Recovery and Mt. Snow

This week has been an impromptu recovery week with only two days of riding since the race last Saturday. I was physically cooked after the weekend and slept like a rock all week. Coach Thomas and I were worried more training would be digging a hole that I couldn't get out of before Mt. Snow. The back issue was/is very draining both mentally and physically. Luckily, it has started to ease up some (knock on wood). Keep sending the positive energy, it seems to be working

This weekend starts the final training push to Mt. Snow. Over the next two weeks, I'll be putting some very specific high intensity workouts and try and find the most technical terrain I can to mimic the gnarly descents on the Mt. Snow course. July 4th gives me an extra training day to get a long ride in next week, so I hope I can get about 12 hours of saddle time in for the week.

5 laps of this should take about 2.5 hours.



Blue Star

Col Du Galibier and Back Update

I knew the photo I took of the switchback on the North Cascade Highway reminded me of the Tour de France. Compare it to the photo below by Graham Watson. It is from Stage 15, Briancon-Courchevel, in the 2000 Tour. The main peloton, led by the US Postal Service Team, is climbing the 8677-foot Col du Galibier. Maybe there should be a Tour of Washington with some big alpine passes including a stage from Burlington to Winthrop.



Back Update: Slept terrible last night, but am feeling slightly better today. I'm thinking PT irritates the muscles more than helps. I'm definitely considering some pins.

Blue Star

Beautiful Winthrop and My Aching Back

This past weekend SLR and some friends of ours went to Winthrop, Washington for the sixth stop in Washington's Indie Series. Winthrop is in north central Washington in Okanogan County. It's an old mining town that was founded in the late 1800's and it still has a rustic country feel. The scenery surrounding town is on par with any great mountain town in the world. We rented a small cabin just oustide of town adjacent to the Methow River. Sorry I was lax with the camera again and didn't get any pictures of town or our abode for the weekend. If you ever have the chance, do try and make a trip to Winthrop.

The race was a tough one. I was in a race-long battle with several other guys for 2nd through 6th place. I, unfortunately, finished sixth. The course included a very steep climb known as "Dragon's tail." We went up it twice. The first trip up I was strong and middle ringed most of the pitches. The second time we went up, it was lights out in the engine room and I had to let my competitors get a gap on me. I tried to catch back on during the 3-mile super technical downhill (actually part of the DH course) to the finish, but instead took a header over the bars when trying to pass a lapped rider from a lower category and tumbled down a steep, sandy chute. Needless to say, I didn't catch the 2nd through 5th place guys.

I'm a little disappointed that I got dropped on the final climb. I think my back is zapping some of my power. I went to the doctor just before the race and he prescribed some physical therapy in an effort to fix the issue. My vertebrae in my mid-back are showing some signs of a past injury and deterioration that may be aggravating the muscles in the area. In addition to possibly slowing me down on the bike, I am also having real problems sitting at my desk at work. The seated position really aggravates the problem to the point I have to lay on the floor. Luckily, riding my bike makes it feel better. I am hopeful I can get this back issue resolved before the trip to Mt. Snow. Please send some positive energy my way to aid in the healing process.

And now a few photos from the weekend.

Lined up and ready start...


Dirty Blue Star Racer after taking a header.


Some scenery in the North Cascades from the drive home.


Looks like a switchback from a stage in the alps at the Tour de France, but it is really just Washington.


Thanks for reading,

Blue Star

Slow Racing

Well, the best way to describe my Deer Valley effort is: I sucked. The bottom line is that I rode slow. The guy (first place in the series) I usually battle with put a huge 10 minutes into me. However, the silver lining is the other guy (second place in the series) I battle with was even slower than me by a couple of minutes. So, I'm still in third place overall in the series and actually made up a few points on second place. All three of us are skipping the North Carolina NMBS race in July, because it's just too hard to get there from the west coast especially if you have to work a real job. The series finals at Snowmass will be very interesting as to whether I can make up the point deficit to move into second. Not likely, but possible.

Neither me nor Coach Thomas are quite sure why I wasn't motoring like usual this weekend. The possible culprits we could identify: (1) altitude, (2) my aching back, or (3) High CNS score (i.e. stress). Everything else was consistent with my normal routine. I'm not sure altitude was the problem, because CAT had me acclimated to 9k feet. My respiration rate was normal and my heart rate was actually lower than normal for a race. Both respiration and heart rate increase when the body is adjusting to altitude. My back, although still hurting pretty bad this week, felt pretty good on Sunday. Plus, the back problem lessens when I'm on the bike and soon thereafter. It's sitting in a chair or a car that really tends to aggravate it. Lastly, stress. I guess I'm under some stress: work issues, family illnesses, dissatisfaction with some things in my life, etc. I didn't really recognize it all until looking back and thinking about everything that is going on. Nevertheless, I'm not sure stress is the culprit, because I was able to put out a fairly solid hill effort yesterday at Tiger and got my HR up to 95% of my max. Again, the enigma that is fitness continues to present puzzles to decipher. The body is an amazing thing.

