Training Articles and Race Reports.

results, goals and the real world

2011-06-29T02:33:00.000+04:30

With racing season under way many folks are now starting to look at results and assessing their performance. This can be a tricky process. Whether it's simply a training race or a more important event, there are many things to take into account. And some things that should simply be left out on the course.
With times, rank in each event, your over all placing, wattage, run pace, and more, how does one analyze their results and performance correctly?

The hard data:
One of the best ways is to measure you and just you. Forget about everyone else what did you do? In the end you can only do what you can do. Sounds silly but many forget this simple fact. Measuring your wattage and running pace are very definitive ways of measuring your performance. "last yr. i did 250 watts at the Boulder sprint, this year 275!" that is progress. Your running pace is also something to look at. I would recommend going by your GPS watch however. Running courses can be off more than you think. Even at the most recent WTC, 5430 sprint tri the run course was short. This can skew times quite a bit. Swim times, be careful here as well. I have never heard of an open water swim course that was perfect. wind, choppy water, etc. can all led to very different swim times. This is why we never, NEVER, ever use time to measure our performance on the bike. MPH mean nothing. A breath of wind, new pavement, and 100 other things will affect your average speed. you must use wattage!
Even with all the correct data it is some times used wrong. I have heard athletes be angry with there run time because "it was slow." Yet they have no idea what they should be running (what they can run) coming off the bike. "well in 2001 I ran a 5k with some friends and I did 19 minutes flat! Today i'm better shape and I raced 19:50. i sucked!"
Heard this before? where do we start! First of all its not 2001. You just did a sprint triathlon not a stand alone 5k, if you PR on the run of a triathlon your not swimming or riding hard enough, or, you are much faster than you were before.
The courses could have been short, long. wind, surface, motivation, or maybe you just had a good/bad day.
find out what is a reasonable goal for YOU. not some obligatory time.

Results:
Because of issues like the ones above comparing results can be a great way to measure your performance. "but Ek I don't' race the people that win my AG, I race for my own goals, to be as fast as I can be i'm not on that level." That's great! This method is still very usable for someone in that mind set, stay with me for a bit.
This year an athlete I am working with has been working a lot on his run. However, his bike and swim have been improving as well. In the first few races this year his bike wattage has been exactly the same as last year. Effort level also the same yet his bike rank (and his over all placings) are higher. If this happened once I would think nothing of it but so far (4 races) all with the same scenario. he is going faster. A new bike and better position is proving to be gaining him more time than we thought. we'll take it!
Another client of ours just this last weekend said, "my run was awful, a horrible placing for me." really? are you sure? they placed inside the top 8 in their AG and last yr. they were 18th. also their run pace was faster and at the fast end of where I like to see athletes run in a sprint tri... so.... what was bad? it hurt? it's a race it's not supposed to be easy!

Also if your goals are competitive ones than this is realy what your aiming for right? Top 50%, Top 5% etc. At the end of the day a race is just who was best on that day, at that moment. You can work towards having a faster run, better power on the bike but,
"on race day you must race with what you have, not what you want to have"

Again I would urge caution here as well. things don't always match up 100%.
At the last race I did my swim placing was worse than last yr. but when you compare my time with the fastest swim time I lost less time than last year. ie. I was closer to the leader. My "time" (last thing we care about) was faster and the water rougher. Which is strange because a rough, slower swim would suggest bigger time gaps?? hummm...

This is why we prefer to use well executed races and more than one when ever possible. the more reference points you have the better.

Goals:
In the end you need to ask your self, what are your goals? what are they specifically for this race? And what are your bigger goals for the season or year?
Your goals for this training race should be:
1. a stair steeper to build on towards the bigger goal
2. everyone should have the goal to execute the race to the best of there ability on that day! maybe you have a goal to focus on the bike portion or the run portion, maybe its simply to finish your first triathlon strong. what ever it is race execution is KEY!
~see: your first triathlon. even if it's your 101 race!!
~and the race execution seminar HERE

Most importantly realize that this event you have just done is one thing. One day, one race. you might have just had a bad day, or for that matter a good one. Maybe you got lucky? But when you have your threshold set for all 3 sports, they are better than last year, your data says you executed the race well and within the proper parameters and you're doing better against the competition at more than one event,
you are looking at the products of progress.

Train your lactate threshold without ever going there

2011-03-29T04:57:00.000+04:30

Break that FTP plateau! Some athletes thrive on these workouts and can perform them better than steady efforts at 100% of threshold. Other suffer like never before. There is a reason weight lifters do many different types of chest exercises, all chest workouts are not created equal. Your threshold power or pace is the same way. I will frequently prescribe a 2-3 week block of threshold training for an athlete and not one of the threshold (Zone 4) workouts are the same. Why? Lots of reasons. To keep things fresh, to keep the body working and adapting as much as possible, to be specific, to “force the issue” as I sometimes say. 3x20 minutes at 90% of threshold and doing 3 min. on, 1’ off times 6 at 110% of your threshold are both “threshold” workouts, yet they can fell worlds apart.

The Over under or Crisscross interval is one you may have heard of or even done before. If you’re a cyclist you have defiantly done this maybe without even realizing it. There are many differ ways and variations to this workout. They are an interval with a given amount of time under your threshold, power or pace, and a given amount of time over it..

Here are a few of my favorite types of over under intervals 1. Bike: for time trialest or triathlete. 2x25 min. (4 min rest) done as, 4 min. zone 3/ 1min. in zone 5. Repeat for the length of the interval.

2. Bike: For the roadie, 2x25’ (4’rest) maybe done on a climb. Ride in zone 3-upper zone 3, every 3’ do a 20” kick spiking power to 10 watts per kilo of body weight then push Zone 5. Repeat for the 25’

3. Running. 30”on, 30” 0ff. on time is 5k pace or faster, off time is zone 2/ endurance pace. Repeat 20-30 times.

How they work:

What this does is it forces the body to recover from the harder effort while still working at a non recovery pace. By doing a short effort above your lactate threshold you start to build up lactate on your muscles. If it’s not too much you can recover from this by working very easy for some time. But with these intervals you keep the effort going at a hard but sub threshold, aerobic, pace (zone 3/ tempo). Now your body is trying to filter the waist, while keeping energy production fairly high! Also the repeated nature of these hard efforts will soon have you thinking efficiency. How can you hit that wattage or pace with as little wasted energy as possible? Believe me you will figure it out or pay dearly!

All of our training zones are related. Some more than others yes. “If your foundation is to small you can’t build a big, tall house.” Right. Well, if your roof is too small you can’t build a big main floor without it filling up with water, same thing. I have seen many athletes come to me and others pounding away at their threshold getting little results because their abilities above threshold are inadequate. Yes , you ironman triathletes still need to have some kind of minimum ability above threshold. These intervals are a great way to work that upper end a little bit while having an overall endurance flavor to your training session.

There place in the real world.

Train your weakness! This is The foundation of the ETG. If you’re looking at this thinking I don’t have to do that in a race why should I train that way? If you have been thinking this way for a few years chances are this type of thing is a weak area for you. We all have our strong points and weak ones, however, If a weakness is weak enough it will hold EVERYTHING back.

At bike race or a mtb race much of the time it feels like the winner still blows up just not as badly as everyone else. Or they are the ones that simply blow up last. When attacks are going in a road race it’s not the base pace that gets people dropped it’s the accelerations. The same can often can be said on climbs for the leaders. Mt bikers. This is your playground! Long hard steady efforts are what mt. bike racing is all about but you are constantly forced to deal with the terrain. That hill is steep! Any slower and you will have to put a foot down. Those little efforts to get over a rock or a log. So you Find yourself keeping up with every one for the first lap but then every one of those little tiny efforts you seem to lose more and more ground? These intervals can be your secret weapon to preparing for the final finishing climb. Or to simply get ready for the first races of the season.

For the TT guru or triathlete these can be a great threshold workout to add to your arsenal. Accelerating out of corners and not paying for it can mean an extra few seconds at the state TT championships and the difference between 1^st and 4^th place. In triathlons we try our best to be steady eddie on the bike. But its tough some times. This can provide not only some great training at your VO2 power but give you a little insurance for the mistakes we all make when were in the heat of battle.

Replace your next few boring threshold workouts with some of these interval sessions. See what happens.

Get Tough! Getting the most out of a coach is your responsibility

2010-11-08T19:17:00.002+03:30

I have seen many articles and blog posts in my day about what makes a good coach. What he, she should be doing, not doing, etc. And, for the most part, they are all pretty valid. The topic is also one sure to attract lots of attention. Picking a coach is tough. I know, I have done it myself!

But what about being a suitable and good client? In my many years coaching I have seen such promise in athletes that simply was never tapped into. why?
So, you have done your diligent searching, interviewed your possible coach and asked them the big 10 questions and now you’re under way. Now what. How do you get the most out of your coach? Guess what it’s your responsibility!

Do the work And do it right.

Well of course. It’s your fitness, it’s your big race, your goals, your body. You have to work hard, get up in the morning and follow the plan you and your coach set out to do.

“wait wait, what did you say EK? Me and my coach?” yeah. The grand plan, the here we are now, we want to go there, this is the path I think we should take. You need to have a common understanding of where you’re going. You don’t say to your buddies “hey lets go to the movies! Sweet see you there.” What movie? what time, what day, what theater!!?! For those of you that hired a coach, said, I wana do IM lake placid and off you went… its likely you and your coach are on a different bus there. Have a long talk with your coach about the BIG PICTURE.

This conversation should boil down to training phase’s, month to month, week to week and then, the day to day. “Ok cool we are taking this path. And this month it means this” your training plan.

On to executing the workouts. Before my clients do any workout they need to know 3 things. If you (the athlete) don’t know these, you need to ask!

3 Keys to knowing your workout:
~How to do it. 3x15’ in zone 4 with 4’ rest can be done a few ways. Uphill, flats, rd bike or TT bike. After a warm up or after 2 hr’s riding? What cadence. The workout is 3 hr’s what do I do the rest of the time? Etc. I have prescribed all these variations before, anyone can write down 3x15’. You have to know all the details

~Why you’re doing it. You have to know why. What’s the purpose? What is the physiological adaptation I am looking for here? This will help you focus on that. Doing workouts blind is a waste! And it’s your fault! There is no magic workout! “why is Joe a becoming a better runner than me? We do the same workouts?” He does it better, harder and smarter than you, that’s why.

~How it pertains to you and you’re a race: Ok, you got the above down. But why are you doing run intervals on a hill in Z4 while training for an ironman? When we get down to specific workouts, you should be taking apart certain aspect of the race or discipline and training each separate part. We talk about this in the off season training articles and the fall training seminar. When you do this you can get pretty non-specific. Know where you’re going with everything you do. Your car runs on gas but there’s a reason you have a big battery in there.

Communicate!
You, the athlete, has to take action. Coaches don’t read minds. No coach is going to wake you up in the morning, ask you how you slept, etc. If you’re tired you have to communicate that. If you don’t have time to do 3 hr’s next Sunday, if you don’t know the 3 keys to knowing your work out you have to ask! I once heard at a stage race “my coach sucks! I haven’t talked to him in 2 weeks!” I said “that sucks, does he just not answer his phone?” “ohh I don’t know I haven’t called him.” Are you serious!! I quickly told Mr., I need more attention, that before you go telling people your coach sucks maybe you should make a call first. You have to communicate with your coach. You have to ask questions. If you don’t want to, are going to wait for them to call or don’t care, don’t get a coach and save yourself and them some time.

Take control!
If you read nothing else I write read this.

Things don’t happen to you, you gotta MAKE IT HAPPEN. We have all heard it’s not the cards you’re dealt its how you play them. Life’s gives you lemons, make lemonade. Then get some vodka, get some more lemons and tequila, get all your friends together make sure the unleaded lemonade is clearly labeled, collected all the car keys and have a party! “The glass is half full or half empty?” I say neither, he glass is too big. Seems like a pretty fixable issue, get a smaller glass and move on!

Things don’t just happen to you. Take control of your life. Take control of your training! Own your training it’s your body.
Its cold, it’s windy, I was at work late, lunch didn’t sit right, I have an early flight, it’s too dark. Yeah these things happen, but when they “happen” all the time there excuses. Fix it.

“Adapt, improvise, overcome!” ~Clint Eastword in heartbreak ridge.

Your race won’t be easy. No one is going to hand you your goal on a platter you have to go get it.
Stop saying whoa as me, and start saying whoa, I feel sorry for my competition.

You have to do this and you alone. Your coach can’t teach this, and many will be unlikely to tell you get tough so I’ll say for them. Suck it up and get tough!

I have an infinity symbol tattoo. Its broken however, it doesn’t connect. Every now and then someone takes a close look at it and asks “why is your infinity symbol not complete?”
I say “I am the completion of it. I have to go out and make life happen.” If I sit in the house all day and wait for my business to grow and my legs to stronger and meet new friends guess what, none of that will happen. In fact it won’t be long until the opposite happens.

The best way to do this, Plan ahead.

Plan ahead:

Ever said this to your coach? “Oh yeah, I didn’t do any of the workouts last weekend, I was away.”
really? REALLY? Did you wake up sat at 3am and decide you needed to fly to Canada that morning? Training properly takes planning. And your coach still can’t read your mind. Your month should go like this: Communicate (getting tired of saying this but so few do it enough)

~Communicate your (athlete) sch. For the next month. I need these days off. Away for work here, group ride I would like to do here, etc.
~Look over your training when it’s all set. Make sure it works with your sch. again. Double check.
~Make sure you know the 3 keys to a good workout for every single workout!
~Plan ahead. You may have to get up early for that workout, pack clothes for that, eat pasta for breakfast that day ask to move that workout as the weather looks bad. All this leads to better quality training and better performance on race day.
~Prepare!! Remember things don’t happen to you. Make them happen! stretch, eat and hydrate well before those tough workouts, get pumped up, whatever it takes to get it done.

Listen to others, don’t react.
Its ok to read training articles, listen to others and what they do. But before taking action ask your coach.
Its only a matter of time before people start telling you what workouts you should do, how many hr’s you need to train, how fast you have to go to reach a goal. Go ahead listen, take it in. Realize that everyone has an opinion. And for many of us our local sporting team is the only place we can express those feelings in a place where people will have a clue what we are talking about.

If something sparks a question in your head, ask your coach! See communication again. You need to have trust and faith in your training. You can’t be second guessing yourself all the time. If you hopscotch around form training method to training method you’ll fall very sort of your goal not to mention waist your money if you’re doing what you think is best instead of what your coach has taken the time to lay out for you.

“hey coach, what do you think about this?” Seems like a pretty easy question to me. I get it from my clients all the time. I encourage it. It makes for smarter, better athletes and it pushes me to be a better coach.

Know thyself.

Communication again!! Is it sinking in yet?? Listen to your body. Your coach doesn’t know what “I felt horrible” really means. Horrible to him and you may be two different planets. Horrible how? Tight, empty, weak, tired, good at first then bad. What? If you know you just can’t do it today you have to communicate that. Figure out why and move forward. The answer is probably right there. It’s hard to see the forest through the trees some times. One reason for having a coach is this objective point of view but you have to tell them what’s going on. Every athlete is different. “hey coach I think I can go faster. The Z4 int. are feeling almost easy and I am in the upper end of the zone” that’s a pretty quick e-mail. If you’re too busy to e-mail, too busy to take control and own your training, your too busy to train, organize your life.

Here’s the deal gang. Whether you have a coach or not you have to own your training. Plan ahead. The best results I have seen form athletes all have a common thread. They missed very few if any workouts. Why? Because they don’t have jobs? No because they communicated and planned ahead. Tock steeps to ensure there training was at the highest quality possible. Everyone has set backs. Everyone has tough times and bad workouts. The more you take control, the more take responsibility the better you will be on race day.

Train smart, train safe.

its the Off season... what the heck does that mean.

2010-09-28T21:43:00.002+03:30

It’s the “Off Season” what do I … not do?
article one in our 3 part series.

I get this question often this time of yr. “how do you NOT train?” Especially for the competitive cyclist or triathlete who has been racing all summer, sometimes every weekend, not training hard and racing all the time can feel very strange.

The Off Season:
First off I want to stress the word “OFF” in off season. Off means Off! The first and most important aspect of your next season is being totally fresh and completely motivated for next season. Now is the time to start that process.
Less is better here. Catch up on work, family, and drop off the bike at the shop for a tune up. Have them check it over for cracks in the frame along with full safety check. Racing is very hard on your equipment. The key with this phase is to make sure you are 110% ready to start training come the start of your program. The under trained, over motivated athlete will beat the perfectly training under motivated athlete every time! Come the beginning of “base training” you should be itching to train. It should be all you think about, so when its 20 degrees and freezing rain, your pumped up and ready to put in a solid training effort! This is also the best time to sit down with your coach and/or teammates to discus what your goals will be for next year. How did you perform this year? What was good? What was bad? What will have to be different with your preparation for 20, etc

Here are three easy steps for an effective off season.
1. Off time: Take an extended time of ZERO training. This will be deferent for every one. 2 weeks for some, 2 months for others. How ever much time you need to be totally rested and motivated to train again.
2. Recovery: Any lagging injury’s? Bike not working quite right for the last 2 months, been wanting to get that nagging cough looked at. Do it!! Get a message go to the doctor, dentist, what ever you need to do to feel 110 percent physically and mentally for the next season. This is active recovery, taking aggressive action towards healing. These are the most important aspects of off season training.
3. Maintenance training: After this you may be ready to train but your program doesn’t start for another month. What to do? Many pro’s and age groupers alike will take part in “unstructured training”. Its best to make is something different than your primary sport, try something new. It will most likely improve some skills needed in your primary sports. Just stay active, (cross training) will maintain your base fitness and, depending on your activity, can address your weakness leaving you fit, motivated and with stronger limiters than you had last year. A perfect way to start your next season!!

4. Cross Train! Go Mt. biking , running, play basket ball, tennis what ever you like and have put off due to you strict cycling training. Cyclist are notorious for having weak abs and core muscles. Working on this will help keep you injury free next year.

5. Most important have fun! Do those old training rides you did when you first started riding. Plan a trip. I have done a few long rides with friends in the fall that have proved to be lots of fun and great endurance training.

Eric is a full time triathlon and cycling coach. He is the owner of EK Endurance Coaching and works with athletes of all levels. To learn more about Eric and what he can do for you, go to http://ekendurancecoaching.com

Off season Training article #2

2010-09-27T03:32:00.002+03:30

Time to lay out the plans…

Your thinking “its the holidays! What could I possibly do for training??? Turkey Carving is some of the best deltoid training there is! This will make you more stable on the bike and resist fatigue longer! Don’t miss the opportunity. Actually I am kidding. Thanksgiving marks the beginning on the holidays and the beginning of the long difficult road to start training again. I myself, have fallen victim to the following scenario before. First its time to rest, then turkey day comes along, then Christmas, Hanukah, etc. which slams full speed into new years. Throw some travel for work in there, a vacation and maybe a wedding (went to a new years wedding a few years back. Best time ever) and the next thing you know its February, your turning 29. Again. And you are barely going to get in 6 weeks of base training before spring.

Sound familiar…

Its time to plan. The answer here is this is not the time to stress about training but to plan ahead. And before we can plan ahead one must look back at the past. Looking at your past year or more of racing and training can be the best thing you do in planning for the next season.

Here are some steeps to get you on the road to success.

1. Write down your general goals. Things that you want to focus on in general. Ie. Become a stronger runner, spend more time training on the bike.
2. Then write down specific training objectives: these can be precisely measured. Increase threshold wattage to 300. Run sub 30:30 minute 10k, etc.

3. Then write down your goals, “win the state championships”. For races write down there dates and rank them in priority.

4. Most importantly identify your weak areas.

Finding these can be harder than it seems. Here are a few methods for analyzing your season and finding your weakness to get you started right in 2009.

Step one: Analyze Your Season

Did you meet your racing goals and training objectives? Did you peak when you wanted to? Did you go as fast as you predicted? These should be pretty simple yes or no questions. Look then at your training objectives as stated above. . They should be measurable goals that are stair steps to you major goals. If you did not meet your major goals of the year the answer, or at least part of the answer, to why may be right there. As you keep looking into why you did or did not meet your goals look at everything: job, personal life, relationship, etc. Stress out side of the athletic world is the number cause of people under performing. If you’re a lawyer working 60+ hours a week and training 20 hours a week as well as being a mother or father, you may be setting out about things in the wrong manner. There are only so many hours in the day!

Note what worked for you and what did not. The things that worked you will want to keep in your bag of tricks as these things will likely work again. The things that didn’t work, get rid of them! We’ll come up with something better!

Step two: Finding Your Weakness

There are 2 ways to look at this. A good starting point is finding your weakness by the numbers. On the bike, the easiest way to do this is test your power profile. Test your maximum power out put for 5 seconds, 1 minute, 5 minutes and your threshold power.

A power profile chart can show you where you are lacking. This is particularly good data for the rodie. Is this written in stone? Is this the end of the road? No, but it is a good starting point. A similar method would be to get tested in a lab. Even if you don’t “need” the areas you are weak in they may still be holding you back. For example, an ironman triathlete having a weak 5 sec. and 1 minute power. They don’t need that ability but if it is weak enough it is something that will hold your other abilities back. If it is an A race specific weakness (going to the Gila and your not climbing well) then you have work to do!

Part two of this is comparing your weakness to your competition? “But Eric I don’t race other people I race my self.” That’s great and I applaud that self motivation but if you want to improve the best place to look is to the people that are better than you. For example, in your triathlon results if you’re coming in 50^th on the swim 50^th on the bike and 450^th on the run time after time again working on your running would be a good place to start. If you’re getting dropped on short hills in bike races, short hills or 1 to 5 minute power outputs might be your weak point. Before you make the decision as to what your weakness is make sure you have more than one or two examples that show your weakness. Your ranked lowest in the run, you % loss is highest in the run,you’re your brick runs always feel “off” compared to fresh runs.

Look at this deeply. This is very important. Are you not running well because you’re and bad runner OR because your swim and bike are not up to par and you’re paying for it on the run/ at the end of the race? Are you getting dropped on the hills because you’re a bad climber or because the hills are at the end of the race and you have trouble there because your threshold power and endurance is not as good as your competition? Take some time with this, consult a coach and or trusted training partner or both.

