Ok guys, its been AGES since the last post! Sorry for the lack of communication over the past few weeks. A lot has happened since the last post, beginning with the CSA High Performance Camp at SISSA in Cape Town.
Many of the young up and coming cyclist in the SA MTB fraternity have one goal in mind, to be on the front line of the world circuit, the High Performance Program is one of the tools to help us attain our goal.
Cycling South Africa (CSA) flew us down to the Cape to undergo some of the brutal tests to see if we had made any progress, according to data, since the last HP Camp during 2010. After a late flight, a group of 10 or so off us were whisked away to the awesome Strand Tower Hotel, which was to be our accommodation for the next 3 days. After a massive buffet dinner we headed upstairs to catch some shut eye.
Day 1 of the camp greeted us witha VO2max test, a test that is done on a CompuTrainer (indoor trainer with a power meter). Every minute the resistance on the rear wheel increases and continues to do so until one of the two scenarios happens: 1. You throw up, or 2. Utter exhaustion (fainting).This test analyses both our power to weight ratio, our VO2 max and Lactate Threshold. These tests help us to configure a training program as it indicates our different power and heart rate zones. These tests were then followed by medicals, blood tests and one or two lectures on Psychology.
Day 2- The day that everybody feared, the day of pain, lots and lots of pain, the day of the feared 40km Time Trial, in which you go so hard that your stomach turns, your glutes cramp, your head throbs, every single ounce of energy you have goes into mashing your pedals for around an hour. Now going for a hard ride on the road for 40km doesn't seem like a very tormenting thing, but the fact was this, we weren't going to be on the road. We were going to be on a CompuTrainer, in a lab, staring at Computers telling you if you're going fast or looking for parking, HUGE industrial sized jet powered fans spit the wind at you to try and keep you cool. The course programmed into the Trainer is the flattest road imaginable - for 40km.... BUT the worst thing of this test, is the simple fact that you don't move an inch, you don't go forward, theres nothing to make you feel as if you're moving, the only drive to go faster, is the fact that all this torture would be over, sooner, if you go harder.
None of the above mentioned things were made any lighter after witnessing downhiller, and good friend, Tim Bentley, launching himself towards a basin after his TT... Tim managed to get a time of 01h08min... for an XC rider any time near one hour is a really good time, so for a DH boykie to get a time like that you can only imagine the pain he must've suffered through.
Then it was my turn... with a previous time of 1h02min and Phil Buys having just set a time of 58minutes, the pressure was on to try and get under an hour. I got mounted with the strategy of bettering my previous time... and so began my TT. I started easier than normal but decided to watch my speed instead of my avg wattage. If I wanted to go under the 60min mark I had to average a speed just greater than 40km/h. I managed to do so for the entire TT, with an average speed of 40.2km/h and one shattered body!The day then gradually tapered down until we found ourselves back at the hotel.
Day 3- probably one of the most underestimated days of the Camp. What lay ahead was a morning of max power tests = 5x30second sprints at a maximal effort... from a stand still, and to top it off... up the Rhodes Memorial Climb. These intervals were nothing short of brutal, and definitely contested the TT in terms of difficulty.
So was the end of the HP Camp, a very tough three days in the saddle, but all in all a very good experience. I do however feel that the tests were not spaced out enough, however, it was a very well run and a very professional camp. A big thank you needs to go to CSA and all the people down at SISSA who made everything was possible as well as for making all the equipment available to the HP Squad!!
No comments:
Post a Comment