The following photos are from my pre-ride on the course on Saturday afternoon following the pro men's race. I didn't take too many because there wasn't much time between the ripping descents and the steep climbs. The rest of the weekend went by in a blur and the camera didn't make it out of my bag.

This shot is from the top of the first climb on the course looking down on the race venue and Deer Valley Resort. Even though I was slow, this race had me smiling most of the time because the scenery was so beautiful and the course was really fun.


This one is looking down the Little Stick climb. "Little" is misleading and I'm not sure the picture does it justice. Trust me, it is steep and long.


Well, back to training for Mt. Snow. A few local races and some solid training miles in the Cascades are on the schedule. Hopefully, I get my mojo back ASAP. Also, this back pain stuff needs to go away ASAP as well.

Later,
Blue Star

Deer Valley

I'm off to Deer Valley, Utah tomorrow morning first thing. The venue is one of my favorites nestled in the Rocky Mountain's Wasatch Range just 3o some-odd miles from Salt Lake City. The course is really fun and the scenery is stunning. The only problem is that last two years this race has destroyed me physically and mentally because of the jump in altitude going from about 100 feet above sea-level at my house in Seattle to almost 8000 feet on the race course. Last year, I flatted so the suffering wasn't as severe because I was already DFL and did not need to push the pace. If you want to get the perspective of what if feels like racing at altitude as a sea-level resident, go run around the block while breathing through a straw. Maybe this year will be different thanks to CAT.

I race on Sunday morning, which happens to also be Father's Day. I think my Dad will be watching. Hopefully, he can give me some strength and in return I will put on a show for him. Regardless of the outcome, it will be cathartic to be racing my bike in the beautiful outdoors.

I'll post some pics and a race recap upon my return.

Blue Star

The Razor's Edge

Over the last two weeks, I've gone from generating some big watts, to sick with a cold, to laid up with some back pain. One the things I've learned about my body through bike racing is that it is finicky. One moment you can be on top of your game and the next pedaling like I did when I had training wheels. Fitness is like a razor's edge, any little thing can push you off. The one thing I always struggle with is listening to my body. It tells me when to slow down, but I usually miss the signal.

I had a great race on the Mt. Constitution Hill climb, besting my time from last year by nearly 4 minutes. It was only good enough for second place, but I was motoring and happy with my effort. I cranked out about 310 watts for just over 38 minutes. The power-to-weight ratio is exactly where it needs to be to do well for the coming months MTB races. I will be smoking fast if I can build to an even higher level by Mt Snow.

Here's a few photos from the hill climb:

Ready to launch... 3.. 2.. 1...


How's the front tire look?


Beauty goes unnoticed in the pain cave.


Thought to self: Are there any more watts in those legs?


The sign says it all.


The week following the hill climb my legs were smoked and my energy level was low. Failing to notice my bodies cue to take more time to recover, I pushed myself off the edge by trying to do some high intensity intervals. My body rejected them and I promptly started to feel like crap as the cold set in to my upper respiratory system.

Still refusing to accept my impending illness, the weekend after Mt. Constitution, Thayes, SLR, and myself rolled over to Leavenworth, WA for the Bavarian Bike & Brews MTB festival. It is a beautiful race in the Freund Canyon outside of town. The problem was it was like a blast furnace with temps reaching 95 degrees. The first lap went all right, but I was not climbing like I have been this year and had to let a group of leaders go. The second lap I started to notice I really wasn't feeling good. Bombing down the descent on the backside of the course, I started to get dizzy and was getting cold despite the intense heat. It finally clicked in my brain: I'm sick and you better pull the plug and skip the last lap. I took a voluntary DNF (unusual for me). Back at the car, I was wrecked. Hot/cold spells, nausea, joint pain.

The next week I was laid up in bed more than not. It was a struggle to even breath let alone ride. I finally kicked the cold to the curb on Friday, just in time to get some miles in for the weekend. My body had different ideas though. I woke up on Saturday with a stiff back that stabbed me with pain with any twisting motion. Luckily riding doesn't involve twisting, so I am still able to train. Hopefully, the muscles work themselves out by next weekend when I'll be off to Deer Valley, UT for the next NMBS race. It will be a quick trip with not much time for enjoying the mountains: fly in Saturday, race Sunday at 8am, fly home Sunday afternoon. I'm hoping to bring home some big series points though. We shall see.

Until next time,
Blue Star