Elisa had a scenic Poulsbo - Port Gamble loop route planned out for us this afternoon. As a bonus we got a nice surprise: the sun. Aahhh, sun in March, yes, we will take it. We had a couple guest Adventure Chics with us today, our triathlete friends Stella and Audrey. Our ride began at the Poulsbo Athletic Club and headed out towards Poulsbo's ever bustling Front Street and onto Lemolo Drive, which meanders along the shores of Liberty Bay. Crossing Highway 305 we then pedaled along the rolling, woodsy roads of Totten, Widme, Lincoln, and Port Gamble, which took us all the way to the quaint little waterfront town of Port Gamble itself. There are numerous picnic tables in town along the grassy bluff, overlooking the canal and Port Gamble Bay, so we took a short break to enjoy the views, the company and snap a few photos for the ol' blogspot. I woke up this morning with a killer headache, in addition to the stuffy head, itchy throat, sneezing cold I already had, but pedaling along in the fresh air allowed me to forget about my pounding head for an hour or two, and I was glad I decided to ride anyway. 
Continuing on our loop we pedaled along Highway 3 past the Hood Canal Bridge, eventually turning onto Big Valley Road. Big Valley Road is a favorite of cyclists in the area, as it is a quiet, flat country road that extends just over 4.5 miles from end to end, connecting Bond Road to Highway 3. There are many farms and old cabins nestled in along the wooded hills that rise up quickly on either side. Too, it makes for a good out and back run, which is exactly what Elisa and I did last Thursday, as she is ramping up her long runs in preparation for the Wenatchee Half Marathon in April. She didn't have any problem covering the miles on our run last Thursday, at least from my perspective, so I'd say her training is going along just great for that event. She is hitting all kinds of important running milestones, e.g. first double digit run, and will soon be confidently striding across the finish line in Wenatchee. I plan to be there too, running or cheering-hopefully both.
I'm still dealing with my injury from last year, osteitis pubis, and it keeps coming back to haunt me everytime I try to get back into running. I finally decided to go to the doc and ask for help. She said she would advise me to quit running, duh, but she is not a runner and she knows how committed I am to it, so she referred me to a sports doctor. We'll see what they say. I hope they can give me a detailed, specific regimen of exercises and treatments that will help me move past this yo-yo injury, 'cuz I'm already in for the New York Marathon in November and I need to be ready to train for that sucker starting this summer.
In the meantime, we still have the STP to think about in July, as well as the Blue Lake Triathlon coming up in June. Audrey will be competing there as well. If I can keep Audrey and Elisa in my sights during the swim leg come June, I will be very pleased. With all of that in mind, we need to make sure to get our saddle time and pool time in before the events sneak up on us. Also, we both feel the pressure of the needs of our families and want to make sure those needs are always a priority. Elisa was struggling with just such issues this morning. After calling all the gals to set an earlier meeting time, lo and behold, her babysitter was late! She tried numerous times to get a hold of me on my cell phone, which is not always an easy task as anybody in my family can tell you (turn it on, charge it, bring it with me....it's all too easy, or so you would think). Yet, she did reach me and we agreed to meet along the way. Sure enough, a gal in a bright yellow jacket was spinning our way as we headed down Lemolo. She cycled past, hung a u-turn, looped right into our group without missing a beat, and off we went. As all parents with young children know, it's a lot to juggle, and sometimes it's hard to find the energy and time to fit the necessary workouts into our days, so having a good friend to say, "Hey, let's go for a 25 mile bike ride tomorrow afternoon!" is really key. I guarantee I would not have ridden my bike today had it not been for Elisa, and I think that's true for Audrey and Stella as well. Thanks Elisa, you rock!
Stella and Audrey, Port Gamble, WA
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