Coach Troy's Sport and Life Lessons

We're in day 2 of Tucson camp #2 and having a great training experience so far. This camp includes 17 athletes from throughout the country and Canada... and as always, everyone is as nice as can be. We have some very accomplished athletes at this camp too... including a couple Ironman Hawaii finishers and some top age group athletes. The balance of experience levels is great with several folks new to endurance sports competition as well.

Yesterday, we rode our now infamous San Manuel ride, which is a challenging 70 miler, followed by a 30-40 minute run. The weather was great, with temps in the 60's and sunshine, but with some steady winds. After a lecture on nutrition, we went over to a former camper's home for dinner and drinks. Situated high in the Tortilita Mountains, this new resort-like home offered incredible views of the valley and the mountains.

This morning, over half of the group ran (some pictured here) the Arizona Distance Classic Half Marathon or 5K Road Race. It was a beautiful morning with temps in the low 40's warming to the 60's. The course is touted as 'rolling hilly' ... but most would agree it's a very tough race. Everyone had a great time and we'll be planning on this event again for future camps. Go here for results, http://www.arizonadistanceclassic.com/results.shtml

Those who chose not to run rode 50 miles instead. The runners then went out on a 1.5 hr 'easy spin' at noon to loosen the legs, which felt great! Then we had a 3 pm swim, totaling around 2500 yds, followed by a lecture on bike fit at 5pm.

Overall it was a great day of training in Tucson with cloudless skies, warm conditions and a nice mix of high intensity racing with some lower intensity recovery. Tomorrow (Monday) is our ride up Mt. Lemmon... always a memorable experience!

Train Smart,
- Coach Troy