Progression

Recovery weeks seem odd to me. The idea of doing less work to get stronger is the complete opposite of the natural thought process. I guess the key is knowing when and by how much to back off the throttle. I don't think there would be any 10 minute steady states intervals at 320 watts in my definition of a recovery week. Thanks to TJ, I don't have to think too much about it. He prescribes it and I just have to do it.

Snapshot of what I've been doing to prepare me for the start of the MTB racing season. The late nights in the basement after the whole house was sound asleep are countless. If I don't have to see the trainer till November, it will be too soon.

The good, the bad and the ugly!

The new selle should be here by Friday. I read a lot of reviews and they all say the same thing.........comfort on the boys! The current Selle XC gel-flow isn't making the grade.

All work, no play

It's Sunday and in Eau Claire that can only mean one thing.....rain. So it was decided that Jim and I would head out to Lowes Creek and work on the new berm on Skull. The once super slow blind turn that leads to the creek crossing is now nothing more than a brake check. It turned out pretty nice and once it sets up, will be a lot faster and more fun. With all the other trail work Corba has done, the course will be super dialed in for the Firecracker.

Thanks for the tools Craig!

3 X 20s on the knobbies

TJ had me down for 3x20 intervals in the woods, but with all the rain over the past few days, the trails were in no shape to ride. Although not nearly as entertaining, Jim and I hit the ultra flat Red Cedar Trail with the SISU hard tails. It's very scenic, but neither of us finds too much joy in doing out and backs.

These are only fun once they're over!

Consistency

Consistency is the name of the game when doing interval work on single track. Relying strictly on perceived exertion, the twenty minute steady-state repeats on the same track were separated by less than 25 seconds. Race season is coming up fast.

Wed group ride

As always, the group ride was was a good time. Most of the usual suspects were there and once the roll-out was finished, we got some pretty good pedaling in. Sprinting is a lot more fun when you ride the train in.....thanks guys.

Really good size group of riders, 38 in all.

That is not a support vehicle! I think there was some motor pacing taking place :)

Durand road race recap

The morning started out a bit hectic after I realized my rear wheel was rubbing on the frame. Craig M tried to help me late last night, but we didn't have the tools to work on the carbon wheels. So we were off to the bike shop first thing this morning to see if I could get some preferential treatment. Eric at Anybody's had the tools and the knowhow to fix the wheel, but there was a problem, the wheel wasn't the issue. After some quick analysis, it was determined that a file had to be taken to the drop out?? It was now 9:30 and we had a 45 minute ride to Durand and I still needed to register and be on the line at 11:00. As it turned out, there was time to kill.

Recap: This is the second RR I have ever done, so it was decided that I would race the cat 5/cit and use it as a learning experience. Bob waived the flag and we were off. Everyone warned me to conserve as much energy and do as little work as possible. I was good with that notion and experimented with different positions throughout the group. It was a good way to get a feel of the strengths and weaknesses of the other riders. After the first big climb Aaron S. and I decided to test the field with a pretty hard effort, but nobody came with us, so we re-grouped and came through the finish line to head out for a second lap. This time the pace was picked up and guys were starting to take fliers off the front. I had a hard time not answering, which turned out to be the right move as we eventually brought them back together. About half way through the second lap, a pretty solid rider got away and we were not doing a very good job of working together to close the gap; and we were running out of pavement fast. Knowing it wasn't the smartest move, I decided to put my head down and go to work on the gap. When we came up on the leader, I pulled through really hard to make sure he couldn't get a wheel. However, six or so guys still had my tire as we made the final right turn and started heading to sprint. I looked for a wheel after the hard pull, but none seemed to be available, and I was left alone in the wind. I was pretty shelled at this point, but managed to pull out a fourth place finish inches behind the leaders. The fitness seemed to be there, but my road racing strategy needs a lot of work. I think Time Trials are in my future before anymore road races. Check out the Motion Based file here http://trail.motionbased.com/trail/player/view.mb?episodePk.pkValue=8030364

heading in for the sprint

Sitting comfortably on second wheel

Good times on the hills for sure!

Tucson Mini Camp day 2

TJ took me out to experience the real deal. It became pretty apparent early on why they call it Mountain biking. The scenery was second to none and the trails were like nothing I've experienced. Good times for sure.

Slightly after the trail head. I think I took more pics than I did pedaling.


Navigating the pass. Unlike TJ, I had to perfect the hike-a-bike on the super technical stuff. How he clears this on a hard tail is a mystery.

Looking back at the GPS file, I was clearly lost for the entire ride.



It was a great day of biking, but after 4 hours in saddle and 4,500 feet of climbing, I was ready for the hotel. If I thought there was a lot of climbing today, day 3 on Mt. Lemmon was going to be a real eye opener.
Thanks for tuning in.