First East Coast Rides and Turkey Trot Report!

Well I have been a busy lady! I thought I would have time to blog more in Jersey, not so much. But that is because I have been doing lots of fun things and also walking so much that I am pretty sure I have shin splints. What can I say, lots of walking happening here!

So it has been so much fun. I took the train (neat!! Yes I am a dork) out to Glen Ridge, New Jersey for the Ashenfelter 8k on Thursday. I met some very nice people there who have taken me under their wings for training purposes. I had to take kind of an early train so I took a few snaps.

 Cute little town!! I love the East Coast. Everything is so different.

The 8k itself was lots of fun and I feel that I ran pretty well. The first mile was really crowded but after that things opened up and I turned it up a little bit. Per my Garmin I averaged 6:50 pace, and considering that my first mile was 7:36 I am happy! I got a mug for being in the top 100 females. What a nice touch. The weather was perfect so that was a bonus. I swear I am getting spoiled by all the great weather here.
After a great Thanksgiving dinner up in Westchester, we spent the night in Norwalk and I rode from there (Norwalk is in Connecticut. Generally most days I end up in at least two states and a few days three!). My bike was excited to explore more of Connecticut, and I was excited to ride my tri bike for the first time since the Ironman. No I did not remove it from its box before moving. I am lazy.
Riding in Connecticut was great. However I did not do the route I planned because none of the road names from the internet were the same as the real roads. That is what happens when you ride on really, really old roads! It was fun though. Very different from Colorado - all rollers, no long climbs. I found the beach too. That was awesome.

It was a beautiful day. I rode for around two hours just kind of putzing around and having fun. Then I drove through two states and attempted to get a New Jersey driver's license. I was not successful but I will get 'em next time!
Today I went for a fun ride with New Jersey people. They were great and we had a very nice ride. Oddly enough we rode exactly by a town I did some work in about five years ago. That was weird! The weather was amazing. We rode on rollers. There were lots of cars. I took pictures! First this is Dan's behind. I saw a lot of this on the ride! He is a beast.

 You can see that it is pretty but all the leaves are pretty much gone. I cannot wait to do this ride in the spring. CANNOT wait!!!! I love trees. Here is a decent self-portrait I did while riding. Clearly my time off the bike has actually improved my photography skills.

I do not think New Jersey people are used to me yet. They are all like 'you smile a lot!!!' Ha, yes I do, people, yes I do. I just still can't believe I got to move across the country. It is so great. I am very lucky!!! After the ride today I still wanted to swim but walking everywhere takes forever so I took my road bike on an adventure! We went on the PATH train to Manhattan and then to the gym. Here is my bike on Chelsea Pier.

I only almost got run over by one cab. Not bad actually considering. I think everyone on the train thought I was bonkers but I was one of three people on the train with a bike so I didn't feel that bad. Carrying a bicycle over turnstiles and up and down stairs is good exercise! I have decided that once my mountain bike is sold I am buying a single speed bike. I really need a bike that is good for commuting longer distances than my cruiser, that is not a fancy carbon road bike that I worry will be stolen. Therefore I think a single speed would be ideal.

In other news I am just loving it here. It is so much fun. I seriously can't believe I get to do it. Tomorrow I am going into the city and doing my long run up to and around Central Park, then I am swimming, and putzing around until Brian comes into the city and then we will go to Chinatown and do fun things. I can't wait!! I will try to take pictures.