2012!!!!!!!!!!!
BY KENNETH LUNDGREN
Hey Gang,
2012 has been a stellar year thus far… Elite Endurance athletes are killin’ it, and I’m proud to say I’m coaching athletes on both coasts, in North Dakota, in Michigan, in Arizona, in Colorado, in Texas, in Oregon, in Afghanistan, in Germany, in Japan, just crazy how things are growing… Am helping coach two CRCA teams, coaching the Bike Doctor cycling team down in Washington DC, coaching many riders on the juggernaut Knapps Cyclery team (with riders leading the NJ TT Cup and 2nd in the Cat-3 Cup!!!), coaching the women’s Colativa cycling team, and we’re going to string together a bunch of EE athletes this fall for another strong season of CX…
When I was in Colorado last year, for nearly 6 months, I spoke with several well-known coaches (it is the breeding ground of Chris Carmichael and Allen Lim), and it really helps keep the coaching creative stimulus going, was able to better break down cyclo-cross, help create new workouts and progressions, and the late-season 2012 CX success was awesome with multiple State Champions and a 3rd at Nationals… (look for articles on Bike Fit and Planning Peak in upcoming issues of CX Magazine!)
And this year, continuing to try and push the envelope, further understand what makes riders faster and better, am applying this to TT, MTB, and road disciplines — although unattainable, true perfection is the goal…
Will string more detailed results together in my mid-year 2012 newsletter after State TT, but I had an athlete win a monument Pro/1/2 event down in Virginia, Pete Warner of Bike Doctor winning the epic Morgantown Road Race…
Ben Williams of Clockwork Construction, at 45, is at his strongest ever, racing Pro/Open and now sitting 2nd overall in the H2H MTB series, last week finishing in a 2-up sprint with arguably the strongest pro MTBer in our area, Fast Eddy Ceccolini…
Beth Bonilla of Peanut Butter & Co/Human Zoom won the pro Navy Yard Criterium in Philadelphia…
Taylor Krosbakken of North Dakota won the epic Ken Woods Memorial Road Race, and has three more victories since then, full-on peaking for this weekend’s Fargo stage race…
David Carr of CRCA/Setanta has three TT wins already and counting :).
Jesse Walker of CRCA/Setanta has two victories in Central Park, a second — losing final sprint by less than half a wheel, and then went on to WIN the Hunter Mountain Road Race… Hello!!!!! Should note: I get daily power files from him, every day, 100% communication. Just sayin’.
Mark Curran of Knapps Cyclery has PR’d at every TT this year, smokin’ it at Cape May and winning… He will be fighting tooth and nail with Adam Meirowitz to take home the overall in the NJ TT Cup…
Jesse O’Donnell of Jersey Shore Multisport has won every TT he’s entered this year, recently took 6th at the Bayville Triathlon, peaking for the Eagleman 70.3… WARRRRRRRRRRR O’DONNELL!!!!!!!!!
I had 8 athletes complete the NY Gran Fondo, something I’m very proud of…
These results are just off the top of my head, victories that stand out to me… but these are just “wins.” What I don’t talk about are the constant improvments, the ability to increase FT, the ability to hit more intervals in workouts, to aerobically raise the NWs during endurance rides, etc — to me, THIS is success, the ability to be disciplined and give me 100% and incrementally move forward, each month, each week, each day, we continue to be smart and step in the right direction… This sport, it rewards athletes who had dedication and long-term vision — no bull(*censored*)(*censored*)(*censored*)(*censored *), no shortcuts…
With my own season, it’s really simple: prepare specificlaly for the State TT 100%, be a solid team player for the Heart House cycling team, and then come back and have some fun for cyclo-cross… This winter, I was MTBing a lot more, just because I wanted to ride more dirt and keep the mind fresh… I purposely gained some weight, eating a ton more protein than I used to, packed on some muscle… I came into the season weighing about 175… whereas previous seasons I was far lighter…
At Sandy Hook 2010, I was 154. This year, 172… I really wanted to come into the season with more mass and not be too atrophied when Peak Time comes around… And thus far, it’s worked nicely: I was 2nd at Sandy Hook, 1st at Readington, 1st at LBI (course record by over a minute), 1st at Cape May, then it back a bit to regroup for a heavy June in terms of TSS…
I felt Fat and Slow at High Point, struggling to 6th, then was obliterated by the flu. Blick. I wasn’t 100% at my favorite race of the year, Somerset, and I didn’t quite have the magic feelings out there and took 2nd by a few seconds… That makes me 0-2 against the stellar rider Dave Freifelder of Westwood Velo… I know I can only beat him when I’m at my very best, which motivates me even more to stay on point and be 100% for my goal event…
Should also note: this winter I raised my position by over one full inch, which is a mile in cycling language, lol, and I feel more powerful on the bike, haven’t lost much in terms of aero — blew my previous PRs at Readington and LBI to smithereens… Main reason for the change is… I think the more upright position will help me sustain a more linear effort at… the State TT Championships…
So early-May was not super… In previous years, dunno if it’s my biorhythm or what, but my legs Just Come Around in early-May — always. And, this year with me wanting to truly peak at State TT more than ever, I tried to delay that… Kept on telling myself that good things can come to those who wait… Maybe not being 100% early on will motivate me to lay it down?
I was in full-monk-mode after Somerset, finishing 2nd sometimes is the best thing, and strung together a wicked collection of workouts, was feeling flat in the first workouts, NOT GOOD at all… but I stuck to teh plan and fought through, days before Upper Freehold TT posting PR data on both the TT and PowerCrank tests… I am still heavier, 165 today (5/25/12) and my training times are not much faster at all, but I just feel STRONGER, recover from efforts and workouts better, have more spring in my step during the day… Every rider, for his/her discipline, need to find the ideal weight, and there is only one way to that: experience.
This is part of the reason I wanted to come into the year heavier… Getting sick in early-May I think was unavoidable, just some virus going around, had to pull the plug on two big MTB races I wanted to do, blah… but am feeling really good now, fresh, strong, healthy. Went down to Upper Freehold TT on Saturday and had my best run of the year by far… I am hoping to build on this performance in these final 2 weeks — as my friend said, “The work is done. Now you just have to pedal.”
This is my whole year, right here right now… In TTs, I show up and race hard, but I almost have blinders on — after all these years, it’s just me and against me out there, what I measure myself against… The results at these early TTs have been great but it’s not what I’m focusing on — I just want to be at my absolute, 100% best for the 2012 State TT, and if I get 2nd, 3rd, 5th, that’s fine — as long as I toe that line and throw down and cross the finish knowing I couldn’t have gone ONE SECOND faster…
This, to me, is success. I just want to bring it and bring it hard… 100% Discpline. I cannot wait for Chatsworth. I have something to prove… to myself.
It’s… Go Time.
