Beth's Blog

"Field Grade Leg"

noreply@blogger.com (bethbikes) — Wed, 10 Aug 2011 01:13:00 +0000

Upon some discussion with a client today, and some reflection, I have coined a new term for an "old" injury. "Field Grade Leg" describes a relatively common problem that I have seen throughout my career. This problem usually occurs in men between 35 and 50 who are active, and who run. The "syndrome" as it were, is a chronic calf pain that occurs with running primarily, and is located at the junction of the calf muscle with the achilles tendon, so about 2/3 of the way down the back of the lower leg. At my day job, "Field Grade Leg" is seen in Majors, Lieutenant Colonels, and Colonels, hence the moniker. The patients typically over-achievers, and have succeeded at almost everything they have attempted. They are type A personalities, and are not used to having something hold them back, something outside of their own control. This is an over-use condition, and the treatment is rest, calf stretching, proper running form, rest, proper bike fit, calf stretching, and rest.

Dispelling Myths of "Computerized" Bike Fits

noreply@blogger.com (bethbikes) — Sun, 24 Jul 2011 15:05:00 +0000

I have to set the record straight. I believe there are people out there looking for bike fits who think that a "computerized" bike fit (like that offered by Retul, for example) give all the answers to how a bike should be set up correctly. It's in my best interest as a Retul-based bike fitter, to continue to let you think that a Retul bike fit is beyond reproach - you could never get a better bike fit from another fitter with more standard methods. In my best interests, perhaps, but not necessarily the truth. Let me break it down for you.

Computerized bike fitting (I will stick with making this Retul specific, since that is what I know best):

Gives real time moving data of the cyclist in 3D (i.e., we get joint angle averages of ankle, knee, hips, back, elbow, shoulder, etc - and the data is taken while the cyclist is in motion)
The data mined has much less error than if measured with "eye-balling", or goniometry (a method of measuring angles with a device known as a goniometer - can only be performed in a static position)

When measuring joint angles of a cyclist in a static position, it is almost impossible to ensure the joint angles are the same as they would be while in motion, particular where the knee and ankle are concerned. Retul bike fitting is definitely superior to standard fit methods in this realm, given identical bike fitters are performing the fitting process. Therein lies the rub: The human element. You are ultimately at the mercy of the individual who is performing your bike fit, and not the technology that they use.

When a bike fitter collects their data, whether it is gathered by computerized methods, goniometry, or the "eye-ball" method, they then have a series of decisions to make. If ten different bike fitters were given identical data sets for one cyclist, they would come up with ten different bike fits, absolutely guaranteed. The differences among the most experienced fitters in the group would likely be small differences, but they would be there. Fitters are ultimately a product of their training, their life experiences (on their own bikes), their literature review, their biases, and their past fitting experiences.

Bias is something that can not be filtered out of a bike fitter, no matter how much they may try. Bias can only be minimized. For example, if you were to get a bike fit from Retul bike fitter Josh Frick at CycleLife in DC - he would definitely set you up differently than I would. Josh is a Master's National Champion Time Trialist, a couple of times over, I believe. He is an amazing athlete. His fits tends to be slightly more "performance based", while mine (coming from a Physical Therapy bias) tend to be more "comfort based". We would both tend to judge our individual clients to see what their individual needs and goals are, and would venture out of our biases to meet those goals - to a point.

So, is one of these ten different bike fits "wrong"? Maybe. Maybe not. There are likely at least ten different combinations of bike fitting variables (saddle height, saddle fore/aft, saddle tilt, cleat fore/aft, cleat rotation, cleat wedging, in the shoe wedging, stem length, stem angle, bar width, bar rotation, and hood positions) that would work. In fact, looking at that list of variables, the combinations really are endless. The most important part of bike fit, after the experience of the bike fitter (or perhaps even more important than that), is the feedback of the client. The client needs to be able to feel the differences of the different positions tried, and needs to be able to say, at minimum: better, worse, or no different. More feedback is certainly better, but I will take one of those words and work from there. If it's "better", I might do a little more of the same change until I feel I have maximized the benefits of whatever variable I am addressing. I also may choose to stay with that and move on to the next variable. If it's "worse", I may go back to the start position, or I may reverse completely whatever I just tried. It all hinges on the client. My most challenging bike fits haven't been the fits on the people with the most complaints, but the fits on the people with the least body awareness, and with limited ability to sense changes that are made.

So you see, the computerized data is great, but it just gives us a starting point. The client/fitter interaction is key. I love using my Retul, it makes my job easier and gives it much more of a "wow" and "gee-whiz" factor. In the end, though, I rely heavily on my client's feedback, and they have to rely heavily on my experience and understand my biases as a Physical Therapist concerned for injury prevention and comfort first - because performance will come from there.

Website: BKM Bike Fitting

Facebook page: BKM Bike Fitting

Facebook page: Women's Cyclocross of Central Texas

www.bikefit.com

BikeFit Bio: http://bikefit.com/t-aboutbethmason.aspx

Email: bethbikes1@gmail.com

Active Insufficiency – Bike Fitting Geek Alert

noreply@blogger.com (bethbikes) — Sun, 19 Jun 2011 17:28:00 +0000

Yesterday I had the good fortune to fit Patty for a second bike – her TT machine. If you follow my blog (and who would, these days, I never post here anymore) you may remember that I first fit Patty on her road bike a few months back. Patty is a below the knee amputee (BKA) on her left side. With her road bike fit, most of what we were trying to achieve was related to decreasing pressure spots from her prosthesis on her left leg in two different areas. We were able to achieve that effectively by wedging the heck out of her left cleat. It was an awesome fitting experience for me.

With Patty’s Aegis TT bike (sadly, the Aegis bikes are no longer made), we were essentially trying to maximize her comfort on the bike, and improve her efficiency. It sounded like a “normal” bike fit, and that is how I went into it. When Patty first started pedaling, it was evident that in the aero position she was not “normal”. She had an audible difference in her pedaling style on her left side. If you can hear the difference, that is a pretty big difference. Patty admitted that she struggled with a “dead spot” in her pedal stroke on the left. It looked as if the area that was problematic was from essentially 7 o’clock to 1 o’clock on the circular stroke. Her position was aggressive with relation to back and closed hip angles at 23 and 41 respectively. Nothing was obviously awry with her position other than her saddle was tilted down about 4 degrees and her elbow angle was too open at about 115 degrees, and her sound side (right side) knee angle at the bottom of the stroke was a little high at 40 degrees. I didn’t have to address her foot/pedal interface as we had accomplished that task with her road bike fit. I approached her TT fit as I would with most TT fits. My goals were to get her elbows as closed to 90 degrees as possible, and to get her knee extension angle between 30 and 40 degrees (by Retul measurements).

I leveled Patty’s saddle, and raised it about 1.5cm and went forward approximately 2 cms with the saddle. She looked better, and seemed to have an improved stroke on the left, as compared to previously. We definitely weren’t there yet though. Patty’s stem was a 90mm, -6 degree rise stem. Her stem was on a 125mm spacer, and under 250 mms of spacers. I put a stem sizing tool on the bike and brought her down to a 70mm length and +6 degree angle (which she said she had at home – we were working knowing that Patty will be competing in the Paralympic National TT Championships in Augusta, GA this Thursday). She was better still. It was obvious that by opening up Patty’s hip angle, she was getting a cleaner pedal stroke and less “deadness” in the circle.

We made a few more tweaks and left her with the changes of leveling the saddle (I actually went back to a slight downward tilt of 1.5 degrees to open up her hip angle further), raising the saddle (ending knee extension angle was 35 degrees), and shortening the stem by 20mm and raising the angle of the stem to +6 degrees. This made her ending elbow angle 99 degrees. There were no further adjustments that could make to the bar system itself that would bring the elbow pads back toward the saddle in order to further decrease Patty’s elbow angle. We put the 250mm of spacers under the stem, and this increased the opening of the hip angle. Her ending “closed angle” at the hip changed from 41 degrees to 50 degrees. That was our finishing point.

