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September 22, 2005
It is truly tough to complain about the weather
we have been having lately. Cool mornings and
high temperatures in the 70’s or low 80’s.
A far cry from what is going on down south and
I am grateful for that. I was just thinking how
scary it must be to have to just pick up and evacuate,
with no clear idea of where to go, but just TO
go. These things seem to fill my head these days
during my workouts. I guess I’d rather deal
with -30F and am used to that so don’t really
have a clear understanding of what it means to
have a whole city flooded.
Aside from the news dominating the airwaves
as of late, things are going great. I am feeling
good and have been in an intensity block after
getting over a cold a week and a half ago. That
means I go hard a lot and the hours have come
down a bit. I have been doing 3-4 hard workouts
a week and they are mostly done in the L4 zone,
so they are hard. Well above threshold with
lactates between 7 and 12. Doing a period like
this requires a lot of monitoring and feedback,
so Ahvo has been present at many workouts. It
has been great to have him there to give me
technique tips, take lactates, video, and kick
me in the butt or tell me to back off a bit.
We have been working together for a long time
now so he can read me very well and knows what
I need before I do sometimes. A sample of my
training during this period looks like this:
20 9/12/2005 Mon AM Off
PM Off
9/13/2005 Tue AM 1.75 Skate distance
PM .5 Run
9/14/2005 Wed AM 2 L3 DP intervals: 6 x 5 min
PM 1 Run / strength
9/15/2005 Thur AM 2 Run Distance
PM 1.5 bike
9/16/2005 Fri AM 2 VO2 Skate: 6 x 5 min
PM 1.5 Run/ strength
9/17/2005 Sat AM 2 Skate technique
PM Off
9/18/2005 Sun AM 2 VO2 Bounding: 6 x 5 min
PM 1 Run/ strength
21 9/19/2005 Mon AM Off
PM Off
9/20/2005 Tue AM 2 VO2 Classic
PM 1 Strength/run
9/21/2005 Wed AM 1.75 Sprint Skate
PM 1 Run
9/22/2005 Thur AM 2 DP distance
PM 1.5 Bike
9/23/2005 Fri AM 2 VO2 Bounding
PM 1 Strength/run
9/24/2005 Sat AM 2 Bike distance
PM Off
9/25/2005 Sun AM 2 VO2 Skate
PM Off
22 9/26/2005 Mon AM Off
PM Off
9/27/2005 Tue AM 2 TT Duathlon
PM 1.5 Run easy/strength
9/28/2005 Wed AM 2 VO2 Bounding
PM 1 Bike
So far so good. My body seems to be responding
to the intensity and my technique is coming
along nicely. Things feel solid.
Now, to the other important news that I hinted
at in my last update. This spring there was
a little shakeup in the ski world with Salomon
introducing a high end racing ski. The Subaru
Factory Team is now skiing on Salomon skis,
boots, and bindings. With the new Fischer team
getting organized late this spring, I had a
tough decision to make. After a tough spring
of thought, discussion, debate, and much time
on the phone I decided to stay with the Subaru
Factory Team and switch skis. So I will be racing
on Salomon skis this season. It doesn’t
sound like the best time to make a switch, but
the support the Factory Team has provided me
over the years and the quality of the products
Salomon produces made me stick with what I know
works. I am confident that I will have fast
skis under my feet come the end of October when
I will finally get on snow. The Factory Team
will have two French wax techs that have been
ski racers at high levels and the willingness
of Salomon to work with the team to make sure
that we get the best skis they have will provide
a situation that will lead to success. There
is no looking back, just getting psyched for
the winter to come.
And the season is getting close. It seems to
creep up on me every year and things are happening
even earlier this year with the first races
in Fairbanks on Nov. 5th and 6th. I will be
ready though. With all that is going in the
US and the World I find myself thinking about
much more than just ski racing.
To bring the war a little closer to home, just
last week my cousin was activated by the US
Military and will start his training before
heading to Iraq. I don’t know many of the
details, and neither does he, other than the
fact that he will be the medical director for
a battalion of 4000 troops. A very important
and big job. I wish him well and hope he remains
safe.
It makes what I do seem very small.
Train on, train hard, but train smart,
Chad
As an important side note, I want to thank
everyone who helped support my World Cup trip
last spring. It was a great opportunity and
your help was really appreciated.
Thanks!
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