Not Your Average Grandmother…………….

BIO:
Janet Sanderson is 70 years young. She’s the mother of 4 and a grandmother of 5. A retired elementary school teacher, Janet got seriously involved in cycling in 2001 after attending the Michigan Senior Olympics where she came home with two third place finishes aboard her Trek 7500. Soon after, with the help of her father-in-law and her son, Dan, she obtained her current bike, a Seven Ti Axium. It was at this time that Dan set her up with a trainer, Barney King, who Janet says, “I’m forever grateful to for what he did for my cycling abilities”. In 2003, Janet competed in the National Games in Virginia and then again in Pittsburgh in 2005. This coming summer is the qualifying year for the 2007 National Games in Kentucky. Janet rode 3,685 miles last year, not counting the many more miles she pedaled away when Michigan’s freezing temperatures and rainy weather forced her to ride on the trainer. Rain or shine, Janet gets her training done.

Janet’s husband, Sandy, is a retired band director who still enjoys playing in a Dixieland group. They live together on a 550 acre farm in southern Michigan. Since Janet’s retirement in 2000, she’s done her share of farm work! “I usually plant all the soybeans in the spring while Sandy plants the corn. Summer is hay season and I do the raking. I used to bale, but since we got the big-round baler I don’t want to even try to run that”, says Janet. She goes on to say, “In the fall I’m “Chief wagon hauler”. Winter is wood cutting time because we heat with a wood air-tight furnace. It keeps us both in good shape during the down time. We have a JD Gator that we pile pretty high with split wood. It’s usually my job to load while Sandy cuts and splits”. Not your typical grandmother eh? Janet and Sandy also have a couple dozen chickens, a couple cats and a lovely, sweet dog.

Janet and Sandy, her husband of 48 years (please note Sandy’s awesome moustache).

_______________________________________________________________
THOUGHTS FROM JANET:

On June 15th, Janet wrote: I think I’m finally beginning to look forward to my rides each day. It’s been a funny spring, some days I didn’t even want to look at my bike, but I always go out anyway and feel better for it. The weather is settling down some, but we did have some terribly windy days a couple weeks ago, with 20m/h winds with gust to 30. One of those days was Thur.(a 120 EB ride) and I decided to go with the group in the evening, at least I would have fellow sufferers. I don’t get my full 120 min. in with them, but I didn’t want to face that wind alone. Friday was another windy day and I took my easier route that goes in and out on roads to a local lake. That way I don’t have to face the wind for very long periods at a time. It is a slower route but sure better than 40 straight min. into that wind. I had three flat tires that week…… The first was Thur.(the rear tire) when I went to get my bike ready for the group ride. I changed it in plenty of time, but when I got back from that ride it was going down again. Something was poking through the tire that I hadn’t found the first time, I checked too. Neither time was I out on the road when they went down, thank goodness!! That used up my spare tubes so I took it to the shop and had my last purple tire put on(in place of the black one I was using on the trainer) and got two spare tubes. Friday on the way into Quincy to start my ride (I drive to Quincy) I heard a swishhhh in the back seat and the front tire went down…. I didn’t feel like changing a tire so drove right to the shop in Coldwater and had the guy do it and got another tube. It was at the valve stem this time. Now I have two new tubes and one new tire on–if I don’t run over something I should be good for awhile. It has turned rather warm, in the lower 90’s. With the humidity in the 70’s, not very pleasant. I try to get my rides in in the early mornings before it heats up and the wind starts to blow.”

On April 26, Janet wrote: “I didn’t tell you much about my riding, too caught up with farming, I guess. I’ve been outside these last two weeks, although cold enough to have to wear leggings some days. It’s a good thing I had them on last Friday. I took a route where I knew there were two dogs that liked to chase cyclists, but I thought I would take the chance. — I shouldn’t have, out they came, one just runs along barking, but the other is growling and showing his teeth. He tried to grab my leg and managed to get hold of my legging and tore a big hunk out of it. Good thing it was my legging instead of my leg…. I won’t go that route again. I’ve been bitten before, twice at the same house by two different dogs. Those dogs are now confined to there yard by a buried fence. Monday I had an early morning appointment with my gym trainer to go over my summer routine. I took my bike with me and rode from the gym afterwards. ( It was suppose to rain in the afternoon.) That was fine except the wind was blowing something awful - 23mph with gusts up to 40. I went into it going out as I usually do, I could only go about 8-9 m/h. I only needed to ride an hour, thank goodness (or as I thought- hadn’t received my schedule and was doing what I usually
do on a Mon.) It was nice riding with the wind in my back, but of course it changed some and was more a cross wind coming back. Didn’t do that well that day. And come to find out I was suppose to go for 75 min. Oh well, I’ll go a little longer each day this week and make up the time. It’s raining today but it is a DO for me so I don’t care. I’ll go to the gym and try out some of the new things Martena rigged up for me.”

