Each March Jen and I host a triathlon camp in Tucson, AZ for 12 of her clients. This year we expanded and ran two camps over 10 days. It is a great chance for athletes to check out from life and live as a pro triathlete for a few days with nothing to focus on but training, eating, and sleeping. Each day represents a new challenge, with the biggest probably being the ascent of Mt. Lemmon. This is a climb that is pretty continuous for 26 miles ranging from 4-7%. The angle isn’t what gets to you on this climb; it is that it never seems to end. No matter how tough the climb is though, the descent erases all memory of the pain. 26 miles almost completely downhill…..does it get any better than that? Nope. In the first camp I made the descent with a few of the campers, our guest rider - Jimmy Riccittello (Xterra hall of famer, former pro superstar triathlete, and now head WTC ref), and couple of friends from Chicago. Ben, camper, friend, and Grammo wheel rider, was equipped with a helmet cam that captured some of the magic on the way down. Here is a clip….I go by at about the 8 second mark….we are traveling somewhere between 40-45mph (thanks to Ben for filming and editing).
Having two camps was a blast, and I think Jen and I will continue to host two....maybe more?
We're now back in IL and getting ready for the race season. One short TT in the bag (good result too), and now prepping for Eagleman 70.3 where I'll be riding my new Grammo TT Pro Series bike....being painted now!!! Can't wait to get it built.