Wednesday, July 20, 2011

Helen Georgia!

Hello everyone! Last weekend, I went down to Helen Georgia for some racing. This race was part of the Georgia state series, but it was also a SERC makeup race, and I needed it for my final SERC standing points. The weekend started out with the rather long drive on all two lane roads. It seems there was just not really a good route to get to this place! Once we finally made it though, it was a BEAUTIFUL place! There were hills around, and it was just really pretty.

We made it there in time to get in a pre ride which was REALLY important on this course. It was a fairly challenging one! I had soooo much fun riding these trails. Once I went down the first downhill, I was thinking, "man are these trails awesome!" I was really excited for the race the next morning! After the preride, my two friends and I found a camp site in the extremely crowded camp ground at Unicoi State Park where the race was. I am pretty sure we got THE LAST spot in the entire camp ground. We were very happy to have found it! After getting camp all set up, we had a yummy dinner of tuna and rice burritos, and then hit the hay for the day of racing ahead!

In the morning we woke up and I was ready to race! We got to the course, and I started my warm up, and my legs were feeling pretty good. I was totally looking forward to a long day on some awesome trails.

Race time came quickly as always, and I found myslef on the line about to start. We lined up ten girls. A pretty good field! I had a pretty good start and went into the woods in third. By the end of things I ended up in fifth. I was pretty pleased with myself! I tried my hardest, and I felt like I had clean and steady race. That is what I always aim for, and of course I had FUN! Racing is fun, and that is why we do it!

My bike worked great thanks to the new bottom bracket bearings that the guys at the Trek Store helped me get a hold of. Thanks guys! And thank you soooo sooo much to US Stove and all of our other sponsors for helping us go to these races. We love it!

Tuesday, July 12, 2011

SERC Race in Huntsville!

This last weekend, I had a really fun time getting to go down to Huntsville for the second to last SERC race. I went down with a few friends from here in Knoxville. It was fun to ride down with them, but I did miss my team mates too! My people and I got down there on Saturday night and had a fun time camping before the race. I made a lot of macaroni and cheese, so that was really yummy to eat for dinner, and there was sooo much. It was awesome. Anyways, with a full stomach, I went to bed to get up early for the 930 start in the morning.

Time to get up came early. I wanted to keep sleeping. haha. But, after I got some food and coffee in me, I was getting excited to race! I hadn't gotten to pre ride the course, so I was slightly nervous about that. I have ridden here before though, so I had some idea of what was coming up. Monte Sano, the park we were at, is a ROUGH PLACE! Those trails are no joke! They are really fun, but if you are not on your toes in some of the really rocky sections, you could really have a pretty nasty fall. I kept this in mind and made it through the race with the rubber side down! I always aim for that.

So, my race went pretty well. I felt like I was trying my hardest, and that's what I always go out to do. My other team mates did really great too! Good job to all of them! So, this was a really fun weekend. It is always a good opprotunity to get to ride some trails that push you a little bit technically. It helps keep you humble.

Thanks to all of our sponsors like US Stove and the Trek store for making this possible for us! We love racing our bikes, and we are so thankful that we have people like yall who will help us do it! And, we also really like how the guys at the Trek Store keep our bikes running. I know I present them with a bit of a challenge at times, but they are patient with me, and all your work is greatly appreciated by me! Thanks again from everyone.

Love, Emily

Sunday, May 15, 2011

Tanasi SERC

Well, today was the SERC race at Tanasi. I had been excited for this race all week. I got a late start to Chattanooga on Saturday, but I was very happy to see all of my team mates once I finally got there! I always enjoy seeing them. On Saturday night we had a really yummy dinner, and they even suprised me with an icecream cake that was specially for my graduation! It had my name on it in pink icing! I was so excited! First of all because that was really sweet of my team, and second of all because it reminded me of how excited I am for graduation, which is on thursday! After we all had full bellies we had team picture time...that is always interesting. Finally Mark got us all positioned and hopefully got some good shots. Thank you so much Mark. You are so patient! After picture time, we were all tired and hit the hay for our early morning that was coming up.

Well, for a teenager, 6 am comes pretty quickly. I was not too excited about being up that early, but I knew I had to get up, so I did. Then we were off to the races. We got there right on time, and had time to spare while getting ready. I don't like to be rushed when I am getting ready for races because I forget things that are probably important. Ok. So, I got all set up, and then I was ready to race. I warmed up, and then we were on the start line.

I think we lined up 12 ladies. Even if 12 isn't exactly accurate, there were a lot of women. The Whistlet blew, and we were off. I felt pretty great. I was really enjoying myself. I am usually just happy to be on my nice bike and be in the woods. I have really been enjoying my Trek 9.8. This is my second year on this bike, and it is still just like new. Well, I was feeling really good today, and I was having a blast on the downhills. I felt like I was going really fast! So fun! Well, before I knew it the race was almost over. I had a great race, and I got 5th place! I was so proud of myself. I tried my hardest, and it turned out good for me.

My teammates also had great rides. We went 1, 2, 4, 5. I think that is right. But, the point is that our team was great, and we all had a great time today! Thanks to all of our sponsors for helping us go to all these races and have so much fun!