biketrailsavage

Sacramento Valley Velodrome

2011-01-06T01:39:00.000-08:00

Well the inevitable question of who what how and why will this not be another failed attempt at bringing velodrome racing to Sacramento. This may be a bit long winded for the TweetyMyFace crowd, but hang in there and I will get to the point….eventually.

In 2003 I started riding one of those goofy fixed gear bikes that the messenger kids were riding because they are simple to maintain, easy to lock up at the local watering hole, and old school race culture says you should ride your first 1000k of the off season on a track bike with an easy gear to develop a supple spin. A couple years later Mary Maroon was all jazzed up about track racing at Hellyer Park and started talking about building a track in Sacramento. I figured if we were gonna do this I better get a race bike and make a trip or two down to San Jose to check it out. I went to my first beginners session during the winter of 2006-2007. One taste and I was hooked. A few sessions later I got my wife-to-be hooked too and we started going to as many beginners’ races as we could.

It wasn’t long before we started hearing about these big money races called omniums or velodrome challenges. These are events with $10-20,000 in prize money. Several events are run over the course of two to three days with racers going for individual prizes as well as prizes for the overall most consistent results throughout the entire weekend. There are usually three to four of these on the west coast during the summer. It’s pretty much the same core group that travels to and compete in these events. Having a background in music and having done five national tours that sounded like my kind of circus. The problem is, or was, to ride in these races you are required to be ranked as a top level amateur or professional track rider. So, we set about racing and training to get our upgrades so we could make the scene. And make the scene we did.

Fast forward two years to our preparation for the big races of 2009. The group that runs the big race at Hellyer, The American Velodrome Challenge, holds a spring series called Get Ready for Summer. Of course we jumped at the opportunity to go on sunny spring days to get ready for summer racing. We had a blast doing the series, raced the big event, then went up to Portland for the Alpenrose Velodrome Challenge. I was in an arena with raging warriors half my age…wildly passionate athletes, men AND women, who care for little more than having fun, chasing prizes, and getting to the next big race. It was sometime during that week that something clicked. I vividly remember saying to myself “this is what I want to do with the rest of my life.”

I immediately started talking to anyone and everyone that would listen about track racing and building a velodrome in the Sacramento area, all the while going about the business of preparing specifically for the 2010 track racing season. Spring finally comes, and again we are thankful to Rick Adams, Kevin Worley, and Matt Martinez for giving us the opportunity to get ready to race the big show. We planned to expand our summer tour up to Redmond, Washington for the FSA Grand Prix. Sometime during the keirin heats at the 2010 American Velodrome Challenge the other light came on. Those sneaky devils! The Get Ready for Summer races are as much, if not more, an opportunity for these guys to fine tune their act as much as it is a chance for us to get some much needed track time. This got me to thinking about how much work goes into running a successful velodrome program. It became immediately and alarmingly apparent that building a track is the easy part. What makes the tracks we’ve raced special are the people and their programs.

During this four year run we took advantage of most of the programs available at Hellyer on our way to qualify to race at the highest level. Since this entry is already long winded I may as well list as many as I can. To ride the track everyone is required to attend three orientation sessions. These sessions are held year round, weather permitting. There is usually a rotation of five coaches that run these sessions. The track maintains a fleet of rental bikes for folks that want to give it a try before investing in a track bike. There are low key races run on Tuesday and Wednesday nights from April through September where new racers can earn upgrade points to race the bigger events as well as a chance for the fast guys and gals to get some mid week intensity. Riders of all levels, and this is what makes it socially satisfying, are mixed together in the infield and take turns racing in self seeded A.B, or C divisions. You have junior boys and girls, rank beginners, seasoned messengers, awkward roadies, and grizzled pros all mixed together and egging each other on. Then there is the Friday night series. These are higher category races that draw more spectators and are sponsored by local clubs that bring refreshments and volunteers to help out. These races have 4-5 referees where as the low key racing usually has only one or two which includes the promoter. Two times a week there are junior only sessions run by parents and a few veteran racers. One group is for the little 10-13 year olds, and the other is for the bigger faster kids. There are also a half dozen training sessions throughout the week that are run by track supervisors that may also include a motorcycle pacer to keep the speed high. Then there are a series of match sprint racer where the big and burly boys and girls race each other, one on one, over short distances. And last but not least there is the Velodrome Challenge, and Masters and Elite State Championships. Oh, and let’s not forget the annual ladies camp run by Beth Newell and Annabel Holland which is focused on getting more women racers involved with track racing. The glue that holds it all together is a non-profit corporation with a 10-12 member board of directors. Whew! I hope I didn’t leave anyone out.

So the best scenario is to have a healthy non-profit association that runs our racing and programs, a municipal property run and policed by the parks commission, and a constant and varied in flux of private funding and sponsorship. We have written and filed Articles of Incorporation with the Secretary of State. From there we will get a tax id and open a bank account. We have secured seed money to launch our website, seek the advice of lawyers and accountants, and file for non-profit status with the IRS. We are working on getting a small fleet of junior bikes so we can start recruiting kids, get them comfortable riding fixed gear bikes, and take them on field trips down to Hellyer to meet and ride with kids their age on a real track. I built my roller racing rig so we can start promoting races while raising awareness and more seed money. We also have plans to run a summer twilight series where we will do match sprints, chariot races, and time trials on fixed gear bikes. We have been talking to Kevin McCarty, planning staff and planning commissioners and have scheduled a meeting at City Hall with my old high school mate Kevin Johnson. If the city is not willing to play nice or makes things too difficult we have plan B to build on private land a few miles south of Sacramento.

My personal qualifications include being a USA Cycling Level II coach in good standing for five years which includes 3 separate weeks of training at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs I've been a shop bike mechanic for eight years. I’ve ridden and raced many styles of cycling that include year around commuting (in 2008 I won the second highest individual miles award for May is Bike Month), freestyle street BMX, several double centuries including a California Triple Crown, completing the Death Ride, winning Eppie’s Great Race, competing in over a hundred road races and criteriums, competing in close to a hundred track races, and participating in local race and club rides. The more I talk about building this velodrome, the more folks are looking to me for direction. I have managed to infiltrate the American track racing scene from the infield. I’m friends with the promoters and associations that run the big West Coast races. I have a good relationship with the Hellyer crew and can turn to them for mentorship. I am friends with several past and current national and world champion trackies. I have earned the respect and mutual admiration of my peers. I am willing to build this grassroots association one relationship at a time until we have so much momentum that the actual construction of our track becomes inevitable. This is where all other attempts have failed. They failed to recognize that a movement is made not of concrete, wood and steel, but of people that are unafraid to dream. Come to the Hot Italian and watch or race. Share in the good times, great food and camaraderie. And see if you don’t come away with an insatiable itch for more.

I will close with the mission statement from our Articles of Incorporation:

This corporation is a nonprofit Public Benefit Corporation and is not organized for the private gain of any person. It is organized under the Nonprofit Public Benefit Corporation Law for charitable purposes.

B. The specific purpose of this corporation is to develop and operate a velodrome for the use and benefit of the communities in the greater Sacramento region.

Charitable and educational programs will include:
a)bicycling safety and education, with an emphasis on junior development
b)the promotion of healthy lifestyles and fitness
c)the promotion of local, regional, and national sporting events

2010 USA Cycling Summit

2010-10-17T14:15:00.000-07:00

About 90 of us made our biennial trek to the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs for the 2010 USA Cycling Summit. The accommodations are great and the weather was beautiful. We had about a dozen coaches from NorCal, most of which spend a bit of time at the track so it was a chance for some good hang time.

Following is a brief summary of the 12 lectures we attended in five days...

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Challenges Facing Coaches Istvan Balyi
Long-Term Athlete Development Istvan Balyi

Lots of great info on early childhood development and dealing with the teenage growth spurt.
Also some good stuff on periodization.

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Communication Kirsten Peterson, PhD

Some great tools to assess and improve communication between individual athletes.
Also how to use the same tools with a club or team.

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Thermoregulation Stacy Sims, PhD

Don't use ice to cool off. Cool water on the wrists and palms is better.
Water in your bottles and real food in your pockets is best.

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Sprint Track Training Jamie Staff

We need to open a pipeline between BMX and track racing.
I was hoping for training details but got none.

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Paralympic Cycling Craig Griffin

Got me thinking about another program for our velodrome.
Lots of wounded vets are coming home that need an outlet.

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Altitude Training Randy Wilber, PhD

If you need the benefit of altitude training it still takes four weeks.
Got some good advice on traveling to race at altitude.
All the other stuff sounded a bit too much like doping to me.

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Mountain Bike Training Kristen Dieffenbach, PhD

Kristen is a great speaker and very passionate.
Of course her lecture was more about psychology that training.

