Over The Hump is Over

Last Tuesday was week #12 and the last week of the Over The Hump race series. Since Skyler worked from home that day, he was able to race that night too.

We got to the race early enough for me to demo a bike. Skyler wanted me to try racing on a lighter bike so I could smoke the competition. Cannondale had some demo bikes, so I decided to give one a try. One of the most important racing tips I can give is: don't try anything new on race day. Luckily, this race didn't matter in the overall standings.

The race started and after climbing the first big hill I made a sharp turn and immediately noticed something was wrong with my bike. The handlebars and front wheel were no longer in line. The bike tech had forgotten to tighten the stem. So I spent the next 20 minutes trying to race, but having to stop every few minutes to adjust the wheel. I only finished one lap before I called it quits.

I returned the bike to the Cannondale booth and told the guy what happened and all he could say was "ohhhh." He knew he made a mistake, but what he didn't know was that this tainted my view of Cannondale. I am in the market for buying a new mountain bike and it will definitely not be a Cannondale.

The good part about ending the race early was that I got to watch Skyler race. It's not too often that I get to be the supportive wife when he races. I just like racing too much.




I had to make sure I got a picture of me in the leader's jersey. Before this race series started, I never dreamed that I would end up in first place. It just goes to show that you never know what you can do until you try.

An interesting note is that even though I didn't have the leader's jersey the whole series (I missed a race), no one else actually ever wore the jersey except for me. Every time the jersey changed hands, the leader missed the race when she was supposed to wear it. Kinda cool.




Team Poseidon was well represented at the Over The Hump series. Lots of people asked about our group. It was really cool to feel a part of a family. Including the kids, Team Poseidon had 10 racers in this last race. Carrie, who is 30 weeks pregnant, was still able to fit into her jersey and chaperone her daughter in the kids race. So cool.








The awards ceremony followed the race. It was really cool to get some recognition for racing so hard for the past 12 weeks. I earned 1st place in the women's beginner division. Another member of Team Posiedon, Jeff, got 2nd in the men's Sport 2 division.




I got lots of goodies for winning, including some high value gift cards to a bike shop. New bike shoes! I also get to keep the leader's jersey. Pumpkin has been eyeing the trophy I brought home (see top photo). I can tell she wants to chew it to pieces.




The Orange County Register picked up an article about the race. It posted online a few days ago and was in print today. It was kinda cool to see my name in the newspaper. Check it out here.