Hello Team-

Myself and the team board met late Wednesday evening to discuss the practices we’ve had so far and the coming 2012 season. The consensus was overwhelming. We want each of you to know that we couldn’t be more proud of the team and excited for the coming season! We are off to an incredible start!

I want to personally congratulate everyone on your Time Trial. The effort each of you put in was something pretty special to be a part of. They’re not easy. Start line jitters, gearing, hydration, your approach to the distance, the terrain…not to mention this was the first time some of you have done one of these. Time Trials are widely considered the toughest discipline in the sport of cycling.

So comb through the results, chat about them, compare them to your teammates….thats natural. The real value in this data, however, is using your result as just that….your result. This effort was not you against anyone else, it was you versus yourself and the clock. Your result serves as a baseline for your current fitness level at the start of your 2012 mtn biking season. We will have an end-of-season time trial just before the state championship and possibly one mid-season. Provided you attend practice and do a little riding on your own your fitness will improve. One of the ways you’ll see your improvement is through lowering your TT time. (last year the change in results was dramatic)

Keep in mind that our races are not time trials…they are racing against a field of riders over varied terrain and not nearly the climbing you did in the TT. (yes…the TT course you did…its a brutal one) TT results give an indication of fitness but provide little in the way of predicting how your races will go.

And a short note to everyone: I’ve been riding and racing for a lot of years so I say this with a veteran eye….don’t focus on results, its all about getting there. We’re riding bikes so have fun.

Coach Paul

			Time
1	Greg	Allen	0:06:59
2	Jack	Brown	0:08:00
3	Dillon	Charlton	0:07:25
4	Ryan	Mullen	0:11:01
5	Mae	Puckett	0:13:48*
6	Cody	Duane-McGlashan	0:09:44
7	Amanda	Moe	0:13:11
8	Albert	Strietmann	0:09:40
9	Anna	Lipman	0:16:16
10	Shane	Allen	0:08:38
11	Lisa	Martinez	0:13:21
12	Mr.	Hartquist	0:09:37
13	Sophie	McGuiness	0:12:56
14	Alex	Hodson	0:08:25
15	Sean	McGuiness	0:10:12
16	Christy	Allen	0:09:54
17	Dylan	Kane	0:07:06
18	Spence	Peterson	0:07:00
19	Skyler	Taylor	0:06:10

*mechanical-dropped chain

Quick preparation for the effort should be as follows:

1. either no ride or a very easy spin on Tuesday. emphasis should be on high cadence and lower muscular tension. stay on the flats and spin quickly (90 rpms) and just for a few minutes. no riding is fine as well. you want to be fresh and recovered for wednesday.
2. i suggest no food after lunch on wednesday but keep hydrated. at least a few bottles of water or electrolyte between lunch and the time trial.
3. bring plenty of water/electrolyte with you. i also suggest a gu/gel or blocks/energy bar. your metabolism will be on overdrive after the effort and its a good window to fuel.
4. we will release a rider every minute. all riders will wait at the end of the tt for everyone to finish so bring clothing to keep warm. you will get chilled if you don’t.

If anyone has any questions about the tt let me know.

Coach Paul

Sunday’s ride is scheduled to depart from the depot at 9:00am. In the case of potential inclement weather…….check the blog! Inclement weather has cancelled rides before. The rule of thumb is if the weather poses danger or makes conditions unsafe we cancel the ride. Safety takes precedent when it comes to all of our team activities. If it is raining we generally cancel but again…..check the blog! Last season we made the go/no go decision on a few rides as late as 45 minutes before our departure. I advise riders to be prepared to ride but ready to cancel.

For those who were with the team last year you remember the uphill TT, probably better than you care to. We will again have a season opening TT. Scheduled for January 25th the TT starts from the first aid/water station on Railroad Grade and goes uphill for between 7 and 14 minutes. This is a hard effort and is referred to as “the race of truth” in cycling circles. Its you against the clock. I would not focus on any specific training for the effort….the first season’s practice TT is to give you and your coaches a sense of your current fitness level. Over the next few weeks we will begin to introduce hill repeats/intervals to simulate race attacks and hard efforts to acclimate your body to threshold efforts.

I suggest no large amounts of food within 90-120 minutes of the TT and be well hydrated right up to the start of the TT. We will have at least two ride leaders/coaches at the TT which will give you the option of either heading straight down afterwards or doing a light, recovery spin on Hoo Koo E Koo. All riders wait at the TT finish until the last person is up so bring appropriate clothing to avoid getting chilled.

If weather cancels the TT on the 25th we will run it on the following Wednesday. I understand some practices may be missed for very good reasons. I urge you to make every effort to be at Wednesday’s TT practice. The run will provide you and your coaches with very good data to work with and will also give you a realistic idea of a race effort. Your results will also serve as a “before” look at your season opening fitness as we’ll run another TT on the same course towards the latter part of the season. Last year everyone improved!…the before/after results were very interesting….lots of riders surprised themselves.

Check the blog!

Coach Paul

Coach Christy

If you do not have an email inviting you to register your dues have not yet been submitted to the club and are now past due. Please submit them as soon as possible. Please have a check made payable to: Tam High Mtn Bike Club. It can be submitted to myself or Christy.

If you or your parent/guardian has any questions please let me know. As always…this blog is our primary form of communication. Check it every day and please pass along the address to your parent/guardian so they can check it as well.

Coach Paul

Coach Christy

Coach Paul

510-229-7415