Rattler Rambling - Constant Learning from the Austin Rattler
Well back home after a fun and successful race road trip to Austin Rattler. Went down with good company, David Johnson, to tag-team the RV driving with the intention to earn a better starting corral at the upcoming LT100 in Aug. Funny how he took a year off (8x LT100 finisher going for the BIG buckle) and he still has to "re-earn" his starting corral even after chiseling his time down to an 8:22 in 2013. Seems like he earned it with that.
Anyways we made the best of it stopping at Palo Duro Canyon on Thursday to hit up some of our favorite trails and even some new ones. If you haven't hit up this spot, do so! It's the 2nd biggest canyon to the Grand and there are some fun mtb trails there to say the least. Then we diverted to Georgetown, TX on Friday riding new trail versus the typical pre-ride of a trail we'd see in the race 4x the following day. Needless to say we went in over our head completing a 25mi loop around Lake Georgetown on some of the most rocky trails I've ridden. I like rocks and it was fun but 3hrs on 1 bottle of water the day before a race was less that the prescription for optimal! With that said it was a blast and something new.
The following day was the race not long after sunrise. The trails at Rocky Hill Ranch (actually in Smithville 1 hour east of Austin) were fast mix of double track, singletrack in the woods and an unfortunate mud bog! It gave way for some good racing. I can only speak personally on how the race progressed so I just missed the selection to the lead group of 6 riders but I was happy to be in the top 10 after 1 1/2 years off the racing radar. I had only goals to make top 20 with current work logged and fitness but racing brings the best out in me. I was getting hammered on the open sections by all the guys with good "road" fitness and was recovering or putting time back when we entered the trail. Still I was having a hard time doing my fair share of the work out in the open but I guess the others were going above their redline because even after stopping for my aid bottles on last lap, I caught back up to a small group and rode through them on the way to a 7th place overall finish in a time of 4:04. DJ crossed line in 4:43 at the end of the day with a goal to go sub 4:30 to get in Silver corral at LT100 but the muddier course was slower from previous years so that was tough. The 4x winner, Tristan was 7min slower as well as Dave Wiens was close to same off from last years results. Tough day to be on the bubble with slow muddy race conditions for a section of the course.
There were some learning experiences on this trip and some good coaching moments for sure. Three things came up that I think you'll benefit from. 1) Preparation of the average competitor, or lack there-of! 2) the reality that what you think matters really doesn't! and 3) the ability to adapt the plan. I'll cover the 1st here and then the latter 2 in future posts.
So I've been coaching DJ for 5+ years now and we've seen him improve dramatically with consistency from sub 10hr LT100 to just over 8hrs and ability to finish the entire NUE 100mi series and RME series on the podium simultaneously. He's got a work ethic and his background from marathon running helps. Why I explain that is we were discussing the approach....the process, to marathoning and it wasn't the event that was the big accomplishment but the progression runs, running with friends and just that the process to the event. We then discussed how many people, or I guess I should say, how few people take apply this same process to cycling preparation. I love continually learning and this was a chance while having a simple conversation while the miles ticked off. I also some sharing knowledge so this is your chance to benefit from a fundamental principle or mindset.
We were wondering how many people at the Rattler had actually followed a progression of mileage or workload increase to know they were prepared for the race. I bet very few because of how bad some people were suffering, how many DNFs, and how long it actually took some competitors. The reason behind this I believe is cycling allows a certain amount of ability to completely come unglued at the seams and still keep moving forward. You're supported by a high dollar piece of technology that allows you to coast, recover and keep moving forward with a full range of gears even when you hit the theoretical "wall"! In running, it's you and your legs. When you hit that wall, you are effectively walking. You can still move forward but damn even that is painfully slow compared to running. That "cushion" for finishing even when ill-prepared in cycling just reinforces the mentality of, "oh I haven't done the work, I'll just race through it and survive."
That's why I love coaching and racing. It's the process of both I enjoy that gets me and others to the finish line. There is often more than one way to get to that end result,but if you engage in the process and believe in it, then your fulfillment will become apparent on the path well before, not once you cross the finish line.
I encourage you to set small goals and milestones that progress to the bigger goal, like an event. Think like a marathoner when you think, "damn I can run 15mi!", but then you check off 8, 10, 12, 14, etc until you've surpassed it and running 20mi. At that point, you think again, "wow that was tough, another 6.2mi!?" And then you join with your running buddies and bang it out in the final progression. This is the mindset that more cyclists should use engaging a process of progression and adequate preparation so come event day you are truly ready.