I rode with Patty this morning on an easy 20 mile recovery ride. She had put on her 70mm stem (but unfortunately had inadvertently angled it downward). I had been thinking about Patty’s pedaling biomechanics as a BKA since the previous day. She has approximately 6-8 inches of her lower leg that was preserved from her amputation, so she did not lose any of her thigh or hip musculature from a purely anatomical presence standpoint. I talked to Patty this morning about the nature of the TT position closing the hip angle and placing the hip flexor muscles in a position of active insufficiency (when a multi-joint muscle reaches a length (shortened) where it can no longer apply an effective force). When I explained that, Patty admitted that since her amputation surgery, she has never been able to regain any strength in her quadriceps muscle on her left leg, and she reported a 3 inch size difference in the girth of her thighs as a result of prolonged disuse. Patty’s accommodation to this weakness in her quads has been an increased use of her hip flexor muscles on her left side. It is apparent that shorter we were making her hip flexor muscles by closing that hip angle, the less efficient her pedal stroke was getting, and vice versa. In TT mode, Patty will have to draw most of her strength from her gluteal muscles and her hamstring muscles for hip extension and knee flexion, as well as her calf muscles for driving the pedal downward. By maximally opening Patty’s hip angle (while still maintaining an aerodynamic advantage), we are allowing for the addition of as much hip flexor muscle activation as we can get for actively pulling up along the 7-12 o’clock range of the pedal stroke.

If you followed that and you aren’t a biomechanist or a Physical Therapist, BRAVO!

Patty

noreply@blogger.com (bethbikes) — Sun, 20 Mar 2011 20:38:00 +0000

I did a bike fit today. Today’s bike fit was special because it was for Patty Collins. Patty is a road cyclist and a triathlete, a Lieutenant Colonel in the US Army, and my neighbor. Oh, and incidentally Patty is a BKA (below the knee amputee). Patty is not defined by her amputation, by any stretch of the imagination. Patty is defined by her sense of humor, athleticism, leadership ability and compassion. It just so happens that a few years ago a car plowed into her while she was on the bike and changed her life forever. But that is in the past. If you ask Patty, I am sure that she would tell you she has learned a lot about herself since the accident and wouldn’t be the same person she is now if it hadn’t happened. You’d have to ask her though, this is just the feeling I get from talking to her.

Today I had the opportunity to do a Retul bike fit for Patty. I had so much fun! This fit challenged me in ways that no other had in the past, but at the same time it was straight forward and logical. I always ask my clients if they have any areas of discomfort while on the bike, and I usually get responses that include saddle discomfort, foot pain, hand numbness, or neck and low back pain. Patty was different though. When I asked Patty this question, first she told me about some numbness she experiences at her right foot after riding for a while. Then Patty took off her left prosthesis and showed me an area on the inner part of her thigh near her knee and another area at the outer part of the end of her residual limb (sometimes called a “stump”, but I really don’t like that word) where her prosthesis has been putting pressure. She was also able to give me a great description of which part her pedal stroke was causing the pressure, and what she felt like her carbon fiber prosthesis was doing during that part of the stroke to cause the stress. I was able to use this information to problem solve during the bike fit.

Patty’s prosthesis for her bike (she has one specific to cycling and a variety of others for other activities, be it sporting or life events) doesn’t have a foot – the end of the carbon fiber leg is shaped like a Shimano road cleat, and has three holes. The cleat screws directly into the leg, and the leg clips straight into the pedal. Problem solving during the bike fit came to an end when Patty reported no pressure at either of her previously reported problem areas. At that point we had placed 5 valgus wedges under her prosthesis side cleat, and rotated the cleat about 5 degrees clockwise. Other changes included: a varus wedge under the right cleat, saddle leveling (from a nose down position of about 15 degrees), the saddle was moved forward 5mm, and raised 2-3mm. At one point, after a final cleat rotational change, Patty said the magic words: “I like this! This feels really good!”

Five valgus wedges

Patty's carbon fiber leg, wedges in place - Team Army colors all around

Patty is bringing over her other bike in a couple of weeks. I can’t wait.

Before and after videos here

Where Did the Love Go? A Pre-Valentine's Day Soliloquy

noreply@blogger.com (bethbikes) — Sun, 13 Feb 2011 22:43:00 +0000

A new place to live, new opportunities abound. The sun is shining, inviting me to come out and play. I look at my bike, and I'm just not that into it right now. I've lost that loving feeling. I hope it returns to me. Right now I am dispassionate.

I have found new love with bike fitting. It gives me joy to help other people love riding even more than they already do. I see each client as a puzzle waiting to be solved. The challenge is the reward.

I will probably love my bike again someday. For now...it waits for me.

Patiently.

Celebrate Life

noreply@blogger.com (bethbikes) — Sat, 15 Jan 2011 21:54:00 +0000

One year ago today I was sitting in a Starbucks 7600 miles from where I sit right now. I was in Kuwait, having recently deployed with a Combat Support Hospital. As I sat there in my own microscopic internet world, I was oblivious to what was going on around me. One of my “battle buddies” tapped on my shoulder and woke me from my Facebook coma. “Beth, I just heard that the Commander and the First Sergeant need to see you back at the tent, right away.” My first instinct, for about 10 seconds, was to wonder what I did wrong. My second instinct, the one that settled in the pit of my belly and started to burn like a fire there, was the realization that my father had passed away.

My Dad had been ill on and off for years, the sequelae of being an insulin dependent diabetic. When I was in Kuwait, my parents were “snowbirding” in Jupiter, Florida. My Dad had been doing well for a while (well for my Dad meant no active infections and no hospital admissions). Despite this knowledge, I still knew that my summons was about my father.

I packed up my laptop, my heart racing, and started walking back toward the tents. As I went, I saw the Commander, the hospital Deputy Commander for Clinical Services, and the Chaplain walking toward me. It was the Chaplain that did it. I stopped dead in my tracks. As I looked at them approaching me I started sobbing. They knew that I knew, but they still had to tell me, and I wanted to make it easier for them, but I couldn’t.

It is all so clear in my mind. It could have been yesterday. The rest of my tour in Iraq is mostly a hazy blur; nothing stands out with such vivid edges as this. So, that was one year ago today. I miss my father. I still cry pretty frequently when I have memories of him. There were so many special things about my Dad that were important to remember; probably the most important thing was that my father thought it was important to celebrate life, and not memorialize death. So, although I am writing this on the one year anniversary of my father’s passing, it is with joy that I remember his life, and how he touched my life, and the rest of my family’s lives.

And to my mother, who will be crying by now, I am sure – I love you, and will celebrate you forever.

Elbow Pain on the Bike – Specifically at the Triceps Insertion

noreply@blogger.com (bethbikes) — Tue, 11 Jan 2011 01:29:00 +0000

There are usually two reasons for elbow pain at the “back” of the elbow, where the triceps tendon inserts into the elbow at what is known as olecranon process. This is a problem often seen in new cyclists, or in cyclists that are new to riding in groups of other riders. If this is the case, the most likely reason is probably related to the grip that the rider is exerting on the handlebars. When a person grips the bars too tightly, the triceps muscle will end up being contracted almost constantly. This will cause a constant pull at the insertion of the muscle onto the bone, ending in pain which is usually inflammatory in nature. The pain will resolve with rest, ice, and stretching – but most importantly the rider has to learn to relax their grip on the bars, or the pain will continuously return.

