Recently I was reading the April issue of National Geographic, which focuses on the looming dangers of fishing our seas bereft of the little (and big) fishes that provide invaluable jobs, important sources of nutrition, and leisurely activities for so many people. Being concerned about the future of our land, air and waters, I have taken one small step to look into the websites that NG has provided as places to gather information about which fish are best and worst to consume regarding their sustainbability in our seas and the nutrients they provide (and the contaminents prevalent in certain fish). To help maintain our oceans with an abundance of fish vital to the environment, economy and health of our world, check out these websites to help you make more informed decisions about the fish you buy/eat at restaurants or the local supermarket: Monterey Bay Aquarium…www.mbayaq.org/cr/seafoodwatch.asp; Environmental Defense…www.oceansalive.org/eat.cfm; Marine Stewardship Council…www.eng/msc.org

FYI, there’s a short and sweet article (with cool photos) about a mother leopard and her cub in this issue, too.

-Mer

What better reason to bring good friends together than to share tasty wines and melt-in-your-mouth cheeses? That’s what we did last night, hosted a wine and cheese party for several of our good friends. Each couple was asked to bring a wine and cheese of their choice and at the end of the night the group took a democratic vote for the best wine, the best cheese and the best wine/cheese combo. With the pressure on, each couple did an outstanding job of picking flavorful wines that had a good nose and palate and cheeses that really did melt in the mouth. The wines of the night were a Drylands Sauvignon Blanc (NZ), a Sebastiani Pinot Noir (CA), an Amancaya Malbec/Cab blend (Argentina), a Semillon, a Port and several different barley wines brought by the one person who doesn’t enjoy wine as much as the rest of us. Along with each wine, each couple also presented a cheese to match their wine - the Sauvignon was served with a goat cheese from the local Boulder dairy, Haystack Mountain, called Haystack Peak; the Pinot was served with a Manchego, a sheep’s milk product from Spain; an English double gloucester was paired with the Amancaya; Humboldt Fog goat’s cheese from CA matched the Semillon; a gloucester/blue cheese mix accompanied the barley wines; and a pear, walnut and blue cheese concoction delighted the senses, helping me forget the taste of port on my tongue. After many lip smacking tastes of the delectable wines and cheeses, the gavel came down and it was time to vote for the best in show. Taking home the prize for best wine of the night was the Sauvignon Blanc, Humboldt Fog took the honors for best cheese, and, believe it or not, accolades for best wine/cheese combo went to the barley wine and gloucester/blue cheese pairing. Good times, good people, and good wine and cheese.

Spring was definitely in the air today, making it a perfect day for a leisurely roll on the bike, eating ice cream in the sun, and stopping to watch the action on the CSU campus - women’s lacrosse and softball. Being an avid sports fan, I look forward to the excitement and hustle that the spring sports will bring to the campus. It might not be long before I am coerced into kicking a soccer ball around on the club fields myself. I really do miss that game.

For now I’ll keep my focus on the upcoming races in Europe (the old women’s soccer leagues aren’t too far off for me so I guess I can wait). Wednesday I depart for Frankfurt where I’ll be met by Lipton staff before heading on to Holland for our first race, Gelderland. Then it’s on to Tuscana for 4 races. Wish us luck!!

Cheers
Meredith

Who would have thought that I would be outside washing my car this afternoon? With all the snow, winds, drifts, and ugly, ugly weather that was predicted to pound the roads and rooftops today, I thought I would be bundled up on the couch sipping hot tea by the fire while dreaming of white, sandy beaches. Yet, as I wearily peeked out the window this morning, I found myself staring in utter (but relieved) disbelief when there was not one single flake of snow on the ground. Not one. This morning wasn’t particularly pleasant, grey skies were still looming over the horizon, but the roads were dry and the clouds seemed to be fading fast, which meant that I was able to make my appt in Denver with Lee without endangering myself on treacherous roads. Good thing, too, because I always leave Lee feeling like a million bucks!

Funny to think now that we all imagined we would be up to our eyeballs in snow again today, because gazing out the window now I see nothing but blue sky. Perfect day for washing the car! And, today’s turn of weather promises mint conditions tomorrow for those racing Boulder Roubaix. Giddy up!

Don’t forget to watch for tomorrow’s results from the women’s Coupe de Monde - Ronde van Drenthe!

Give it up for storm fronts turning south.

-Mer

Alright, call me what you will (wuss, soft, weak all comes to mind), but I couldn’t stand the wind anymore today so I opted to do my intervals on the trainer today. Listen, I am not some light weight, waif of a woman and when I almost get blown off into the ditch, that’s it. Done. I turned my front wheel towards home, fighting to keep my bike upright the whole way, at times coming to a stand still lest I ride off through the fields (and everything that comes along with them) if I dare move one more inch. Last week when I did this workout, my legs were smashed from the efforts and my upper body was just as fatigued from fighting the wind. So, you know, I am over it. I think my teammates had better weather in Belgium this past weekend!! Go figure.

Speaking of my teammates, I want to throw out a big props to them for their huge effort at Ronde van Vlaanderen on Sunday. Having done this race myself once before, I can tell you first hand that much luck is needed to stay in contention, as is true with any bike race really, but especially RVV. And as luck would have it, my teammate Lauren was caught up in a crash early in the race and with Nicole Cooke and her team caning it at the front the peloton was long gone in a matter of seconds. Lauren’s race ended abruptly and without her consent, of course, but it is what it is in bike racing. Things went a little more according to plan for Kristin. Actually, this being her first race back after knee surgery (can you imagine RVV being your first race of the season??), I am not sure she really had a plan, besides staying safe, so she was happy to cross the finish line in the first chase group. Both of these women train hard, are exceptionally determined and race well in Europe, which makes me believe that in the upcoming World Cups (Fleche and Drenthe) Lauren and Kristin will prove their strength on the pave and climbs of Holland and Belgium! Good luck to them and the rest of the US National Team!!

It’s time for me to sign off so I can get a little Rage DVD action going for Ben as he hits the rollers. I’m not the only one who packed it in on the roads today.

“Cuz we’re the renegades of funk”!

-Mer

So, with the snow falling yet again today, the trainer was just screaming my name. As much as I tried to ignore it, the screaming in my head got too loud, causing me to ride that damn thing another day. Is this madness ever going to stop? CO natives have sworn that this winter has been anything but “normal”, seemingly getting less and less normal with each passing day.

Yesterday we watched the US Open, today we watched the ‘05 TdF - the TdF edition when Rasmussen rode the final TT like he’d just learned how to ride a bike. Alright, the intimidation of having Jan breathing down your neck, trying to bump you off the podium, would be incredibly powerful, but that man’s nerves were jumping out of his skin! Maybe if the little skinny dude would eat a sandwich, he could hold his bike upright!

I hope all ya’ll are having a great Easter weekend!

-Smurf