Cat. 3 debut

Today was my first offical race as a cat 3. Upgrading from cat 4 to 3 means an extra 15 minutes of racing and tougher competition from more experienced riders. I wasn't too thrilled about today's race because I've been under the weather the past few days, plus I was worried about getting my butt kicked all over the course.

Evergreen high school isn't one of my favorite venues but certainly not the worst (which is Kelly Creek by the way)- it's got a lot of grassy turns and a huge sandy run-up. The weather this morning was nice- sunny and in the 60's. I hate to say it, but I was secretly hoping for rain and mud. This is Seattle after all so I'm sure I'll get my wish eventually. We arrived really early so I had plenty of time to warm up...and worry about getting my butt kicked. Finally we lined up and I squeezed into the second row. I stayed around mid-pack but was in some serious pain. My mouth was super dry and I couldn't breathe well. Ugh. That first run-up was pure torture. I definitely need to get out and run more! The next two laps were marginal then I finally perked up and got back in race. Eventually I was lapped by one of the men, so I hopped on his wheel, held on for dear life and passed one girl. Thank you random guy! Then right at the end two more guys passed and I used their momentum to pick off two more girls.

After a grueling 38 minutes I came in 6th out of 21. I was aiming for top 10 so this was a nice surprise, given the fact that I've been sick and it's the first race of the series.

Starcrossed '08

Today was the kickoff for my '08 cross season. Last year Starcrossed was my first race ever and my only goal was to avoid getting lapped. This time around I'm a newly-minted cat 3 and my goal was to place in the top 20.

I woke up to dreary, drizzly weather and cool temps. Ah, autumn has arrived. I've never really raced in the rain before so I wasn't too enthused (at first). Eric packed up the car while I packed up my clothes and off we went. We tried setting up a couple tents but found it was much nicer (and drier) under the picnic shelter at the park. A number of other racers had the same idea and it got pretty chaotic with wheels, trainers and gear everywhere.

Fortunately I was on the ball and pre-registered a month ago- the starting lineup was based on registration dates and I wound up in the second row...out of nine or ten. The race started with a bang and off we went. I was fifth going onto the course but that ended about halfway into the first lap. I stayed around 10 for a while but was passed by a few girls. The course was 99% wet bumpy grass and at this point my goal was to just stay upright. I could hear the announcer saying things like "number X just went down" or "whoa, that's gonna leave a mark" so I was pretty cautious going into turns and the barriers.

Finally, the last lap came around and I tried to crank it up a bit. As I approached the finishing stretch another rider came up and we sprinted for the finish. I think I edged her out along with another racer that was in front of us.

I took 12th out of ? (63 finished but I'm not sure how many started..last I heard it was 77) . Last year I finished 39th out of 51. Click here for a few more photos.

Tomorrow's race preparations actually start today with a short ramp-up ride. This workout kind of "calls up" the legs and gets the heart ready for some intense action. Today's crummy weather meant a ride in the garage...on the trainer that is! Starcrossed should be interesting- the field may max out at 80 racers and I'm guessing that there will be several crashes...hopefully I'm not part of one!



Oh, and I actually got little B to sit still for a photo this afternoon:

I just posted a few more Mt. Baker photos here.

Full moon rising over Mt. Shuksan...more photos to come.

Just in case you forgot...

Vote for Obama!

Restaurant review- Orexi

Yeah, yeah- we all know I love to eat. I thought it would be kind of fun share my adventures in dining with the dedicated blog readers of ericandkaryn.com. So here goes...

Today's review: Orexi (Bellevue, WA)

We've driven by Orexi several times (it's right next door to Gregg's Cycles in Bellevue) but we never stopped in to try it. Maybe it was the small, unassuming building or the empty parking lot that turned us off. So on our way out of Crate and Barrel today Eric said "How about Greek?" and the rest is history.

Ambience: The restaurant looks like it belongs in the Greek pavillion at Epcot center. Just my kind of place- slightly cheesy but not over the top. You kind of feel like you're in the middle of an archeological dig with frescos and statues everywhere.

Service: The service was great. I think our waitress may also have been the owner or manager and she was really friendly. We did have to wait a while for the check though...

Food: I thought the food was excellent. Our hummus appetizer was tasty and served with fresh pita bread. Now, the pita was not as good as the Senate Coney Island's, but hey, we're not in Detroit are we? Eric's Gyro was suprisingly good (for a non-Senate gyro) and was served with steamed veggies (blah). I'm used to eating fries with gyros! I opted for a salad with cucumbers, olives, tomatoes and feta, all smothered in tzatziki sauce. It was great. The tzatziki was really "herby" and probably the best I've had. Now onto dessert. We were thinking about baclava, but then our waitress suggested the baked, lemon creme-filled phyllo covered with honey and cinnamon. It was light, tasty and consumed in a matter of minutes :)

On a scale of 5 stars, I'd say this was a 3.5., maybe a 4.*

*Just so you know, my rating scale is a bit skewed. I think Giordano's Pizza in Chicago is a 5. I also think the Metropolitan Grill in Seattle is a 5. On the other hand I would rate my last meal at the Cascadia Grill in Belltown as a 1. In my book good Diet Coke (or Pepsi) is a must, cheesy decor is a plus, and foofy, tiny portions are a bust!

