Talent Identification Camp at the Olympic Training Center

Last week I headed out to the Olympic Training Center in Colorado springs for a talent identification camp. I was a bit bummed to miss out on Superweek races, but I was also very excited to relive the glory days of camp. What can be better than spending a week eating and sleeping and doing the sport you love to do most? I'm also a pretty good camper. Back in my soccer camp days I won the "well-behaved" camper award (that's what you get when you are a good camper, but not necessarily the most talented).

Anyway, camp was a ton of fun. The first day we had a lab test. Most of us thought it was going to be a grueling workout and we were all surprised to find that they just wanted us to pedal for 10 minutes at an easy pace with our noses plugged and a big funny-looking mask on our face. This was an economy test - it measures how efficient your body is at utilizing oxygen for functional movement... pretty cool. Later that day we went on an easy ride around town. I was a little bummed that we didn't get to ride any hilly terrain because being from Chicago, I don't get many chances to see hills.

However the next day I was appeased! We went out for our first field test which was a timed climb up a short and steep hill. I was pretty excited to finally get to ride in the mountains. The test was short, but long enough to learn the pain of riding hard at elevation. About a minute in to the climb, my lungs started screaming for air! It burned! Afterwards, we continued our ride along a dirt road with beautiful views of the surrounding mountains.

The next day I encountered more hilly fun with a timed climb up a long long road... nothing like the 47th street overpass on Chicago's lake front path. The climb started off pretty good and mellow, but the lack of oxygen soon kicked in making for a tortuous end of the climb. Can't they make mountains at sea level? Coming back down was fun - i even saw a fox! Then we ended the ride with another scenic route - this time cycling through the "garden of the gods". The red rock formations here were awesome!

The rest of camp was spent learning lots about performance testing, nutrition, sports psych, etc. We also spent a lot of time eating (the Olympic Training Center doesn't have your typical camp food - it was delicious) and watching the tour together. It was fun hanging out with and getting to know other racers from all over the country. Overall, a fun time.

--Devon