By Brad Culp
March 19, 2007 -- If yesterday was an easy day, then why do my legs still hurt so damn much? So much for recovery. I suppose I can do that when I get home. It’s day five of Troy Jacobson’s spring training camp, in Oro Valley, Arizona and there’s nothing easy on the schedule today.
However, I’ve never been one to let a schedule control me, so today I decided to edit Troy’s schedule just a bit. This morning kicked off with Troy running a few VO2 max tests on those campers who were brave enough to
suffer. Note: I was sleeping through all of this nonsense.
When the tests were done, it was time to set out on a group ride. We began from our home base of Oro Valley and made the steady, 25-mile rise up to the remote town of Oracle. From there, it was a killer descent down to the
even-more-remote town of San Manuel. This is where myself, and my partner-in-crime, Ross, deemed it necessary to make a few edits.
You see, we made the mistake of visiting the nearby Hilton resort yesterday and we ended up booking massages for this afternoon. After five days of letting Troy destroy my legs, some one-on-one time with a massage
therapist was in order.
We created our own turnaround, about five miles before the scheduled turnaround and started to pound our way back home. Nothing was going to keep us from missing our appointments. What was a false-flat on the way
out was now a noticeable downhill and we were flying. The two of us finished the final 25 miles in under an hour and before we knew it, we were living large at the Hilton.
Now, I felt just a little guilty for missing the transition run that was on the schedule, so I made up for it with a core workout while Ross was enjoying his massage. After my turn, we capped off the afternoon of relaxation with some time in the sun and the resort’s many hot tubs.
On tap for tonight is a lecture on bike fitting and a group dinner at a local camper’s house. And for the first time in a week, I’m sure my legs will feel great all night.
Unfortunately, the feeling won’t last. Tomorrow we’ll be going up, around and back up Gates Pass for the second time this week. Hopefully that massage pays off.
To find out more about Troy and his camps, visit www.coachtroy.com.