Hello everyone. My life has been going fairly great here lately. I seem to be finding more time to ride, and that is making me feel much better. Regular exercis really is important to being happy and feeling good.

Aside from biking, I have been going to school. I am now in my second semester here at UT. I am making new friends and learning a lot about how to get things done. This semester I have been in organic chemistry. It is really confusing, but it's pretty neat to know so much stuff about all those crazy carbon molecules. Also, I am in calculus. I don't really find that as interesting as chemistry. It seems like a bunch of magic tricks that you do with numbers to me.

One really cool thing from this semester is that the UT Orchestra (wich I am in) played "Pictures at an Exhibition" by Mussorgsky/Ravel. This piece is AMAZING! You should look it up and give it a listen if you have never heard it. It has a really big bassoon solo, and I nailed it! I was so nervous.

On the biking side of things, I am getting excited to get ready for a new season of bike racing! Woo hoo! I'm sure I will be doing the SERC series again. Those races are always so much fun. I have also been contemplating trying my hand at some road racing. Maybe. We will see how that works out. I'm not so good at riding in straight lines in a pack. One thing that is lame though, is that I will be in summer school this year. BUMMER!!!! But, I am still looking forward to racing. It was so much fun last year with our sponsors US Stove and the Trek store. I hope we all get to have a fun year of racing together this year!

YEAHHH!!!!

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!

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

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!

Southern Girl Up North

I will pick up where I left off after camp...After I got back from camp, I left again for Wisconsin on a tuesday after I had returned from camp on sunday. My team mate Anina picked me up here in Knoxville, and we were off to the big race. We drove and drove and drove. As we drove north we began to see corn...lots and lots of corn. All we saw for hours was corn! I never knew there was so much corn in the world. I really did not know.

After many more hours of corn, and a night in a hotel, Anina and I finally made it to Wisconsin. (America's Dairyland) We were glad to be out of the car and riding the SWEET course. I was glad to be on my bike for sure, but I was slightly annoyed with my bottom bracket...I had no idea how bad it truly was! We got done riding, and we headed to the hotel to meet Kym and Mark. On the way, we stopped and grabbed some dinner at the Pioneer Family Restraunt. Interesting little place. I ordered a wonderful thing called deep fried cheese curds. I was able to check cheese curds off of my Wisconsin to-d0 list. YES! They were delicious. After dinner we arrived at the hotel and saw Mark and Kym's awesome Packers theme room and hit the hay.

The next morning we were all very happy because we were able to sleep in. YAAY! We had a nice morning of breakfast and love time on Emily's bike. (the bottom bracket) Kym took it apart, and we discovered that my bearings were totally seized! Uh Oh. Kym got them all cleaned out though, and everything was fine. I felt soooo much better riding after that! haha.

The next day was race day, and I knew that both me and my Trek 9.8 were totally ready. I took an ice bath and wore my compression tights. Those things made me feel very prepared in my mind and in my legs. I got a great night's sleep and was ready to go morning of the race!

Mark and I went early to set up camp for the team. It was fun to help him set up! After getting the tents up, we got ourselves ready and began to warm up for the race. This is always when my nerves really get going! I was riding around, and my legs felt pretty good! Yaaay! Finally it was time to line up! I found one other junior expert girl. Turns out there was one other. We waited to start, and I was getting really nervous! Finally they called all of the women experts to the line! They started all the age groups together. I was not in a very good position at the line, but when we went off I started passing people like crazy! It was a little bit of a strange feeling for me! We were climbing and I just kept gaining ground. I was feeling good. We got onto some single track in the woods after a while, and I passed yet another fairly large group of girls. I was feeling so good. I just kept telling myself I had to keep it up for the rest of the race. I guess I did that fairly well, because hardly anyone passed me, and I ended up with 7th over all! I was soooo happy.

I also won my age category, and that gives me a spot at Junior World Championships in Canada this fall! How EXCITING! I am so happy. It was a really great race trip. I had so much fun!

Long time away from home riding bikes : )

Ahhh. I have not been very deligent about updating my blog, but I will tell you all about what I have been doing for the last 11 or so days.

Well, it all started with taking the ACT last saturday at 8. I got out at 12:30 or so, and then it was time to round up my dad and get headed down to the SERC race in Jackson GA. We hit the road at about 2:30. Wow. That makes for a late arrival time for sure. We made it down in plenty good time and got a preride in. I some how managed to cut out a large part of the loop, but it turned out to not be a problem because the kind people at goneriding shortened the course because the heat index 105. Anyways, we got done preriding, found a hotel, and ate some yummy food, and went to bed.

