Body Upgrade, Surgical Style!

As athletes, we tend to be very in tune with our bodies.  If I only learned one thing from this experience, it would be, "Listen to your body when it is trying to tell you something, damnit!"

It all began back in August.  My signs were all very non-specific:  fatigue, mild power loss, bloating, and mild abdominal discomfort.  I thought the tiredness was due to an unbelievable brutal TransRockies and the GI issues due to the Paleo diet.  Coach backed my training off and my doctor could not find anything wrong on physical exam and routine bloodwork.

Although I was well rested for SM100, my body just didn't feel good that day and the legs weren't zippy.  Even Danielle made the comment that my pace was a bit slow.

Fast forward to October and the Pisgah Stage Race.  Once again, I was well rested.  So well rested I was almost fearful of losing some fitness.  Days 1 and 2 were good.  However, my body just died on Days 3 and 4.  Both Coach and I were like, "WTF?!?"

Soon afterwards, my symptoms increased in intensity, I began having some bowel irregularity, and I gained about 5 pounds.  I began to resemble Buddha.  I began thinking about everything from pregnancy to ovarian cancer.  So I went back to the doctor for more tests.

Bloodwork nothing, ultrasound nothing.  Mind you, docs like to do one test at a time so this was agonizingly slow and my patience was wearing thin.  Also, my primary doctor (I feel) didn't seem too concerned about finding an answer quickly.  Finally, the CT scan showed mild sludging in the gall bladder. 

So the week before Christmas, I had a hida scan, which assesses gall bladder function.  Then I had to agonizingly wait through the holiday.  Well, yesterday I received the news.  Normal gallbladder ejection fraction = 80%.  Mine = 16%.  No gray zone there!

After 6 weeks worth of testing and waiting, I have an answer.  I almost wished I would have had the classical signs of gallbladder disease:  nausea, vomiting, and sharp pain.  I would have had a diagnosis much sooner.

Thinking positive about my situation, the good that has come from this is that I have lost the weight I gained initially and then some more.  Since the symptoms have intensified, I have not been able to eat much, and have been in a calorie deficit for 6 weeks.  I am now lighter than I have ever been.  I have also been doing more strength training than base training and I feel that I have maintained my strength.  But I will definitely have to work on my endurance after surgery.

Surgery is scheduled for next week.  I almost thought about asking my surgeon if he could remove a few unnecessary organs while he is in there; say, one ovary, uterus, and maybe one kidney.  You know, lighten the chassis even further.  As I know just about everyone at the Surgery Center, I will be in good hands.  My anesthesiologist is a roadie.  He told me last night that it will be a joy to work on me as a lot of his patients are >275 pounds and have cardiac/respiratory disease.

Doc says I will be off the bike for 3 weeks.  Translation:  3-4 days.  Any longer than that and he might have to prescribe Prozac!

I hate that I am going to miss the first two Snakes.   But I will just be glad to have a happy and healthy body again.

So, if you feel something is just not right with your body (no matter now small it may seem to be), be proactive and firm with your doctor about finding an answer. 

Luckily for me, I have several mountain bike friends that are also doctors so I was able to consult with them.  At one point, I actually had to tell my primary doctor that I wanted an abdominal CT scan and NOT an endoscopy/colonoscopy.  Thank God he listened to me or to this day, I might not have had an answer.

Time to get off the computer and get to training while I still can ...

Come Hell or High Water

The latter came today and I had a 3 hour mountain bike ride planned.  Eager to do battle with Mother Nature, I laid out my riding gear last night with precision.  I was bound and determined to stay warm and dry.

One of my riding partners (who shall remain nameless) bailed on me this morning; something about being tired/worn out from not fueling properly during yesterday's ride and then having to attend two Christmas parties.  In all fairness, she did rearrange her schedule for me when I found out that I could not do this ride yesterday, when it was 45 degrees and sunny!

So, once again, poor Zeke came along to endure.  He is one tough cookie for it seems that alot of my training rides are done in less than ideal conditions ... MUCH LESS!

We decided to do an out-and-back on the last and most technical section of The Snake.  We could not damage this portion of the trail as it is just about all solid rock.  When we arrived at Dug Gap, it was raining and 37 degrees.  Conditions would not change at all today.

Now back in my younger (and much insaner) days as a veterinarian fresh out of vet school, oftentimes I would have my arm shoulder-deep up a cow's/horse's ass so that I could tell the farmer if she were pregnant.  No, I did not go in bare-handed; I used a rectal palpation sleeve.  This was a long plastic sleeve that went up to my shoulder.  Of course, that did not keep the manure off my boots, my cheek, or out of my hair, but it served its purpose well in that it kept my hand and arm clean.

