The Speed Order was a challenging weekend because it capped off a tough couple weeks of training. It was a good opportunity for us to have to perform with tired bodies (at least that's what I told myself). Saturday morning was the 6km test on the rowing machine - a familiar test to rowers throughout the country. We each chased down our personal records over the 19-22 minute test. I was happy (albeit surprised) to finish with a personal best by three seconds.
On Sunday, we raced 4 km on the water. Like any distance race, it was a test not only of physical strength and technical skill, but also of your ability to steer the course well. Kudos to these guys, who won each of their events: Derek in the men's single, Gevvie in the women's single, and Nick and Dave in the men's pair.
Kate and I had a couple days to recover ("recover") and get all of our things together and then it was off to Mexico City for an altitude training camp, where we are now. We're rowing on the same course as the 1968 Olympics, complete with the original grandstands and flagpoles at the finish line. Hard to believe they held an Olympics this high up.
The first few days are a pretty unwelcome adjustment: it's hard to breathe, you're super dehydrated, and your brain feels like it's processing through mud. This morning we took a run around the course with our coach and we were slowly plodding along with heart and breathing rates probably equivalent to an all-out effort. It's a strange bodily experience and I don't feel normal yet. Thankfully our coach is an altitude pro so we know we're not totally crazy.
The significant up-side is that compared to the routine at home (wake up at 5:30, go to practice, scramble to get to work, go back to practice, throw something together for dinner, collapse into bed), life here is really simple: eat, sleep, row. We suddenly have all this time on our hands so we can bring more focus to our physiological and technical goals, spend time analyzing video, get adequate recovery through a solid PT/nap/food routine, and actually get the 9-10 hours of sleep we probably need every night. This is awesome!
T-minus five weeks until the first sprint race of the season. Better keep working.
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