The other reason people experience pain in an almost identical distribution is due to riding a bike with a stem that is too long. You can be suspicious that this is the cause if you recently changed your stem, or purchased a new bike. In such an instance, the triceps is put at a mechanical disadvantage. The triceps muscle on a well-fitted bicycle should essentially just rest. If the stem is too long, then the elbow will be at angle where the arm muscles have to be actively engaged in holding the body up, and the tendon will be put on stretch. Both of these activities will cause overuse, pain, and likely the beginnings of an inflammatory process. Once again, rest, ice and stretching will be helpful – but ideally a professional fit would be in the cards to find the appropriate stem size for the rider.

Packing it in - Until I unpack it next week in Texas

noreply@blogger.com (bethbikes) — Tue, 21 Dec 2010 16:51:00 +0000

The Beth Mason, PT Retul bike fitting business has taken a short hiatus until we get the keys to our new house in Harker Heights, TX. Notice I didn't say "until we get settled" in our new home. I have all of my Retul bike fitting equipment in my car. All I need are some active electrical outlets and a cool space without a lot of ambient light. I should be ready to roll next Thursday or Friday.

I am sad about this move, for I am leaving behind many good friends, competitors and a strong client base. I look forward to the move, however, for the challenges it offers. I am excited to try to draw in new clients, and let my reputation build by word of mouth.

I certainly have not been "resting" during this hiatus. I have been building. I am working on making connections in Texas (and building off existing connections in San Antonio, which isn't too far from my home to be), setting up some Texas advertising, launching my new website and beefing up my Facebook page. New business cards have been drafted and ordered. My first "real" fit is waiting on a date to be set, and my 200th "like" to my Facebook page is getting a free fit to help start off my business right. The person who happened to be the 200th "like" is an engineer at Ft. Hood, and recently rode a short 118 mile ride for his 59th birthday. I am sure I could not have gotten luckier with the winner of this prize. David seems like the perfect fit (oh yeah, pun is intended).

You will notice a new image showing up in my new website and my business cards:

This picture was taken by Bill Schieken of www.cxhairs.com during a professional photo shoot. The skeletal foot is supposed to signify my attention to the foot and cleats during my bike fits. I believe that I have developed this part of my bike fit to a high level and consider it my "specialty". Also - Bill took a darn good pic of me (which is rare), so I had to use it!

I am very excited about the recent growth of my business, and also very excited about what the move to Texas has to offer me. New information about the business is sprouting almost every day! Stay tuned to the Facebook page for changes!

Happy Birthday T-Man

noreply@blogger.com (bethbikes) — Mon, 13 Dec 2010 16:34:00 +0000

Tyler you turn 10 today. Where did the time go? I vividly remember my 9 months that I had you in my belly. I remember you hiccuping, and kicking, and your little baby butt sticking out and getting in my way. I had such fun being pregnant with you. When we took you home from the hospital, your Dad and I were a little scared. A new baby boy. Us, parents. Could we take care of you? Would we mess up? You were SUCH a tiny little guy - 5 pounds and 3 ounces. You got jaundiced, pretty badly, and we had to have a special blue light blanket to wrap you in for part of the day. We figured things out, and you got bigger, and we didn't do anything stupid to mess you up too badly.

I remember you in Hawaii when you were two, picking up Easter eggs during an Easter egg hunt. You were the cutest little guy with your little wide brimmed hat covering your still mostly bald head.

I remember all the questions you had about your little sister when she was in my belly. You never seemed jealous. You were a great big brother. When Cadence was sick so badly when she was a small baby, we probably didn't give you the attention you deserved. You never complained or acted out. At the age of three you tried your hardest to help us out with your baby sister.

I remember when we moved from Hawaii to Silver Spring and you met JD and Hank. They were your first "real" friends as a little kid. I remember you riding your bike into JDs fence and promising that you would never ride it again (I believed you, and you have almost lived up to that...).

When we moved to Ft. Meade, you made LOTS of new friends, since you were going to school. You got a little more freedom, and were able to go down the street, and sometimes down to the neighborhood behind our house - as long as you let us know where you were going. You started riding your bike without training wheels. I remember taking video of you on the bike as you showed off.

When we moved to West Point, you started to develop into a very good artist. You spent lots of time drawing, and you learned to ice skate and ski while we were here. You made great friends here that I think you will stay in touch with after our move. You have started to develop into a very strong student, a strong athlete, a focused martial artist, and a truly talented artist. Of course you excel in the areas of Bey Blade and all things computer game related as well. You are my boy. You will always be my baby boy, even though you are clearly turning into a grown kid. You are almost as tall as me, but even when you are towering over me (next year?), you BEST let me kiss you and hug you in public young man. I'm your mom, and it will always be okay for me to show my love for you to the world.

I love you Tyler, congratulations on making it into double digits!

Happy Birthday

Tyler enters the world

Tyler goes home from the hospital

Tyler at Christmas time - about 2 weeks old

Tyler and Daddy - Tyler is 6 weeks old here and displaying a cone head

11 weeks - this is when he started to get cute

4 months old, my little baldy

And here we apparently decided that taking pictures was over rated. I can't find anything for Tyler's toddler years. Sorry bud!

Age 5 - Optimus Prime - best Halloween costume EVER, hand made by his Dad

Tyler 5, at one of my cross races

Tyler getting ready to line up for his first (and second to last) cross race in Reston

Tyler 5, Cadence 2

Tyler 6 at Ft. Meade

Tyler 6 with 3 year old Cadence

Tyler 6 at Baltimore's Science Center

Tyler and Cady with Santa when Tyler was 6

Big brother and baby sister. One of my favorites

Tyler 6 at USGP Trenton

Tyler 8 and his posse

Tyler and Mom - Tyler 7

Tyler - 8 (almost 9) at my graduation from my Sports Medicine Residency

Tyler receiving his yellow belt

Tyler at the bottom of the Precipice - A very tough climbing trail in Acadia National Park - trying to hide his nerves

Tyler part way up the Precipice

Tyler on one of the scariest parts of the Precipice - my little hiker

Tyler rocking the shaggy 'do as the kids support me at Westwood Cross this year.

Tyler's 10th Birthday

Thankful, but Emotional

noreply@blogger.com (bethbikes) — Thu, 25 Nov 2010 15:26:00 +0000

Everything has me in such emotional turmoil right now. The pending move to Texas is the instigator. I will be leaving the east coast for a minimum of two years. What seems to be getting the tears flowing are thoughts of leaving my extended family behind (my brothers and their kids, my Mom, and my husband's family - whom I have grown to love as much as my own). When talking to my mother on the phone, or reading an email from my brother, often I start thinking (against my will, obviously - who would willingly think?), and the tears start flowing. As we approach the one year anniversary of my Dad's passing (coming up in December), I have no doubt that this plays a role in my extreme sentimentality. Added to the thoughts about my father are my own feelings of mortality which have solidified now that I am over 40, and empty nest thoughts now that my nieces and nephews are at the point where they are graduating from high school and looking at colleges. God help me when it is my own kids and my own empty nest!

I try to control the emotions, for my kids' sake. How can I convince my kids that the move is a positive thing if they see me crying all the time? I am glad to say that I am not wracked with heaving sobs, but am burdened with tears that well up in my eyes that are irreversible, and the force of gravity tends to take them down my cheeks. Ironically, I know the move WILL be a good experience for us. The Army moves always are. We have an adventure ahead of us. We will end our adventure in a warm place with lots of new friends (and some old familiar friends - our next door neighbors from Fort Meade, Nancy, Steve, Ian and Naia wait to welcome us!). There will be a house hunt that will be stressful and exciting, and there will be exploration of a new world for the kids. New opportunities will be there for my business and for my Army career (what little is left of it...count down is rolling). Jeff will have new places to explore for antiques, and I am sure he will venture back to Comfort, Texas, and some of his other antique stomping grounds from the past.