All of this may look straight forward on paper but it’s harder to implement than it looks. Getting some one else to give you a good objective look at your self could be the best thing you do this fall.

Lets Put it to work!

Now you know where you want to go and have an idea on how to get there. You are now armed with essential tools for planning and training for your season.
1. You have you goal races down in the calendar.
2. You should know what key skill and abilities you will need to meet your goals at these events.
3. You should know what weakness you have, how severe they are and if they are specific to your main season goals.

Our next training article will address common week areas and discuss workouts to address them.

Happy holidays!

Off season training article #3

2010-09-26T22:35:00.002+03:30

Putting it all to work.

By the time we rest get re-focused and on track again it’s winter. Don’t despair! Before we get to specifics lets go over a few points so we don’t get side tracked this winter.

We all have different ideas on winter training. For some it is a vital time of year, laying the foundation for a big race mid summer or tuning speed for the early season du-athlons/ Crits. For some, winter will be a success if we gain less than 10 pounds. What ever your motivations for this winter; balancing a structured plan with a good dose of spontaneity will get you in the best form ever, physically and mentally.

Out look:

If you live in the northern states or anywhere that snows in the winter, and you’re not a pro, you simply can’t train as much in the winter. With darkness coming around 4:30pm, fridged morning temps and icy roads it just not possible. We won’t even get into jobs, girl friends, kids, wives, the patriots game schedule, etc…

So now that we are at peace with the fact that we simply can’t put in as much time as we may want, We can focus on what to do with the time we have.

Getting started:

Find a routine. With cold temps, warm beds and stale indoor air it is easy to get “off track”. Try to find some kind of routine. This could be one workout or rendezvous with a friend per week. ie. “every Wednesday morning John and I run together, no matter what.” “Thursday night I do the spinning class at my gym.” This one appointment can be the back bone of your winter success. Find something that works with your schedule so it will be easy to keep this date and not get side tracked.

This can work for you in a great way if this one workout focuses on your weakness. I have known athletes to turn there swim that puts them 5 minutes down to 1 minute up, over the course of one winter!

The bike:

These time constraints really hit hard when trying to work on your bike, especially if you are training for an early season race that’s long. First thing to do is invest in the proper warm clothes. Water/wind proof booties and gloves. Warm tights, thermal cycling jacket, hat or helmet cover. Investing in proper cycling winter gear will make your cold rides more enjoyable, more effective, and maybe a bit longer. One trick for cold feet is to use shoes 1 size to big and put in two insoles. And don’t jam your feet in there with to many socks. You’ll restrict circulation and have lumps for wood for feet in less than an hour.

The trainer can be your worst enemy and your best ally all at once. If you are going to improve your riding regular visits to the trainer will be a must but they don’t have to be torture.

1. Don’t do the same thing day in day out. Mix it up with different workouts and the amount of time you spend on it. Try something new once every 2 weeks or so. Like watching football with your buddies 3- 4 hr’s with big gear climbs every commercial, sprints every field goal, and hard tempo every time your team is on offence would make even Mark Allan slump over the handle bars by the final 2 minute drill.

2. Keep your mind busy. When you’re not with your friends watch TV, listen to the radio, etc.

3. Stay focused. I have just given you ways to distract your self from your work but the best way I find to make time fly is to have specific workout and stick to it. To the second. Warm up, cool down, some 10 minute strength intervals, rest intervals. You’ll find that riding for less than an hour becomes pretty difficult.

Take care:

It is important that you take care of both your body and your equipment with the same care as you would in the summer months. Proper nutrition and stretching is vital to staying healthy and on the upward path. Care for your bike and trainer is also a must. Just because your not out in the rain and dirt doesn’t mean you can just get off your bike and be done with it. Salt will build up on your bike and trainer and will destroy both if you don’t clean them. They will surely fail you when you need them most.

Getting to you, training your limiters:

Now that you know what your weak areas are (from fall training article #2) we can get right to it! Trying to improve any weakness is not going to come easily or quickly so now is the time to start correcting them.

The key to training your limiters is two fold.

Break down the task at hand.

a. There is more to having great endurance than just pounding out the miles on the trainer or the swimming pool. Are you training at the optimal intensity? Make the workout Quality before Quantity.

b. Endurance (for example) has 2 parts being able to resist fatigue (pounding out the quality miles) and efficiency. How much of each pedal stroke is pushing the bike forward and how much is just moving your leg? If you are .001% more efficient per pedal stroke, x 90 RPM’s x 60 minutes in 1 hr. for a 5 hour bike leg or race. That’s 27 % more efficiency!

OK, there is some fussy math in there but you get the point. If endurance is some thing you’re working on you don’t necessarily have to ride the trainer until 11pm and swim until your whole body prunes. Incorporate drills into your training. Lots of drills.

To address this issue FP drills are key.

Workout #1: 3x5’ F.P. Pedal as fast as you can while still being in control. 110-120 is a great range .take 3’ rest. Build up to doing these at the end of your ride.

Notes: This will work your Neurological durability as well as your general “endurance” as most people think of it. Also when on the trainer realize you have no 0 time. In a bike race you may only avg. 70ish rpms per minute. And have 1/3 of your time at 0 watts or in a recovery zone! That allot! On the trainer doing the workout above you could avg. 100+ rpms and have 100% of your time in zone 2 and 3.

Recently I compared a team training ride with a ride a friend did the day before. “I only had 90’ to ride” he said in disappointment. After comparing his data with mine I noted that if you tock out the nearly 2 hours of 0 and recovery wattage time in my ride he had done the virtually same training as me! 90’ in zone 2 and 3. You could say mine was better because of the fatigue from the longer duration, or… one could say his was more effective because his effort was a continuous effort while mine had several “rest periods”… a topic for another time. This is a great example of maximizing your time.

Workout #2. Zone training. Do 45’ or more in zone 3 after a good warm up/at end of your ride. Build up to 90 minutes of zone 3 time.

Notes: Bump up the intensity! Do your “endurance” work in zone 3. Riding sub threshold has the same physiological adaptations as riding in zones 1-2 but they happen faster. The cost is greater fatigue and decreased reputability. But if you can’t do 3+ hours every day then do it up! The key to this is doing your Z3 work as one steady interval and staying in your zone(no coasting)! Having detailed and accurate training zones is vital for this. A power meter is king here. This will rack up your kilojoules (total work) must faster than riding in a group or doing zone 1-2 and will give you maximum return on your training time. By riding in your zone you could twice as much “work” in the time given than on along group ride. Two tips for ,making this work.

1. Don’t go out to hard

2. don’t spike your power on hills, when you stand, etc…

2. Stay true to the grand plan.

Lower intensity “endurance” training will most likely take up much of your training time in winter. So when training your limiter keep the intensity down! If you are working on your hill climbing go easy. Find a hill with a low grade so you can work on your climbing pedal stroke.

If you are working your sprinting power or anaerobic endurance, work the cadence aspect of it. Short, high cadence, spin ups are great for this. Make recoveries short but not to short. Let your HR drop to Z3 or Z2 and keep the gear easy. With will allow you to work the neurological and technical aspect of these skills with out the cost of excess muscle damage and lactate build up.

Eric has coached over 200 athletes of all levels in triathlon, cycling, mountain, biking, Cyclocross.

Find out more at, http://ekendurancecoaching.com

Surviving the Gila.

2010-09-25T00:45:00.000+03:30

Intro: The Tour of the Gila stage race is one of, if not THE premiere amateur race in the US. Especially if you’re a category 2 rider. As it is one of the few races in the country with a cat 2 only race. Almost every category fills and every one brings there A game. Are you ready? This 5 stage event has something for everyone and has everything possible to make this one the hardest races you’ll ever do. Silver City, NM (the host city) sits the mountains of southern NM at about 5500 feet. If you hadn’t spent time training and living at that altitude you’ll know it. You may get away with a good ride on day one but you are sure to feel the low O2 crunch as the race goes on. Many of the roads are “chip seal” making them slow. The wind is always a factor and can change at a moments notice. And then there are the hills. We’ll get into those in a minute. Get to know this site. http://tourofthegila.com/index.html Neutral support was great I did the cat 2 , 07 edition of the race with no team support on the road side, plenty of good water bottles being handed out by volunteers at every feed zone Be sure to check details and bring enough food on each stage!

Stage one, Mogollon RR, up hill finish: This stage will cause some big time gaps. The road of the finishing climb is bumpy, steep and relentless. It also comes after relatively flat but many miles. 90 or so if you’re a cat 2, 1 or pro. 75 if any other category. Its enough to cause significant time gaps but the race is not over. Ideally plan to have some one pick you up or arrive a full day early so you can drop a car at the base of the finishing climb. its 75 miles out side of town! Leave food and water with the car, while there is some support at the finish, food and water, but there is no stores or anything really until you get back to town. There is an area to park, afe and there will be other cars there. Bring light wheels and a 25 or 27 tooth cog for the finishing climb it a beast!
Training: be sure to have a good power to weight ratio and feel comfortable going all out up hill. Also be sure you have a few races in the belt and are comfortable riding at a fast pace for miles on end. Hit the local group ride and finishes your self off with some hill repeats at your FT.

Stage two, Inner loop RR: One of the tougher 65 mile races you will do. Relatively straight forward. 2 Climbs back to back in the beginning and one big one towards the end. There is 5+ miles down hill and flat after the last climb so it will most likely come together. And the long flat road over the divide is a good rest for people under pressure. Areas of Note: the decent off of climb 2. is very steep and twisty. Tack caution. It ranks in the category of so dangerous that it becomes… really not that bad. Nothing sneaks up on you, and with so many turns you can’t quite get to mach 1. Just pay attention! The star and finish are at the same place. About 4 miles from town. Easy, quick drive.
Training: Again good pack riding and climbing FT power will get you the finish line. Want to win? The sprint in a long slightly up hill drag. Have some good 1’ power. Start finish are at the same location so check it out!

Stage three, TT 16 miles hilly: pre riding this course could be the best thing you do to prepare for the Gila! Wind can make or break your performance so get it dialed in if you’re riding for a personal best! 16 hilly, solo miles on stage 3 will create some big time gaps again. Depending on your category you’re looking at a 35-45 minute effort. Depending on the wind the last down hill 4 miles could be a 40+ mph affair or feel your still riding up hill! Bring the 54-11 gear combo or bigger! Bring the aero wheels but the disk may be to much of its windy. And it will be!
Training: Practice your Time trails! No secret there but this course is tough, up and down no flat road to speak of. Gauge your effort well. Don’t go out to hard. Easy to do on the gradual uphill start. Long FT intervals on your TT bike will get you ready.

Stage four, down town crit: The downtown crit has lots of fans and hug support! With a long wide finishing straight and wide turns it’s a safe, fast course. There are 2 short, steep rollers on the back side. Nothing major but again if the wind is blowing get to front and stay there. If you have to ride in the wind a few times and hammer the hills it could have you on the defensive. Training: Good anaerobic endurance and crit riding skills will make this a short sweet event and make your day more recovery than anything else which you will need! If your looking to finish well get to the front and stay there! With the wind and the rollers on the back moving up can be difficult. Some descending intervals, racing a few crits, and strength work will have you well prepared.

Stage five, the Gila monster, 100+ miles, sever course, up hill finish: This stage would make Lance Armstrong do a double take. Depending on your category you could be in for over 100 miles and 10,000 feet of climbing! The course also retraces some of stage 2 in the opposite direction. So don’t think your hallucinating, although you may be by the finish. Areas of Note: The final climb. It starts quickly. Its steep and twisty. (scary descent for day 2) get to the front! Trying to come around 50 people will put you in the red zone fast. The steep section gives way to some false flat for a long while. DO not think you are done! The course then dips and turns sharply for a few more miles. Pay attention here! One moment of lack of attention will have you closing gaps to what’s left on the peloton if not going off the road. By the time you start the final climb the lead group will be around 15 riders or so. Maybe smaller! The last climb is not hard but after 5 days and 10,000 feet of climbing that day if could break anyone. Arrange a ride for this finish. Its about 5 miles from town. I have ridden back but avoid it if you can. There is some water etc at the finish but not much food. There is however a restaurant. The best BBQ pulled pork sandwich you’ll ever have! Its worth carrying a 5 or 10 spot in a baggy if you don’t have the car. Bring the climbing wheels plenty of food and 27 cog for this beast of a ride.
Training: good climbing FT power again will do you well but make sure you can handle the volume of the day! long tempo rides (2-3hr of Z3 riding) in the hills is best but if you live in a flatter area nock out the tempo at your lower climbing cadence. Try to arrange to stay over that night. Traveling after a race like this can ruin your season, trust me I have seen it happen. Congratulations you made it!! Pat yourself on the back, but keep up the good recovery methods for a few days and take some time off! You need it.

Your first Triathlon

2010-06-14T21:45:00.001+04:30

As mid summer approaches there are many of you about to take on your first triathlon. You might be apprehensive or simply downright nervous and there is no shame in that, it can be overwhelming at times. Swimming is fairly intimidating for many folks, especially when you add a few hundred other people getting in your way! Here we’ll discuss a few ways to keep your day in perspective and ways to avoid the mistakes that are so common and could ruin your day.
Over all strategy and pacing for your race day.
Even for the Elite athletes you will find that in triathlon there are far more things to do wrong then right. What I mean is whether you’re finishing your first triathlon or winning Kona its more about not messing up, not making a mistake rather than being supper tough or “pushing through the pain” or mustering up some magical effort on that day. So, let’s talk about the big picture.
Don’t do something you haven’t done before. You’ve probably seen a few people come off the bike into T-2 leave their shoes on the pedals, swing one leg back over the seat and hit the ground running right as they arrive at the dismount line all in, what looks like, a very easy, fluid motion. Stay away from this! Unless you’ve done this 100 times in your every day rides stay away!

Some other things to avoid include:
· don’t ride up a hill harder than you have in training
· don’t take a turn faster than you have before or are comfortable with.
· don’t grab your water bottle with a different hand.
· don’t eat or drink something you haven’t previously consumed during or before training.

Race day is about executing the skills you have on that day as well as possible, not thinking of something else at the spur of the moment. You will also notice that all of the things listed will not gain you much time. And if its your first time, don’t try to set any records.

Lets Break the race down.
Transitions/pre race: “You can’t win the race here but can certainly lose.” You’re not racing to win today but the same ideas apply here. Take your time, relax, catch your breath, try to recover a bit from the swim or the bike, and focus on not making mistakes. And most important of all, breath… before you leave do a double check. Is your helmet on and buckled? Got all your water, anything else you need? OK… you sure? Ok, now go.Keep things simple. Organize your gear by your bike in a small area. Less is more here. The less “stuff” you have to deal with, put on, take off, buckle, strap, flip over, the better.
I put the transitions section first because I see more errors and mistakes here than anywhere else. At every single race I hear about or see someone bolting out of transition to the run at mach 3 with their cycling helmet still on. Don’t be that person! And if you are its OK just laugh because it’s pretty funny.
Visualize: When you’re done with set up, walk down to the beach or wherever the swim start is, walk over to the swim exit, then walk up to the transition area (like you will in the race) take note of everything. How far is it? Look around, do some visualization. I am going to come out of the water, WALK up the beach, take the top of my wet suit off, into transition here and my bike is… ummm where’s my bike? See why we do this! Finding your bike is easy when there is no one else there and you’re right next to it. Finding it when you come into this huge transition area from another direction with hundreds of bikes around and water in your ears is a completely different animal.

Our 4 key tips for each section of the race:
Swim:
· If you’re a bit worried about everyone crawling over you start at the back.
· Go easy! The swim is designed to blow your race. Swiming is a hard full body sport. Relax, find a rhythm and go. You’re pumped up, you’re excited it’s the beginning of the race, you will likely go to hard. Try and relax. Swimming too hard will have you hyperventilating in 3 minutes or less. Focus on form and breathing.
· Keep moving. You’re going to contact other racers, they are going to contact you, and it’s ok, this is what happens when 100’s of people all need to get around the same buoy in the same few square feet. Just keep swimming.
· Look where you’re going every 3-5 strokes. If you get a good feel for going straight go longer (5-10 strokes) before looking.

Bike:
· Make sure it works and is safe. Are the tires in good shape and pumped up? Do the brakes work and is everything is tight and in order?
· Pay attention!! If another rider does something dumb and you crash down its still your fault and it’s your road rash. Take responsibility! Watch for Dirt on turns, other riders, glass in the road, cars, pot holes, rocks, and more. Just like you do every other ride. Take responsibility for yourself!
· Stay steady! YOU dictate your pace, not the road. Don’t ride too hard on hills and in head winds. These elements will be harder than the flats but stay steady. Conversely go easier on fast sections; down hills, tail winds, etc. and recover a bit. Keep your cadence up, use all the gear on that bike. Don’t sprint out of turns and up short hills.
· Fuel up! Remember, you still have to run. It’s easier to eat and drink on the bike and fluids are most important here. Just keep a steady, consistent flow in regards to fueling.

Run:
· Relax! The first few minutes will be the hardest. Your legs will take a few minutes to adjust. Go slow and stay positive. Find a sustainable rhythm. Find a pace you know you can finish. If the fastest 5k you have ever run is an 8 min/mile pace don’t start at 7:30’s. In fact don’t start at 8 min/ miles. You will likely lose 7%, maybe more on your run from a standalone running race.
· Focus on form. Keep your head up, smile, keep a short stride and quick cadence. Stay light on your feet. If you start plodding along and hammering the road you’ll just make it harder on yourself. Run forward, not up and down.
· Keep cool with water over your head, on the legs and in the system! You may be only a few miles from the finish but it’s going to take much longer than the last few miles on the bike, way longer! Stay hydrated and cool. Water in the system and over your head will help keep your core temperature down.
· Walk for 30 sec. -1 min. before you blow up completely. Don’t push yourself to the brink before you compromise your pace. Walking through feed zones is a common practice. Relax, get your water and/or calories with ease and less stress, catch your breath and then get back to work. You’re almost there!
So remember this is YOUR race, your day. Don’t get sucked into trying to catch the dude with the disk wheel on his/her bike. Don’t let a few people bumping into you on the swim ruin your whole day. Be ready for it. Stay relaxed but ready. Be in the Now. Look and think about where you are and where you’re heading in the next 30 seconds to a minute or so. If you’re on the bike, don’t worry about the run… yet.
Remember to have fun, smile, and enjoy your accomplishment. You’re doing it! Don’t forget that feeling. See you at your second race.

Training in Training Races...

2010-05-12T20:52:00.001+04:30

It’s that time of year when we all start to race or think about it. For many of us some of these first races are non- priority races or “training races”. There are a few different ideas as to what a training race is and how it should be done. Some people think that it just means you don’t taper and “train through it” giving us a nice excuse for not doing well. In fact a training race is a prime opportunity to get great training, important experience and test our self’s in the exact environment that we are trying to excel in the first place. Here are a few key points to consider and plan out when doing your early season race’s and race simulation workouts.

1. Its still a Race: A training race is NOT a time to waist 100$ (or what ever) to swim, ride and run around in a circle with a bunch of other spandex clad freaks for the heck of it! It is an opportunity to really test your self, in the field and against your pears instead of your self. With this, aim for a specific, measurable goal. While this training race will not require a 3 week peeking phase you should take the few days before to make sure you are well rested and ready for a good effort, physically, mentally and with all your equipment working 100%! You have committed the money, time, energy, the sacrifice of getting up at, still dark out- thirty to meet at some random state park. Make it worth while!

2. Make a goal: If you have been working hard on your cycling all winter and spring, your first non-priority Tri of the year might be a good event to focus on the bike leg 100%. See how fast you can really go. How hard you can push your self, and how does that compare to your competition? If you know the course and/or the condition are very similar to last years race. See if you can beat that bike split of yours. Stay within 2’ of crazy Phil, the ex-Belgian pro road racer. Yes, the Bike leg is only 1 part of the whole triathlon conundrum but one step at a time, it’s a “training race” remember… On the other hand you and your coach, might be working on your cycling but aren’t to the point where you want to throw down yet. So focusing on a solid effort in the swim and/or run will be better suited, while your bike leg will be time to focus on being efficient and not extending your self too far as opposed to trying to break the sound barrier on the fast decent coming into T2. instead how fast/well can you run after riding steady smart and keeping your HR and/or wattage under a certain level?

3. Gain experience. Learn. A training race is a prim opportunity to learn. About your self, about your competition, your preparation, your fueling plan, your equipment, your warm up (or there lack of) if you run well in the wind, on the hills or down hills? How did you feel afterwards? Like you just parted the seas? Or do you feel recovered after 15’ of hanging out by the kiddy pool of Powerade and table of bananas, thinking “man I could have gone way harder?” The list goes on. Come the big race day you can’t afford to be caught off guard by something silly. A cross wind hitting your fancy new disc wheel, your cool new tri team tank top and tri shorts fitting right in your aero position, and how big are those pockets? Do they fit 1 or 2 cliff bars? Gaining as much experience about your self, and how your body works in a race situation will have you better prepared come the big day. This may not have you breaking any records but when the going gets tough the prepared shine trough. Anyone can post a personal best in there ideal conditions on there ideal terrain. You want a personal best in any conditions, on any terrain, on any decided day.

Make the most of your swim

2010-02-09T00:48:00.003+03:30

Last week colleague Patrick McCrann wrote an article about why triathletes should NOT swim year round and even further, why it's only necessary when we get to race specific training 3-5 months out.

Its a very good article and all points are worth considering. This got me thinking however.
What if we are new to the game? have High goals or have decided to work on swimming, maybe a weak area...