Flash forward 15 years to a potentially cold, wet, and miserable mountain bike ride.  I brought a few of these; Zeke calls them "limb condoms."  Placing them strategically on our arms and legs in between layers of clothing, our ride suddenly became very enjoyable and productive.

Today's ride looked like a scene out of J.R.R Tolkein's The Lord of the Rings.  We were enshrouded in a blanket of fog along the ridges.  I half expected to see a white unicorn appear or hear, "My precious!"  But other than a deer and a hiker with a pink umbrella, we encountered no other souls.

It was a good day to focus on skills as speed in these conditions would only get us hurt.  Zeke had already sacrificed some flesh earlier this fall on this trail.

We each rode along at our own pace; hard enough to keep warm, but not so hard that we would sweat.  I rode back to Zeke a few times, allowing me to practice on some of the rockier sections a couple times. 

I managed to stay dry, but after 2 hours my feet got cold.  They were dry, but my shoes were not waterproof so eventually Mother Nature made her way inside and killed my toe warmers.  I need to work keeping my toesies warm.  I had two pairs of socks with the palpation sleeves in between.  These plastic sleeves then were placed under my tights and went all the way up to my knees.  The toe warmers were placed in between the outer sock layer and my shoes.  I wish I could have put the plastic layer on over my shoes, but with several hike-a-bike sections, they would not have survived.

With fresh hot coffee waiting for us in Zeke's van, we managed to make it back to the trailhead 3 1/2 hours and 20 miles later.  Mmm Mmm ... that coffee was soooo good ... and hot!

If today's ride does not make me stronger, I don't know what will.

Two First's At One Time: Specialized SS 29'r

I first rode a 29'r earlier this year.  A friend had a Superfly so I gave it a try.  Other than a perfect fit, nothing much else impressed me.  At the end of the ride, my back was killing me and my thighs were tired from all the standing.

Fast forward to October, the end of my season.  After talking to my Coach and telling her how I felt quite weak with my top end power, she asked if I had ever thought about SS'ing.  Well, yeah, I said, but dismissed it because I thought it would cause my knees to blow out and kill my back.  Coach said it would help my top end and improve my fire road climbing.  So...

The next day I called Bruce and within a couple weeks placed an order!

Well, here she is ... 20.2 pounds and dying to be ridden.

I used an old XTR crank and Bruce did some customizing.

The headset cap is eccentric just like the bottom bracket.

A set of Specialized Captain's mounted to Stan's Race Wheels will make for a stable and speedy acceleration.

Specialized Toupe saddle is lightweight yet comfortable.  Rebecca Rusch got me hooked on this model and I have never looked back.

"What doesn't kill you only makes you stronger" and "Pain is just weakness leaving the body"  are thoughts that I have put on replay the past week as I get ready for my and her virgin ride.  It will be interesting to see what name comes to mind as I ride her this Saturday.

Thanks to The Outdoor Store, Specialized, Magura, Ergon, and Endless Bike Co. for making this happen.  (I may be cursing you before its all over!)

You Just Might ...

be a crazy ultra-endurance mountain bike racer if:

1. You use your number plates as wall paper.
2. Weatherchannel.com is your homepage.
3. You give your bikes names.
4. You have more water bottles than glasses in the cupboard.
5. You start racing a 24 hour thinking "This is awesome!", followed by thinking at least 10 times during the race, "Why the hell am I doing this?", followed by finishing the race thinking "That was awesome!"
6. You consider work regeneration time from training/racing.
7. Half the shirts you own have at least a dozen logos on them.
8. You have more laundry loads of cycling clothes than regular clothes.
9. Your first thought when you wake up is your resting HR.
10. Your bike costs more than your vehicle.
11. You think that getting a mud facial is one of the perks of racing in the rain.
12. When you park in a sketchy area of national forest to go for a ride, you don't worry about your vehicle getting stolen because your bike is not in it.
13. Your first thought when crashing is not, Oh, this is gonna hurt!", but "I hope my bike will be o.k."
14. You wait a couple days to take your car in when the "check engine" light comes on, but when your bike needs something, you take it in right away.
15. You take longer washing your bike than yourself.
16. You are offended if someone states you have a farmer's tan.  Farmers don't wear shorts!
17. Your vehicle smells like a locker room.
18. You have no idea what to do with yourself on your off day.
19. You purchase broccoli not only for the nutrition, but for the multi-purpose "broccoli bands."
20. Your nutritional supplements could be considered a 4th meal.
21. Your rain gear consists of Glad trash bags, plastic shower caps, latex gloves, and Ingles grocery bags.
22. Your best friend's pet name for you is "race whore."
23. You bring your bike with you when car shopping.
24. Your bike is in your living room.
25. Your cycling apparel occupies more than 1/2 of your closet space.
26. Most of this list doesn't seem like a joke to you.
    

