Contributing Trifuel coaches Patrick McCrann and Rich Strauss spent last week riding with Levi, Basso, and the Tour of California. Well, maybe not with them, but they took a group of Triathletes and rode all the stages for an Epic bike camp and journey. Read Patrick's report...

Intro
IronCamp was created by endurance coaches Rich Strauss (www.cruciblefitness.com) and Patrick McCrann (www.performancetrainingsystems.com) to provide age-group triathletes with annual opportunities to boost their endurance fitness and do cool stuff. In its second year, IronCamp West Coast was built around the Tour of California. The concept was to pre-ride six of the TdC's seven stages ahead of the peloton, giving participants a chance to complete six killer point-to-point rides ranging from 75 to 110 miles. The following is a summary of our (mis)adventures over the last week; for full details, visit the IronCamp Blog (www.ironcamp.blogspot.com).

Stage One: Marin to Santa Rosa: 97 miles
Right out of the gate we were suffering in Muir Woods...it was beautiful, but it was straight up. No real time to check out the amazing scenery, it was just shift, stand, shift, sit, repeat. Before you knew it, we were off to the rolling seacoast...and the wind. Killer scenery blended into one big blur while we focused on the uphills and downhills. You almost didn't want to go up because you knew after the down there would be another up. This rolling terrain was capped by four miles of 30+ mph winds off the water...we were all riding at a sick angle! Putting the wind at our backs only meant that we were hitting the first King of the Mountain (KOM) of the tour, a narrow, winding road framed by magnificent pastures and dairy farms. Fans were all along this 3 mile stretch, and the roads were painted with pro names. Later in the day, the peloton would hit this as one big pack of 140+ riders as the prevailing winds didn't allow the group to really split up.

After this section, there were some significant rollers that finally...finally...tapered down into Santa Rosa. We regrouped just on the outskirts of town and crushed some massive burritos while we waited for the peloton to show. Turns out they were over an hour late because of the weather...some of the fans were really ticked that the racers were later than scheduled. We rolled up to watch the 3 x 3 mile circuit of the town and were there to see Levi (and many others) struggle to finish with some serious road rash. The stage was won by Graeme Brown of Rabobank, but the peloton was given the same time by race commissars as the crash happened in the last five kilometers.

Stage Two: Santa Rosa to Sacramento: 110 miles
After yesterday's epic ride along the coast, everyone was really looking forward to a good night's sleep. Today's stage had it all: great weather, hills, killer views, amazing descents, vineyards, wineries, and a massive headwind. Things really got cooking with a solid 19 minute climb for most, with some great turns and views. We dropped down from that into Napa Valley and rolled right by some grade-a wineries and through gorgeous vineyards. The terrain was surreal...we rolled right out the other side into the climb out of Napa Valley and into the flats of Davis.

Davis, home of former pro-triathlete Steve Larsen (and more bike paths than the entire eastern seaboard combined), was awesome. We stopped at the 88-mile mark to eat some real food, and then it was back on the bikes towards Santa Barbara. We had a sick tailwind for 3 miles...so sick we were taking turns leading the group at 30mph! Unfortunately after that, we had to turn into the wind and were on some chip-seal roads. We were hurting and the tour entourage of cars, bikes, support crews, etc, rolling past on the way to the finish put some serious pressure on the group. Waiting for the peloton, we saw the last legs of an ill-fated breakaway by a Slipstream rider. After the peloton regrouped, J.J. Haedo of CSC won the stage with a Herculean sprint.

Stage Three: Stockton to San Jose: 80 miles
Today's stage, intended to be a light day, proved to be pretty tough on us real-world folk. Starting in the farmland outside of Stockton had us riding on rough chip-seal roads with a good headwind for the first 1.5 hours...just like we had finished in yesterday. The climb at Peterson's Pass...a nice rolling climb of about 1600 ft over 10 miles...got us back on track. We were at the feed zone before we knew it; amazing how 50 miles feels like nothing after 200 miles in two days!

