The Dean Tracy Report. Life at the Olympic Training Center and Colorado Springs.

My life in Colorado Springs so far has been a bit like driving with an empty tank. There are so many things to see and do in this area, but with 2 workouts a day I can’t seem to get the energy to do anything but eat and sleep. Training here is is like packing an entire year of my usual effort into each month. Between the 6500ft of altitude and the national team coaches and trainers staring over your shoulder, the workouts are a different kind of intense. Weights in the mornings, track sessions in the evenings and road rides in between everything else. It all adds up pretty quickly.

The facilities at the Olympic Training Center are pretty amazing. We have a great staff of sports physios, masseuses, nutritionists, coaches and strength trainers to keep everybody running it top shape. One interesting quirk about lifting at the Training Center is something we call the “Fishbowl Effect.” 300,000 tourists a year come to the Center, and most of them take a guided tour through the campus. That tour makes its last stop at our weight room, which features a 20 foot glass wall and a separate visitor’s entrance. So you’ll be doing a set of squats or cleans or whatever it is you’re doing, and you’ll look over at 30 kids and their parents staring right back at you, listening to the tour guide yammer about how our “weights are color coordinated and strength conditioning is very important” and on and on. Usually 2 or 3 times a workout. It’s a little strange, but I’m starting to get used to it.

There’s so much I miss about Portland it’s almost pointless to start listing individual things. One thing I don’t miss is the weather. It hasn’t rained once since we’ve been here. We’ve had one day of snow and all the rest have been all sun, all the time. Helps you get out the door for a road ride if it’s not 40 degrees and rainy every day.

For all the things I miss, I’ve been making a lot of progress. Every time we do track tests, the times keep coming down, steady as she goes. I can handle giving up the comforts and coolness of Portland for a little while if I can meet my time standards to get to the World Cups this fall, and Jenny has been immensely supportive, despite the fact that she would move back to Portland in a heartbeat. So big thanks to all of the Rubicon supporters and especially Dave and Norrene, and I’ll see you all at the AVC.