Eat (Vegan). Ride (Fast). Destroy (Dominant Culture).

Wildflower Triathlon

First, our apologies for the lateness in posts, and the chaotic weirdness that is our website.  Shit got hacked, and we’re slowly trying to rebuild the whole thing.  Seems to happen to us a lot, no?

That said, now onto way more exciting things… Like

Avia Wildflower Triathlon!
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Last month some of the womyn of Swarm!  descended on what is often, and rightly, referred to as “the Woodstock of triathlons.”  The title didn’t really mean anything to us until we arrived and found ourselves amid 8,000 competitors, family, and supporters.  The Sunday Olympic Triathlon had as least 3,000 competitors alone!  It was insanity on a level we had not anticipated.  Luckily with that many people competing that means that much more support.  Wildflower was without a doubt the most well-supported event I have ever participated in. Between tremendous amounts of food and chipper, ecstatic volunteers that helped push some of us slow folk up the last few hills, it will be hard for other Triathlons to measure up to this.

IMG_1971For Signe and Molly, it was their first Olympic triathlon, and for me, it was my first triathlon ever.   Word to all those would-be-triathletes out there; swim in open water BEFORE competing in your first triathlon.  It makes quite a difference not being able to see, having waves, being in the sun and all… It aint no swimming pool folks.

Signe absolutely crushed the triathlon, coming in under 3 hours!  Molly was close behind, coming in under 3.5 hours.  I dragged myself to the finish line at 4 hours.

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All in all it was an amazing weekend, with beautiful camping, weather, and a very competitive and difficult triathlon.  Special thanks needs to be said to the supporters of our racers, who held our bags, cheered us on, and provided sodas and hugs at the finish line.  Behind every good racer there’s someone with gatorade and a cool towel, how else could we do these crazy things?

Speaking of crazy things, so excited about Wildflower, a week later, 4 Swarm! womyn signed up for the Vineman 1/2 iron-man distance triathlon.  One solo, and a relay team.  See you in July!  Can’t Stop Wont Stop.

5th Anniversary of Feel My Legs I’m a Racer

It’s that time again! Grab your road bike and desire to hurt yourself, it’s Feel My Legs I’m a Racer.  10 of the toughest hills in LA, one stage at a time.

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Hills? Los Angeles? How hard could it be?
Fargo St, one of the steepest paved roads in the world, is only one of ten. Yearly the LA Wheelmen do a hill climb here with lots of hoopla for just riding up this one hill. For you it will only be hill number five. Are the others equally hard? No, but they will feel like it.

Do I have to race?
No. Only a few of the people out there are racing for points. Most are there just to attempt every hill.

I want to race and am totally going to win. How does it work?
Each place, five deep, is worth points starting with 1st place and five points. Each new hill is treated as a separate stage with a group ride between hills.

What does the winner get?
Recognition and bragging rights.

How should I prepare?
Climbing is a unique cycling skill. You may be fast and strong, but being both on these steep climbs requires a lot of training in the hills. This year I want to have a few training rides leading up to the 14th and will post them at nowhip.blogspot.com.

Why so early?
If you can ride these 10 hills in one morning then you can be out of bed and at the market by 745am. If you show up without having slept I’ll buy you a cup of Coffee Cellar coffee at the market. Most of these hills are in quiet neighborhoods with narrow streets. I want us to be in and out with as little impact as possible. The earlier the better.

What should I bring?
Water, some snacks, a tube, the ability to fix minor mechanicals and rain gear. It’s rained all three years so far.

How long will this take?
Expect to be out well past noon. We only do about 30 miles, but getting to the hills, getting set up, etc takes longer than you would think.

Do I get a t-shirt and brunch?
Finishers get a 5th Anniversary Feel My Legs patch, and everyone gets to end at Crucial Vegan Friendship Picnic 2 in Elysian Park.

Who puts on Feel My Legs?
“A bunch of fucking boring semi-employed geeks” also known as Swarm! Hit us up via bikeswarm at gmail.

Will this be more fun than being stuck in an elevator in Newark?
Definitely.

Spring is back, and so is Swarm!

We’ve been busy in the planning stages and now our Spring events are ready! Check out below what we have going on over the next 3 weeks and come to all of it!

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From No whip.
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From No whip.

SLO to LA

braianSo it all started over food. Jeff says “I need to drop off a car on Saturday in San Luis Obispo, anyone want to ride back?” It was so ridiculous that of course my answer would have to be yes. Jeff and I had just met just once before during the Don’t Get Fat Camp: PV Ride (Day 4) so it was going to be interesting spending 12+ hrs with someone who I barely knew wasn’t all that sure I could keep up with.

Read Brian’s ride summary here!

Tandem CX!

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For the past 2 weekends, Megan and I have raced the first two of three of the Southern California Cross Fever Series, put on by our dear friend Dorothy Wong.  We decided, since Dorothy added a tandem category, we obviously had to race.  I have to say, it was super fun, and we won the category by being awesome! We managed to fold the front wheel going into an uphill turn on our practice lap at the first race. Snap the chain going up a hill on the practice lap at the second race, and after the race realized the bottom bracket spindle on the rear cranks was broken. Oops! Thanks Dot!

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SO SERIOUS!

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How can this be anything but hilarious?

Dot had points leader jerseys made for the series, so we had them for the second race that was put on by our friend Paul in Palmdale. Another tandem was registered, but never made it. We were looking forward to having another team to race!

Yup, still funny.

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Mark Kiecker also came out and ruled it at Hansen Dam, on the coolest looking bike at the whole race!