Let it be known!

Back to real training and it feels great.

We have officially stepped it up to pre-Mazatlan taper intensity in all three sports.

Yesterday was our first shot at some run intensity. We loaded the legs with 4 x 6 minutes building from Tempo1 on the first, to Tempo2 for the last three. Follow up with 8' Fartlek and we have some feeling back. Sunday base run, and Monday / Wednesday frequency runs combine to create the rest of our run feel. Sweet.

Cyclocross Sunday, heat acclimation Tuesday, and Newton Hights Hilly Crit Wednesday (aka: fun in rain, Ixtapa prep, and all out effort) let us know we did some good work in the Grand Canyon State.

Regen swim Monday, Fast swim Tuesday, and a Fast longish swim Wednesday add up to complete feel back in the water.

Swimming or otherwise, as Islanders (and Triathletes), we spend a fair amount of time around the water. One of my favourite post run rituals is gathering all the accumulated sweatshirts, toques, and blankets from the car, bundling up, and icing the legs in cold water. This not only really helps recovery, it also provides an opportunity to chill out, absorb the workout, and appreciate where we are. Ancient Elk Lake.

This Tuesday while sitting on a rock at Elk Lake, calves dangling in the water, I couldn't help myself from being memorized by the lake. How many people have sat in this lake? Ran, walked, or jogged around it? 1000s? 10000s? How old is this lake? People have been living on this lake for 100s of years. Even before the people, there were animals living with this very lake for 1000s of years. The very same lake. This exact lake. This exact spot where I'm sitting. This lake has been here for a very long time. And now here I am dangling my legs in the cool water, appreciating the ancientness.

This evening was our first shot at one of the Victoria Criteriums. Crits are definitely the sort of thing where with experience, you become more skilled at racing. Fitness is of course important, but the skill of reading a race comes only with practice.

My race plan was to ride up front and chase down any attack. In my head this was the only way I could see myself racing, as I don't yet know who the strong riders are. You never know which break away will stay away, so I figure it's best to be a part of all of them.

After 7 of 15 laps, a fellow OBB rider told me, "Patience Stevo, Patience." Ok, that sounds like something an experienced rider would do. I'll allow the next break to go, and let the pack chase it down. The second you rely on the pack, you are giving up your control of your race. That 3 person break stayed away.

A new season of crit racing is here!

Patience is definitely a worthy strategy, but it doesn't really fit in with my current crit race plan. More experience this season will definitely be an asset, but I'm convinced my race strategy will work. The only catch with this one is you must stick to it for 100% of the race. Caleb Pike next week . . It's on.

Now I must sleep. Rest well.