tires of all kinds hate me

So, big news of the day:

My front Zipp wheel will not take any air! Wow, I am just so surprised because I have NEVER had ANY problems with these wheels before now!

Is that enough sarcasm for you?

Seriously, I feel like me owning these wheels is equivalent to a man having a trophy wife. They were expensive, they are high maintenance, they require constant attention and checking up on, they are impossible for me to fix, but they are shiny, and they make my bike look super fast and awesome.

Is that what it's like to date a high maintenance chick? I constantly have issues with these wheels but I can't bring myself to sell them because they were so expensive. They were an INVESTMENT! And they are so pretty! And fast!

At least I am learning. At least this time I didn't wait until the MORNING OF THE RACE to try to inflate the tire. Now I know: check tire pressure, try to inflate tire, put wheel on bike to make sure it spins ok. Do all of this DAYS before the race - NOT the night before. Also, bring extra set of wheels to the race in case I have race day problems! I should also probably buy like 100 beers for my mechanic friend Alex who has changed out my flat Zipp like 100 times. My wheels are probably the reason he has abnormally strong forearms for a dude.

And if that isn't enough, this is the 2nd "tire problem" I have had in the last 24 hours. I was leaving work last night at 11:15 pm, psyched to get home and sleep in my own bed for the first time since Thursday night and to hang out with my cat who is currently VERY annoyed with me for leaving her alone for 3 days, when the low tire indicator light on my dashboard came on (you know, the one that looks like a butt). So I pulled over and I could hear the air gushing out of a very obvious hole in my front left tire. I then pulled into an empty parking lot of a bowling alley and decided to call Triple A rather than attempt to change the tire myself.

I can change a tire. I know how (although I have never done it all by myself). But it scares me to change a tire at 11:30 at night, alone, in a sketchy parking lot. So I opted to sit in my car with the doors locked and hang out til AAA arrived. I will have to practice my tire-changing skills some other time.

Then today I took my car to the garage to have the tire patched and of course, it's unfixable. So.. guess who bought a new tire!

I love spending money on things like tires. It's my favorite!

Oh and apparently, I drive a mom car. My car had been sitting in Adam's driveway and his neighbor saw it and asked him if he was dating a soccer mom. I guess I didn't think my car was that bad? I know it's a wagon and it's decorated with nerdy triathlon stickers but I thought moms drove vans, or SUVs. I thought that the station wagon was an "uncool" option for a soccer mom! Just for a visual, here is my car:


Regardless, I am not ashamed of my mom car and I will continue to cover it in triathlon stickers as I see fit, and I will drive it around on its 1 new tire and 3 older tires. And on Saturday I will load it up with my Cervelo, 2 sets of wheels and my race gear and drive it over to Syracuse for the Train-This invasion of Syracuse! I can't wait! :)