Hey all,
As xmas in fast approaching so is the cold and snow, at least for us over here in europe. Its been a challenging period for training, as really its been shitty most of the time. I'm already into my 4th week of structured intervals from Benoit. Unlike a lot of riders, I do something specific almost every day. I never have done a lot of base hours, so normally my weeks would vary from 10-16hrs on the bike.

This winter I'v also decided to base all my training on the MTB. This is for a few reasons.. I felt last year I was lacking a little on steep climbs, which we only really find off road. I want more time for testing tires and material. And also, it is allowing me to explore a whole lot of cool tracks around my area that I'v never been on before! For my intervals I am dependent on power data, so you can see on my bike here I'm riding a road SRM, with only the 39 ring.. (the bigger ring is just for protection).. this is proving quite good for both strength and high cadence training !!! here's my bike right now...










I'm also continuing to learn how to use my altitude tent, which I started with already last winter. Its so nice not to have to travel to the top of a mountain to get this effect, but it can also be easy to push the altitude too high, which could potentially ruin everything. So I'm currently doing some trial periods to learn more about the effects it gives me, so when it comes to olympic time i'll know what works best for me.











Of course, its not all serious training. We have to keep things fun too. The snow is perfect for that, so I try to get out in it as often as possible for xc and dh skiing, or snowshoe walking etc.. as we did the other day with my road club..











So, now i'd like to wish everyone a very merry xmas.. and keep it fun !

kashi