My first race experience with Tay and PB!

I couldn't get through this weekend without saying something about this biking stuff! Being in Redlands has given me a whole different perspective on why Tay loves this so much. Besides her being amazing at it, the team and the environment are not too shabby either.

We watched the road race yesterday, it was hot! I didn't mind because I was anxious to see the sun, but it was rough on all the riders!

From start to finish, what a great experience! It reminded me of when I've run races! You get those butterflies in your chest that kind of come up your throat with excitement. You listen to the music pumpin' and listen to the announcers. We listened to the announcer introduce the top 15 riders, both men and women, as they lined up. We watched the men first, and then they took off. Women coming next.....my muscles were tense, I get crazy excited for this stuff. Ahhhhhh, so fun! Anyway, a couple of things impressed me. Tay and PB entered the line up from the opposite side of the street. I don't know if this was for an intimidation factor or just for positioning but it was cool nonetheless. So they roll up to the line.....T-dub right up front with three of her teammates. The other teammates are split up throughout the group. I don't completely understand the stategy, but I'm learning more all the time. I will say this though, Tay had her game face on boy! I freaking love that, it was all business. She was ready to rock! I love the fact that she looked like she was not going to be distracted. That's hard to do, especially when there are more camera people than I've ever seen. They are constantly in the girls faces, running around like little busy bees, snapping shots. It's pretty funny. There was a press tent, people with microphones doing interviews, it was a total trip.

So they get ready to start, and we start banging on the boards lining the course and hollering at the riders, the crowd got going. What an overwhelming feeling of pride I felt for her. You know, I don't consider myself a booby person, but this stuff brings the tears man! What a swell of emotion to watch this, I couldn't help but cry and cheer at the same time. They did three laps so we watched them come by about 2 miles from the finish on the first two laps. That was fun because it was just Rick and I chillin' in the middle of this neighborhood with our books and camp chairs. Then we headed back to the end. The finish was cool to watch because those girls work so hard all the way in. I had another weeping moment watching her come in, I can't believe that's my kid. This awesome girl, riding with the top racers in the sport, and I get to be a part of her world. I love her dearly and am thrilled she gets to participate in this. I am grateful today, that I am a part of two girls lives whom I love dearly. I am overly proud of my daughters, they are wonderful people and hard workers. I am thankful to them for letting me be a part of their lives. I have a wonderful life and I owe them and their wonderful dad for a lot of that.

We are headed to the crit today, I'm looking forward to more excitement! Me seeing this was long over due! I'm loving it, wish I could follow her around all the time!