Knowing these positive aspects of the move does not keep me from focusing on the sadness that I feel when I think about leaving my cycling community friends and family from the Mid Atlantic and the Hudson Valley. I also mourn the loss of east coast cyclocross, for the cyclocross "scene" has not yet blossomed in central Texas (although it may be shooting sprouts or budding). I will leave behind my DC Metro bike fit clientele that has been so supportive to my business over the past few years. I desperately hope to come back to you in two years.

So this Thanksgiving I will spend time with my brothers and their families, and my husband's family. I am thankful that these two families are located geographically close to each other to make this a possibility. I am thankful that I will be able to spend this holiday and Christmas here with family (and not in Iraq). The health of my family and love and support of my family are things I shouldn't have to state that I am thankful for - though they are not things that I take for granted.

Damn these tears!

noreply@blogger.com (bethbikes) — Sun, 14 Nov 2010 02:17:00 +0000

MARK YOUR CALENDARS - And Email me if you want a bike fit. The Retul will be on the road. I will be doing a one day visit to Tyson's Corner to bike fits on December 4th. bethbikes1@gmail.com if you are interested.

For a 3rd party opinion on my bike fit procedures - See Meg's Blog

Tacchino Cyclocross and Bike Fitting?

noreply@blogger.com (bethbikes) — Wed, 27 Oct 2010 21:37:00 +0000

Whenever I come south to do bike fits, there is always the question: "when are you coming back?", from those who wanted to get fit, but just weren't ready, didn't have the funds, needed to buy new shoes, new bike, etc. This year, my standard answer was: "I'm moving to Texas in December" I thought that was the right answer, which essentially meant "This is your last opportunity, take it when you can get it". It turns out, though, that Tacchino Cross is calling me. So it looks like I could potentially be in Bowie, MD with bike fit appointments on the 5th and 6th of November. This blog post is to establish the amount of interest. Email me.

bethbikes1@gmail.com

Does this guy have anything to do with bike fits? Absolutely not. But his smile makes me smile.

Days Spent With My MidAtlantic Family: A Story of DCCX as told by a Cheesy Socialite

noreply@blogger.com (bethbikes) — Wed, 27 Oct 2010 14:17:00 +0000

I travelled from NY to DC along the 95S corridor that I abhor so much with a dual purpose:

Earn as much money as possible to keep my bike fitting business afloat
Play at the MABRA DCCX race and visit with my Mid Atlantic adoptive family

Jennifer Maxwell was over-the-top generous in allowing me to use her apartment in DC to stay in. My bike fits went wonderfully, except for one disappointing no-show (my first ever in two years as a professional bike fitter). I’m not going to detail the fits here, though, for I fear I would bore everyone to tears. They get me jazzed up like nobody’s business, but I think I am in the minority there…I’ll spare you. Details of some of my fits can be found here if you are an ergonomic/bio mechanist geek like myself.

Marc Gwadz - co-promoter of DCCX

On Saturday, Arley Kemmerer, from C3-Athletes Serving Athletes, ran a women’s only cyclocross clinic at the DCCX venue. I don’t have any idea of the total number of women who ended up showing up, but it was sh*t load. I would venture a guess at between 40 and 50. Arley did a great job of leading the women through the course a section at time, giving tips on how to handle each section’s unique challenges. Arley and the DCCX crew that made this possible really deserve more than just kudos. The amount of women’s interest that was garnered from this clinic cannot be measured, but it can be estimated by the cat 4 women’s field size on Sunday, which was over 50! Great job, Arley! Thanks to Raul and Marc Gwadz and the rest of the DCCX crew who helped to ensure the clinic went off without a hitch.

After the clinic, many headed over to Eli Hengst’s bar and beer garden, the Blue Ridge, for number pick up and happy hour. I decided to fully enjoy my DC experience and make the journey over there. My GPS said it would take 15 minutes from C St NE to Wisconsin. Awesome. However, by the time I arrived at the Blue Ridge, I had contemplated abandoning the trip 10 to 15 times, my bladder was ready to explode if I thought about running water, and I was so ravenously hungry that I was contemplating eating McDonald's food. Enough said. In other words, the GPS was mistaken. It did not take into account that for some reason the traffic in DC from point to point along this route is beyond insane at 6 PM on a Saturday evening. Nor did it take into account that I would somehow manage to get behind every driver that was trying to take a left hand turn at an intersection where it is illegal from 7 to 7 during the week. It was a lovely ride (sarcasm should be plainly evident, yes?), and I listened to many chapters of my audio book, The Hunger Games. Unfortunately, once my bladder started talking to me, I couldn't listen to both at the same time - so I kind of tuned out the book.

Eventually I found the Blue Ridge, and I even managed to score some parking that was probably illegal, probably dangerous, but free (only if my car didn't end up getting towed, I guess). The crowd in the restaurant was lively, the beer was great - and once I convinced the waiter that I really was due a free appetizer per Eli's flier, the chili was outstanding! It was a great time. I am really not the go-out-to-bars type of girl. I'm more the have-people-over-and-drink-at-home type of girl. Stepping outside of my box was refreshing (but not so refreshing when I woke up on Sunday).

Sunday came, and I immediately started wrestling with whether or not I really wanted to race. I have been doing this a lot lately. I really love cyclocross. I love to watch it as much as I love to race it. Couple that with the lure of the beer tent and the opportunity to schmooze with my MABRA/MAC buds that I have been missing for so long since I moved north... and the beer won. I decided to be a spectator, a beer drinker, a socialite, an amateur photographer, a pit chick, a heckler, and an athletic trainer. Who knew I had so many talents?

Jennifer Pope - my wrist taping project for the day - scored 3rd in the stacked cat 3 Women's field (get an xray, Jenn!)

It was seriously one of the best days I have ever had. Marc Gwadz and Matt Donahue (below)

co-promoted one of the most spectacular events on the east coast - including UCI events. I am told there were some issues with the officials, but as a spectator (and my six other identities) I was blissfully unaware, so I won't comment here.

In short, I am very glad that I decided to take some time off work and drive south on route I95. It was well worth the pain.

Tim Pope - husband of Jen and winner of cat 3/4 35+ men's race!

Phil Esempio - endurance MTBer, lost 60 pounds this year! Did 2 races at DCCX, and a fit client of mine

Jim McNeely - who doesn't know the Unholy Roleur?

Bill Schieken, of In the Cross Hairs fame

Adventures for the Cure eventual tandem race winners, practicing their mounting strategy after a dropped chain

It was a spectacular day

The beer line was long

But the beer crew was so friendly it didn't matter

Darn you Chicken!

Kris Auer of C3 on his way to 2nd place in the elite master's race, holding on to the lead in the series!

Johnny May (r) and Mike Birner (l) - before Mike was taken out by an aggressive racer (will remain nameless in this forum...)

Jonathan Seibold - Family Bike Shop owner and generous sponsor of men's elite race at DCCX

The Lil' Belgians race was definitely a highlight for me - here Cadence Winfield (r) shows her spunk and determination that is likely genetic....

Djordje Minkovic (r) after recovering from collapsing after the elite master's race, man on left unknown - assisted, Kevin Horvath (c) supposed good friend of Djordje - stood there and lambasted him while he lay on the ground....

Arley Kemmerer, on her way to her repeat DCCX elite women's win

Arley and Deedee Winfield

Jenn Pope, sporting my awesome tape job, on her way to 3rd place (is she a Mo Bruno Roy look alike, or is it just me?)

The cat 4 women cross the barriers - nice form from these ladies that were at the clinic - 972 is Heather Heinrich

Kevin Horvath and I had too much fun working the elite men's pits!

Bike Fit - DCCX Inspired!

noreply@blogger.com (bethbikes) — Tue, 12 Oct 2010 14:51:00 +0000

www.cyclingcaptured.com

I will be travelling down south to the DC metro region to do DCCX on October 24th. I have decided to parlay that into a Retul bike fitting trip. I have five fit slots open - one on Friday the 22nd, one EARLY on Saturday morning (I have to make it to Arley's women's only clinic by 2 PM), and three openings on the 25th.

