cream that was waiting for us in the high school cafeteria. Since I ate so much during the ride, I didn't think I was that hungry. Apparently I was though, because I ate a huge plate of pasta, two pieces of garlic bread, and a Twix ice cream bar. It was so good.

   

Yeah...we rode 100 miles.

Thankfully, I still had the strength to lift my bike over my head.

   This was such a great ride, and I'm so happy signed up for the century. It was fun (and scary) to get out of my comfort zone and push myself further than I had before. Though I know it's going to be hard, I'm looking forward to pushing myself more and more as my training goes on.

   See you on the road! Happy training! 

First Ride in Chattanooga

   This past Saturday, a group of us from Nashville headed over to Chattanooga to ride the IM bike course.  For anyone looking for a detailed report on the course broken down by mile markers and gearing - this is not that kind of report.  Sorry, I'm not that much of a gear head.  If you're looking for an overall impression of the course - read on...
   I'd been a little frightened of the course ever since it was announced.  All I've heard was how hilly it was and and brutal it'll be...and THEN I saw an elevation map of the route.  I mean, LOOK at this thing!  It's one giant incline for the first half and then a little kicker at the end!  And we have to ride it TWICE!

Yikes!  

   But then I rode it, and you know what?  It's not that bad. There are some false flats and a few rollers, but nothing too crazy.  There was one hill that seemed a lot harder than it should be, but that's more due to my fitness than the course.  Don't get me wrong, this course will still hurt, especially on the second loop, but if you train in the Nashville area (especially on the Trace), you should be fine... I think...I've never done an Ironman before so I wouldn't take my opinion too seriously.

   The scenery was beautiful. Lots of rolling farmland. Of course, we had to stop and take a few photos - because that's what we do.  Plus, it's not like I'm going to stop and take photos on race day.

I see you, Baby Horse!  

The previously mentioned rolling farmland...

And, of course, cows.

   What I wasn't so happy about were the number of railroad tracks on the course. I lost count of them, but there were several sets. Fortunately, I think all of them were out of service so we won't have to worry about a train randomly roaring through during the race and holding us up, however the tracks are quite the hazard. I'm hoping the race directors will cover them with some sort of mat, otherwise I foresee a few falls due to the tracks, as well as a lot of lost water bottles.

   If you go and ride the course, be aware of a few things:

• Some of the roads aren't marked...at all. There were several times when we had to pull out our phones with GPS to find out where the heck we were and what road we were on. Once you ride the course, you'll realize it's not that bad. I actually think I could go back out there next weekend without a map and be OK. However, it was a little confusing the first time out. 
• Lack of convenience stores along the route. Not that this is a bad thing, but you need to be prepared and know you're not going to have a place to refuel or a restroom once you get into the country. 
• Car traffic. Most of the time, we didn't have any issues. We were so far out in the country that no one bothered us. However, once you get closer to Chickamauga, traffic picks up. It got a little sketchy there for a bit. One girl in our group was nearly clipped by a truck who was blowing his horn and just being an overall jerk. He only missed her by a few inches. Pretty scary and totally unnecessary. 

   While I will go out to Chattanooga to ride the course again, I might not go out as frequently as I had originally planned. I know it's good to ride the course as much as possible, and I'm very thankful I'm only two hours away from Chattanooga so I can go back when needed, but I think I can train more effectively here because the terrain is hillier. Of course, that may change with one call from my Coach. We'll see. Until then, Happy Training!!  

See you on the road!