How Do We make the Most of Our Swim Training Time
Swimming does cost us allot of time. most of us are swimming at a gym so there is getting there and home, changing, saying hi to overly friendly trainer, etc...
Make the most of your time:
we have seen big gains with minimal time in the pool. why? remember in school when you discovered that when you had a ton of work to do it some how got done faster? and you maybe even got better grades? I do. when your working on something as complex and dynamic as swimming and you do it a mere 1 hour a week total focus and concentration are required! For many Masters or your club swim is at way-to-early:30. if your gona get up that early and swim, put your game face on! work hard, get tech tips from the coach, work drills for your problems areas and keep swimming!! you will be surprised how much extra an easy 50 every time your waiting for the coach to give you the next set will add up to.
~And what about going to the gym. get your core work in, spinn class after swim, what else can you do to "Get Faster" and make the most of your trip?
~Make it part of your commute to work, miss traffic in the am or pm.
~Ask the coach, "what do i need work on?" my goal is XYZ, what are your thoughts? if i come alone what workout should i do? The Coaches are there for a reason use them! most will be happy you asked.

The Magic Workout:
when i lived in the Boston area some friends and I signed up for a 1/2 ironman. some of us were seasoned triathletes, some not and out of shape, some (me) had a whopping 4 weeks to prepare after the cycling season ended? I hadn't run in 3 years. it was my main worry but i had to swim some? right?
while training late in the summer we discovered what was referred to as the magic workout.
~30' ride to Walden pond
~30' swim. (across the pond and back)
~and a ride home. (sometimes the long way if time allowed)
my training partner quickly noted, "that is a kick a** workout!". It was but i was more impressed by its functionality and great use of time.
We got a ride in. A 30' swim (similar to the distance and time for our 1/2 ironman swim. he also finished a 1' or so before me allowing him to see my stroke and give a few pointers for the return trip). Swim cap and goggles fit nicely into our pocket and we got a the very key swim bike brick (more on that later)
2 sports, great workout, a brick effect, in 90 minutes!! you can't beat that with a kick board!
bottom line here, look for and explore all your resources, and use them!

Final thoughts:
Swimming is a large time commitment for little real time gains in the race but realize it's a tough, full body, very tech. sensitive sport which is first in the race. Meaning a "Better" swim might not mean time gained in the swim but later in the race...
Talk to your mentors, training partners, coach and swim coach. Make a well educated decision regarding your swimming needs and sch. accordingly.
Remember everyone is different. everyone's situation, resources, goals, fitness lever, goal race.
"Train YOU before you train the race."

Are sprint triathlons good training races for IM?

2009-09-01T02:39:00.000+04:30

Racing is some of the best preparation one can do. Sometimes there is no better way to test yourself than to simply get in there and do it! In a previous article, I talked about how to maximize your time in races “Training in Training Races”. Follow the link for more information: http://ekendurancecoaching.com/articles.html

Many times IM athletes lean towards the longer ½ ironman races as their preferred events. However there are lots of reasons that the shorter sprint distance races can be just what you needed.

1. They are Cheap:
Triathlon entry fees cost a bit more than dinner at the local pub, but sprint triathlons are some of the least expensive triathlons you can enter. Register early and you can shave a few dollars off the price tag. This is good for the wallet and might allow you to rent those sweet pair of race wheels!

2. Local events:
Traveling can take a lot out of you. Assuming you are already going to take a few rest days before the event and maybe after, adding in a long car drive, some less than ideal road food, a hotel bed and you have the makings a week or more of stress and not the good kind. Not to mention, all of this stuff costs money, see number 1. Usually you can find many local sprint tri’s to compete in. That can leave you the afternoon to spend with the family, catch a movie, or even get in some more training…

3. Shorter rest/recovery period:
Even if you are looking to set the course on fire, two days of easier training can be enough to put down a solid effort. Also with the shorter distance, particularly in the run, your recovery time will be pretty low. You can get back to training after only one day for some athletes.

4. More opportunity for training after the race:
With the normal early tri starts and a race that only lasts an hour to 1.5 hours, there is plenty of time to get in some more training after the race. If it’s close enough, maybe you can ride home or even ride there and back. If not a quick cool down after the race, maybe a ride on the bike or swim might be in order. You can still make it home for lunch and still have a few hours for some more training of your choice. For example, last fall I did a sprint tri in Denver. The day basically boiled down to the following: 1+ hour drive, 1 hour race, 30’ cool down on bike before the awards ceremony, 1+ hour drive home and I still had time for 3 hour ride with time enough to make dinner for the wife. That’s over 4 hours of training and brownie points with the family. It doesn’t get any better!.

5. Great threshold workout and test of % loss:
Many triathletes, even IM athletes, are realizing the benefits of training their threshold. These races provide a great environment for this type of training. Sprint tri’s can vary in length, but generally you’re looking at some thing like: 750meter swim, 12-16 mile bike, and a 5k run. Depending on the course and conditions, it takes one hour for the speedy folks to1.5 hours or so.

I like to pace these efforts as a long hard threshold effort. Every “zone” you have should have a range. Your threshold on the bike may be 250 watts, however you threshold zone may be 235- 265, so you have some room to work with here. Go for your threshold-pace on the swim (1000m TT effort), a solid, normalized, threshold effort on the bike and then see what you’ve got for the run. If you can knock off a threshold pace for the run at the end of an hour+ race effort, you’re looking pretty good in my book! Not to mention, you just did a killer threshold training session. If you didn’t hit your threshold run pace you should start looking into why? Did you go to hard on the bike or swim? Too many spikes in power on the bike? Just got fatigued? If so, how far off your pace were you? This can be valuable information and data for future training and give you some clues to where your weaknesses may be.

6. Sprint tri’s will make your IM feel like slow motion:
Sprint triathlons are hard. Don’t let short distance and larger numbers of beginners fool you. Coming out of the water and getting right into a threshold effort on the bike is tough to execute. With the high intensity it is very easy to go to hard and blow up. On the other hand if you take too long to find your rhythm and “warm up” into any part of the race, you’ll lose a huge amount of time. That leg could be over by the time you get into the groove! Becoming efficient and comfortable at this will pay you back! Being able to blast through transition and find your pace and rhythm at these speeds and high intensities will make your IM feel like Sunday brunch. You will be far more “in control” minimizing the chance of making an error and maximizing your ability to execute your race to perfection.

You may not find that a training race is on the schedule and that’s fine. You may have spent the last 3 years doing short tri’s and now its time to try a longer one. It always depends on the individual. We are all different. We have different strengths and weaknesses, different backgrounds and resources. But next time you’re looking for some racing to do before the big one, give a local sprint triathlon a go, you’ll learn more about your self than you think.

Train hard, train safe!

By Eric Kenney
Coaching is not only Eric’s full-time job, it’s his pride and joy. “I take it personally. I am also a competitive athlete and I am as careful with my athletes as I am with myself.” He coaches athletes of all levels. This year alone the EK endurance coaching team has seen several wins including the 2009 4-man team at RAAm!! http://EKEnduranceCoaching.com

The Big Taper

2009-08-26T01:29:00.002+04:30

Tapering (peaking)
Ahhhh… the big Taper. You finally get to relax. Skip the hill workout and the mega mileage brick on Saturday… Some people hate this time of training. I am one of them. It’s a scary time. The time when you can do very little to gain anything and do every thing to screw up months or even years of training. However it is necessary to achieve maximum potential. First off I prefer to use the term “Peaking”. Tapering promotes the idea of doing less and less, and this is not the complete story. Tapering makes me think of something getting smaller and smaller, and that’s not what we are trying to do. Peaking is the process in which we achieve maximum physical and mental performance potential. This can be a lot more complex than just cutting back your mileage.We will discuss this in general terms for a race or your big event. Peaking workouts and how much you do and don’t do, can and will vary a lot depending on your event, duration, and skill level.
First off the peaking phase duration will vary depending on the duration of your event. The longer the event the longer your peaking phase. For Iron distance events, stage races, etc. the longer the lead up of peaking. You might see over a month of decreased volume in some cases. In the weeks leading up to you’re A race the amount of aerobic fitness one can gain is minimal if any at all. So don’t kill your self! Skip the long ride and always, ALWAYS error on the side of doing less. As a general rule I like to decrease total volume by 40-60%. Endurance training can be cut back by the greater amounts. For those doing shorter distances where you may have quite a bit of intensity training here are a few key things to note.
Make sure you are fully rested before a hard workout. We are looking for maximum speed and performance now, not beating our selves up. This will also build confidence. You’ll be amazed at how fast/far you go on your threshold intervals after only a 30’ warm up and taking the day before off instead of the 3 hour ride or tough run.
Work your strengths. You will be racing your strengths so focus on them. Use them, race them. This will build further confidence and hone your skills for race day.
Make your workouts simulate race conditions. Use the aero bars more/ race bike (if you haven’t been) wear the clothes shoes, etc... Do a group swim in open water. Do a race sim day. Practice fueling and mental preparation. Make sure every thing works!
Race. Use a B race as prep. If your training for a long distance race a shorter race in the weeks leading up to it can really get the kinks out. It will allow you to use some racing strategy you are planning in a consequence free environment. Does the elastic band holding the shoes on the bike trick really work? Or is it not worth it?

In general: As we peak, decrease your overall volume. If you have been doing 3 hr rides and 4x 400 meters running on the track do 90 minutes in the saddle, and 2 or 3x300m intervals. You want to stay fresh and sharp but not worn down. Workouts should be short and sweet. They might burn but you should recover fast. By maintaining or even increasing your intensity your body thinks that training is still on full blast and your body will continue to adapt full blast. But… you have decreased the volume and by the time it realizes that you have actually done less your body has over compensated and your flying. Further hone this adaptation with race specific workouts in a race specific environment and you will be more ready on race day than you ever imagined.
While this decreased training time will be nice you should still treat your self well. Treat your self like your still training hard. Get that recovery drink even if you feel you don’t need it. Get plenty of sleep and keep up on stretching, etc…

The other item you will need to keep busy is your brain. Don’t think too much. Go over the race plan, make sure the tires on the bike are in good shape and just go. You have done this in training so you can do it in the race. Remember there is not much you can do to get faster in the week or three before the big race but you can do everything to blow it. So stay the course. Take care. Eat the extra pasta. Skip the morning swim if your feeling tired. And don’t be afraid to light it up a few times. Show your stuff, whether in a race or a short hard work out with the training partners. You have been looking at your heart Rate and power meter all season staying in “your zone”. Time to see how far you can push your self and start looking back the all the people your beating!
Stay safe and have fun!

http://ekendurancecoaching.com/

A closer look at IM USA

2009-08-02T21:12:00.000+04:30

While EK Endurance Coaching will have many IM bound athletes this year. I feel this is a great example of training and racing execution for everyone to learn from.

Here is a look at what it tock one of our clients, Elisabeth Ryland, to complete her first Ironman.

Some background:
Lynn, as I call her, is an avid recreational athlete. Enjoying the out doors for many years in Boulder, CO. she has done several triathlons including a few ½ ironman’s.
A year or so ago her and her husband moved to the Philly area for a new job. After getting settled she decided to take on IM lake placid. After getting an entry we got to work on her training. During this time she had several weekend vacations and short work trips. She is a busy engineer working 50+ hours a week for GSK. Her and her husband are slowly making improvements to there new house. The pair had a week long CO ski vacation in Feb, a wedding in Bloomington, IN in May along with some other spur of the moment activities. Sound familiar…

Training and the race:
Lynn started her structured training on Jan 2nd. With winter being full on in the north east, daylight being short and jobs being demanding outside training is difficult at best for many. Lynn’s biggest weak area at this point was her swim with the bike being here strong point.
We set out with a swim focus for the winter months. This “focus” was more on consistency rather than huge volume or intensity. While there were specific workouts that were done most of her swimming was in a master class format. This format works very well as she was able to constantly get feedback and coaching on her tech. At winters end we decided on some one on one sessions with a coach as apposed to a very pricey weekend seminar. It turned out to be money well spent. She did a 1000 yard test early in the winter. Her pace (T-pace) was just shy of 2 minutes/ 100yards.
She improved to 1:50. by the end of the winter and swam (as she put it) a “very controlled” 1:19 at IM USA.
Lynn’s running was again based on consistency. Slowly building up her durability. She came into this raining with some good “base” fitness, as many call it.
This combined with limited time put us in position to develop Lynn’s upper aerobic engine and pacing ability. While she is strong on the bike she had the habit of pushing too hard when the conditions are slow/ tough and going to easy when there not. While this is what we lean towards while racing dynamically on the bike, years of this has lead to Lynn not being in control of her intensity. The road was in control. Not a good way to go into an IM. The winter was full of threshold intervals and occasional group rides with her team when the weather allowed. This combination of different length thresholds intervals, over under intervals and variable paced group rides gave her a much deeper sense of herself, the bike and how to ride “in control”. This was very important for Lynn as she did not train with or race with a power meter.
While only training a max of 10 hours per week she was more than ready when it came time for a big volume block in early march. She did just shy of 20 hr’s this week with class and control. This week was bike focused and included lots of time in Zones 2 and 3.

As spring came we focused on threshold intervals running. Lynn’s 10k pace improved about 15 sec. per mile. Less than I though but she commented on “feeling” better and better, like she had more control. This became apparent when ran at a crushing 9:10/mile pace in a very hilly ½ IM course in NY state. And later when she ran at a pace only 10sec./mile slower that here threshold pace at an Oly. distance a month out from IM USA. Her “long” runs consisted of many 1.5 hour runs. Our thinking here was that: 90’ is very doable and repeatable. 90’ is also past the critical 70’ mark for endurance adaptation. By doing 90’ runs we could do more running in total rather than suffering through 2+ hour runs and loosing out on training time while recovering. As it was Lynn did not get to complete as many of these 90’ runs as we would have liked. She did do one run of 2:08 three weeks out. she ran just under 10’ miles and felt great.
Lynn ran 9:39 miles in the race. we were aiming/ hoping for 10’ miles.

Over coming adversity:
As with all big goals and great journeys one can expect and must persevere tough times.
6 or 7 weeks out from IM USA Lynn was set to go to lake placid for a 3 day training camp. This training camp would give her irreplaceable knowledge of the bike course, venue, race simulation training and was the front end of another high volume block. The week of this training weekend she became ill. Very ill. Getting out of bed was tough let alone training. She did what most would do. Justified that while she would not be at her best and might have to not do as much training, “it would all be ok.” I let her tell me what she was thinking and then made the hard, brutal call.
“Lynn, your not going anywhere this weekend. I’m sorry but you’re staying home end of story”
This was a huge blow not only to her training but to her mental state. Knowing your course and venue can be the key to not making mistakes. It is huge for confidence and poise on race day. She would miss this opportunity.
We decided that she was fit, ready, being healthy and having a bit more “fire” in the belly would be better than one or two more long rides. She had many 3-4:30 hour rides in her legs. After some rest and being sure she didn’t over do it the next week she went to a planned Oly distance tri. It went very well running exceptionally quick after a steady and controlled bike leg. Her confidence was back.

Race execution:

Racing an IM is not about being a tough guy, it doesn’t matter how many crazy rides you did, how many people you dropped on the B2B ride or how you did at XYZ race 2 weeks ago. Racing an IM is about using the tools you have (your strengths) to over come the absence of tools you may be missing (your weaknesses) to get to the finish line as quickly as possible.
Lynn and I decided that she had 2 weak areas. The nice part about these 2 issues was that if she tock care of number 1 the 2nd weakness would already be halfway over come.
Weakness 1: While she made great progress in learning to pace her self and ride steady on the bike I was still worried she may go to hard to early and pay later. Keeping her first hour easy and her whole ride steady was very key. Lynn rode well. I checked about 20-25 other female riders on the race day tracking site and she was the only one who went faster on the second loop.
Weakness 2: The run: while great gains were made running many of Lynn’s long runs were missed or cut short because of life commitments. Sound familiar? I felt if she paced her bike well she would be half way home. Also, as with the bike, starting out easy and keeping pace would be key. She did this well and ran 9:39 miles

Lynn’s race execution was almost flawless,
Swim: 1:19 and 67th in her AG
Bike: 6:38 and moved up to 37th in AG
Run: 4:13 25th/AG at half way and 16th at the finish.

After the race Lynn said what almost every successful IM racer says. “I passed so any people in the last 15 miles of the bike. I couldn’t believe it.”

What it takes to survive Gila

2009-06-02T00:07:00.000+04:30

Here is a quick analysis of day 1 and a little bit of day 2 of the cat 2 race at the tour of the Gila.
Chris Carr is one of the top racers in CO. despite just upgrading to cat 2 last summer he already shows great skill, mental toughness and some big numbers. lets take a look at Chris and the Gila’s tough first 2 stages.

Chris’s threshold power going into the race was 310-315. we soon discovered on stage 2 that he is now up to 325-230. Stage one offers everything one can ask for in a bike race. 95 hot, windy miles. Attacks that seem to never stop. Long periods of riding slower that slow and a grueling steep climb to the finish.
Chris did not have a great day. I have done this race 3 times now and to be honest I am not sure what a good one feels like??
Chris is 143lb’s his max power is around 1400 watts and is a very well rounded cyclist.

The raw numbers:
~Time 4:30/ 95 miles
~3052 kilojoules
~Avg. power 186
~Norm power 240
~30 spikes at or over 10 watts/ kg of body weight
~peak power
Max-1250
30” 572
1’ 450
5’ 308
30’ 237
60’ 230

Tough stuff for sure. Now, Chris missed the break of 7 or so riders that rode away at about 65 miles in. also his peak 30’ which was much lower than he is capable even fatigued was at the end of the race. You could up these longer mean max power numbers for those in the move. I was one of them but no power data on my bike that day.
Some speculation:
With myself being 155 lbs and in the break. We could say that a rider in my shoes would have to do 3500 kj’s on this day. I to did not have magic legs and was dropped by a 3 of my breakaway companions. I probably did 280’s on the 30 minute finishing climb. Again, at the end on my 3500 kj’s. pretty stout. This was good for 7th place on the day but still many minutes down.
Even without being in the breakaway Chris had 32’ in his Zone 5 and 6. 20’of that in Z6. an hour in Z4, with just over 90’ in Z1 or not pedaling. Judging by the way things played I could safely say our Z5-6 time was probably pretty equal. But my Z4 time would be quite a bit higher. Say 1:20- 1:30 in Z4. that is a beefy ride. I think we can see the cause of that “not so magic feeling”.
The biggest part of the cat 2 stage one at the Gila is both tactical and physical. One knowing what moves to get into, you can’t cover every move. And two being able to get into them with efficiency. Even the smartest rider will have to make several efforts off the front of the pack. And then ride a solid 30’ TT up the last climb. its steep, aside form the flat section after the first 5’ so of the real climb. so figure it’s an ITT effort.
So as you can see trying to mimic this in training can be done in a fairly straight forward manner. Rack up the kj’s preferably with a fast flat/rolling group ride, then straight to a steep 30’ climb and give it all you got!
Lets not be hasty though. Developing ALL of our zones, all of our “engines” and skills is v ital to success. Yes you have to be able to climb fast to do well on stage 1 but you have 90 hard aggressive miles to survive before you get there. Spend time on specific intervals and training!!

Day 2: Chris’s numbers were… off the charts. He was attacking in the first hour. He did a normalized power on 320 in the first hour. With the last 5’ being around 350. my legs hurt just talking about it. This caused a huge reaction from the field and with 2 climbs being involved in the first hour we dropped about a third of the field. This was finished off with the last windy 30’ climb, where, while sitting in our “peloton” of 15 riders by half way up, he was pushing upper Z3, 280’s. like I said, stout riding. this 3:30 hor stage required a norm. wattage of 256.
This stage is capped off with another 10 miles of windy riding to the finish. A long slight up hill sprint to the line.
As you can see to survive the Gila you have to be a very complete rider. You gotta be able to do it all!

maximize your time with this training tip

2009-02-02T01:29:00.001+03:30

short on time? or maybe you would like to do 2 threshold workouts this week but that would cut into the "long ride" this weekend? what to do!
Maximize your time with one workout that has two effects!

With busy schedules, many athletes just don’t have enough time to work on all the aspects necessary to reach their full potential. Let alone the Triathlete who needs to be effective in “all four sports”
Because of this, it is of great value if one can combine workouts. I am not talking about a brick workout or double sessions either. I’m talking about maximizing your time. Even pro’s whom train for a living need to be effective with there time and training. Do you think lance logged any junk miles while training for the Tour? Don’t think so. A great way to do this is by focusing on more than one aspect of your training in one workout. By placing workouts within workouts one can get a double whammy effect out of his or her training. Consult your coach before concocting your own “double whammy” workouts. One of the best ways to do one of these is to place tech. drills or hard intervals into a longer endurance workout. For example: In your 3 hr. ride, focus on your technique while riding up hills. Keep pedal cadence high and concentrate on pedaling “perfectly”. Talk to your coach about that too. Alternate standing and sitting. Stand up on one hill; for the whole hill, sit on the next. Hone your skills. Do fast pedal drills in your long ride or strides in your long run. Another option is to do intervals or some kind of harder effort in your work out. If you are looking to increase your power or speed, do your intervals after a solid warm up. Cool down easily, hydrate and fuel up appropriately, then continue with a low intensity endurance workout.
Bike example: 20’ warm up. 3x10’ level 3-4. (rest 3’). 10’ cool down, continue cool down at level 2 for 2 hours.

Looking to focus on more endurance for that IM. Do the intervals after 2 hours of riding at level 2. BAMB! Two birds with one stone! Please consult a coach before doing any of these as they are a bit more taxing than your normal single aspect workouts that mere mortals do. There are some “double whammy” workouts that are a bad idea.
Example: working two different maximal effort zones in the same work out. Working long tempo, cooling down then doing 1minute intervals. Not effective training here. With proper planning there is no reason that anyone can’t finish that IM, be a contender in there age group, or win the big one. Happy training!

