Gunn-Rita Dahle Flesjå diary

Happy Bicycling New Year!

Published:

January 11, 15:14,

Updated:

January 11, 15:15

By:

Gunn Rita Dahle Flesjå

Dahle Flesjå gets 2012 off to a good start

Happy Bicycling New Year!

We've started writing 2012 now, and a whole New Year lies ahead, filled with challenges and numerous possibilities. What excites me most is the thought that if I work hard enough, it is actually possible to reach the goals I've set for 2012.

Our Christmas celebrations at home at Smeaheia and Bjørheimsbygd (Norway) passed as we had hoped and expected, with lots of food, enjoyment and happiness together with our families. Father Christmas also put in an appearance, to the great enjoyment of both young and old. Bjørnar was a bit skeptical for the first moments, but after a while he was happily giving hugs and sitting on Father Christmas' lap. We had a gorgeous Christmas tree that Bjørnar and I had chosen together, which we later decorated together with daddy Kenneth.

What I wanted most of all for Christmas was GOOD HEALTH. Without good health, you don't get very far, and much depends on one's own efforts to this end. Apart from that, I received many lovely gifts from both friends and family. Kenneth surprised me with a really nice and necessary bag, plus a gorgeous piece of jewelry and earrings which will now follow me on my travels for a long time to come.

We naturally did some training through the holidays, too, but at fairly low intensity as my body needed rest after five whole weeks of high quality training on the Canary Islands just previously.

I had a few great hikes in the mountains in beautiful nature in the inland, did a bit of cycling inside during the first days after returning home, but we also got to try our bikes off-road in pouring rain and heavy winds.

Back to sun and warmth

Now we're back in summery and sunny conditions again and are enjoying great days of training here at Lanzarote. We took a direct flight from Stavanger on New Year's Eve, so we have been here for over a week. I've had a fairly good amount of training, while Kenneth has largely been babysitting and massaging my legs when Bjørnar has had his afternoon naps. Tomorrow my parents are coming here to visit, and then we'll be a full team once again with a period of four weeks ahead of us here in the warmth.

The first three weeks we'll live here in our apartment in Puerto del Carmen, and then spend the final two weeks of the stay at Club la Santa. If it's wintertime where you live (cold and uncomfortable when cycling), or if you need a break from the humdrum of everyday life, you're welcome down here to Lanzarote to join us on the four-stage MTB Race in the end of January. See www.clublasanta.com.

We would like to thank all our sponsors, helpers and supporters who are, and also have been in the year that has passed, very important elements in our efforts in the world elite of mountain biking. Together we are headed towards an exciting season, comprising both the World Cup, European Championship, world championship and the Olympics.

I'm sitting here waiting for my two great boys to come home for lunch. I'm heading out for a slow paced ride this afternoon, but first I'm going to rest together with Bjørnar, and that is one of the high points of the day for me.

I promised to post some nice pictures from our Christmas celebrations, but I have unfortunately forgotten to download the pictures from my digital camera onto the PC, and that camera is lying safely at home in Norway right now. I'll post some new pictures of our experiences and exercise trips here on Lanzarote shortly.

I wish you all an exciting and action-packed New Year, both on and off your bicycles, hoping that you all will reach most of your goals for the year.

Cyclist's greetings from Gunn-Rita
Multivan Merida Biking Team
www.gunnrita.com
[Translation: Crispen T.P. de Lange]

Home for Christmas

Published:

December 20, 2011, 16:51,

Updated:

December 20, 2011, 16:55

By:

Gunn Rita Dahle Flesjå

Five weeks in the Canary Islands comes to a close

Some very well executed weeks of training here in the warmth are coming to an end, and we're preparing for our return home. It's going to be a cold transition coming home again, but still a very enjoyable and much longed for Christmas celebration with our family.

We can look back on five great weeks of training here on the Canary Islands with lots of sun and warmth. We've only had a few drops of rain during all these weeks - almost surreal to us who are used to wild winds, rain and sleet at home at this time of year.

