Summer is upon us, training going well

 I am in the middle of training for a race at the end of August and things are working out for now. There might be another race I can add to my calendar for mid October. With the weight training program along with the riding out on the trail I should ready come race day.  

The weather is warming up here in Arizona, so my spin training rides as well as my weight training are looking to move indoors to cooler temperatures. The garage gym turns into an instant sweat box as my workout gets going. 

        I have been able to get up north, to Flagstaff, here in Arizona and get some much needed trail miles in. Not only was is cooler weather but was at elevation, about 7,000 feet above sea level. A great thing about this training was it at the area where my end of August race will take place.  

My Favorite MTB Trail in the past few years.

A good warm up on the road, maybe five miles or so, then into San Tan Regional Park.  Dynamite Trail is a great workout, going north to south on the trail and getting some good elevation. At the bottom on the other side I connect with the San Tan Trail and ride around some great rolling hills around the park. I have wanted to explore more of the trails, but the heat sets in. This fall I want to get around the park more and check out more of the trails. With the entrance I use, it's a $2 pay station. I stop by the main entrance on the way out for a quick refill of the water bottles. I end the ride with about a three mile cool down. The elevation gain gets the heart rate up thats for sure. The total distance of this ride is about 22 miles and I have done numerous times.

Quick trip to Colorado

Earlier this month my family and I had a great visit and quick vacation to Colorado.  My kids were on their Spring Break and we all flew up to Colorado where we met up with my wife in Denver.  While there I got to visit the World Headquarters of the Cat-Ears facility and manufacturing plant. My wife, kids and I were treated to a tour by the owners Rick and Heidi. Here they manufacture the wind diffusing helmet strap devices I love, wear and use, as do the rest of my family. Not only do they construct the devices here, but also are involved in heavily researching how the sound of the wind can be reduced even more while wearing Cat-Ears.

Pictured my son was able to test out how the sound of the wind is reduced wearing a helmet with Cat-Ears with a simulated 25 MPH wind. 

On the trip I we stayed at my wife's friends house in Fort Collins. There I was able to borrow a mountain bike and test out the trails, at elevation. Very different then back down in the desert here in Arizona that's for sure. 

What an amazing trip we had and fun along the way. 

12 Hours At Night

I'm officially entered in the 12 Hours at Night Mountain Bike Race, less than a month away in Prescott, AZ. What exactly does night mean?  Well they gun goes off at 8PM Saturday night with the ending being Sunday morning at 8AM. Some of you have already started thinking, "Dang, how many cups of coffee would that equate too?"  I'm looking forward to the challenge seeing how many laps of the nine mile course I can do in that period of time.  I had to drop out of the marathon I had planned for in Minnesota a week after this race due to a three to four millimeter tear in my MCL. The lower impact of the bike training has reduced some of the pain but surgery to get that repaired is still on the horizon. Let's hope the tear does not get any bigger. 
My friend and Two Wheel Jones Bicycle Shop - Gilbert location owner Larry DeMik will be racing too.  
There is a kids race, very short, that I have both my son and daughter signed up for that goes off a few hours before the dark sets in. 
So go ahead place your bets, amongst yourselves,as to how many nine mile laps I will be able to complete, I have a goal I am shooting for.  

The Elevation Training Mask

While both running and using the bike on the rollers, I have been using the Training Mask. So what is it you ask. There are numerous studies out there on how athletes train at higher elevations to increase their performance. The area I primarily live and train in, is about 1000 feet above sea level. The mask covers both your nose and mouth and creates an effect as if I were in a higher altitude.  The mask is said to reduce training time by 1/3 by improving the efficiency of my workouts.  It conditions the lungs creating pulmonary resistance and strengthens my diaphragm.  Wearing it forces you to focus on your breathing. The best way this mask will help my body is by teaching it to use oxygen more efficient forcing me to take deeper more full breathes.  I can tell just after using it for over a month how my breathing is being helped by wearing it. 

Once again the mask fits over your nose and mouth attaching at the back of the head with a Velcro strip. There is Velcro strap it comes with also that can be used to cross over your head, joining the two ear holes on either side.  I have to admit the first time I put the mask on, I was very relaxed, yet then was forced to start focusing on my breathing right away. As without the mask, breathing is very easy and not really something the human body needs to think about doing  There are a few sets of valves that come with the mask and instructions on how to set the mask up to mimic different levels of elevation.  Of course very interested in knowing how the maximum degree of elevation with the mask of 18,000 feet would feel I set the mask up and jumped on my bike trainer.  It seriously was not long before I was having to really focus on getting my next breath.