Training Log - December 20-26

So, I was definitely tired at the end of last week. It was almost 18 hours of work and 26K of vertical skied. I look back and don't see an inordinate amount of intensity. I think the back to back 6 hour days had something to do with it. My sleep was also kind of crappy for part of the week. Whatever. I needed some rest. I decided to take an additional day off. This also helped me manage some social responsibilities. 

When I got back on skis Wednesday I was still out of sorts mentally. I wanted to do intervals but the motivation was not there. The hunger to suffer was lacking. I also forgot my head lamp. So, I decided to ski only in the lighted area of Snow King and just cruise, no pressure. I also had a b-day party to go to. I managed to get an hour and a half and 3,100 verts. Good enough.

I was sleeping better and Thursday dawned with some desire to get after it again. With the race looming, I felt it was time to do some longer, race pace efforts. The section of the King I chose took about 12 minutes to cover. I did 3 of these. The main goal was to explore the cadence and pacing I would be using come race day. All the super high intensity stuff is great for conditioning but does not necessarily help with the pacing issue. This needs to be practiced, obviously. I got in a good weight work out after the ski.

With the holiday upon me, I had a little more time to get some hours in but circumstances did not cooperate. I got out Friday with a mutant friend who just spent a couple of weeks fly fishing in the Caribbean. Add to that the fact that he is still on super-mondo tele gear and a slow day was had by all. This was good. I put him in front and it forced into a true recovery day. This was no plod on Snow King, however. We headed up 25 Short in the Park and dropped into Turkey Chute, a super sweet couloir off the summit ridge that drops into Avalanche Canyon. It added some nice adventure to an otherwise casual outing. Still managed 4 hours but only 3.5K. 

Christmas Day was a solo effort for me and I wanted to get a full 8k in. 25 Short was so good I headed back there. I made good time the first two times up but got disoriented in the trees at the top on the way down the second time. This put me on a fast track exit with no easy way back to the up track. Ha! Foiled again! Funny how lost I got. Could have sworn I was farther south. Oh well. Still logged 6K up and 3.5 hours of honest, steady ski time on race skis.

Sunday, I finished off a somewhat casual week with a mellow tour late in the day up on Teton Pass. I linked up some areas with shots I had never skied before. It was fun just covering ground, getting vertical but not really worrying about it. Totally mellow pace. Still good for 3.5 hours and 5K. Legs felt good so I went into the gym and did some light overhead squats and 3 x 30 reps. I even added 5 pounds to the final set and survived. Man, those still suck! So good for you, though.

Here's the breakdown:

Monday off

Tuesday off

Wednesday ski, Snow King, easy, short laps, 1.5 hrs., 3,100'

Thursday ski, Snow King, hard, race pace, 3 x 12 minutes, 2 hrs., 4,600'

Friday ski, 25 Short/Turkey Chute, easy, 4 hrs., 3,500'

Saturday ski, 25 Short, 2 laps, tempo, 3.5 hrs., 6,000'

Sunday ski, Teton Pass Tour, Edelweiss, East Mail Cabin, Moose Brush, Pass, easy, 3.5 hrs., 5,000', then, weights, overhead squat 3 x 30 reps, 30 min.

Totals 15:45, 22,200'

With only 2 weeks to go until Nationals here in Jackson, I have one more week to burn it. I'm focusing on getting to sleep as early as possible to better manage this most important training aspect. People are starting to get sick around town so we'll see if I can avoid that so close to the goal. - Brian