Moab again--that place is great. I hung up the Schwinn Homegrown in October after battling to the win in the 24 Hours of Moab, and it's there that I'm headed to start the racing season after a long winter of training. Bring on the Tour of Canyonlands!

I feel strong so far, with pretty good power on tap but with little recovering ability. I spent my winter in Ophir, Colorado hiking and skiing the San Juan Mountains and Telluride's Gold Hill and working to repay debts from last season. I succumbed to the allure of powder skiing often, but I managed to put in many hours on the road bike. The rollers were hell, but it makes skiing and riding in the great outdoors that much more incredible when the season permits.

In defense of my training protocol, I hiked for most of my turns, including skiing lift-served terrain, and my spies have told me that Wiensie had a similar regimen in Crested Butte. Besides, hucking off cliffs and skiing fast are the roots of good descending ability! It teaches you to look ahead and be comfortable at speed. Speed is good.

It's because of my unorthodox winter training that I'm unsure of my current biking fitness entering the 'in-progress' racing season. I'll just have to see what happens in Moab.

----Jason