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Aerodynamics Andy Coggan, PhD

Oh my god, this was too close to rocket science.
If you go in a wind tunnel be sure to test in a crosswind.

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Concussions Bernard Condevaux

Don't hit your head. If you do, seek medical advice and be conservative.

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Business of Coaching Gale Bernhardt

Time to rewrite my business plan and mission statement.

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Using Technology Steve McGregor, PhD

Always a pleasure to listen to Dr. McGregor. He is dry, witty, and very sarcastic.
Great new tools are coming for measuring training stress for runners and tri-geeks.

The Mad Dash

2010-08-16T18:27:00.000-07:00

It's been a little over a year since I decided to make track racing my primary focus. As I get closer to the top I find myself trying to emulate some of my favorite racers. There are a few that I make a point to watch whenever possible. Dave McCook, Jame Carney, Zak Kovalcik, Giovanni Rey, Laura McCaughey, Steve Pelaez, Brian Peterson, Jen Featheringill, Pete Billington and Cari Higgins come quickly to mind. I've been wondering since returning from TVC, AVC, and FSA-GP why this particular group has enchanted me. The one thing that stands out most clearly is an image of these riders coming over the top through turns three and four and passing several riders on their way to the line. And when they come barreling down that finishing straight I always get a little giggle at how fast they are pedaling. It's precisely that head down, elbows out, whirling mad dash for the line that keeps me getting on my bike day after day and dreaming of the next big race.

Following is the final 2 laps of a recent ten mile race...

2 to go and this poor guy has Zak Carney Beardsley Allen McCook and a pack of hungry young Canadians on his tail...Zak hit the front on the back stretch and was friggin flying!

1 lap to go and the final three are on the front. McCook was tucked in nice but couldn't hold it...

Zak put in an amazing dig and almost held it but Carney is just too darn fast.

Uh yeah, 29+ MPH on a tight bumpy track. Sweet Baby Jeezus! See you at the next show.

high force/high cadence Quadrant Analysis #1

2010-06-07T22:21:00.000-07:00

Okay, since the subject came up today, here is my high force high cadence jumps for all to see. I have been doing these along with box jumps in the gym to get my race specific jump together. This has been in addition to high cadence VO2max work and weekly racing. I pick a gear that I can spin at 110 rpm and then jump hard out of the saddle and wind it out. I am doing these in preparation for the Anaerobic Capacity block I will do after the Testarossa Velodrome Challenge. It should be noted that this was my first track specific winter in the gym and will be the first time since I started track racing in 2007 that I will be doing a full blown anaerobic block of training. I am 45 years old and have been riding hard for ten years...

VO2max #4 Quadrant Analysis

2010-06-07T15:55:00.000-07:00

Success! On my fourth attempt at a proper VO2max workout I was able to complete two whole sets of 6x3:00. This comes near the end of a hard block of training and racing every week. Now I'll try to freshen up for the Testarossa Velodrome Challenge this weekend and then get some recovery before really digging in to some serious speed work leading up to the AVC and FSA Grand Prix in mid July.

VO2max #3 Quadrant Analysis

2010-06-05T22:39:00.000-07:00

Eeek, I attempted to complete a VO2max workout on a day when I ain't feeling so fresh from yesterday's effort. I made it 2 minutes into the second interval of the second set before the lights went out. And when I say lights out I mean if I had to sprint for my life I might not have survived. But the Quadrant Analysis is pretty much the same as workout #2 so I'm cool with that. I'll do a day of rest then have another go on Monday with fresh legs. My guess is there will be a big jump in race fitness this week.

Friday Night Pro1/2/3 track race Quadrant Analysis

2010-06-05T20:28:00.000-07:00

Okay here we go. I did the Pro 1/2/3 omnium of 40 laps scratch race and 50 laps points race last night. The blue dots are the warm-ups and cool-downs. The red dots are the the 90 laps of racing at an average speed of 45 kph. Average cadence was 105 rpm. I ride a 94" (49x14) gear. I barely sniffed the front a couple times but with a full field of 36 hungry riders I was basically relegated to the role of wheelsucker. I never missed a split and was rarely in danger of getting dropped. I didn't bother with the miss n out as I was done done done with it by then. The big surprise is the high percentage of quadrant IV riding. That's almost half (46.6%) of the effort being high cadence (above 100rpm) and low watts (below threshold). So the take home for the night is it really does pay to do lots of high cadence work on little gears...I'll show more of that in the up and coming block of speed work, but it is strikingly obvious at this point in the game that the big watts will need to come with high cadence. Hitting 1200 watts at 90 rpm is of no use here...

VO2max #2 Quadrant Analysis

2010-06-02T21:03:00.000-07:00

Okay, in staying with my mantra "don't get hurt don't get hurt don't get hurt" I headed out to do just one set of 6x3x3 with the goal being to get the cadence up into the track specific quadrant 1. I'm pretty sure I could have completed a second set but we'll just have to wait til Monday to see for sure. That said, I am very happy to report that I was able to do all six in the 107-112 rpm range. See how the red blob has shifted to the right compared to my last post? The other unexpected occurrence was I popped out of bed when the alarm went off raring to go. This is a new sensation for this time of year as traditionally I am in deep fatigue and suffering the June Swoon. This balanced racing schedule and specific training is really starting to look like it's coming together in time for Portland and Seattle woohoo! Friday night I have no choice but to race with the P/1/2/3's so I guess I'm in for some speed work and a good old fashioned whoopin'.

VO2max #1 Quadrant Analysis

2010-05-26T23:24:00.000-07:00

This is a picture of my first proper vo2 max workout of the year as I get ready for some big races in July and August. The protocol is two sets of 6x 3:00 at 110-120% of functional threshold power with 3:00 rest between intervals and lots of rest between sets. Over the course of the next month or so I am gonna attempt to move my red blob up, to the right, and into the high cadence/high power quadrant needed for mass start track racing. For you stopwatch guys this means I'm trying to go 45-50 kph on a 94" gear for 3-8 minutes.

Strength Training Q&A

2010-02-19T21:10:00.000-08:00

I got the following question in my in box tonight...

"Dean, where are you getting the training program from? I'm about to build a little strength program for [my daughter] over the next 2 months. Could use some tips!"

And my reply...

I am a Level II USA Cycling coach, I write my programs myself. If you are looking for a qualified coach to lean, on I would check with Harvey Newton http://www.newton-sports.com/public/

All the rules of periodization apply to strength training...I rely heavily on Tudor Bompa, Joe Friel, Greg LeMond/Cyrille Guimard, Hunter Allen, Andy Coggan, Arthur Lydiard, Harvey Newton, and Mark Rippetoe.

The key is having constant dialog and hands on training with the coach. The program must be written specifically for the athlete's goals, as well as addressing her strengths and weaknesses. Finding a good balance between strength and endurance takes great communication, patience, and flexibility within the day to day application where the well being of the athlete is the highest priority. There is no excuse, but plenty of opportunities, for a bike racer to get injured in the gym.

I subscribe to the theory that bike racers need to spend time on the bike, therefore, my goal is to get in and out of the gym in about an hour, 2-3 times per week. High repetitions of single joint exercises with light weights is a waste of precious time...we already do that on the bike! We, as bike racers, need to do multi-joint exercises with heavy weights (relative to the individual of course) in the 5-8 repetitions range, followed up with explosive moves when we get close to our peak racing season. I'm talking about squats, dead-lifts, push-ups, pull-ups, and crunches...followed by simple plyometric type exercises, like box jumps, when it's time to sharpen up for racing.

Lastly, the athlete MUST build up to this over several months under the guidance and care of a qualified coach. DO NOT BLINDLY FOLLOW A COOKIE CUTTER PROGRAM THAT IS THE NEWEST, HIPPEST PROGRAM OF THE STARS!!! I know of several athletes who have lost several months of training because of poorly written programs, improper technique, and a lack of patience.

I hope this helps! Let me know how it goes and please feel free to contact me if you require more ranting.

Winter Performance Testing

2010-01-01T20:20:00.000-08:00

Who wants to go out and do a 40K time trial this time of year? Better yet, who wants to do a one hour threshold test on an indoor trainer???

For everyone that went "Eeewwww! I'd rather be stuck in a cage and poked with sharp sticks for an hour" I am developing my own indoor performance testing protocol using a MAP test and a simple follow up field test to round out the power profile.

For starters, my findings and prescriptions are based on the Coggan Power Levels and the teachings of Hunter Allen. I apologize to the both of them in advance for mangling your intellectual property hahaha! But, so far it's working for us, and my friend the ER Doc is interested in my rebel methods, so I'm laying it out for all to see. Hi Suzanne! Keep in mind that I mostly work with amateurs, women, and masters bike racers, so this protocol is developed for us.

