In the Studio

Being a one woman show has its extreme perks, with a few downfalls thrown in there. Naturally, one of the biggest hurdles I'm constantly working against is pattern development.
I work closely with a few folks from the local cycling scene who are commuters, adventurers, and all-around-bike-people to come up with new ideas for products.
It's always an interesting challenge to go from idea to tangible item.

Granny Gear is a still a pretty young concept. There are bag makers who are worlds above me and that's really exciting! I love watching what other designers are coming up with (& wishing I had thought of it first).

Recently, I decided that I really wanted to tackle a pretty simple frame bag. I'd read a couple of tutorials online that made the process seem significantly less daunting.

I already know I messed up with this #nondriveside picture

The process was surprisingly smooth! I came out with a one color, one pocket frame bag custom made for my SS Fairdale. Also, because it's a custom bag, I made sure the straps don't cover up the Fairdale name...a little pickiness can be managed when you're making things for yourself. 

The frame bag is made from cordura, making it fully water resistant. The straps on future models will be a bit burlier to ensure the bag stays put on any adventure its put on.
I'm not quite ready to offer this to a general public yet. I'm going to ask some friends to use upgraded versions for a "prototype" run before opening them up for order.

I'm real stoked on how the first one turned out, though! And it was a great learning experience.
Now onto the next challenge. 

Trail Review : Blankets Creek

I attempted Blankets Creek this past summer and didn't have a good time. I blame it on having done a 30 mile road ride beforehand, but regardless, I had been putting off going back for the longest time.
Today, I wanted to tackle a longish day on the bike without having to go too far from the city. When my friend suggested Blankets Creek, I knew my time of avoidance was coming to an end.

An impending rain storm shortened our day a bit so we decided against tackling South Loop. I'll tackle that one day, I'm sure.
Also, these trails are directional! This post is written going the Monday, Wednesday, Saturday direction. I assume you could just read this post backwards if it's Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, or Sunday??

From the parking lot, you head onto Mosquito Flat, a relatively flat, short trail. It's the perfect place to give your legs a chance to wake up before spitting you out at the trailhead for Dwellings Loop, Qhuel Holler, and South Loop.
Dwellings Loop was the only one I had ridden previously. Second attempt left me feeling much more stoked on these trails.
For my skill level, this trail is decently gnarly. It doesn't consist of too much climbing, but it's short, punchy climbs are full of roots and rocks to navigate over.
What I missed out on the first time was enjoying the awesome features of the downhills. Any sort of grief you're feeling from technical climbs quickly vanishing the moment you start descending.
Berms, table tops, rock gardens, and switchbacks galore! Everything you want in a descent, Dwellings delivers.
There are some additional alternative lines that I was pretty sketched out on, but was stoked to have a friend who highly recommended them. If you're a tenderfoot like me, I'll offer you the same advice I was given: roll it or stop to check it out first!
I was almost unknowingly introduced to my first drop today but hydraulic brakes saved me from a probable trip over my handlebars. (But a quick trip back up the trail a bit and a second take, I was able to clear my first two drops!)

After Dwellings, you arrive back at that first trail head (ya know, cause it's a loop...). From there, you'll hit Mosquito Flat again, take that to Mosquito Bite, which is basically Mosquito Flat with a few more roots and some wood features.
The real challenge comes when you arrive to Van Michael. This is one of those trails that got talked up soooooo much that when the time finally came for me to hop on it, all I could focus on was the video game style boss music that was playing in my head.
It's SO! MUCH! CLIMBING!
Luckily, I found out that, despite how much I abhor climbing, I'm actually kind of okay at it.
Van Michael is one of the more technical trails out there (I've heard South Loop is the most technical but, as I said, haven't ridden it yet). Much like Dwellings Loop, you've got a whole lot of roots and rocks to navigate over while you're climbing.
The descents offer HUGE berms and table top opportunities that I assume are used by folks who go a lot faster than I was.

