Hey there Newsletter readers,

IT’S RACE WEEEEEK! You might be thinking, “What is she talking about? Marbella is in November!?!”. I decided to throw in an extra race this fall as a bit of a dry run for the World Champs. It’s this weekend, and you’ll have to find your way below the fold to get the details!

Since you’ll all be eager to hear of the race, I’ll skip the yappity yap up here and get to cruising through the latest and greatest hits from the website since we last chatted… cough cough Strava Drama.

Quick thanks again to Arch Design Works for their support of this week’s edition of the Newsletter!

First up, we have the Suunto Vertical 2 In-Depth Review. Folks, it has a flashlight! It probably has many things, but I have to tell you, that ever since Garmin came out with the initial flashlight feature (initially, the one that just lights up the whole screen), it’s been a game-changer for me. No pun intended either, because we used to use that flashlight exclusively for diaper changes in the middle of the night! It was the perfect amount of light that you could see without waking the baby! Then we got real flashlights, versus just the screen. Now, I can’t imagine having a watch without an actual LED flashlight, it’s an indispensable feature even without the diapers anymore! Bravo to you, Suunto, said every parent everywhere.

Next, we have an internet kerfuffle, “Strava Just Sued Garmin”.  So I’ve been pretty spoiled the last few weeks of training. Typically on Thursdays, I usually knock out a 4-hour ride followed by a 1-hour tempo run. Ray doesn’t quite have that kind of time luxury, but he has been joining me on the tempo run at the end – really, that’s where I need the mental support anyway. So, he meets me with the car, I chuck my bike in, get a dousing of ice-cold water, and off we go for a run. BUT...on this week, Strava had the audacity of disrupting my delightful training plan. Ray had a news story that needed attention, and thus, I was left to my own devices that day… shame.

Then, continuing that dumpster fire, Ray and Des had a poke at the details of the lawsuit and where they see it going on the latest episode of the Fit File. I will tell you that I’ve never been prouder of my Christmas present to Ray last year. I think his Stuffed Dumpster Fire might be his favorite present of all time. Maybe this year I’ll get him (and Des) this one instead!

Last up, we have the Complete 360 Action Cam Comparison Review. If you run now, you can still get your comments in on my cannonball expertise, or how awesome a fish-eye lens makes one look from below the saddle. No? Well, in all seriousness, getting to mess around with these cameras was actually pretty cool, and the tech behind it all is in the same ballpark as a Mars landing in my mind!

That’s it for this one, head down below for the life update! Also, if you’re reading from your mobile, let me know if you like the new design, if it’s easier to read, etc. Thanks!

In-Depth Thoughts of The Girl

You made it! Alright, let’s get to it. Two weekends ago, I did a really cool thing. If you’re on my Instagram, you would have seen that I hopped on a flight for the very quick trip over to Marbella. While I have been prepping for the big dance coming up in November, no amount of riding the Marbella 70.3 course on Rouvy would settle my nerves more than getting to ride it in person. 

Once I was settled in Marbella, I met up with Eduardo, another sports tech expert who has raced the Marbella 70.3 four times, and is a regular on the course. He was super kind enough to offer up his Saturday morning to be my guide and give some great insights along with the course recce!

The bike course for Marbella has a reputation for its climbing, but even more so for the descents. The climbing I’ve pretty much done my homework on all summer, and since returning to Mallorca this fall. But the descending is really where you can make up some free time, or on the flip side, let the other athletes get away from you. As you have all probably realized by now, I’m not the most confident at descending. It’s more of the unknown that I find stressful. How’s the road surface? Any major turns? Any hard-hitting expansion joints on bridges and overpasses…? You know the ones, where all the athletes in front of you lose their bottles, and now you’re playing a game of Frogger at 35mph.

It was beyond helpful to get to ride with Eduardo, he stopped many times to give me a heads-up on what was ahead on a given descent; which hills to let it fly on, and which ones can get a little dicey with crosswinds. Lastly, I got some big brother advice on which hills NOT to empty the tank climbing on. Early in the race, when everyone is going out like Rambo, for me to simply remember you’re going to be still climbing in 2.5- 3 hours from now, patience.

I left Marbella with the mentality of “I can do this!” and “it’s not so scary”. In my book, that’s a huge win! I think this is one of those courses that if you have the opportunity to ride it several times beforehand, you can create a nice advantage for yourself. I sort of wish I had done a second round on Sunday, but okay move on! I’m back riding the course on Rouvy again, plus tackling the amazing climbs we have here on island.

Next up! As I so yelled at the top of the newsletter, it’s RACE WEEK! That’s right, a last-minute addition to the calendar this fall, I believe I mentioned this in my last newsletter, but the time is finally here. My coach and I decided it would be a good chance for a closed-course big brick workout before the real deal in 4 weekends time. HOWEVER, I am being capped by my coach on watts, HR’s, and run efforts. Hahahaha, she knows me too well. The point of this race isn’t to totally go to the well, and then suffer for a week of recovery and lost training. So I’ve promised to be on my best behavior, get another wetsuit swim in, crank out a fast bike on a closed course, and have a really controlled run effort on Saturday. Enjoy it! Be able to walk the next day…  So stay tuned for that! Or check out their website to see what the live tracking looks like on race day! 

The verrrry last item on the list for today, is I have super big news. Ray and I are creating some opportunities to work/ride with Thomson Bike Tours again in 2026. Ever since my Italian (Tuscany) gravel trip back in May, I’ve been turning over the idea for an all-ladies trip through one of my favorite places in the entire world, the Loire Valley! We will combine phenomenal cycling and cycling routes along the iconic Loire Valley and Chateaux gardens by day, and wine and cheese tasting by night! A professional photographer will accompany us so all women go home with (included) cycling portraits, custom “Lady’s Trip” jerseys for all riders, a cycling mechanics workshop, and more! The trip is shaping up, and we are aiming for the May 10^th-16^th week! So if that sounds interesting to you, or as a surprise for your better half, please pop me a message so I can start to gauge numbers! We hope to have all the details ironed out ASAP! And don’t worry, we will get a “Boy’s Trip” sorted for later in the year as well!

As always, thanks for being a DC Rainmaker Newsletter Subscriber.

Until next time!

Bobbie