After some killer sandwiches, coke, Fritos and Advil, we were off to the next climb. Some 15 miles of twisting and winding road brought us out on a ridge overlooking Lake Berryesa and some amazing scenery. A great sweeping descent put us right into the outskirts of San Jose, and the lead up to the biggest climb of the day: Sierra Road. This climb was a real beast...sections at 16% grade were broken up with random flat sections. Lots of fans here, and the further up you went, the more crowded it got. After everyone hit the top, we rolled down and waited for the peloton. We didn't have to wait too long. By the time the climb was done, Levi had taken the KOM points and was in an elite group of five. This group lasted all the way to the finish, with Jens Voigt taking a close finish.

Stage Four: Seaside to San Luis Obispo: 85 miles
Today's stage was set up to be the longest of the tour...a whopping 130+ miles, all along the Pacific Coast Highway. Also known as the PCH, this road is the scenic route down the coast. If you don’t know why you ride a bike, you’ll discover it’s so that you can experience the California coast on a bicycle. Unfortunately, we woke up to pouring rain and 40-degree temperatures. We drove ahead to have breakfast further in Big Sur as we waited for the weather to break. As soon as the sun came out, we quickly got ready on the side of the road and were fortunate enough to link up with a group of 10 riders who were on their way towards San Luis Obispo. The weather was perfect and things were moving along quite well until the KOMs appeared (yes, plural). Suffering from the work, we stopped in Cambria for smoothies and got rolled up by a flying peloton. Twenty minutes later, after the 7-man break and the peloton rolled through, we hit the road again. There was one more short hill and then we were on the way down - with a nice tailwind - to Morro Bay. After all the amazing scenery, we were psyched to get a glimpse of two elephant seals fighting over turf on the beach. Paolo Bettini won in a bunch sprint. We rolled to Solvang and had dinner at The Hithching Post--that restaurant / bar from the movie Sideways!

Stage Five: Time Trial in Solvang, CA - 14.5 miles
Today's stage was a short (for the pros!) time trial effort around the town of Solvang, CA. We pre-rode the course in the morning, took a detour off of the TT course and went out to a local canyon for some solid riding. The terrain and scenery was again incredible: green pastures, wineries, and a dusting of snow on the mountains and hills to the north. Some campers got crazy muddy trying to free the car of a tourist from the mud on the side of the road. We returned to the TT course, climbed the technical hill and then rode the killer descent back into town. We were on road bikes soft pedaling at 25 miles an hour. Hard to imagine what the pros would do! Rich got swept up by a half dozen CHP motorcycles and cruisers, promptly jumping in for some motor pacing and pro-esque riding!

Rolling into town, we hit a local bakery for some Danishes and coffee. Chilling out front, we snapped some photos of the pros zipping around and testing their equipment one more last time. Man these guys are skinny!!!! It was pretty amazing to see the studs ripping the course up. Levi was grade A fast over the day...we watched on the Jumbotron as he kept his nose to the knuckles on his aerobars through the head / crosswinds and then powered his way through the final 15k. Pretty amazing stuff. In the picture below you can not only see that Levi is working, you can also see the nice raspberry on his shin from the crash at the end of Stage One!

Stage Six: Santa Barbara to Santa Clarita: 100 miles
Today ended up being one of the best dang days to ride of the entire tour. Almost 100 miles and virtually no wind at all, temps in the mid-60s. Four KOM sections and two sprints. Tours of orange groves...it just doesn't get any better! We started just outside of Santa Barbara, and the first ten miles were pretty easy going through the high rent districts of Santa Barbara until we hit back-to-back KOMs. The hard work paid off, giving campers some incredible views of Lake Casitas. After rolling through Ojai, it was off to climb Balcom Canyon, once-again lined with thousands of folks. While the police were interested in the number of people on the hill, our group was more interested in the observed percent grade of 18+%. Can you say ouch??? A truly epic climb, even though it was short. We rolled in for another quick food break, and then it was off to Santa Clarita. This was a net uphill section, but the road felt pretty forgiving. We finished the ride into town with the group including Saul Raisin, and then waited for the peloton to arrive. Things were interesting with a seven man break as the riders entered town; the peloton was 1:25 down...but by lap two the deficit was only 40 seconds, and by the final lap the break had been rolled up. Another sprint finish, a second stage victory by J.J. Haedo of CSC.

