Penticton Training Camp

Riding in the group, very typical of the landscape surrounding Penticton.

I just returned from an excellent training block in beautiful Penticton BC. The week was spent with athletes from the national cycling center here in Calgary and aside from my main objective of training I was also responsible for being the camp mechanic and leading the "A" group along the areas scenic ribbons of tarmac.

The riding was great and I ended up doing everything from timetrials to long hilly rides to repeats up the famed Giant's Head climb, Carmi climb, Anarchist climb and Apex. In total I logged well over 1000km with a great deal of intensity on the climbs. The highlight of the week was the final day of riding on April 1st (my birthday) that included the Iron Man Triathlon loop with the addition of Green Mountain Road and the road up to the Apex ski resort. This final climb took about 1.5 hrs taking us well above the snowline and total climbing on the day ended up being a very solid 3200m.

Along the road up "Anarchist". This climb is 17 km long and steady making it ideal for sustained tempo efforts.

Another view down "Anarchist", notice the fine ribbon of pavement below.

The three muskateers on Anarchist. This trio spent the week off the front on every climb. Daniel on the front is an elite mountain biker from the Yukon who is actively pursuing a spot on Canada's national mountain bike team for the World's this year. Second wheel is Devon, a time trial specialist. Finally the dude in black is me, looking sharp I must say.

At the top of the Rictors Pass.

Thanks to Brian Robinson for providing the great pics. More to come, including the muskateers among the snowdrifts at the top of Apex. Stay tuned.