This will tell you about me, and what to expect during a Retul bike fit with me. I can provide references from many elite racers in the DC metro areas on request.

Contact me to schedule your bike fit!

bethbikes1@gmail.com

Back in the Saddle

noreply@blogger.com (bethbikes) — Mon, 04 Oct 2010 14:19:00 +0000

Kat Wulfkuhle on my wheel during Hillbilly Hustle

I tried to come around Lynda Maldonado at the end but she nipped me for 3rd

Photos courtesy of Dennis Smith at www.dennisbike.com

This past week it rained and rained, and then it rained some more. It was also my first week back to work since I got back from Iraq. After 2 months of leave, I have to say working again was a little bit of a shock to my system. I will have to re-establish my routines. I did not get on my bike once during the week. Most of that was because of the rain, but much of it was due to lack of motivation because of the rain. Going into the weekend I was not confident about my ability to put together a Saturday and Sunday at the races.

Saturday was Town Hall Cross in Bethlehem, PA. After my bad experience with the course in Rochester, NY, I was hoping for a flat venue. I guess I didn't understand the race flyer when it talked about "St. Luke's Staircase", that it wasn't actually a set of stairs. This staircase took up about 1/3 of the course, and was actually a climb that zig zagged back and forth, with a ride/run up leg burner at the summit. I looked at that when I was eyeballing the course, and I wanted to turn around and drive home. I thought to myself "crap, just like Rochester". When I did a lap, though, I was pleasantly surprised - although the climb was a gut check, the rest of the course was very technical and tons of fun (i.e., NOTHING like Rochester).

There were only a few women in the field that I knew, my prior teammate Diesel Diane Grim, Lisa Most, and Facebook friend Selene Yeager (whom I had never met in person before). Unfortunately, the start had us immediately going up St. Luke's Staircase, and the race was pretty well separated the first lap. I didn't really have a good feel for who was in front of me and who was behind me (or how many of each). I just did my best to establish my best possible position in the first lap, and then tried to maintain it. Andrea Lubbe of Human Zoom passed me like I was standing still on the staircase in the second lap (she ended up 3rd), but aside from her, I was able to maintain my position despite a hard charging Diesel engine on my a**. I finished 6th, and I was very happy with that (even though the payout was to 5).

Sunday's race was the Hillbilly Hustle in Elmer, NJ. This race is very near and dear to my heart for a couple of reasons:

It's flat
It is one of the few races I have ever won (Version 1 - 6 years ago)

The direction of the race was reversed this year, for the first time ever. In the past, almost immediately after the drag race start the course went into the woods for some very windy single track. If you had a bad start, you were SOL if you got behind some tentative riders. The new direction was more wide open. Coming in this direction, however, after about 1 minute there was a barrier and then a 15 foot mulch pile to climb. The amount of space between the barrier and the pile did not make remounting wise (especially since it was about 50/50 for a successful climb to the top of the pile while mounted). Our whole field elected to run the mulch pile on the first lap. Luckily I had a good start and was one of the first few to hit the pile, because people started running into each other behind me. I made my way over and there was a gap between those in front of me and myself. I worked on closing it. After lap 2 I was in a group with Lynda Maldonado and Kathleen Wulfkuhle and we had Laurie Webber and Michelle Bishop ahead of us. We were riding together and battling it out at the barriers and the mulch pile. I took the lead once for a nanosecond, and Lynda immediately motored past me again. I elected to sit on her wheel and wait until the finish. Kat was with us the whole way, and was hopping a log in the woods while Lynda and I took the escape route (Kat is bad ass). In the end, I started my sprint a hair too late, and was unable to come around Lynda. She got 3rd, and I got 4th, Kat was 5th. There were 16 in the cat 1,2,3 women's field.

I got some nice prize money from Hillbilly, but more importantly, I got some much needed confidence. I can't wait to race again next weekend!

About Beth Mason, PT - My Qualifications, My Specialty Areas, and What to Expect During a Fit

noreply@blogger.com (bethbikes) — Thu, 23 Sep 2010 17:11:00 +0000

If you are on Facebook these days (and who isn't, really - okay Meg, but she is an outlier), please come check out my page and specifically my new note I posted (titled as above). This will give you a good idea of what my bike fitting business is all about (new website is in the works, don't let the old one linked here turn you off too much, the new one is going to be awesome).

Okay - go HERE. Then check out the rest of the page on the wall, and if you see fit, "Like" it.
Hope to see you at the 'cross races or in my studio soon!

If you're not on Facebook, and are interested - email me and I will shoot you the text.

Long Road Back

noreply@blogger.com (bethbikes) — Mon, 13 Sep 2010 10:45:00 +0000

Argh. That pretty much describes my struggle to regain my fitness after returning from Iraq, battling with depression, illness, and generalized apathy and overeating to extremes. Here is a brief history of my weight/health/fitness issues on a timeline:

May 2009 - Began Paleo Diet for Athletes at 146 pounds and poor fitness
Dec 2009/Jan 2010 - Deployed to Iraq still on Paleo at 118 pounds after a great 'cross season, in the best mental and physical shape of my life at age 40
Feb 2010 - Dad passed away - depression set in, Paleo started to wane, 124 pounds
Mar 2010 - in Iraq - heavy depression - not paleo, but not eating, had completely stopped going to dining facility (DFAC) - 115 pounds, physicians I worked with took notice and had a little "intervention" with me. It helped.
Apr 2010 - I started occasionally going to DFAC to stock up on fruits for the week, trying to be as Paleo as possible in a pretty impossible Paleo environment. I also started working on CrossFit in addition to my running, riding, yoga, and occasional P90X workouts. I quickly started to add muscle to my lean frame. I stopped weighting myself when I hit 128 since I felt strong as an ox and invincible and felt like I looked better than I ever had before.
May 2010 - Still working on CrossFit, still gaining mass, no idea of weight. Took up barefoot running with Vibram Five Fingers. Despite quality of workouts and overall fitness improvements, my depression continues to deepen and soon I am evacuated from theater (see post that follows). Weight 138 - Solid. Super strong, but much bigger than I had intended.
June/July 2010 - Warrior Transition Unit (WTU) Ft. Drum, NY. - No motivation to continue CrossFit - the gym at Ft. Drum wasn't set up for it, nobody was doing it there except me, and I felt like an outcast. I rode my bike sporadically, but felt like an elephant on there. Hard to fit myself on my bike with all my bulk (muscle). My desire to workout waned. My 138 pounds solid turned into 148 pounds of mush by the end of July. Ugh.
Aug 2010 - Back home at West Point - Yay! and things are looking up. My depression was lifting like a cloud and things were getting much, much better. I was still having difficulties focusing on a regimented diet and workout, though. I seemed to be able to consistently hike - but not bike or run. I think this was primarily due to the fact that I had so much mass that my body just didn't feel comfortable squeezed on a bike, or pounding on a road. My weight was fluctuating between 142-148 (very telling of the lack of focus).
Late Aug-Early Sep 2010: Focus Attained. Paleo reinstated full on. Initiation of a Hunter Allen Training Peaks cyclocross coaching program of 8-10 hours per week (great plan!). Starting weight: 147. Set-backs: 2 weeks of a cold (still have the darn thing!), raging poison ivy requiring 9 days of Prednisone. Last day was yesterday. The good news is that now I will lose a couple of pounds of water (likely). The bad news is that I will suffer a post-Prednisone malaise of an indeterminate amount of time.
Current weight: 134
Current fitness: Shitty - but likely due to illness and all other factors above, and my body isn't quite adjusted to Paleo yet (typically there is about a 4 week adjustment period).
Goal weight: 120
First race: September 25th - Rohrbach's Ellison Park Cyclocross

Continued updates pending on Paleo path!

