So it all started about a year ago. Somewhere in the months of November and December 2006 I simultaneously became obsessed with the La Ruta de la Conquistadores and got word the US Grand Prix of cyclocross would be stopping a mere 2 hours from home in 2007. So what was a minimally talented mountain bike/cross racer with one year of experience to do? Hatch a crazy plan to become a cross/endurance/renaissance woman superstar.
So phase one was to focus all my energy for 2007 making the leap from mid-pack beginner to being able to survive the elite race of the USGP Louisville without totally embarrassing myself. It was a longshot, but how often does elite level racing find it's way to the midwest? Not often. So that dream and the lyrics of "Livin' on a Prayer" (along with my other cliche inspirational hits) helped me through many long hours of riding trainer through the winter. I hired a coach and crossed my fingers. Unfortunately, it was just too much ground to cover and I let a lot job crapola get in my way over the summer. My 'cross season turned out to be a huge disappointment as just couldn't seem to pull together any good races and ended up not only stuck in the 3/4 field, but not doing well at that.
So a couple of weeks ago, after a long annoying cold, I decided to call it a season for 2007. So moving on to phase two of the plan, I've moving the 'cross nonsense to the backburner and focusing on endurance racing for 2008. I'm still a long way from jumping into the La Ruta, but I plan to get my feet wet this season with a 60-miler and two 100-milers along with my regular cross country schedule. I'm currently in week 2 of my 2008 training and I've finally convinced myself to start the blog that I should have started months ago. So let the journey begin...
So phase one was to focus all my energy for 2007 making the leap from mid-pack beginner to being able to survive the elite race of the USGP Louisville without totally embarrassing myself. It was a longshot, but how often does elite level racing find it's way to the midwest? Not often. So that dream and the lyrics of "Livin' on a Prayer" (along with my other cliche inspirational hits) helped me through many long hours of riding trainer through the winter. I hired a coach and crossed my fingers. Unfortunately, it was just too much ground to cover and I let a lot job crapola get in my way over the summer. My 'cross season turned out to be a huge disappointment as just couldn't seem to pull together any good races and ended up not only stuck in the 3/4 field, but not doing well at that.
So a couple of weeks ago, after a long annoying cold, I decided to call it a season for 2007. So moving on to phase two of the plan, I've moving the 'cross nonsense to the backburner and focusing on endurance racing for 2008. I'm still a long way from jumping into the La Ruta, but I plan to get my feet wet this season with a 60-miler and two 100-milers along with my regular cross country schedule. I'm currently in week 2 of my 2008 training and I've finally convinced myself to start the blog that I should have started months ago. So let the journey begin...
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