Silverman race report

2008-11-13T01:19:00.000+03:30

This was really a fantastic weekend. I meet and hung out with some great people. the race was run very well, per usual, competition was high and the racing, epic. I could go on forever about all the non-race stuff but I’ll get right to it.
Race morning was the normal, are we really getting up this early?, deal. On the bus, down to lake mead to get thing organized. Plenty of time, stretching, food, hydrate. The Full athletes were out on course and I began my quick swim warm up 5’ before the start.
The weather was great when we got there… to good. As it got closer to go time the wind picked up, a lot. White caps formed, it hailed, rained and got sunny all at once. The kayakers were calling in saying they couldn’t see anything let alone help someone if need be. then we saw lightning. “everyone out of the water!” crap! I thought. This blows. A hour delay of huddling in the tent with a few hundred others. Mean while the full IM race was battling 4 foot waves and 30+ mph winds. The storm cell passed and we went for it. As I knelt down at the edge of the water to do my usual; set of hail Mary’s before a triathlon swim I looked out at the rough water and felt really good. “I am gona crush this swim!” my swimming had come along way in the 2 month prep. I was ready. the count down began as we all did the “creep”. Maca yelling “hold, hoooold” in Braveheart fashion with his huge smile gleaming out. Every one was happy, nervous and fired up to go. I lined up in fount, like normal, acting like I was the next Phelps, needing to get the best start possible. Hey… it only takes 1 sec. to lose. I found my rhythm quickly, a good sign and never really got into the burn phase. I felt strong and pushing into the head wind in the second half I was catching people. nice! Get me to my BIKE!!! I kept thinking…

T1. normal chaos. People trying to take my wet suit off, “are you Ok? Do you need anything? Are you cold, hypothermic? Cramping?” Dude! I have only been in the water for 33 minutes! I’m fine!
Off on the bike:

This year they added the relay to the half. This made it hard to figure out where I was. But I went with my normal motto. ABP. Always Be Passing. The roads were wet the sun was out an the tail wind in the first bit had me cruising nicely and kept my intensity down. A tip for you all, don’t ride in the gutter on race day! there is all kinds of “stuff” in there! Along with wet roads people were getting flats all over the place. I felt bad as I would never wish a flat on anyone but come on your kinda asking for it.
Approaching the turn around at mile 22 I counted the riders in front of me. It seemed that Maca had only about 10’ on me at this point. Less that last yr I thought. However there were still 16 people in front of me. Ok steady EK, lets dish out some rodie wattage! My alter racing ego “Chris” starting to wake up. From here to the finish was head wind, head wind and more head wind. Add in some hills and I was now passing people. Every time I did Chris would yell 15!, 14!, “sit down poser, 13!” Chris is a great racer, very knowledgeable, and knows me very well, of course, but the guy would knock a baby carriage over to beat you to end of the aisle in a grocery store.
The hills got bigger and I pushed harder. I was hurting but the watts kept coming. Up the 3 sisters (3 short, 18% hills back to back) I push more, harder, faster. I was passed by a relay guy about 15 miles from the finish. “are you a relay?” I said. “Yeah, I am. I think your 3rd right now?”
3rd!?! I’ll take that!. Chris chimed in. “3rd! you F#@** sally! That sucks, you gona settle for that!?! Lets get on it!!”
I push more coming into town. I tock every second I could. I scared one road marshal pretty good with the speed of one of my turns. I almost hit a cone in the road. Almost ran into a fence on one turn, went up on a side walk, and did a fair bit of drooling.
Stats:
257 avg. Power
269 norm
VI 1.05
Avg. Cadence 91
Time 2:46:00
Bike place, 1st amateur
avg. HR 172
effort on a 1-10 scale. 11

T2 was pretty smooth. Off pretty quick. I was glad to have Infinit this yr. on the run. so key. First mile was pretty chill. Flat to down hi. I clocked a 7:30 or 7:45 somthing. to fast but it was down hill and I was feeling good. I had to pee but didn’t want to stop then realized that I should tighten up my left shoe. My foot hurt. Mile 2 came, quick pee, forgot the shoe. My foot still hurts.
At mile 3 I was still under 8’ miles. Nice! I thought. HR was good. felt good. At mile 4 I was passed by, who was now, my AG leader. I held him at 30” for some time, a few miles. Right on 8’ miles now. Chris said, “that guy is going down! Hold him until the last ½ mile! There is no way he has a bigger VO2 than you. You will DESTROY HIM!” good plan. I kept pushing. Approaching half way I started feeling it, big time. That last mile or so of the long windy hills that are the Silverman run really got me. As I crested the last bit and turned onto mile 6 he was gone. No way I could get him. I fired down the last bit of my go-go mixture and kept yelling at my self. Finally to the down hills and I could let the legs go now. More, stronger, quicker, faster faster, FASTER!!! started grabbing Coke but decided I didn’t need it. The Infinit had me totally toped off. With 2 to go I was on full auto pilot, trying to not crack. Head up, big breaths. Comprehension was gone, I couldn’t understand anything anyone was saying. I grabbed some water as I passed a huge crowed a people yelling and parting like crazy at the last mile marker (a local bar throws a huge party, its get pretty rowdy there) around a corner water spilling out of my mouth, I was at top speed, this was it. I was passed by a relay guy. “I’m a relay” he said, “blah, blah, blah, he sounded like the teacher in Charlie Brown. “the next guy is REALY far back”. I was glad to hear that. I relaxed and ease up just a tad…
Yep, you got it Chris chimed in right away! “Hey! What the F%#** are you doing!! What does “really far back” mean? Who is that guy anyway? He doesn’t know you run like a injured walrus!” get on it! We don’t slow down just cause we can! This is a RACE remember! Go your own pace on your own time! This is MINE TIME!
As I said before Chris is smart. In the last half mile rounding a turn I looked back. And I’m glad I did. A tall figure wearing all back was there, hunting me down like a lion chasing that old or weak zebra, lagging at the back of the pack. You’ve seen it happen, you don’t want it to, you pray and yell for the under dog but you can see it in the hunters eyes. He gona get dinner. Its just a mater of time. For the hunter chasing me (a guy who beat me last year) time was running out, the finish was in site and I was now killing the pace. Longer strides EK, quicker, push more, knees up up UP!!
Down the chute, I was still clear.

Run:
7:57 miles, 1:44
164 avg HR
Very hard.

Over all:
4th amateur, 6th over all
http://www.silvermannv.com/downloads/08_RESULTS/SILVER08A-overall-half.TXT

I treated my self to a massage, a beer and a few rounds of food as I waited for my new friends to finish. Trading stories feeling pretty bad ass about my 4th place, over all, amateur effort we saw an “operation rebound” athlete finish. These are Guys and gals who have been injured in the line of duty. I Iraq mostly. Watching some one with 1 arm or no legs finish this race is humbling to say the least. Very humbling. When this guys came trough every one cleared a path. They all got the biggest applause, and everyone would walk by put there hand on there shoulder to say congratulations. As I left the venue I passed an operation rebound athlete. I put my hand out to shake his, he shock my hand without hesitation, “Thanks” I said, looking straight into his eyes. He nodded. I said nothing else, nothing else needed to be said.
On the way back to the hotel I instantly had a bus full of new friends. We shared stories of the race, the wind, the hills, we joked, laughed, complemented each other, you know, the whole deal.
The whole weekend was great. As I said I could write for ever. Getting lost in the hotel casino, going out in Vegas the night after, texting, the yoga class, “what is this bag for”, it goes on forever.
Thanks to all who supported me and every one else. The race directors and volunteers. Congrats to everyone who showed up and gave it 110%.

cyclocross training

2008-08-27T19:47:00.000+04:30

Cyclocross as cross training?

Cyclocross is huge. Once participated in as training in the fall and winter months for fun it is now a huge international spectacle. Athletes are now focusing their whole year on cyclocross. Even for us Tri geeks and hard core all road all the time people cyclocorss is luring.

The question is coming up more and more; will racing cyclocross be a good option for training in the fall and early winter training?

First lets take a look at your year ahead and behind to answer a few questions.
Have you had enough time TOTALLY off after your last race/ training block? (I prescribe 2-6 weeks)
Will you have enough time to rest after your cross season and the start of Base training? (2 weeks)
How taxing was your summer season of racing and training?
How much other stressors will you encounter? ($$ for bike, race entry, travel, specific training, etc)
If you answer no and/or “pretty taxing to very taxing” I would seriously consider joining the yelling, full drinks in hand spectators on the side lines. Also, the last question, realize there are a lot of other factors that come into play with your race sch. There are only so many times you can “dig into the suitcase of courage” in your season. And while a cross race may be short in relation to road races and triathlons you normally train for they are hard. Really hard! One of the most important things to having a good training program that leads to a successful season is being rested, both physically and mentally. Be sure you can achieve enough total down time between your training phases.
If you feel after answering these questions you are in the clear move onto the next set of questions to ask yourself.

Does cyclocross address any of my weaknesses specific to my A race(s)?
Does cyclocross address any of my weaknesses not specific to my A race(s)?
Is you’re A race 5 months away or more after your last cyclocross race?

If cross addresses any of your weak areas it is worth considering. For some, like my self cross is every thing I am bad at on the road wrapped up into 1 hr with a punch in the jaw at the start! For athletes like me cross is a great and extremely fun way to train that weakness. (see my last article) However, and very importantly, the first set of questions are the most important. If you are to be at your best for your BIG event of the year being properly rested, having a good build up of systematic training trumps all. So consider your options carefully.
So now how do you use this “cross thing” to your advantage? Here are a few things to keep in mind.

The big picture: your a race is months and months away! Don’t get too caught up in your “cross training” this should be for fun! Leave the ego at home.
Focus your training on basic skills: You’re racing cyclocross because it is going to address some weak areas but don’t forget to spend time training the basics that got you to where you are now. For example, aerobic base, technique. and efficiency of movement in your primary sports, core strength and flexibility.
Check your mental state: Its early in the game for you. If you find yourself not pumped up for a muddy race or training ride in the cold rain stay home!! Like I said before being mentally rested and ready to go come time for the big day is the most important preparation you can do.

I think this can be best done with a training plan. This “transition training plan” has 2 options one with cross and one without. It also realizes that cyclocross is not our primary focus but the first step in our preparation. See sample below.
But what if you want to hit cyclocross full on! This is your priority.! Go back to the first set of questions and get a quick reality check. Then stay tuned there will be more Cyclocross preparation and training plans coming!!

Week 1
Mon: Off: stretching
Tue: 1hr. Level 1-2. pedaling drills and efficiency work.
Wed: 90' weakness day. (intervals or drills that address your weak areas. Nothing to intense. No anaerobic work!)
Thur: 1. Core strength and flexibility work
Fri: 90'-2hr. Level 1-2. pedaling drills, aerobic base and efficiency work.
Sat: 90' weakness day. (intervals or drills that address your weak areas. Nothing to intense. No anaerobic work!)
Sun: Long easy ride. 50-75% of the duration (time) of your longest A race

Week 2
Mon: Off. stretching
Tue: 1hr. Level 1-2. pedaling drills and efficiency work.
Wed: 90' weakness day. (intervals or drills that address your weak areas. Nothing to intense. No anaerobic work!)
Thur: 1. Core strength and flexibility work. 2.) 1hr recovery ride
Fri: 30' warm up ride. Go over your race day warm up. Getting ready for tomorrow.
Sat: Cross Race!
Sun: Long easy ride. 50-75% of the duration (time) of your longest A race.

Eric is a full time Cycling and Triathlon coach and founder of EK Endurance Coaching. For more details on this plan and other transition period plans contact Eric at: eric@Ekendurancecoaching.com
http://ekendurancecoaching.com/

Mt Evans Hill climb wattage dats and analysis.

2008-07-21T20:42:00.000+04:30

Mt Evans stands over 14,000 feet in altitude and has the highest paved road in the country. So it only makes sense that we as athletes who ride bikes should race up it!!
On sat July 19 2008 I did the Mt Evans Hill climb. High altitude riding is not my specialty but it is the CO climbing championships, it’s a fantastic ride and I know that I am capable of doing well. Top 15 top 10 in the pro-1-2 field. as always it will depends on who shows up.
My preparation:
Nothing really crazy here. No knarly FTP workouts, no altitude tent that I slept in. I did get up to 10,000 feet once a week to do 1 or 2 x25’ intervals at what I perceived to be Threshold. I would normally lose about 15%. These were also not fresh as I had to ride up there!
See attached article at bottom on some past data form high altitude riding.

The Climb:
Ride: 27.3 miles
6,920 feet of climbing
Avg. grade: 4.5%
From 7500 feet elevation – 14,135 feet.
**Mass start race, not an ITT.

My Stats:
FTP 340ish...
Time 2:10 (very slow for me even with the wind we had)
Avg. watts: 275.
2253 kj’s
6’ above threshold
29’ Z4
85’ Z3
10’ Z1 and 2.

I was pretty happy with my numbers but with a dismal placing of 30th I new something was wrong. Something didn’t add up. every thing was perfect. The steady but firm pace as the bottom was a good warm up. I never had to accelerate, my bike supper light, etc… I was alone for much of the ride after it split up so no drafting there…

I did 303 watts for the first half , 250 for the second half and the last 20’ at 235. Between my loss for power from altitude and loss from fatigue I was thinking anything over 245 for the second half would have been good so I was pretty happy to see 250. I never cracked. I felt good the whole way. The few sections where we picked up the wind at our backs I was able to really get the bike moving.
Notes on training:
If you can’t sleep/ live at attitude the training AT altitude seemed to work well. At the very least the brain body connection will be lined up. You get some weird sensation riding all out above 12,000 feet! I can not speak on the cellular level on what adaptation occurs with this type of training but from what we do know about loss of power at increased elevation, this preparation seemed to put me one steep ahead of that curve.
Training at higher altitude tips:
1. Go by P.E. If you try and nail your normal watts you will quickly dig a whole for your self. Doing hard work at a significantly higher elevation takes allot out of you.
2. Take more recovery time than normal.
3. Keep the Iron intake up. Consult your doc. As your body tries to make more red blood cells it will need Iron. some people with handle the low O2 levels better than others but keep a healthy and divers diet coming, as always!!

So was everyone else just that much stronger? Is my FTP not 340? Was my power meter way off? What gives?
Here’s the deal I am normally about 70 kilograms, 155lbs. if I really get into it for a big stage race, etc. I can be 152 maybe lighter and feel strong, healthy, with energy to spare.
This year things have been very busy I have opted for more higher intensity training instead of the mega long tempo climbing workouts. This combined with a high frequency of dinner beers, I have been a bit heaver. Not so much to make me worry but a few lb’s. On Friday night I weighed myself 160 lbs!! I thought I was just retaining water maybe, a full belly? But, Sat. after the race when I got home I weighed in again, 160. so lets re-crunch the numbers.
Doing 275 watts at 70 kilo’s is 3.92 watts per kilogram, pretty good. talking with some friends after, ones that beat me, I figured they were in this area.
But 275 at 72.7 kilos is 3.78 big difference.
There are a few wattage calc. out there and even on a hill that is not that steep like Mt Evans, that extra weight comes out to 5-8 minutes!! Add in the fact that accelerating will have an exponential negative effect on a heaver person. And by “hanging onto” a group longer one can get more of a draft for more of the climb. That all adds up to a much, much faster ride and a better place.
Note on my % of loss. I lost 19% for the hole climb from my FTP. Realize that this is 2 hours not a not a threshold effort. In the 2nd half of the race I lost 26%. Which I figured is pretty normal. 20% from the extreme altitude change, 6% from fatigue from the first hour.

Some final thoughts on this. Yes, Threshold watts per kilo of body is important. And for a hill climb or hilly RR or stage race it’s very, very important! However, there were people that beat me that are significantly heaver. What’s there FTP? I don’t know. probably better than 4.6 watts/kilo. But, I know this. To reach your maximum potential nothing beats being healthy, happy and strong. In bike racing or any endurance sport simply being able to crush the power out put will pay off huge!!

~Here is some other data from training at altitude:

Here are some numbers and percentages of loss that I have so far. As you will see my data has not only the altitude but a varying amount of “work” before the high altitude intervals.
My FTP is about 340ish, 155lb’s
I live at 5500 feet
Normally, at my living altitude, I train that “late power” quite a bit. I lose about 8% after 2500-3000 kj’s of Z3-4 riding.

~Intervals at 10,000 feet: I push 290 watts (also after 1500kj’s) A loss of 14%

~My ride up trail ridge road. To 12,000 feet. (after 2500 kj’s, with 6’ above threshold) I did 235 for the last 30’ or so. A loss of 30%!!! Keep in mind there is also general fatigue acting here as well from early part of the ride. But even if we take out my usual 8% of loss thats still 22%!
Again these are all a bit tough to use because of the “work” that is done before the efforts None are “fresh TT efforts at altitude.

The tour of the Gila. Stage 4-5

2008-05-06T22:36:00.001+04:30

The crit was... a crit. I attacked hard for a $200 prime but could not bridge to the solo leader at the time. Other wise it was a safe, steady, uneventful hour.
In the middle of the night before the last stage I awoke with some congestion. Not what your looking for hours before a 102 mile road race with 9000 feet of climbing. I grabbed me emergency Nyquil and went back to bed trying to not think about it. In the beginning of the race I felt good. Heck I felt great! However when the pressure was on I was instantly suffering.
A friend would later point out that I had most likely been riding with it the whole week. “Remember you said your throat felt wired on the drive down, you went and got Listerine…” “ohh yeah.” I said. Some times its hard to see the forest through the trees. This would explain my poor TT and lack of top end.
But onward, I realized that I would be in damage control mode for the last stage. This pattern continued. Feeling fine, but with the hammer down I was getting dropped. I had no middle gears. Just easy, or blowing up. As the finial climb approached I was up front and determined to give it my best. I was instantly dropped. After a bit I found a rhythm and told my self it would be ok. As the steep climb leveled I got into a group and we started working well. After what seemed like forever I was out of water and still 8 miles from the finish. However after a bit more work and preying for the finish we were catching the GC leaders group! I couldn’t believe it! With 4 miles to go and one last climb we caught on to the lead group minus 4 attackers up the road.
As the attacks came I did everything in my power to stay in contact. In the end I was 15th on the day and preserved my 13th over all.
I was lucky Danny (the GC leader) was playing things very conservative and not pushing the pace. this was the only reason my chase group was able to catch back on.
All in all I was happy with the effort. I hate the what if’s. What if I wasn’t sick, what if I went with that attack, what if…
What if I gave it 100%.... I did. In the end that is all we can do give 100% and never ever give up.

Air force academy race weekend.

2008-04-23T20:40:00.000+04:30

Time Trial

The sat TT I was rushed. A 90’ drive down. Trying to find the start etc left me with a 35’ warm up or so. While I didn’t feel horrible I didn’t feel totally opened up. I gave it my best. Being conservative in the begging of the course on the steep rollers. Resting a bit on the long down hill and finding the best rhythm possible on the flat to rolling second half. 13th place. In a TT that 1% can mean a lot. What would have meant for me? 30 seconds, 1 minute or more? No clue…

Road Race:
We went off like dogs chasseing a rabbit from the gun. No idea why? This out of the gate VO2 effort is never good for me. As we flew down the long hill and turned into the cross wind there was a huge crash. Across the road crash. I threaded my way through and got to work in a chase group. No panic we will catch them. As we hit the climb we caught on and I went to the front. Not wanting to be caught behind someone not ready to race today. However, I ended up to far it front. Common error for myself. I was soon following attacks and riding second wheel burning matches faster that someone like me should when there are 10+ pro’s. Second lap was better. Again they killed it in the cross wind. I felt good and happy about half the field being dropped in this section. Lap 3, again single file in the gutter and I felt fine, then the gaps opened up big time, I was to far back and chasseing. A full lap chasseing with a small group started to wear on me. The 4th time up the climb we caught the group again! They were with out a small lead group but we were back. Under pressure my self and my fellow chasers were dropped later on the climb and again I was in chase mode. I tried to pace myself on the last loop but my legs were totally shot. It was not confidence building to feel this way. But I have to chalk it up to early match burning. Not good for anyone and for me early race efforts end up coasting me big 99% of the time. 26th place or some crap. I was really frustrated afterwards. With the race, the crash and mostly myself. The day was one to be defensive. And I’m just not a defensive guy.

Koppenburg:

2008-04-09T22:13:00.001+04:30

The koppenburg race is filled with survival.
The short, 18% climb punctuates the race. With only to lines to ride up it, positioning yourself at the front on the narrow lead in is tough work. The climb its self is not so bad if your close to the sharp end. After the climb its more dirt roads and a stiff cross wind to shred the field.
Repeat.
The first time up the climb I was feeling fine but to far back. Someone fell. Off the bike for some cyclocross training and chase. I was with no “rest” when we hit the dirt roads again but some how I got to the front. When Jason Donald attacked I went with him realizing that this would most likely be “The Move”. It was but I couldn’t hold his wheel after a hard chase from the first mishap. As we hit the climb for round 2 I was pushed into a lose, deep rut. I tried to ride it and did for a bit. As I tried to get out a fell. On the ground I felt my foot in my month after cursing the first rider that fell! Happens to the best of us. I got into a good chase group but as we caught my teammate and leader for the day I was put to work. Chasseing the main group again,. This put the nail in the coffin for me. After getting the pack with in 200m or so he put his 10 years of track riding to use and bridged the gap in no time. I was left trying to stay with the chase group and a HR of over 200 bpm. For the rest of the race I road with 3 others who were also strong enough to be up front but had come to grief in some way. Probably from my fall!
We got things going but catching the pack would not happen. What did happen, as I thought might, was we caught many, many dropped rides. They would get on and shortly be dropped. This race is not easy. While only lasting 1:40 for the pros there is no room for error, bad luck or rest of any kind. Our group still came in 28th -32nd or so. Beating about half of the starting field. 2 teammates remained in the main bunch getting a top 20.

Not a great day for me or the tam but that’s racing. Anything less than perfection, any weakness is highlighted and exploited until you loose. next week I will have be more on top on my game. No mistakes.

