Old Guys Rule (Zin Spin 2013)

Let me start off by saying that a long ride (like a long run) gives you plenty of time to think. Especially when it's windy and everyone is working hard...not a lot of chit chat going on yesterday...even Mojo (more about nicknames later) was relatively quiet! As I was riding, I kept thinking about things to write about and what I was going to title this entry. Here were my top title contenders:

• Gentlemen Do Not Have Flowers 
• F'n James
• Old Guys Rule

I chose Old Guys Rule.  I was the only female in our group and the only one under 50...and I had to work my butt off to keep up. Yesterday was tough, but the guys showed that age didn't matter as our 4 man person group chased down riders that started almost an hour before us!  Needless to say, impressive ride old guys...you rule!!!

Let's Ride!

We arrived at Bare Ranch by Michael David Winery around 7:30 Sunday morning.  The location was beautiful and nicely shaded, which would have been great if it was 90 degrees out.  However, this morning it was very chilly and windy, not exactly my idea of cycling weather. 

Unloading the bikes at Bare Ranch

Mike and I checked in and met up with James. He informed us that we would be riding sweep with him at 9:00, so we got back in the truck to stay warm and out of the wind. We regrouped with James and Eric ( oops, I mean Mojo) about 8:50 and headed out shortly after.  

Immediately we were hit with a head wind and had to fight our way down Woodbridge Rd. Things weren't much better when we turned to head north on Thornton Rd. and had to fight the cross wind. James kept telling us that things would get better when we finally started heading east towards Clements, but that never really materialized.

RIDE DETAILS:  Zin Spin 2013 by tpengilly at Garmin Connect - Details

Me and Mike at the first stop

I struggled for the first several miles and couldn't figure out why I was having such a hard time keeping up (except for the wind). When I finally checked my gears, I realized I had been riding for 7-8 miles in my small chain ring! Argh!!! I figured it was the wind that was making it hard for me to keep up with the boys, not being in the wrong gear. Lesson learned... for a couple of hours anyway...until I made the same mistake at the end of the ride.

Old guys refueling

The Zin Spin turned out to be a very nice event. There was plenty to eat and drink at the rest stops. There was even wine tasting at some of the stops, although our group waited until the end to indulge. Lunch and Michael:David wine was provided at the end of the ride and we sat and enjoyed ourselves poolside.

There were a few different routes for this event: 100k, 50k, a Fun Spin, and a Zin & No Spin option.  Of  course, we did the 100k route which was about 62.5 miles. This was my longest ride to date and I did it on my TT bike. I am confident I will be able to complete the ride portion of Barb's race without a problem...running a half marathon following the ride, well that remains to be seen. I used today's ride to work on staying in the aero position, taking a drink out of the water bottle, and shifting gears (need more work on that).

Nicknames

Last week as Mojo and I stood freezing our tooshies off in Folsom Lake, he said something along the lines of "F'n James".  I laughed and said "Yeah!  F'n James!"...like it was James' fault we were out there.  The funny thing is, I was the reason we were there.  I signed up for Ice Breaker first and then convinced Mojo to sign up...James had nothing to do with it, other than giving us some pointers about the race.  Regardless, the F'n James comment was pretty funny.

Hot stuff!

Fast forward to the Zin Spin. James tells us, after we pull away from the first rest stop, that we aren't going to ride too hard but will be riding at a consistent pace or something to that effect. The next thing I know, he's going faster and faster and faster. I was in the right gear and he kept pulling away. Jeez! F'n James!

When we stopped at the second rest stop, I told him I was going to give him the nickname of F'n James! Heck, you can't write a blog about your group and not have nicknames, right?  In the book, The Lola Papers, she called her running coach Mr. Speedy Pants.  In Triathlon for the Every Woman, she referred to her mentor as Coach Monster. How could I not give James a nickname? I know he has one already, but I don't know about calling him Scooter...unless he really, really, really likes that one :-)

I think I'll call Mike "Hot Stuff".  He was looking good in his new outfit. Of course, Even (although he wasn't on the ride) has earned himself the nickname "Gun Show" and everyone in the group knows why. Eric informed me that Mojo was the nickname he used when he registered with USA Triathlon, and I'm not about to change that one...although Chatty Cathy would work for him. Me, I don't have a nickname, which is fine with me!  LOL

Second rest stop - Brownie Bites and PB&J!

Did You Just Break Up With Me?

While taking a break at Clements Ridge, F'n James announced that he would understand if I wanted to get a coach. Whoa?  What? Where did that come from? That would be like Mike telling me he would understand if I wanted to get a husband!  WTF??? Are you kicking me off the team? I mean I know the Ice Breaker race was less than ideal, but I swear I didn't tell anyone you had been coaching me! Was it the nickname???  LOL

Hot Stuff (he's going to kill me) says that James didn't mean it that way and that he was just giving me the OK to spend hundreds of dollars hiring someone to tell me what to do. Yeah, that's not going to happen. Nobody puts Baby in the corner and nobody tells Tracy what to do!  ha ha ha ha ha

Besides, James is a great swimming and cycling coach. I looked at the Zin Spin like a 4+ hour semi-private cycling lesson. I had an expert cyclist riding along side of me telling me what I should and should not be doing...and I didn't punch him!  Even Hot Stuff says I've been doing a good job about listening to what James says at the pool and incorporating it into my swimming...and he thought I was un-trainable.

Random Thoughts from the Ride

First, I told you guys not to read the post about "flowers". Second, gentlemen do not have flowers!  I think the Austin Powers route would be good for you guys. How about "wedding tackle", "twig & berries", "fruit and two nuts"? Just throwing that out there. You could also go with classics such as "family jewels", "package" or "junk"... just not flower.

Nothing is sweeter then the chirp of a Garmin as you click off the miles (especially around mile 50).

I do not care how fast you are going...I will not ask you to slow down. I will ride until my legs fall off or you drop me, but I will not ask you to slow down for me! F'n James!  LOL