On November 26th, Janet wrote: “My riding has been sporadic these past weeks, with all this kitchen work. And then hunting season started Nov. 15. Luckily the first day I was scheduled for a DO. The first few days hunters can be rather crazy. My rides have been over the noon hour, hoping they are all in refortifing themselves for the afternoon hunt. I have a bright orange wind breaker I wear and also ride down around the local lake with all the in and out roads. It’s a slow ride and gets boring after a week or so. I’ve ventured out more this last week, but still keeping to the more traveled roads. Wednesday was sunny and warm, in the upper 50’s. When the workers left about 4pm I thought I might go for a short ride until I hear kaa-boom!!! That decided the issue….. no way. This all ends this week on Nov. 30. But by then they say we will have snow… I’ve only had to ride inside once so far this fall, oh, I’ve switched some days around to accommodate the weather. This last week has been especially nice and sunny, in the low 60’s, warm for this time of year. Martena, my gym trainer, will have to get my winter schedule going pretty soon, as I will probably be told to go to the gym three days a week this next cycle.”

On October 15th, Janet wrote: “Also I forgot to tell you some news…..that is if you dad hasn’t told you already. I got the Michigan Senior Olympic result book last week. They forgot to put my 10k results in, but that isn’t what is important. I got to the part on State Records and lo and behold there I was—- I have the State Record for the 5k TT in my age group. Sandy is quite impressed! Maybe that kinda makes up for that mess-up I did in the 40k race where Bobbie beat me by inches. In fact, the book has us both at the same time. For some reason they aren’t changing the 20k and 40k road race records anymore, they say because of the course variations.”

On September 30th, Janet wrote: “I thought you might be interested in what my daughter Calista is doing in Los Angeles. She is a hairdresser in a salon where many big names go. She just got Jake Gyllenhaal as a client a few months ago. He is to play Lance Armstrong in his up-coming movie. I had sent her my version of the race in Traverse City (Read below- Editor). As I told you, Dan had a good laugh about my going in the ditch. Guess she did too. I didn’t think it was funny at all!!!”

Calista writes: “I went to cut Jake Gyllenhaal’s hair on Sunday, and he had just come back from Austin, Texas where he raced his first race. He said it was a ‘pirate’ race, all ages, and pretty competitive. He said he told Lance he was going to do it, and Lance told him to be careful, that the race is really tough. I don’t remember how long he said it was, but he said it was the hardest thing he’s ever done. He came in 30th, of about 150, which isn’t bad at all! But I think he needs to work on his racing strategy…he said he was way out in front of the pack for the first half of the race, and was feeling pretty good about himself. Then everyone passed him, and people were yelling at him, and were really aggressive. But he thinks he’ll race some more.”

On September 17th, Janet wrote: “I started out just fine, following the guys and a younger gal, kept up with them fine, drafting etc. (we made three circuits of 5.5mi.) Half way around the first circuit the guys took off leaving the younger gal and myself behind, then she left me. Caught up to her once. I couldn’t see any sign of Bobbi or Peggy behind me, and had a delightful thought, - ‘How can they catch me?, they are almost a half mile or more behind me.’ I was pushing pretty hard all this time. The course had a few smaller hills and one steeper one. The third circuit, about half way I looked back and saw two riders about 50 yards back (I had a mirror on my helmet) thinking, ‘please let them be a couple men!!!’ No such luck, it was Bobbi and Peggy. They caught up and stayed right behind me, until about 10yds from the finish when they both went around me. I had nothing left to give by that time… my heart rate had gone up to 174 a couple times, once on the last big hill and at the end. I certainly did something wrong, and I think I know what I should have done. I should have stayed with the two of them and worked together until the end and then put the steam on and out ride them. That’s what they did-worked together. I was basically riding alone most of the race, and just wore myself out.”

“I rode on past the finish line to cool down, after about a half mile I looked for a paved drive to help in turning around on the road. I started the turn and saw I wasn’t going to make it, took the ditch instead of the mailbox. Only the ditch had an extra dip at the bottom. I crashed pretty hard going into it. Went over the handle bars face first in the grass (thank goodness it was grass) knocked my forehead a good one, and tipped the handlebars down, scrapped my thighs on the computer and hr dial. And wrenched my bad shoulder. A couple bruises on my legs, a lump on my forehead and a sore shoulder is what I got out of that race. I had to sit there awhile, but I’m fine, no broken bones or permanent injuries, just totally disgusted with myself for the whole day. I thought I would really be stiff the next day, but I wasn’t. I’ve turned around on narrower roads than that many times, guess I was just all used up and my judgment wasn’t what it should be.”