Feel free to add to the list!

Chamois Butt'r Eurostyle vs. The Competition

This past month I have had the chance to try out a couple competitors' chamois creams.  I have been in the JRA (just ridin' along) mode so most of my rides have been 4+ hours.  I figured this was the best time as ALL my races are at least this length.

I tested TBS (That Butt Stuff) and AsMaster. TBS contains no parabens and a host of natural oils.  AsMaster contains parabens and a host of natural oils.

Testing conditions were mainly wet and muddy, including gravel roads and single track.  Temperatures ranged from 45-70 degrees.  Overall saddle times were 5-7 hours.  I had enough  to conduct two rides per product.  I used the same Specialized shorts for each ride.

When initially applying both products, I noticed how thin they were.  Both required a two-fingered application vs. the usual one finger Chamois Butt'r application.

For the first 3 hours both products did there job.  Both felt the same.  But by hour 4, I was aware of my taint.  I felt a mild irritation, especially when I was moving around on the saddle.  By hour 5, I was squirming around on the saddle, trying to find the "sweet" spot, wishing I had brought more cream with me.

Upon post-ride examination, my skin was definitely more inflamed.  The good news was that there were no saddle sores with either product.

Conclusion:  Chamois Butt'r is THE TICKET , especially for ultra-endurance riding/racing.  (Having said that, TBS and AsMaster would work just fine for short rides and XC races.) 

I think the biggest difference is that Chamois Butt'r has lanolin which allows it to endure for 4+ hours.  When you scoop a fingerful out of the container, it has the same consistency as "I Cannot Believe It's Butter" butter spread.  I also like the menthol which seems to have a "cooling" effect and therefore increases my comfort level in the saddle.  (For those of you that do not like this "tingling,"  plain Chamois Butt'r works great and endures as long as its European counterpart.)

FYI, I used Chamois Butt'r for 9 months prior to being sponsored by them.  This year, it held up to the extreme weather conditions at TransRockies and Pisgah stage races.  No saddle sores and aside from some sit-bone soreness during the final days of each race, my taint was a happy taint!

I have plenty of samples, so if you see me out there, I would be happy to give some to you to try yourself.

New Trail, Daydreams, and Wild Boar

With Carly's ear infection being cleared up with antibiotics, Reese recovering from oral surgery, and Charlie busy working, I decided to take a little hiatus from reality and do some exploring. Zeke, as usual, is always up for riding new trail. Today was going to be all about leaf-watching, the non-couch potato way ... on two knobbies!

I picked out a horse trail on the National Geographic map and met Zeke up at the fish hatchery this morning at 9:30 am. Blustery winds, but temps in the upper 60's awaited us. Ahh, heaven! With Stumpy at the spa and Indy on vacation, that left Crash ('06 Epic) for 'splorin' duty today. I had just mounted some super heavy tires, was running my PowerTap, and had stuffed my saddle bag until I could just barely close it, so her normal weight of 24 lbs swelled up to 27 pounds.

We began with a climb up a fireroad that was so littered with yellow, red, and orange leaves that it narrowed the roadway down to just double-track width. The smell of fallen leaves were so rich that it had a mind-numbing effect on me. Just what I needed as my week had been full of drama.

After about 7 miles, we crossed a creek, and began following the Bald River along the horse trail. At first it was pleasantly level and smooth. It was here that we ran in to a couple of deer hunters; very friendly guys who did not see anything today. One of them took a 12 pointer here last year. Hmmm ... should I or shouldn't I tell Charlie?

Soon we saw sign of wild boar. They had really chewed up the trail, making it difficult to ride in places. After a couple more river crossings, the trail began to climb steeply. If I had been riding a horse here, I would definitely want a seasoned one, as the trail had lots of loose moss-covered baby head rocks and log crossings.