I use a CompuTrainer, a PowerTap, and WKO+ power analysis software.

Okay, the first thing I do is estimate the athlete's FTP (functional threshold power - what the rider could do in a well paced 40K time trial). I'll use myself as our example. This past season my FTP stabilized around 300 watts and I figure it has dropped to about 270-280 watts in the off season. We'll be optimistic and go with 280 watts. I take that number and figure my Coggan threshold power level to be 255-296 watts. From there I divide the lower number by 2 and that serves as my starting watts for the MAP test. 255/2=127.5 rounded down to the nearest multiple of five (the CompuTrainer manually goes in 5 watt increments starting at 50 watts) giving us a starting point of 125 watts.

The reason I jump through all these hoops is that I want the test to last from 10-15 minutes, give or take a minute or two. The other part of the equation is I like to do winter training blocks of about six weeks with a rest week between blocks. The testing comes immediately following the rest week.

The other thing about the CompuTrainer, which works out to be a good fast warm-up, is the unit needs to be warmed up at 150 watts for 10 minutes and then a quick calibration is performed. I like to start with some easy spinning at 50 watts and gradually, over the course of 15 minutes, work up to and hold 150 watts for as long as is practicable. For those with higher FTP this means holding 150 for the last 10 minutes. For those with lower FTP this means holding 150 watts for the last minute or so. I also include some high rpm pedaling to shake things loose. Then we do the quick and easy coastdown to calibrate the CompuTrainer and off we go.

I started my test at the previously mentioned 125 watts and hit the +5 watts button every 20 seconds until failure, which last time around was in the 13-14 minute range. Then I do a little easy spinning at 50 watts until my vision returns and the birds stop chirping.

Next I take the PowerTap, download it into WKO+, and find the peak one minute. That is what I consider to be the MAP or roughly power at VO2 max. I averaged 327 watts for my best one minute. I take that number and subtract 15% and use that as my FTP. 327-15% = 278 watts.

Confirmation time. Lucky for us we can usually ride out of doors several days a week, even in the dead of Winter, but the confirmation test can be done on an indoor trainer as well. Just be careful not fall over, or better yet, don't bother with the jumps and sprints and do the one minute intervals seated...

The confirmation test is one five minute all out effort followed by a 20 minute time trial, 2x1:00 flat out, and several hard jumps and sprints. All efforts should be done after a minimum of 5 minutes recovery. More if neccessary.

My five minute test was 320 watts and the 20 minute time trial was 278. The one minute intervals hurt like hell and the better of the two was 530 watts. My best 5 seconds was 1139.

These numbers are solid enough that I can confidently use them as a base for the next block of training. Remember there are no set on/off points between training levels and the grey areas between our metabolic systems are broad enough to absorb the errors of my math. Also, this time of year is about building and maintaining fitness while eliminating race limiters, so if you need to fudge the numbers, err to the conservative side, so when the peak racing season arrives, you can spend like a drunken sailor. I hope this helps!

Until next time, ride fast and swerve...

Think "specificity" when a weather advisory cancels your workout.

2009-11-30T00:09:00.000-08:00

So, I was planning on doing the River Ride on Saturday, and was really looking forward to being aggressive and mixing it up, but the weather did not cooperate. 20-30 mph wind with gusts over 40. Now, I like riding in the wind as much as the next bruiser, but I do not go out training when there is a weather advisory in effect.

Period.

End of discussion.

Whaaaah! Booooohoohoo!!!

Now what?

Well, after another near perfect week of training, adding sets and weight in the gym, getting out on the road for some solid threshold work and completing a power profile and MAP test, I decided some race specific work on the rollers would be the ticket. I am considered an endurance racer at the track so I want to work on some race specific endurance. And what do we do in a mass start track endurance race? We go 28-32 mph for 10-30 minutes and sprint at 40 mph. There are many variations on this theme but that is the base we need to have.

So I get on the rollers and crank it up to 30 mph with my watts just below threshold and hold it for ten minutes accelerating to 40 mph at the end. With the low resistance of the rollers it feels like motorpacing or drafting in the pack and even though the sprint wattage numbers are not nearly as big as a live sprint, the effort to bear down and squeeze out that 140 rpm at the end is the same. And to do it repeatedly in my garage with that kind of focus is priceless!

I also cranked out 5 sets of alternative dumbbell exercises to mix it up, including one set of dead lifts. And oooooh, my hammies are barking! Alright, enough trade secrets for one night. Ride fast and swerve!

recovery week

2009-11-16T23:05:00.000-08:00

So I am gonna let you in on a little secret. It is in all of the literature but is the most overlooked (or flat out ignored) aspect of training to race at a high level. It is the recovery week. I can't figure why it's so hard to back off and let the body heal itself to come back stronger after a period of hard training. I can't tell you how many times I've heard some jackass proclaim on a group ride that they are just sitting on because they are in a recovery week or on a recovery ride. WRONG! Recovery rides are noodling along for 45-90 minutes on the small ring at 12 MPH. Hello? Did you catch my drift? Cruising along at 18 MPH is NOT a 12 MPH recovery pace.

Anyway, some programs do three weeks hard and one week easy, or two weeks hard and one week easy, or my favorite (especially in the off season), six weeks build with one week easy. What is the use of doing everything right on schedule for six weeks including all of the lifestyle sacrifices we make only to skip the one thing that will make you the fastest...RECOVERY??? Maybe we need to drop the term recovery and use supercompnsation in it's place. "I can't make the group hammerfest tonight because I am supercompensating." It sounds like you are really doing something special. And you are. You do a hard block of training and then you rest. While you are resting your body is coming back stronger than when you started the last block. It's the most basic law of progressive overload. Why interfere? You think your DNA is the exception to the rule? I think not.

So following are my guidelines for my own supercompensation periods...

1. Start by taking a day completely off. No work, no training, period.
2. Continue strength training (you are cross training right?), but only do two days on the current weight and repetition schedule, and only one set of each exercise. This is to keep those hard earned neural pathways turned on.
3. Pay strict adherence to a well balanced diet with a small but consistent calorie deficit. This is a weight maintenance week!
4. 7-10 hours of sleep every night. This is true in all training periods, year round, but is easy to ignore. So I'm reminding you again.
5. Do at least three days of easy spinning for 45-90 minutes at 12 MPH with some granny gear cadence drills of 6x1 minute at 120-140 RPM thrown in to keep those hard earned neural pathways turned on.
6. End the week with a power profile test and record your body measurements.
7. Learn a new skill or do some homework that will help you accomplish your goals for next year. I am learning how to use a computrainer to do MAP testing and torture my friends and clients.

Okay, off to bed I go. Toodle pip and cheerio. Ride fast and swerve!

specificity...so, what do YOU want to do?

2009-11-12T00:14:00.000-08:00

This season was an experiment to see what would happen if I tried to be two completely different types of racer in one year. The first half was an ultra-endurance road racing season which culminated in a 272 miles effort at the Davis 24 Hour Challenge on May 2-3. I did some HUGE solo rides and some randonnées in the six months preparing for that. The biggest question, with an eye to the Furnace Creek 508, was could I ride through the night without going mental. The answer is yes, so there is some unfinished business there, with the possibility of the 508 in 2014. The second half of the season was dedicated to racing on the track with the focus being on becoming an all around omnium racer. I had some respectable rides in both disciplines, but not one ride was totally satisfying. I never really found my legs on the ultra rides and then I never got out from under the fatigue of the long stuff when it came time to go fast at the track. But it was a calculated risk and I never embarrassed myself, so I must rate the season a success. Especially considering the great support I received and the friendships that developed over the course of a looooong year. Training began on October 20, ended on September 18, and included 21 race days.

Somewhere over the course of the summer I decided that I would really like to give track racing a try. It was probably in the Hellyer tent at Alpenrose that I knew for sure that the next few seasons would have a single focus. After nine years of dabbling in many different kinds of racing I am dedicating all available resources to pedalling fast and turning left.

So what, specifically, does that mean as it relates to training? Well, for starters, we need to define the characteristics of the races we want to do. I like the idea of becoming a well rounded track racer that can do well in the omnium format. The typical races at an omnium are the time trials, the mass starts, and the sprint events.

The time trials consist of the flying 200m, the flying lap, the 500m 750m or kilo from a standing start, and the 2K 3K or 4K Pursuit also from a standing start. All of these require us to make a big acceleration and then hold on for dear life. Some winning riders will get up to speed then hold a consistent pace for the remainder of the race while others will consistently accelerate all the way to the finish.

