Shammy Cream, Shaving Cream, Eye contact solution, Floss, Oatmeal, Wheat Germ, Squash, Any sort of vegetable, Hot Chocolate, Chain Lube, Tuna, Peanut Butter, Xbox, Pasta Sauce, Bedding....so I guess I should just move cities!
In fact that is just what I am doing. I am getting ready to go to training camp and then join the team on the road, eventually making my way to Boise, Idaho in March. I’ll be living there with teammate Sam Johnson – apparently he is a very good dodgeball player.
Awaiting me at camp is my new Felt F1 road bike. I CAN’T WAIT. After product camp, I came home with a pair of Bont shoes (500 grams a pair), new Speedplay pedals and one rear ceramic bearing-outfitted WilliamsCycling aluminum training wheel with a Powertap SL+. I also threw on a pair of Kenda training tires (changing it up from my double tyred winter setup: cut the bead off of an old wore out tyre, place inside new tyre between casing and inner tube = custom Kevlar training tyre = you won’t flat = you stay dry = you don’t get sick changing a flat in pouring rain at 3’ Celsius = happy cyclist!) so between all those things I took 57 seconds off an 8 minute effort! That’s 12%! So as you can image going from my 21.4 lbs cyclocross training bike (which is for sale and available for a test ride in Portland!) to my new barely legal road racing bike I am aped! That’s right aped! Not amped! I going chimpanzee over here. It’s like an astronaut going from swimming pool exercises to blasting off for the moon! Just show me the big green button! MAZDA MAZDA!
It has been an interesting last ten days. After camp I almost felt like I was suffering from an overly-excitedness hangover. It was weird to get back on the bike after five days of no athletic stimulus following the most intense training block I have ever completed. In January I trained for 4 weeks and finished off the block with a short trip to Walla Walla and a mock stage race in Portland. Walla Walla was great, the lack of stop signs allowed me to complete an entire hour of tempo without coasting, nevermind stopping. The Portland mock races went really well; by the third day I had opened up and posted a bunch of personal bests on the local climbs. The last day was quite an adventure as Zac broke the flange of his rear wheel, rendering our two man peloton totally useless over 8 miles from the nearest MAX station. An hour later we got Zac on the train and I headed out to finish the once 4 hour ride, now 6 hour epic.
| Block | Date | Protocol | Terrain |
| Block A | 12/29/2010 | 2.25hr: Z2 | |
| 12/30/2010 | 5.5hr: Z2 + 1x15 Z4 | | |
| 12/31/2010 | 4hr: Z2 | | |
| 1/1/2011 | OFF | | |
| 1/2/2011 | 3hr: Z2 | | |
| Block B | 1/3/2011 | Spin | |
| 1/4/2011 | 1.5hr: 2x(4.8.3_Hill) | Hill | |
| 1/5/2011 | 3hr: 3.8.4 + 2x20 T (H.M) | Hill | |
| 1/6/2011 | OFF | | |
| 1/7/2011 | 3.5hr: Z2 Group Ride | | |
| 1/8/2011 | 2hr: 2(15) + 5x10 SS | | |
| 1/9/2011 | 3.5hr: 2(4.6.4_Flat) + 15.20T(H.M) | Flat | |
| Block C | 1/10/2011 | OFF | |
| 1/11/2011 | 5hr: Z2 | | |
| 1/12/2011 | 3hr: 10km TT + 2x25 T (+100) | Flat | |
| 1/13/2011 | OFF | | |
| 1/14/2011 | 4hr: 2x(6.6.2_[alt.2]_Flat) + 2x15 T (M) | Flat | |
| 1/15/2011 | 3hr: 3 + 10 + 15 + 10 + 10x10sec SS | Hill | |
| 1/16/2011 | 3hr: 25.42 T (Alt. Free) | Flat | |
| Block D | 1/17/2011 | OFF | Walla Walla |
| 1/18/2011 | 3hr: 3.8.4 + 2x20 (M.M) | WW (Hill) | |
| 1/19/2011 | 4hr: 2x(6.6.2_[alt.2]_Flat) + 60.30 T (M.L) + 5x10 SS | WW (Flat) | |
| 1/20/2011 | OFF | | |
| 1/21/2011 | OFF | | |
| Block E | 1/22/2011 | 4hr: 10km TT + (7.6.1) + 5x10 SS | Mock Race (Flat) |
| 1/23/2011 | 4hr: 2x(20_Flat) + 20 T (Alt.5) + 1x20 | Flat | |
| 1/24/2011 | 4hr: 1x(15.10.10) + 10x10 SS | Hill | |
| 1/25/2011 | 4hr: 7.6.1 + 15.15.20.20 T (H.M.M.M) | Flat | |
| OFF | 1/26/2011 | OFF | Travel |
| 1/27/2011 | OFF | Boise | |
| 1/28/2011 | OFF | Boise | |
| 1/29/2011 | OFF | Boise | |
| 1/30/2011 | 1.5hr: Spin | Travel |
Mom & Dad came down earlier in the week and picked a few items here in Portland. It was great to see them again. Some downtown shopping, two dinners out (one during the superbowl at a local pub and a second at Miss Delta – which is becoming a common spot for our family in Portland) and some hanging out were squeezed into the short two day visit. Although I am totally used to Portland’s unique culture, Mom and Dad were blown away by the wide array of clothing chosen by the area’s downtown characters. Lots of black fabric, lots of leather, lots of tattoos. Like the 90’s!
Time to go pack up my life!
Reminiscent of his youthful days as Spiderman, Dad judges the gap @ Indigo12West
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