There were plenty of hike-a-bike sections and at one point I was looking for a Pisgah National Forest sign. Gee, even Tennessee has its own Farlow Gap! It was slow going for most of this 6 mile trail, but I enjoyed it. There was just nothing like watching Zeke's butt and his "holey" shorts mile after mile.

But really, I treasure the "me" time I get to have while exploring new trail. I am going slow enough that I don't have to think about where my next move is going to be, so that I can drift off in to my own little world of daydreams.

When Zeke said that his altimeter read 3300ft and there was plenty more mountain to climb, I began to think that maybe next time we should ride down this trail. And then I thought how much fun to bomb down this on an S-Works Enduro, that weighs just as much as my Epic now, but with 60mm more travel.

Popping out onto another fireroad, our exploration was soon to come to an end. This road led to one that I was familiar with, except that this time the forest service decided to lay down about 2-3" of large gravel ... the whole way down the mountain. Great! It felt like I was riding on a bed of marbles for 5 miles.

After 3 1/2 hours and 26 mostly fun miles, we were back at the truck.

Where will be my next adventure?

Pisgah Stage Race: Transylvania Loop

Distance: 40 miles
Climbing: 9000 ft
Temperature: 35-55 degrees
Time: 4:10:28

I woke up feeling like a train wreck. The last time I experienced this feeling was Stage 6 of TransRockies. I am not sure why. I did everything right after yesterday's stage. I made the coffee stronger, hoping to break down the cobwebs in my head.

Today's start was cold, but dry. However, Todd announced that he had been up to Farlow Gap at 2:30 am and was greeted by snow and ice. Fearing riders' safety, he asked us to decide to take out this section or not. After 3 days of extreme weather conditions and a brutal course, not one racer wanted to tackle an icy Farlow. This would shorten the course by 8-9 miles. O.k. by me as I still felt like crap at the start.

After the 1/2 mile neutral start, I hopped on Cheryl's wheel and we began with a 6 mile gravel climb, followed by a short rolling section, and then a quick descent down to Hwy 276. The pace was hard; close to my breaking point. I stayed with her until the top. It was here that my legs died. The descent was soft and had lots of loose gravel, so I had to push hard even on it.

A short pavement section brought me to the next gravel climb. Ughh! It was here that I was passed by Sue first, then Brenda. Was I pedaling backwards? Sure felt like it. I struggled to maintain my speed. After some more rolling sections, I hit the Cove Creek Trail. Back in my element, I was able to kick it up a bit. Soon I passed Brenda and then hit the connector trail over to Daniel Ridge Trail.

After riding just the last little bit of Daniel Ridge, I was once again back on gravel. I was able to big ring it on the Davidson River Trail. Then back onto MORE gravel road where I retraced my steps to get back over to the other side of Hwy 276. Brenda passed me here like I was standing still. It seemed effortless for her, as she would stand and climb up the mountain like it was just a hill. She was strong today!

And so it went like this for me the remainder of this stage. I suffered on the roads and enjoyed the singletrack. Bennett Gap Trail was super fun! After the rock ledge drops of death (which I scooted/slid down, I enjoyed the fast and flowy descent back down to the riding stables. I caught Brenda here again.

The last gravel climb to Black Mountain seemed like an eternity, although it was only 30 minutes (should have been 20). Brenda passed me for the last time today and I did not see her until the finish. Once again, Ienjoyed the last 2 mile descent to the finish. Cheryl was able to maintain a strong pace today and put enough time on me to take 2nd.

I was frustrated not to be able to maintain my second placing. But that's racing. Cheryl was able to overcome a slow start and finish strong. But frustrations aside, I had a blast. I loved the course, except for the 30 miles of gravel roads on the third stage. Not only did the singletrack test your skills, but the weather tested your ability to adapt and overcome. Surprisingly, the attrition rate was low; I guess the racers knew what they were getting into when they signed up.

The course markings were superb, the volunteers were awesome. One thing I did miss was the post-stage camaraderie. Everyone was quick to high-tail it out of there and go their separate ways. At least the sun shined on the last day, so that people hung out at the finish and the awards ceremony.

Thanks to Specialized for an awesome ride aboard my Stumpjumper. Stumpy climbed like a goat and flew on the descents. The only limiter was ME.

Through all the rain, snow, and river crossings, Chamois Butt'r kept my taint comfy.

My green Ergon GR2 carbon grips kept the numbness and ulnar pain away, yet allowing full control on those nasty descents.

My Magura Marta SL's were superb. One set of pads for the whole race, no fading on those long, ugly descents, and superb control.