Last year’s incredibly popular women’s cycling clinic is returning this spring to Redlands, California! It is open to only 100 riders! We have three professional women cyclists flying in from Seattle, Washington to run the clinic and have as many volunteers as needed. This event was a huge success in 2009 and we hope for it be even better this year. The on-the-bike instruction will include sprinting, pace lining, riding etiquette, and group riding skills along with off the bike instruction on bike maintenance, yoga, strength training, racing tactics, and nutrition.
This event is not to be missed if you are new to cycling or are interested in bike racing even if it’s just a remote possibility! It is open to all women with a bike and helmet! Sponsors include Mission Products, Mi-Alibi, Owater, Kool N’Fit, local eateries and hotels!
Have you ever wondered what you were meant to do to and get paid doing it?
Turn your passion into a career. I keep thinking that one of these days, there will be some big light bulb that goes off in my head- “that’s it”. And, be ready to jump in with both feet!
Cycling for women is a passion of mine. Getting women out riding whether it’s for recreation, bike commuting or exercise, cycling can be an absolute blast! And, you can look great doing it- don’t you love her outfit?!
Mia Birk did. She started biking in grad school in Washington D.C. and in the last 15 years turned Portland into a huge bicycle friendly town. And, now is currently working with communities across the nation to be more bicycle friendly. What a great job!
First off, I’d like to start with a bike count and this is before Santa comes….we have over 10 bikes in our garage. Oh Man. We need some intervention, or something! My entire family are bicycling fanatics. I have 3, hubby has more than 4 (I’ve lost count) and the kids each have one plus more that we need to re gift as they are now too small. Every single vacation we go on involves bikes- even trips to Italy (back in the day before 2 kids). For the past 5 years, we’ve used this style of Yakima rack to haul our gear. And, for additional storage space, we use a Sky Box (I refer to as a rocket).
Our car trips involving bikes are always a minimum of one hour with a maximum of 8 hours away from home. On our annual trips to Monterey, we usually haul at least 4 bikes (2 adult and 2 kid). The smallest kid bike went in the trunk, but, the rest were mounted on the bike racks. Although, this bike rack was great for hauling bikes, one thing that was seriously wrong was that we couldn’t open the back of the car unless we wanted to take all the bikes OFF. This leads to a lot of frustration when you want to get your kids a snack and can’t reach the ice chest. Or even, if we stay over at someone’s house, we can’t get to our gear without removing the bikes- which is a serious hassle.
Yakima contacted me regarding their new racks called the Swing Daddy. Through a series of emails, they asked if we wanted to try the new Swing Daddy that comes with a 2″ hitch. My husband and I, of course, was super excited to try out the new rack. When we first got it, we went straight to the garage to try it out- only to find out that one part was broken. Boo. Yakima immediately sent a replacement part but it then took us another 3 weeks to get back in the garage to test it out. (It’s the off season, friends, we don’t use these racks normally until 2nd week of February!) Anyway, below is my husband and two of our bikes that are loaded on to the Swing Daddy. They are mounted every other (handlebars away from each other) and this one could easily fit two more bikes- maybe even three. It took him approximately 15 minutes to mount the rack to the car, and another 10 minutes to add the bikes. The Swing Daddy is really classy compared to our old version. There is a locking mechanism that is inside the frame of the mount and to lock the bikes, you simply pull it out.
“Oh no, the tailgate is up!”
“What shall I do?”
“I released this latch here and the whole thing swings out of the way!”
The Swing arm is completely straight out.
“Voila, the tailgate shuts!!”
Put the Swing Daddy back in place, and lock the bikes down. It’s hard to see but the little red nob on the left under the bigger red piece is the lock. The cable loops through all of the bike frames to lock in the front of the bike mount.
All Yakima products can be purchased online or through a variety of retailers. We always use REI for big purchases like these. Yakima specializes in mounts for all kinds of gear, not just bikes. This includes kayaks, ski’s and even bike cruisers! We have been absolutely pleased with all of our Yakima purchases and are very thankful to have received the Swing Daddy for purposes of review! Please feel free to add any additional information or testimony you might have regarding Yakima racks.
This is a guest post written by Penny (my amazing workout buddy on my about page). She spent 7 years as a professional Mountain Bike racer in downhill and is a 2 time National Champion and a Bronze Medalist at the World Championships (‘91, ‘93, and ‘90).
You had me at…the warmup – the start ramp of a mtb world cup downhill. Talk about adrenaline and pure joy! I’ve been retired from the world cup circuit for 15 years and this is the first POV ride down an entire course I’ve ever taken. Okay, I’m a dinosaur, but I was a fast dinosaur and that’s what I like so much about sufferfest. I’m out on the road/trail with riders and in race situations that actually motivate me, and that’s been difficult since I suffered and raced so long and then I had two children by c-section in the last 5 years. Enough about me, here’s what I think about sufferfest #2:
The guy in charge has a wicked sense of humor and it shows all the way through to the end (you’ll know what I mean at the “end” of the workout). The way the workout “talks” to you is great: from the interval start ring-tone to the screen messages. The actual workout is really darn hard, make that, really damn hard, not matter how fit you are you can always go harder. The music, including the lyrics, keep you going through the hurt. The race situations and racers you’re chasing, bridging and gapping are world class and pull you in to their suffering without making you question whether you should “go with them.”
