Some people have been asking me lately, why it is that I wanted to be a part of the Ride to Conquer Cancer. Yes, I've mentioned on my fundraising profile that I'm riding in memory of my grandmother and in dedication to a few people in my life who are fighters and survivors. That's all very true.

Then I mention that I'm riding it for me. That's very true as well.

What I don't go into detail of, is why I'm riding it for me.

I can say all of those inspirational lines, such as "to prove how strong I am" or "to do something good in this world..." and neither would be false. I am doing the ride to prove to myself just how much I can do and to do something good. My karma cup is feeling pretty low these days. But those aren't the real reasons I'm doing this ride.

I'm doing it because I too, have had a close encounter (too close for comfort) with cancer.

Sunday was an eventful day; my cycling team hosted a race up Mount Seymour.

I know, sounds fun, right?!

Racers gather in their respective categories, then race as fast as they can, lungs burning, muscles screaming, to the top of the mountain. Whoever gets there first, is the winner. Of course, anyone who finishes the race, is awesome too.

It's a 12 km ride up the mountain with nearly 900m of elevation gain. Whatever you do, don't forget to start your Garmin before you begin the climb --- don't forget, like I did!

So, where was I? Back to Sunday!

My morning started early (5 am) so that I could get myself, my dog, and my bike organized in time to pick up my lovely friend who volunteered her time to help at the event (big thank you!!). We were at the bottom of the mountain just after 7 am to help with the race set up. Winston was pretty excited to be out and exploring, taking in all the aromas of North Vancouver.

We had the registration table open at 8 am and cyclists were already started to trickle in.

At 9:30, the first wave of cyclists departed from the start line and began their race up Seymour. My partner was in that race, with the cat-4 men. He achieved a personal record on his climb, and placed in second in his category! So proud of him!

At 10:10, we - the women - took our start. There were 8 or 9 of us in total, which is large in comparison to some races. I hadn't had a chance to even really warm up, having just tossed the wheels back on the bike and managed to change right before the start time. My legs were slightly sore from the Gibson's Grind the day before, but I knew they would warm up in time. I had no intention of sprinting from the start line anyways!

I did the climb in 1:00 hour and a few seconds. This shaved 10 minutes off of my personal best!...which I only achieved about a month ago! I placed second in my category as well (women's cat-4), so I'm pretty happy with the results and my performance. I had a goal of keeping my speed above 10km/hr all the way up, and I manged to do just about that. Seeing everyone's speed and pace on the results after the race made me realize just how much harder that I can and need to, push myself. I was just barely suffering, if at all, on my climb. I would like to shave another 10 minutes off of my time before the end of 2016., and have a comfortable climbing time just under 50 minutes by next summer.

I was really impressed with all of the riders who came out to race up Mt Seymour. We had riders of various ability levels and experience, all taking a chance. It's great to see more women getting out and riding and racing too!

As I do with any race, I realize how much further I have to go. I have so much more room for improvement, it's crazy! The other women who rode up the mountain have given me a bit of inspiration to push harder and climb faster on my next ride.

Have you ever done the Mt Seymour hill climb? What was your time? What was your favourite part of the ride?

Some pictures of me getting to the top of the road - finished the climb!

To start off, I just had a nice, relaxing long weekend.

I spent the last few days on Vancouver Island with my two favourite men. We camped in Tofino, hiked beaches, drank Tofino's locally made beer, cooked gourmet meals over the camp fire, slept on the ground (I, literally did...my camping mat had a hole), and were guests at a good friend of mine's wedding at a private beach. It was a beautiful weekend. Not only did my man dress up in a dress shirt and pants, but my dog wore a bow tie!

We came back and got back into our normal routine for Monday. I had hoped to go for a ride since we hadn't been on bikes all weekend, but our bodies just said 'no.' We listened.

Come Tuesday, I was itching to be out on my bike. It was one of those mornings where you just want to call in sick so that you can spend all day riding and adventuring. Ok, that's everyday. Who am I kidding?

After work the sun was shining and the summer weather felt amazing! We rode to Glenlyon and spent the pre-race minutes warming up.

Lined up for the women's cat-4 6:30 P.M. race time, and I could feel my tummy grumbling and being unhappy. It was a long day for me at work - due to working outside the office, I missed lunch. I tried to gobble down some food at 5 P.M. before riding to the race....bad idea!!