Sunny days

Our "pale blue" skin has been exchanged for golden brown, at least on our arms and legs. Tanning ones whole body is really restricted to holidays and has no place in a hard training set-up, since the daylight hours spent on the bike are more than enough.

My legs have felt a little heavy this past week, as I had expected, but we have adjusted the intensity somewhat so that we don't arrive home completely tired and worn out. At home we will meet a fusillade of cold germs and flu viruses, and a physically tired body is like a magnet to those sort bugs. We've laid a good foundation during this period, which we can continue to build on in January and February.

Bjørnar is in great shape these days. He runs most of the time when he's outside of the apartment, and we've had to make training slots for him so he gets to move enough through the day too. He loves to run, so we simply have to make it possible for this little bundle of energy to do his thing.

Yesterday, we once again went up to the goats that live a bit higher up the valley from where we live, and it's impressive to see what energy lives in such small bodies. It knocks me out to see it, and I almost feel like I'm lazy for feeling a need for five minutes on the sofa once in a while.

Headed home

And now we're looking very much forward to getting home again and decorating the place nicely for Christmas again. We're landing at Stavanger airport at midnight on Saturday night, and I hope that we can go and get a tree on Sunday and decorate for Christmas the same day. Christmas cheer is a great feeling, plus all the excitement that is part and parcel of the holidays, especially now that we have a little boy.

Tomorrow I'll have a slow-paced long distance ride while Kenneth and Bjørnar play at pirates on the beach. After that I'll have a good massage for my legs while Bjørnar has his little nap at 13:00. Kenneth might take a short ride before dinner, while Bjørnar and I go for a walk and feed the goats again. The days just fly by and I can't quite believe that we've been here for almost five weeks.

If you're one of those people who hasn't decided on an exercise routine for January yet, I would strongly recommend that you come with us to Lanzarote and compete in a four-day mountain bike race. Club la Santa has exercise facilities to cover all needs, and in 2012 they're inviting everybody to a mountain bike race on volcanic rock at the end of January.

We wish you all a happy and physically fit Christmas celebration. Enjoy peaceful days at home together with your family and do things together which you don't normally have time for in a stressful everyday situation. We'll post a small selection of updated photos when our home is decorated and ready for Christmas.

Cyclist's greetings from Gunn-Rita
Multivan Merida Biking Team
www.gunnrita.com
[Translation: Crispen T.P. de Lange]

Winter training in summer weather

Published:

November 22, 2011, 18:08,

Updated:

November 22, 2011, 18:18

By:

Gunn Rita Dahle Flesjå

Base period spent in the Canaries

Snow and icy temperatures have been replaced with sun and summer. We're well underway with our winter training and we're spending the period of basis-training on the Canary Islands.
We've now been training for a week here in the warmth and are enjoying every training session to the full in shorts. This is the first time we've travelled to warmer realms before Christmas and right now it feels like a very good decision. Last year's winter was completely derailed by sickness before Christmas, and we really did not want a repeat this year.

Today, we've had a very good power-session on one of the dirt hills right nearby where we're staying. There are many Norwegians here on the Canaries and many of them are very fit, hiking in the mountains, so it was on the verge of being crowded on "our" hill today. I certainly understand that people enjoy climbing to the tops of mountains in this fantastic weather that we have down here.

A typical period of base training

We're focusing on very varied forms of training while we're here, just the same as we would have done if we had been at home at this time of the year. We have our Merida Big.Nine bikes along with us, meaning that we can go practically everywhere on the island. We've even brought our mountain boots, as a mountain hike per week has been an important element in every week of winter training when we've been at home.

During this first week down here, we've had enormous amounts of help and good company from my mother. Yesterday I went to the airport with her to check her in and send her home to Norway, while at the same time fetching my father from the arrivals hall. Now my dad will be the "nanny" for the coming three weeks, while the final week will be just us three alone. At that time, we'll have to train at separate times, but with most hours for me.

