Secret training

March 6, 2008

I hear that in order to really make it to the top in cycling, you have to work for that excellence in every part of your life. Since the top seems like a worthy goal, I have been endeavoring to integrate race-readiness preparation in my every activity. This is my "secret training". However, as I realize there are others out there striving for success in the sport, I figured I could share a few of my secrets...

Most people would consider fires in the kitchen to be (like, perhaps, a threatening attack in a race) a cause for serious alarm. I know, however, how important it is to keep a level head in panic-worthy situations. So when I left a dishrag too close to the burner of our stove and absorbed in a story I was telling my housemate Chelsea, failed to notice the fact that it had dutifully ignited, I was able to react coolly with a simple "Oh, no." before throwing it in the sink.

It is important to remember that the intervals and efforts prescribed in our training occur in a fairly pressure-free environment that is somewhat unlike the stresses of a real race. I therefore take care to make sure that I sometimes put real-life pressures on myself while training. The morning before taking the Economics GRE, I decided to train as usual, since I didn't have to be at the test until 1:30. I planned to be back by 12:30 for a relaxed lunch and shower before my exam.

I spent the last few weeks training in California with my team. Since I am not twenty-five yet, and thus unable to drive rental/leased vehicles, I have to devise other means of getting around beside the team car and charitable whims of my older teammates—and my stubbornness not to ask for help. The highlights included a 25 dollar cab ride to Whole Foods... an expenditure which left me stuck late at night at a nearby Safeway where I walked when Whole Foods closed, in tears at the prospects of paying for the return venture.

I was saved by Marissa and Zach, two UC Davis cyclists on a soymilk mission who recognized my face from Velonews. Did I mention I was crying like a baby at this point? Because this was indeed the part where I felt super cool. I also climbed over a chainlink fence which led into a cement drainage ditch to get to a Trader Joe's, and in the process poked a hole in my down jacket. (Yes, Mom, this is the first you have heard of that. Sorry.) And I also retuned to the same Whole Foods via bicycle directed by Blackberry Mapquest only on sidewalks (a 6 mile venture) because it was dark and I didn't have a light.

I can't reveal all of my training secrets... I certainly don't want to ruin my competitive edge! This should however, be enough to get one started. They tell me to incorporate my sport and training into my lifestyle. This is what they meant, right?

Follow the program's young female cyclists as they embark on their journey to the top of the pro ranks

The US Women's Cycling Development program was founded by former pro rider, Michael Engleman, as a way to help promising young women cyclists reach their full potential as athletes.

The dedicated and well spoken women of this program provide thoughtful, compelling and sometimes hilarious anecdotes of their experiences in this diary. For further reading about the program, visit the USWCDP website.