Twitter

You can check out my Twitter at http://twitter.com/NickWBB.

This website allows me to update what I am doing through texting.

Now I can write about myself even more.

It is actually a fun website to follow what other people are doing. You can follow me, and I would follow you too.

That is all for now, most of my updating this week is done on Twitter since internet is spotty in Bavarian Helen.

It doesn't get much colder than this...

So on Wednesday it was really sunny out, and I was able to convince Chris to ride with me. It was 13 degrees Fahrenheit air temperature and close to o degree wind chill.

Needless to say, it was really cold. I was actually so uncomfortable that I started riding harder just so I could get home faster. When I got home, I got a look of my reflection in the door. It looked a little something like this...Pretty intense, I know. It is kind of like those mountain climbing guys on the Discovery Channel. And by the way, this was the best I could do for a smile, my face was frozen and not very movable. Also by the way, I shaved so that this won't happen again anytime soon, because it is kinda gross.

Now, today it is 40 degrees Fahrenheit and it feels like summer. No matter what Punxsutawney Phil says, I think spring is coming soon. And if not, at least it should be warm in GA in a couple weeks.

January

Time for the monthly update, and for the first time since September, I actually have a good month to report.

With only five days off from training this month, I put in 49.78 hours either on bike or skis, and 257.8 miles outside in this cold and snowy January.

The only time I have ever put in more training hours in one month is last May, when I put in 51 hours (and that also was completely on the bike, and more MTB than road). This month is also much better than my January of last year, with 33.75 hours.

I was actually surprised to see the total, but also glad, because it means that I have been able to stick to my plan of actually getting a good base this winter so I don't fall apart next fall. Hopefully all this work will help when I toe the line in the Elite Class starting in April.

The lack of classes this semester should really help me to be able to keep up the pace, and hopefully even step it up a little more for next month. With only 12 credits (at least on paper), and spring break at the end of the month, it could be a really good February.

That is all. Happy Groundhog's Day on Monday!

Epic Bonk

Yesterday while skiing I experienced my third worst ever bonk.

Quick Recap of the first two:
1. 24 Hours of Boyne 2004 when I was so low on blood sugar at 2 AM that I actually fell asleep (or passed out) while riding down the final downhill section. When I hit the tree, I didn't even care, I just took a little nap. When I got up to start riding again, it actually happened again. I finally got back 30 minutes after I should have (safely). (Picture to the right is before the race- 5 years ago- crazy)
2. My first ever century (solo) in 2005. The ride ended up being about 115 miles and my body couldn't handle the extra 15. When I finally got home after only barely turning the pedals, I got changed and went to the grocery store to buy ice cream. I think I ate a whole half gallon of ice cream.

So the thing about bonking is it can really suck. Especially when you are skiing and there are still about 3 miles left of hills. About two and half hours in, I just started falling apart. I didn't want to move anymore. I started getting chills, and all I wanted was to be done.

Luckily my body is resourceful and started burning something else (I am still hoping it was fat and not muscle), but I was able to recover and get back to the van with out passing out. It was a close call though. Next time I will bring lots of food for a 3.5 hour ski session at Poto.

Steve also bonked really hard, but didn't quite recover as well, so he was in the double-bonk phase by the time we finished.

Snow

This past weekend was full of fun, but hard riding and skiing.

Saturday some of us went out into the snowstorm on our mountain bikes and did some dirt road riding. The snow was coming down hard and fast and the roads were impossible. It was very difficult to stay in a straight line, and just as difficult to stay upright on the bike on some roads. There were some sections that were so icy, that if you went down, you slid for a long time. The first time I crashed, I just started laughing. But even funnier than when I fell, was when others went down. We ended up going only 18 miles in 2 hours, but it was one of my favorite rides to date.

After the ride, I ate some lunch and then Brendan and I went skiing in the Arb. We were out for a little over an hour and half. There were some really fun downhills and some good uphills that helped build up my confidence on the skis. After the two activities, I was pretty tired, but quite happy with a day full of snowy fun.

Sunday, Steve and I went skiing at Brighton. The trail was actually pretty hard packed and fairly well groomed, so it was a really good time. I only crashed about two times, so I am definitely improving. This day was also pretty tough, though. There were some tough uphills, one of which my heart rate got over 180.

So, instead of years past when I got upset when it snowed, I embraced the snow this weekend and had a lot of fun. I think it is supposed to stay cold and keep snowing all week, so the fun isn't over yet.

2008

I thought I would put down the numbers from 2008 really quick. I ended up with 395 hours, 5129 miles, about 2000 of which was on the MTB. Half of my time was spent on the MTB- hopefully I can step that up a bit more this year.

With 5 race wins and the State Championship, it turned out to be a really good year. Collegiate season was pretty anticlimactic after such a good summer season, but with my training plan this year (a lot more base), I think that shouldn't happen next fall (of course if I go out east or out west, I am probably going to get my butt kicked anyway).

So now it is time to ride lots. Last week I put 15 hours in, with 200 miles outside. This week has been a little harder to get outside, but I am still putting a good amount of time in. (Yes, I cracked and started riding inside- there are some days it just isn't worth it to freeze my butt off.)

Hockey

After skiing for five days in a row, and because the weather is pretty nasty outside, I decided I would go play hockey. It is kind of a ritual for me now to go play once a year to remind myself that it is a pretty fun sport.

It is a lot different from mountain biking. I thought for sure, since I ride so much and am in such good shape, hockey would be no problem. But sprinting from one end of the ice to the other still makes me have to take a little breather. My feet were hurting most of the time, and I have blisters on my heels now, most likely where calluses used to be.

I was a little worried at first that I would have forgotten how to skate and handle a puck. It came right back though. It just like riding a bike (although that phrase has a different meaning now).

Anyway, it was fun to play again and I hope that there is intramural hockey wherever I go to grad school, but after all this skiing and hockey, I am very excited to get back on the bike for the long cold rides of January.