It is a different experience observing a race from this side of the screen. I've done many 24 hour races and consider the ultra endurance mountain biking as my favorite style of race. The mental and physical challenges of testing myself against the distance, the terrain and the chances of failure - as well as the opportunity to explore the unknown. Outside of occasional blue dot stalking on Track Leaders, I never paid much attention to events that I was not at. All that has changed the past year as my athletes have taken on races around the country. I've found myself obsessively checking results and following blue dots to make sure that everything is going according to plan. Not that I'd be able to change the outcome sitting at my computer, but I wanted to know. At Arrowhead 135, it was just watching the dot moving along. I knew Judd was moving slower then he wanted, but also was reading reports from the trail - about how soft the snow was and how hard the riding was. E...

Is your mind helping or hurting? The mind is a powerful advantage - but also the weakest link when it comes to endurance sports. Too many things to think about, outcomes to consider and possibilities to ponder. Instead of turning off the brain, the outcomes overwhelm and you begin to second guess the training, the preparation and the goals. Planning for a variety of outcomes is one thing, but allowing them to overwhelm is a completely different story. Not contemplating the potential pitfalls is one way to handle the influx of information, but not that may lead to less then satisfactory results. So what to do? Build on the knowledge and base you have gained through training to confidently be ready for whatever happens. It calls for being willing to head out in all conditions, knowing that clothing choices are appropriate. It also calls for understanding the course and the the history of the event so you have a baseline for the possible conditions you could face. Instead of becoming over...

Or why constantly looking for the athlete you were can lead to trouble... We've all been there - a season or two removed for competion in sports for what ever reason. When it comes time to return to that sport, it's also time for the glorious comeback - reclaiming the speed, power or skill that once defined us athletically. There are plenty of stories of athletes suffering major injuries and then finding themselves at the pinnacle of their sport again. The comebacks happen, but with less frequency among the weekend warriors or life long athletes then the premier elites. One major reason is that many life long athletes don't have the resources of the elites. We don't have the ability to hop in a plane so the top surgeon can work is magic. We are usually stuck with which ever doc the insurance company will pay for. We also usually don't have unlimited access to PTs and world class gyms. It might be 24 visits and rehabbing at 24 hour fitness. So comparing our abili...

After another successful outing at the 25 Hours of Frog Hollow, I took some time to look over the results and the lap times teams were riding. One thing struck me - and it's something I've noticed before in these lap style endurance races. The teams who finished on the podium, especially those on the top step, were not just the fastest. Speed helps, but it was the consistency of the riders as the race progressed that really sealed the deal. Granted, the lap times don't always tell the whole story. Someone who was riding 1:05 laps and all of a sudden has a 1:45 lap might have had a mechanical or such happen out on course. But the trends are still there. If a mechanical was the reason, the next lap usually drops back down. Looking just at the Coed Duo, which is the class Nick and I race, the combo of speed and consistency was what won the race for us. It's easy to be fast for a few laps, but at what cost? For the top three teams, the men's first lap was all within 3 m...

A lot goes into getting ready for a race of any length. Most of the focus is on the training - long days, intervals and other physically tasking workouts. That's where the majority of the time spent and it's also the easiest to talk about. People understand intervals, track workout, long rides and recovery days. Really, the training is only part of preparation for a race. There are other, less noticeable and glamorous areas that have to be addressed with just as much focus. It's the non-training basics that can make or break any race, from a 5k to a 100 mile running event, a sprint triathlon to an iron distance race, and from a 20 minute short track to a 24 hour race. Along with the training, the pre-race preparation should become part of the schedule. It's not something to ignore until the day comes to leave for the venue. What are some of the bigger areas of pre-race preparation? Gear is one of the biggest in my mind when something as simple as the wrong socks can r...

We all have them - that point where we are happiest, relaxed and just comfortable. It doesn't matter if it's in life or on the bike, we settle into those comfort zones and stay there - either not realizing that we are there or unwilling to make a change. And sometimes, that's okay. There's not always a reason to push the limits or make drastic changes. Until there is. Until there is something that makes us realize that there is a whole world out there, filled with new experiences. Then that comfort zone becomes a barrier holding you back.   On the bike, comfort zones tend to be speed and technically related. "I'm not fast enough to line up with those girls, I'll get my ass kicked." or "That rock garden scares me so I'm not going to sign up for that race." But wait a minute. Re-read those statements. Presented like that, the comfortable sounds like a limiter, doesn't it? Instead of just keeping us safe and happy, it's holdin...

So, you've done all the intervals and training - the long rides and the night rides. The time is approaching,   the goal 24 hour race. Once the race starts, how can you ensure that you will have the best and most successful race possible under the conditions given? The answer is simple - a 24 Hour Race Plan. Not a training plan - but a race plan. A template for the race, reducing the stress, worry and possibility of things going wrong at 2:00 AM. A plan based on your goals, designed to help you and your team achieve the most number of laps possible. And this goes for more then just the mountain biking races - even runners at the 24 hour races can benefit from having a solid plan   Thelen Coaching provides something no other coach does - the years of experience in the pits at 24 hour races across the country. From a 24 Hour Solo National Championship to numerous duo podiums, I've proven that having a solid race plan with consistent performance can beat faster riders withou...