After Van Michael, I was pretty much done for the day. We did a quick cool down on Mosquito Flat to Mosquito Bite which popped us back to the parking lot right as the rain was starting.
I definitely conquered my fear/hatred of Blankets Creek. I can now very happily recommend it to anyone who is looking for a solidy technical day of riding without having to go too far outside of the city.

Trail Review : Sope Creek

Atlanta really is lucky with how many awesome trails we have such a short distance from downtown. If you're pressed for time but still want to get in a really great day of riding, I highly recommend checking out Sope Creek. 

A short 20 minute drive from the city, it's one of the most underrated trails close to the city.
(And if you're really feeling yourself, it's possible to ride from the city to the trail! It's been reported that during high traffic areas, it's actually faster to ride there.)

Since it's still cross season, I spend pretty much any free time I have on my cross bike. So what better way to spend some quality time with my bike than to take her to a mountain bike trail!
I had been to Sope a handful of times before. Once on my cross bike, maybe twice on my mountain bike. The most recent time, however, was the first time I actually got why people think so highly of this trail. 

From the parking lot, you're greeted with a finely ground gravel road that offers a nice scenic warm up alongside the river.
Once on the actual trail, it's mostly singletrack with all the roots, rock gardens, and berms you could hope for.
It's exceptionally fun on a full rigid bike when you're given the added bonus of having to pick the best lines to avoid the dreaded pinch flat. 

The only downside to the trail it has a rule that "bikes yield to pedestrians." I've never had any real issues with hikers and typically they'll move if they see you coming. It is one of the more populated trails I've been to and sometimes you have that one hiker who doesn't quiet understand how it works and ends up walking in the same direction you're going.

Sope is officially rated as an intermediate trail. When I first started going, it was a little too challenging for my skill set. I spent most of my first trip participating in a great hike a bike. My most recent time going, I was able to clear mostly everything.
If you're looking for a well rounded riding experience, Sope is definitely worth a visit. 

Boundary Waters - Douglasville

I finally made it to the top step!!!

After seeing a 4th place finish nearly every race of the season so far, I finally saw a course that seem to be designed just for me.
As promised, Boundary Waters offered a little bit of everything.
From off camber switchbacks to a gravel climb that was far more strenuous than it appeared, the course was well designed to keep each rider on their toes.

I'm gradually learning proper race preparation.
It's a weird transition to go from being an absolute couch potato who never really thought twice about what I was eating, to this world of being an "athlete."
(I'm still very much not sure if I'm able to commit to considering myself a real athlete yet)
After a week of monitoring what I ate and when, I could definitely feel an incredible improvement in my race performance.

There's only a few races left in the season. I'm incredibly excited to continue to learn and grow alongside my teammates.
They've been the most supportive crew I could ask for.

I'm currently winning the Cat 4 women's series.
I'm trying to not jump the gun on being overly excited because, honestly, anything could happen at this point.
But hey, for being in my second month of racing, I'll take it!

Dingo Cross - Dahlonega, GA

The race at Camp Merrill this past Sunday has been easily my favorite race to date.
Despite somehow sleeping through my alarm, waking up two hours late, and getting to the venue just 15 minutes before our race started, Dingo Cross was the most fun I've had on a bike all season.

Definitely one for the mountain bikers of the group. The course featured nine official barriers, including multiple log jumps, a muddy run up, a gravel pit, a creek crossing, and your every day barriers that I'm sure have an official name that I don't know. 

Although I don't think I'd want the stress of almost missing a race ever again, part of me is thankful that my first race lap was my "pre-ride." Had I been given the opportunity to scout out the course beforehand, I probably would have psyched myself out too much to properly concentrate during the race. Even when not faced with an official barrier, the course tested everyone's handling skills. From a sandy off camber remount to several deeply cut ruts, there wasn't any time to let your guard down.


So far this season, I've placed 4th in all my races except for one where I got DNF because of a flat tire and not knowing to run the rest of the course (Whoops, rookie mistake!! I know better now!)
Overall, my team has been killing it. We took the top step of the podium on our first race of the year, resulting in my teammate, Brent, to move up a category. I'm patiently waiting for my time to cat up to the elite women's field, but wouldn't be disappointed if I have a year with the Cat 4s to get my bearings a bit better.