The one who's training most of all is without doubt Bjørnar, as he's running around practically non-stop from morning until bedtime at 8:00 pm.

Tomorrow we're having a slow-paced day, a bit of swimming and a good massage afterwards. We're living in an apartment so we make our breakfast and lunch at home, some dinners, too, but it's nice to have a bit of luxury and relaxation at a restaurant in the evening. At the moment we're sitting in front of the television "at home", Bjørnar is already sleeping deeply, and we're good and tired after a great week of training and activity.

I'm going to post some new pictures, but have to work a bit on my tan first. You'll be hearing from us again in a few weeks. Use your opportunities for training well, in the coming week, and get the most out of them.

Cyclist's greetings from Gunn-Rita
Multivan Merida Biking Team
www.gunnrita.com
[Translation: Crispen T.P. de Lange]

A fantastic season

Published:

October 27, 2011, 21:59,

Updated:

October 27, 2011, 22:01

By:

Gunn Rita Dahle Flesjå

Looking back at 2011

We can now look back on an incredibly exciting season, with top results and a good feeling. Now we're all set to start placing stone upon stone in the build-up towards an unforgettable Olympic season in 2012.

It's a long time since you heard from us, and I can't quite understand that almost two months have passed since we did the cross country world championships in Champery, Switzerland. The last race for me was the Bundesliga finals in Bad Salzdetfurth at the end of September.

I was supposed to have raced in Holland the following weekend, but got a cold and wasn't going to take any chances racing with troubles in the machinery. I rounded off this year's season in very good physical shape despite it all - a great feeling to bring into the coming months of winter training.

Regarding results, we're still cheering after winning the European Championship cross country gold medal, and I still feel joy and pride at coming in as number three in the World Cup in Val di Sole only two weeks before the World Championships. I experienced my very first third place in Plymouth in England in August of 1995. During the season we've just completed, we've gradually improved our results at every race we've taken part it. A rough winter last year, with lots of sickness, forced us to treat the first half of the 2011 season as a sort of basic training period, interspersed with a few races.

We made use of all our experience and tried to get as much as possible out of every hour of the day to be able to perform at our max in every racing event we entered. Our efforts and strategy paid off when we won the gold medal at the European Championships. The world championships was a good day for me, and I was a contender for the medal on the first rounds, but couldn't quite keep it up till the finish. A sixth place isn't something we gloat over, but we've achieved more this year than what we could have expected with our given starting point. There's a lot to work on as we're presently just starting up training again.

The Merida team deserves a lot of praise for what we've achieved together in the season of 2011. All the riders had a few off days this year, but I think it'll all be worked out next summer. I know that everybody that's associated with Multivan Merida Biking Team is working incredibly hard in order to make it the world's best mountain biking team in 2012.

"Holiday" at home

Now we've enjoyed four weeks of holiday at home, a so-called "active rest-period" during which I've had five to six hours of training per week. A bit of jogging, hiking, swimming and spinning. I haven't been riding my bike much, and there's a reason for that. I did a long slow-paced ride yesterday, the first in four weeks, and it was wonderful. I've missed my bike these past weeks, so it's time to start up fantastic and action-packed days of training again.

The break that we usually factor in, in October, is important for both body and mind, and we always say that if we don't get to re-charge our batteries in October, it will have great consequences for what we're able to achieve the following season. Now I feel like my machinery is ready for a new and exciting winter.

The weeks here at home have passed frighteningly quickly, but we've managed to deal with all sorts of jobs that we don't take time for during the season. And we've spent a lot of time together with Bjørnar - a joy and a show every single day. Sometimes I ask myself, "What became of my little baby?" Now he's talking like a torrent, and we talk to him as if he was one of the grown-ups, and we have many discussions in the course of a day.