The mass starts are the miss and out, the scratch race, and the points race. In the miss and out we sprint every one or two laps until we are one of the last three standing and then we sprint again for the podium spots. The scratch race is like a criterium, they specify the number of laps and the first one across the line on the final lap is the winner. The points race is the same as a scratch race except every few laps we sprint for points (4,3,2,1) and the rider that collects the most points throughout the race wins. The mass starts can last anywhere from ten minutes to an hour.

The sprint events are the match sprint and the keirin. The match sprint is a tournament where 2-4 riders race at a time in heats until the last two standing race for the win. The keirin is also raced in heats but in groups of six with the final race competing for the top six places. The match sprints are two or three laps from a standing start and the keirin is motor paced for 5-10 laps until the final 500m when the motor pulls off, signaling the mad dash to the end.

So basically what we need is a well developed aerobic system, steady power at VO2max, a highly repeatable anaerobic capacity, and a vicious sprint...all with one gear and no brakes. So for me that means I will spin a 96 inch gear (50x14) at 28 to 32 mph for many minutes with a cadence in the 100-110 range. For power at VO2 max I want to do the same but with my nose in the wind for 2-8 minutes. The anaerobic capacity efforts are 20 seconds to two minutes at 32-36 mph and the rider who can do 10-20 in an evening gets to dish the pain. And finally the vicious sprint should top out around 40 mph at a cadence of about 140 rpm. And if that's not enough to think about we will want to do all of this madness for 3-5 days in a row on consecutive weekends. It's gonna be a fun year! Until next time, ride fast and swerve!

Winter Training...a week in the life

2009-11-07T22:53:00.000-08:00

I've been asked several times recently what it is we are trying to do with our training this time of year. The more I think about it the more I realize that training to race at the national level is as much about lifestyle management as it is about repeating race winning moves. It's about all of the little decisions we make on an hour to hour, day to day, week to week, month to month, and year to year basis. What I am trying to do (and why I charge 300 bucks a month for coaching) is integrate several different systems, each with it's own set of rules, unspoken truths, and limitations. A book could be written, and maybe I should do a separate post, about each. These systems include but are not limited to:

1. social network - family, friends, and colleagues
2. bio energetics
3. bio mechanics
4. health, nutrition, and hygiene
5. bicycle equipment and maintenance
6. training tactics and logistics
7. race day tactics and logistics

So with all of that in mind, following is a typical week for this time of year...

Monday - endurance ride and strength training, this is my work at home day so I have been cooking beans and rice and chicken for the week, in addition to maintaining our equipment

Tuesday - recovery ride to the shop, recovery ride home

Wednesday - recovery ride to the shop, recovery ride home, strength training with cadence drills on the rollers

Thursday - morning bike training of jumps and 2x20:00 sweet spot intervals on the way to the shop, recovery ride home

Friday - recovery ride to the shop, recovery ride home, and strength training with cadence drills on the rollers

Saturday - River Ride, hill ride, or mixed intervals and no matter what the format several sprints, then free play time from about 2PM on...

Sunday - The Day of Rest - Farmers Market and quality time with the family - lately Dillon and I have been working on bunnyhopping our BMX bikes, it's an active lifestyle day but no training or commuting

Our focus is on the three cycling basics - endurance, force, and speed skill. We will continue this early winter phase through the holidays, then change it up the first of the year adding some threshold and VO2 max work. Everything we do is specifically geared toward a successful 2010 track racing season.

This time of year recovery is key. We are always recovering to 100%. We are always avoiding illness. We are always sleeping 7-10 hours per night. We are always fine tuning our diet and eating mostly nutritious food. We count calories and percentages of macro nutrients six days a week. And there is absolutely no stacking workouts or block training.

Alrighty then, that's it for now. Until next time, ride fast and swerve!

Winter Training Day 1

2009-11-02T20:49:00.000-08:00

Oh my God what a beautiful day to officially start winter training for 2010! On the plate today was 3-4 hours at a good solid endurance pace. So I cued up Verdi's Otello (yes for you Shakespeare scholars it is missing an "h"...maybe you can tell me why?) and headed out to do a quick warm-up then 3 hours, with each hour being 10 watts harder than the previous. At the start of the first hour I dialed up 190 watts with a nice steady 95ish cadence and waited for the heart rate to settle. After about 20 minutes, when everything seemed to be running well, I began to razor it up to the two hour mark and then I dumped it into the 50x14 and proceeded to hold on for dear life. You can see the watts and speed hold steady and then begin to decline while the heart rate steadily drifted up up up until I was almost at threshold heart rate for the final 10 minutes. This time of year that cardiac drift is the marker I like to watch. Once I can ramp the watts all the way to the end AND have my heart rate stay parallel to the effort, then I know I am ready for hard tempo intervals and some sweet spot training.

In the evening was weight training. I am up to two sets of 12 squats with 185 lbs. I was a little worried that today's workout would make the gym work difficult but I was pleasantly surprised to find this not to be the case. Right now I'm doing squats, incline pull-ups, push-ups, back extensions and crunches...2 sets of 12-20 reps of each and really concentrating on form. In and out in about an hour then off to the hot tub! Tomorrow is a working rest day with 90 minutes of commuting at 12 mph. Hopefully I'll be back to full strength for another hard workout on Thursday, in addition to weights on Wednesday and Friday. Until then, ride fast and swerve!

favorite cycling accomplishments of 2009

2009-10-26T23:03:00.000-07:00

1. coached Katie over the winter to hang with the big girls in 2009
2. coached Andy to some good results in ultra-endurance MTB events
3. built up to and competed in a 24 hour solo road race
4. held my own at the American Velodrome Challenge at Hellyer
5. held my own at the Alpenrose Velodrome Challenge placing 5th in the points race
6. learned how to race omniums and collected plenty of data for my 2010 campaign
7. made many new friends in the track racing community
8. had Rick Adams describe my last points race of the season as brilliant
9. learned how to periodize training programs for all types of athletes and races
10. finally started a sensible and sustainable strength program
11. celebrated ten years of freedom from alcohol
12. celebrated one year at a job that I love
13. began racing on custom fitted handmade bicycles
14. learned that most people are incapable of hearing the truth, hear only what they want to hear, and project their own bullshit on to others...and that's okay

Podium!

2009-06-24T23:55:00.000-07:00

I've been working with Andy for a little over a year and a half. In May, under reeeeally muddy conditions, he raced to a second place finish at the Coolest 24 Hour Race. This weekend he placed second again, this time at the Coolest 24 Hour Race Boggs Mountain, under fast and dry conditions, confirming his fitness. Two 24 hour podiums seven weeks apart is impressive! Here is what he had to say in his post race text...

"THANKS A TON FOR ALL YOUR HARD WORK AND PERSISTENCE WITH ME! ABSOLUTELY NO WAY THIS COULD HAVE BEEN ACHIEVED WITHOUT YOU DINO! I OWE YOU SO MUCH MORE THAN I CAN GIVE BACK! MY APPRECIATION HAS NO EXPLANATION, IT'S DEPTH IS DEEPER THAN WORDS. I HOPE YOU UNDERSTAND, THAT'S ALL I CAN SAY!"

Congratulations Andy, rock on Brutha!

transition

2009-06-03T22:14:00.000-07:00

May 2-3 came and went and I completed 272 miles in 24 hours. Not the stellar tt I was hoping for but a valiant effort none the less. Starting the day with 180 miles in the rain was really tough but I didn't really begin to run out of gas until about the 18 hour mark. I had great support from Katie, Steve and Peggy Rex, Doug, Raul, and Scoobie. There are definitely more ultras in my future but not this year.

Right now it's all about track racing. We have already done six events and there are many more to come including the American Velodrome Challenge at Hellyer, the Alpenrose Velodrome Challenge in Portland, Elite Districts, Masters Districts, and the International Omnium State Championships tentatively scheduled in September.

My two full time clients are doing really well. Andy placed 2nd in his division at the Coolest 24 Hour MTB Race and Katie just earned her cat 3 upgrade on the track. Now if I can squeeze out a result the season will be a complete success!

Three Days to Go!

2009-04-28T21:40:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was the final training ride before the Davis 12/24 Challenge. It was the usual Monday night Sacramento Wheelmen ride and Kenny and I put on a clinic. We took care of our club buddies and destroyed all haters and ride crashers. It was methodical, almost surgical, and we did not say a word to one another until Kenny said "that's all I got." I jumped with 400 meters to go and was drinking Gatorade by the time I crossed the line. Most of the time we just try to make it safe and competitive, but when some meathead crashes our ride and tries to dictate, look out. We can, and will, work you! hahaha!