On September 12th, Janet wrote:“The last couple of group rides I went on in Coldwater, were pretty bad…. Sloooowwww!!!! The first was one other gal who usually rides with the slow bunch. We were the only ones to show up, I’m afraid I took her for a ride and a half and then it was slow for me. Then last week the same gal and one other VERY slow gal (she even brought her little dog in a pack on her front) the three of us just rode around a new development and in a cemetary… That was even slower…… I don’t think I will go again for awhile, can’t stand going that slow, not that I’m any speed demon.. But average 9.5 is pretty bad even for me. I usually go 15-16+ “.

“Next week I go to Traverse City to a reginal Sr. Games. It is only one race–17.5miles. But it is fun to see some of the same people that are at the state olympics and new faces. It’s a nice time to get away for a few days also”.

“I like your experiance you had at Sky Harbor. My father-in-law had a similar experiance. He was a freshman in college, was having a case of diarrhea but went to class anyway. Before the class was over he had to make a bee-line to a rest room. He made it and wondered also why there were only stalls, but there was no time to ponder this. While sitting there the bell rang, in came others and to his horror they were women. He quickly lifted his feet up so they wouldn’t show, and patiently waited for all to leave, which was awhile. He made a safe exit and went to his next class a little late. He loved to tell that story, it happened in the 1920’s. Your not the first or last to have such an embarrasing experiance, even tho you weren’t caught”.

On June 29th, Janet wrote: “I looked at my new schedule when it came last Saturday, and about flipped when I saw Tues. ride, T4 (10 min TT) I had never done a ride that hard other than at the races. I think I felt a little like you did when you first saw “The Wall”. Had to keep telling myself, ‘I can do it, I can do it’. I also had to switch Tue. and Thurs. around as we had plans to go out Thur. night, which is usually the group ride. It was our 48th anniversary and each year we go out with friends that were married the same day we were. That gave me a little reprieve with that T4, but more time to worry about it. Thurs. morning was sunny and warm so I set out not knowing if I could last the full 10 min. Hey, I did it!!! and felt good too. So now I have a T5 this week Tues., I’m not too worried about that. The county has decided they need to resurface a lot of roads around here that I like to ride on. They put down tar and then pea-stone on top of that. It’s about two weeks before the cars pack it down good enough to ride on”.

“We got all the baled hay in the barn this week. I was going to take a picture of me driving the John Deere 80 pulling the wagon with 20 big round bales on it, but I kept forgetting the camera. The 80 has a hand clutch which gets harder to push the hotter the tractor gets, I ended up pushing it with my foot. I’ll remember the camera the next cutting of hay, which will be in about two weeks from now. We cleaned all the spring work machines and put them away, finishing that on Friday. Sat. after my ride we both did nothing else all day except read and nap. Sure seemed good to have a day like that, we had been pushing hard all spring. If we hadn’t had to replant so much we could have been done a week earlier”.

On June 9th, Janet wrote: “I’m still riding every day I’m suppose to, and with the group once a week. (Sandy always lets me have my time on the bike). Last night’s group ride about drove me crazy. The faster guys weren’t there. By faster, I mean an average of 16-17 m/h. I put up with the slowness of the six that showed up, couple gals were riding multi track bikes, and one guy is 82 years old, he has a reason to go slow. He choose the route too, wind at our back going out and in our face going back, ugh… Another gal who is a little better than the rest rode with me and we finally dropped them, couldn’t help it. I was doing more coasting than riding. Ended up with 13.2 m/h. with an average hr of 122 - sure didn’t get a work out with them…… I had a good ride this morning, sort of made up for it. It was an EB 75, but I went 80min. and did keep my hr down and still did 15.7m/h, which is good for me. I did get the results of the race on the 8th”.

On May 18th, Janet wrote: “About 45 min. down the country road I saw three chickens pecking away at the side of the road. Being a chicken lover I thought it was neat, that is untill the rooster charged my back wheel, I took off before he had a chance to get beheaded by the spokes. He was just trying to protect his two ladies. That was a first, being chased by a rooster. I’ve had plenty of dogs go after me and two at different times got me. I did have a good ride that day. My mph are coming up, thank goodness. It was nice going for two hours where I could see some different country”.

On April 20th, Janet wrote: “I just got back from my first group ride this season. There were 13 riders, which is great for our little community. Four of us took off and never did see the rest of them the whole evening. I was the second oldest, the oldest was 84 and he stayed back with the slow group. I went with the faster ones, three guys, all in their 40’s (I think). They let me draft the whole way, and that ever fun, I could cruise along at 19-20 mph and keep my heart rate in the easy base mode. Ended up averageing 17.4 mph, which is great for me when I am normally getting 14.7-15 mph. Had a great evening, love this cycling business”.