I was planning on writing about the beautiful ride some of my teammates and I had last Saturday in Danville after the Rivertowns banquet, but I was inspired a couple of days ago, surprisingly, in an indoor group cycling class.  Don't get me wrong - I would rather ride outside in the company of teammates and friends over taking a spinning class anyday, but sometimes it's good to shake things up a bit and join the local gym-goers in a humid room with good tunes in the background.

Last Friday, I knew I had a long day ahead of me at work (and it was freezing outside!), so I opted to get up at 5am to attend a 6:15am group cycling class at Central Penn Fitness Center in Harrisburg which is about 15 minutes from my house.  I figured I could get in a nice hour-long ride and a short swim, maybe even a few minutes relaxing in the sauna, before I started my day.  This way, when I got home in the evening, I wouldn't feel like I had to do any physical activity (except for play with the dog!).

Actually, my cycling background began with teaching spin classes.  It seemed like a fun thing to do in college, so I became a certified instructor in 1999.  I trained for my first triathlon by teaching spin classes.  Off and on for the past ten years, I've taught at numerous fitness centers in the area and for a while taught a 5:30am class twice a week.  I don't understand how I did that on a regular basis because now getting up at 5am to hop on a bike takes a lot of energy and determination..... which leads me to the point of this blog--- inspiration.

One of my previous yoga students was attending the class, and he was excited to see me walk in since I haven't been teaching any regular classes at the club.  So I set up the bike next to him to provide some extra encouragement.  Boyd had begun taking yoga a few months ago to improve his tennis game and flexibility.  He was always a curious student and asked questions after class to better understand yoga... a joy to teach as he could laugh at himself and say things like "You want me to put my leg where??  I can't even touch my toes." 
So throughout the class I challenged him and gave him some pointers on form to keep it interesting.    At times, people would say things like, :"I've never seen Boyd work that hard!  He's actually sweating!"  After class, he said, "You know, Kara, every spin class I'm looking at the clock waiting for class to end, but I didn't look at the clock once today." 

During the class, I wasn't thinking about work or what I had to do later that day.  I just wanted Boyd to enjoy his workout and stay in the present moment also.  This man has great energy and is a joy to be around.  I always thought he might be in his sixties, and here is where the big inspiration comes in.  After Boyd left, the instructor, Bob, came up to me and said, "I think Boyd really enjoyed himself.  You know how old he is, right?"  I said no.  Bob said, "He's 74 years old."

Amazing.  I know I complain of aches and pains, and it certainly doesn't get better as we get older.  So I think we can all learn from Boyd's energy and positive outlook.  I am inspired by him and other "seniors" at the gym who are there every day staying fit and having fun.  I don't think I'm going to complain anymore about getting up at 5am to spin.  I'm going to be thankful that I have the opportunity to be physically active and to be surrounded by people like Boyd.

It's a cold day today, so if you have the chance, meet up with some of the gym-goers and take a class!  You never know how you might be inspired....

Kara

No matter where I live, the weather seems to provide us with a nearly inexhaustible target for our frustrations. Who hasn’t complained about the weather? It’s also a frequently-used excuse for not getting outside to run, ride, or walk. It’s too easy to stay in our climate-controlled cocoons and gaze out at the apparently unappealing weather. I’m no better than anyone else on this count, but at the same time, I’ve rarely ever regretted going out, even when the weather seemed unpromising.

Last Sunday was one of those days. I’d planned a long road ride with a few friends for the afternoon, hoping the rain would hold off. When I talked with one friend that morning, I warned her that it was chilly and “misting” rather heavily. The roads were wet and the clouds were low. “But it’s not really raining,” I added. She didn’t waver: “This is my chance to ride. I’m going.” So off we went.

What had looked unappealing from my window turned out to be a peaceful landscape that we swept through on our bikes. I had dressed warmly enough to be able to relax and appreciate the views of old farmhouses peeking out of the fog, narrow roads curving down through the woods, and the subtle shades of brown and grey coloring our winter woods. Once again, I didn’t regret it. We had a beautiful ride and great conversation. What could be better?

What a great weekend! Ray and I travelled to PAValleys region this weekend for several reasons, and took advantage of our time in the area. We arrived Friday evening and walked into downtown Lewisburg for dinner at the upscale Elizabeth’s Bistro on Market Street. Food was excellent!
 Saturday morning Ray and I got in a short run then headed to Danville for the annual River Town Race Series (RTRS) season awards luncheon which was held at Danville High School. Participants of the 2009 RTRS were awarded for their accomplishments in the series and the new, 2010 PAValley.com racing team was introduced.

The PAValleys.com racing team and race directors are all very excited for the 2010 race season and anticipate it to be the most well-attended, competitive season yet! Emma’s Food For Life provided a delicious lunch. After the banquet, several members of the PAValleys.com race team took advantage of the beautiful day and hit the road for a scenic road ride through Montour County, home of the grueling 75-Miles of Montour bicycle race.
 Sunday morning, Ray and I ate at May’s Drive-In, one of our favorite breakfast spots just across the Susquehanna River from Lewisburg. Nothing fancy about this place, just good diner-style breakfast with great views of the Susquehanna. After breakfast we contemplated a tandem, mountain bike ride but opted for a trail run instead.  We headed out towards R. B. Winter State Park and hit some trails in the surrounding Bald Eagle State Forest. I grabbed a lighter for safety (never know when you might need to hunker down and build a fire for the night), a bottle of Gatorade, and off we went. We started off on a trail I had not been on before, but Ray had. It turned out to be a dead end. Instead of turning around, I came up with the brilliant idea of bush-whacking straight up the mountain in hopes we would run into another trail. I couldn’t believe that this actually came out of my mouth, I’m not normally one who comfortably goes “off the beaten path.” Alas, off we went scampering up the mountain. We made it to the top, and just as I was going to suggest to Ray that maybe this wasn’t such a good idea, ANOTHER TRAIL! Not exactly sure which one it was, but at least it was an obviously travelled trail.
 We continued to run up the trail, all the while I’m not exactly sure where we were, but was hoping that Ray did. Ray is fully aware of my uneasiness when in unfamiliar territory without a map and he does everything he can to heighten my sense of nervousness. Turns out the trail we were on ended up connecting to Gross Gap trail, a super-steep, rocky trail that eventually led us to Spruce Run Rd.




