Going Tempo

Yesterday training was all about that ohh so sweet tempo riding. A many a pros will talk about tempo riding. If you have ever read any article which a pro is interviewed or listened to them talk you probably heard "tempo." What is it exactly? There are probably several definitions but if you follow Friel's ranges from CyclingPeaks, then is 76-90% of threshold. My definition is: "go as fast as retardly possible for 3 hours without blowing up and without significant power decay." So yesterday I did just that. Riding tempo alone is like racing for 3 hours by yourself without any moto escorts and having to ramp it up after each stop light, nature break, or idiot driver that causes you to stop. Because you can't let your power avg go below your tempo goal. You see, tempo riding is not about just pushing it for 10min or 30min but for 180min or more! At the end, you feel exhausted, hungry and hopefully satisfied with the solid work of the day. Wed was tempo day for me. I did 3 hours and it was everything its cracked up to be: fast, hard, exhausting, calorie crunching, and satisfying. I was happy with the way I responded following the 20min threshold intervals on Tam late Tuesday afternoon(which I consequently set a new 20min avg power number).

For those who are struggling to figure out what to do with your training. Go for some tempo. I think its probably one of the best all-around workouts. Especially if you are crunched for time or if you need something a little spicy. It satisfies a gamet of training needs and can keep you in great shape over the winter periods when your training hours are limited. So go tempo young man!

Now on a sad note for the day, Scottish time-trial champ, Jason MacIntyre, was tragically hit and killed by a van while returning from a training ride. He was only a 34 and considered one of the great Scottish cyclists and an Olympic hopeful. My deepest sympathy goes out to his wife, kids and family. These stories all make me count my blessings as I could have and by all records should have met the same conclusions as this one and many others. Road cycling is inherently dangerous when automobiles come into the scene. People ask me if I am scared to go riding. Because I lost consciousness when I was blindsided by the truck, I don't have memory of the actual pain at impact. I only got to experience the pain when I awoke. I'm definitely more aware of autos around me but actually get more worried when i see other riders near cars. Especially those without helmets and those that are riding sketchy. One thing that you have to realize is that no matter how correct you, as a cyclist, are, the auto will ALWAYS win. Sure you might get roll into a sweet gravy train years down the road but the costs are no where near the potential for a gravy train. I lost 2 months of my "normal" life and not to mention the ongoing physical pain I have experienced in my pelvis and shoulder. Be careful out there, and watch out for cyclists. The tragedies need to end.

~Matthew