Possible first race this coming weekend!

So as of right now, I am supposed to have my referee fitness test on Sunday. I need to do the fitness test to be able to upgrade (4-step process and I already completed 2 out of the 4 steps). Fortunately, there are 2 other days that have the fitness test later in the year. Bad part is that I have to do the fitness test in Maryland because thats where I've done everything else even though I'm registered in Jersey. So I have to see if I'll be able to come back down to do the fitness test.

So, lets go over my plan in case I'm racing this weekend.

Monday - Already did a 12-mile ride to help get my legs loose from reffing the PDA Spring Challenge tournament this weekend. My legs are definitely not happy with me so thats probably it for today, although I think I'm going to raise my seat a tich (yes, a tich is an official measurement :P ). Possible bike cleaning too, but thats more doubtful.

Tuesday - Go for a ride depending on how my legs are feeling. Will definitely be stretching for a while at some point. Will probably wind up doing some sort of ride since my last class ends at 10:50 AM and I dont have anything to do until Symphonic Band at 5:40.

Wednesday - MAJOR stretching session during the day (minimum 30 minutes, probably closer to an hour). Team ride at 8 PM and with the new tradition of hitting up Heidi's Brooklyn Deli (so good its only 1 block from the White House).

Thursday - Very light ride with a couple sprints thrown in. Probably going to play one of my obscure sports like squash or raquetball to get my mind off of cycling so that way I'll be able to focus when it counts this weekend.

Friday - NADA. Off day. No work. Zip. Only things to do on friday will be waking up too early to turn in my econ problem set and then FYDP presentation with my group later in the day.

Saturday - Race time! Don't get dropped. Finish in the top half. Rep G-Dub!

Also currently working on making a new working song. Got 4:30 done so far. If you wanna hear it, let me know. I'll send you the MP3.

Breathe Damnit Breathe! (A blog about lung power)

So throughout my past bunch of years, I've always been involved in activities that required lots of air and control, so I've come up with some traditional and some non-traditional ways to improve the amount of air one can hold and control of their air support.

1.
Equipment needed : none
Place learned : Voorhees High School Concert Band

Breathe in (as if yawning) until you cannot anymore.
Hold for 10 seconds
Make a small "o" shape with your mouth
Push all the air out fast and controlled until you have no air left
Hold for 10 seconds
[Repeat multiple times]


2.
Equipment needed : A pool and a friend
Place learned : Bernardsville Swim Team

***note: Only do this when you have a friend with you. There are stories of swimmers who have died doing this by themselves***

Stand on edge of pool
Breathe in deeply and fill your lungs to maximum capacity
Slowly release all the air in a controlled stream with an "o" shaped mouth
[Repeat 3 times]
Fill up lungs to maximum capacity, jump in the pool, and swim to the bottom
Stay at the bottom for as long as you can handle and then rise back up to the top

***note : If you have a problem staying on the bottom, you can reverse this by releasing all the air from your lungs and then jump into the pool***


3.
Equipment needed : Bike (optional) and iPod
Place learned : Training by myself

Very simple and very effective
While running or biking, sing to the songs you are listening to.
Works best if you pick songs with lots of words, not techno or house music.


Hope these helped you all out. I will update as I come up with/remember other ways to help build lung strength and size.

Introduction

Hello everyone!

So, before you start reading this blog, I figure I should probably introduce myself and this blog.

This blog is about my adventures in the sport of cycling (The good, the bad, the ugly, everything).

I have been a successful athlete most of my life. From soccer where I was ranked #1 in the nation for Goalie Wars, competed at Nationals in Fencing, and was a part of the GWU Rowing team before I had to stop due to my torn quad.

So how did I get into cycling. I have been mountain biking for many years, and have decided that I'd like to start competing with a bike. This is when I heard about the GWU Cycling Team. I got in contact with a member who got me involved. Since then I've bought a new bike (Cannondale CAAD 9 - 5) with a bunch of new gear and swag.

Already managed to crash the new bike right in front of a huge group right in front of the Lincoln Memorial (those poles come out of nowhere!). Sadly I was unable to bring my bike home over spring break, so most likely no posts for the next week or so, but I will update as much as possible whenever possible.

Happy trails!