Saturday we did the River Ride plus 20 miles. I went 38.5mph in the final but was coming from too far back. But hey, 38.5 on a 50x12? I'll take it! Anyway, I don't feel so great off the bike or even on the bike at recovery/endurance pace but when I dig in and motor I feel really strong. It reminds me of what Horner told me about coming on form. I asked him if he feels fatigue when he's going good and he laughed and told me that when he is on form he feels tired off of the bike and the legs even burn when going upstairs. He said you will feel good for about three hours a day. You'll feel like shit for the first hour and then you'll feel good until about the four hour mark when you will feel like shit again but you will be in the front group with a shot to win. Everybody suffers, the guys that do their homework suffer at the front. I think I'm about ready to race!

They are calling for a chance of rain Saturday. When I started training for this race six months ago I said more than once that if it's raining I probably won't finish, but now that the work is done I must say it will take a medical emergency to make me quit. I am totally focused, have great support, and am racing to win it! The worse the weather, the better my chances! I've come a long way in a short time and am really excited about the rest of the season!!!

form finder

2009-04-21T20:57:00.000-07:00

On April 11th I ended up skipping Copperopolis, my favorite road race, in favor of riding 400K solo. The goal for the day was to do the Davis Double Century loop from my house. Nothing special, just going out and putting the time on the saddle.

I awoke at 4AM and was on my bike shortly after five. I rode the flat 45 miles straight through to Lake Solano, at a conservative pace, where I filled my bottles and topped off my Camelbak. From there it's 95 miles with 8000 feet of climbing before decending back into the valley for the long slog home.

I don't know what my problem is with Cobb Mountain but by the time I got to Hobergs I was ready to get in the car and scrap the whole ultra-endurance project. Good thing I had a couple of hours to get my shit together. Not sure why I was having a hard time as I was riding well within my limits all day but bad patches are bound to come and go so I rode through it and lived to tell.

Katie met me on Ressurection with food, drinks, and a change of clothes. By this time I was piecing the ride together telling myself I just had to get to the top of the DC then my day would be a success. Next it was I just need to get back to Winter's and then I'd know what to expect for the 24 Hour Challenge. By the time I got to Winters I was finding my rhythmn and was hell bent on finishing the whole ride. I even caught a second wind on Putah Creek Road. There is good mojo on that stretch that invites the you to rail it!

From Stevenson bridge to home was a total slogfest due to not being able to hold a steady pace through the urban jungle. I think next time, that's right I said next time, I will head south on Stevenson and make my way around to Mace, skipping the trek through Davis.

Other notable rides in the last three weeks are two trips to the track for omnium style racing where I held my own with the A group as well as can be expected, a really strong sprint workout, and two local race rides. I think I should be able to transition from this ultra phase right into summer racing. I'm looking forward to the Nevada City Classic, the AVC at Hellyer, the AVC at Alpenrose and most of our district championship events. But meanwhile it's ten days to the 24 Hour Challenge and I'm feeling pretty good!

Davis 300K

2009-03-29T23:40:00.000-07:00

I learned my lesson the hard way about how to plan for nutrition on a long ride with few controls. The first leg of the Davis Bike Club 300K was almost 70 miles. So I drank two bottles of Gatorade before, and two bottles during, thinking that would be enough. Wrong! From now on I will probably continue to use the Camelbak to insure proper hydration.

I rode with or near the front group for most of the first leg, and was only seven minutes off the lead at the first control, after a pretty good amount of climbing. I must admit that the usual hammerheads were not in attendance, so the vibe at the front was a little odd.

Anyway, I rode strong for 6-7 hours before the effects of dehydration began to set in. You know, the usual; lack of appetite, loss of power, and eventually cramps. I was sitting in sixth place when the cramps came on the final climb. I lost 5 places in the last 40 miles, finishing 11th in 11 hours and 5 minutes. I didn't bonk and the dehydration was not bad enough to be a major setback.

I am considering scratching Copperopolis in favor of riding 400K alone in two weeks. In the meantime, more long threshold intervals, and a couple of trips to the track for giggles.

ONE Pilates and Fitness

2009-03-19T23:34:00.000-07:00

I started doing Pilates about six weeks ago and am pleased to report it's everything I'd hoped it would be. Carol Hockridge over at ONE Pilates and Fitness is an excellent teacher, a strong woman, and a great lady. She's helping me deal with the ridiculous muscle imbalances I've developed over the last several years by doing little to nothing besides riding my bike. The whole deal seams to be keeping the spine in its neutral position while applying maximum torque to the bicycle. Of course it's really more about a healthy and balanced body and mind but I want to win bike races dammit and Carol is helping me figure out how to put more power to the pedals and that is what I have to say about that.

Saturday on the River Ride I got away with a Cat 1, an ex-pro, and another meathead geezer and cracked off an all time personal best for 27 minutes. I followed that up with a killer 7 hour ride on Monday at 220 watts for the day. This week I'm doing some leg strength tempo work and will rest up for the DBC 300k next week. I'm really looking forward to this ride and hoping for great weather.

The legs are good, moral is great, and I'm itching to race!

The Waiting

2009-03-11T22:40:00.000-07:00

Here is Steve standing on his own two feet! And yes that frame on the alignment table is my precious. I've been riding the tin can for what seems like an eternity. I can't wait to race this bike!!!

On the training front things are going well. Since I last wrote, three weeks ago, I did one week of mixed intervals for kicks and a bit of a blowout, followed by two days off, skipping my weekly long ride. Then I did one week of long tempo intervals and a long steady ride of 100 miles in six hours. Last week I did three consecutive days of threshold intervals followed by a 100 mile ride in five hours that ended with the Monday Wheelmen ride. In the middle of the long ride I did two hours at 220 watts with a sprint every five minutes. Yes that is 24 sprints with a peak of 900-1000 watts and an average of 700-800 for ten seconds!!! Ouch! The next hour was solid tempo at 244 watts and then the Monday night ride. I spent a long time on the front wondering why no one was coming around. heeheehee

I've committed to the Davis Bike Club's 300k on March 28. That should be a pretty good test of my fitness. After that it's Copperopolis and a solo 250 mile ride and then the big taper to the 12/24. And when I say taprer I really mean race sharpening where I'll gain race specific fitness while also getting plenty of rest relative to my chronic (long term) training load.

Training with Power 101

2009-03-06T22:58:00.000-08:00

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contact:
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bike update...brazing has begun

2009-02-21T22:00:00.001-08:00

Woohoo!!! I got some good training this week. Long sub-threshold intervals, micro-bursts, and 30s & 1min intervals. Yesterday I did a season best one minute and then backed it up on the River Ride today with an additional 5 watts and a season best 2 minutes. Crazy Baby!

bike update...gettin' jiggy

2009-02-20T00:12:00.001-08:00

Oooooh la la. My bike is in the jig!!! Guess I best be picking some paint!

Hello Moto!

2009-02-16T19:43:00.000-08:00

I went out on the tt-bike once the weather broke and did a little threshold test. I cranked off a five minute VO2 blowout at 357 watts and then headed conservatively into 2x20 minutes at 40K/hill climb pace. I was hoping for a jump of 20 watts, up to 300 from 280, so I settled in at 300 and was suprised at how easy it was, and how fast the time flew by. So for the second interval I started conservatively again, but this time turned up the heat in the second half. Much to my suprise I averaged 314 watts for the final ten minutes. That's an increase of 11% during a base training phase. Pretty exciting. What I'm going for is a well established estimate of my new threshold, so I will follow up with an actual 40K time trial and a one hour hill climb. Then the hard work of long intervals will begin.

Savage!

2009-02-15T23:58:00.000-08:00

I haven't written about training lately. The bread and butter has been the River Ride, and a long ride, surrounded by easy commuting. But, I'm done with my winter base program thanks to the intervention of Mother Nature. It seems as good a place as any to rest up and start turning strength into speed. Last Monday I did a 135 mile slog from Vacaville to Pope Valley and back to Sac through Winters and Davis. On bike nutrition is going great and I only stopped for a total of 40 minutes AND I managed to finish the ride at the same weight as when I started meaning I was rehydrated at the end of the day. Now I'm heading into some structured threshold work in the form of long 20 minute intervals and some hard short climbs, in addition to building to a 250-300 mile ride in early April. And there is that pesky core strength program that's gone in fits and starts. Hopefully I've hired some one that will hold me accountable. We'll see. It sure would help.

My new bike? Thanks for asking :-)

2009-02-12T21:52:00.000-08:00

It has been brought to my attention that I'm not the only one excited about my new bike, soooo here's your update...We've got nine bikes in the que, one of them is mine...Dig them buckets full of dreams!!!

I got the bike fever woohoo!!!