Cherry Blossom 10-Miler Race Recap - Part 1

   Have you ever thrown your hat into something thinking that there is NO WAY this plan is going to work out, and you're kind of planning on it not working out, but then it DOES work out, so you have to go through with it? Yeah, that's what happened with me with the Cherry Blossom 10-miler.
   Being from the DC area, the Cherry Blossom 10-miler has been bucket-list race for me for a while now. It's over 40-years old and is known as one of the premier races in Washington, DC. Kicker is that it's so popular that it holds a lottery for registration slots. So way back in December, I signed up for the lottery, hoping that I might be one of the lucky ones who got into the race. But considering that I don't have the best history with lottery registrations (Nike Women's Half, anyone?), I pretty much figured I wouldn't get in. In fact, I was kind of planning on it. I mainly registered with the thought that my chances for getting in the race NEXT year would be better if I tried this year and didn't get in. Which is a long set up for stating the obvious - I got in. Which meant that I had to plan a weekend trip to DC.  WOO HOO!
   I flew into Baltimore (BWI) on Friday afternoon and picked up a rental car (Dudley didn't go since it was such a quick trip). BWI is only about 40 miles from my parent's house, but the trip can take hours is traffic is bad. Fortunately, I timed it OK and made it home in less than an hour. Good thing I called my mom on the way in because she totally forgot that I was coming in on Friday (she thought it was Saturday). She was on here way out and was like "What do you mean you're 15 miles away?" Would have been a big bummer to be locked out of my childhood home if she had left!
   Fortunately, Dad knew I was coming in on Friday and was home soon after I got in, and we immediately left to head up to Bonzai Tri shop, which is my Dad's favorite bike shop. What? Most people don't immediately go visit a bike shop first thing after arriving at their parent's house? Welcome to the Mylls household. We like bikes here.
   Apparently, my Dad had spoken to Mark, the owner of Bonzai, and mentioned that I'm training for an Ironman. As soon as we got there, Mark pulled us in his office and started asking me questions about my training and giving me some advice on getting through race day. As a five-time Ironman finisher and the owner of a very successful bike/tri shop, I figured he knew a few things, so I listened pretty closely. I was really appreciative that he took the time to talk to me. I was also very appreciative of the bag of nutrition samples he gave me. Gotta tell you - my Dad's got connections.

Free Stuff! Love it! Thanks, Mark!  

   After leaving Bonzai, we headed over to another bike shop. This one is called the Bike Club. I'm really bummed I forgot my phone because I would have loved to have taken photos. The last time I was at the Bike Club was about three years ago and it was the craziest shop I'd ever been in. I think it's more of a used bike shop / swap meet, than a retail bike store. It's located in a long, narrow room and there is crap EVERYWHERE! When I was there before, there were two levels of racks and shelving and one little pathway through everything. There were even bikes hanging from the ceiling. They also had two parrots flying around!

Bike Club Before...  (Photo courtesy of BMXmuseum.com)

   Turns out - the Fire Marshall didn't like the hundreds of bikes and the two parrots, so they closed the Bike Club down for about a month while they got rid of most of the stuff. It was kind of sad walking in there recently. Don't get me wrong - the old place was definitely a death trap - but now it looks more like a regular bike shop - just with old bikes and parts.  The parrots were even re-homed to some parrot sanctuary. You know I wanted to see the parrots. 

   Saturday morning, Mom and I headed downtown to the Cherry Blossom 10-mile Run expo and packet pickup.  Races in DC are awesome because of the Metro. Yes, we had an issue at the Rock & Roll USA Half Marathon a few years ago, but overall, it's a great way to get to and from a race. So we just hopped on at the Vienna Metro stop, and it took us directly to the expo, which was located at the National Museum Building. Possibly one of the prettiest locations for an expo that I've ever seen. In fact, both my Mom and I were commenting that we think we both have gone to cocktail parties at this building in the past.

Nice digs for an expo, huh?

   I didn't do too much damage at this expo - normally I spend way too much money on stuff that I don't need. I was planning on getting a few gels, but since I totally got hooked up by Mark the day before, I didn't even need those. The only thing I ended up getting was a fleece race jacket that my mom bought me. I don't care how old you are, to have parents who support you in your hobbies is just awesome.

