Despite careful preparations and excellent form coming into
my US season, an extra large helping of life effectively knocked my fitness back
to ground zero. So, over the past two months I’ve been busy tackling the
challenges of lingering illness and poor health, leaving me without many
exciting things to report on. However… I’m making some progress now, so let’s
get back up to speed together!
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| In quest of some life balance. |
My last report left off about two months ago with the Vuelta
a El Salvador way back at the start of March. For second half of March I
stationed myself in
Mountain View CA
to focus on recovery. The first week I struggled with a hamstring injury sustained
while in El Salvador, along with the onset of intense joint pain that made movement
challenging—and agonizing. A few weeks later I added a shoulder strain to the
list.
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| Visiting the giants at Big Basin Redwoods State Park. |
Through investigation I learned that these were side effects
from the antibiotics I was prescribed for the lung infection I contracted in
March. Muscle injuries and joint pain from an antibiotic? I know! Not what you’d
expect. I was prescribed a
fluoroquinolone
(best know example is Cipro), a group of antibiotics that have become notorious for
causing crazy side effects like spontaneous tendon ruptures and nerve damage. Based
on documented cases, I’m lucky to have come away with relatively mild effects!
 |
| Plenty of late snow remaining in March at Big Bear, setting for Stage 2 of Redlands Bicycle Classic. |
With the arrival of April, I headed south to
Redlands CA near
Los Angeles to join five Vanderkitten teammates for the
Redlands Bicycle Calssic, the first
major US stage race of the season. It was quickly clear that my body was not up
to the task of such a demanding tour and I took to the sidelines to cheer on my
teammates.
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| Unable to race, I took up a new activity - Vanderizing. |
After Redlands the team and I headed north to the charming
town of
Carmel-by
–the-Sea on the
Monterey
Peninsula. We enjoyed a wonderful week of beautiful weather and scenic riding
along the Pacific Coastline on
17-Mile Drive (a
highlight of my season so far) before tackling three days of racing at the
Sea Otter Classic in Monterey. Again,
my body gave the clear message that racing was not yet on the table for me,
with sharp, burning lung pain bringing activity to a rapid halt.
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| The Sea Otter team at Carmel: Amy, Kate, me, Miranda, and Korina. (Missing: Fiona) |
With Easter near and many responsibilities calling in the
Midwest, I then headed east to
my hometown of
Crystal
Lake, near Chicago, to be with family. The icy chill of winter still strong
in the spring Chicago air brought added challenge to my journey back to health.
Recovery is slow and I’m still feeling not quite right (all jokes aside!) and good
racing form remains a long way away.
.JPG) |
| My new PSIMET wheels blooming with the tulips. |
As winter releases its grip on the
Midwest, the tulips are on full display, trees are budding like crazy, and
summer seems to have arrived almost overnight. Inspired by the warming weather
I’ve tackled some local racing to test my fitness. My lungs still burn a bit on
exertion and I don’t feel great on or off the bike, but improvements are evident.
Last weekend I suffered through the Urbana Grand Prix with a huge effort to
take a very hard earned 4th. Then, this past weekend I opened
up my US bank account with a win at Monsters of Midway on the
Midway Plaisance—almost
like Chicago’s version of the
Champs-Élysées!
Ok maybe not… Still, I’m making progress. I’m pretty excited to be a Monster of
Midway none-the-less.
 |
| Winning the sprint from a small break at Monsters of Midway. Photo by Snowy Mountain Photography
|
A huge thank you to my
team manager Jono Coulter and my Vanderkitten teammates for their patience with
my health. Also to Jim Smith and Carrie & Sam Keating for their wonderful
generosity in sharing their beautiful Carmel accommodation with the team.
Gerald Sylvester (Mt View) and Bill & Sandy Green (Redlands) kindly opened
up their homes and were wonderful hosts, and James Mattis was kind enough
to give me a lift from Mt View to Redlands. I think I’m grateful to Michael
Zellman for the ride to Urbana but I’m not sure—that race really hurt! A bonus
of my California stay was catching up with long lost classmates Mark Rodgers (high
school) and Paulette Greenfield (college). Thanks to both of you for taking
time to visit!
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| Amazing photo of racing along Midway Plaisance by Snowy Mountain Photography
|
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