The women's cat-4 group headed out, following behind the cat-4 and cat-5 men.

The pace on the ride out to the first corner was pretty fast, which was unusual.

I managed to spend my time at all sorts of different positions, trying to keep an eye on the series points leader for our category - watching her movements. I figure I still have a lot to learn from some of these women.

We were passed by one of the men's groups and did a much better job at neutralizing as a pack this time. Still not perfect.

We didn't really have any laps mentioned on the lap board until we got to the last lap. I figured that at our current pace, this would be plenty of time to get myself moved up a few positions. I wanted to finish in the top ten this time...

I could hear the Pender Racing girls yelling at each other to form a line so they could pull through as a team. Everyone else seemed silent and concentrated. As we neared the final corner before the home stretch, I made sure to find a comfortable spot mid-pack.  After turning the corner, I noticed a group of women forming a four-pack and moving up and away from the front together. I was comfortably in the top ten at this point, but I decided to jump in with the four of them. Why not go for a top five?

Still, nearly at the finish line and although the pace had quickened, it was not nearly a sprint.

So, I did what any young, eager, inexperienced racer would.

I jumped out in front of the group and started to sprint.

As fast and hard as my legs would take me. Hands in the drops. Pain face game on.

I sprinted.

And sprinted.

And then I realized just how far away the finish line was.

So I kept sprinting.

And a girl jumped out from behind me and took the lead.

I didn't pay much attention. I couldn't give up at this paint. I told my legs to shut-up.

Another girl came up beside me, and we challenged each other to the finish line.

She made it ahead of me by inches! Just inches! And secured herself a second place finish.

I happily, and exhaustedly, settled into third place.

My body felt as if it had exploded, but I was so happy! Yes, I may have been premature on my sprint to the finish, but I gave it my best shot. By no means am I the fastest women in that racing category, but I kept the idea of strategy in the front of my mind for that race. I experimented and took advantage of the opportunity. And it paid off.

So, I'm happy to be on the points board. I don't expect to finish like that every race, but I'd be pretty happy to stay in the top ten.

Next week is the UBC crit.

#bringiton

P.S. Yes, I know. "Exhaustedly" is not a real word.

It was almost a year ago that I bought my first road bike, slid into some Lycra and learned how to clip into and out of the pedals. It's crazy to think how much can go by in just one year.

When I bought my road bike, I had one goal in mind - completing the Whistler Gran Fondo. I set myself a training plan, got on that bike, and rode, and rode, and rode. I completed the Whistler Gran Fondo no problem, and with energy to spare. Training to get to the point of readiness was not a hard feat - once I had my mind set, I realized I could do anything!

The whole process of setting a goal, making a plan and seeing it through to the end was amazing! I felt empowered, I felt healthy, I felt mentally strong. With each bike ride, I could feel myself growing stronger, and I felt more determined to ride farther than the last ride. That's not to say I didn't have my off-days - trust me, I had them - but I didn't let those off-days derail me from the plan for long.

Road cycling eventually turned into cyclocross (CX) racing (of which, I am now completely in love with!) and discovering that I really do have a competitive side. After nearly a full season of CX racing in the beginner category, and placing no lower than 5th place in all my races (including Provincial's Master's 30+), I plan to continue training for and racing CX, and move into the Intermediate category...and, hopefully, with hard work and determination, move up into racing Elite.

It's incredible what you can do once you put your mind to it. You are so much more powerful than you realize. It's for this reason, that I have set myself a new goal - to ride the 4 Peaks 4 Parkinson's 2016.

The ride isn't a race - it's just a ride - but it includes riding up four rather long hills: SFU mountain, Seymour Mountain, Grouse Mountain and Cypress Mountain...all in one day. It's a gruelling 140km ride with 3,000 m of elevation. This will be the longest and hardest ride I've done, to date. I have 8 weeks to train, and I've been pretty dormant all winter - so my mileage is pretty low. I've set myself a training plan in order to succeed, and I have the help of my boyfriend (along with my stubbornness) to get me to that goal!

I'll be sharing my training plan online, as well as my nutrition and diet regime. On my Instagram, I'll share photos along the way. It's a charity ride, and I'll be seeking donations towards the cause very soon.

I'd love to hear what you've been doing, what goals you've been setting and how much you've impressed yourself when you've stuck to those goals. Tell me about it in the comments.