Superweek or Should I Say Weeks!

Well driving out to Superweek was you know, very long 12-13hrs. We, Beca and I had our sing-a-longs along the way and one extremely funny incident. We got to one particular stop and we needed a nature break and walked into the bathroom to find this older lady (60+) washing out her handbag. We didn't take much notice til she said to us that she dropped her bag, including the contents, in the toilet. I said "that's not good". Then as we were walking back out to the car she was following and she then said to her friend that she dropped her bag and all the contents in the toilet! We then had to hurry to get to the car and unlock it so we could laugh....all we could think was how can you drop your bag in the toilet, hold it over the bowl then 'plop' in it goes!!!! So we had a great laugh there!
We then make it to our destination, Blue Island and our host family, Bob and Cathy Manethei, were so lovely and very welcoming. Beca and I had a huge room with air conditioning! Which is the complete opposite to DC.
Racing went very well for our team except our sprinter J Dub was extremely injured. We all worked very hard all series, actually 7 days and 2 days of extra racing, to keep her in the race but also to get her to the finish. J Dub had to pull out of 2 races due to her injury but we still managed to keep her in 3rd overall for the series! This is something to be proud of and to know watch out Kelly Benjamin when J Dub is not injured as she won the series. In amongst that J Dub won the stage at Whittnal Park and come very close in all the other sprints.
To our trip home, another 12hrs or so, we had to try and fit so much stuff into the car it wasn't funny. We had all the team gear eg windtrainers, radios, food, esky, chairs etc plus 4 peoples personal belongings and 3 people. Well we managed to get it all in so that it was 50% people and 50% stuff, the poor matrix! Well we made it home safely thanks to Sheba!

Saturday was a very long day....firstly we didn't race til 6.45pm but we left DC at 11am, the race is only 2hrs away. I was already exhausted before we left as sleeping at the moment is not going so well for me. So we make it to West Chester PA, had some lunch at the Iron Hill which was great then we chilled out for a bit.
So time to get ready to race...we can get out on the course as the kids have stopped their racing and check it out. There is a fairly nasty corner before we head up a slight incline and I could see that this can either be a really fast corner or a really dangerous one. We then go to the staging area and I get called up to the front which is a great start for me. We make one lap around successfully then a preme lap was call...well some stupid chick couldn't corner and that corner that I mentioned early well it was the dangerous corner. She took out half of the field including our whole team and Laura Van Gilder, I thought I was on a safe wheel being Laura's. We then went up to the pit and didn't even get a full lap out and then there was a break. Well the officials didn't let us go til the bunch had gone past so we had to chase to get on. Not fun at all...I just couldn't get back on so I worked with the small group that was around me which eventually became 3. The group was only 5 seconds away but the other girls just wouldn't pull through hard enough to catch them. So we got the bell early and I won the sprint and finish 16th overall. Feeling a little stiff and sore from the jarring of the crash and very tired it felt like a really long trip back to DC.
Our next team race is in Wisconsin for Superweek....9 days straight of hard crit and road racing. Lets hope there is no crashing there!!

When Will It End??

It was 4pm on Friday afternoon and we are finally on our way to Ohio for Tour de Grandview. All was going really well until we started getting hungry. Beca and Irma had spotted Subway but I had overdosed on it in Australia a few years ago, so it makes me sick. We decided that we could wait til Morganstown as Irma said there would be some really nice restaurants as there was money in the town. We made it to Morganstown and had a bit of a look around but there didn't seem like there was much at all. We spotted Wings Ole so the decision was made. We when inside and placed our orders, Wings, chicken nachos, cheese sandwich and fries. So it finally came out, the wings were so small that the bird was possibly 20 years old, the chicken on the nachos was processed and shredded and the cheese sandwich was one slice of cheese in toasted bread! We weren't too impressed but all we could do was laugh then Irma found some extra protein in her fries and sandwich...it was somebodies hair, not hers either!
We continued on our long journey and next thing I hear ooh oh, ooh oh. Next thing we were being pulled over by a cop and issued with a speeding ticket...poor Irma! Beca was in the back asking if she could get a photo with the cute cop as he was writing the ticket, so she just settle for videoing the next process. The cop came back with the ticket and at the end he said "and nobodies perfect"....what a thing to say after handing Irma a ticket!
So we get back on the road again and finally made it to Columbus Ohio but the street we were supposed to turn down was blocked off so we kinda got a bit lost. Eventually, 1.15am we arrive. We start unloading the car and Irma opens the back door and the tortilla chips fell out all over the driveway. The drama didn't stop there.
Saturday at the race, Irma was trying to set up the tent and the stupid thing just wouldn't go up. We all managed to get the tent up after approx 15mins of struggling...it's a 2min job!!! Then it was time to get the radios set up for all of us and only 2 were working so it was decided that JDub and myself would wear them. JDub's radio decided to die...so no radios for the race.
Race started. I initiated the break from the gun and the Shannon and Sam bridged across but Jdub thought it was Beca as Sam was in Orange too so she didn't go with them. During the race I won 2 premes and got 6th overall as I was cut off and gaped in the last turn, JDub was 10th.
Results were posted and they only gave Irma one of my premes...of which was $50, they gave her $40. I sent Irma back to get my 2nd preme and they weren't going to pay it until the official finally recognised that I had won 2. Again it was $50 but then they only gave her $25....ripped off I say!!!!!
Sunday actually went fairly well for us, except Beca was throwing up in a port-a-loo trying not to put her head anywhere near it but not wanting to spew on her white shoes!! So JDub finished up 3rd and I finished 9th.
Monday morning at 6.15am we leave for DC. Back on the highway, I said to Irma I'm going to sleep and we ended up near Lake Eerie in Cleveland, totally the wrong way!!! We ended up spending an extra 180miles in the car (3-4hrs).
Irma decided to stay at our place on Monday night as she was so tired from driving, then she gets up in the morning to go to work and found a parking ticket on the car for street cleaning....10mins over!!!!
When will it end???