Exposed!

I have finally done it. After 6 months of "ho-humming," I have created a little window into my world. I guess I can thank (or blame) Danielle for this one. Anyway, do not laugh at the framing. I will be the first one to say that the only computer I feel comfortable with is the one on my bike.

For those of you who do not know me, let me give you some background. Charlie, my husband, first got me interested in riding in 1999. January 1, 2000, we loaded up our bikes and headed to Tsali. I was excited to try out my first full-suspension Stumpjumper that I had gotten for Christmas. And Tsali was my first taste of singletrack. Even though the temps were in the 20's and my rear derailleur froze, along with my feet, I had a wonderful experience. I was hooked!

I have come a long way since then, and Charlie's bike lies mostly dormant now. His job as regional director for Ducks Unlimited keeps him very busy, but it is his passion. He is as crazy about his job as I am about cycling. And he is very supportive of my racing. The reason he is not at most of the races is because he is at home taking care of Carly.

Carly is our beautiful 5 year old daughter. No, the training wheels are not off, but she enjoys the Trail A Bike we just recently acquired. Last weekend we rode Brush Creek. For any of you that raced the Cohutta 100, this was the first singletrack section. We rode it the other direction. Carly enjoyed the downhill, "whoo-hoo'ing" most of the way. But after about the 10th time of her bike bottoming out on a rock or root, she was ready for the ride to be over. Thank goodness for the crank guard on the bike!

For the most part my season is over for this year. I am planning on doing a local 12 hour race in late October. But what I am really excited about in November is La Ruta!