Lookout Mt. ITT

2008-04-06T19:17:00.000+04:30

The race ascends Loot mt. road in Golden, CO. On the very edge of the rocky Mt’s above historic Golden with the Coors factory and the renowned School of Mines below I found my self gazing at the view quite a bit on my warm up ride up the climb. The climb is only 4.5 miles and about 5%, so nothing supper crazy. Tom D has the record, surprise, at 16 minutes and change. 300$ for who ever can break it. With Kevin Nicol and Jason Donald in attendance there was a good shot it may fall, but the little bit of wind there was would erase any chance of that. I felt good warming up and in fine EK fashion I was running late despite arriving 2.5 hour before my start time!
I knocked out plenty of efforts in my 1:20 warm up. some over unders and really dialed in my effort at 360 watts or so. I selected the Carbon wheels today so no power data. I feel like I paced my self well despite feeling a bit tired in the gluts and hamstrings. I didn’t have that over the top, pushing so hard to have enough lactic acid in my blood to kill a dog, but I got the job done. Just over 19’ at an estimated 359 watts gave me 9th place. First top ten of the year, hopefully more to come. I felt pretty good. Cadence high even on the steep sections in the last mile. It was still hard to keep on it when the road flattened out but still a pretty good result. Right what I should have been able to do for a 20’ effort or so. I feel that at the Gila I will have to produce a similar avg. wattage to be in the hunt. This will be tough for a few reasons.
~ TT bike is hard for me to rock the watts.
~ There will be a few 0’s. steep down hill and the turnaround.
~ It will be 38’ or so not 19’!!
~ It will be on day 3 of the hardest amateur stage race in the country. And while I was not totally fresh and peaked for this effort there will be some fatigue in the legs come stage 3.

TT and crit, first races on 08

2008-03-11T19:50:00.000+03:30

With 2 days of standing up for 9 hours at a clip (don’t ask!) and a bachelor party in between the racing this weekend was… not my best. Sat I felt tired, just not being able to go “all out”. Sunday I was more rested but tight. Which probably didn’t change the results much. I did however learn quite a bit this weekend which is a main goal of these early races.
I learned in the TT Sat. that while I will not be able to push the same wattage on flat road on my TT bike It shouldn’t be much less. 15 watts max. That is also assuming that the course doesn’t force a lot of zeros. Sharp turns, etc, which there were plenty of Sat. don’t have the results but between the lack of power in the legs and the 32 spokes on the rear wheel I would say I was not in the top 20%...
Sunday was a crit in Denver. 3 roundabouts and a 100 degree turn had me loosing 1 or more bike lengths every time I leaned the bike over. And if the course its self didn’t illuminate this weakness Tyler Hamilton, Henk Vogues, Chris Baldwin, and the other fantastic US pro’s that were there certainly did. The break got clear in about 5’. 5 more minutes later Tyler bridged up with out getting out of the saddle. I managed to stay with the “main group” which was halved in about 15’. the remaining of us fought hard to get clear from each other. I was lucky to have a man in the move and sat on. After getting caught behind a crash and having my rear wheel come loose we were pulled, as the lead break was going to lap us, and I watched the 12 or so remaining rider’s battle for he win.

Things learned this weekend:
1. Even if you’re sitting down at a bachelor party it still makes you tired!
2. TT wattage will be less than my hill climb wattage but not by much.
3. Tyler is an unbelievable bike handler! pros who ride the track where having a hard time holding his wheel through the turns. The rumors about his “handling skills” are false.
4. I need a new skewer for my power tap wheel.
5. Despite not feeling great on Sunday I think I still performed pretty well. Putting out 45 spikes at or over 700 watts in 30’ will make anyone’s legs feel heavy. (Which is what I did in the first 30’ of the race.)
6. Getting your act together and performing well is much better than writing about all your excuses why you didn’t race well!!
7. See number 6
8. Rear number 6 over and over until it sinks in.

Silverman half Ironman Race Report

2007-11-14T18:20:00.000+03:30

Silverman race report:
I have done a few tri’s in my day. And I have done even more through my clients. Learning every steep of the way. But sometimes I still get caught up with THE question, “are you a triathlete?”. I don’t label others or my self unless its absolute. Well now there is no question, the Silverman triathlon is the most beautiful and toughest course I have seen. If you are wondering if you should label your self as “Triathlete” or are maybe looking to redefine what you are capable of do this race!

Race: At 5 am my eggs and rice didn’t taste so great but I got it down. A power bar, gel, lots of panicking and we were off! At first I felt no so good the my women’s med. wet suit wasn’t the best fit but after a few minutes I found my rhythm. No sooner than that we hit the windy part of the swim. The swells were… big. I have swam in the ocean, body surfed, played water polo, I have even been thrown off a horse. Swimming in the 2+ foot swells was worse. I was simply being tossed, I could hear the tri geek gods bellowing out in laughter. HAA, HAA, HAA, a road cyclist thinks he can simply run for a few weeks and do this race HHAAAAA!!! And for a few minutes I thought I might not make it! But after some wounded seal like swimming maneuvers I was into the tail wind then back to the cross wind but I was handling it a bit better. I could barely make out the buoys but still managed to swim pretty straight. People were all over the place. At first I tried to find a pair of feet to follow but one wave and they were gone.

Up the chute to T1. pretty smooth. I bent over while sitting down to put my shoes on and my legs, both of them, seized. Ahhhh… “Ok I’ll just pretend that didn’t happen.” Out of the tent to my bike and ... a tail wind greeted me making the ridiculous climb out from the lake a bit easier.

Bike: right away I was passed. A big guy came by, “now for the fun part”, he said. As I watched him pedal away I thought, to hard. He’s mine. It wasn’t long. 5’ or so before I had passed him. “OK EK keep it easy!” I did, just letting my legs fall. The HR was high but the legs felt good. I pushed on. Coming up the first turnaround, Maca was coming the other way, I checked my mileage. Holly crap! I thought. He is really far ahead of me. I began to think that my fasted bike split goal was no longer in the cards… ohh well stick to the plan. I counted the guys in front of me and I was now in the top ten. Nice! Turn around at mile 23, fast riding for a bit and I came into the second half on the course. Hills, big long head wind hills. I passed a few more riders, slower now. Yeah, I thought, I must be in the top ten these guys look good. On to the bike path, Yes a bike path! 3 short climbs back to back. The 3 sisters they are called and I would not want to meet mom or dad. They were biters at 18 percent. I simply “let” them be hard and then pushed as the path turned into the head wind and plowed upward at a low grade. 2% grade + 20mph head wind + 300 watts equals me going some where between 12-15 mph. It was not for the weak minded. I pushed, I caught one more. Boom! Out onto the main roads now more head winds and long gradual climbs. Some fast riding too, 47 mph fast! With 8 to go I was pretty cooked, with 6-5-4 to go I was really, really cooked. I kept stuffing fuel down my throat. I had no more acceleration, but I had enough to hold on.
Into T2.

I put the shoes on, grabbed my food, and was off. “heh, how far ahead is Maca?” I asked “peffff…. Ohh god… like 20 minutes I think?” “Yeah that sounds right”, said his side kick. I was in disbelief. Time to switch hats, or off with the “racing” helmet and on with the lets just finish, hat. Or no hat really, but new shades.

The first mile is slightly down hill. Nice! I liked it. I could find my rhythm with out having to fight to hard. At just over 1 mile you turn right. And into the head wind and up a 2 mile climb. I looked at the profile in my head. I quickly came up with the plan of really keeping it in control as 90% of the up hill running was in the first half, then it was more down hill. I thought make sure I have enough in the tank so that I can “let my legs go” on the down hill. I was on pure feel now. My HR monitor watch had kicked it this past week and with no time I couldn’t even get a round about on my pace. At mile 7 I saw a sign for mile 6. ohh bummer. But half way so that good. wait, is that half way? How far am I running exactly? Ok there’s mile 7 this was right around the time the cramp in my gut started to concern me. I can handle pain, but if it got worse it would start to slow me down. I couldn’t think straight and I could really feel the swim now. My hands started to not work so well. Grabbing water became hard work, my arms felt like lead and at feed zones my response to “what do you need!” had gone from, HEH!! Thanks! umm I’ll have water and ohh are those Oranges, no thanks, water and a gel, thanks guys you rock!!” go Hilleary! To ahh ahh water, go Obama! To here a mile 7, “number 359 what do you need!” …. …. “hey what do you need! …. Are you OK? 3-5-9 are you.. watcoke!... …waaaqalk%$35… it was pretty bad. Then my race brain kicked in again. YO EK, get you s#*% together were barely past half way, your in 6th place! From here to the finish all I could think about is that scene in a football game, when a play goes bad, a fumble happens and some how the 350 lb line backer picks it up and starts running. He probably hasn’t touched a ball in a game in 5 years and looks like a wounded doe on ice trying to run. His teammates run up, and try to block for him. He thunders on, slowing now with every steep. I bet that guy isn’t even thinking End Zone! He’s just thinking, when I get hit by the 5 guys running 10mph faster than me, don’t drop the ball! Don’t drop the ball EK!
Think! This is getting worse and your to far from the line to tough it out… number 359 wh… Pretzels!! I had been taking in my normal electrolyte levels and while it wasn’t hot we are in the dessert and energy usage was high. This combined with drinking water on the run (can’t do the Gatorade) was making my tummy low on salt. Or was it? I had to go for it. 1 mile later I was doing better and just in time as the down hills came. “great job 359 what ... COKE, AND WATER! The racing brain was back. Next set helpers “hey great job loo…! Water! Water!! “ahh we’re just cheering” “ohh sorry” The last 5 k was brutal. Things started popping into my head. Mostly a family friend who lost a long, long battle with cancer a few years back. Don’t know why I thought of her. Maybe she’s in Las Vegas? I was trying to pick up my pace, come on EK top ten top ten can’t get passed again!!,
I put down another gel and finished her off. I could hear the announcer as I came down the chute the crowd was insane, Eric Kenney coming in from Boulder, CO. looking strong!!
When I finished I was a bit over whelmed. Zach was there. And thank good. A volunteer came over, are you OK do you need the medical tent? Ahh… do I? I asked Zach. No, not yet anyway, food, recovery drink. I sat down, shock a few hands, and got a message. Everyone was talking about the water and the wind on the bike path! It was brutal. Everyone that had raced gave you this look. It was this look that said, wow dude, you made it too. Congratulations. You’re a Triathlete.

Early results and stats:
Swim: 29th, 37’ hard as hell.
Bike: 3rd, avg HR 176 (threshold 183-185)
Estimated avg wattage 285-300
Run: ?, ?, ?, harder than hell.
6th over 2rd in age group.

GMSR stage 1

2007-09-01T17:28:00.000+03:30

After the normal totally panicked, east coast natural start. The race was on. I avoided some crashes in the neutral zone by locking up the rear wheel a few times. Pretty standard I guess?? I was mid pack on the false flat. Not where I wanted to be but better than last year. The head wind kept the speed to a reasonable pace and I was feeling all right. I was moving up slowly. Ok, no panic this is good. snap. Rear shifter cable snapped right at the lever. I waived for the service car and tried to figure out how to change bikes without loosing the pack totally. Well there was no way. I stopped we got the bike down put some peddles on and I was off on my 6 mile training ride. I have said before how my season has been filled with bad luck. Well here you go.
So how much do you love your sport? How much do I love mine? I have been forced to ask my self this question a few times this year. Well… I‘m starting tomorrow. Pray for me.

Mike Horgan hill climb

2007-07-19T02:57:00.000+03:30

The Mike Horgan hill climb is the most dynamic and arguably the hardest of the 3 hill climbs. While not as long or reaching the altitude of Mt Evans it sports long sections of quad busting steeps 15%, and 4.5 miles averaging over 9 etc. 5-7 miles of dirt road. A short fast S-turning decent and a bit of flats before the last kick up to Eldora ski area.

We blasted out of the gates with Tokyo Joes team and Ralf from the Wild Oats team (my team) on the front. We got to the crucial part section of the race in 10 minutes or so. Ridding up hill at 25 MPH makes you feel like a stud I don’t care who you are, it does.
I road well right in 5th or 6th wheel and was feeling good. I went in fount of the surge and turned onto Magnolia rd 3rd wheel or so. Hitting the supper steep start of the next 30’ I shuffled my gears down into my 27 and road steady while 20+ riders passed me. After 3 or 4 minutes 2 groups started to form ahead of me and they stalled. I started to push a bit more. The longer I road the more people I passed and what was to be the second group on the road was in sight and striking distance. I was now riding with one of the Aussie guys. I started to push into the red zone a bit to early before the top and lost the group ahead of us. Onto the dirt road we picked up one rider but couldn’t catch the next group. we simply didn’t have enough guys and I wasn’t willing to ride that hard on this section. I will admit I was scared of the Horgan, well if not scared lets say I had a deep, deep respect. OK onto the paved decent, and to the short stretch of flats that leads to the last few miles up to the finish. As I looked back to judge the condition of my 2 companions I realized that our little party of 3 had turned to 7 or 8. I was worried but then realized how good I felt, and with the final climb less than a mile away I told my self that if they got dropped before I will drop them again. I went to the back as we hit the climb just to see the pace of every one. After a minute or so I moved to the front and accelerated. I told my self I was going to wait for the Aussie rider to make a move but I couldn’t help it. I settled to a rhythm and tock a look. There were a few who follow so I kicked again, this time only my mate from down under was there and looked to be in trouble. I pushed more but couldn’t quite shake him. I should have been either more aggressive there or much less. With 200 to go he jumped me and I didn’t have enough in the legs to respond.
13th on the day. not so bad I guess with 12th and 11th right in sight. I felt great and after as was eating breakfast with the lady at our favorite place in the world I thought… maybe I should have been more aggressive?
Maybe??

Firecracker 50

2007-07-09T02:38:00.000+03:30

So off we went through town leading out a parade in Breckenridge, CO it was quite a sight. After a bit of a flurry we settled in. I road 2nd or third wheel for most of the first long, paved and dirt road climb. after some time I had pulled away with another hard tail rider in my class. We hit the single track and I stayed in control of my effort but the going was tough. I was in the lead now with no one in sight. “sweet!” we came up to the second climb, long and crazy steep. 3 mph or so. Lose balance at all go of the single track and you were walking. I did a few times but did my best cyclocross remount and got back to work. 1 sport guy and came up behind me on the long double track decent. There was some traffic on the climb but I was in no real hurry… yet. I just focused, kept my rhythm, and tried to as efficient as possible. 50 miles on fat tires equals 4 ½ to 5 hr’s with no rest. At the top of the second climb I recovered very fast and with my competition no where in sight I could get to work just keeping my bike moving and trying to stay with faster riders on the descents. Bamb flat! Things get bad here, kids stop reading now.
I’ll give you the quick run down. My CO2 didn’t work. After a few minutes my sport class friends started to pass. I chased down mr. yellow jersey on a flat and convinced him to give me his pump. Pumped up tire. 2 minutes later. Flat! With no tube I sat there swearing. Allot! After 10’ or so Chuck my driving companion and 24 hr. of moab mad man stopped asked if I was ok dropped all his flat stuff with me a tock off. His co2 was spent already. I pumped then realized I I had 2 tears in the tire not 1. deflate. Tear my old tube apart with my teeth. Butt the tire pump again then, after 20’ total fu*#&ing around time and I was off again in the fire cracker 50 with a soft tire and no hope of winning. I told my self I could still do it and for a while I believed it. But It tock forever to even catch mr yellow jersey and return the pump. Thanks by the way dude I would still be out there!
I crushed it. For the rest of the race and the last 1hr or 45’ got pretty ugly I had really laid it down after my double flat debacle. And I paid the price. In the end my results got a bit messed up as well with them placing me in the wrong age group but no worries I was out of the top 3 either way and I didn’t bump anybody out of any prizes or fame. In the end I was really upset with yet another “lost opportunity” but I got a great workout had fun and meet some really cool people. if you ever have the chance to do this race do not pass it up. it is one of the best in the country!

Sunshine Canyon Hill climb.

2007-06-30T23:10:00.000+03:30

I like the hill climbs, just enough race tactics to make things interesting but nothing to really screw you over. The race goes up hill right away and I was so worried about getting caught back I found my self in the front. Sliding to 3rd wheel or so the pace was nothing crazy but hard enough. Upon the first flat section the I was still there like every one and sitting top 15. the next section was the hardest part of the paved road. I road hard but in control. I was dropped with about 20 guys in the lead group now. As the road eased back I got into a nice group and we chased back on. When the road kicked up again there were 5-10 guys who had gone to deep and blew. I made it back to the lead group pretty quickly. then we hit the dirt. Things really blew up there. I was in around 15th on the road I think, I road a hard yet still in control pace. I was maxed yes but feeling reasonably good. and with the decent number of pro’s in attendance I was pretty happy. As I approached th last km. I started to accelerate. There was a group just up ahead. On dirt there could be a rider 10 feet ahead of you on a 1% grade and you could never make it to his wheel. You go slow! I caught them with 600 meters to go and went straight by. A on Einstein’s riders wheel now I saw Jon Tarkington ahead. I must be riding well! The road flattened out and I was sprinting now to stay with the bagel fueled rider. He pushed again and it was all I could do to keep my pace I had empted the tank. Or filled it with lactic acid? Which ever way you think of it? Probably the latter.
Not sure where I finished. Top 15 I think maybe top 10 but that’s pushing it. Results should be up soon. On the ACA web sight. http://www.americancycling.org/results/Default.htm
More to come hill climbing to come!!

Hugo RR

2007-06-17T07:35:00.001+03:30

80 miles of wind and big gears:
The Hugo RR is not a hard course but it’s a bike race and the one thing you can count on in a bike race is that it WILL be hard. If anyone ever tells you a bike race was easy ask them if they won…
The dead on head wind in the first 30 miles made things hard at the front of the pack and very easy in the pack. I attacked first setting off a string of attacks but they were all just testing attacks. You could tell no one really wanted to commit. Until fellow Wild Oats team mat Ralf tock a nice flyer. And then had 4 join him with team director Chad Moore in tow. Neither our team leader for the day but fit and smart racers, we were content. After about 30 miles the road make a shard right hand turn and the easy sitting in was over! 15 miles of hard core Belgian style cross wind racing in sued. Well close anyway. I found myself in the second group but we were not far behind. We started picking up riders getting dropped from the group ahead and after some hard dicing riding in the gutter I found my self in the first group, less the early break. hurting with no teammates and 2 up the road I was trying to recover. A Mr. Jon Tarkinton number 1 on the Best All-round Rider list was with us and I did NOT want him getting to the front. At least not with me feeling the way I did. Jon is a crafty rider to say the least and he can do it all. Crits, long windy RR, hills doesn’t matter. He’s a threat. However me sitting on didn’t make for the best of friends in a group of 6 or 7 and the attacks started. I marked Jon and only Jon. This hurt me more, but I hung tough. Then flat. Yeah believe it r not another flat on the tubulars. I couldn’t believe it! You would think I was aiming for glass and nails! I got a change not the fastest but hey this aint the Tour. A large group pasted me with Max and Mike Sutter in it. I then went about drafting the car at some a really high speed. My monitor kicked out. 53 -11 speed. For maybe 10 minutes I was pinned the whole time. As I kicked out from behind the car I gave my new best friend a nod and realized that the group with me 2 teammates had joined the front group that I was in. our early break was still out. I sat in as Max gave me a few pushes to help me recover but I had already gone to far into the suitcase of courage, as Paul and Phil would say. Another little rise and our group split. Mike and I in the bigger one, A few guys ahead max out the back. With Mike Sutter feeling good I went to work giving everything I had to bring back the guys just ahead of us. After several miles of this we turned again on the last 15 miles and into a cross wind. I lasted a few miles and then I was alone. I could barley keep it in the big ring wit the wind. I did make it though. Not sure on the place. Our 2 early breakers came in 4th and 5th not sure on Sutter yet but top 10 I would imagine. So a good day for the team, tactically a supper race we just need some stronger legs and 1 less flat tires!
Crit tomorrow eve that will conclude the rocky Mt. Omnium!

Deer Trail RR

2007-04-29T07:15:00.000+03:30

The course today featured some long flat roads potential for huge cross winds. The winds never really came. But.. a bike race being a bike race it was still hard. The early break went away pretty fast and I tried to bridge, I left it a bit to late and found my self in the middle nowhere… in the race and… in general. Dear Trail is a tiny town. They don’t get much smaller. Any who, I sat up and waited to for the pack after 5 minutes of killing myself. We did the attack each other stop. Then one or two teams would work for a bit. Stop, attack. Repeat. After the first section of the course we barreled back through town and out onto the second sector with was much hillier. I was feeling good as the as we hit the first long drag hard, the pack slowed I kept the pace going shooting of the front. Again I had a nice gap but the little wind that was kicking up made for hard work and the pack was chasseing again. I slotted in and the big boys started to fire. After a few more miles things were getting pretty strung out. I marked the strong guys and then came around a gap and up to a nice move started by Jon Tarkington. The Vitamin Cottage rider has a reputation for being very crafty and yeah, strong too. We were away. 3 of us. And soon 5. This is it I thought. We made another u-turn to begin that last hilly out and back. As we picked up the early break I accelerated over a steep little rise trying to drop the early breakers and take the strong guys to the line. But no one wanted any of that. Now I had 3 V. C. team mates to deal with a 4 or 5 others sitting on. It wasn’t long before the vitamin guys were putting on the pressure and after a few attacks I rolled through the front and Jon was gone. I couldn’t cover and he was away. With the early guys sitting on or hanging on rather after there 70 miles of hard work. With the other vitamin guys sitting on things were getting tricky. I road, hard. 2 or 3 others were taking pulls as well. With Jon dangling out front we were attacked again by the rested legs of his teammate. He made the junction quickly and now we were all looking stupid, or just out manned and out smarted? I can’t figure out which. We barreled into the line and my legs had nothing as the sprint opened up I could barley hold the wheel and ended up 6th.
A solid effort and I was pleased with my result despite the tactics being agents me. Lessons were learned and the last bit of fine tuning for the Gila complete. Next week will be interesting. Stay tuned.

