Mar
2022

Training, a flat, and some volunteering!

I got to volunteer with Mummy at Western this weekend!

He said

Now that I am officially one month away from entering my first gravel bike race ever, I have started to focus on getting in whatever race shape I can now that I am able to get outside for rides more regularly. With Tuesday being my day off and the weather cooperating, I decided to give a distance close to the race distance of 45km a go. The big loop I do on the Thames Valley Parkway (TVP) is 40km so it is the perfect route for me to do to see how I might fare. Last year I was able to do it under two hours which means I am perfectly where I would need to be for the race (you need to complete the entire 45km course in under three hours. Tuesday, I was able to knock the 40km distance in an hour and forty-eight minutes.

Wednesday and Thursday I would have to take my rides indoors just based on my work schedule and weather. And, Friday was my second last Friday morning hockey of the season so that was my “training”. Yesterday, was another day off so I thought I would take another longer run on the TVP this time opting for the 30km loop out to the west end of the city and back given the snow in the forecast. About 10 minutes into the ride the snow began to the point that I ended up having to take my glasses off because the precipitation was making them next to impossible to see out of. What sucked about that was the snow was coming sideways and going directly in my eyes. A completely miserable ride against a super stubborn rider was a very interesting match. At least it was a good test of adverse weather conditions as a couple of the years of the P2A Race they have dealt with the same kind of weather.

By the time that I reached the westernmost end of the ride and headed back eastward to home, I was happy to confirm the snow was behind me and not blowing directly into my eyes. But, sadly about a minute or two after that realization, I noticed a weird, sluggish and rubbing feeling in the drivetrain. No sooner had I clipped out my one foot from the clipless pedal, than I heard a loud pop and then felt the back tire go completely flat. Great… A blowout! Thankfully I had a back up inner tube, a trusty C02 pump and I know how to change a flat. I will say that cold, wet and windy weather is no fun to change a flat in! But quickly I got to work on the flat. When I recognized the reason for the blowout—a tear in the sidewall next to the bead—I wondered if that would prevent a successful on the road repair. When I heard the second very loud bang of my day, I confirmed my doubts.

With Danielle working the day at Western for a prospective student orientation and Emelia there volunteering with her, trying to figure out how I was going to get home with my bike became a new, bigger problem. At 16km in to my ride, I ended the workout and resigned myself to finding an SOS saviour. Thankfully the Sherwood’s were around and able to rescue me. About 25 minutes after calling them, Justin was there to save the day with his truck and get me and the bike home. And thankfully he was as the cold and wind were chilling me to my bones. About 38 seconds after getting home and the bike down to the basement, I was soaking in a hot shower.

Unfortunately, it means I am going to be shopping for new tires for the bike which was not in the plans. But, at the same time after putting close to 6,000km on the bike in the last year (and those tires), it’s not all that surprising that this happened. The reprieve in my outdoor riding while I find new tires actually meshed well into the weather that has bestowed more centimetres of snow than anyone wanted over the last 24 hours. Hopefully by Tuesday I will have a solution for the tires and be soon ready to ride outside again!

She said

For me my week was completely focused on this weekend. Shortly after starting at Western I was asked to be on a committee to organize our first return to in-person tours/future student experience. After weeks of work the day finally arrived. It was hundred’s of hours of work for our group and the big day was upon us. As we were getting closer to the event and planning staffing needs I asked if this would be an opportunity for staff to have their high school aged children come in to get their volunteer hours.

Before Saturday’s event we had some fun plans. Earlier in the week a friend of ours offered us tickets to the London Knights game. We had an extra ticket so this gave us a chance to bring Olivia with us to make it a fun filled night. The girls had an absolute blast and it was an amazing game. It was great night!

Saturday morning came early and Emelia and I were off to the campus to work Future Western Day. Emelia was able  to work for the day, she got to see what a big campus event was all about, had a chance to ask questions about being a student one day and bonus she was able to get 7 hours towards her volunteer hours for high school. It was great to have her with me.

Another big thing for Emelia this week was a shift in focus for cheer. Emelia is zoning in not only on Nationals that is in two weeks but she is eyeing up the annual assessments to determine next years placements. This year they are having assessments done during a practice in a few week. Emelia is uber driven right now on the one skill she has been so close getting for the last few years. Before the pandemic she was 99% to getting her back tuck, then training stopped, then they were back to training but there was limits to coaches contract with their atheletes, and then lockdowns, etc.

So with a year of real cheer training and stunting experience she is ready to be back at extra training to get her tuck. She needs to have this solidly before assessments so she has a shot at level 3. On Saturday she went to a clinic and felt great coming out of the clinic. With a few privates in the next few weeks and going to open clinics she hopes to be in a good place by May.

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