Finding Focus

noreply@blogger.com (bethbikes) — Sat, 04 Sep 2010 12:59:00 +0000

I left my family on January 4th, 2010, bound for Ft. Hood, Texas. There I would complete my pre-deployment training that I started in December, and then ship out to Mosul, Iraq to serve 180 days (so I thought) in a Combat Support Hospital running a Physical Therapy clinic. I was ready. I had been in the Army for 15 years, I had just completed my doctorate in Sports Medicine, my kids were in good hands in the care of their loving stay-at-home Dad, Jeff. There could be no better time to "check the box", so to speak (all Physical Therapist's in the Army will deploy at some point in their career).

The actual "goodbye" in the airport was the hardest thing I have ever done. I kissed my son, Tyler, aged 9 - and he said he might be as tall as me the next time I saw him. That started it. The tears flowed. Cadence, my baby girl, age 6, was next. God, I would miss her. Then my goodbye to my husband, Jeff. I thought he would be the easiest. It felt like we couldn't let go of each other. I have never cried so hard, or for so long in my life. The poor security people didn't know what to do with me, I was a blubbering mess. Somewhere between Newburgh, NY and Dallas, TX, the tears finally stopped flowing. The hole was still there, though. Something was definitely missing.

Time dragged at Fort Hood as we waited for our departure date. We completed some mandatory training, but mainly we just waited. I learned that Fort Hood is a large post in Texas that offers little in the way of excitement (of course, that is where I am destined to be stationed as of December of this year - yay!). Finally we got our departure date and time. We had to keep these secret due to operational security (opsec). We departed on a contract commercial airliner at approximately 2 am after hours of waiting in a staging facility with all of our gear. We passed through Maine and then Germany on our way to Kuwait. In Kuwait we repeated all of our pre-deployment training from December. We lived in mass tentage units, slept on canvas cots, and port-o-lets were our toilets. The port-o-lets were cleaned at approximately 8 am, and it was "safe" to use them until around 6 pm. After that...all bets were off.

My life changed forever in Kuwait. I was sitting in Starbucks (yes, we had a Starbucks there with Wifi) using my Wifi card. One of my "battle buddies" came up to me and said that the First Sergeant, Chaplain, and my direct supervisor were looking for me, and I needed to return to the tent "immediately". At once, I knew that my father had died. I guess it was the Chaplain being included in the group. My Dad was 69, and was a Type 1 diabetic who had suffered a number of complications over the past 10-15 years, to include bilateral lower limb amputations and multiple silent heart attacks. The last word I had gotten, however, he was doing well and was with my mother down in their summer place in Jupiter, FL. There was no doubt in my mind, though, this was the message I was going to get. I closed my laptop, and I was already starting to cry. As I started walking back toward the tent, the three people that I was told were looking for me were walking toward me, pity awash on their faces. I lost it. All sense of holding myself together was gone as I sobbed. They officially told me, and then it was real.

I left Kuwait to spend some time with my Mom down in Florida. My brother Bryan visited as well, and we had a good time. I didn't get to see Jeff or the kids, though. My mother decided to have my father cremated (he had died while on a business trip up to their winter home in MA), and to have a memorial service at a later time. After 5 days, I returned to the Middle East.

When I returned to the Kuwait, my unit had already moved forward and had taken up their position in Mosul, Iraq. It took me three long days to get there, complete with a lot of waiting around in staging facilities. When I finally made it I squeezed into my temporary Containerized Housing Unit (CHU) with my roommate and tried to settle in.

The Chaplain made attempts to comfort me, which I declined. I am not a religious person, and I was uncomfortable with the whole concept. I did, however, initiate counseling with Behavioral Health to help get through the grieving process. The psychiatrist there at the time was a great person who was very easy to open up to. He was very helpful.

Work was good. I was busy. In addition to patient care in the clinic, I was volunteering to cover sporting events to utilize my new skill set from my sports medicine doctorate degree. I spent about 5-10 hours per week at one of the gyms covering either basketball, volleyball or wrestling. I taped wrists and ankles prior to the games, and wrapped wrists and ankles after injuries. Then I would see the patients the next day in my clinic. A very seamless transition of patient care. It was a lot of fun, and working with the athletes was very rewarding.

Training in Iraq was challenging. I found out quickly that the terrain was not conducive to tubed tires. I went through all of my tubes in 1 week, and got in great workouts shouldering my bike and running it back to my CHU. I found out who all my great friends are, when showered with care packages of tubeless goodies and Paleo goodies to keep me true to my diet (which didn't survive there, by the way). Tubeless was the way to go, and after going tubeless, I was able to remain flat free for the rest of my tour.

Ah yes, my tour. My 180 day tour. I eventually did get my own CHU, which was lovely because I don't play well with others. But I digress. My 180 day tour. Without getting into all of the specifics of the bureaucracy behind it, suffice it to say that I went in believing I was going for 180 days, only to find out that I was going to be there for 365 days. In my already fragile emotional state, that news did not go over well. Around this same time, my psychiatrist that I was very happy with had finished his tour (of 180 days) and redeployed to the US. He was replaced with a gentleman that I became friendly with on a professional basis, but felt uncomfortable talking with about my problems. I still went to appointments, however, I just didn't say much, which was awkward. Things started to snowball with emotional events such as Mother's Day, and an email from my branch telling me that my 180 day tour had been approved. Later the same day I had another email from my Hospital Commander telling me the opposite. My emotions were mush. I shut down. I wouldn't talk to the psychiatrist. I couldn't sleep. Up for 48 hours, I couldn't really work either.

I asked for a day off to get myself together. Then it gets kind of surreal. After that, I was escorted to Behavioral Health, my weapon was taken away from me, and I was informed that I was being airevac'ed back to the US. I tried to ascertain why. I didn't understand why they were taking my weapon from me. The best answer that I got was that it was because I wasn't talking to them, so they didn't know what I was thinking, so they were worried about my intentions. Hmm. Funny, why didn't they just ask me? No, I had no intentions of doing harm to myself or others. That would've been much easier.

Within 24 hours I had to pack all of my belongings from CHU, mail back what I could (bike, trainer, extra wheel, Keurig - those were the most important things), and hope the rest of the stuff would catch up with me eventually. Then I was on a flight with a "non-medical escort" (i.e., a chaperon), on our way to Balad, and then to Germany. After Germany I was on my own, my escort was able to go back to Mosul. I flew on to Andrews, AFB, and finally to Ft. Drum, NY. I spent exactly one day in each location, so this epic journey took 4 days, but was energy sapping, because all of the flights occurred in the middle of the night.

Ft. Drum would be my home for the next 120 days or so. During my evacuation, I tested positive for a mild traumatic brain injury (TBI) on a testing tool. I had crashed my bicycle twice in Mosul resulting in visits to the ER and knocks to the noggin. Ft. Drum was the closest facility to West Point with a Warrior Transition Unit (WTU) with TBI care. Ft. Drum was not so close, however, at about a 5-5.5 hour drive.

The next two months were insanely frustrating for me, as the system at WTU seems to be one in need of some repair. I spent all of my time waiting for appointments. From day 1, it was clear to all that I didn't belong there, that I was a "return to duty" candidate. Yet, I had to wait for my clearance from a variety of players. In the mean time, I dressed in my uniform in the morning, went to formation at 7 am, went to appointments if I had them (usually I didn't), went to the gym at 3 pm for Physical Training, and went to formation at 4 pm to say goodbye to everyone (figuratively). Then I would maybe ride, maybe do nothing. Mostly I would sit in my room and be completely and utterly depressed. These were the worst two months of my life. I could find no rhythm. No focus. Nothing seemed to make sense in my life. Everything I had worked so hard for in my career seemed to have been undone by what had happened in Iraq, and I still didn't understand it.