Haystack Time Trial

2007-04-23T04:38:00.001+03:30

The TT on this day was a fast course but still a heavy one. A few rolling hills around the half way point and a long barely uphill 3 mill drag to the finish line proved to make this a deceivingly hard course. I road the course a few times the other day once steady and easy and the other with some 5’ intervals. I figured even if the conditions were real good, no wind. It would be hard for me to go faster than 26 MPH average.
Come race day I was excited to test myself. This week I had started to cut back my over all training time and no more tempo, threshold, “hard work” kinda training. It is full gas or recovery ride from here to Gila. After getting the lady out the door for a ride and talking to a client I was now running late. Actually really late. No car drive out there I was going to have to ride. So a hasty warm up/ need to get there fast 40 minute ride. I signed in, pined the number through on the borrowed Zipps and rolled over to the start. An official looked up at me” Eric?” yes sir. I said almost before he finished getting out my name. “1 minute”
Ohh I thought. “No more warm up” I said. “Ahh warm up is over rated” said official number 2.
I pulled off the arm warmers and put my front wheel on the line clipped in and tock a deep breath. “Ok”, I thought, “not much wind maybe a little from the south which will make the last half of the course long, slow and tough. Don’t go out to hard there is that little climb 1 mile in take it easy, especially since my warm had basically one 30 second hard effort. My wheels are on right… right. I looked down at my skewers. “GO!” the official yelled.
I got into my rhythm fast and calmed my self down. First turn and I really cooked it. There was a teammate there helping out with the race and had the cheering going when I was 200m away. I really slammed that corner. Love my Bianchi. Accelerating a bit to hard maybe I was now on the really fast section of the course I worked up to my 53-12 and eased back a bit. It was my biggest gear and you really needed the 11 at least. That is when mister Baker, cyclocross wizard and climbing God ripped by me. At only 30 seconds back I figured he would pass me but not this soon. Its ok I said to my self. Stick to the plan. I turned south got into a nice rhythm, but I could feel my lack of warm up and more so the lack of stretching as my hamstrings started to remind me that I don’t stretch enough as it is. I hit the long roller that marked about half way and I started to push into the red zone. Looking at my speed I was doing pretty well. Baker was far up the road now bit I tried to focus on my race. Another right hand turn and I had 3 miles to go. I pushed into the wind and heavy road. The speed came down but the pain went sky high. I’m not sure on exact wind conditions but I was holding the same speed I did 2 days earlier on the same piece of road. But this effort was much longer. Ok so Baker passed me but he I going pretty good here, I could tell. I pushed more, a hard right then a quick left. Sharp 90 degree turns, I never got out of my aero bars. LOVE THAT BIKE! Out of the saddle now trying to accelerate, Or just trying. My legs started to feel like led, I pushed more. My clock said 28:something. The vision blurred. “holly crap!” I thought. I figured there would be now way I could break 30’ I hammered up the short incline to the finish. 30:50 I was right, but still a solid effort. I looked back and saw a 5280 rider not far behind. Damb! I know they’re a pro team but there juniors too! In the end Baker won. And beat me by around 2:30. pretty serious time gap and the young lad behind me who is that guy I asked the winner afterwards. Ohh that’s “little Phinney, he’s got good jeans.” Jeans? I thought, what the fu*% are you… just then I saw him talking to Davis Phinney. His dad. “ohhhh, yeah good Genes…
I came in mid pack, still trying to figure out who the others are that beat me and what category they are so I can see where I stand. All in all a good effort and afterwards I felt great! Better than before. Then I did the Team TT with mister Baker and 2 of his teammates. I won’t get into the specifics but it was very, very painful. We held of the all pro team the best we could. They beat us by about 30-40 sec. a good effort I thought by us mere mortal non pros.

Fallcon cycling Road Race

2007-04-17T18:15:00.000+03:30

Co, springs is a beautiful place it real is. The air force base is propped up on a hill just below the fount range. Pic on my main page.
The race course today featured the 1987 worlds road race course, kinda cool. It was a 12 mile loop which was basically one long climb with a tail wind. It platued out and rolled hard 3-4 times before a fast down hill right into the short, big ring finishing climb. then down more with a heavy cross wind, right hand turn into a 20 mph head wind, for a few miles and back to the long climb.
The field was still pretty stacked despite yesterday fun. The first lap was steady and the climb, I think, tock allot of people by surprise. Even though we had a tail wing the climb dragged on and got steeper towards the top. Through in a little cross wind at the top with some hard small ring rollers and you got a tough climb. the attacks started on the second lap and the climb was all out. 1/3 of the field was dropped if not more lap 3 (out of 5) a slipstream guy and a Einstein’s rider moved away. I look at Stefano (from Toyota United) and shock my head in unison with his. There were 2 slip stream guys in the field still and 6 or so riders form the Einstein’s team. not a good situation for any one else. I tried to slip away on the head wind section once or twice but it was no good. with the bagel boys chasseing everything down I had to the climbing power of the young guy from Toyota United. For the next 2 laps Stefano showed the field why he is a pro. That boy can climb! he shattered the field the first time, I got back on. The next time he tock a few riders with him clear. And the field was blown apart. I was now in the 3rd group? I think? The break which was then caught and dropped. Stefano’s group, another group with some strong men from Einstein’s and my group. 1 and a half laps to go we rolled pretty well. At this point I was really feeling the effort. I hung tough the last time up the climb but right as I was going to put in an big effort over the top I dropped my chain! Douuuh! My big effort was chasseing back to my group of 7 or so. Caught them all but 3 which contained Chuck Coyle. Rider from Successful Living and 12 hour old winner of the 07 Boulder Roubaix.

Boulder Roubaix

2007-04-16T18:00:00.000+03:30

Leave it up to me to make an incredibly hard race as hard as possible. 75 miles or so. 8 point something mile loops. With 2-3 miles or so of easy pavement. The rest… dirt roads, short sharp climbs, downhill 90 degree turns, false flats and as always… the pro’s.
After a few laps of racing things got gripy. I was closing gaps and after 3-5 minutes of all out riding it settled down a bit but 1/3 of the field was dropped. As we approached the same spot 1 lap later I knew “it” was going to happen now, “the” break of the day going to go. sure enough I started to dig in riding the 25-30 mph pace on the bumpy, packed dirt road. Then, a gap that was getting hard to close down. My self and Allen Krugoff crushed it but found our self’s in no-mans land fast and loosing ground to the leaders. My teammate Max had been in an early break and was hanging on but must have been really suffering now.
After a few minutes of chase our “main group settled down and then really slowed down. I accelerated a few times only to be chased. Finally they let me go. and I was off. With 30+ miles to go I wasn’t sure what I was doing but I knew I didn’t want to ride with a group that had given up. 10-12 miles alone was starting wear on me but I was fueling well and had already gotten a few from Lindsay. The best feed girl in the biz!! Then a saw the chasers I had a big gap now on the pack but being alone of this course it could get closed by an angry pack fast. It was only 3 riders. When they caught me the change of pace hurt but they let me sit on for 2 minutes until we reached the pavement. There I started pulling through and we made time on our chasers if there were any.
Towards the finish I was basically just putting on a show. A show of how to pedal with out actually pushing on the pedals! I was done. Allen accelerated on the final climb with 1 km to go almost making it but no go. Allen tock one other rider from out group to the line while myself and the other road a slow but all out effort to the line.
In the end 14th place was mine. I was pleased with the number of pro’s and not making “the move” I felt that it was a good effort. Now I had to get ready for the hills of CO springs tomorrow…

Koppenburg RR

2007-04-02T07:18:00.000+03:30

I have to say that the racing in the Boulder area is hard core! Pro riders aside. The first 3 RR of the yr have lots of dirt roads. And the wind is enough make a Belgian pay attention.
OK the Koppenburg RR. A short 45 miles or so but serious pain was laid down by the 15 or so pros that showed up. I got to the line late and was in back. The guy in front of me stumbled on his clip in and bamb. The field is single file on the dirt in a 20 MPH cross, head wind. The first 5+ miles was like that. Up the climb the first time was rough. I was caught back and then chasing. Back on the field slowed briefly, a minute, then back to the dirt for round two. The cross wind at the top of the climb was fierce. Single file in the dirt, back wheel fish tailing in the soft stuff at the side of the road. This time I was back again, we were dropped and chased back on. It tock a bit longer this time. See a patterned forming…
Lap 3 was the same.
4th time around, I think, was a bit slower and I recovered all right. Better than I thought I would for being in and out of sickness this week. That time up the climb was the best I had felt. Ohh yeah the climb is only 200 meters long but dirt, rutted and 17%. I was middle of the pack. Over the top and again single file. In the gutter and this time the pace was wicked! It didn’t let up, I started to crack and drift back. One guy came by then nothing. “that’s it I thought!” what the?!? I turned around almost pissed off. Everyone else was gone. I settled into a nice rhythm, well maybe nice isn’t the word, but you know what I mean. I actually felt Ok I was just so out of position and couldn’t get into position and I paid, dearly. I kept riding and after 5 miles or so 5 riders came up behind me. In it were 2 cat 1’s who are rather crafty and strong. Ok I thought just keep riding. I saw more and more riders riding home, and at the side of the road? Ok maybe I’m not doing that bad? Then we caught the main group. “wow” this is interesting” I thought. We went real slow but the climb was coming. move to the front I thought. Bamb! Crash. Moniger and a Kodak gallery guy went down. I did the tripod hop as gracefully as possible as I ran into the guy in front of me. Still up right I clipped in and… nothing left, just nothing in the legs. 25 miles of all out riding on dirt roads with more wind that Florida in hurricane season was to much. I came of the back fast. Upon finding the top of the climb I found a new set of riders to share the wind with and this time the 3 groups in front of us did seem to add up to much. So I road. Just trading pulls. We were going pretty slow but I couldn’t go any faster alone. Last lap, I was thinking I would get dropped on the hill but didn’t at the top me and Joe T. from Vitamin cottage and I were left from our group. We rode steady and strong to the finish and hit the line in 30 and 31st place. We didn’t really sprint but rather just tried to look strong for the crowd. I slipped in behind him figuring I wouldn’t challenge him after the push he gave me when my front derailleur acted up. And I probably couldn’t have taken him any way.
So… there you go. I have been a bit sick this week, yes. Just some congestion and soar throat so I was unsure how I would go. I felt better than I thought I would but tactically, my positioning was the worst it has ever been in a race. so… ride and learn, ride and learn.

Cat Eye RR

2007-03-25T05:17:00.000+03:30

Rain. 40 degrees and more rain. only 54 miles but throw some wind in there and 2 dirt road sections and you have the makings of a real rough day, or a great one?

in the first 10 miles I was feeling a bit panicy but i settled down. the course was harder than i thought. ny quads felt like some one else's. they felt like I had been sitting in the car for 2 hours... like I had. laphing my ass off with Kelly as we got ready and tried to stay warm.

I attacked a few times and then one stuck. 12 miles into the race I was off alone. with Kelly now sitting in follow moves like he can do so well I thought this was good. I still didn't feel good and there were some big guns in the pack but I'm not gona stop now. Onto the dirt road and I saw a group coming up. I crushed it trying to get over the hill and onto the pavement before the caught me. They got me before the pavement but I hung on. But another hill and acceleration and I was gaped and the pack was now half the size. I was gone... see yah. race over. pretty sad really but you know it just wasn't gona happen for me today. so what ever. Learn. that’s all I can do now. and I have. so tomorrow will be a big training day.

after I pulled out I was consoled by the sight of a few cat 1's dropped before me. Ok that’s not so bad I guess and the Pack was half the size. and my training times and wattage don't lie. good things are coming. I know it!

laying it down in the snow

2006-12-26T20:47:00.001+03:30

We all have different Ideas on winter training, for some it is a vital time of yr. laying the foundation for a big race mid summer or tuning speed for the early season duathlons. For some, winter will be a success if they gain less than 10 pounds. What ever your motivations for this winter; balancing a structured plan with a good dose of spontaneity will get you in the best form ever, physically and mentally.

Out look:
If you live in the northeast or anywhere that snows in the winter, and your not a pro, you simply can’t train as much in the winter. With darkness coming around 4:30pm, fridged morning temps and icy roads it just not possible. We won’t even get into jobs, girl friends, kids, wives, the patriots game schedule, etc…
So now that we are at peace with the fact that we simply can’t put in as much time as we may want, We can focus on what to do with the time we have.

Getting start:
Find a routine. With cold temps, warm beds and stale indoor air it is easy to get “off track”. Try to find some kind of routine. This could be 1 workout or rendezvous with a friend per week. ie. “every Wednesday morning john and I run together, no matter what.” “Thursday night I do the spinning class at my gym.” Even with only one appointment per week with your body you can maintain your fitness. Find something that works with your schedule so it will be easy to keep this apt and not get side tracked.
This can work for you in a great way if this one work out focuses on your weakness. I have known athletes to turn there swim that puts them 5 minutes down to 1 minute up, over the course of the winter!

The bike:
These time constraints really hit hard when trying to work on your bike, especially if you are training for an early season ½ or full Ironman. First thing to do is invest in the proper warm clothes. Water/wind proof booties and gloves. Warm tights, thermal cycling jacket, hat or helmet cover. Investing in proper cycling winter gear will make your cold rides more enjoyable, more effective, and maybe a bit longer. One trick for the cold feet is to use shoes 1 size to big and put in two insoles. And don’t jam your feet in there with to many socks. You’ll restrict circulation and have lumps for wood for feet in less than an hour.
The trainer can be your worst enemy and your best ally all at once. If you are going to improve your riding regular visits to the trainer will be a must but they don’t have to be torture.
-Don’t do the same thing day in day out. Mix it up with trainer workouts and the amount of time you spend on it. Try something new once every 2 weeks or so. like watching football with your buddies 3- 4 hr’s with big gear climbs every commercial, sprints every field goal, and hard tempo every time your team is on offence would make even Mark Allan slump over the handle bars by the final 2 minute drill.

-Keep your mind busy. When your not with your friends watch tv, listen to the radio, read.
- stay focused. I have just given you ways to distract your self from your work but the best way I find to make time fly is to have specific workout and stick to it, to the second. Warm up, cool down, some 10 minute strength intervals, rest intervals. You’ll find that riding for less than an hour becomes pretty difficult. Take care:
It is important that your take care of both your body and your equipment with the same care as you would in the summer months. Proper nutrition and stretching is vital to staying healthy and on the upward path. Care for your bike and trainer is also a must. Just because your not out in the rain and dirt doesn’t mean you can just get off your bike and be done with it. Salt will build up on your bike and trainer and will destroy both if you don’t clean them. They will surely fail you when you need them most.
Work outs:
Technique work is something that can be and should be incorporated into every workout on the trainer. A clean efficient pedal stroke is something that every triathlete and cyclist can reap huge benefits from, more so than most realize.
One leg pedaling: 30 sec. each leg x3. pedal with one leg. focusing on pushing the pedal all the way around the circle. Keep pressure light and body still.
*incorporate this into your warm up and cool down every time you ride the trainer. fast/slow pedal.
Pedal in a large gear at 50-70 rpm’s (slower than you ever would on the road.) for 1 minute then immediately drop to a low gear and spin a few beats higher than is comfortable. 105 or higher. Do this for at least 10’
This will raise your HR and your exertion level a bit. Don’t focus on working hard rather trying to be efficient and be able to do this for longer and longer periods of time. Level 2-3. This is an excellent way to work both your cardio and your pedaling efficiency.

Boulder Cross Series # 4

2006-11-19T02:34:00.000+03:30

The finish of today’s Cross race would leave us with only one last event in the Boulder cross series. It has been a goal of mine to make the top ten over all. They award the top ten over all and you get some booty too. Starting out in Sept. I figured that this would not be nearly as difficult as it has been especially since I am only racing cat 3! Hello! Looser patrol! Not knocking any 3’s I have had my butt handed to me every race. and while I do race P-1-2 on the road this is a totally different sport. And I applaud anyone who saddles up for a race.

Know you know I am not one for excuse but for what ever reason my hamstrings were wound up like a rubber band ball for the last 2 days and I could not loosen them up.

My warm up was fair, could have been a bit longer but forgetting my money, getting a flat, and the Mexican food for dinner last night had me… busy pre race to say the least.

The legs didn’t feel great either. I got to the start early a few more hammy stretches and I did what I always do at the start of every race, feeling good or not. I looked around, convinced my self I was the best and I would ride like a god today.

Only a 20 minute ride away from my house the course featured lots of washboard grass sections, a few off camber high speed turns, an EK leg breaking wall of a run up, sand pit the works!

I was second row at the start. The starting section was probably the best section of the course for me, I had to really nail it. The gun went off and after a few hip checks I was around 15^th wheel. “Ok not bad.” Off the gravel path onto the uphill bike path around a corner into the sand pit and back out. I pasted maybe 5 people. I was riding well and closing gaps fast. I got into the front of the first chase group. The leaders were 3 or 4 and gaped everyone fast. Looking around I was in good company. Guys who have finished in the top ten lately. A glance behind humbled me as 10 more guy on my wheel were thinking the same thing. Letting strong man Matt Operman take the front I was content to follow and a lap later the ten followers were now the chasers. Sweet! “8^th place EK!” some fans yelled. “8^th! Nice this is good”. As we started the 3^rd lap Matt looked like he was feeling the pressure and seemed to slow. I punched it as we hit a paved section now riding in 6^th – 9^th place I figured, and I was pretty happy. In the mix! A few minutes later I hit the run up. Matt and company were right behind me. 16 minutes into the race and it was clear that my attack was a bit to much for me to handle. I could have gotten in a nice recovery in that section but I went for it. My 3 chasers turned into my fellow riders and then my leaders quickly. I tock a deep breath and tried to get a rhythm going. I did, but I could tell it wasn’t what I was capable of. I had made a huge tactical error in my amped up rage brought on by my good start and company after 2 laps.

I tried to not make any errors and keep a rhythm going. In the end finished 12^th. A good result for me yes. My best yet but the top ten again was in sight and there for the taking. No go in this sport. One mistake, one mishap, one little brush with bad luck and its over.

One more opportunity to make the top ten. Doubled points. Stay tuned.

Fall planing

2006-11-11T19:12:00.000+03:30

Turkey day!!
Your thinking “its Thanksgiving! What could I possibly do for training??? Turkey Carving is some of the best deltoid training there is! This will make you more stable on the bike and resist fatigue longer! Don’t miss the opportunity. Actually I am kidding. Thanksgiving marks the beginning on the holidays and the beginning of the long difficult road to start training again. I have fallen victim to this before. First its time to rest, then turkey day. Then comes along then Christmas which slams full speed into new years. Throw some travel for work in there, a vacation and maybe a wedding (went to a new years wedding last year. Best time ever) and the next thing you know its February your turning 29. Again. And you are barely going to get in 6 weeks of base training before spring.

What to do?
Its time to plan. The answer here is this is not the time to stress about training but to plan ahead. And before we can plan one must look back at the past. Your past year or more of racing and training can be the best thing on can do in planning for the next season.
Here are some steeps to get you on the road to success.
1. Write down your general goals. Things that you want to focus on in general. Ie. Become a stronger runner, spend more time training on the bike.
2. Then write down specific goals: these can be precisely measured. Increase threshold wattage to 300. Run sub 30:30 minute 10k.
3. Then write down your goal races, there dates and rank them in priority.

Now you know where you want to go. From here you can look back and see where your coming from. Look at results, your notes from training and races. This is where you need to objectively look at your performance and figure were your weakness, limiters and strengths lye. This is something that should be done with your coach. Don’t have one? Get a consultation. If you have done your part, steeps 1 up to here, you can have a very useful 1 hour conversation with a certified coach. Money well spent. I just did this for my self!
You will now be armed with essential tools for planning and training for your season.
1. You have you goal races down in the calendar.
2. You should know what key skill and abilities you will need to meet your goals at these events.
3. You should know what weakness match those needed skills (your limiters).

After this planning you will know the most import things to know for a successful season. Like our old hero’s would say. “And knowing is have the battle” ~GI joe~

By Coach Eric Kenney
www.performancetrainingsystems.com/about/ek.html

USGP Cross, Boulder, CO

2006-11-06T18:59:00.000+03:30

The plan this weekend was to not race. Get caught up with some coaching matters, relax, and hit the road bike a bit. But after watching the pro race on sat and finding out that there was $1000 dollars up from grabs in the cat 3 race for top ten… I had to give it a go.
The race was a bit earlier than normal. 10:30am. No worries however with the race a mere 2 minute bike ride from my house. Some food lots of fluids and I was off. Register, pin the number and some intervals to warm up. It was already 10 and no one was allowed to warm up on the course. Not ideal but we were all in the same boat. A friendly racer gave me the low down and I watched the end of the cat 4 race. After getting to the line 30’ early I was mid pack. In the field of around 100. I knew for me to get into the top ten I would need good legs, a technically perfect ride and some serious luck.
The gun went off and it was one debacle after another. A crash on the right squeezed me a bit. Then onto the grass bottlenecked out, once, twice, three times. My handle bars got caught in someone’s front wheel on the run up, sorry. Then I got bumped into and knocked over. Into the sand pit which looked like I could ride through? Nope! Dismount and flop. Face in the dirt one leg still clipped in. I finally started to get my rhythm when a bad turn caught the route marking tape in my handle bars. As I ripped out the stake, 2 other riders crashed into me. Down again. I remounted and looked at my clock. 9 minutes. Over 35 more to go, great… I tried to get going and did pass some people but it was to late. Not only was the top ten miles out of reach but so was the top 20!
I tried to remember that this was all training for me and focused on cornering well and keeping the pressure on. I have to say however the winner Brian Alders, a fast fit lad from CU, is some one I know. He is in great shape after MT. collegiate nationals. Last weekend he had some bad luck with his chain dropping in the first 500m of the race. This week it happened again in the starting crash. Last week his 5th place wasn’t enough and his determination showed. He moved from what must have been last place to the lead group and pulled away from them before the last lap. Defiantly the ride of the day! I finished mid pack and had a rude reminder of what bike racing is all about.

Boulder cross #3

2006-10-31T08:05:00.000+03:30

After the nice 40’ warm up ride to the race Lindsay and I parked at the Full Cycle (the shop a wrench at) tent and truck. I surveyed the course while Lins tock in some race atmosphere, a burger and some brews. I got in a warm up lap on the course and I was immediately worried. The first half was flat sections on the hard pack beach and field. But the pavement and field section were riddled with either turns or brain rattling, washboard bumps. None the less I felt this section was where I could make up time. But then the course rolled into the off camber sandy turn down to the beach. Then up the what seemed like a 4 mile slightly up hill beach run, back down the beach in 5 inch deep, balance sucking sand to the muddy shore that required what seemed like 500+ watts to turn over my 39/27, then to the easier gravel and paved section!
standard cross I guess, and I was standardly terrified.
I warmed up well with some hard efforts and was pretty sauced on cytomax , sport legs pills and 1 can of GO FAST. I got fairly good position at the start in the second row and we were off.

