Happy Birthday To Me!
My birthday always marks the end of the summer and usually a backpacking trip. This year I couldn't go backpacking as I have nationals in two weeks and wasn't willing to risk my race for a few days of hiking. So, with my taper officially on and a Saturday birthday, I got to have a super fun, relaxing day. My morning started with a trip to the Farmer's Market in OCC.

Then Lara and I went up to Green Mountain Falls for a delicious breakfast at The Pantry. A perfect summer morning to enjoy breakfast overlooking mountains and the pond...

And have a superman siting! Seriously, who allowed this guy to buy that shirt and then wear it in public? I do feel honored superman made an appearance on my birthday though! :)

After breakfast I was going to ride but it started to rain so I took a nap and then it was time for dinner. I met up with some of my school friends for dinner at Pizzeria Rustica, a new restaurant in OCC. Super good food, super slow service.

Originally we were going to go to the Sugarland concert in Pueblo at the state fair but it was actually sold out. I heard on the radio they had a record 9000 people in attendence at the concert last night. Since the concert was out, we went over to the balloon glow at Memorial Park. A really cool alternative as I had never been until yesterday.

Every couple of minutes, all of the balloons would lite up to stay inflated and wow the crowd. This was my favorite, Noah's Ark.

And runner up was the duck. If you live in the Springs and have never been, I highly recommend going at some point.

Last Night Of Regular Season Track Racing
Last night of track racing normally means last sunset of the season at the track; however, with collegiate nationals only 13 days away that means two more sunsets to go this year!

And, with collegiates only two weeks away, it was time to get used to racing on my fast wheels in the wind! I was a little concerned at first because I ususally feel like a sail in the wind on these wheels but I was super comfortable on them last night and it was real windy! Guess that time on the motor has helped me with speed and handling on them.

And, we had 8 women show up for racing...usually the last night of racing there is like two! But, with collegiate, masters, and elites coming up, everybody wants to race. I definitely would have to say it was my best night of racing this season...which is good because I am starting to finally get my speed for nationals!

Herbal Lesson for the Day

As some of you know, when training gets intense, I have a tough time sleeping. Add to that school stress and it gets really tough. Well, after a week of horrible sleep I decided to take Valerian root, an herbal sleep aid. According to the bottle one can take 2-3 pills, and knowing the state of my sleep, I wanted to really be sure so I took three. After three pills and a really groggy morning I did a little research...appearantly valerian is a sleep aid but also a mild tranquilizer and diuretic. So I effectively tranquilized and dehydrated myself...no wonder I had such a hard time waking up yesterday! Lesson learned!

Ladies Night at Lakeside, Take Two!
Some of you may remember me blogging about Lakeside Amusement Park last August. Well, it was time to return to Lakeside again to gather with the front range cycling women for an evening of fun. Katie, Melissa, and I trekked to Denver to meet up with everyone...unfortunately it took us TWO hours to get there (b/c of traffic) and everybody was done with dinner by the time we got there. That, however, did not stop us from eating or having fun!

Katie was my designated ride partner for the evening. We started with the rickety, old wooden roller coaster. When I say rickety and old, think built in 1908 with modifications! But, I laughed until I cried on that thing. Not because it was fun, it was jarring and crazy, but I have never seen Katie so freaked out in my life. She was definitely screaming like a little girl!

Up next was the Scrambler. This has always been a favorite. After the rollercoaster, I had to talk Katie into the Scrambler but she loved it. After that we rode the Chipmunk...my favorite but Katie really did not like it. I stuck her in front...riding in front you think we are going to plunge off the track at any minute. She definitely had a few choice words during that ride which I didn't hear because I was screaming myself. It's definitely a ride you cannot appreciate until you are actually on it.

A few other rides and then onto the Spider. I believe somebody threw up after this one last year. Katie almost lost her dinner but was able to hold it in. I just laughed and laughed. I love amusement parks! :)

Beijing
So, I am officially addicted to the Olympics...considering the weather (currently 48F and raining) this isn't a bad thing but it's not exactly conducive to studying for Comps 2, getting internship applications done, or reading for class.

Good News Monday!


Myspace Graphics at WishAFriend.com

So, yesterday I found out that I:
PASSED COMPS...which means I am now the proud owner of a SECOND masters degree!
Earned A's last term...which sends me into my third (and final!) year of classes with a 4.0!
Earned the highest grade on my final report and in the class last term!
Only need 50 more direct hours by November 1 to qualify for the internship I have my heart set on in Santa Barbara! :)

"We (still don't know if we) passed Comps BBQ!"
If you recall, I took a really big test called "Comps" the first week of July...well, we still haven't heard if we actually passed the test yet but celebrated at Trent's in anticipation and hopes of passing a month later. Ben (classmate who already took and passed Comps) was kind enough to treat us all to Hawaiian bbq'd ribs...

which were absolutely delicious! You can tell Mike was enjoying them. Well worth the mess!

All of my classmates...Mike and Trent, on either side of me, are the guys who keep me in line in the midst of the madness at school. Those two are like fourth and fifth brothers to me...good thing I have 28 years of brothers to know how to deal with them! :)

Happy Birthday Amy!

After track racing last night, we met up with Amy at Josh n John's for a little birthday celebration. Unfortunately she can't race track anymore this season as she broke her hand in a mountain bike race last weekend (more reasons for me not to mtb!) And Paola got her first taste of Josh n Johns. She's from Guatamala and didn't "know the rules" of ordering ice cream so she ended up with a gigantic cone which she needed a cup to catch her leaking ice cream and was quite jealous that the rest of us mixed and matched flavors. I never realized ordering ice cream could be so different in other cultures!

Check this out: Portland Velodrome Crash .