No matter what, we always will question, "did I do the right thing or enough" and you want to be able to reflect on the work you logged and not trying to cram in at the last minute, like a final exam. As you make final approach to the event be confident in the work you've completed, freshen up, and toe the starting line. If you were still underprepared re-evaluate and use it to set future goals for better preparation.
Thanks for reading and check back in for some more knowledge on the two points I mentioned earlier; the reality that what you think matters really doesn't and the ability to adapt the plan.
 |
| So rocky only managed to snap this 1 pic of DJ |
The following day was the race not long after sunrise. The trails at Rocky Hill Ranch (actually in Smithville 1 hour east of Austin) were fast mix of double track, singletrack in the woods and an unfortunate mud bog! It gave way for some good racing. I can only speak personally on how the race progressed so I just missed the selection to the lead group of 6 riders but I was happy to be in the top 10 after 1 1/2 years off the racing radar. I had only goals to make top 20 with current work logged and fitness but racing brings the best out in me. I was getting hammered on the open sections by all the guys with good "road" fitness and was recovering or putting time back when we entered the trail. Still I was having a hard time doing my fair share of the work out in the open but I guess the others were going above their redline because even after stopping for my aid bottles on last lap, I caught back up to a small group and rode through them on the way to a 7th place overall finish in a time of 4:04. DJ crossed line in 4:43 at the end of the day with a goal to go sub 4:30 to get in Silver corral at LT100 but the muddier course was slower from previous years so that was tough. The 4x winner, Tristan was 7min slower as well as Dave Wiens was close to same off from last years results. Tough day to be on the bubble with slow muddy race conditions for a section of the course.
 |
| The hardware for the hard work. 2nd in 30-39AG |
There were some learning experiences on this trip and some good coaching moments for sure. Three things came up that I think you'll benefit from. 1) Preparation of the average competitor, or lack there-of! 2) the reality that what you think matters really doesn't! and 3) the ability to adapt the plan. I'll cover the 1st here and then the latter 2 in future posts.
So I've been coaching DJ for 5+ years now and we've seen him improve dramatically with consistency from sub 10hr LT100 to just over 8hrs and ability to finish the entire NUE 100mi series and RME series on the podium simultaneously. He's got a work ethic and his background from marathon running helps. Why I explain that is we were discussing the approach....the process, to marathoning and it wasn't the event that was the big accomplishment but the progression runs, running with friends and just that the process to the event. We then discussed how many people, or I guess I should say, how few people take apply this same process to cycling preparation. I love continually learning and this was a chance while having a simple conversation while the miles ticked off. I also some sharing knowledge so this is your chance to benefit from a fundamental principle or mindset.
We were wondering how many people at the Rattler had actually followed a progression of mileage or workload increase to know they were prepared for the race. I bet very few because of how bad some people were suffering, how many DNFs, and how long it actually took some competitors. The reason behind this I believe is cycling allows a certain amount of ability to completely come unglued at the seams and still keep moving forward. You're supported by a high dollar piece of technology that allows you to coast, recover and keep moving forward with a full range of gears even when you hit the theoretical "wall"! In running, it's you and your legs. When you hit that wall, you are effectively walking. You can still move forward but damn even that is painfully slow compared to running. That "cushion" for finishing even when ill-prepared in cycling just reinforces the mentality of, "oh I haven't done the work, I'll just race through it and survive."
That's why I love coaching and racing. It's the process of both I enjoy that gets me and others to the finish line. There is often more than one way to get to that end result,but if you engage in the process and believe in it, then your fulfillment will become apparent on the path well before, not once you cross the finish line.
I encourage you to set small goals and milestones that progress to the bigger goal, like an event. Think like a marathoner when you think, "damn I can run 15mi!", but then you check off 8, 10, 12, 14, etc until you've surpassed it and running 20mi. At that point, you think again, "wow that was tough, another 6.2mi!?" And then you join with your running buddies and bang it out in the final progression. This is the mindset that more cyclists should use engaging a process of progression and adequate preparation so come event day you are truly ready.
No matter what, we always will question, "did I do the right thing or enough" and you want to be able to reflect on the work you logged and not trying to cram in at the last minute, like a final exam. As you make final approach to the event be confident in the work you've completed, freshen up, and toe the starting line. If you were still underprepared re-evaluate and use it to set future goals for better preparation.
Thanks for reading and check back in for some more knowledge on the two points I mentioned earlier; the reality that what you think matters really doesn't and the ability to adapt the plan.
Labels: Austin Rattler, Coaching, fundamentals, Leadville 100, Matheny Endurance, principles, race report, Racing, Ultra endurance
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