High activity levels

Bjørnar is amazingly active once he's awake and that's maybe also the reason why he sleeps so soundly through the night - luckily. He's already become very good on his bike. He naturally has a Merida balance bike without pedals, which he's very proud of. Going for a walk with him when he's on his balance bike is anything but a quiet walk. It's more of a running-stint, plus a strain on the nerves since he loves high speed when descending, no matter what the terrain.

We didn't have a holiday abroad this year, because what we wanted most of all was to just be at home. I have concluded a season with 210 days out travelling, so it's just hugely enjoyable to simply relax at home. We've done a few activities together with our sponsors, since we were home, and it's always a very nice and giving experience.

Going spinning together with the employees at DnB NOR bank was wonderful. I'll be having a new spinning class with them on Thursday morning this week. Spinning for NRK's nationwide charitable ingathering effort, led out by Norsjørittet, was also a fun experience. I've also been for a visit to Elisabeth at Eliksir for some wellbeing, wonderful treatment for my face, and a new session awaits me next week. It's just as wonderful every time, and I highly recommend it. Much better than a new jersey or new mittens!

Great sponsors

Today all three of us have been to Frisørsenteret barbers at Bryne and tidied up our hair. Bjørnar is sitting there like a little vicar on the barber's chair right now. I think he enjoys it quite a lot, but I suspect that the promise of candy, if he sits still, is probably making all the difference. I'm here because we're having a big wedding in our family in under two weeks, as my dear sister is getting married ? (She runs the Lyst shop in Stavanger and has a lot of really nice clothes for most of us women. I've found a dress for the wedding in Peggy's shop, and it's stylish and beautiful).

Today I started my day with treatment and training at Stavanger Idrettsklinikk (sports clinic) at Hillevåg, Stavanger. We started a cooperation with SIK more or less exactly one year ago, and I don't quite know how we would have got through this last year without their help and support. Every time we've been home throughout the season, we've stopped by Stavanger Idrettsklinikk in order to correct and adjust any problems that tend to arise when one pushes one's body hard. If you expect a lot from your machinery, no matter what your job or physical level, maintenance is very important.

Regarding training, this week will be a sort of "get going" week before starting up full power on November 1. I'm flying to Oslo on Thursday to have a meeting with Stians Sport and Merida Norway, in addition to meeting NCF and Olympiatoppen regarding plans and set-up for the winter and spring and the season of 2012. We're headed towards a very exciting period, my body is in balance and feels very good, my motivation is at top-level, and the goals for 2012 are very high. There's a lot to do and we have a lot to look forward to.

You will be getting a new update prior to our departure for the Canary Islands on November 12.

I wish you all a fit week, during which your priorities will decide what you achieve, regarding plans and goals. Keep it up.

Cyclist's greetings from Gunn-Rita
Multivan Merida Biking Team
www.gunnrita.com
Translation: Crispen T.P. de Lange

An unforgettable win

Published:

August 17, 2011, 21:12,

Updated:

August 17, 2011, 21:24

By:

Gunn Rita Dahle Flesjå

Dahle Flesjå earns European championship title

It was an utterly unforgettable and amazing experience becoming European Champion in cross country riding again. The way back to the top has been long, tough and very demanding, but victory naturally tastes particularly good under those conditions.

I've had a steadily improving physical form through the past months of competitions, and the latest results from the World Cup also demonstrate this development. Even so, I've always had the feeling that I haven't managed to access the full potential I actually possess. Regular interruptions from sickness throughout the spring season, and pretty poor start positions in most of the races, have hindered me from showing what I can actually do. On Sunday everything worked from beginning to end.

Specific training

After my return from the US I've been riding my road bike at home in order to develop as much speed as possible. The week before departure for Slovakia and Dohnany, where the European Championship race was held, I used a lot of moped in my training (Kenneth's favourite form of training?). It's three whole years since Kenneth pushed me with the moped and that tells quite a lot about how long ago it really is since I was properly fighting fit.