I got a solid hole shot into around 10 position but as I braked getting ready for the right hand turn everyone seemed to be much more confident about there turning skills than I. This is a normal thing but this time it was crazy! Then, about… no the whole field came by me, tearing ass into the field straight ahead. What the fu*!? Ohh!? I guess no right hand turn on the first lap? I guess they told us this at the start but I never heard it. Neither did Lindsay but what ever.
So I wasn’t in the first lap lung busting mix up front but on a positive note. I wasn’t in the first lap, lung busting mix up front. around the second lap when 75% of the field realized they had just gone way harder then they should have and I started to pass some folks. I got into the top 20 and laid down the best pace I could. I handled the course better than I thought I would but it was the toughest course I had done yet. Training or racing, granted that isn’t that many courses but point is it was more difficult than last week. And combined with my race course knowledge snafu I was under the gun to place better.
The lap cards read 2 to go fairly early so I gave it everything focusing on making no mistakes. I had one carrot in my sights with ½ a lap to go but just couldn’t get by him.

In the end I finished happily in 16^th, and unhappily I finished in 16^th. I did better than last week which was good and with the difficult course my improvement was solid. But I couldn’t help loath my stupidity at my lack of course knowledge of the starting corners and the thought that a top ten would have been easily in hand.

A good lesson learned and another fun race in the bag.

More soon.

Boulder Cross # 2

2006-10-23T20:48:00.000+03:30

With the lady gone for the weekend I have been rather unstructured this weekend. 12 noon came upon me fast and the next thing I knew I was driving around Broomfield, CO looking for a bunch of cyclocrossers riding around in the mud drooling all over them selves. I found them with plenty of time but as I got dressed I began to wonder how long my bowl of grape nuts I ate 4 hours ago would last me? All day. That stuff should be illegal!

I previewed the course and it looked good for me. With some long flat, grass sections and only one (if a long one) running section. I warmed up a bit and it was time to roll. The weather was quite chilly, low 40’s, but the sun was strong as it always is out here. The start was… a cross start. Crashes, yelling, chains and gears make awful noises. I managed to avoid them taking the first turn on the flat grass start wide. I was around 15^th or so as the field hit the single track/ bike path. I went all out for the first lap. I past several people on the clogged run up, hit the fast section that would bring us onto the large field and to the start/finish line.
Right about here I realized that I had not warmed up nearly enough. My lungs burned form the cold air and my mouth filled with flem. This made breathing rather hard as my nose was in the normal “working out in cold weather” situation. A minute or 2 of some professional hacking and I was square.
I focused on my own rhythm as what seemed like 20 people past me in my lactic acid over dosed state. I was blown but riding well, making it through the tricky section on the bike without loosing momentum. A few friends were there as giving me the status on where I was. “25^th Ek, 2-5!” they yelled. That’s not bad I thought. I wanted to make top 20 as you need to be in the top 20 to get points for the series. I found a good pace and kept chugging away. Then I started catching people. “23^rd EK, 2-3!!”. I was moving up. Keep pushing I told my self but I had to be cautious with my effort. Cyclocross is one high power acceleration after another. Go to hard and you’ll be standing still. Literally. I came by the finish with 1 lap to go. I put a little more into the legs. I had 2 people in sight to catch and 3 breathing down my neck. “No mistakes”, I thought. I could take a risk and gain 2 seconds or loose 30. I went with the steady, no mistakes strategy for the whole race. I was pulling away from my chasers on the non technical sections now and gaining on the riders in front of me. On the last run my legs felt like cement and I missed my shoulder with the bike. Still smooth I pasted one on the re-mount and another with 200 meters to go for 18^th place.
I was broken. Lungs burning unable to take a deep breath without hacking and coughing. I was pleased. The course wasn’t to difficult letting me keep my rhythm better than the last race.

More racing to come next weekend!

Boulder cross series #1

2006-10-01T02:49:00.000+03:30

The Boulder cross series is pretty nice in the sense that I can simply ride to any of the races in about 15 minutes tops. And with shot races it makes for easy logistics. Today was the first race in the series. I decided to race Cat 3. I could have raced 4 and probably still not have won but I was afraid of the back lash I might have received. I did my normal not long enough warm up, and there I was on the long straight paved section that was the start. I got a good hole shot and was riding 2nd wheel until the right side of the pack surged and I went into the dirt about 15th. I was pretty happy with that and focused hard knowing that this first 10’ or so would be the hardest part of the race. as we hit the first run up I dropped my chain, and lost about 20 places. I got back on track and drilled it. I passed a few guys and found myself in what seemed to be the second group. Pretty large, about 12 guys or so. A few bobbles and surge at the front w/ me at the back and I was gapped again. Lap 3 I started to think I better walk the “run ups” because I felt like I was gona puck! I pushed hard on the long paved section and my chain dropped again. Lost that group for good. I was now really suffering and riding with 2 guys towards the back of the race when… yes, my chain dropped again! This time because my arms failed to work when I tried to pick up my bike. It hit the barrier and I dragged it behind me for about 10 feet before I could muster the strength to shoulder it. Pretty sad. Then luck came my way, one of the guys who dropped me on my last chain bobble dropped his chain. Ahhh redemption. I flew past him trying to save my, uhhh 3rd from last place finish and did. I gained on a few others in the last lap as well.
End result: not sure on the placing but not good. I do have a hacking cough, my left knee hurts and I some how have a Charlie horse in my right quad? No clue how.
So worth it? Ohh yeah! If I can keep my chain on I think I can go mid pack or better for sure.
Till nest time…

Day 4, Downtown Burlington Crit:

2006-09-06T18:58:00.000+03:30

Last year with my waning form and bad positioning at the start proved to much for me to handle and my race ended fast. This year despite being a bit down from not being a rock star in the road race I pumped myself up and got ready to rumble. I won the sprint to the line after they called up the GC and jerseys. The first five laps was fast, all out riding and it seemed to me I was about mid pack. Better yet when the first, be it subtle, lull in the pace came I seemed to recover fast. Good news for me. I rode strong and avoided the 2 crashed that happened right in front of me. Mostly just people making minor mistakes and going down. No big pile ups.

I was able to move towards the front a few times but Joe was fine. In perfect position as usual. I conserved my energy for when it may be needed instead of attacking for a little personal glory. In the end Joe was able to get a few GC points at a mid race sprint and move back into 4th over all.
I moved up from 40th to 29th after surviving the crit. I was told after the race that about 40 riders were dropped. I was pleased and the team did great. 4 riders in the top 20!!

Day 3 Road Race:

2006-09-04T21:13:00.000+03:30

we started with rain. And more was on the forecast. The race started with a fast pace. Per- usual. The sprint was hot I was in my biggest gear just in the pack. After that we settled a bit and I moved to the front for the first climb. Bethel Mt. road is a steep one. And at 5 miles it settings a bit. I felt good. and road in the top 10 rides to the top. Grabbed a water bottle at the feed, ditched the rain cap and plunged down the 40+ MPH decent in the rain. I descended quite well. Never really loosing a lot of my position. we dropped about 1/3 of our 125 person field. Quit a lot for only being 35 miles into the 104 mile race. the pace after the decent was high. Our team laid down some hard tempo to set up our man for the KOM jersey. After hurting everyone he escaped into a small break but was pulled back on the next climb before the top. Mean while between the first and second climb. Our GC and most important man, Joe, was having some trouble. After hitting a vertical crack in the road his carbon wheel was ripped up pretty bad. It was rolling but breaking was impossible. A team mate gave him a quick wheel change. And 3 more of us chased him back on. A hard chase but not to long and Joe didn’t have to do any work. After a 5’, breather I went straight to the front again and we hit Middlebury gap. Another big climb. 4 miles of 2-4 percent and the 3 miles of 8-12%. We hit the first 4 miles pretty hard and this was the first sign of heavy legs I had. The climb hurt but I was there in the top 20 or so over the top and the race leader attacked. This was a critical move and I didn’t see it. Not that I was going to go with him and the 4 others but the chase it caused on the 20 mile rolling decent was the hardest most desperate section of the race. I was in a small group just behind the main leading group of maybe 30. So… race situation: leading group of 5 w/ race leader. Main field of 30+. Chase group of 15 maybe. With me. We had Joe in the first “main group” group with a few teammates. But not me. 40 miles to go. last 10 miles of the race, uphill. The chase was hard and I was feeling the pressure. I got down some red bull but its tough to eat descending at 40 MPH. the tail wind on the decent made for a fast one with stretches at well over 50 MPH. And made it very hard to catch the group ahead of us. At the bottom of the decent there is a sharp right/ left had turn. I was gapped just a bit buy my group I was in. the menacing tail wind quickly turned into a head wind. The group I was in now just catching the lead group. And I was 300 meters behind chasing at 28 MPH into a cross/head wind. Not easy. After 10’ or so a came to a down hill and was blasted with a head wind. And that was that. The group drifted away. I road alone for some time then with a group of 3 others for a bit. Then alone again on the climb. Never caught by the bulk of the peloton further behind. I finished 43rd. not bad I guess for being dropped 25 miles from the finish. Joe are main man for the race came in 5th and now lies 5th over all just 1 point out of forth and 9 away from first. a great ride by him today and still more to come!
I love this race.

GMSR Day 2

2006-09-04T17:48:00.000+03:30

The circuit race at GMSR is one of the best races in NE in my mind. A classic. However this yr. shortly after the start a crash was caused by a misplaced car. The crash was large. I am not sure on the final injury count but I do know that I have never seen more broken bikes from one crash in my time. I avoided the crash and caught back on with a short but hard effort. With out a chase car and one lead we neutralized ourselves and to make a long ridicules story short they canceled our race. I am not sure how that came to be the best decision but that’s what it was and its over.

GSMR: Big world Prolog:

2006-09-03T03:34:00.000+03:30

The mass start up hill prolog of he GMSR can be the hardest, most painful effort one make on a bike in there life time. Climber or not its hard. 1 mile neutral through town. Neutral in a nervous pro-1-2 field means 23 MPH. as we hit the climb last yr’s race winner had his team put everyone on the rivet. The first 4 miles of the climb are not steep. Only 1-3% not hard but not flat. We averaged 27 MPH. I was caught in the back of the pack after the ride through town and riding at that speed had me under pressure right away. As we hit the last 3 miles of 10% grade I saw that Joe our GC man was up front. I was supposed to be there as well. I had been chosen to be one the final riders to keep him into position in the final km’s or lead him out if that was the case. Now I was just trying to reduce my losses. The entire target training team went backwards fast after there blistering pace setting. I went hard in the first 1 km trying to gain some ground on the front of the pack but they were 45” ahead or more already. Loosing position in this race can be the end of you. I was determined to keep my pace if Joe or another teammate had a flat or a mechanical issue I needed to be as close as possible to help. I found a good rhythm and wasn’t blowing up. The more I pushed the faster I went without paying any price it seemed. I dug deeper, pushed harder and passed more riders. I could still see the lead group and the amount of riders between me and them was getting smaller. In the end the climb to short and more so the pace way to high for me to catch them. In the end I did feel great and finished 30th. Not bad for starting 120th but fact of the mater is I should have been in front when it mattered. There is more to bike racing than pedaling hard. Lots more.
Joe, our GC man, got the job done and finished 4th. He saved the day as he does a lot and we all will surly be called upon in the days to come.

Denver Crit

2006-08-06T03:33:00.000+03:30

The Federal Center crit in Denver isn't really a crit, but a circuit race. a 3.8 mile course with 12 turns. yes 12. Some were easy to pedal through, some not. And at only 75 minutes things were sure to play out like a crit. there were 2 sections on the course that were into a slight headwind and just barely up hill. Hard sections for sure. the course gained 100 feet per lap.
after the first lap off attack, counter attack a break was away. I even had thoughts of trying to bridge, I was cornering well and recovering fast in the pack. the pace slowed a bit then picked up again. going into the second lap 3/4 0f the way through lap 2. a bike went flying up into the air. without rider. "huh... that’s not supposed to happen." just then 2 more rides, with there bikes, went of the road into the dirt. I slowed almost to a stop and weaved my way through the carnage, hacked my way through the turn right up the road and when into full flight. I brought back a few rides but they sat up almost right away. I put the hammer down starting to realize that the "peloton" was now in 2 peices. I was chasseing the second group and they would surly be at full speed until they caught the front main group. after almost a full lap of chasseing alone, catching the back of the main pack twice only to have 5 guys in front of me to sit up. I watched the pack drift away.

"maybe I should down grade?" I thought.
a few guys came up from behind me and we road steady and strong to the finish picking up riders every lap.

there was a bit of friskiness in the last lap but it was for probably 40th place or something.
I was pretty frustrated after. I think I could have had a good race. been a factor. of course I had to say before the race, " the bike handling skills out here in CO are much better than that of New England, in general" and sure enough. bamb.
I guess it could have been much worse. I could have crashed. and lets not forget we didn't get into a car accident on the way to, or from the race. so really today was a huge success!!

salida omnium: TT

2006-07-30T02:09:00.000+03:30

I signed in went over the machine and started to get ready. Plenty to drink I was pretty well fueled and after my ride in boulder that morning I was felling confident. The course started out of town and ran 7 miles or so back into town, losing about 300 ft. of elevation. I was worried that an 11 tooth sprocket would be more than necessary but as it was the dead straight headwind made for a slower ride. I felt good, the best I had yet since being here. I started steady and started to build into my rhythm. The distance was ticking away fast. I was feeling strong and I looked ahead to my 30” man trying to gain ground on him. However, my sight shifted to another man in front of me. My –30” man. Yes I was not only passed by him but I was passed before the 2 mile mark. now... I am not one to make excuses , however with the “fast” downhill course and the dead straight headwind, being aero was… a huge advantage. more than normal I must say. My carbon wheels are light. Very light in fact. But they are not TT wheels. No dish at all. And after riding for about 30 seconds I could feel the “lack of disk” that I was having to over come.

Mile Horgan Hill climb:

2006-07-17T00:20:00.000+03:30

for you east coasters think the prolog of GMSR times 1000. well all right not 1000, 999. it really is brutal. For you rocky mountain, mountain goats its… well, just another Sunday morning I guess. 18 miles. 4 miles at a gentile grade. 2-6% then 10+ miles straight up. I was doing all right in the first bit but the old heart rate was really high. I have been know to put out some really, really high avg. HR. I have a pumper. So I tried not to worry but it can’t be ignored. While trying to stay attentive to the race I tried to relax and find any inefficiency in my riding. I stood up once or twice to try and shake it out but it didn’t work. Some pressure breathing I tried everything.
When we turned onto the first real steep climbing on sugarloaf rd. there was an attack and I was out of position. well, what ever I have bigger problems then being on the right wheel. I pushed hard up the first steep kick. Trying to make it into the first group that was already forming. Almost there. I slowly reeled them in but as I did more people fell off the back of the elusive “pack”. And as they did, it got further away. I settled in with 6 people on my wheel and only one willing to help I was worried but it was 10% now. I figured finding “my” rhythm was more important that getting the 8 MPH draft. At one point they all came around me but most started to crack and I reeled them in again. I had a moment around ¾ of the way up the steep middle section where the legs really started to give. The RPM’s drooped and I thought “ damb it, this is it, the lights are on there way out.” I tried to stay strong and get to the next “easy section” a short bit of maybe 6%. The RPM’ s came up. The legs got some energy and I started to push hard up the last section. Catching and dropping a few more people.
Over the top, the crux now behind. Things would get tactical here. A fast short, decent then onto the dirt road. Up again. I latched onto one guys wheel and I was now in full suffer mode. The 2 times I did this climb in training this is where I would start to crack. I realized this was coming up on me fast. I pushed through. Another short fast decent, on dirt this time. The 2 fast, down hill turns proved to be to much for me to handle. I was dropped but clawed back to one other rider. We shoot out onto the peak to peak highway for 2 more nasty rollers before turning to the finish. Me and my new best friend drilled it on the rolling roads and as we started to latch onto the next group we hit a steeper incline. ”come on EK get up there1” I said to myself. I dug deep out of the saddle now. As I came to within about 3-5 meters of them the man on the front switched and I could not match the slight change of pace. I drifted back. turning onto the finishing road I dug deep still thinking with a bit of cat and mouse I may catch them. No luck but I was done. again not real happy but not real upset… it will come. I will come around to full potential.

Dead dog day 2

2006-06-26T21:48:00.000+03:30

the double header. Crit at noon, TT start time at 2:43:30. a busy day was ahead of me. I awoke around 7 or so. Breaky, coffee checked out of the hotel and drove out to the TT course to give it a run over. Nice course, wind would make the slight downhill’s hard in the first half and the hills on the way back… still hard. Sweet! At 8888 feet and 1 crit in the legs this should be pretty interesting.
Back into town. Sign in, warm up a bit more and its crit time. Only 50 minutes but I was still worried. After 10’ minutes or so I became more confident as I was cornering well recovering well and with the small field I was able to move up relatively easily. I would have liked to give a cash prim a try but I was always out of position. I moved up with a few laps to go and as the group was chasseing a break with 1 lap to go I gave it everything I had. I managed to stretch the pack and bring the break into striking distance but I just didn’t have the gas to break the elastic and/ or get all the way to the break. I finished in the pack but I very satisfied with my riding. We avg. around 26.8 mph. on a flat, 6 turn course with a bit of wind. Not to bad I thought, especially with only 40 or so guys in the field. Ok, recovery time. I downed some recovery drink and extra water. Spun for 15’. Back to the car, change the wheels, change the break pads, mount the aero bars. “Looks good” I thought.

I hadn’t ridden in my aero bars since last July. Never mind do a workout or an actual Time Trial. But I wasn’t worried. This was training and I was feeling confident after the crit. TT.

The Trihydro High Altitude time trail is the highest, flat time trial in the US. A service road off of I 80. A very picturesque place acutely. With some rather bother-some winds. I felt good after the crit and was ready to go. squeezed into the skin suit and put on the long sleeve. It was only 58 degrees up there, And started with a short warm up. Instantly I felt horrible. “ok ok, don’t worry its just the crit. The garbage will come out of the legs any second now.” … “any minute, ok any time now….” start time.I figured I would take the first 1.5 miles easy. These were down hill a bit so I figured I wouldn’t push it to hard and build into it. I did that and road a pretty steady, solid race. A steady, solid, slow race. I just could push harder than tempo or the legs would fill with lactate and I would practically come to a stop. I did pass my 30” man a bit before the finish but it tock a lot.

Dead Dog stage race

2006-06-25T04:42:00.000+03:30

I wasn’t excepting much today, but I was excepting more. We rolled out real chill for a few miles. But soon it was all on. One of the teams that had lots of numbers went to the front and caused some pain. That provoked a small break but with some more attacking they were back in the fold. After 27 miles or so we hit “the climb” 20 miles give or take the first rise was a mile or 2. Not so bad. I kicked up to 8% after a bit and there was an acceleration. A drifted back and then slid back then moved up again after the attack not wanting to accelerate to much. I knew this would be a tough go for me. After the first dig I was working hard but I felt confident. Another one came and I was now going backwards. I pushed on the pedals a bit more, nothing. HR was at 200. and my legs felt worse. We came to the top of the first rise where there was supposed to be a short down hill. Well down hill in WY means flat apparently. Bamb gone. I was off the back. And the real climb didn’t even start yet. I road steady and actually held the lead group for longer than I thought one should. But after a bit longer they pulled away. Far far away.
So what ever I wanted to race, good training this will be. I set some rules for my self. 80 rpm’s or higher. And at or under threshold. I had a long ride ahead of me. The climb had some steep sections but nothing crazy, 8%, maybe a bit more in places but 20 miles yo! I plugged along passing some then I got passed. At he top 10,500 feet just so you remember, we went down To the turn around, back up to the summit and down the long long decent.
The views at the summit, yes I was taking them in, were great. Only in my climbing days have I seem mountain views like this, along with snow on the side of the road in late June.
ok so down the climb. I descended as fast as I could no major turns but the head wind on the decent made it impossible to catch any sized group. back on the plans now I settled in for a 27 mile TT bake to the finish. A 27 mile into a strong and worst off very steady head wind. I kept eating realizing that despite my horrible performance I was still using lots of energy. With 10 miles to go a group of 4 came up, I hoped on and we rode a pretty solid pace to the finish.

”Very, hard training today… very, very hard training”
Victor Hugo Pena

Stay tuned for more tails form the hematocriticly deficient.

Lake Auburn RR, Aurburn, ME

2006-06-10T22:38:00.000+03:30

I will be back in NE to race before the end of the year but still getting ready I had a sense of “this is it” about the whole day. waking at 4:45am in northern Maine so I could be ready in time was no fun but I felt all right. Some coffee, food ect… I dropped of my buddy at the exit off of 95 (his wife came to pick him up) I was already changed but still running late. Get my stuff ready, borrow some sunglasses from Ben (my team mate), decide on the combo of clothes (its 55 degrees and raining) ohh wait sorry pouring!
off we go! I rolled up to the waiting bunch as they tock off, just in time. I sprinted down the road and up to the back of the pack with some pointing and howls from the spectators. A break went away in the first few miles. It was large and we had 3 guys in it. After seeing someone crash them selves in one of the most dramatic crashes I have ever seen I sat at the back. I felt all right but I was starting to get gapped on most of the turns which was getting tiring. Combined with the steady fast tempo being set by the IF team it was no easy task “sitting in”. I was still felling good with 30 miles to go the break had been caught and things were heating up.