Every race offers a whole lot of learning that I am happy to partake in. I've already met so many amazingly strong ladies at the start line who are so ready with high fives and congratulations at the finish line. ((Cross is honestly the best thing that's ever happened to me & everyone should do it))

Unfortunately, this upcoming week is an off week. I'm already so anxious to be back in race mode hanging out with all of my favorite people.
I'm planning to get in lots of mountain biking in the meantime. 

Oh! and I impulsively bought a new bike a few days ago. We missed the singlespeed race in Dahlonega, but I'm hoping to take her along for the double header in Savannah at the end of the month. 

See you guys soon! 

Trail Review : Enterprise South

The Enterprise South Nature Park in Chattanooga, Tennessee were some of the first trails I went to when I began mountain biking. It features approximately 10 miles of looped trails. There's no doubt that these are appropriately labeled as beginner trails, but don't let that be a deterrent for your visit. What these trails lack in gnarly factor, they make up for in fun.

Enterprise South is divided into three directional loops. I've done both directions and I highly recommend the Monday, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday, although there are still tons of fast downhills the Tuesday Thursday Sunday direction, too. Each of the loops are about the same difficulty, even though technically they're considered beginner, intermediate, and advanced. As I said, they were my favorite trails when I started mountain biking and I never came across anything that I couldn't handle....except for the occasional rock garden but that's a personal hurdle I'll overcome eventually.
Each loop has its own defining features.

The loop we started on is known as Black Forest. It's a quick singletrack with a handful of punchy climbs, roots, and loose ground. (There's also the most fun downhill run into a parking lot if you're doing the M, W, F, S direction). From there, you go into TNT, my personal favorite. There is a tiny bit more climbing on this loop, but the pay off is wonderful. This loop has a lot of roller sections which is a heck of a good time regardless of how much speed you're comfortable with maintaining. The Log Rhythm loop is the last one we came to. For advanced riders, this area can be used as your playground. It has an elevated bridge, pump track, and log obstacles. For those not comfortable with the advanced features, they're easily bypassed without taking anything away from the all around experience.

I definitely won't be making any trips to Chattanooga that I don't make time to visit this trail at least once. It's a good way to get in a couple of really solid miles on your bike. For those riders looking to amp up their mountain biking skills, it's a really great place to work on getting comfortable with maintaining speed. For those just looking for a good place to ride, this is a decently easy trail that doesn't feel like a snooze fest.

Impromtu Chattanooga

Yesterday was our usual day for group mountain biking trip. For whatever reason, the idea of riding didn't sound the slightest bit appealing to me. I was going to suck it up and go anyway, but thankfully, Patrick was there to save the day by suggesting we go on a day trip to Chattanooga.

By the time we decided to go, it was already past noon. The trip up there would take us about 2 hours, closer to three when you take into consideration traffic and a food stop. We compromised by agreeing to pack up the mountain bikes to get in a quick ride at Enterprise South (which are some of my favorite trails ever!) and then get in some good exploring after.

Around 3:30, we got to Chattanooga, unloaded the car, and hopped on the trails. Unfortunately, we only got about 7 miles in when the skies opened up. I can't say it was the biggest downpour I've ever gotten stuck in, but it definitely ranked in the top 3. Our only option was to head to the car one way or another. Bummed that we drove 2 hours for about 30 minutes of riding, we figured that we'd be able to take the few miles of trails back. Nope!
After only a couple of minutes of rain, the previously flowy trails turned into actual rivers. So we turned around and took to the road.

Once we packed back up, we called up my brother who lives in Chattanooga. Luckily, it only seemed to be raining over the trails, which are about 20 minutes outside of the city. We drove out of the storm and into perfect weather!

My brother has a friend whose family owns a ridiculous amount of land up on Lookout Mountain so he took us up there, where we got in a whole lot of sightseeing over Cloudland Canyon and some canoeing on a private pond.

We originally had plans to go out to dinner together before leaving, but it being Sunday and us having no concept of time, when we realized how late it had gotten, all  our food options had closed. (which is a major bummer because I've been dreaming about how good Urban Stack burgers are for a good six months now!)