We awoke the next morning and headed over to the course. I warmed up and felt like my body was boiling. We lined up, the race began, and I assumed my spot in last and held it for the remainder of the race. It was not a pretty day on the bike for me. haha. I drank a lot, but when I got done I still noticed that my vision was rather blurred. I attribute this to the heat. I guess I was riding my bike, and that is what I love, so it wasn't a total loss. I race my bike because I like it!

After the race, my dad drove me to Kym's house in Chattanooga. As soon as we got there, it was time to leave to go up to USA cycling's development camp in Sewanee. This came as a suprise to me. I did not know that we had to leave on Sunday night. haha. So, we left and got up there that night. I learned an interesting and confusing fact: because of the time zone change and the fact that driving distance is one hour, you get to camp at the SAME TIME YOU LEAVE! WOAH! That blew my mind.

So, camp had begun. I was the only girl at camp, but I still made friends. I'm not scared of boys! First day was not too bad, but I knew it would get harder as the week drew onwards. The second day we took our five minute TT Test. That is five minutes of killing yourself. It hurts! I felt like I gave it my all. That's all I can do.

The week went on and we rode and rode and rode. The next test rolled around. It was a 15 minute test. It also hurts very badly. I did so well on this one that I vomitted at the top! I hear that is a sign of sucess. haha. Only a little bit of throwing up though...the week finished up with more riding and skills lessons. I really enjoyed camp. I really learn a lot there. It my favorite camp I've ever been too, and it is one of the best parts of my summer. I really want to thank Scenic City Velo for helping make it possible for me to go. That really is generous. I also want to thank my team, Grace Law/Trek p.b. Vantaggio for helping me go to camp as well. I had a blast!

Well, after camp was over, I went to yet another race in Clemson SC. That was also a SERC race. It was not quite as boiling lava hot, but it was still hot. We lined up 9 girls I believe, and I got 8th. Yaay. I was proud of myself because I stayed with the group for a pretty good while, and I was quite close to 7th place. I was tired and I raced my hardest, again, that is all I can do.

It has been a really great week full of what I love most...bike riding. I seem to fall in love with riding bikes each time I ride them. Even when it's not one of the best days, I still know I love what I'm doing, and it will stay with me forever.

Cherohala Skyway Fun...or something along those lines

This is my sunburn.

Today, I went with Kym, Mark, and a few others to ride the Cherohala Skyway. Two other people accompanied us, Mark's old room mate, Howell, and Steve a friend of Mark and Kym's. Anyway's the day startedo out pretty early for me today. I had to get up at 7. I guess that wasn't too bad, but I could have definitely handled a few more hours of sleep. I got on the road to Howell's house right on time, but I still did not get there on time at 8:30. I wouldn't say that I was lost necessarily, but I just couldn't find Howell's house. Well, he met me at a Kroger, and we were on the road to the skyway.

We got there on time, despite my difficulty with the directions. Mark, Kym and Steve arrived, and we were off on what was going to be a very lengthy ride. The ride started out along a really pretty road that went along the river. I don't really know what river it was. I knew at some point today. Anyway's, after a while we got to the part that began to not be quite so pleasant as the river road. We started climbing, and we all knew that we would be climbing for, like, 2 and a half hours. So, up we went! For ever and ever and ever. As we went up, we were passed by many speedy motor cycles, but they were pretty friendly for the most part.

Well, not much happened really for a long time you know because, we were just going up a huge mountain for hours. As I went up, I ate my food and drank my water like I have been told to by many people. However, I have failed to do this many times before. I don't think I will ever learn my lesson about all that sort of stuff.

So, finally I got up the mountain. I was soooo glad to have a little bit of time to sit down. My legs felt supprisinglly (I think I spelled that wrong.) good while I was riding up. I did not really expect them to feel good at all. Kym and I had a nice little picnic and girl time at the top of the mountain while we waited for the others to top the climb. As I sat up there, I was thinking that I felt like I was getting burnt. I didn't really pay attention, because I somehow felt like ignoring the problem would make it go away.

After everyone got up to the top of the mountian, we waited a minute, and then we began the long trip back down. You would think that it would just be a nice long descent back to the car after you get to the top, but that is now quite true, and that sucks. Even though there is a lot of descending, there are still some really annoying rollers along the way. As we were riding back, I noticed my sunburn getting worse and worse. I still tried to ignore it.

Finally we were back to the cars, and I was a very happy camper. It was a splendid ride, but it definitely felt good to step off of the bike.There was a nice little sandwich shop right down the street, and we went there to get our post ride meal. I got a really yummy sanwich that had turkey and some sort of cherry sauce stuff on it. It remined me of thanksgiving dinner. I liked it.

And then, Kym and I sat in the river and froze our butts off. That sucked, but I guess I liked it. So, that is pretty much the report on the ride. If you are reading this, it means you read the whold thing, or you just skipped to the last sentence for some reason. Either way, thanks for reading some or all of my report. : )