Just got home from listening to my dad’s band play.
All my life my dad has been in one band or another, good bands, great bands, brilliant bands, but I was always too young or too cool to really pay attention.
Pops has the kind of taste in music that Rolling Stone hires as a contributing editor. He always knows what’s cool from the past and what’s going to hit big in the future. Never conforms to trends and just plays good deep down dirty soul music. The older I get the more I realize that his musical ED as a child has influenced me more than I ever wished to admit.
I grew up in Austin, Texas, also known as “The Live Music Capitol of the World” and more than lives up to that name.
Austin shaped much of my personality and now that I don’t live there anymore I feel like I was given a gift I didn’t appreciate till I lost.
Anyhow, as a drummer, my Dad is the master of controlling the mood and tempo of the music, thus controlling how fast people drink and get to dancing.
Tonight I felt like I was in the movie “Eddie and the Cruisers.” If you’ve never seen it or any of it’s sequels, it’s worth it. Really good. Honest.
Tonight was possibly one of the dawning moments in my adult life. SHIT! My dad is pretty damn cool…
There were around 30 people crowded onto a tiny dance floor (and a bar load of people dancing in their seats) going crazy over Hank Williams, Roy Orbison and Little Feat. Throw in a bit of their own stuff, which happens to be pretty great, those songs that you just can’t get out of your head, and the place was going crazy.
I couldn’t stop smiling, I was proud of him, like I’m sure he’s proud of me watching me race…
I realized tonight that I’ve grown up. My dad and I are no longer at odds. We are no longer just father and daughter. We are friends.
I can’t stop crying.

I just received breaking news from a good source that T Mobile has ended their sponsorship with immediate effect for both the men’s and women’s teams. It’s not yet posted on Cyclingnews.com or Velonews.com (at this moment) however here is the press release-

“Deutsche Telekom AG has elected to end sponsorship of professional
cycling with immediate effect. This decision was taken by the Board of
Management of the Bonn-based telecommunications group, which had
been a sponsor of professional cycling since 1991. Sponsorship of
both the men’s and women’s teams is ended with this action.”

R.I.P. Deutsche Telekom/ T Mobile 1991 to 2007

If that isn’t a wakeup call to you cheaters out there I have no idea what is. Better days.

Woke up at 3 AM Sunday morning in severe pain. My right tonsil was swollen to what felt like the size of a baseball. Spent the next 5 hrs writhing in pain, crying and drooling because I couldn’t swallow. Nice.

Every year at this time I get a nagging sore throat due to allergies here in Florida. I go to a holistic doctor to get acupuncture and some homeopathic remedies (I like to avoid antibiotics as much as possible as they always leave me feeling lethargic and empty on the bike) which in the past have helped immensely. This was a whole different story though.

My mom drove me to the ER at 8 am where the doctor informed me that I had tonsillitis and that since I couldn’t swallow pills he would give me an antibiotic shot as well as a painkiller/anti inflammatory shot to ease the pain. In the ass. Of course.

I find it amusing how, as a cyclist, I enjoy suffering on a bike for many hours a week. I relish the pain even, but stick two little needles in my butt and I’m a sniveling cry baby holding my mommy’s hand. Makes no sense to me.

Anyhow, all of this means a little time off the bike. I’m going crazy without it but Cody keeps telling me to just use the time wisely to mentally prepare and train for next year… Good advice in theory but much harder to put into practice.

Not much else to say, I’m a bit tapped out right now so I’ll just leave you with one of my favorite quotes about bikes-

“Get a bicycle. You will not regret it. If you live.” – Mark Twain

I have a sore throat.
Wanna see???

(OK, I’m exaggerating a bit…)

If you could fall in love with someone based on just one body part…
I’ve found my future husband. Perfection.
No clue who it is though.

Warning- this post is rated R!

I found this website a while back and laughed so hard I almost puked. Wow. That’s all. Just wow.

See for yourself! (Again, if you are easily offended or under 18 DO NOT CLICK THE LINK!)

It’s true. It was sewn up after surgery.
I’m a sucker for random trivial facts along those lines.

Windmills always turn counter-clockwise. Except for the windmills in Ireland.
I have no idea why though…

Bats always turn left when exiting a cave.

It’s impossible to lick your elbow.

The phrase “rule of thumb” is derived from an old English law which
stated that you couldn’t beat your wife with anything wider than your thumb.

Both Hitler and Napoleon were missing one testicle. (Hmmm, since this is a cycling blog I’ll just leave my comments at that…)

Leonardo De Vinci invented the scissors.

Termites eat wood twice as fast when listening to heavy metal music.

When young and impoverished, Pablo Picasso kept warm by burning his own paintings.

And last but not least, 75% of you tried to lick your elbow. (it is actually possible for some people to lick their own elbows.)

Alrighty, I’m off to Key West for 4 days! Talk soon.

Lizzer

Pep rallies.
Growing up in Texas meant numerous trips to the gym before “the big game” to get pumped up for our team, in my case, the Leander Lions. Bleachers would fill with rows of students sectioned off according to popularity levels, looking like crayons in a box. Some of us a little disheveled yet still colorful.

I always dreaded pep rallies, I didn’t fit into any particular group and most of my friends were home schooled. In my entire student career, I never went to a single dance or football game so the cheering was lost on me. Normally I would read a book or try to sneak out early and walk home. School spirit? Not me!

Until now. No, Vanderkitten isn’t a school per se, although I have learned more about myself in
the past year than I have in most of my life. I’ve had 2 amazing teachers in Dave and Mark and really learned some big lessons about myself and life. Things that will serve me well and I will carry with me for the rest of my time on earth.

So why am I feeling the team spirit now? Because of this-

My first contract with an Elite team.

It’s so much more than that though. Vanderkitten is a family to me, it’s tangible evidence of the hard work that Dave, Mark and I have put into this dream. I’ve been racing for two seasons now, without any teammates and have posted some pretty good results. The total belief in me that the guys have shown, enough that they decided to sponsor a pro team, is pretty overwhelming and I intend to repay them in kind.

In the past few months we’ve been extremely lucky to find two people who also believe in the dream of Vanderkitten as much as we do, my favorite girl on a bike, Leigh Valletti and Scott Gross, our new Director Sportif. Leigh and I met a year ago through our mutual friend Eric Murphy and immediately got on like a house on fire. She’s tough, strong, funny, smart and not to mention a hottie! I can’t wait to have her yelling at me during races, I know I’ll learn so much from her. Scott is a legend in his own right, he’s been involved with cycling for years, worked with 7-11 back in the day and will bring so much experience and knowledge to the team that I may have to start calling him “Yoda.” They have both been an integral part of putting this team together, pounding the proverbial pavement to pull in sponsors and search for the extraordinary talent that will make the team one of the best in the country.

Speaking of talent, we’ve signed some awesome women, but I’ll leave that announcement up to Scott and the team press releases. Let’s just say I’m thrilled to wear the Vanderkitten colors with these girls! Keep your eyes open for the 2008 roster along with some big time sponsor announcements in the next few weeks. Big things are happening!

Team spirit? Hell yes! This is a team I can be proud of.

See you at the races!

Lizzer