Let's Tri this Again...

One of the goals I had last week was to find my next mtb race, commit to it and get a specific training plan set up that would help push me to a first place finish. Well, I lost count of how many websites I went through during my search and thought, "jesus... I could totally make this website look NOT HORRIBLE!!!" A bunch of them don't have the location of the race posted, another one has a link to more info on the race that links you to the page you were just on that has that link.. okay, so I know I think that a lot during a typical work day, searching the web, because after all it's my job to make great looking websites that don't leave people thinking, "this looks horrible." But seriously, most mtb race sites really are bad, whether you're a designer or not you can see that!! So anyway, Ryan hasn't been too available this past week to help me find a solid race because of busy/long days at work and now that he's fighting off a cold.. poor guy. :( And since I don't know what the hell I'd be getting myself into when it comes to picking a race, and none of the sites I found were that much of a help, I revisted the old triathlon race circuit to find my next challenge. And, I'm really excited to say I'm gonna do the Long Beach Sprint triathlon this year!!!! WOOT! It looks like it will be an awesome time- flat course = faster race = sarah is happy. And, my sister Liz and her boyfriend are gonna do it too, so that should make things more entertaining!! I'm definitely still going to keep an eye out for a good mtb race for a somewhat-beginner like me, but for now I'm ready to get back in the pool and have another reason to ride some more. By the end of this year, another goal of mine is to do an oly-distance tri but I really need to take it slow with my next-to-worthless knees if I'm gonna start running again. So sprint distance, here I come.... I'll be speed walking and jogging briskly to get to that sprint, but shoot- I'm coming!!!!


the guy in this logo totally looks like he's getting shocked in the chest or something to me. i mean, are finish lines ever that high up on a person?? haha (I'm not weird, I swear...)

The plan:
Beat the chick's time from last year who won the AG I'll be in, of 1:18:34.8. To break it down, her .5 mile swim was 15:05, her 11 mile bike was 36:41 and her 3 mile run was 23:37. My bike is a little faster than hers right now, but I'll definitely need to focus on my swim and just do what I can on the run to make up time. More on that later, I'm sure.

I've talked about this before with Ryan and other friends, but I'll say it again... I know I joke a lot about dominating and winning my AG and I can't deny I just love winning! and so far I've been lucky to reach the podium in a handful of races I've done. But when it comes down to it, I honestly could care less how I place, if I do or don't. For me, comparing personal times to others' is a great way to realize where you're at now and where you COULD be. I've never raced as fast as the girl who won the LB tri last year, but looking at her times, I definitely think I could... so I think her times will be really good to shoot for as I train for this one!

Other triathletes and other racers are really fun to compete against but mostly, they should really just be indications of your personal progress. It shouldn't matter how THEY do because you have absolutely no control over their talents and skill level, and whether or not someone better than you is going to show up in your ag on race day. All that should matter is how you do, especially in an individual sport. That's one of the things I immediately loved about coming into individual sports after volleyball; you are 100% responsible and deserving of every single reward and consequence that comes your way. It's soooo great to know there's no guessing involved, really. OK yeah, unexpected things come up in races and mistakes are made, and/or other people might interfere with your plan. But you don't have to wonder, after working your ass off, after working harder and getting better than anyone you're gonna go up against.. if it will pay off. It always will. because it's not up to you AND 5 or 10 or 20 other people you're on a team with. It's all on you only! There are SO many aspects of team sports I totally love, but this is the 1 thing individual sports have that team sports dont- it's an honest payoff, every time, whether good or bad. :)

Taking my First Crash at it

Shoot. I think I've had this blog set up now for a good 2 weeks without a single post in it. Not that I haven't been in a writing mood or that I've been neglecting it this whole time... I actually have thought a LOT about what I would get down in here. It's just that I figured, my first post better be pretty damn good. Especially now that I've put it off for weeks now! But.... I need to start somewhere, right? Welp, here goes...