After two months I got my clearance from my TBI doctor to return to duty. One week later (seven of the most frustrating days of my life), I drove away from Ft. Drum for good - I will never go back there.

As I reintegrated with my family, I had to try to learn how to be me again. I kind of lost that somewhere along the way. My ability to focus was still completely gone. I couldn't manage to string together more than 2 or 3 days on the bike, and had gained 20 pounds since returning from Iraq. I couldn't imagine actually going back to work, without this ability to focus on anything. I felt like a kid with ADHD, without any of the benefits of the hyperactivity.

Slowly, things have turned around. My family has been a HUGE help by being patient and caring. I went to a GREAT bike fitting course, that helped me get my brain wrapped around that again. I have had some spectacular clients lately and done some great fits, which has been tons of fun. I forgot how much I LOVE to do fits! Most importantly (in my life), I got myself back on a structured program of diet and exercise and that makes me a happier person. Physically, I feel better when I am on the paleo diet. Emotionally I feel better when I am on this diet and exercising regularly.

The cross bike is hooked up and ready to race. I am 1.5 weeks into training and nowhere near ready to race....physically. In spirit, I am ready and I really need to get out there, whether or not I get my ass kicked. Cyclocross is part of who I am, and part of who I lost when I was in Iraq.

I have been back on US soil for 3.5 months. This is the first time I have written about this since I have been back. I consider it part of my ongoing healing. Focused.

Kicking Ass and Taking Names On the Mountain with the Vibram Five Fingers KSO Treks

noreply@blogger.com (bethbikes) — Sat, 31 Jul 2010 16:41:00 +0000

This is the shoe

This is the mountain
...more mountain...

...and still more...(it's a really pretty mountain)

Today I decided to opt for a morning hike instead of a ride for a couple of reasons:

It was kind of chilly, and I didn't feel like donning arm warmers and possibly (egad) knee warmers
It is the last really sunny day on the 5 day forecast, and therefore the last opportunity I had to get a shot at a completely dry Breakneck Ridge. When slippery, this trail could be deadly.

I've done this hike about 8-10 times previously, usually during the week and early in the morning. I rarely run into other hikers. My times have ranged between 1 hour and 37 minutes and 2 hours and 20 minutes (my first time up). Today was a little bit different. I hit the trail on a Saturday, at 10:20 AM. The weather was perfect. There were 20 cars in the parking lot when I parked, and another 10 along the side of the road. Five more were at the trail head. It was sure to be a busy climb today.

Immediately upon entering the trail head the steepness of this trail hits you. After climbing a dirt and stone stair path for about 2 or 3 minutes, you round a bend and stare squarely up at a very intimidating rock and boulder climb that heads up for about 15 minutes. It is about 20 feet across, and offers many different options for ascending. Today when I rounded the bend and glanced up, I saw a bevy of hikers spread across the rocks ahead of me. Fun, I thought...victims. And I took off. My fitness isn't the best right now. I am coming off of some time off after my return from Iraq. Hiking is one of my venues toward regaining my fitness. None-the-less, my competitive nature is keenly intact, and I began to pass hiker after hiker as I ascended the rock climb. One thing I noticed as I went was how easily my Vibram Five Fingers Trek KSOs gripped the rock and conformed to small crevices, while hikers with bulky hiking boots struggled to find purchase.

Vibram Five Finger Trek KSOs

At the top of this very aerobically challenging ascent, the climb changes terrain slightly. It becomes short steep rock climbs combined with standard trail hiking. I continued to pass hikers. I passed approximately 80 to 100 hikers total before the end of the hike, and was not passed by anyone. In fairness - I knew the trail very well, and many out there were completely lost (yes, I tried to help those who seemed receptive). Also, I was running on the dirt trail portions, because I felt so good. I took only one photo today (the one of my shoe - the others are from previous hikes), so I was not slowed down by sight seeing. I also didn't light a cigarette at the summit like another hiker I passed. So there were many reasons I continued to pass hiker after hiker, but I have to tell you, my shoes were giving me wings.

I finished out the hike with about 10 minutes of trail running and a brief bit of road running to the car. I check my watch. One hour and 15 minutes. A new record.

Independence Day

noreply@blogger.com (bethbikes) — Sun, 04 Jul 2010 19:41:00 +0000

Independence Day - a day that means different things to different people.

Heck, Independence Day means something different to me this year than it did last year. I will tell anyone who asks that I don't believe in fate. By some strange twist of something, life finds me available to be with my family to spend time on this Independence Day, as opposed to Mosul, Iraq. I watch them now - my nuclear and extended family - some play croquet, some are swimming in the pond, some are fishing off the dock. I'm inside blogging. Personally - I really hate the heat and the bugs and prefer to be inside in the air conditioning if I'm not riding my bike or hiking. Maybe that makes me appear a little antisocial. But when my kids come in with their scraped knees I can clean their wounds and give them a hug. That is Independence.

Bear Mountain Bridge, NY

Breakneck Ridge Trail, Hudson Valley, NY - this and those that follow - most beautiful hike ever (besides Hawaii and Acadia National Park)

June Bike Fitting Session - LOCATION UPDATE

noreply@blogger.com (bethbikes) — Sun, 13 Jun 2010 11:49:00 +0000

The bike fitting sessions from the 26-30th of June in the DC metro region are definitely going to happen. Slots are filling up. The location has changed. I will be performing the fits in Arlington, exact location available to those who schedule a fit (i.e., this is Top Secret information for now, if you don't have a TS clearance you don't get the info).

If you are from the DC area and have been thinking about getting a "real" bike fit, this is your opportunity. If you need references, chances are I can provide you with the name of someone you know that I have fit that can tell you how their experience was.

Appointment times will be at 8:30, 11:00 and 4:00. Contact me directly to schedule.
bethbikes1@gmail.com

More Info

Back Down to DC to Bike Fit!

noreply@blogger.com (bethbikes) — Tue, 08 Jun 2010 23:00:00 +0000

Okay y'all, I'm finally back from Iraq and I have to get back into the swing of bike fitting. I have missed it! People looked at me pretty funny in Iraq when I said I was a bike fitter. I realized it took too long to explain, and just abandoned it all together. I decided if they needed that much tutelage, then they didn't really need to know. For those of you who DO know what it's all about - I am going to be making my trek down to the northern VA area (probably Herndon again) the 26th-30th of June. The Retul will be my focus, and I will be offering $250 fits. Contact me if you need a tune up - we work a special deal for that.

Spread the word. I also hope to hang out with my MidAtlantic brethren for some good rides and some good beer.
Contact me at bethbikes1@gmail.com for an appointment date and time, I am starting a list.

Handstand Pushups

noreply@blogger.com (bethbikes) — Fri, 30 Apr 2010 07:59:00 +0000

Yesterday I made my first attempt at handstand pushups. I hadn't done a headstand since high school, let alone a handstand. Yet I was determined to perform handstand pushups as part of my new fitness goals while here in Iraq. My first few attempts were meager, but they will get better. I have no doubts that by December I will be kicking some serious handstand pushup ass.

Different Than I Ever Was - Changing it Up to Keep it Interesting

noreply@blogger.com (bethbikes) — Tue, 27 Apr 2010 08:45:00 +0000

Shoes here not part of uniform, but appropriate for cleaning my bike - the brown t-shirt was allowed briefly when we first got here, but now we are relegated to just the Army grey PT shirt (not shown).

For the last 14 years of my life I have raced bikes. I am a bike racer. It is my identity, my "label", if you will. It goes along with "mom", and "wife", and "major", and "physical therapist". I am not a super star racer. In fact, I am in my waning years as an active competitor. When I deployed to Iraq, my identity as a racer was completely removed from my life. I brought my 'cross bike, a trainer, and I had the opportunity to ride outside and inside.