2009-02-09T22:07:00.000-08:00

And the only known cure is a new bike! True Temper S3 tubes, Alpha Q fork, Ritchey WCS stem and seat post, Deda Italian bend bars, DuraAce 10 speed, R700 compact crankset and bottom bracket, Chris King headset, Fizik Poggio saddle, 32 spoke Open Pro PowerTap/DuraAce wheel set yeeeeeehooooooeeeey!!!!!!! Metallic Royal Blue with Metallic Sky Blue panels with white tape. Oooooooh yeah, this bike is gonna rock. Steve was working on the seat stays and dropouts last Friday!!!!!!!!

Bike-Fit-Whac-A-Mole

2009-01-29T22:49:00.000-08:00

So I'm just riding along when I start to notice way too much float on my right pedal. Turns out the cleat was totally worn down to a nub and starting to crack. Time to dig around the garage for a fresh pair. Might as well get around to addressing the nagging discomfort in my right hip and head into the season with a good fit. This has been an on going project since The Steve made some major adjustments back in October. I had been procrastinating the final drop of the saddle for fear of opening this can of worms I call Bike-Fit-Whac-A-Mole. Anyway, I got the cleat angle I wanted but then started getting pain on the IT band just below the knee. I checked the seat angle and set back and made minor adjustments on the fly. No luck. Dug around my cycling library and concluded that the new IT pain was possibly caused by too high saddle. I lowered the saddle a half cent past the goal and got pain on the front of the left knee. 99% chance this is a saddle too low pain. So I put the saddle back up to the goal, which, by the way, is a full 2 centimeters lower than it was last season. The right leg just below the knee IT pain returned. The problem went round and round my head. Seat too high, IT pain, seat too low, other knee front pain. Back and forth, to and fro, a vicious circle. Oh yeah, The Steve mentioned I might have a leg length discrepancy. On the way to work the light came on. It had to be the the Q-factor. I moved my right cleat a few millimeters out moving my right foot a few millimeters in and voila! Problem solved. Of course we won't know for sure until my 150 mile ride on Monday.

tic-toc tic-toc

2009-01-17T20:52:00.000-08:00

In an attempt to recover for hard weekend rides I've been commuting at an easy pace. We've been doing the Saturday River Ride pretty much every week and then I do my long ride alone. This week's long ride was 130 miles, 75 on the road and 55 on the tt-bike...all on the Parkway. This gave me a chance to work on my nutrition strategy, my lighting for the night loop, and the specificity of the event. For this week's nutrition experiment I did the road bike portion with my Camelbak filled with water and three Elixir tabs. The Camelbak is way more comfortable on the road than on the mountain bike. I'm thinking about trying a 100 oz reservoir so I can do 10-12 hours on one refill. And, as a side benefit/discovery, there will be no more worrying about stopping for water on 100 miles tempo rides. I hopped on the tt-bke and was able to cruise comfortably at 20 mph for about three hours. The lights worked perfectly and with two complete sets I am good to go there. And of course the specificity of the race requires riding all day on the road bike then jumping on the tt-bike and riding 14 hours through the night. Not exactly tactical rocket science but definitely an important detail none the less. The next big ride is Mt. Diablo. I'll be doing a threshold test to see where we're at. The Chronic Training Load has stabilized in the 105-110 range and recovery is starting to be more predictable. Oh yeah, I've dropped 3-4 pounds and am back in the groove there too. Rock on!

Plan B

2009-01-05T22:49:00.000-08:00

I was hoping to go around the lake with Marshall Grade thrown in for giggles but I awoke to a cold and wet day and decided to invoke the Hamby Rule. The Hamby Rule states that the a workout may be shortened to two-thirds if the weather is crappy. Cold is okay, wet is okay, but cold and wet is a no go. Any kind of storm advisory moves the workout indoors. Anyway, I waited for the storm to pass then headed out for some sweet spot and sub-threshold intervals.

3x10:00 @ 250-260
2x 25:00 @ 230-240
1x10:00 @ 230 standing into the wind

That's 90 minutes of quality cruising.

Go Big!

2009-01-04T18:41:00.000-08:00

I logged 18 hours in the saddle this week with building strength and endurance the only goal.

Tuesday I rode from my house to Forresthill and then six miles up Mosquito to the snow line. 8000-10,000 feet of climbing and 140 miles in ten hours.

Thursday was 5000 feet of climbing around Grass Valley and Nevada City with the family.

Friday, back to work recovery commute.

Saturday, River Ride, which for us is 60 miles in three hours fifteen minutes.

Next week is less miles and more sub-threshold intervals.

Where does the time go?

2008-12-28T19:05:00.000-08:00

So it's been like three weeks since my last blog. I've been focused on getting through the holiday season with as much fitness and sanity as I entered. One outta two ain't bad. My CTL on December 13 was 111 TSS and assuming I can stay on my bike all day Tuesday I should start the New Year at 113. That is about where I was at the end of April last year. My last build period ended on November 29 so I have been on this current plateau for almost a month. If all goes well I should reach 120 TSS on February 1.

I've mostly been on a diet of sub-threshold work with the weekly group ride thrown in. I'm riding comfortably on the River Ride and moving around the pack with ease, though I'm not strong enough to go with the breaks. But, all I need for that is a few weeks of focused V02 intervals and I should be right there. That is my favorite kind of speed work...6 x 3:00 by 3:00 at 400 watts on the tt-bike. Ahhhck, March seems so far away!

just a taste

2008-12-11T22:06:00.000-08:00

Funny, by the look of this pic you wouldn't believe it was 42 degrees out there. I am, however, getting acclimated to the cold. It looks like the storm door is open and we'll be getting some Alaskan chilly chill over the weekend into next week with snow as low as 500 feet. Guess I'll be flying low again this week.

Today I got a little taste of FTP with 3x6:00 cruise intervals at threshold. These intervals are long enough and hard enough to hint at the pain cave but not long enough for the heart rate to fully respond. But, had I extended to 10-12 minutes I surely would have got it up the extra ten beats per minute. The sensations were telling me that this is the pace I would have to hold if I wanted to survive a 40K time trial or a long sustained climb. Cold, calculated, deliberate.

Yesterday was standing starts in a big gear. I've got it down to being able to start at less than 3mph and am consistently cracking over 1000 watts. These hurt real deep and there is definitely lasting fatigue in the upper body as well as the legs the following day. The fun thing about doing these on a 40 pound commute bike is that you cannot swing the bike for fear of ripping the rack and panniers from the frame. Everything must be heading in a straight line, the shortest line to the finish. I've watched and studied several 100 meter track and field sprinters. Marion Jones was a genius at wasting as little motion as possible. When she was on you could see no side to side motion. A thing of beauty for sure. Too bad she succumbed to pressure and temptation and did the unthinkable.

Holy Guacamole

2008-12-08T21:44:00.000-08:00

It was 40 degrees and cloudy in Auburn this morning so I opted for a local workout rather than freeze on the descents and take a chance on finding some black ice. So I headed over to the old canal for some serious torture.

I did 5x10:00 at progressively higher watts. 235, 245, 257, 263, 272 The plan was to keep increasing until it got difficult and then look at the second to last interval for the next set of 2x20:00 Both intervals were identical, 266 watts each. Next was 35:00 at 246 And finally 40:00 at 224

I burned up 3000 kJ in four hours.

Rex 54cm cross bike for sale

2008-12-05T23:50:00.000-08:00

We built up this beauty for a recent show.
It's an Ultegra and Ritchey blend.
It's got a full carbon fork and seat stays.
Hit me up or stop by the shop for more info...

recovery week

2008-12-04T23:58:00.000-08:00

Not sure why, but I do not enjoy recovery weeks. One would think that after six weeks of near perfect training I should be able and willing to cruise easy and enjoy the time off while waiting for all the wonderful benefits of super-compensation to settle in. Well flibbity-floo, I'm doing it, but I don't like it. There is always this underlying anxiety about whether I've done too little, or I've done too much, or I lived too fast and too hard for too long and will never be able to compete at the national level. Then of course there is the lack of endogenous opioid polypeptide compounds floating round my system keeping me in that trashed state of contentment and well being. But it's still about five months until my first race of the year so I'm just trying to focus on staying healthy and not taking on more than I can handle. I got some cool projects going at work and hopefully we'll continue to stay busy while we wait for Steve to return.

first six weeks base build in the books

2008-11-29T18:37:00.000-08:00

96:51 hours
1550 miles
201 watts
5133 TSS
16.2 mph
7 bikes
53636 calories

My training stress ramp rate was about 4 points per week and judging by the way I felt this week that is about as much as I can safely handle at this point. It was 88.8 and ended at 113.5. I steadily built the long ride up to 7 hours and will continue on up to ten, but only adding on every other week. On the off weeks I'll do the five hour lake loop at my ultra-enduro race pace. Time for more on the bike strength work, speed skills, and sub-threshold intervals.

