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.  

V2 Video

Special thanks to my brother Parker, who was my driver/technique coach/strength coach for today's workout.

My brother is also quite the musician, check out his YouTube channel HERE.

So Raleigh... How do you shoot when your heart rate is so high?

Shooting without physical load 5 shots in prone shooting 

Shooting at a heart rate of 190 beats per minute, 10 shots prone position 

As a biathlete I field this question a lot. The short answer is: Practice, shooting under a heavy physical load is like anything else, the more you practice the better you get. Through controlled breathing, stable shooting positions, specially adapted rifles, and other means top biathletes consistently post 90% shooting scores, taking as little as 25 seconds per shooting bout. Just like training to ski fast, training to shoot well is a process.   

The general yearly progression for rifle training is:

Early Spring: Rifle adaptation, shooting position, precision shooting. 

Summer: Precision shooting, range procedure drills, low intensity combination (shooting under physical stress) training, and some high intensity combination work

Fall: High intensity combination training, easy combination training.

Winter: Competition, maintenance high intensity combination training, and easy combination training for recovery.     

Right now I am focusing my rifle training on precision shooting, and range procedure. I have just begun to throw in some combination training, and I am enjoying the benefits of my precision work this spring.  

The road to world class biathlon shooting is long and frustrating, however consistent shooting is absolutely critical to success on today's ultra competitive international level. My next few posts will focus on different tests and drills I use to prepare my shooting for competition. 

More Press

Fasterskier has published another interesting story about biathlon in the USA, with a focus on yours truly. Check it out  HERE.

Rolling Right Along

 The spring has flown by, and I am very happy with the progress I have made in the first two months of the training year. I have been focusing on building a solid base of strength and aerobic fitness by spending lots of time on my road bike and in the weight room. My rifle training has also been going very well. After making some changes to my rifle stock, rifle sights, and tweaking my shooting position, I have posted my best scores yet in standardized shooting tests.

For the next few weeks of training the focus will remain on building base fitness and accuracy shooting, but high intensity interval sessions and combination training workouts will become more and more prevalent as the summer goes on.

The next month training will be challenging, with around 70 hours of planned training featuring a rollerski time trail, some loooong Level 3 intervals, and hard work in the weight room. I can’t wait to test out my fitness. Also of interest the weather machine in Southern Maine has switched from “Depressing Monsoon Spring” to “Full On Summer” so between long hours outside running, biking, rollerskiing and shooting, and my time in the weight room I should be all set for beach season.   

A bit of Press

Check out this story on American junior biathletes on Fasterskier.com  HERE. Along with the other articles in the series it provides a great insight into biathlon in the USA.