So, yesterday was diet. Today I'll expand a bit on what I want to do for 2010.
My main goals, as always, will be the same as they have for, oh, a while. I suppose these haven't changed for 15 years or so:
1. Win the Cat 3-4 Bethel Spring Series.
2. Win CT Cat 3 Crit Gold at the Nutmeg State Games (and be the first rider across the line regardless).
Goals without an idea of how to accomplish said goals are somewhat pointless. I hope that being lighter (by one to two bikes' worth of weight) and retaining my end-of-2009 strength will help tilt the odds to my favor for Goal 1. For the second, it's a matter of racing smart and sprinting well.
Some immediate other goals for 2010, in no particular order:
1. Work together with my teammates in races.
2. Climb Palomar Mountain faster than 90 minutes for the whole climb.
3. Return to pre-1999 race weight of 160 lbs (-23 lbs from avg race weight in 2009). Ideally return to 1997 race weight of 149 lbs, -34 lbs from 2009.
Again, some ideas on execution. For the first, I want to be able to work with my teammates, both helping them and receiving help. I want to execute more leadouts like the one that won the guy on my wheel a race, but to give said leadout to a teammate this time (!).
Climbing Palomar while 20 or 30 pounds lighter... How can I not go faster?
And weight, that's the diet thing.
Goals kinda sorta already met, or being fulfilled now:
1. Get a custom geometry frame.
2. Revamp my wheel collection.
3. Prune my equipment list.
4. Lose a bunch of weight.
I've ordered the first, am about to pull the trigger on the second, am working on the third, and ditto the fourth.
Other goals, less "urgent":
1. Become a licensed official.
2. Become a licensed coach.
I have to find a seminar that I can attend to do #1. I checked the box for "coach" and have to study the book and take the test for the second.
Goals I really have to meet, due to obligations:
1. Promote Bethel Spring Series.
2. Help promote "Pedal For Paws", a charity ride to benefit a cat shelter (of course) on Oct 2, 2010.
3. Give bike riding/racing tips at each team meeting I attend, 30 min presentation tops.
4. Hold 6+ week, 1 day per week, "how to ride" clinic (how to ride in a group comfortably).
5. Fulfill my duties as Rider Safety Coordinator for the New England Bicycle Racing Association (or NEBRA).
I have to file permits and such for the first item. Believe it or not, it'll be kinda sorta new for me, since I usually did other things.
The second will be a new thing, but I think I can handle it. The third thing I've already done once, and I hope that the next bunch goes well.
The fourth thing will end up relating to the fifth and last thing. And that last thing is my most visible goal.
It's something that popped up recently. Although "Rider Safety Coordinator" sounds distinctly un-sexy, it's actually something I really want to do. My basic mission is to formulate a framework of etiquette and rider skills that each club can teach their members. This should have the effect, over the course of a few years, of homogenizing racers' attitudes towards how races ought to be raced.
My first deadline is January 9th, when I need to present my ideas to NEBRA.
Onwards.
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4 comments:
Are goals 4 and 5 motivated by last summer's crash?
Sort of but not really. I guess the biggest thing that came out of last year's crash is that I had a lot of my own "world" ideas wrecked.
For example, because I'd trained diligently at pack riding technique, I lifted specifically to protect my shoulder/collarbone area for decades, because I work on pack riding and general riding technique all the time, I figured I'd be fine no matter what happened.
Goal 4 has been a long-term goal for me, really since 1988 when I helped hold a series of clinics. I held a few more extremely abbreviated clinics, but learned the hard way that a day or two doesn't do it. It takes (I figure) 12+ hours of drilling to get into good habits, to get a rider used to being in close quarters. Meaning "comfortable" in close quarters, not just "able to ride".
A huge part of Goal 4 (the clinics) is teaching riders how to ride the bike in a group - it amazes me how little riders know when they do their first races. I want to change that.
Goal 5 is simply an extension of that. I initially wanted to get more involved in the non-racing parts of things. Promoting is one thing I do, and it seems that over the years I've done some mechanical and fit stuff too. Specifically I wanted to do something with NEBRA. They asked what I'd be passionate about. Masters racing, no. Promoting, not really.
Propagating a set of standard etiquette and techniques? For sure.
Therefore that's what I'll be doing, hopefully with a lot of people's help (clubs, club leaders, individuals, etc).
Aki,
"it amazes me how little riders know when they do their first races."
Agreed!! Problem here is that unlike when we both started riding/racing we most likely had a group to ride with, the group leaders told us what to do, how to do it and ( in at least my experience ) I listened intently! Of course at that time we did not have the wealth of knowledge available on the Internet( no Internet when I was 14 ). Now, the fact that some new riders can read this and that leads me to believe that they show up on group rides or at races thinking they know everything there is to know about the sport etc... Coaching is also something that has changed the sport at this level, now, someone who might be "Strong" thinks they can go out and just race, they have no idea about riding technique, rules( both written and unwritten ) and also, don't want to listen to anyone who just might know better, because they can push ( insert random power number here ) while riding a bike. To boot, if you say something to them they get offended...??
When I started, if Tom P. said "do this" I said "OK". I did not feel as if I knew better than this man, who had been riding and racing his bike for 15+ years.
Clubs in this day and age need to take a greater responsibility for the people they've got racing with their jersey on, the leaders need to teach a thing or two to these new riders, also, when the new riders don't want to learn, or get offended... well, PM me I'll give ya my take on what I think about that. Political correctness is not my "forte"... and it seems as though some people ( note I said some ) are not willing to tell it like it is. New riders... listen to the " old guys ", they can teach you a thing or two...or 20!
MMA - I totally agree. It's kind of sad that NEBRA has to have someone official who will basically push clubs to teach their riders how to ride.
Like you, I had my mentors. I started racing as a Junior, and the rule was that Juniors do all the chasing. So whenever someone launched an attack, everyone would look at the Juniors.
Now, that sounds kind of mean, but when a kid is struggling to turn over a 53x15, the "non-Juniors" can take it for only a short time before they pitch in and work hard.
The Junior (like me) gets to sit in then. And it's a great interval workout, big anaerobic effort followed by what we now know is a 100-110% threshold type effort.
I hope to set up a good, adaptable framework of ideas that can apply across the board. I hope so anyway.
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