Is it worth it to have a coach?

The quick and easy answer is YES. But read on!

So I started riding a MTB in 1992 when I was in Cincinnati, Ohio and purchased my 1st bike – 1992 Bridgestone MB-3. No suspension, touring tires, cantilever brakes – how did we do it back then? I remember riding singletrack trails with my friend and crashing and slamming into a tree doing no damage to my bike but cracking my helmet – yes I must have a thick skull. Move forward to 2016 and the image above is at my 1st MTB race and this was the hill leading up to Raptor Ridge and my the time I made it up there I wanted to quit the race. FYI – those shoes were from when I purchased my Bridgestone bike in 1992!!!

The three images above are of my Belgian Waffle Ride (BWR) progression – 2017 image courtesy of Phil Beckman 2018 image courtesy of Todd Gunther and 2019 image courtesy of Tony Brandotti. in 2017 I wore a club jersey as I was big and bloated and not in the best of shape and did not have a coach. 2018 I wore a sport jersey as I had slimmed down a lot and was in much better shape but still did not have a coach. And in 2019 I am wearing my TASCO MTB race kit and was in amazing shape and crushed my previous year time by 30 minutes and had, and still have, an amazing coach named Chi also known as Outdoor Fitness Coach.

So from 2016 through end of 2018 I tried to do this racing thing alone and saw progress but did not see any major leaps and bounds as I just rode my bike a lot at my own pace all over north county San Diego and come race day I lined up and gave it everything I had in the tank. I had cramping issues. I had hydration issues. I had exhaustion issues. I had some stomach issues and nutrition issues. But as 2018 progressed I fixed those issues but still was not seeing any progression on the bike. Yes I could ride my bike for 2 or 5 or 7 or 12 hours but I would not be very competitive and found myself literally in last place or barely making it to time cut-offs at all of my races. At one endurance race I literally crossed the finish line with 3 seconds left on the time clock.

Moving forward to the end of 2018 and I met Chi Planken who is the owner of Outdoor Fitness Coach. She and I met and discussed my goals and my existing training plans and what I had accomplished and where I was with my overall physical health. After setting a training schedule starting in early February due to concentrating on Belgian Waffle Ride and with myself being out of town for most of January it was time to get to work! And let me tell you – I did a LOT of work. In the current world of everything being on the interwebs yes there are numerous free training programs and schedules and some of the new cycling computers even have suggested programs built in. However the number one thing about having a coach is accountability and secondary is direct communication. Yes, it would be easy to take an existing program that you find on the interwebs and use it for yourself but what if you are lazy or if you decide not to do the whole workout or just decide not to do the workout at all and just ride your bike? By having a coach these things are thrown out the window and it is like having a teacher with homework and if you don’t do your homework you will be reprimanded – I have never had this happen and don’t plan on finding out what that would consist of. There have been mornings when I have woken up and delayed training until later in the afternoon but knew that I had to get it done – yes it has been sunny and warm here in Southern California but it has been cold and overcast in the morning and I really don’t like having to wear layers when training as I know I am going to get hot and then where do I put the layers. The hardest part of training which made the biggest impact was intervals. I had never done them as I never sought out a training program as I just thought I could achieve my goals just from spending time on the bike and adding more miles as the race day crept closer. Yes this is something that is recommended however adding in intervals and proper recovery days have helped to make me lean and stronger – and I know there is much more for me to achieve especially with my crazy schedule this year.

Another aspect that having a coach brings to the table is being able to ride in groups with similar levels as yourself. There are a multitude of weekly training rides now in Southern California with riders of all skill and strength levels which is amazing but being able to ride with a larger group where everyone is working together at the same or similar level is amazing. In the photograph above there is a mixture of Waffle and Wafer riders whether past, present, or future registrants which also helps to bring better aspect to the universal goal – completion of the race. Yes, Chi is the coach however every one of us who has done the race has different insight and experiences which is knowledge that can be shared with everyone.

So now it is up to you to decide if a coach is right for you. There are many here in Southern California as there are a lot of professional and ex-professional racers who are willing to share their knowledge with those who are seeking it. And of course if you need a referral or have any additional questions comment below and I will respond quickly!