Photos!

Click here to see some pics from last weekend!

Weekend on the peninsula...

More photos to come...

Summer in Seattle- Raincoat, shorts, flip-flops and a coffee. Actually it was really nice out this morning but started raining just after we finished our MTB ride. Usually it starts raining just as we're getting ready to leave for a ride, so this was nice for a change.

Strange bird

I think we already have a post titled "Strange Bird", but our birds really are strange. Little B likes to sit on our vacuum- it's not unusual to find him in the closet, in the dark, sitting on our Hoover. We rented a steam cleaner this weekend and sure enough, he had to hang out on that one too.

Last MTB race of the year!

The last stop on the Indie Series calendar was the White River Revival near Crystal Mountain. I am SO glad it's over with! The course was awesome- I can't believe that we've never ridden down there before. I want to go back with Eric...next weekend!

The drive down was much shorter than I thought. I saw a funny yet ironic bumper sticker in Enumclaw- "I love my horse". You can read this article if you really want to know more.

So I'm walking back to the car after registration and this black truck pulls up next to me...it's Richard! I see him in the most random places. Turns out he couldn't make the Oakridge 24 hr so he brought his singlespeed out for a spin.

The race start was moderately paced but 5 minutes in I hit a rooty mess and almost endo'd. I regained composure but not before 3 girls in my category passed me up. They took off like a mini-freight train and I never saw them again. Arrggh! We meandered through some super rooty singletrack and trees covered with lime green moss. It was such a neat area. Then we hit the 4-mile road climb and I pushed it hoping to catch up with the girls. No such luck. However, I did have the sweet descent all to myself. The views from top were amazing!

I rolled across the finish line in 4th...out of 5. Ugh.

However, I did take 2nd overall in the series! I won a t-shirt and one of those aluminum water bottles.

Starcrossed!

Mark your calendars...Starcrossed is on Sept. 20th! Come watch some of the country's best 'cross racers compete under the lights of the velodrome.

Gorge games

We're back from the Gorge Games. Eric and Robin had a great race and I even managed to get out on the sport course. It sounds like the guys took 5th place overall. Awesome! Click here for pics.

Padden Mtn bike race

Today's race was near Bellingham at Padden Lake. I haven't raced since the Sea Otter and I knew this was going to hurt...but I had no idea how badly! We arrived about two hours early and I pre-rode half the course. Looking back I should've checked the whole course so I knew what was in store for me. Live and learn, right? The race began with a Lemans-style start, which meant that we lined up in the field and ran to our bikes. Before the race I told Eric that I had the holeshot in the bag...and I did! First to the bike and first to the singletrack. Unfortunately I didn't stay in the lead for long b/c the initial climb totally burned my lungs. Then I hit the 2nd half of the course (the part I failed to pre-ride) and found the crazy drop-offs that everyone was talking about. I ended up walking a few to avoid crashing. Halfway through the race I found myself thinkining "I can't believe I paid to do this". My last lap was much faster probably because I knew I was almost finished. I finished 2nd out of 6 :)

Here's a video of the start...I'm the first to pick arrive at the bikes...

New photo site

I'm trying out a new photo site. Click here to see pics from last weekend's trip.

Central Oregon rocks!

We spent the 4th of July weekend at the Newberry National Volcanic Monument in central Oregon. This place rocks...literally. As the name implies the area was once an active volcano and now pumice and obsidian are everywhere. You can exfoliate your feet and slice a toe all at the same time (which we did). We shared a campsite with Jerry and Stacey but I'd hardly call it camping. Maybe "glamping" would be a better phrase. We had margaritas (with hand-cranked blender), fondue, and several awesome breakfasts. It was a little chilly at night but all 3 days were nice and sunny. I'll post more pictures tomorrow when I have time.

Eric cookin' bacon:

Hot spring with a great view of Paulina Peak:

Riding along the Deschutes River Trail in Bend:

Hot hot hot!

It is downright toasty here in Seattle. The phrase of the day has been "I'm not complaining or anything, but it's really hot." Once again Eric and I wonder how we ever lived in this heat for nearly 5 years. Anyway... Saturday was the first annual Primal Smith "fun" adventure race. I think the heat got to everyone and all teams stopped after the mountain bike section. Despite the heat, crashes, and bike malfunctions, I think people really enjoyed the tough course.

Eric and I set part of the course in the morning. Here is is trudging up the 60-step quad-buster in our neighborhood:

Self portrait:

Today we hammered out a few fast laps at Seatac:

Making a face as I push uphill:

"You could be playing golf"...true, but I'd rather ride my bike, thank you.

Rainier

Here are some pics from Eric's Mt. Rainier trip!

Finally- a taste of summer!

We've had some nice weather the past few days (finally). On Sunday Robin and I headed out on an Eastside road ride along Lake Samm., up to Fall city and back to Issaquah.

Mt. Si in the distance:



Robin heading up the hill:


Local "wildlife"



Right now Eric should be safely back at the Rainier base camp. I'm sure he'll have plenty of photos to post tomorrow!