The Outcome
The average camper got in 20-25 hours of riding and anywhere from 375 to 450 miles on the bike. There was no running and swimming as folks barely had the energy to pedal, eat, and sleep! Hard to believe we managed to go a whole week with no flat tires or serious mechanical issues! The best part of the camp wasn't necessarily the scenery or the riding--it was meeting and hanging out with cool folks who enjoy pushing their bodies into the unknown.

IronCamp West Coast 2008
Very simply, we want to create an incredible training experience for our customers next year.

Consider:

• The largest cycling race in the US is kind enough to scout out, mark, and in some cases control the best roads in the state for us. We took as many pictures as we could but they really don’t do the tour justice. The most consistent comment from the campers was the wide variety of terrain offered by each stage. For example, Stage 1 climbed out of Sausalito through Muir Woods, with huge trees lining the road. We then dropped down to the coast and were treated to waves crashing on rocks, and quaint seaside towns (BBQ oysters!). The course then jogged inland up Coleman Valley Road, a narrow paved cow path through incredible pastures and dairy farms, then descending into lush green valleys, past world famous wineries and finishing in Santa Rosa, a major hub of the California wine industry. And this was just the FIRST day!
• The race is also nice enough to bring people out on the course to cheer you on as you tackle the KOM’s or sprint against your shadow or fellow campers in small towns. We called this the Yahoo Coefficient: as you neared KOM’s, sprints, or the race closed in behind you, the number of spectators, fellow cyclists, yahoos and characters increased exponentially. What other camp offers a 5k climb at 10-16% grade through a wall of screaming and cheering fans?
• Many prospective campers expressed concern about the high cycling volume of the camp so early into the season. However, during the camp we quickly learned that is neither necessary nor desirable to do every mile of every stage:
  • Each stage has a 3-7 mile neutral zone, which is simply a parade through town to the good stuff where the racing actually starts.
  • Most stages finished with a 7-10 mile circuit race around the finishing town. Once you go into that circuit it’s difficult to get around and link up with the support vehicle.
  • Admin miles solo or in a 2-3 person group are significantly different from what pros experience tucked into a 150+ rider peloton. The estimated times on the route sheets (what time the race is expected at each turn, sprint, KOM, etc) STARTS at 24mph. These guys are friggin’ flying and a 5’ water or potty stop means the peleton just rolled you up by about 2 miles. This definitely lends a sense of urgency to the day but don’t underestimate how hard it is to stay away from these guys when they light the burners.
  • These are hard friggin’ courses. They’ve found the hard stuff on purpose, not gone around it.

  The net is that an A rider (sub 5:30 IM bike split) can expect to ride 75-85 miles in 4.5-5.5hrs. A B rider will see 50-65 miles in 4-5hrs. Trust us, by the time you trim off the fat above and add admin time on the front and back ends of each stage, that’s enough. We estimate we can provide a high quality training camp for sub 6:15 IM bike split athletes.

• Many prospects asked us about swim/run opportunities during the camp. Our advice: don’t ruin an epically cool training experience by being a tri-dork. Just ride the bike for a week, it’s enough. Seriously, part of what made the tour so special was how many towns we were able to experience, as the organizers often finished in one town and started in another. This necessitated a portage of bodies, bikes and bags 40-70 miles at the end of the day, which typically began with wheels up at 7 or 8am so we could stay ahead of the race. Again, don’t be a geek, just ride.
• We’ve done it, we’ve figured out the logistics, and are confident we’ll have a very solid game plan for 2008: lead/chase vehicles, hotels, restaurants, communications, insert/extract points for A/B riders, jerseys, shirts…and ass cream, we’ll have it all dialed in!

Are you interested in the cycling experience of a lifetime, one that will challenge your legs and senses, creating special memories and friendships? Stay tuned to www.ironcamp.com as we develop our plans and publish registration details. I know that Rich and I are already counting to days to when the race publishes the ’08 course!