That pick of my dad and me is from 1968. Yeah, I've been riding bikes almost continuosly, in one form or another, for 40 years!

pump track mania

2008-11-24T17:02:00.000-08:00

We went out to Clarksburg and rode on a pump track for three hours yesterday. I rode my twenty inch street bike and Terry's Santa Cruz Dirtjumper. I'm kinda partial to the street bike cuz if a manual goes bad it's easier to step off the back and let the bike go. It looks like it is totally a skills course but it is also a huge total body workout, especially if you do multiple laps. I rode so long that I bonked and had to find some sugar. Today I am feeling it big time. I was stiff and sore in new places and my legs pretty much burned all day. But, I've been having such a good time riding in the dirt that I climbed up Stage Coach on my Monday ride around the lake.

River Ride

2008-11-22T20:16:00.000-08:00

I must admit I was feeling kinda grumpy this morning cuz I'm getting tired of repeating Steve's story over and over all day every day and I'm really kinda pissed that a certain Jackass put him in the gutter with no where to go but down. So I went out and silently shut down every attempt at a breakaway by said Jackass. I never accelerated hard, just grooved it up slowly, pulling the sprinters back into the mix. When the breakaways disolved and the pace slowed I went straight to the front and kept it rolling. It's a good way to get a hard workout. I averaged over 300 watts for 25 minutes in each direction. I got shuffled to the back a couple of times while recovering but was never in danger of getting shelled. I pushed the pace going into the sprints and averaged over 30mph for one minute on the front of both sprints, driving it up to 35 before pulling off. My legs felt heavy but with the junior gears I'm never in danger of getting bogged. Yep, 35 mph at 118 rpm at 600 watts for over 300 meters...Friday night cat 3/4 races are gonna be fun heeheehee.

another week in the books

2008-11-20T23:22:00.000-08:00

So far, so good. Training is right on schedule. I did standing starts Wednesday morning and had a major breakthrough. All of a sudden I can crack 1000 watts in the 53x14 from 3mph, accelerating my 40 pound commuter to 28mph in ten seconds. Maybe there's a kilo in my future after all. Wednesday night I did a micro burst workout. 2x10:00 accelerating hard every thirty seconds. That's 40 seated sprints in 25 minutes. Ouch! Today I did 4x10:00 just below threshold and felt strong from start to finish. Time to turn the screw. I'm gonna go hard for one more week then shed some fatigue. I'm really looking forward to the Thanksgiving ride this year.

specificity

2008-11-17T20:06:00.000-08:00

So the big race, the Davis 12/24, is May 2-3. The course is 168 miles and 8000 feet of the Davis Double route followed by an 18 mile flat loop around Winters. He or she who covers the most miles in 24 hours wins. He or she who rides 464 miles gets the course record. With this in mind I headed out for my long ride this morning and went around the lake from River Bend Park. This part of the ride is 90 miles with 3500 feet of climbing and includes two 20 minute climbs that I did at sub-threshold. After that I jumped right to the tt-bike and did 4x10:00 at 90% of threshold. Average speed was 23-24mph. This is a good start. If I get on the tt-bike after 10:00 hours (average speed 16.8) then average 21.2mph for 14 hours I will break the course record. Not much room for error but within my ability...if everything goes right. Luck be a lady.

Attack!!!

2008-11-16T23:58:00.000-08:00

Saturday we had a big field of about twenty including Jesse Mendonca, Rob Evans, Daniel Holloway, Scott Zwizansky, Michael Hernandez, Steve Pelaez, Michael Hutchinson, Billy Innes, Shelley Olds, Meg Guarnier, and others I don't yet know in a very fast couple of A races at Hellyer for the Ride the World Cup fundraiser for the Proman ladies Shelley Olds and Meg Guarnier. For the first 8 minutes of the points race we averaged 29.4mph. I barely hung by the skin on my teeth but I'll be ready for them fools next summer. I can feel it in my bones.

Today I met my buddy Andy down at the confluence and he taught me a thing or two about ripping downhill and floating over rocks. I get to practice bunnyhopping, endos and manualing before our next session. I'm excited about riding on the dirt again.

Ardea herodias

2008-11-13T23:59:00.000-08:00

Okay, so, slowly over the last two years I've become interested in the birds of the American River Parkway. This is a pic of one of my favorites, over by the Bog of Eternal Stench. I think it is a Great White Heron.

No biggie on the bike today...2:15/1200 kJ just riding along and practicing my ornithology. I'll go a little farther to the east tomorrow and see if we can't capture the Cathartes aura. They don't seem to come out in the full light though, unless they are scavenging some tasty carrion.

flatline

2008-11-13T01:02:00.000-08:00

I am on a four day maintenance block of pure endurance. No intensity. I am slowly increasing the training load to accommodate more intensity than the last block without driving the stress balance to far negative. In simple terms I am riding more miles with less intensity this week and will ride the same miles next week with the intensity added back in. Sounds simple but at such a high training load it is tricky. The hard part for me personally is sticking to the plan. For example this morning when I got to the trail at Hazel I had almost convinced myself to repeat Monday's sweet spot intervals. Good thing the coach in me can finally override my idiot bike junky side. Can you say obsessive-compulsive? I think I've turned the corner. My obsession to win is driving my compulsion to do the right thing. Good thing I'm obsessed with winning a 24 hour race. Heeheehee. Watch out for the turkeys, they're a little nervous this time of year.

Sweet Spot Training

2008-11-10T21:27:00.000-08:00

It has begun. Twelve weeks of structured sub-threshold work. Today I included 4x10:00 at 245-260 watts. These are difficult intervals to complete because you really must concentrate to keep the pressure on. If you ease up the watts drop fast. If you go too hard you will have a hard time recovering and completing subsequent intervals and workouts. Anyway the first three were perfect, but I struggled on the fourth. There is immediate room for improvement. I like that. It's easy to pick the low hanging berries.

badass referee

2008-11-09T19:41:00.000-08:00

I am embarrassed to say I don't know this woman's name, but she works her ass off and is the most on-the-ball ref in our district. If we are gonna have track racing in Sactown then I wanna be like her. I guess I better get some new glasses and dammit I am terrible with a stopwatch. Oh well. I'll do my best.

Yesterday was a rippin River Ride. We had a bunch of ex-pros out driving it like the old days. There was Chris Bauman, Troy White, Mike Sayers, Chad Gerlach, and the usual cache of cantankerous Masters 1/2/3's and whippersnappers.

Today we did the usual hunt and gather then headed out to Disco Park for the Cap City Cross race. Our house guest Beth Welliver won the B race and our good buddy Sarah Maile layed the Sactown Smackdown on the A group.

Good times. Tomorrow is my weekly hammerfest around the lake and then downtown for the West Sac velodrome meeting.

snap, crackle, pop...And So It Begins

2008-11-07T23:51:00.000-08:00

I cracked off a half dozen 1200 watt sprints on the way to work this morning. The legs feel great! The boss gave me keys and codes today...I guess I'll be making bikes for a while :-) How long has it been since Miss Mary split town to live near the velodrome in San Jose? I have to admit it was she who put the bug in my ear about how rad racing on the track is and that maybe I should give it a try. She turned me on to the subculture and encouraged me to lay the smackdown. And it was her that started me dreaming about getting a track built here in Sac. We have our first real meeting on Monday. The Mayor of West Sac is on board. Here we go!!!

shop class

2008-11-07T00:06:00.000-08:00

I sure am enjoying work at the hippest shop in Norcal and can hardly wait to race on handmade bikes. I have a boss who truly appreciates what I bring to his business and he thanks me daily for the work I do. Today I got to play with steel and a chop saw and a big hammer.

Yesterday I did seated big gear stomps. 12x20 seconds in the 53x14 with complete recovery between efforts. Today I am still tired so I took it easy. The legs were burning and I was moving like a slug all day. I'll prolly do a few sprints on the way to work tomorrow.

Thursday quad measurement...58.8

bike drunk, Track License Upgrade!!!

2008-11-03T19:20:00.000-08:00

There was no RiverRide Saturday, thanks to the rain (though I'm sure Wong and Blaise and two or three other crackheads were out there slurping road grime cuz they're too retarded to use fenders), so I took the opportunity to lift some weight, get on the stability ball, and ride the rollers...3 sets of 6x1 minute at high rpm. Fun, fun, fun! Yesterday was hunting and gathering at the Farmer's Market and only some minimal sprinting against Dilly on the BMX bike. Today was 90 miles in five hours, the last two in the rain. I burned up 3500 calories and am relegated to the couch for the evening. I've done 19 rides of three hours or more since my season ended July 27th. I haven't been this focused since the Winter of 2004-05. Oh yeah, I got my Cat 3 track upgrade in the mail today!!! That means no more sandbagging for points and now I can ride all the big events like AVC, Alpenrose Challenge, Masters States, etc. Good times.

acceleration

2008-10-31T23:25:00.000-07:00

Another Bill Walton sighting, this one by my brother in sin Logan Stonebraker. It is a shot from last week's Death Valley Double Century. Anyway, I got enough rest to crack off 2x30:00 sub-threshold with a hard acceleration every three minutes. Two keys here, enough rest to complete a hard workout and the secret to bike racing...the ability to accelerate over and over until no one is left. Nothing better than that final jump when you hear "there he goes" and no one comes around.

