Volume Block and Camp #2

Since returning from my first training camp of the year in Fort Kent, I have been focusing on volume training. Mostly this means I exercise a lot, but at a low intensity. Volume training can get a bit tiresome especially if you are training on your own. Luckily I have been able to keep the training blahs at bay by exploring new trails and roads. In the past weeks I have happened upon two great mountain bike trail systems I didn’t know existed, along with some sweet new rollerski roads. When you spend 25hours a week out and about eventually you will see something interesting, though these signings are often few and far between.

Interesting things see over the past 3 weeks: 1 assault rifle being pulled out of a car trunk (recreational purposes) 1 red Ferrari, 1 truck doing a burnout in a parking lot, and dozens of wild animals.

That amounts to about 10 minutes of cool stuff per every 60 hours of training.

Yesterday I spend the morning at L.L. Bean helping US Biathlon and the Maine Winter Sports Center put on a laser biathlon event. Despite some trouble with the equipment the event was a success with lots shoppers getting their first exposure to biathlon.

Tomorrow I am off to Jericho, Vermont for a 2 week camp culminating with 2 rollerski biathlon races. These races are not a high priority for me, but they will show me how I compare to my competitors.          

Getting Specific

Last week I returned to Fort Kent for a quick 4 day camp, focusing on combination training (skiing and shooting) and precision shooting without physical stress. Luckily, I wasn’t the only one in Fort Kent that weekend; my camp coincided with the Maine Team Camp, which brought together the best high school age skiers in Maine, and the Southern Maine Biathlon Club Junior Camp. It was easy to keep the energy and motivation levels high with so many eager young athletes around, though I will admit I felt a bit old. I also had the opportunity to train with Russell Currier, a member of the National Team, with multiple top 10 World Cup results. It was great to see how I compared with Russell, and see where I can improve.  

In total I shot just over 900 rounds in 4 days, which is definitely a record for me. This was very important, because there is currently not a biathlon range in Southern Maine. In the absence of the opportunity to shoot live rounds I have been dryfiring (shooting without bullets) religiously. While it is not as effective as normal rifle training it has given me the opportunity work on the details of my range procedure and really zero in on some of my weaknesses.

My next camp will be from July 30^th to August 12^th in Jericho, Vermont with US Junior Development coach Algis Shalna. I am excited to work with a new coach for a time, and get back into a camp environment.

Right now Southern Maine is enjoying a killer stretch of summer weather, which is making training very enjoyable. I have also begun taking some online classes, which are proving to be a great counterweight to my training.