All in all, it was the perfect almost-full-day-off-a-bike day. I am thankful to have had a moment outside of the routine of the city. Now, back to my regularly scheduled training rides.

Trail Review: Chicopee Woods

Chicopee Woods are 21 miles of incredibly well maintained mountain bikes trails created by SORBA in Oakwood, Georgia. I've been hearing about the insane trails at Chicopee Woods in Oakwood, GA for a couple of months now. Patrick has made his way up there on several occasions, but it had sounded a little too intense for me. Unlike the other trails I had ridden previously, Chicopee's loops don't have an easy out. Once you're in, you're in until the end.

We finally made our way up yesterday so that I could see what all the hype was about. And, man, they didn't disappoint!
The trails were probably the most technical I'd ever ridden. There are lots of roots, rocks, punchy climbs, and fast descents, that make even the beginner trails a little sketchy.

The trails are separated into several different loops, varying in difficultly from beginner to advanced. From the parking lot, we started on the easiest loop, known as the Tortoise. It made for a solid warm up, allowing time to hone in on the challenges ahead and get your legs burning on a couple of relatively easy, but long climbs.
Honestly, I can't tell you where we go from there. The trails quickly split off into several, non-directional loops. We ended up riding everything, except Copperhead Gap, the most advanced trail. Patrick has done that one on previous trips. He reports that it's a lot of climbing and really technical, but I don't really have much more information to report on it than that. I'll do it next time, promise!

While I may not have known exactly which trail I was on the majority of the time, I can say that the Flying Squirrel loop is one that no one should miss! It's a little climby, with one insane, rocky hill that nearly took me out a couple of times. (Keep in mind, I would rate my personal riding skills at just below intermediate so what I regard as tough, may be more or less challenging for other riders). However, any climb on any of these trails has an incredibly fun pay off at the end. There is almost an exactly equal amount of climbing as descending. I haven't smiled my way through an entire trail system before Chicopee.

Aside from that, I really only remember that I kept getting lost between White Tail and Red Tail, finding myself riding the same section of trail over again, only to then turn around. White Tail is probably the best trail for someone looking to get more comfortable with fast descents, without any crazy climbing in between. There are some cool, hidden drops that I accidentally did (without dying!)

Yesterday was an insanely hot day, so it's important to make lots of time for water and food breaks when you can. There aren't any water fountains at the trail head, so make sure you're fully stocked up before heading out there!

We ended up getting soaked by a spontaneous thunderstorm for our last 2 miles. While I never recommend intentionally riding wet trails, it definitely made the final stretch that much more enjoyable. We got back to the car covered in mud, absolutely exhausted, with ~15 miles under our belt for the day.

Chicopee Woods are about an hour outside of the city and definitely worth the trek up north. I can't wait for our next trip up there. I can't recommend those trails enough!

#CrossIsComing

It's been killing me to not blab about this publicly, but I've officially been invited to join my dream team for the upcoming cyclocross season. I'll be racing with Loose Nuts Cycles alongside some really awesome dudes. 

I have a lot of work ahead of me, and big shoes to fill. The team's 2015 season was insanely impressive with podium finishes nearly every race. 

While incredibly intimidating, I'm glad to have such successful teammates to learn from, and to constantly worry about disappointing if I don't train hard enough (hah!)

This might be my favorite picture ever...no one has ever captured my "holy crap" face before. 

I'm slowly easing my way into full-gear training with a 100 mile/week goal. My riding schedule currently includes one full mountain biking day, with four days doing long(ish) distance road rides. So far, I've fallen just short of my goal, which means I need to be adding another ride day into the mix.
As the year progresses, I plan to advance my training rides gradually, but for now, my goals are challenging enough without burning myself out.

Something that I'm learning is that while my team is crazy supportive, at the end of the day, we're all advancing at our own paces. It's easy to get real discouraged when comparing myself to these people who have been racing for years now. While I definitely don't want to give myself the easy way out, or make any form of excuses for myself, it is important to remind myself that every day is a form of progress. Slowly but surely, I'm getting there.
If you had told me a month ago I'd be doing the things I'm capable of doing today, there's a high chance I wouldn't believe you.

