Mountain Bike Racing Secrets

For what it's worth, here are some "secrets" I learned in my racing and training.

* Get a plan to train. Follow the book "The Mountain Biker's Training Bible", buy a plan from Lynda W., get a coach like TJ, or whatever. Just get a plan and follow it.

* Make your plan adaptable. Family, friends, work, and flooded basements come first.

* If you have a goal event, do other races first to see what it might be like.

* During your training period, get thin. It's much easier to loose a pound off the average person's body that the average person's bike. Be kind of hungry sometimes.

* Don't push it going down hill. It's a waste of energy and potentially dangerous. Going uphill fast is how races are won.

* Train to your weaknesses. An XC mountain biker needs endurance and the ability to put out 1-5 minute all out efforts. If you have great top end speed, but poor endurance (like a sprinter), train your endurance and long intervals.

* Learn how to eat and drink on your bike. Find food and drink you like and figure out how much of it you need for a given effort. Energy drinks work fine for an hour or two. Anything longer and you'll want a gel or an energy bar. Hammer Nutrition has a very good line of products.

* Before spending a ton of money on a bike, make sure you will have enough leftover for the other stuff you need like padded shorts, water bottles, a car rack, emergency tools, etc.

* NO MATTER WHAT, keep it real and have fun!

Lake Minnetonka Ride

Sunday, I went out on a ride around roughly 1/2 of Lake Minnetonka. I saw a bunch of other club riders on the way: Flanders on the roll out from 44th St., Penn Cycle going the opposite direction as me about half way through, a group of unidentified blue jerseyed riders a little later also going the opposite direction, and a Grandstay rider (also opposite direction) at the end, where I was about to take my 5th wrong turn. I get the impression that clockwise was not the preferred direction on that loop. Why is that? Wind? Traffic? Better lane? It was a great ride, but some of the narrow stretches give met the heebie geebies.

Anyway, it was a good learning experience. I will be doing that again, and maybe on a road bike.

Random Happenings

So I went to pick up the new kit at the bike shop that sponsors the team / club. The long sleeve jersey is waaaay nicer than I expected - super warm and tough. I'm normally not one to wear flashy logos on my person during an around town ride, but it was the perfect thing for the weather this Saturday. I set out, apprehensively. About half way through my ride, I spot a cyclist emerging from a cross street - wearing the same thing I was. "Hmm" I said to myself, "that's weird. I wonder if he or she rides for my team too?" (I don't know everybody yet) It turned he did, in fact he is the store owner.

We chatted a bit and wound up riding around for a while. He showed me a couple new lower traffic routes I may try again someday. It's a bit weird riding with other people out on the road. I get the sense that there's definitely some etiquette involving pulling at the front, or pacing, or something. Anyway, we must have looked hilarious in our matching jerseys riding around in our Frankenstein winter beater bikes.

Good times. I'll have to try a more organized group ride sometime.

Bikes+Beer

Definitely worth wasting a couple minutes here:

US Cup

It would be fun to see or participate in a US Cup event, however, the organizers didn't bother to schedule any races in flyover land.  The closest event to Minnesota would be in Colorado Springs, CO.  In fact, the Colorado race is the only non-California race in the Kenda Cup West.  Wow.  Thanks guys.  

I am confident the authorities will see the error in their ways and bring some action here in 2010.  Lutsen could re-open for a weekend to make this happen.  Wishful thinking, perhaps.  Maybe Minneapolis will get the Olympics, too.  Ha!

Prodigy

Congratulations to Scott Johanik, 16, of Washburn, WI.  On the heels of qualifying for a 3rd straight Junior Olympic team, he crushed the Korteloppet 25 K.  Skiing for Team CXC, he came in finishing 1st in his age group by over 2 minutes, and 5th overall.  Of course you come to expect this kind of thing from Castle Guards.  Somebody get this guy on a mountain bike!

Photo courtesy of the Ashland Daily Press.  

Hockey

This time of year, a bike rider around this area will inevitably ride past some outdoor hockey games.  This got me thinking:  "Hey, don't you have a working computer now?  And hasn't it been, like, 3 weeks since you updated your fantasy team?"  When I went to update my roster, to my surprise, I jumped up to 3rd place out of 8 from second to last.  Having Ovechkin will do that for a person.  

I'm currently watching the Rangers vs. Blues on Vs.  Looking for some Tour De Cali coverage, I found this and ate mass quantities of pizza to it.  Close to the second intermission was an awesome fight:  Janssen (Blues) vs. Voros (Rangers).  Janssen handily beat down Voros in front of his home crowd, and the Blues proceeded to score a few minutes later.  As a friend of mine says - it doesn't go on the scoreboard, but it matters who wins the fight.  Also, you need to mind your manners when a 210 lb. forward is on the ice.

There might fewer serious road rage incidents if fighting was allowed in driving.  Someone cut you off?  Pull over and fight it out!  Of course this means I'm going to have to get someone big to carpool with.