dha postanna i la amhain?!?!?!

fior e.

i'm almost done being sick. this is my last ditch effort la ruta training plan. something similar last year got me ready for 2 24 hr races in three weeks with 5 weeks of training, after several months entirely without riding. i've been riding though, so i'm in decent shape. my commute is 16 miles each way by road with about 1500' of climbin in, 1700' out.

week 1:
m- commute plus easy 15m mtb ride mid commute home.
t- commute
w- commute plus fast 8m mtb mid route home
t- commute
f- hours spin on road after work. no commute.
s- fast, 31 mile group mtb ride with quicker riders.
s- easy 15 mile mtb ride.

week 2:
m- commute + easy but nonstop 15m mtb ride mid commute home.
t- commute
w- commute + 1hr hill repeats mid commute home.
t- commute
f- hours light spin after work.
s- steady 6 hr ride.
s- steady 6 hr ride.

week 3:
m- nada, rest
t- commute
w- commute + 1hr hill repeats.
t- commute
f- commute
s- steady 6hr ride.
s- 30ish mile group ride. varying pace. sat and sunday could be switched.

week 4:
m- nada, rest
t- commute
w- commute
t- commute
f- nada, rest.
s- easy 3hr mtb.
s- flight

week 5(of race):
m- easy hour spin.
t- hour spin, few sprints.
w,t,f,s - race.


we'll see how quickly i botch this...

La Ruta de los Conquistadores

in a drunken, overly expectant(of my abilities) internet moment, i signed up for this race early this year. it is now at that moment where i need to make my decision. do i defer to next year, possibly losing 50% of my entry fee by the time i do so, or do i book the meager $350 airfare(round trip!!!), request a leave of absence for a week from work, and go ride till i fall over? i have 1.75 vacation days left at work, so i won't be getting paid while i'm down there. i am definitely not in the shape to be putting out a strong, continuous effort for 4 days straight. i am, however, confident in my ability to just grind through anything with dumb perseverance. i am in really good shape in general, and my riding is good enough to get through with frequent breaks. i speak a little spanish, and i would love to see costa rica. if i don't go, and defer to next year after the 100% cutoff, i lose around $500, at least. this is my dilema.