My biggest obstacle now is just to do all those things I'm too scared of. I have to learn how to push myself and get out of my comfort zone, which is not something that I've ever had to deal with before. Training is as much mental space as it is physical effort.

I'm excited for what this summer has to offer! I can't wait to see what I'm able to accomplish...and how many flips I'm able to do by the end of all of it.

Today's my birthday! Which is sort of like a mid-year chance to make new resolutions all over again.

I've grown a lot as a cyclist in the past few months. I still have so many obstacles that kick my butt (or, ya know, toss me over the handlebars...literally), but it's crazy to be riding routes/trails that I did even just a few weeks ago and doing monumentally better than before. My goal for my 23 year old self is simply: if I'm scared of it, I gotta do it. 
This, of course, applies 98% to on-the-bike only. Let's be real, I'll never not be an anxiety ridden baby. And I'm alright with that!
Right now, my biggest challenges on the bike are just psyching myself out. I come up to a big hill or a technical downhill and my first instinct is to get off the bike. After that, it's nearly impossible to convince myself to get back on it.

I'm working on being able to concentrate my thoughts back into a good place even after I stumble over part of a trail.
I got the chance to go riding with a new trail mate today. It made all the difference being able to watch the lines she was taking and ask questions while we were out.

Last week was filled with very exciting news that I cannot wait to share publicly. Right now, all I'm allowed to say is that I'm more excited for cross season than I ever thought was possible. More on that real soon!!

Also, Patrick and I have decided to venture into something creatively new. I'm still working out the fine details and, as my new-found-adult-self, I'm not open to sharing every piece of our new project until I feel comfortable with the way it's going. But, just know, that I'm very stoked on everything that's happening right now. I'm really excited to see where everything ends up.

So yeah. Here's to 23! I hope I can convince people to like me this year.

Wastin' Away in Margaritaville

This past weekend was my momma and I's semi-sort-of-annual-mother-daughter-vacation! We've been going to Gatlinburg, Tennessee since I was about 12, so this year we decided to switch it up and spent a lovely weekend in Myrtle Beach and Charleston.

Neither of us had ever been to Myrtle Beach and spent only minimal amounts of time in Charleston so it seemed like a perfect idea!

Unfortunately, the weather didn't quite agree with us going to the beach mid-April. Our first two days in Myrtle were spent wishing we had brought more sweaters. The temperatures also meant that any lounging on the beach we were planning on doing was pretty out of the question. We spent Friday wandering around the shops along the boardwalk. By Friday evening, we were out of things to do. (One can look at only so many "Myrtle Beach 2016" tank tops & shot glasses). Bummer when we still had two days of vacation! So we decided to do what anyone else in our position would do - let's take a road trip from our road trip!

A quick Google search revealed the Charleston was only 2 hours from Myrtle. Saturday morning, we woke up super early and started the trek to The Holy City. With Myrtle not exactly being our cup of tea, Charleston ended up being everything we wanted in a city! The weather cleared up, we had all new things to explore, and we spent the afternoon roaming around taking pictures and reading all about the history of the town.

It took Mom and me about six times longer to walk anywhere than it should have because we would both stop every 500ft to take a million pictures of someone's house. Everything in Charleston is so dang pretty! 

Once we were done oogling over downtown and were in danger of having full memory cards on our cameras, we got back in the car to search out Folly Beach.

Folly Beach has a special place in my heart, so I had to be sure to visit it again. This time last year, Patrick and I drove overnight to Charleston for his birthday and got there right as the sun was coming up. We ended up taking a nap on Folly, eating lunch, and turning around to come back home.

Essentially, that's what Mom and I did on this trip. We ventured out to the beach just long enough to snap some pictures.

Sunday was our last day on vacation. The drive back to Atlanta is 5 hours, so we had to leave early to avoid falling asleep at the wheel.
We got up really early, excited to see that the good weather from Charleston followed us back to Myrtle. We were finally able to venture out to the beach to take in all the beauty that had been hiding itself over the past 3 days.