On the most difficult/ longest climb I noticed 3 men off the front. One of them was a Kenda/ Raleigh teammate. I thought “It would be great if I were up there too”, but didn’t want to promote the whole pack in attacking up to them. I shot off the front and only one followed. I put in a huge effort and closed the gap quite fast. Further more I seemed to recover fast and fell right into the pace line pulling through every turn. As we settled in Josh Dillon bridged up. A great effort by him. It must have been a long way as the pack was completely out of sight now. I looked around and became pretty happy with my self. Josh Dillon, Joe Moody, Toby Walsh, Barton and Connor form Boston Scientific. I was in good company. These are the strongest armatures in NE right now. I knew how I would play out the finish for Joe but keeping us all together to the finish would be difficult. With about 10 miles to go on the long climb again Dillon accelerated. I felt good at the moment and went straight to the front of our group. I laid down the best pull I had. We held him for a bit. I buried myself. If we could bring him back after an effort like this I was sure Joe could win. And even if he couldn’t I wasn’t gona let someone ride away without putting in 110%. After I through down another big pull we hit the short but 15% climb with the feed zone at its top. One of the Boston scientific drilled it and I was gone. I couldn’t respond, I had worked to hard to bring Josh back and was now paying for it. I got myself going again and actually held them not far ahead of me. I crushed it for 3- 5 minutes but they weren’t slowing down. After a few misjudged turns in the still pouring rain they were gone. The wheel car came by, said the pack was 90 seconds back. I still had 7 miles to go on some very heavy roads. I put my head down, grabbed a cliff shot and went in TT mode. I was really suffering but I was inspired by my solid riding and feeling strong in a group of real players. With 2 miles to go someone caught and passed me. Right on a short hill, I couldn’t grab his wheel. “FU#*!!!! Ok…ok… stay smooth”, almost there, I thought, . With 1 k to go I turned onto the finishing rd. people cheering out of the saddle now and there were 2 more guys playing cat and mouse a few hundred meters behind me. I gave it everything. I really did. At 200m I stood up and gave my best, been in a break-a-way for 30 miles got dropped and have been alone going full tilt for he last 7 miles, sprint. They both shot by me with 20m to go. I was pissed, yeah I was but again a good ride by myself. Joe got 4th or 5th and we had 2 more teammates in the top 15 giving us a big payout for the day. so I can’t be too upset I guess. a solid day and the race played out really well. Very pro. Leaving the strong men at the front to fight it out.

Montauk Half Ironman

2006-06-09T19:13:00.000+03:30

Montauk half Ironman:
With a full summer of road racing at the pro level in me I had nerves of steel, strong lungs and arms that resemble a 14 yr old girl. I hadn’t run since January for any length of time, let alone for 13 miles. It was easy to say I was biting off more than I could chew, and some did say that. I had some very, serious strengths going into this race but as with every strength there are weaknesses. And mine were huge.Stats: Time: 4:56.00, 2nd age group, 24th overallSwim: 31’ (36th)Bike: 2:30 (12th)Run: 1:50 (66th)Ave Hr. for entire race: 169 (max 200, bike threshold 185)http://www.longislandtri.com/index.cfm?ID=4Training:I had four weeks. three after I recovered from my last stage race. I looked at the calendar and figured what would be ideal. It was then up to the body to tell me if it would be possible or not. After a few trips to Walden pond I realized that the swim wasn’t going as bad as I thought it might be. Running went slow at first just trying to get some tech. work in. with 2 weeks to race time I was able to run for 1 hr. Some long, hard riding, one brick and I was wasted from a hard week of training. With 1 week to go I was kept busy with work and life but I managed to get in 2 shorts runs and started to feel pretty good.Race day:The run had me worried the most. 13 miles! And there were hills everywhere. I was improving every day all I had to do now is play on my strengths and hope for the best. Early rise and I was wide awake. I laphed with my fellow races about my dream of missing the start, running out off T2 with my helmet on etc.. Funny yes but it could all come very true.Swim: I felt good, hydrated, feed and ready to go. The gun went off right after my buddies goggles broke. I wanted to help but there wasn’t much I could do. I was hoping to draft off him as he was a little faster than me in training. With in one minute I was in full panic mode, water in my mouth gasping for breath, and trying dodge flaying arms and feet. I went into a side stroke and tried to relax. I got some breaths, attempted to gain what rhythm I had and went back to work. By the ½ mile mark I was pretty much alone. Two or three guys were right in front of me who I tried to stay with. I was swimming a good line or so it seamed and as I rounded the second buoy with ½ mile to go I started to really push. I could see what I thought was the whole world out in front by a ways. The shore came faster than I thought and I was very grateful. Lots of cheering as I came into T1. as I tried to change out of my wet suit and into my skin suit. I quickly realized that I couldn’t feel my hands, they were useless, and my arms were worse. Totally swollen, they felt like pieces of wood. After that struggle I did a double check to make sure I had everything and headed out for the bike.Bike: After .5 miles on the bike you hit a hill. Not huge but with the panic of the swim still in my head, water in my ears and the blood still in my arms my HR shot up to 185 pretty fast. Or just stayed there from the swim. I took some deep breaths on the decent and tried to find my rhythm. It wasn’t long before I past a few competitors and then one slowly one passed me. What?! I couldn’t believe someone was passing me and so soon!? I picked up the pace slowly being sure not to push to hard to soon. After a few minutes the passer was caught and dropped, but I was feeling the effort. I tried to keep time checks on the leader to see if I was holding him, gaining time or losing ground. there were 3 or 4 out and backs so this was possible in a few places. I wasn’t long before I realized that I wasn’t that far down. I figured I would be mid pack after the swim but there wasn’t that many people in front of me. My fueling plan worked perfectly. In the last 10 miles or so I slowly caught a smooth and fast competitor. We rode shoulder to shoulder for what seemed like a long time he would pull ahead sometimes on the flats, me on the hills. In the last 5 miles I was going so hard I thought for sure not finish the race. I was now passing more people and quickly. The last few hills bit into my whole body but pushed the only way I know how. All out. Coming into T2 I was very concerned. I was worried about the run to begin with but the bike felt forced and my average speed was slower than I had hoped. 22.5 or so. Was I on my way to coming completely unglued?Run: In T2 a friend yells to me how great I was doing. “Ek your doing awesome, your kicking but! You rock, blah blah b… your in the top 20!” what! I stopped dead stood straight up and looked her, “no I’m not.” “yes you are!” she said. I couldn’t believe it. Not knowing where I was out of the swim I thought I had a bad bike because I wasn’t passing that many people. I know that I didn’t feel great on the bike but top 20!? I grabbed my secret gu flask and tock off.Mr. hammer time from the bike was right behind me and caught up fast. “nice riding man” he said with an honest tone and no glance. He soon drifted away up the road but no one else. No one was passing me? I felt as I was going very slow but not that much slower than others. I kept my steady pace breathed deeply and took in water. No cramps, in the legs or stomach. My legs were tired but I felt good. Energy to burn and I would need it all.¾ through the first 6 mile lap I was mentally starting to fade. So long I thought, I have to do this again. A few people passed me. The bonk was coming. I could feel it. I tock half on my gu flask. 70 kcals maybe, as I came through the finish area I grabbed a big cup of water and cytomax, walked, as I did on every hill, and drank it all. Picking up the pace again I grabbed a gel at the next feed and I was going good now. With a good blue print of the run course burned into my head I attacked the second lap and last 6 miles of the race. Before the hill bit again I tock the last of my flask and dug deep. Around this turn up that hill and I was on the finishing straight, I glanced out over the swim course and thought I swam today? It seamed so long ago. A passed a few people before the finish and as I turned into the finish area erupting in cheers I was in disbelief to see that I had broken 5 hr. on the drive home I realized that every thing had worked perfectly. My training my nutrition, my training, and the way I attacked the race with my strengths and used them again to get through my weaknesses.

5/1 - 5/7

2006-05-10T15:09:00.000+03:30

Mon: 40' level1
*Comute to work. legs pretty tired from weekend.

Tue: 1 hr. level 2, some FP. and 5 sprints.
* raining out. legs feel pretty good.

Wed: Hills. Level 5, 2 hr total.
* raining out again. first 3 steady, last 2 with accelerations and sprinting the last 15"

Thur: 3 hr. (broken) level 2
*Spinning and comuting. feel good.

Fri: 90' a few sprints and 10' of tempo. otherwise level 2
* in NH at coaching seminar i was giving. really nice at waterville valley, great riding!

Sat: Jiminy peak road race. 93 miles. 3:40.
* Joe got 5th. crashed at end. worked a bit to bring back break late in race. a little rain but got sunny at end.

Sun: 75' recovery ride. Lindsay in town. spending time with her and don't want to push my knee. banged it in crash.

4/24- 4/30

2006-05-02T20:11:00.000+03:30

Mon: OFF

Tues: 2hr. level 2.
*road with client for a bit. while she did some hill intervals.

Wed: wed. nite ride. 3hr total. (50' of riding hard) 175 HR avg.
* Joe Eric and I. rode pretty hard. dropped every one 3/4 of the way through, team TT to the end.

Thur: spin, commute spin, commute. 3hr level 2
*Did some Fp in class as well as 20' of tempo at end on pm class.

Fri: shake out ride 1 hr. with a few sprints.

Sat: Race. Sturbridge. avg. HR 170, (20' over threshold)
*was in break for 12 miles or so in middle of race. attacked at end with 3 miles to go. got caught.

Sun: Race, palmer. avg. HR. 171, (35 ' over threshold)
Joe 1st place! I felt good. attacked a lot between mile 50-65. rode in support at finish. got 14th

April 16 to 23rd.

2006-04-24T17:33:00.000+03:30

I was a bit sick this week and it was recovery week as well. nice how that worked out. nothing major just a sniffle. but still not much riding.

thur: spinning am & pm

Fri: ride with Patrick 90' and commuting. level 1-2, a few sprints.

Sat: race, Turtle pond. 67 miles (77 total for day)
* covering lots of attacks after 2 teammates made early break. team went 5th, 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th, 13th. not bad I guess. I got 12th 5th and 9th were in the break.

Sun: Race, Adelphia grand prix. 55 miles (65 total for day) 4th place for me :)
* small field mad for lots of attacking and a hard race. 9 junior national team Canadians made things hard for us having only 3 guys.

April. 13th -17

2006-04-18T00:30:00.000+03:30

Thur: spinning: am and pm class. level 2-3, 2 hr. total
* no comuting today. some FP. in class

Fri: Comute to and from work level 1, 40' total

Sat: Batenkill race (see entry in ek's view)

Sun: wells ave. 1 hr before and 1:45 after. (4hr total/ 76 miles)
* got some prims and lapped the field. felt better than yesterday.

4-9 to 4-12

2006-04-13T20:21:00.000+03:30

Monday: 30' spinn. level 1
*super easy, really tight from weekend. must stretch well tonite

Tuesday: 2.5 hr. commute and ride to group ride. sat in for 20' went home.
*still pretty tired, feel good on bike though. good to see all the old faces at the ride.

Wednesday: Threshold, hills: Wa Wa. level 2-4+ {3x15' (avg. HR 182)} a bit slower on last. hard tempo last 13 miles as well. HR 175
*tough ride. felt pretty strong today. head wind on climb

Weekend in VT

2006-04-11T00:04:00.000+03:30

Sat: 4:30 hr., 86 miles, 18.5 avg/mph. avg. HR 145
*steady pace today, not to hilly aside for Mt Fillo. a few hard attacks. and full effort on Mt. fillo.

Sun: 6hr. 117 miles. 18.5 avg/mph. avg HR 145
* very hilly today. started to suffer around 4:30 hr but pulled it together with some food and caffeine. put in some very hard attacks. felt great!!

3/31 - 4-2

2006-04-03T05:53:00.000+03:30

Fri: easy shake out ride. 2hr. 1 hard effort. 3-4 minutes long
* with the guys from work, good fun

Sat: RACE, johncake. 2hr racing, 50 miles (2:30 total) level 3-5.
*in break whole erace. teammate got second. felt very good.

Sun: RACE Marblehead, 90' 37 miles (2hr total) level 3-5 (avg HR 178)
*hard race. felt pretty good throughout race. road hard in suporting role today. teammate got 7th. not strong enough at end. need to be smarter.

27th- 30st.

2006-03-30T23:54:00.000+03:30

MON: 3 hr level 2, 52 miles (or so)
*steady end. ride. didn't feel to bad the day after race.

TUE: -off-
*commute to work 40' total. real easy.

WED: mt wachusett. 3:30 total time, 67 miles.
2x15' @ threshold. on climb, 35' on way home, hard tempo, 172 avg. HR
*nice out, felt alright.

THUR: spinning classes and commute 3hr total.
level 2-3. some F.P. in class

3-26-06

2006-03-28T16:22:00.000+03:30

Wells ave. 50 miles (32 race)

rode to and from. felt good for first racing effort. big field, windy, made for hard racing.
felt better than last years first race.

3-25-06

2006-03-28T16:18:00.000+03:30

wachusett ride: 75 miles. 4 hr.

2x 15 @ level 4+ (on climb)
1x25' level 3-4 at end of ride.

* feeling good after hard week in GA. with teammate today. first time up mt. this yr.

3/20 - 3/24

2006-03-24T19:06:00.000+03:30

Mon: OFF
Tue: OFF
Wed. 2hr. easy. felt good.
Thur: spinn, ride to work, spinn. 3hr total. tired.
Fri: Commute, 45' total.

*resting from last week. legs fell good just a bit tired.

Recovery day

2006-03-18T03:45:00.000+03:30

Easy pace. 3:45 65 miles. 3 major climbs
140 avg. HR for ride.
*pretty chill ride, very tired.

totals: I think we did the elevation of Mt. Everest twice or more. 34 hours this week. We'll do another 1-2 hr. Before we take tomorrow morn. 10 hrs give or take of climbing) and immeasurable suffering.

Ga, queen stage

2006-03-17T03:55:00.000+03:30

6 gap ride, queen stage 7hr. 113 miles (dirt road slowed pace a lot) avg HR 155 for whole ride.
Climbs:
1. 27’ avg HR 170
2. dirt roads, 90’ didn’t record. Pretty easy
3. brasstown Ball:
a. first part: 22’ HR 159
b. last 3 miles: 26’ HR 189
4. didn’t record. 25 minutes or so hard pace.
5. 45’ (last 25’ HR 162)
6. didn’t record. Hard, hard pace.
* hard pace at end as well. hardest day on a bike, ever.

recovery day

2006-03-17T03:53:00.000+03:30

4 hr. again, some long climbs easy, 1:30 of dirt roads.
prty chill nice and sunny.

Ga Day 4 of training camp

2006-03-15T06:01:00.000+03:30

Hilly end. ride, 90 miles. 3 major climbs. 20'(avg HR 180) 45', (179) 15' (190)

*tough ride today, really windy, last 30' stright into head wind.

day3, 3-13-06

2006-03-14T00:45:00.001+03:30

Recovery ride: 4hr, 70 miles, avg. HR 145.
1 major climb, wolf pen gap, 20' but pretty chill. HR 150 on the climb.
5200 feet of vertical gain.

*nice easy pace today for everyone. alittle rain but nice and warm so no big deal. we did quite a bit of single file pace line today really starting to get smooth. and we worked on my decending skill wich need lots of work!

day3, 3-13-06

2006-03-14T00:45:00.000+03:30

Recovery ride: 4hr, 70 miles, avg. HR 145.
1 major climb, wolf pen gap, 20' but pretty chill. HR 150 on the climb.
*nice easy pace today for everyone. alittle rain but nice and warm so no big deal. we did quite a bit of single file pace line today really starting to get smooth. and we worked on my decending skill wich need lots of work!

Mon, Day 2, 3-12-06

2006-03-13T17:35:00.000+03:30

6 gap ride. 97 mies, 17.5 avg. 5:45 ride time
6 climbes. from 2 miles @5% to 8miles at 12%
3rd abd last climb at level 4+ TT threshold pace. others at level 3.

* hard ride cracked a bit on last climb. lighgt tempo in single line paceline other times.
last 30' avg. 22 MPH. on rolloing roads. not to bad level 2+, legs tired though!

Sun, 3-11, day 1

2006-03-13T06:13:00.000+03:30

easy ride 4hr.
rolling terain, 1 20' climb at level 3 hr 173.
nice pace felt good

Rest week 3-6 to 3-11

2006-03-10T19:54:00.000+03:30

This was very relaxed. I put my new bike together. Had a quick 20 ride wed. And some commuting. All in all this week I did a very relaxed 2.5 hr.'s of riding and taught my 2 spinning classes
so 4-5 hr for the week.
Base training is over and its time to turn the screw!
see you in GA!

Weekend

2006-03-06T16:45:00.000+03:30

Sat:
end. ride: 5 hr. 85 miles.
* nice out. did some FP during ride.

Sun:
end. ride: 3:45, 66 miles
* even warmer out today. did 2 hard efforts today. about 5 and 10 minutes long. felt pretty good.

Fri: 3/3/06

2006-03-03T19:30:00.000+03:30

Hills and commute: 2hr. 6x4' hills in big gear.
*got flat so didn't have time for more hills

Thur: 3/2/06

2006-03-03T19:28:00.000+03:30

am: spinning 1hr
* lots of FP. , commute to work.

pm: spinning& commute home 1:30
* lots of FP again, legs tired tonite.
total: 2:45 level2 mostly

last few days.

2006-03-01T22:04:00.000+03:30

Wed 3/1/06: Long ride. 3hr. (45' tempo) 5 Fp's at end of ride.
cold still!

Tue: -OFF-

Mon: trainer, 1 hr, 8 stomps
felt strong, cold out again! :(

Sun: long ride level 2, 4hr.
kept it steady, felt good after a hard ride yesterday.

Sat: long ride. 3:30 hr. level 2 with some level 3 in there.
got snowed on. wet, cold. finished myself off on the trainer with some FP, and lots of standing.

Fri: 1 hr. level 2
a bit on the trainer and comuting. pretty chill day.

Thursday: 2hr.
spinning in the am and pm. kept it steady. level 2

Last few days

2006-02-22T23:00:00.000+03:30

Wed: end ride. 3 hr. 55 miles
* started to feel a bit tired at end but not to bad. didn't eat anything. pedaling feels good.

Tue: strength workout. Hills, (8x4') (90' total 22 miles)
* in big gear, hard efforts, (1 sitting, 1 standing, 1 alternating)

Mon: -off-
* saw doc. surgey check up

Sun. 2/19/06

2006-02-20T00:01:00.000+03:30

End. ride 3 hr. (2x10' MTI's)

* Even colder out today! 7 degrees when I left the house. Not to windy and sunny.

Sat. 2/18/06

2006-02-19T23:59:00.000+03:30

End. ride: 5 hr. HR. 135, 83 miles

* easy, steady pace, with teammate. cold and windy

Fri. 2/17/06

2006-02-18T00:24:00.000+03:30

trainer: 1hr. MTI's 3x10'
*wanted to get outside and do hills but didn't get up early enough.

Thur. 2/16/06

2006-02-17T20:33:00.000+03:30

am: spinn. level 2-3
* lots of FP.

pm: spinn level 2
* lots of FP again. kept it easy

Wed. 2/15/06

2006-02-16T02:46:00.000+03:30

End. Ride: 3hr. (55 miles) HR 142

*legs pretty tired, didn't eat a lot for dinner. need to drop a few pounds still.

Tue. 2/14/06

2006-02-16T02:40:00.000+03:30

am: trainer, 1 hr. HR 141
* kept it pretty easy and steady. felt a bit... off

pm: trainer, 1hr. HR 146
*20' of FP intervals. felt very good, efficient.

Mon. 2/13/06

2006-02-14T21:58:00.000+03:30

Trainer: 1 hr. , MTI's (3x10')

* felt like they weren't that hard? Same resistance and gear ratio as last time? I will have to check and make sure I set everything up right, can't be that strong. Not yet any way...

Sun. 2/12/06

2006-02-14T03:11:00.000+03:30

Trainer: 2 hr. level 2
* Giant snow storm!! lots of standing intervals and FP's while me and the lady watched a movie

Sat. 2/11/06

2006-02-12T19:03:00.000+03:30

Ride with team. 4hr. solid pace.

* felt good today. Plenty of energy.

Fri. 2/10/06

2006-02-12T19:01:00.000+03:30

Trainer and commute to work. 1 hr, level 2
Commute home 20'

* taking it easy today. Feeling better every day.

Thur. 2/9/06

2006-02-10T19:01:00.000+03:30

am: Spin class and commute to work
pm: Spin class and ride home

* 2:45 total today. Felt a bit tired when I got home. Didn't eat enough today.

Wed. 2/8/06

2006-02-08T21:58:00.000+03:30

Trainer: 25', ride to work 20' level 2
* trying to stay rested and get abs feeling better.

Tue. 2/7/06

2006-02-08T21:56:00.000+03:30

End. ride. 90' level 2, 28 miles
* with dan on his way to work, still not 100% but getting there.

Mon. 2-6-06

2006-02-07T00:23:00.000+03:30

-OFF-
* well, commuting to work. 40' total.

Sun. 2-5-06

2006-02-07T00:20:00.000+03:30

Easy ride: level 2 1:05, 20 mi.
* alone today, felt better. need to be carfull and not over do it to soon.

Sat. 2/04/06

2006-02-05T18:46:00.000+03:30

Ride with team: level 2, 4hr.
* a bit to long. Started to get a bit soar at surgery site towards end and tired.

Fri. 2/3/06

2006-02-03T19:22:00.000+03:30

Trainer: 20'

* did a little soft pedaling in my spinning class yesterday as well. not 100% but healing up fast now.

down time

2006-01-31T00:37:00.000+03:30

Fri. Jan. 27th
surgery
sat. Jan. 28th
off untill at least Feb. 2nd.

Wed. & Thur. 25th/26th

2006-01-27T00:41:00.000+03:30

Wed.
-Off-

Thur.
* spinn class, rode pretty hard in second half.

Tue. 1/24/06

2006-01-25T18:11:00.000+03:30

Trainer ride: 1 hr, avg HR 149
F.P. 2x(1',2',3') (equal rest)

Mon. 1/23/06

2006-01-25T18:07:00.000+03:30

Trainer ride, MTI's: 1 hr. avg. HR 159
3x10' (5' rest)
*felt tired but knocked them out. need to stock up for some"off" time that will be coming up.

Sun. 1/22/06

2006-01-24T00:25:00.000+03:30

End Ride: 3:45 avg HR 157 (for first 3hr.)
* hilly ride at home up into the Berkshires. rode pretty solid pace for first 3 hr. trying to avg. 20 mph on the hilly terrain. but only managed 18.7