Thursday Quad Measurement

2008-10-30T23:14:00.000-07:00

58.2 nuff said.

Today I was not recovered from yesterday's sprint workout so I just did my commute. We are looking at four days of rain (thank God, I'm tired of bald mountains and brown grass) so I'll be riding lots of sub-threshold sweet spot, with some hard seated accelerations to really work on strength. If the RiverRide is a wash then there will be hill sprints on Saturday till I puke. Something different, sounds like fun.

Neuromuscular Power

2008-10-30T00:43:00.000-07:00

Last week I did seated starts in the 53x14 so this week I switched to the same workout in the 39x17. All efforts are about 20 seconds. Last week I topped out at 80-90rpm, this week 150-170. In both workouts the final 5 seconds are interminable. Both workouts are designed to get up to speed ASAP. The goal is to be able to comfortably match accelerations until the field fatigues and then attack off the front, or in the case of track enduro events, try to take a lap. I'm not a pure sprinter so I would prefer not to take my chances with bunch sprints.

Grumpy!

2008-10-29T00:03:00.000-07:00

My faith in humanity has been restored and it is quite possible that hell is freezing over. Grumpy dressed like a hipster wannabe. Or is he trying to look like Michael Hernandez? Could go either way. Anyway, I'm recovering well from yesterday's jaunt around the lake. 90 miles in five hours. Somehow it doesn't seem so epic as it did in 2001. Next week I am gonna add an hour or two on the tt bike at the end to simulate the Davis 12/24 which I have talked myself into doing on May 2nd. So far I am four for four on Monday long rides, each a little farther than the last.

ride around the lake, water-water please

2008-10-26T22:20:00.000-07:00

Back in the winter of 2004-05 I did a ride around Folsom Lake every week through the entire winter. Rain or shine or sub-freezing temps I got out every Wednesday and ground it out. I had no idea what I was doing at the time but it did lay the foundation to a great spring. Now that I understand the laws of specificity and have an idea about what I want to do with my bike I am heading into the winter with the resolve to get back to that routine. The last three Mondays I did rides big enough to see how i would feel for the rest of the week and am totally ready to stick it tomorrow. Now if we can just get some snow so it will be a lake again.

standing starts and quad measurements

2008-10-23T22:46:00.000-07:00

I commute on a forty pound bike with fenders, heavy tires, moustache bars, rack and panniers. One of my favorite workouts is doing standing starts in the 53x14. It's actually a barely rolling start from about 3-5mph. The trick I am learning out of necessity as to not rip the bike apart is to do these without swinging the bike. All of the torque has to go straight into the pedals. It takes 20-30 seconds to get up to 24-26 mph and a cadence of around 90rpm and is a total body workout. I prefer these to the standard SFR (slow frequency revolutions) because you have to use quite a bit more force. This exercise is much more like weight lifting because the loads are so much heavier and the reps far fewer and I don't need to find a 3-5% hill that lasts five minutes. There are no weight lifting programs that I know of that advocate doing 250 reps per set. You get the super compensation by doing 1-20 reps to failure. Oh ya, it's Thursday and that means quad measurements...57.3. I'm gonna grow bigger quads than Beth, I think that's a reasonable winter goal. Tomorrow I'm starting the process of getting fitted for my race bikes.

finding my groove

2008-10-21T23:49:00.000-07:00

It's been over five months since I got the rug pulled out from beneath me and I am finally getting my confidence back. Life stress is not good for peak performance, especially if it comes during a high training and racing stress period. For great gains to be made you gotta get in a groove and knock back the training blocks without really thinking about it. You get your routines set and kinda go on autopilot. Then when you are on the bike or in the gym you can give your undivided attention to 100% effort. Yesterday I did a five hour ride with some sprint work at the end. I was able to crack off >1000 watts 17 times all the while taking Katie to the next level. That said I'm super motivated to have my best winter yet, enjoying coaching more than ever, and looking forward to an awesome 2009.

my head is swimming

2008-10-19T23:12:00.000-07:00

20-30 hours of presentations including: Altitude Training, Science of Peaking and Tapering, Training for Track, Cycling Injuries, Cycling Science, Preventing Doping, Coaching Juniors, Goal Setting, Training Myths, Eating Disorders, Core and Strength Training, and enough suggested reading to last a year.

Horner!

2008-10-18T14:23:00.000-07:00

It's great to see Chris Horner riding well again after recovering from broken ribs and a pinched disc following his crash in Cataluyna. He placed 7th in today's Giro di Lombardia (his Astana teammate Janez Brajkovic placed 2nd) and was, as is his style, super aggressive in the finale. This photo was taken by Graham Watson of VeloNews.

Taylor Phinney

2008-10-17T19:06:00.000-07:00

Today was a good day. All three presenters were totally engaging. We studied overuse injuries, goal setting, and Taylor Phinney's amazing rise to a world class athlete and American Cycling's great hope. That kid is fucking amazing. He will quite possibly be the greatest American cyclist ever. No offense to those other two ego freaks, well maybe a little offense, but that kid appears to have it all. And he seems charming and humble to boot. I guess winning big races is de rigueur when you grow up in a family like that. And his 14 year old sister is apparently a badass cross country skier that may just find her way to the bike as well. The number one rule of sport is pick your parents well.

Yawn...USADA yada yada

2008-10-16T16:01:00.000-07:00

I was planning on sleeping in tomorrow and skipping the USADA presentation but they ambushed us with a schedule change and I had to sit through it today. Oh well, tomorrow morning is a lecture on cycling injuries so I will not be sleeping in after all. Anyway my dorm mates are really cool and the Tylenol PM is working wonders. Off to Phantom Canyon for the big banquet.

All You Can Eat Salad Bar

2008-10-15T15:59:00.000-07:00

The presenters are great, the weather is awesome, the networking is going well, but the all you can eat salad bar at every meal is priceless. All of the entrees have a carb, fat, and protein profile listed and have I mentioned the 24 hour access to the hot chocolate machine? Hee hee. What a way to start the off season. No stress, no mess, just hanging out and talking bikes. Today we talked about altitude training and strategies for peaking and tapering. Lots of good info, but as usual, the common theme is that every athlete is an experiment of one. What works for rider A could spell disaster for rider B. That gives me confidence that my artistic sense, ability to see the big picture, and empathetic nature will eventually set me apart. Off to dinner and a ball game, life is good.

Can't Breath...Waiting for the Nose Bleeds

2008-10-14T18:07:00.000-07:00

I landed safely in Colorado Springs. The crispy fall weather is refreshing but every time I go up the stairs I am reminded why I like living at sea level. Yesterday's workout is having lingering effects. I've been trying to find a way to describe that on the edge of sickness feeling I get when I over reach. I say I feel torched or crispy and some ultra riders don't get it. They think about a bonky hunger knock, but this is different. It's the feeling I get when a cold is coming on. A bit achy, a bit spacey, hungry all day, and kinda hot. Maybe I should start taking my temperature before and after as well as my heart rate. Hmmm? I'll get right on that, but first, more hot chocolate!!!

Fiyo on the Biyo

2008-10-13T21:05:00.000-07:00

2x20 sub LT sweet spot
30 minutes tempo
6x3 VO2 max

Four and a half hours generally riding in the enduro/tempo pace and having fun getting in the time. Yeah right, I'm torched. It seems the top riders are working harder than I imagined.

Thanks Hunter, it's gonna be a productive winter.

I'm Back

2008-10-12T22:48:00.000-07:00

It's been eleven weeks since my last race and I'm finally ready to get back to work. I'm dreaming of a 2009 season with no major life changes. I want to wrench, race, coach, and spend quality time with my loved ones. I want the hardest decisions to be what play lists to pick for my long rides and what aero-bars to put on my pursuit bike. I ain't saying I expect the wind to be always at my back, a lucky break or two will do just fine. So far I'm thinking I should race all of the district championship events on the track and on the road. I really really really want to complete the entire Cal Cup Series. I wanna kick ass for March Madness and Bike Commute Month in May. April is all about a sweet vacation, Copperopolis and the Madera Stage Race. On my wish list is the Davis 12/24, the Davis Double, and the Terrible Two. Hopefully I'll figure out how to do it all on Rex Bikes.