I rode every day, and sometimes two or three times a day. Due to the strict rules of the deployed environment, I had to wear my US Army PT uniform. I threw on a pair of bib shorts under my PT shorts to save my girlie bits, but I had to make sure I pulled up the leg bands high on my thigh so they wouldn't show. I was riding my 'cross bike about 200 miles per week, on primarily trap rock gravel surface.

I was in the ER twice (that would be the ER staffed with my co-workers, so I got to here about myself at morning report the following day as a "command interest" ER visit) for crashes. In a "normal" environment, I wouldn't have gone to the ER, but in Iraq - the dirt is teaming with bacteria that are foreign to our bodies, and are resistant to a lot of our antibiotics. I didn't want to risk getting infected because I was a wuss and didn't clean out a wound well enough. I went for the Brillo pad scrubs. Good stuff. These ER visits prompted our staff and command group here to come to the conclusion that:

A: I was a pretty shitty bike handler

B: I was a lunatic

(neither of which are true, in case you were wondering)

This is where I came to my conclusion. They didn't get it. They think I am just out there moseying along and I tip over or something. People don't understand what cyclocross is about, what type of bike handling you need to have. The folks here have no idea of the routes I was challenging myself with. They don't see this:

It was then that I started to question my identity. I look at this picture of myself (which I love, by the way), and it shows determination, concentration, balance, and crappy tire choice. I long to wear my Verge kits out in the open and flaunt my sun-screened leg muscles. That part of me was dead. I can't explain the hollow feeling I had inside when I came to terms with this.

There were a few weeks where I didn't work out much at all. I didn't eat much either. I lost a lot weight (for me, that was like 6 or 7 pounds over a few weeks - enough to have some of the female docs have a mini intervention because I wasn't going to the dining facility, etc). I was in morning for the loss of my sport. I had no physical goals.

Switch gears...(pun intended) I have been wanting to start getting into CrossFit since I deployed. When I got to Iraq, I was disappointed to find out that the big movement here is P90X (which I find highly disturbing, with the exception of the yoga workout). I tried to get into CrossFit from the website, but the internet here is beyond slow, so I was unable to download any of the .wmv or .mov files to learn the correct form for the exercises. I knew enough about CrossFit to know that if I tried stuff without knowing how to do it, I would end up seriously injured - so I begged off. About 5 weeks ago, I learned that one of my patients had all of the exercises on a hard drive, and got him to burn them to a DVD for me. That is when I started to change.

The metamorphosis has been slow. Day 1 of CrossFit was interesting. I went into the gym at 4 am to do 24" box jumps, kettlebell swings, burpees and double unders. My first attempt at anything was the box jump, and on my first repetition I swung and missed and lacerated my shin badly enough to need stitches. That was it for me for Week#1 of CrossFit. One failed attempt a box jump. Apparently - you aren't supposed to start with the 24" box. Who knew? Later that day, I ran into an acquaintance who told me that they were doing "CrossFit for Dummies" every day at 5:15 PM. Word travels fast on our FOB. That was his way of making a joke and telling me that they would help me out. Now I had a CrossFit crew.

About 10 days later I was ready to perform impact activity again, my sutures were out (although my wound was still oozing), and I was raring to go. CrossFit was ready to get going for real. I am now about 3-4 weeks in, and I have never felt like I feel right now. I weigh about 5 pounds more than the picture at the top, and it is all upper body muscle. My core is thick and solid, and my arms and shoulders are pretty ripped. My goals are:

Be able to do 10 pullups (I couldn't even come close to doing 1 when I started - I still can't do one, but I can 10 jumping pullups now - a huge gain)
Be able to jump up to the 24" box (I actually did this yesterday - YAY!)
Do a handstand pushup, supported (I haven't even attempted this one yet)

I was in the gym for 4 hours yesterday. Why? Because I had nothing better to do. I worked for 9, gym for 4, ping pong for 1...the rest was CHU time. My gym time consisted of 2 hours of P90X yoga (once at 4:15 AM, once at 5:30 PM), 2 miles of barefoot running, one killer CrossFit workout, some box jumps and various other things I threw in for shits and giggles. I will try to get a picture taken as a before and after comparison sometime soon.

MONDAY 100426

For time:
50 Wall ball shots, 20 pound ball
10 Muscle-ups
40 Wall ball shots, 20 pound ball
8 Muscle-ups
30 Wall ball shots, 20 pound ball
6 Muscle-ups
20 Wall ball shots, 20 pound ball
4 Muscle-ups
10 Wall ball shots, 20 pound ball
2 Muscle-ups

Forgetting Iraq

noreply@blogger.com (bethbikes) — Sat, 10 Apr 2010 05:05:00 +0000

It is 0800 in Mosul. It is about 58 degrees outside -bright, sunny and clear - and the birds are singing. I'm lying on my bed in my CHU (Containerized Housing Unit). This is my 20'x12' cell, er...room, for a year.

When I want to (which seems like most of the time lately), I can completely shut myself out from the outside world in here. There are two windows in here. One faces the public, and the other faces the backside of other CHUs. They are both constructed in order to open either in a swing in, door-type of fashion, or a tilt-in manner. One of mine works (the public one). Both windows have blackout blinds that run on the outside. When these are down, if there are no lights on in the CHU, you can not tell if it is day or night outside. They are WONDERFUL for sleeping. They are also very good for piece of mind on privacy when changing, etc. Nobody can see into the CHUs.

My typical day in Mosul involves getting up around 0400, going to the gym and working out, showering, getting to work (the hospital is about 30 feet from my CHU) by 0630 to check work email from after hours, 0700 -0800 meetings, 0800-1600 or 1700 (4 or 5) patient care. Usually I will go straight to the gym and do crossfit after work, then come back to my CHU and eat (i.e., drink a protein shake). Sometimes I get to ride at lunch if we aren't busy, and sometimes I ride in the morning on my trainer instead of the gym.

When I get back in from the gym and after filling up from my expansive dinner, I enter my CHU world. Windows closed, blinds drawn. I may watch movies I have downloaded or bought for $2 at the Hadji shops, or watch a Lost or Survivor episode I have downloaded. I will read my Kindle (thanks again, Mom!), and I will Facebook surf and email and IM friends from afar (thanks to all of you that still remember me and think about me!). Around 10 PM, I will get to Skype with Jeff and the kids after they get back from school. The kids have been SO animated during Skyping lately, it has been awesome. They are really keeping me going.

During my CHU time, I pretty much try to forget that I am in Iraq. That never works when you start to hear the siren going off that warns of incoming mortars and you have to jump into the bunkers at 11 PM. You definitely know you are in Iraq then. You also know you are in Iraq when someone comes pounding on your door yelling "trauma", and the events that follow in the hospital don't ever happen at West Point or Fort Meade. There are internet blackouts that are controlled and occur for a period of time between 18 - 72 hours. There are specific reasons that the internet is secured and I won't go into that here. During those times, lots of Kindle. Hard to forget you are in Iraq.

The blackouts and the traumas all have a way of putting things back in perspective for me. Yes, it sucks to be away from my family, away from racing, away from my crock pot for normal Paleo Diet eating - but I am still here. I live and go to work in a pretty safe environment every day. I can ride my bike here. I can go to the gym. I can shower three times a day if I work out three times a day. The soldiers that I treat everyday go "outside the wire" on a regular basis. If you want to know what I'm talking about, watch the Hurt Locker. Not everyone is an EOD specialist (explosives ordnance disposal), but any travel outside the wire in a wheeled vehicle is a risk for IED (improvised explosive device - blast) exposure.

I opened up my window this morning (tilted in), cracked my blinds a wee bit to let in some sun shine, and I lay on my bed and listened to the birds singing. Iraq.