Bleary

Things have been a little hectic between the teacher and student parts of my life. The bike is definitely taking the back seat for awhile and the weights are riding shotgun.

I managed to--despite the ankle injury 2 weeks ago--not really miss a beat in the normal rotation of things. Went through a v. high volume week in the gym and raced last weekend where I again crashed 1/4 mile from the finish just after attacking and putting ~8 seconds into the guy who was right on my ass.

I think I'd have held him off through the finish section had I not crashed but as it was, in the process of attacking him and taking it up, I took a corner hot and started to slide out through the tape. In retrospect I should have just rode through the tape and stayed upright. But I tried to save it by leaning even harder and my back wheel cut out. I got passed and lost the top 10 spot. The next rider wasn't even in sight, so I took it easy to the finish line.

It's funny--Mark (the guy I had attacked) and I were riding hard and putting time into 8th and 9th place. I really think we could have caught them. They were 5 seconds up from me and saw me go down. But it wasn't meant to be.

This week has been all over the place. I got my workouts in for the most part but have put in a few 12 hour days. Lot's of work on the thesis and I'm teaching the chemistry of carbohydrates which I myself haven't studied in almost a decade. I am tired and run down and I skipped the gym last night in favor of a sandwich and writing a homework assignment.

Good times, to be sure. But I am really, really ready for the grad school chapter of my life to close.

As for CX season: I feel as though I'm riding well--better than last season. However, the finishes haven't been there. The guys that are finishing top 10 are quite simply better than me. They are faster and better bike handlers. I'm going to try to muster what I have left and do the final 2 races in our local calendar, but each day that the rain falls and threatens to turn to snow...and each day that the temps dip into the low 20s at night...I feel less and less like pinning on a number.

Transitioning into full off season mode is upon me and a welcome change. I've been focused on racing my bike (amongst the myriad other of life's obligations) since February and I kicked off training in December. I need a break from the bike for awhile.

I am planning to race this weekend and next and then put the idea of bike specific training out of my mind until February. Collegiate season starts in February. Regular "summer" racing starts in late April. I will not race collegiate this spring and I don't need to be in shape for it.

JB, I have some ideas for a winter schedule. I may pester you for some feedback on specifics in the near future. Probably going to be 4 days per week in the gym, a lot of bicycle commuting, maybe 2 days a week in the pool for intervals, and (the thing I want most right now) weekends completely off.