Habrich and the Sky Pilot group on a threatening day.
Sometimes I struggle a bit with motivation. I realize this is a bit strange coming from someone who lives in one of the most beautiful places in the world but the truth is that it’s possible to get into a routine no matter where you are and start to take things for granted. No doubt, summer in BC is fantastic. The alpine adventures are endless. I still however find myself circling back to some of the same spots and establishing those routines.
My goals for the summer were to rack up volume and spend as much time in the alpine as possible – pretty vague. I’m a goal oriented guy so by the end of the summer, despite doing some pretty rad stuff, I was starting to lose motivation and the creativity that is necessary to approach adventures in the mountains.
Being the amazing teammate that Pascal is, when I mentioned my waning motivation, he shipped me the three Swiss Topo 1:50k maps that cover the PDG race course (along with a bar of Swiss chocolate). The Swiss are pretty serious about their maps and these maps are sweet. They are now taped together on the wall of my office with the race course highlighted.
Luckily, while the fall brings rain that keeps us in the valley, it is also a motivating time of year for me for a few reasons:
First, I’ve nailed down the majority of my race calendar, including my main goals of the year, a quick trip back to Europe in April for the Long Distance World Cup races Tour du Rotur (TdR) and the Patroulle de Glaciers (PDG). Having a concrete season goal is a big first step towards finding that motivation. On top of this, I’m pretty excited about my teammates for both events. Nick will join me for TdR but has to be back to BC for law school finals. For PDG, I’ll partner up with Pascal Egli from Switzerland (with whom I raced Mezzalama last year) and Lars Erik Skjervheim from Norway (we climbed Mt. Blanc). Pretty much a dream team for both events. If living up to the standards set by these guys isn’t enough motivation, there isn’t much hope…
Head between the knees kind of intervals this time of year. 3×11 minutes L4 uphill with poles.
Fall also means more structured training. I’m moving away from just volume and doing more specific intensity workouts intended to push up my lactate threshold and build ski strength. Having specific goals each day is easier to stick to than ‘just getting out’ and intervals sessions become mini goals in themselves.
Finally, I’m working with strength coach JF Plouffe to make sure my legs are strong enough for the downhill ski aspects of racing. This was a major weakness that I identified last season so strength sessions are a priority.
It’s time to train hard and hope that the rain on the roof is falling as snow somewhere up high.
In the mean time, check out ski movies:
Happy Winter (Anything by Bjarne Salen is awesome)
My overly tight posterior chain has led to tight calves, especially when I run uphill (almost all of my training sessions). This has been manifesting as foot pain and the awesome Dr. Greenwood (Paul) has been helping release those muscles and free up the bones in my feet!