We got back to Atlanta right around 2pm. Patrick was leaving at 3 to meet his friends for mountain biking, so naturally I had to tag along, too. I was exhausted from an amazing weekend, but it was great to be back on my bike.

Thank you, Momma, for an awesome weekend!

Right down the Middle

I've had Sophia (my mountain bike) for a week, officially! We've only had time to take her out on one proper outing so far, but I think that was enough for me to fall in love with her.
Last Monday, we ventured out to Cochran Mill Park, a nature center about 30 minutes south of the city. They have a series of trails spanning about 11 miles and ranging in skills from beginner to advanced.
Patrick was nice enough to stick to the beginner trails with me, while our other friends went to do a couple of loops around the advanced. I know I'll get better and I shouldn't be so tough on myself after a day of mountain biking, but holy cow! those beginner trails kicked my butt.

The views that come with mountain biking are definitely worth the suffering.

Once I got my sea legs (or is it trail legs?), things were overall pretty smooth sailing. Luckily, we got to the trails pretty early so, for awhile, it was only us out there. I was thankful to have my warm-up time to myself without having to worry about running across other cyclists, hikers, or dogs. However, right after leaving this beautiful river, the beginner's loop got even more intense. We climbed for what felt like forever (it was less than 500ft over 15 miles...whoops!) over rocks and roots. I quickly found out that I definitely need to study up on my climbing skill set. I'd get momentum going, but as soon as I saw an obstacle in my path, I panicked and got off my bike. Right now, the biggest goal for myself is just not be afraid. I've only ever broken my pinky finger and the thought of getting significantly hurt is always in the back of my mind.

By the end of the day, I only crashed once. Got a gnarly chain ring tattoo on the back of my leg and the most ridiculous bruise ever on my knee when a stick tried to stab into it. There's something really humorous of being on the ground and hearing your boyfriend yell "you're okay, don't cry!" as he rushes over to you. Sometimes I think he knows me a little too well...



My only problem now is that I don't want to go back to road riding. Even my 2 mile commute seems tedious now.
We're off to Chattanooga this upcoming weekend to visit my brother for Patrick's birthday. I'm real excited to check out some new trails in a new city.

New Bike Day (#3)

She is a Specialized Jynx Expert 650b

Meet Sophia - the newest addition to our constantly growing (bike) family.

I hadn't exactly been in the mountain bike market for very long...or, well, at all. Patrick and his friends have been almost exclusively riding their mountain bikes lately, but due to my work schedule, I was never off when they were going riding anyway, so it never much mattered to me that I didn't have one.

Naturally, however, there was that tiny part of me that saw how much fun they were having and envied not being out there too.
A couple of months ago, Patrick and I agreed that we were going to split the cost of a mountain bike for my birthday in May. We picked out the perfect one!
 Early last week, we found out that Specialized was extending their Spring Savings sale which make the bike we'd be scoping out incredibly affordable. Since the sale was ending about a month before my birthday, we decided to move up our purchasing date to as soon as possible.

& she has 27.5" wheels

Unfortunately, a couple of days after that decision, Pat comes home to tell me that the bike we were looking out was sold out. And the worst part?! One of their customers ordered one of the last ones in my size! I was heartbroken.
But, at least their was less pressure on my wallet and our time crunch was over...

Today, I went with him to work at the bike shop (the dudes there are nice enough to let me mill around on my days off and "help" work on bikes). Before we opened, I see Pat rolling down the exact bike I had my eyes on and he tells me that it's for that other customer, but he wants to see if the sizing would be what I'd need to get. So I halfheartedly get on the bike to test it out.
He then tells me that it's actually mine!!! I spend the next couple of minutes half-crying, half telling him to stop messing with me before I decide to believe him. But alas, she is all mine!

I'm impressed by Patrick's ability to keep a secret (and a straight face). My work schedule has also changed, meaning we have a day off together again. Hitting the trails early next week & I cannot wait! All the camping! All the mountain biking! Could not be more excited for summer!