 The forest roads were very icy, so we decided to take Bear Gap trail up over the same mountain we had just come down via Gross Gap Trail. Once we got to the top, we realized we had made a complete loop, and were pretty close to the car, just needed to take the single track down the mountain to the dirt road. Finally, I am 100% confident that we will make it back to the car alive (but I’ve got the lighter just in case)! We ended up running/hiking for a little over two hours, which was good training for the Humdinger 7.1-mile trail run slated for March 6. Happy Trails!

 First race of 2010 for me! And on foot nonetheless. 

I've had a revelation that running in the woods can be (almost) as fun as biking. Motion is relative, right? Well, making it down a steep, rocky, rooty trail unscathed seems to be just as challenging on foot as it is on bike and I love it. This drizzly morning about 700 other racers and I ran ourselves up, down, and around Mt. Penn, near Reading, PA. Many got bumped and bruised, but everyone had fun, judging by the gathering afterwards. It was wet and misty and would have been a lot worse had the temperature dropped. This was my second trail race (aside from some unsuccessful xc racing in high school) and while swearing to you that running will not be taking over the #1 spot in my heart which is reserved for mtb, I have to say that BOTH experiences have been a bundle of joy. And I'm being serious. I might even start running on a regular basis. Even after I couldn't walk right for a week after the Dirty Bird at French Creek due to blisters and strains, I couldn't wait for the next one. So today was the next one. Although shorter than Dirty Bird, the 7.2 miles included steeper climbs/descents. We were on all fours on two occasions. And I just about puked on two occasions--one fine moment was while approaching the finish line after the crawl climb (so steep) and I was so close, the thought actually ran through my head about what I should say after I puked. All I could come up with was "sorry". But I didn't. Luckily, there was no one right behind me and I slowed down enough to prevent the issue. The other was at the water/beer stop after a mid-race climb. Outcome? I finished 4th overall woman and 48th overall. The steam rising from the finishers made me think of how funny and out of place we all looked...all in the name of a good workout. The race promoters had a sweet setup of indoor seating, live music and hot food after the race. 
So what does this have to do with you, you ask? Well, the Geisinger Humdinger will be here before you know it (March 6th to be exact), and from what I hear, it sounds downright fabulous. Check it out on our "Race Better" link. Sign up before all spots are filled, then find me before race start and tell me you're there because I made it sound like too much fun to miss.
See you there!
Carolyn

As I look over my race schedule for this year the Rivertowns series plays a prominent role in my season. Not only is the series my overall focus, the series is so diverse in the events that it offers, it also is perfect training to help me achieve some other goals for the season. With running races ranging from 5k, 10k, 1/2 marathon, marathon and trail running no runner should be out in the cold when it comes to finding an event to have fun at, and challenge themselves. With cycling events ranging from a 26 mile road race to the extremely difficult 75 mile sof MonTour every cyclist can be challenged. What, you race offroad? Then definitely test your mettle at the Tour deTykes. For all you multi-sport junkies there is the LARA sprint tri and the very cool Riverstock triathlon. Can not swim? Then give a paddle triathlon a go. I had so much fun at Chilli Challenge last year, I can not wait to do it again. Add to that North Branch and the SACH off-road paddle tri this year and your multi-sport fix is, well fixed.
The Rivertowns series is a great place to enter a first event for fun or pick an event as your season goal.

When you see me at the races please come up and say hello.
Until then, enjoy.
Mike Hebe

Monday I loaded up the bike and drove up to my favorite mountain bike spot, RB Winter State Park.  There is always more snow on the ground up there due to the higher elevation, but you never know for sure what you might find.  My goal was to ride the Super D course for the Trans-Sylvania Epic using my GPS so as to make a map of that stage.




I was not quite prepared for what I found.  There was about 5 inches of snow in many spots, and on the dirt roads there was a thin layer of fresh snow on top of a packed layer of crust and ice.  The ride definitely qualified as 'epic.'  Epic is usually what people call rides that are memorable; sometimes in a good way, other times not so great.  I succeeded in riding the majority of my planned route, with only two slippity slides, thanks to the studded tires.  As I finished Stony Gap trail, I noticed that I had a broken spoke on the back wheel.  It was also beginning to get dark, so I cruised back to the car and called it a day. 

My pace was pathetic: 25 miles in 4.5 hours.  But, it was a good ride nonetheless.  Epic.

Sunday after Christmas, as you might recall, was beautiful.  Nancy and I made the most of the weather and hopped on the old road bikes to head out into the country.  Lewisburg makes a great starting point for a ton of sweet road rides, and this time we went west along Penn's Creek toward Laurelton.




I'm told the the roof was blown off of the covered bridge (photo) and is being repaired.

It was a great way to wrap up the holiday.  Happy trails!