Getting into a Rhythm.

Alright, so here is a look at what the last week or so has brought us here in Winooski.



Late last week (actually right before the last post), the Nordic Team went down to UVM for the first round of a movement study by the University of Auckland!
Saturday was race day (see last post), and Sunday was a nice easy shakeout day around Instant Park.


By Friday, my leg was acting up, so I decided to go for a nice chilly ride around Colchester. it was a cloudy day, and not much for sights up there.
On Saturday came one of my favorite workouts, UVM Track repeats. I felt pretty good during my set with Tyler and Mike, 12:00 at :90/lap, 800m recovery, 9:00 at :85-:87/lap, 800m recovery, then 12:00 at :88-:90/lap + hard lap at the end. After the 9 minute set my calf started to act up, but throwing on a compression sleeve helped for the last set, which I held steady at :88 for the last 6 minutes.



Also on Saturday was the 'Grand Opening' of the new MetroRock Climbing Gym in Essex, so naturally I went to get some vertical with Jamie, Julie, and Chris.

And Sunday, the coldest day of the week, Coach had me do a 2hr ride rather than the hour and a half run, take the pressure off my knees and calf for a little while. Although it was freezing, I still had a blast trying out a new route. 

I think I have finally found my rhythm this year, with the added commute from the north edge of campus every day to the new major. This Saturday MXC is racing at the Middlebury College Aldrich Invitational, a rather new one for the team.

One Week

Preseason has ended, and school has begun.

We wrapped up our week with a run on the Rollin Irish Half Marathon Course in Essex, VT. Coach only wanted me running about an hour so I didn’t get to run the whole thing, but still managed a little over 7.5 miles.

Gil crushing the course with a 1:24:21



The next day, I rode into BTV to watch the last two races of the Green Mountain Stage Race, the Cat2 and Cat1/Pro Crits.




And I got a flat tire on Wednesday.


RACE REPORT
Saturday was the first race of the season, the Shacklette Invitational at Saint Anselm College. Being our first race, I wasn’t really sure what to expect coming into the day. I felt good for the first mile and a half, holding between 5:30/mi and 6:00/mi for the first two miles. Then I burnt out a bit. I had gone out just a bit too hard, clocking in at 5:10 for the first mile, and was the #1 Knight to the two-mile mark. I fought back for the last two miles after trying to do my best recovering on the third mile, and pulled out a 30:15, good enough for 44th place overall and third for the Purple Knights. Race pacing has always been a weak spot of mine, and I think that I need to rethink (or come up with) a better strategy for the future.


Preseason and the end of the Placid Life

Well, my summer in the Empire State has ended, and I have moved back to the 802 for some preseason training with the SMC Men's Cross Country Team. Since I haven't updated in a while, here's just a brief rundown of the past week or so.



I wrapped up my jumping sessions after Coach Chris Lamb left for school. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to ride the K90 this summer (maybe later this fall).



Got to do a little Stand Up Paddleboarding on the big lake. It's quite the ab workout. Cruised around for a few hours on my last day before moving back to campus.
Then I moved back to school! Preseason with Cross Country started on Sunday and continues until Sunday.  This week has mainly been a high mileage week, with double sessions every day.
On Tuesday we ran a team favorite route, Dugway Road. A 6-7 mile out-and-back in rural Huntington, VT. Went out for a good 7.7 miles, dropping the pace each mile. It felt nice going fast for a while. 


And then afterwards the team went to the Bolton Potholes, a natural swimming hole nearby. The natural ice bath felt so nice on such a warm day.
And some wiffleball was played.


The following day, we travelled north to the Grand Isle town of South Hero. Tyler and I did a nice, fast-paced run with some surges on the way back, playing with some sub-5:00 pacing. 


Yesterday, we travelled back down to Huntington for our first session with the SMC Women's XC team. We ran the trails at Sleepy Hollow Inn, doing a nice easy strength run on winding single track.


Things are feeling good so far. I haven't been nursing any injuries like last season, and my training pace has quickened by quite a lot. 

Classes start up Monday, with my first semester of Media Studies and journalism.