The count down is on

Three weeks from now I will be taking flight to Nepal for the Yak Attack. The count down is on! The sun is shining here in Squamish and the trails are getting better each day. This is the February weather I've been waiting for. It's been a fantastic winter I must say. Great days of back country skiing, xc skiing and for the most part I've been able to keep up the peddling outside too. Training for a bike race at this time of year has it's challenges. Finding motivation, beating the indoor spinning board em and then factoring in weather and conditions constantly really keeps you pushing, not just physically but mentally. Sure I feel stronger and fitter but it's been my mind, attitude and appreciation that has strengthen the most this winter.

Jeremy will be joining me on this racing adventure, although he will not be racing. No side line watching or pit crew duties this time but rather he gets to hike the coarse. For the 10 day race there will be at least 5 days which there is no vehicle access only foot or bike. I'll be waiting for Jeremy at the finish line those days. To help the both of us pre acclimatize to the high altitude that this race will be taking us to ( up to 5400m ) we have been altitude training on the couch in front of the TV each night with the Go 2 Altitude machine. Back in Canmore I used this machine to help me before leaving to race in Ecuador altitude. I seemed to have had good results with it then and am hoping it will help prep us for this mission. 1- 1.5hr we sit and put the mask on for 5min on /5min off. No exercising, just sitting. I do feel light headed at times and defiantly get tired and hit the bed earlier cause of it. We arrive a week before the race starts and we'll be heading out for a 3 day bike trip to acclimatize and spin the jet leg out. There's no hiding from the altitude we will feel it no matter what we do down here at Squamish sea level!

The adventure doesn't end after the Yak Attack for us. A quick detour in India for some Chai and Nann then off to Thailand to drink some buckets on the beach, restock our closet with knock off Billabong and get our pump on with a couple weeks of climbing in Ton sai.