484 training and racing hours
My training plan started as a 500 hour year. After filling in my plan with my expected races and season length it added up to 481 expected hours. Although I surpassed the planned hours there were some times where I added non-training hours such as riding my bike to work and taking the dog for a walk. I estimate less that 5% of the 484 were non-training hours, leaving 460 actual training and racing hours. That is plenty. That is nearly 1/4th of a full time job.
Having a training plan is definitely beneficial for me as it motivates me to have a purpose to my bike rides, with the ultimate goal of improving my times and positions at important races.
4921 road miles
That's a lot of miles. Good thing I have a great bike.
1153 mountain bike miles
I find that number hard to believe. If I average 15 miles per mountain bike outing it means I got out on over 75 rides. As much as I would like that to be true, the number is likely inaccurate due to some road rides being added to it by mistake. I'm guessing the most I rode on the dirt is 500 miles, approximately 33 rides averaging 15 miles in length. That adds 653 miles to my road miles: 5574 road miles.
25 races
First race was April 10th, last race October 9th. A bunch of weekly races, weekend races, and stage races later: I am happy to be done. This was more than double the races I attended last year.
17 top tens
More than half my results were top ten. I had a season goal to achieve five and reached seventeen. I can live with that.
1 DNF
My only DNF is a crash at the Tour of Utah amateur criterium. I never quit a race nor had any mechanical misfortune which is great. I was fortunate that the crash did not impact my season; I walked away with minor bruises instead of broken bones.
Achieved season goals
Part of a training plan is to generate some measurable goals for the season. All three goals were achieved and the goals easiest to measure were clearly shattered. The mountain biking goal was achieved at 24 hours of Moab but is more of a binary result: Did it. Check.
1 out of 3 training objectives
Another portion of the training plan is to set up objectives to help reach the season goals. I threw some objectives together to improve my power output so I can improve my race results. I didn't reach my power improvement numbers. I achieved one out of three objectives: To train at least 4 days per week. Turns out that was very easy to achieve.
Suggestions for improvement
- Improve regular testing. VO2 max and power tests should be completed at least twice per year. If my most recent test is accurate it shows my heart rate zones have changed dramatically. I should also perform self-tests after each training cycle.
- Only log true training hours. Maybe. It ends up meaning more training since "family" and commuting time is excluded. Should result in better fitness.