   We didn't linger too long at the expo because I knew Dad was waiting for me to go on a bike ride. My Dad has quite the collection of bikes in his stable, one of which is the same model and size as my road bike. After a few adjustments to the saddle, it fit enough for me to ride, so we headed out to the W&OD Trail for a ride. The W&OD Trail is an asphalt trail that is laid over most of the old Washington & Old Dominion railroad tracks. It's a great place to ride, but unfortunately it was CRAZY windy out on Saturday - wind speeds of 20+ mph and wind gusts of 30+ mph. Honestly, I probably would have just gotten on the trainer if I had been at home - that's how bad it was. But Dad was all "What are you going to do if it's windy for your Ironman? Just not race?" Gotta love a dad who gives you crap about your training. So I put on my big-girl panties and did 30 miles in the worst headwind I've probably ever experienced. I was SO happy to turn around at the 15 mile mark so I could finally hit a tailwind - and I did...for about five miles. And then the wind changed direction and I hit that headwind again. Ugh. It was brutal. 

   One thing that was cool about my ride was that I saw this sign:

Hey! I know those people!

It was funny because I wasn't paying that much attention to those Adopt A Trail signs, but I nearly wrecked my bike when I saw this one. I've know all three of these families! We all went to school together. It was pretty cool to see this. Thanks for adopting the trail, guys!

   I also tried to get a photo from the overlook of a quarry, but there was a total creeper hanging out near the site. And considering I was alone at this point (Dad had already turned around) and about five miles from any civilization, I didn't want to risk my life by getting too close to this guy (seriously - he was CREEPY), so I just kept on riding.

   Of course, after that crazy hard ride, the question remained as to how my legs would hold up for the 10 mile run the next day. Which you'll hear about in my next post!

First Ride of the Year!

   So, is there anything better for a cyclist than the first outdoor ride of the year? OK, I know some of you probably ride all year long, no matter what the weather. Yes, I see you out there - riding in snow and sub-30 degree weather (or lower)! I truly admire you, I do. I think you're a little crazy - but I admire you.

I am not one of you.

   No, for me, the first outdoor ride of the year was yesterday. My friend Kathy M. invited me to join her and a few friends for a ride. Now, normally, I don't ride with Kathy because I can't hang with her. Seriously, she can drop me like an anchor without breaking a sweat. She races almost year-round and the girl has got some serious cycling skills. And while I'm OK with being dropped if I know where I am, I really didn't want to get dropped out in the middle of nowhere. But, then I decided to apply Rule #5 and go. I'm never going to get faster if I don't ride with faster people, right? Kathy also said she wasn't going to ride hard because she was just building base miles. I figured I could hang with that.
   It was a bit chilly to ride by my standards -  it was still in the 30's Sunday morning when I was getting dressed, and would be in the low 40's when we started to ride with eventually getting into the 50s. Since I generally don't ride when it's this cold, I had NO idea what to wear. In theory, when you ride outside, you dress for 10-15 degrees colder than what the actual temperature is because of wind. After running around the house trying to find all of my random pieces of cold-weather riding gear, I was off to meet the gang: Kathy M., my FTP training buddy Kathy R., Kristie (one of Kathy M.'s teammates) and Angela, who races mountain bikes.  Seriously - do I have some bad-ass friends, or what?
   I brought my Litespeed, rather than my tri bike to the ride. I love my Litespeed. Seriously - it's the best bike. I know it probably sounds crazy to most people to be so devoted to a bike... because it IS just a bicycle. But it fits me perfectly. When I ride it, it's like it's an extension of me - I know exactly how it's going to react in any given situation. I don't feel that way about my tri bike - it's twitchy, as tri bikes generally are. I'm not a fan of twitchy. My Litespeed is smoooooth.

Best bike ever.

   The ride was great. It was pretty flat and we rode at a pretty casual pace. Generally, I head out to Leiper's Fork or some place out in the country to ride. This time we met up at LP Field in downtown Nashville and headed up to Joelton - definitely more urban than what I'm used to. Fortunately, riding with car traffic doesn't bother me, and there wasn't that much of it anyway. There was one CRAZY hill up to Joelton, which was a bit of a leg-breaker after not being on the bike since October (Yikes!), but I survived. Kathy R., Angela and I split off at around 20 miles and headed back. I think we rode about 30 total. Nothing crazy, but it was a great way to kick off riding season. So glad to be back on the bike!   And I need to be because I'm aiming to tackle my FIRST century ride in May - the CRAM in Clarksville! There are lots of distances for this ride, so you all should come join me!