For those of you who don't know me, I'm Sarah. And to sum it up, I'm the youngest of 8 kids, spent the last 12 years of my life playing volleyball.. proud to say I finished up my career at Long Beach State (go Beach!)... met and got engaged to Ryan Weeger (my best friend, best coach/riding buddy, and lots more bests that I will spare you of.. for now anyway!), and these days, I'm just trying to figure out how the heck I can stay in as good of shape as I was when I played volleyball. Uh, I'm also a fan of run-on sentences and tangents sometimes. But about the whole getting back in the shape I used to be in... It's not about "reliving the glory days" or anything like that. Volleyball was great but now since it's done, it's about learning how to be completely responsible for my health and work ethic; Over the past year, it's been the first time in my life I haven't been playing a team sport with coaches, assistant coaches, nutritionists, and/or trainers telling me what to do and what not to do. And if I'm gonna be honest, it's been a lot tougher for me than I expected it would be to just make the transition from such a team-oriented lifestyle to more of an individualistic one when it comes to working out. With Ryan's help and inspiring ways though, I've picked up on triathlons and mountain biking. And it's been awesome.

That's where the title of this blog comes in. Yeah, it's punny... I'm always on the lookout for a good pun, so if you don't have that sense of humor, well then that sucks for you and you probably won't like my blog later on as the puns get worse... But that's only part of why I picked it for the title. For me, mountain biking is new, something I've decided to throw myself into since Ryan got me started. More than that, I see it as literally a crash course- for everyone who rides with expectations of getting better. And it should be! If you're a beginner and you want to stick with the sport, you're gonna crash because, well, you're a freakin beginner! And then if you're a pro, you're bound to crash if you plan on constantly pushing your limits by taking on new challenges, just as a respected pro should. I always see professionals as the ones who are always having a hard time. Not because they're getting picked on or are too weak, but because they're constantly and always challenging themselves by trying to master a more advanced skill than one they've already learned. And I don't think you can be a pro MTBer, or even just a better rider without doing this and without crashing once in a while.

So anyway, the plan for this blog is to just use it as a way to get things down that I've learned from riding and also, like most MTB blogs out there, to track progress. so I can start to dominate races. :)

I've got 1 race down in the books so far, the Santa Barbara Bike Fest. But I'm not gonna write too much about it since Ryan, Beth and James all beat me to the punch already (names linked to their race reports), and because... well I just flat-out lag and it's old news now. But it was a great weekend with all of us there and pretty sweet since we all made the podium!! So I will add a couple things I want to hang onto until my next race:

*BEAT THIS GIRL NEXT TIME. uhhhhhhhggggggh cannot believe I finished after she did.

who wears a freakin bikini around for hours after a race when it's OVERCAST and cold? ew. sweet picture though, James. haha. But yeah, she's going down next time, for sure...
*Racing with a buddy is a lot of fun, especially when you both make the podium! WOOT!!

*Break more before turns instead of during them, get faster as you go
*Not only is it fun to start out in front, but I seriously think it helps a LOT in the long run because your chances of getting stuck behind a pack go way down. Also, I think it's just harder for most people to let themselves get passed by someone behind them than it is to pass someone in front. Yeahhhhh, shouldn't really matter because you should go as fast as you can and not depend on the pace of others, but if I'm gonna be honest, that's how I see it- easier to pass someone than get passed.
*Crashing happens. It doesn't matter how hard you do, but it matters how fast you can get over being timid and just freakin' ride the way you know how to.
*Similarly, thinking it's ok to go slower because you "just don't want to fall again" is just a waste of time and makes matters worse. (Thanks James, Ryan and Beth for talking me into doing that 2nd lap for pre-ride!) The sooner you can translate "don't fall, don't fall, don't fall..." into "go harder, go harder, go harder..." the better.
*Eating shit for the first time before a race is a GREAT thing for several reasons:
1) It's a blessing in disguise especially if done a day or so before the race; You'll likely feel tight from all the bruises and things during your actual race, so you will likely get a crappier time than expected before you crashed, which means your second race will be TEN TIMES better than your first!
2) Eating shit helps you realize what NOT to say to someone else who goes down. Fortunately, I learned right away how ridiculous and idiotic it sounds to ask someone who just crashed, "Duuuuuuude, are you okayyyyy? That looked pretty baaaaad," like 2 d-bags asked me. So the first and next time I see someone go down, not sure what I'll say but it definitely won't be that phrase...
3) You get your first crash experience done and over with. 'nuff said.
4) Your bruises are a great conversation-starter during post-race events!
5) You'll have another reason to drink a beer or 3 because you "earned it"

*Ryan is awesome and getting better every day he rides. and I really love watching him race and have fun....

*Lastly, the 4 of us are rad!