29 Sep Day one of Epic Israel
So, understandably, I am pooped after climbing almost 1,500 meters in one day, riding over babyhead rocks in dried out riverbeds (many we walked over), squinting at the blinding dust of the start, hoping I...
Author: Melanie Chambers
28 Sep No turning back…Epic Israel
It's the night before the big Epic Israel race. The hardest thing I have ever done physically, and with it, all the mental challenges and doubts that brings! So, I'm trying to pump myself up. I'm...
21 Sep Suffer well?
Mountain biking law #1: never grab both brakes, hard. EVER. I know this. Yet, as I am slow-mo in the air, flying off my bike after grabbing the brakes, I wonder one thing: how can I...
16 Sep I’m turning into a fly?
I think I'm turning into a fly. Over the past few months, patches of scaly white skin is taking over my body. From a small coin sized patch on my right leg, it began growing...
12 Sep Feeding the body — a training story
Since my last post about heart rate monitors, I've had a few more epiphanies. Or, I should say some slap-in-the-face realisations. One: since training began a few weeks ago, I'm hungry all the time! I...
29 Aug Battle with the heart rate monitor: Art verses Science
My sweet man (the engineer who needs numbers) has asked, even begged, for me to wear a heart rate monitor while I cycle. "Mmmfff. I go by feel (me the artist and free-spirit). I don't...
16 Aug Epic Israel – training begins.
Ok. I've never trained for any kind of sporting event. Yes, I rode in the Ontario Cup mountain bike races last summer, but honestly, I really didn't change my fitness routine that much. I drank...
30 Jul Taiwan: hot cycling haven
Zipping through Taipei's night markets, climbing one of the longest hills ever, and gliding along the coastal road; Taiwan is one of my favourite places to ride a bike. Story appeared in Canadian Cycling Magazine. Taiwan: hot...
30 Jul Kuelap: Machu Picchu of the North
Forget the throngs of tourists, well, for a while. I was alone at this Peruvian fortress in the north of Peru. A new gondola may change all that. Story appeared in The Globe and Mail. MELANIE CHAMBERS Part...
10 Jul Phillipines Mountain biking
Cheaper than a tour? Bought a bike; hired friend as chauffeur; got lost. Loved every minute of it. Story appeared in Mountain Life. Philippines switchback Switchbacks & Hanging Coffins: Biking the Philippines As I pedal through the...