What I miss about Sufferfest #1 (originally on itunes as a free podcast)
The music seemed to mix up more and I liked the variety and the timing of the mixing. Where’s the Japanese anime? That was awesome and so clever. I don’t know if it was my delirium/focus due to the effort or if it was the footage, but I found myself not getting into the footage during the intervals as much as in Sufferfest #1 (it seemed like it had more variety or the interval effort grabbed me more).
Why I’ll suffer again:
I can’t think of any other video or music that feels so much like racing and hurting, all from my own garage.
Check it out on itunes! You can download a 10 minute free version to check out, but, if you want to see the whole video- you need to purchase on David’s site for around $6. Click here to read more about the founder of the sufferfest videos!
OHHH BOY!! I would love some slick looking bike to commute around town on! The Burley trailer would still fit on the back fork (?), and on the Yakima racks, and I think it be fun just to have a playful bike?! Hubby thinks I’d complain on hills- but this bike has 8 gears…what am I going to complain about? The fact that the bike will weigh less than my mountain bike, it’s more for around the town and it’s SWEET looking. Highly likely that bike commuting would get a whole lot more frequent, if I was decked on one of these. {hint, hint, hint – Paul} Heck, it’s been almost 9 years for the mountain bike, maybe it’s time for a replacement. Not that I plan on giving up mountain biking, just want to add to my collection!
If we lived in Germany, I’d be wanting one of these!!!!
Or check out the Ticno Collection by Electra!? More sweetness going on there.
And, then, there is the “Amazing Family Tandem”. Holy Moly. One Adult, plus one, two or three kids! Wow. Can’t imagine pedaling one of those, but, it looks like a blast.
On a side note:
Best bike ever to use to teach a kid! We used this style (not brand) to teach our kids how to ride. These things can FLY. Your kid will be pedaling a regular bike faster than you can blink.
Check out my latest post on Read Breathe on learning how to Mountain Bike! My famous friend was kind enough to teach this rookie how to corner, descend, and BREATHE through tricky parts.
First, I want to thank Deanna of DomesticChicky for the design! Love it.
Second, I’m wondering what races you all have coming up? Care to share on your upcoming running/cycling/triathlon goals. Me? I need a kick in the arse to get me motivated to train seriously. It’s fall and it’d be a good time to COMMIT to something…and yet, middle of the week comes and I lose my steam. Main goal of most days is to just get a workout in- don’t care too much what, as long as it’s something!
Considering the Carlsbad Half and am open to other races…???
Anybody have any races or events they’d recommend? Still doing the Crystal Cove Trail Run in December, but, that’s almost too far away!?! Problem arises when looking at week’s work schedule of 30 hours ++ and demanding daily workouts for myself gets dicey.
Most of us are working out in the early morning hours, right? We have to get the run in before work and that requires A commitment to running or cycling in the dark. This should lead us to take some precautions to protect ourselves and also to alert the drivers that we are there! But, really, how many of us take the extra time to protect ourselves when heading out for a run?! I’ll admit that I forget the important stuff 50% of the time.
A few reminders include- run against the flow of traffic, keep the ipod on low, where a neon vest, headlamp, and have a road ID on, and be alert!
Petzl Tikka Plus 2 LED Headlamp at REI for $39.95. Note: We bought headlamps for camping and they work great, just, not sure how they’d feel for running. Anybody have a brand they like?
I have to say that one year later, this is still one of my best options for indoor exercise–especially when kids are home! I am completely hooked up to the computer, TV, heart rate monitor and sometimes my Ipod. It’s a fantastic way to get and stay fit when you are stuck at home.
Anyway, I was thrilled to find this FREE podcasts on iTunes for cyclists…Created by a guy who loved cycling but needed indoor workouts that matched his personality and his quest for exciting motivating video and music.
If you have a newer Ipod that takes video feed – you can be watching clips of cycling as you are suffering! Ha. The first 10 minutes of the video is the warm-up and for that you get to watch Japanese Cyclists battle it out and pick your winner. So Fun! Then, for your 15 1 minute intervals, you are alternating between famous last kilometers of various Tours or the ending of the Olympics….All motivating, inspiring and makes me get up and GO FAST.
All my incoming data…(don’t judge, I’m not fit right now)
The Sufferfest that I download via Itunes is only about 44 minutes with warm-up and cool-down. It’s FREE and I highly recommend. This could also be done on any stationary bike you have or at the gym (on an elliptical..whatever).
What’s your best form of indoor/inclement weather exercise?
