Team Camp

All smiles at the top of the mountain.

This past weekend we went on one of our favorite weekends all year: Team Camp in Pisgah with Scott Wagner. Scott's company, Wagner Research is one of our team sponsors and the best part of his sponsorship every year is the cabin in NC.

Enjoying a beautiful day.

We lucked out on the weather. The forecast was for 65+ degrees and sun all weekend. AWESOME!!!

Star demonstrating some of her other talents.

Helen, Star and I loaded up in my car and headed to NC on Friday afternoon; Gina, Paula and Tanya were meeting us up there. Catherine and Shannon held the fort down and raced Snake... we missed them but they kicked butt. After a quick bike hand-off to Emily in Knoxville, (we now all have our bikes and LOVE them) we were on our way. Emily had a band competition this weekend but we all know that she was dreaming of her new bike....

Tanya, Scott and Gina in front of the falls.

Friday night was spent eating Mexican food and grocery shopping for snacks and breakfast. We were really lucky this year, Helen's mom Sharron sent enough food for the team for the weekend. All we had to do was pop it in the oven and follow her instructions. THANKS SHARRON. If we are lucky, we just adopted a team chef. Paula and Gina got in late and we quickly went to bed with dreams of single track in the morning.

Helen shows off her first ever snowball.

Saturday was Scott's day to play tour guide to the team. We decided to spend the day at DuPont State Forest (after all, it's across the road from where we were staying) and we had a blast. 4 hours, tons of sweet single track and 5,000 feet of climbing later we were ready for dinner. Everyone had a great time riding. I demonstrated how to submerge one's self in the mud (I really am just around for everyone's entertainment) and Helen rode her longest ride ever with a smile. She is really coming along nicely. Star, Paula, Helen and I were all on our new bikes and in LOVE with them. Specialized ROCKS!!!! Thanks guys for another year of great bikes.

Paula and her new ride enjoy the falls.

After inhaling our dinner, we decided that we needed to participate in another team weekend tradition: SHOPPING. We are girls after all... We called Nali, our favorite outdoor store in Brevard, only to find out that they were about to close for the day. Gina turned on her charm and the owner stayed late to let us shop. We of course repayed him by spending lots money in his store. If you are ever in Brevard, check the place out. Great stuff, great deals, and kick butt owner.


I love my new bike.

We ended our evening with Helen studying (and maybe talking on the phone to a certain boy) and the rest of us enjoying good friends and good wine. It is always good to see Scott and get to catch up.

Time for a break and snacks.

Sunday was another big ride. One of my favorites actually, Pisgah!! We climbed Clawhammer and then hit some killer single track. I got to really push the limits of the new bike for the first time and she responded and asked for more. Okay, I admit that there MIGHT have been some boys that passed us as we waited to re-group and Paula and I MIGHT have been a bit more motivated to go fast and catch them, but the bike was begging me to do it!! Yes, we did catch the boys (and passed them... on a downhill). It was hard to turn around and head to the car. In fact, Helen, Tanya, Star and I went out for more after we got back to the car. We decided to drive late, we wanted to ride!!!

It wouldn't be Pisgah without a little hiking!!

After some sad goodbye's and a quick packing job, Star, Helen and I were headed home. Helen was craving Sushi so I turned on my "sushi radar" in Knoxville and found a restaurant that I remembered seeing last year while up there for a race. Yes, I remember things like that.

We arrived home tired and late but it was all worth it. I wish we could do it for about a week!! Maybe next year...

Thanks again Scott for a great weekend. You are the BEST!!!