Training Weekend

Wow it is so NOT good to be back at school and work!

The training camp in San Antonio was awesome. A big thanks to Texas Military Institute for letting us use their facilities. I drove down Friday morning and our first session was Friday afternoon where we got a bike fit and then a bike power threshold test done. This was the first of three tests we were doing this weekend. For the threshold test we started at 150 watts and increased by 10 watts every two minutes. I was feeling kinda tired and sluggish and wasn't too pleased with my numbers but apparently they still put me up real high compared to other juniors.

Saturday morning we started about 7:30 with another test. This one we warmed up, then did 30 minutes on the trainer at 240 watts, off the bike was a 3k run on a cinder track for time. My 3k wasn't too great but it still is big improvement since last summer. I went out way too fast (5:20 pace) because my teamate Travis was a little slower out of transition and I was trying to stay in front of him. It didn't work and he still caught me. I knew it was going to suck when I hit 1k wondering how the heck I was going to finish this thing. I got a little under 11 minutes but know I can still get much faster. It hurt, bad.

After that we spent about 4 hrs on the bike working on handling, pacelining, cornering, pack riding, etc. A lot of the kids were decent bikers but hadn't done much pack riding. I got some pretty sick biker tan lines started. It was hot too, about 95 degrees or so and we had to make sure and keep drinking water with Elete electrolyte formula mixed in.

After the ride and a stop at subway for lunch none of us were looking forward to the swim test to come but... we didn't have a choice. The pool was FREEZING first of all. Like low 70's. Once you got going and did some hard sets though it was fine. Our test was a 200 for time, 1' rest then an 800 for time. I was feeling super sluggish and my arms were real heavy but I gutted it out. I'm still really slow in the swim but I've been working on it a bunch and my time of 12:33 was still an improvement. It was so good to finish that 800 and be done with all the tests. just mentally it is really hard to summon up the resolve for three maximal efforts within a 24 hr period. Especiall since I knew exactly the pain and suffering that each test would entail.

After the swim was a transition workout which I OWNED AT!!! Transition is my specialty and I won all but one of the "worlds shortest triathlons."

Then a shower and we all met at olive garden for a team dinner.

Sunday was some running drills, core work, plyometric and isometric type stuff. Here I could really see how much I've improved since last summer. Especially compared to some of the other guys who hadn't done any of this stuff before. Then was another bike ride to a parking lot for more paceline and cornering practice. After a short swim working on drafting and thrashing (i.e. pack swimming) we were pretty much done. Shelly had videod almost everything we'd done that weekend so she went through with everyone pointing out certain things for an hours or so. Then everyone gathered up their stuff and headed for their respective homes.

All in all it was an awesome weekend to meet my teamates and get in some good training. There are eight of us total on the team. four are juniors (Me, Travis, Alexandra, and Kate- who is on the national team as well. She wasn't at the camp.) Three male youth elites and one femal elite. I'm the old man of the group but not the fastest by far. the 4th fastest swimmer, 2nd or 3rd fastest runner, and 1st or 2nd fastest biker.

It's a good group and I'm looking forward to an awesome season!