#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.