Keeping your head screwed on straight

(photo courtesy: Lydia Van de Meerssche)

Training quantity is a constant topical issue you encounter living in cycling house in cycling mad country. The prominent opinion and perception is that more is better. I think it may stem from that awesome Lance Armstrong advert where he says “I’m on my bike busting my ass six hours a day,” you know the one. “More is always better” is something that was drilled into me repeatedly over 3 years of indifference curves in economics but drilled out of me even more so by my coach Ben Capostagno.

Recently talking to one of my teammates, I think sometimes the hardest thing about being over here is keeping your head screwed on straight, especially toward this mentality of “more, more, more.”  As athletes, we are all driven to achieve their goals but sometimes we become victims of over-motivation and over-doing it. Sitting at home while a teammate goes for another 6 hour ride while you’re not is sometimes difficult but it has to be done. Knowing when to do a session and when to rest is a hard head game.

I had my own experience with overtraining in 2009 which lead me to contract Glandular fever.  Whilst trying to race and train through it, eventually I was set on the side lines for almost 4 months. I have a theory that if your body wants you to stop it eventually will. What that breaking point is, however, is a decision entirely up to you. For me, it was 5 sets of antibiotics in 3 months that took me to the point of “I can’t do this anymore,” a thought I still strongly remember exactly when and where it occurred.

As much as everyone tells you not to over-do it, it’s a lesson you have to learn yourself.  Everyone has to find that edge so they know where to stop and, personally, it was the best (and worst) lesson I ever had to learn.  Being forced to stop taught me that if you keep your head and focus on the process, remain logical, and stay patient but keep your drive to work hard, the results will come. Sometimes that patience can be truly tested, having bad legs and bad races can easily lead to a downward spiral of over training, but you need to keep your head and actively bring yourself back into the game.

As my mid-season break comes to an end, I have a renewed perspective on my approach to training that if a session is worth doing, it’s worth doing properly even if you have to rest another day or two before it. In a book about Chris Hoy and the British Track Team, the author, Richard Moore, repeatedly notes how Hoy, even from a young age, remained logical and analytical in the face of both victory and defeat.  Getting emotional and dwelling on past failures is pointless; rather, figure out what you’re lacking or failing at, learn from it, and set about correcting it.  In essence, your head screwed on straight.

You’re only as fast as the wheel in front of you

“You‘re only as fast as the wheel in front of you.” A lesson I have learned repeatedly over the last few weeks. The calendar has been packed with Criteriums and Pro-Kermis races and I have had many opportunities to embrace the steep learning curve here in Belgium.

The goal in my first 3 months has been progress across the board in the departments of corning, sprinting, positioning, and surviving the distance.  I have made pretty good progress in most areas and I have had decent legs in most races, but bunch positioning has definitely been my stumbling block.  With bunch of 180+ crammed onto narrow, forever winding roads (Belgium at its best!), I have found it difficult and, frankly, an unnerving task to stay towards the front.

At the back of the bunch, there is a whole other skill set involved, most prominently, chasing back after getting dead wheels.  Getting dead wheels is part of the deal but it can be hugely frustrating.  I now think the term “dead wheel” doesn’t come from the fact that the guy in front of you has “died” and can no longer hold the wheel in front of you; rather, I think the term relates to the feeling you get when you are dead wheeled because you want to “kill” the person in front of you for making you close the gap on an already rapid bunch.  Sometimes there is just no coming back…

Gullegem Pro-Kermis (photo courtesy: Lydia Van de Meerssche)

Staying at the front isn’t just about skill though, confidence also plays a big role.   Knowing you deserve to be up at the front, in the mix, and really make it at the sharp end of the race is a real confidence game, especially in Pro-Kermis races.  Pro-Kermis races are the same as an amateur Kermis except the field is fully comprised of continental, pro-continental, and a few pro-tour teams with distances around 180km.  Lining up with Tour, Giro, and Vuelta riders can boost your confidence in one way and challenge it in another.

With half a season under my belt, I have recently been moving up towards the front of the bunch and it has made life so much easier.  Taking a corner without having to track stand before makes a big difference.   The last few races have been Hill Crits which are Crits are very hard short circuit races (1.5km) with only quick deep efforts on hills around 500m long.  Even a small taste of my natural terrain of climbing has made it easier to position myself because when you’re in it to win it, suddenly all the risks are worthwhile.

Gullegem Pro-Kermis (photo courtesy: Dirk Bruylant)

As I end off the first half of my season and take a mid-season break I am happy with how things have gone overall. The confidence, desire to race, as well as the strength and fitness are right up where I would want them to be.

“I don’t like risk but I like the challenge of controlling all the uncertainty and variables”-Boardman