Gainesville Cycling Festival: Part II

On Sunday, Ged and I road the Horse Farm Hundred, a 100-mile course that takes you through north-central Florida and all of the horse farms in that area.

It was the first time I'd ever done a century and it was great.

I'll take you through the day with pictures from Ged.

Just outside the high school where we started:

The first 30 miles were nice and easy.  We stopped at the first rest stop to grab some snacks and fill up the water bottles.

































The jersey I'm wearing comes from my mom's company, North Star Corporate Housing.  She's sponsoring me.  :)

The next rest stop was at the 50-mile mark.  By this point, my butt and legs were starting to ache.  I couldn't believe that I still had 50 more miles to go...

A 15-minute lunch break:

I rode miles 50-75 by myself because no pace lines were in sight and Ged was too fast.  It was hard but doable.

We stopped once more at the 75-mile mark for a quick drink and bite then we were off for the FINAL LEG.

Let me just say, I kicked butt the last 25 miles.  I can't explain it, but my body and mind felt replenished and my legs felt stronger than ever.  I pulled a pace line for a couple of miles at speeds between 19-21mph.  It was awesome.

I broke away from that pace line because the riders wanted to stop, and I caught up with another group of people as the finish line was approaching.  I felt so victorious rolling back into the parking lot where we had left earlier that day.

It took me 5h57m to complete my first century.  I'm happy with that time.

~Amanda

Gainesville Cycling Festival: Part I

This past weekend was the Gainesville Cycling Festival, an event that held a century ride on Saturday (the Santa Fe Century) and another century on Sunday (the Horse Farm Hundred).

Ged and I volunteered on Saturday at a rest stop so that we could ride for FREE on Sunday.  There were about 400 riders in total on Saturday's ride and I loved the whole atmosphere of our humble pit stop.  We worked with three other ladies to make sure riders had plenty to snack on and drink so that they could finish the rest of the ride.

Here are some pictures from the day.  I made LOTS of PB&J.

Drugs.

It seems that nowadays a cycling enthusiast, like myself, can't enjoy reading about a race or listening to an interview without hearing something about doping.  It's everywhere.  

Ged and I were even going to have a special steak from Spain but unfortunately, I'm a vegan, which means I don't eat any animal products.

For a couple of reasons, I feel like I'm personally attached to the anti-doping scene.

Here's why:

1. My last name, ADAMS, is also the initials for the World Anti-Doping Agency's program that keeps track of all the athletes.  In this context, my last name stands for Anti-Doping Administration & Management System.  It's neat and strange to see my surname on pro-cyclists' Twitter accounts...
2. A University of Florida alum who is a rider for Kenda Pro Cycling recently got a tattoo, along with a few of his friends, of a bar of soap reading the word "CLEAN" as a testament to staying drug-free in the cycling world.  See photo below:

Honestly, I don't have much to say about all this doping business except that I'm against it yet intrigued to hear why and how these pros feel so pressured to use EPO, steroids and other stimulants, like David Millar.

At the end of the day, I think I fit into a group of cycling supporters that David Walsh talks about in this article on CyclingNews.  I'm the kind of person who will continue to follow the sport because she loves it, even if there are people who dope.  Yes, I hope that it will get cleaner, but if it doesn't I will still be there at the finish line cheering riders on.

Last July I saw a stage of the most famous cycling race in the world and I loved every minute of it.  And in September, I witnessed one of the most exciting time trials.  And tomorrow, I will get on my bike and ride 100 miles in the Gainesville Horse Farm Hundred.  

That's how it is for me.

--Amanda

Homecoming

Last weekend was my university's Homecoming, an annual university celebration in mid-October.  For those unfamiliar with it, the term "Homecoming" originally referred to the big reunion/party that the university had after the football had returned home from an away game.  Nowadays, it's more of a party with parades, entertainment and tons of alumni visiting.

On Friday, there was a huge parade in which I rode my bike with other bicyclists.  Quite good fun, even though our football team lost the game on Saturday.

Chomping At The Bit

At 5 a.m., Ged and I were wide awake.  Why, you ask?

BECAUSE THE TOUR DE FRANCE ROUTE WAS TO BE ANNOUNCED AT 5:30 a.m. ET.

Notice how it's still dark out and I have both the iTouch and the laptop handy for looking at the route and watching the live announcement in Paris...

Ged and I are already planning our trip to France.  It's looking like we'll follow the last week of Le Tour that goes through Italy (Pinerolo) and then heads to Alpe d'Huez after going through several nasty climbs along the way.

We've already been to the start of Le Tour.

Here are some pics from our time there back in August.

I wonder if they took the Contador posters down...

Only eight and a half more months to go.

--Amanda

That's a Wrap

I've never made a wrap before, but yesterday's first attempt was a great success.

The whole wrapping and rolling part seemed really complicated but it wasn't hard at all.

I sauteed some mushrooms and green pepper:

Chopped up some lettuce and tomato:

Then pile in the middle of the wrap, along with some sundried tomato hummus:

To finish, fold at the sides and simply roll from one end to the the other and cut in half.

And voila.

So tasty.

--Amanda

Out With the Old (and Cracked)

I just got my new Giro Atmos cycling helmet in the mail.  I had to purchase a new one after I crashed during a two-day 150-mile ride two weekends ago and cracked my old helmet.

I'm pretty excited about this new one.  I have yet to test it on a ride but it feels pretty good just trying it on in the apartment.  And it looks super sleek too.

OLD, CRACKED HELMET:

New, Sexy helmet:

Really liking the light feel of it, and according to the reviews I've read, the helmet is still very durable and strong despite the lightness.

--Amanda