Progress and Reflections on Endurance Block 2

1/6/2019

Finally, this week is a consolidation week in the training schedule--a time where I take a break from the back-to-back long rides, let the body consolidate the hard earned gains from over 1500 miles of riding over the last four weeks. Overall, it was a good training block, but the realities of holidays, family visits, and observing (in real life, I'm an astronomer), created some adjustments and compromises in the training plan. We also had an unusual dose of winter weather in Tucson, leaving snow in the foothills.

One of the advantages of being a self-coached athlete is that the plan can be much more dynamic, with weekly and monthly goals, and easily adjustment day to day. The challenge is maintaining the discipline and the objective independent assessment of progress, plans, and goals that a coach provides. Being self coached leaves the athlete with two roles. I've made a couple of adjustments going forward... adding two more weeks of endurance to work the long rides up to 10 hours, dropped the early season criteriums, and adding a third stage race, the Tucson Bicycle Classic, to the upcoming race block.

Over these four weeks, I was hoping for three big double back-to-back rides, with the longest finally breaking the 8 hour barrier. The progression beyond 8 hours provided difficult, not because of endurance, but time. There is only about 10 hours of daylight right now, and an 8 hour ride takes about 9 hours on the road. Literally, it turns rides into a sunrise to sunset endeavor. The Kitt Peak ride ended at sunset, so 7:45 was all I had time for. The final ride of the block finally reached the 8 hour point, but an unexpected second winter storm turned the final double weekend into two back-to-back 4 hour rides at a pretty good pace, followed by the 8 hour. I was encouraged that 8 hours was straightforward, even with the two 4 hour rides in my legs.

Looking at the training plan and the adjustments, what I find most remarkable is how short 152 days really is (as I type, there are 152 days left to RAW 2019). Racing starts... five racing days in five weeks. Then there is 8 weeks of "ultra-endurance". Then Tour of the Gila, then three weeks of final training, packing, preparing, planning, meeting with crew, then we head to California! It's really not much time...