Finding what I needed when I did not know what I was looking for
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| A new Hammer Nutrition kit and some very bright shoe covers make every ride better |
For the last few years I have gone into each race season with some big exciting goals and aspirations; but this winter I have been struggling. It is not that I do not have goals or that I’m not super excited about my new bike (a Specialized Epic if you wanted to know); It is just that I was not sure how to top or best what I have done over the past few years: ride 10,000 miles in one year, break into the sub 7 hour time for a 100 mile mtb race, crack the top 10 at a National Ultra Endurance series race, ride from the MI/IN/OH border to the Mackinac Bridge in one day, and the list goes on. I’m not trying to brag about any of this, but I have had a really great last couple of years riding and I have just not been sure where to go. I also spent about half of February dealing with bronchitis and some other respiratory issues that made training go less than ideally.
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| New |
With this lack of a solid goals and objectives it occasionally felt like my training has been stumbling blindly along, but it really has not. I have able to put in some great workouts between January and over the last few weeks, even setting a few training PRs in the process. I have been able to focus on more climbing drills, since there are no real hills around Central Michigan and most of my races have 10,000+ feet of climbing. I was even able to complete my first trainer century at the Cinnaire-Auto Lab Cycling Team fundraiser (do not ask why this was goal, but it was). What I was lacking was the little extra something that in each of the past years was just there. It popped right into the forefront of my mind without any thought and pushed me a little more and more.
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| Bike |
I have been thinking, probably a bit too hard, about what this extra motivation could be for the 2019 race season and I have come up dry every time. And each time it was a little more defeating not coming up with an answer. The answer may have hit me in the face two-fold yesterday.
I started the day with an FTP test and after work I went to the first Tuesday Night Ride (TNR) of the year. While neither of these sounds like anything special, they were both exactly what I needed to put my mind where it needed to be.
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| About 5 hours in to my nearly 6 hour trainer ride at the Cinnaire-Autolab Cycling Team fundraiser |
First, the FTP test. When I started my test I did not really
have the right mindset for it. My last two attempts both took place while tight
in the grip of bronchitis, so needless to say they did not go well and I did
not use the results from them. This is what was on my mind when I stated pedaling
at 4:30 in the morning. Doubt. Would I be stronger? Would my lungs hold out? Did
those 2 ½ weeks in February cost me more than I wanted to admit? It is hard to
get focus where it needs to go when these thoughts are hanging overhead like a
thunderstorm waiting to unleash its fury. But as I got further into the test I
realized I could breath, my legs did work, and I could keep pushing. As I surpassed
my last two tests I was starting to feel a bit more confident. Then the burn
started to set in. I know my legs had a bit more to give when my mind finally
told them to stop, and usually I can push past this for a bit, but not this
time. I stopped and called it a day. The result was an increase from 343 watts
in January to 344 watts. It is not much but I will take it.
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| Every gain counts |
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| My post FTP Test happy face |
Second, TNR: The first few TNRs are usually kind of a struggle. Many of us have not ridden outside in months, and some not really at all since last fall. Mechanicals happen, people start to get dropped and pacelines struggle to form; it is not a recipe for a fun night. Miraculously, none of that happened this year. To make it even better it was really the first nice day in I am not sure how long. The sun was shining, it was a little over 40 degrees with a 5-10 mph wind from the SSW, which meant we would have a tailwind for the last 10 miles of the night. Aiding in the evening's success was the decision to split to in an A and B group as needed. About halfway through the ride a group of six of us had formed and worked about as well as I have seen a group work in years at TNR. Everyone worked hard and took their turns pulling. The sprint points were all very race real, because you got to each one a bit tired and with legs that felt ready to fall off. At the end of the night we had managed to complete the ride with an average speed over 22 mph.
Now with all that out of the way, what are my goals for this
year:
1. Complete 4 NUE Series races and get a
series ranking
2. Improving my time at each of the
NUE races I have completed before
3. Ride over 10,000 miles for the
year (again)
4. Ride strong and avoid injuries
from over training
5. Improve my climbing
6. Complete the planned ride from
the MI/IN/OH border to the Canadian border at Sault Ste. Marie – 400 continuous
miles
7. Most importantly, enjoy my time
riding, where ever I am, whatever the course. Sure, a 100-mile mountain bike
race hurts and I may start to hate everything for a while at about mile 90, but
at the end of the day, the I enjoy the challenge of pushing further than what
most people would consider sane.
8. I do not like odd numbers so I could not stop at 7
8. I do not like odd numbers so I could not stop at 7
Bring on the 2019 race
season. The schedule so far is
4/6 –
Lowell 50
4/27
– Cohutta 100
6/1 –
Mohican 100
6/15
– Lumberjack 100
7/20
– Crusher 225
9/21
– Marji Gesick 100
Also, a big thank you to my 2019 sponsors.
Also, a big thank you to my 2019 sponsors.
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