Ah, just finished a big block of training. These past four weeks have been pretty heavy on the training grid. A week of heavy training, followed by the training camp at Koksijde, and then two more weeks of heavy load. I finished off this big block with a solid three hour ride today.

Nothing quite like the three hour ride. After a while, two hours gets to be routine and not quite long enough. Four hours is the maximum I would ever ride. So three hours settles right in the middle. Long enough to feel like I’ve got in a good session on the bike but not so long that I’m cracked afterwards. The extra bonus today was the weather. The sun was shining. I didn’t get rained on. There was a slight wind. I was able to wear leg warmers and lightweight gloves. Can’t beat this for Dec. 10. I decided to rock out with the red leg warmers today. I looked quite the colorful image today with yellow shoes, red leg warmers, and my red, white, and black Ottawa Cross kit.

Hey it is all part of it. To be fast you have to look fast. And believe me, those red leg warmers make me feel fast. They are starting to grow on me. I think they might even catch on in Ottawa… Let me know if you want me to pick you up a pair!

Okay, sorry for the silliness. Back to reality. So I’ve got an easy little recovery ride tomorrow. Might throw the jets on and do a bit of off- and on-road riding. There are so many parks and trails nearby that I need to check out. Yep, think that’s what I’ll do. Racing the double this weekend. Both days in Holland. Looking forward to it. I get to race in a women’s race and the extra bonus is Marc will be able to race as well with the Masters. Should be a good couple days of racing.

Then Monday-Wednesday are all about rest. Serious rest. Meaning that I won’t even be getting on my bike. This is a new thing for me. But my coach says this has to be done to reap the benefits of this big block of training we’ve done. Next week is also the start of some big racing for me. I’ve got Scheldecross, the Kalmthout World Cup, AzenCross, and the Zolder World Cup. So some big races. The only new race to me is Kalmthout, so I’ll be sure to watch the video of this one.

Tomorrow is the big day. I haven’t heard anything yet. Honestly, I’m trying not to think about it. At this point, it is out of my control. I’ve done all I’ve can – I’ve qualified. Now I just need to wait and see if I get to race in Tabor on Jan. 31.

Keep your fingers crossed and send me some red and white vibes.