October 28/08 10:20 am - Canadian Sport Center Pacific's U17 MTB Camp at Whistler

Posted by Editoress on 10/28/08
 

Canadian Sport Center Pacific Hosts U17 MTB Camp
Courtesy Steve Lund, MTB Coach

Photos

Whistler Mountain - specifically Canadian Sport Center Pacific - hosted the most recent Team BC Training Camp on October 24-26.

12 of the Province's best junior and U17 MTB racers were in attendance for a weekend that was literally jam packed with activity.

The team arrived on Friday afternoon and got right into it with a short spin on Whistler Mountain to check out a few bike park trails and take an up close look at the infamous Whistler Mountain Rat. After the ride and a quick dinner out, the gang was eager to get to bed in anticipation of the big day planned for Saturday.

Saturday was definitely the big day. The day started with an extensive training session at the Canadian Sport Center gym that included instruction on weight training, some dynamic core training using exercise balls and a bit on stretching and injury prevention. Presenting was Diana Rochon of Canadian Sport Center Pacific; Heather King, our own Team BC Physiotherapist from Activelife Physio; and Team BC Coach Steve Lund. Following the gym sessions, riders grabbed a quick lunch then headed out for the afternoon cross training session .... 2.5 hours hiking the Rainbow Lake trail, a grueling uphill hike (with a fair bit of running thrown in for good measure) that took riders all the way up to the snow .... and back down again.

Riders were treated to an informative Nutrition seminar on Saturday evening by Tracy Higgs from On the Move Holistic Health and Nutrition, as well as chatting about training and Team BC plans for 2009-2010 .... it was a very full day!

Sunday the riders were back in the gym for a session on proper squat and dead lift technique from expert Olympic Weightlifting coach Jason Fridrik. The gym sessions were extremely beneficial, as the riders were not only shown how to do some great exercises for increasing their specific MTB strength, but also how to do them properly and safely. (Including the proper way to spot which, of course, was done in fine team fashion - see photo)

This very informative session was followed by another spectacular ride on the trails of Whistler, where riders got to spin the legs after a morning of weights and challenge their skills on some of the great MTB trails.

Next up, a winter of training, perhaps to include some warm weather camps, to be followed by a spring endurance camp and another great season of racing!