This last weekend, I got a chance to go to the Recycled Cycles (the team I’m on for 2009) training camp in Bellingham, WA.

Turned out to be a great time. The weather cooperated and it was a sunny 36 degree day (on average) - perfect for getting in my first ever century. We had a follow van, which was fantastic for passing out bottles, carrying food, and rescuing bonked riders.

There was a nice turn off at 62 miles for those so inclined (including the guys that made dinner for the night - thanks Blake, Carl, and Smoothie), and afterwards, we got to push the pace a bit. Long, slow endurance rides are the weakest part of my riding by a lot, so doing exactly that for a weekend was just what I needed for training, I think.

Sunday was nice too, except that one guy hurt his shoulder after slipping at about 6 mph on black ice - I had to stop at around 65 miles since I wasn’t as accustomed to saddle time on hard chip seal roads, but it was still a good amount of distance for me, and it’s nice to put that milage in the bank.



Unfortunately, I feel very behind on training for the year - I’ve done basically no interval work, no distance, no anything really except very consistent commuting. I still seem to be able to hang on in rides okay, but if I’m going to have a successful race season, I need to actually get some hard rides in.



See more about the weekend at the Recycled Cycles blog, Chris Tremonte’s blog, and Raleigh Commutes.

I hadn’t met the Raleigh Commutes guy before (I still only know him by “Sally”, which I’m pretty sure is not his real name). I’m disappointed that he’s not on the team (don’t think he lives close by) - he was rock steady, strong, and predictable all Sunday - just the sort of bloke you’d want around as a riding partner. Ah well...

Looking forward to the next training camp already...