My mind and legs were really tired out after the Norwegian Championships and the tough period we had just been through. Even so, Kenneth set up a reasonably demanding program at home before departure, without pushing it too far. We're talking very small adjustments every day so that each stint was as close to optimal as possible over against what the body was capable of on any given day.

Both of us were very worn out when we left for Slovakia 10 days before the European Championships, with a training regime ahead of us that prioritized recuperation, mind and body. I left Kenneth behind on the climbs during the training ride we had during the week prior to the championship, but really crushed him on the "blowout" on the actual track three days before the race.

I lined up at the start with a very good feeling and with a body and mind just bulging with confidence.

Ahead from start to finish

I probably surprised quite a few by taking the lead from the very start, and I was a bit "shocked" myself when nobody came up alongside to pass me. After two circuits, with a lead of close to 30 seconds, I started to feel that the tough start had taken its toll, but I tried to keep all my focus directed towards my job here, at the same time as comforting myself in the knowledge that it was just as painful for those chasing me from behind.

In the final approach to the finish line I had such a great lead that I was able to stop alongside the spectators and get the Norwegian flag from Bjørnar. These past days he's talked a lot about how Mother got his flag and that she lifted her arms as she crossed the finish line. He often says that he's riding a racing bike really fast when he's out on his two-wheeler, but on this day is was Mother who was doing the fast riding.

Unforgettable European Championship

This European Championships title is without a doubt one of the greatest experiences that Kenneth and I have had within cycling. It was a victory that came as an unexpected surprise for many. It is a gold medal that we've worked incredibly hard to achieve, over a long period of time, and a success that very many didn't believe in.

We would never have managed this feat without our parents who have been there 100 parents both at home and while we've been out travelling. All four of them should have had a gold medal hanging round their necks.

Moreover, we have a group of sponsors behind us who have been there for almost a decade and they have supported us through all conditions right up until today. New supporters have joined up during the past two seasons and that has also definitely been a strong motivational factor and signal to us that someone out there still believes in us very strongly.

We have also had the Multivan Merida team and the whole Merida family behind us ever since Bjørnar was born. The large crowd that comprises the Merida family today, with dealers in over 70 countries, has consistently shown us their faith and granted us time to gradually build ourselves up again. I thank you all for being there for us all the time.

Historic European championship title

The first European Championship title I won was in Zürich on August 1, 2002. That was the very first international title for Merida ever and there have been many since. The first medal, and this latest one from last weekend in Slovakia, are without a doubt some of the greatest and most meaningful achievements that Kenneth and I have ever experienced as athletes.

I would also like to extend a thanks to all the mothers out there who have sent me greetings and encouraging words that both motivate and lighten my heart from day to day. On top of everything, I have a unique husband in Kenneth who still gives his all, both energy and time, so that I can once again enter the world's elite. During periods, he's had more faith in me than I've had in myself.

There is an awful lot of hard and focused work underlying this European Championship gold, and there are many around us who have made formidable efforts. In other words, I have many people around me who make sure the conditions are right for me to do my job as well as possible every day. Some days are tougher than others, and on the hardest days I have a small motto that I repeat to myself: "Everything is possible, if one wants it enough and sticks to it."

This weekend we head back to Italy again for the World Cup race in Val di Sole.

If you prioritize correctly, there should be time for a bike ride today or tomorrow! GO PEDAL!

Cyclist’s greetings from Gunn-Rita
Multivan Merida Biking Team
www.gunnrita.com
[Translation: Crispen T.P. de Lange]

Editor's note: One week after winning the European Championships, Gunn-Rita Dahle Flesjaa pedalled back on the World Cup podium at round 6 in Czech.

Ups and downs

Published:

July 28, 2011, 15:28,

Updated:

July 28, 2011, 15:31

By:

Gunn-Rita Dahle Flesjaa

A brief holiday after winning Norwegian nationals

An exciting and demanding period now lies behind us, and we have many experiences to look back on. The Gunn-Rita Marathon and world championships were a powerful experience, even though we didn't achieve the results we had hoped for. The gold medal in the Norwegian Championships last weekend was a big victory for both Kenneth and me.

