Day 2

First off, I apologize for the lack of pictures. This website is not a team player when it comes to uploading pictures, so I have created a Flickr account for your viewing pleasure.

Now for the fun stuff!!!

We started out with a short warm-up ride that was pretty nice. You have no idea how great it feels to be able to walk outside in the sunshine and ride all morning. I put on entirely too much clothing for the ride, which means I overheated for the first portion.

After the warmup, we did a short Time Trial to break in to groups. I was not happy with my performance and it will probably set me back in a weaker group. This was my biggest fear about camp and I hope it works out in the end.

An hour in to the ride and I was ready to go for the rest of the day. I was making long, hard pulls in the group up really steep climbs. If I can warm up properly, I think tomorrow will be nice.

After that, I went with the Triathletes to the pool and swam 2500 yards, which felt amazing. I attended a lecture on training with power and then worked on bike handling drills. There has been zero breaktime today (with the exception of this) and I am loving it.

Tomorrow we are going to climb Mt. Figueroa. This thing will be a beast and will account for several hours of my day.

Anyways, it is dinner time and I am staaaarrrrvvvvviiiinnnnngggggg.

Here is the link for the photo album: http://www.flickr.com/photos/24187388@N04/

Ciao- Justin

Day 1

Wow.

It took a while, but the scenery is spectacular.

Monday was frustrating because my flight from ORD-LAX was delayed for 20 minutes, my flight from LAX-SBA didn't have a captain, so that was delayed for an hour and my ride from SAB-Solvang was stuck in traffic, so I waited for another hour.

After eating and introducing myself to people, I went to bed and slept later than I have in close to a year.

Today, we will ride for about 3 hours, do a 5-mile Time Trial to break in to groups and then I am going to swim.

More updates to come - Justin

Today is the day!!!!

After months and months of waiting, the day has arrived.

It is now 7:10 AM and I am trying to cram as many files on to my iPod as possible.

After a stretch and some core work, I will eat a large breakfast because I don't know if I will have the chance to eat lunch due to the crazy flight schedule.

I don't know what I will do when I arrive in to Solvang. They may have orientation or something, but I would rather go for a run just to open up the legs before tomorrow.

That is about it for now.

The next post you will read will coming from Solvang, California!!!!!


Vaarwel en goed geluk - Justin

1 more day......

I am almost ready to go. Mentally, I have checked out. Physically, I still have a bit of packing to do.

Thanks to my good friend Libby, I have enough Clif Blocks to last for the next 3 years, so yay.

My carry-on bag is assembled.

I have:

- pedals
- helmet
- shoes
- power meter
- camera
- limited toiletries

This way, I can still ride in the event of an airline screw up *knock on wood*


I am exhausted and I want to go to bed or take a nap, but there is still laundry to be done and things to be packed.

Still, it will be worth it in less than 24 hours - Justin

2 days until Camp......

I went all around Chicago today in search of nutrition, hydration and clothing for the forthcoming week.

Once I climb Mt. Figueroa (which will take a while), the winds up top will be pretty nasty and cold. For extra fun, I have to descend from said mountain at speeds close to 40 mph. Due to this, my feet will get cold. Thus, I purchased booties to cover my shoes and wool socks so my feet will be a little warmer.

For some reason, I cannot stand it when my feet are cold. My nose could have frostbite and my fingers could be solid ice, but when it comes to the feet, I need to make sure they are roasty-toasty.
While this proves to be a rather lame post, I promise you that it will get better - Justin

3 days until Solvang.......

Well, at the request of several people, I have decided to chronicle my adventures during my Spring 2008 camp.

Here are the basics:

1. I will be in Solvang, California from February 25-March 2 for my spring camp.

2. Solvang is just north of Santa Barbara, which means I will experience lots of fun climbs.

3. This camp is designed to test my physical and mental limits, both of which will be helpful as I train for Ironman Coeur d'Alene.

4. The weather in Solvang is 35x better than the weather in Chicago and St. Louis


Keep checking for updates as the days go on - Justin