Friday from work!

Finally Friday!

First blog from my office as I try to get out of here on a Friday. Hell of a deal. Training went well this week and pending I can make spin class tomorrow morning, life will be good. Hard to believe that next month my first race will be on the schedule. My Van Dessel FS isn't even built yet but it will get put at the top of my priority list come the first of January. Looking out over the horizon, I am excited to see what it will feel like to ride a FS 29er. My very own FS 29er. :)

Otherwise, got some swimming in and my to do list seems a lot smaller as the weeks tick by. I need to up my workout routine and stay consistent with the diet. I felt like I didn't have any steam in the tanks yesterday at the gym. I need to focus on changing that before I begin questioning how much I can lift or how far I can ride my bike.

I am also mapping out a financial strategy for traveling this coming year. Of course, Hawaii is going to be the most expensive, however flying home once for the WV ACE Xterra and the Uwharrie NC Xterra will cost some cash. Factor in a drive to Spearfish SD and one to NM again and it won't be cheap. I don't want to bite off more than I can chew but it is a formidable goal. But hey, I have my bike and that was the big hurdle. First check on my list of priorities will be finishing the bike followed by reserving a ticket to NC in June.

I am also working on figuring out some way of building this blog to focus around the next 2 years of racing and training. My ultimate goal is to cross the finish line as a Leadman in 2011. That is such an intimidating thing to consider because of the 100 mile run. I just need to wrap my hands around that one. I figure that there is no way to actually recover from the Leadman series and each event will wear you down more than the last one. Burning 12,000 calories in 6 hours or 40,000 in 28 is never good. I had very little energy left over from this past season. 50 milers, Xterras, and back to back weekends burned me out. When I enter the Leadman, I need to be completely focused on that series with 100% health. Going to be strange with the gaps leading up to Leadman in comparison to a steady turn on of racing like this past season and the one to come. I am not one to train an entire season for a few select events but this will require that kind of commitment. But enough about 2011, let's focus on 2010.

The Leadville Winter Bike Race. I have no reservations that something could go wrong with the Van Dessel. It's going to be cold, the altitude is pretty high, and the bike will have less than a week or two of use prior to the race. Factor in the absence of studded tires, hydraulic cables, air chambers, and tire sealant which can turn to solid chunks and I have a lot working against me. Did I mention that it will be very very very cold? So yeah, a lot working against me. Here is my check list, pending the weather forecast is as bitter as expected.

1. Inner tubes if possible in my wheels.
2. Use insulated water bottles filled with boiling hot Accelerade.
3. Leg warmers.
4. Pearl Izumi Jacket and possibly my North Face or Columbia Jacket in some sort of combination.
5. Cycling cap.
6. 686 Boarding gloves.

That's what I got so far.