At the moment, we're enjoying quiet and relaxing days at home in Bjørheimsbygda, staying with my mother and father. For Bjørnar, "holiday" out in the countryside with his grandparents is like having a zoo and a fun-park right on his doorstep. This evening we've been down by the lake fishing, we've played with the neighbour's dog, Kita, we've eaten cherries, splashed in puddles and played football.

Well organized Norwegian championships

This year's Norwegian championships took place in Horten on a track that was technically demanding with a lot of climbs and descents, and there was also a great risk of puncturing. Personally, I found this to be a very fun and enjoyable track, demanding plenty of effort from the whole body and containing very few sections giving rest or allowing for maintaining a rhythm. Even though my physical condition and feeling has been good these past weeks, we have had a demanding program for travels and competitions and I don't usually tackle the return from the States very well.

It was simply wonderful to feel able to press my body even so, and that I could work on my tasks from beginning to end. I pushed from an early stage and was thus able to ride my own race, without having to empty myself completely of energy. It was great fun doing a race at home again, and it is with great pride that I once again can compete internationally wearing the Norwegian national championship jersey.

Disappointment at world championship marathon

I have no problem stating that this year's world championship marathon was the largest and best organized championship I have ever taken part in during my 17 years as a professional cyclist, so all honour and applause go to Pedale di Marca. It was a fantastic experience for participants, supporters and the public in every way.

I felt good during the preceding week and was looking very much forward to the world championships in Montebelluna. After three weeks in Livigno, I was ready for sun and summer in Treviso, and that's what we got. The week of training at high altitude was great (somewhat too much rain!) but I unfortunately didn't get full effect as I was sick in bed the first week.

I had no problems following the leading group of 8-10 women until there were about 25 kilometres left. At that point, I suddenly felt myself hit the wall and all my energy was just switched off. I had been eating and drinking a lot, as I usually do during a marathon race, but it didn't work this day. I had the feeling that my body was utterly empty, and the feeling came over me very rapidly.

I had unfortunately been plagued with a painful and loose stomach during the four days before the race and I reckon that was also part of the reason why I suddenly ran out of energy. Bjørnar got a loose stomach when we came down from the high altitude, and I naturally got the same symptoms a few days after that. A seventh place in the World Championships was, naturally, a huge disappointment for us both, but we found a measure of consolation in the stomach upset and that this was part of the reason for the poor result.

Improvements at the World Cup

Six days after the world championship marathon, I took part in the World Cup in Canada. I left the medal winners from the previous weekend behind and crossed the finish line as number 10, the season's best result in the World Cup. The weekend after, at the World Cup in Windham, New York, in the USA, I rode in as number 11, and this time with a much smaller time difference up to place number three than the weekend before. We're approaching the top, slowly but surely.

For this reason, it was extra great to round off this tough period with the gold medal in the Norwegian championships, with both body and health in good balance. I'm enjoying a few days of quiet now so I can totally recover again before starting up the training once more. We'll have two weekends without competitions now, before the European Cross Country Championships in Slovakia on August 7.

The weather gods here at home simply do not have summer weather on the menu whatsoever, but it's possible to enjoy cycling no matter what, so it's just time to set off. The holiday is a great time to relax and recharge the batteries, and physical activity together with friends and family is a solid and dependable medicine in that respect. Enjoy your holiday and be present in everything you do.

PS - Congratulations to Thor Hushovd and Edvald Boassen Hagen for incredible achievements in the Tour de France. It's given us almost unbearable suspense in front of the television screen, and a good portion of motivation and faith that almost anything is possible if one wants it enough and gives everything.

Cyclist's greetings from Gunn-Rita
Multivan Merida Biking Team
www.gunnrita.com
[Translation: Crispen T.P. de Lange]