After a seemingly short month, my Santa Fe training camp comes to an end. It has been a great experience where I was able to focus solely on quality sleep, great southwestern food, quality early season training and studying for my medical boards. I am, however, looking forward to getting back to the comforts of home particularly my fiancé. The dry sunny 40-50 degree days will soon be replaced by the cloudy 10-20 degree snow covered roads of Vermont.
I arrived on February first with my bike, running shoes, a few bathing suits, a pile of books and two goals. The first of which was to study for and take step II of the USMLE (United States Medical Licensing Exam) a test which will partially determine where I will do my medical residency, but before I continue with my medical career I will try my hand, and feet, as a professional triathlete. Which brings be to my second reason for escaping winter for a sunny southwest town at 7,000 feet. Having signed up for Ironman.
California 70.3 I was a little afraid of racing other triathletes, many of whom have the luxury of riding outside for Feb and March. I also wanted to give my race season an early jump start. My training is feeling great and although I will not have my test score back for a few weeks, I think it is safe to say, “mission accomplished.”
Santa Fe is a great southwest city that is very unassuming; driving down the highway you might miss it due to the fact that the red-brown adobe and stucco 1 to 2 story buildings blend into and seem to wander across the landscape. There are small boutiques and many art galleries partially due to Georgia O’Keefe’s influence in the area. Museums and historical sites are also a popular attraction throughout the region, in fact I often found myself running thru a region of the city known as “museum hill.” There is also a strong Native American influence as many street vendors can be seen selling Native American jewelry and art around the downtown square. Lastly I should mention the wonderful southwest cuisine as well as the multitude of options for the health conscious athlete. The elevation, bright sun, breath taking views, and funky coffee shops of Santa Fe made for an ideal training locale.
After my morning swim at the Chavez Community Center (50M pool) I would often entrench myself at one of many local coffee shops for a few hours of quality study time while I waited for the temperature to rise before I headed out for an afternoon workout. Although the temperatures at night where frequently in the 20’s by mid day the temperature would be 40-50 and almost always sunny, which would cause any of the previous evenings snow to quickly melt and evaporate into the arid climate.
After about a week I had sufficiently adjusted to the altitude, although I was never fully able to adjust to the winding streets of Santa Fe. I had many great workouts some of which I found myself a little lost, but I always managed to find my way back again. One particular sunny warm day I climbed the 15 miles up to the Santa Fe ski basin a mountain pass that took me almost 3,500 feet above the city of Santa Fe. From there I could seemingly see forever, not to mention feeling a little extra short of breath. Another day I rode south through the plains where I could observe the gigantic mountain ranges from a distance. On this particular day the winds were gusting to 35mph and virtually blew me off my bike. I just thought of it as good practice for a particularly race known for the windy conditions. I had two notable struggles while enjoying my time in Santa Fe. The first of which was adjusting my taste buds to the southwest spice. I like spicy food, but not extremely spicy, I tend to think of myself as a “medium” to “hot” kind of guy, however, out here, I am a whippy “mild.” I still am amazed at the degree of heat than many food carry.
The second obstacle is not a new one for me. Every early season when I get outside, especially on the bike I have recent memories of last year’s final race where my fitness was in top form. After a few months of the off season and indoor training I tend to get a little stale. I always have to remind myself that in order to ultimately climb the fitness ladder I have to slide back a few rungs in the off season. While I consciously know that I am not going to be as fit as last October, my body is always a little thrown off when I’m not able to ride as far or as fast especially in February. The altitude at Santa Fe further compounded this problem and caused me to question my off season training. Instead of comparing training logs, I try to focus on one workout at a time and train with one workout with a goal of that single workout in mind and not yet worry about the big picture. By sticking with this strategy even after a short month I am able to see the fitness gains and feel my body readjusting to the rigors of in season training.
This camp has been has been a great experience. I was able to get some great early season work in as well as experience a great city. However, I am happy to be heading home knowing that spring eventually arrives, even in Vermont.
