TJ Woodruff ONLINE

You’ve probably read at Velonews, CyclingNews, and USACycling that Chloe absolutely crushed it at collegiate nationals this past weekend. Angel Fire Resort, NM hosted this annual event and the base elevation of 9,000 feet coupled with a lung searingly steep climb made it a perfect match for her strengths.  She made the short track win look easy (soloed from the gun) and was able to come from behind with a second lap attack to win the xc. Chloe undoubtedly prepared better than any other women there and her dedication paid off in the form of two stars-n-bars jerseys. I got to see her focus day in and day out with the training and how it was rewarded on race day. Awesome!

It was strange being at a bike race and to not be racing at all myself. I didn’t like it! But at least I was able to play a part in the success of the U of Arizona cycling team. Melanie followed Chloe’s double wins with a 3^rd place in the STXC and a 2^nd in the xc. This made for some great podium time for Arizona. We also had three guys who raced men’s B and all placed in the top 12. Arthur, a student from France, hadn’t ever raced before so finishing in the top third was pretty great. I got to cook breakfast, do bottle feeds, handle warm up clothes, and take pictures for three days. This kept me plenty busy running all across the mountain, but I enjoyed it. I did bring my bike and managed to get out Saturday afternoon to preview the downhill course. It was a fun trip down and was really the first time that I’ve ever watched real DH riders tackle such gnarly trails. What they do is such a different type of demand when compared to riding downhill on a xc race course…

It’s been a month now since I last raced and I’ve more or less been riding at will with no real regularity or plan. This has been a good ‘rest’ and I’m starting to want to get at the training and be consistent once again. I won’t be pounding it on the bike everyday, and I will incorporate some strength training and running, but of course the bike workouts will take their precedence.

Thanks for stopping in. Keep it Real, -TJ

The shootout left my rear tire ‘shot out’ on Saturday. All was going well until 20 miles to go when my rear tire was ripped open. Who knows what sort of shrapnel I ran over but it put a pencil-diameter hole in the tire, three holes in the tube, cut the rim strip and put a small dent in the rim. Of course I got a flat earlier in the week and used my last inner tube, so all I had to my name and in my set bag was a booklet of glueless patches, obviously inadequate for the job at hand… I eventually tied a knot in the tube so the holes were tied off. Using my PowerBar wrapper as a tire boot meant that I was going to get home just fine, only about 15 minutes later than usual. The thing didn’t even loose any pressure!

The shootout is a funny ride because it starts with everybody and their brother riding out of town, but eventually the group is widdled down to 25 or so. At one point in the ride I was off the front with Gord Fraser and another guy who appeared to be a Master’s National Champion, guessing by his stars-n-bars jersey. I took my pull and looked over my shoulder to see that both of them had sat up. I guess we had gone hard enough…  Not long later Gord told me that I smelled good and had to ask what kind of laundry detergent I used on my cycling garb. Laughingly I let him know that it was Gain. Sometime intense, other times chill, the Shootout ride is quickly becoming a weekly staple to my riding schedule. The only bummer is that it starts at 6:30am. Ouch!

Another week commences at dawn and I’m hoping for more fall-like weather as riding in a long sleeve jersey today was a welcome change.  Thursday I’ll be heading up to Angel Fire, NM with the U of A cycling team for Collegiate Nationals. It ought to be a fun weekend and I’m excited to see the racing action. Too bad I can’t join in; perhaps I need to consider graduate school so I can race collegiate stuff again.

Keep it Real,  -TJ

Time flies by here in Tucson, almost as fast as the fighter jets that are constantly overhead… It seems as if I just got here, but it has been nearly a month already! I’ve been training for collegiate nationals lately so that has kept me on the bike. Collegiate Nationals, but aren’t you out of college now? Very good question.  More specifically I’ve been training with Chloe as she prepares for the race weekend. Most days where she’s doing intervals I’ve been helping by setting pace with the SRM. It’s great because if she looks comfortable for two seconds I can just up things that little bit extra. All in the name of getting that training effect… I like being on my bike and she likes having someone to chase so it all works out nicely. She, of course, is the favorite to win the STXC, XC, and the Omnium titles in Division I for the next four years. I might be somewhat bias, but she’s set to do very well irregardless of my predictions.

I finally did a ride up the Catalina Hwy on Tuesday and rode until about 6,000 feet before turning back down. I didn’t leave with enough food or drink to ride to the top, so after 11 miles I headed back to town. I’d heard about how dynamic the ecologically changes are going up the road and it was as impressive as I expected. Next time I head that way I’ll be sure to fill my jersey pockets a bit more completely…

The Taurus passed the emissions test today after initially failing on Monday. Apparently the check engine light can’t be on so some repair work was in order to diagnose and correct the problem. I’m not one to understand much ‘carspeak’, but the camshaft sensor was missing and the part it mounts to was also wrecked and had to be replaced. Long story short, now at 213,000 miles it’s running like a charm AND the check engine light is getting a well deserved break after burning brightly for the past 123,000 miles. Next step will be getting AZ plates and drivers license. After that, registering to vote ought to have my residency off to a legitimate start.

I’ve missed the Wisconsin fall to some extent, but when I heard on the phone that it was snowing recently I was quite pleased with Tucson’s 85 degree sunshine.  Thanks for checking up on me!  Keep it Real, -TJ

About time I update this site huh? The past two weeks have been quite action packed to say the least. Picking up and moving to a new place is a great way to keep busy with all sorts of things to do. Shortly after the Chequamagon I loaded up the Taurus and aimed it southwest for Tucson, Arizona. Some 36 hours later I arrived with a driving time of 29 hours.  The initial plan was to make the trip into three days of driving, but I quickly realized that two long days would be better than suffering through three days on the road… My apartment here has worked out nicely thus far and is just right for what I need. Fortunately that’s not too much since the place is only about 310 square feet. I’ve got plenty of space to be comfortable and to do what I need to do and there is just enough room to store the bikes of course.

So what exactly am I doing in Tucson you might wonder? Just another pro trying to up his training throughout the winter months?    Well yes, but that’s not 100% of it. Tucson has a climate that is very inviting and the cycling community is great boot, so I’ll be able to take things up another gear with my preparations. I’m not to the point where I can quit my day job and focus 100% of my energy on cycling, so I’m going to expand on my coaching business here in Tucson. Over the past three years and especially the past two with CTS, nearly all of my coaching has been done on a remote basis where I’m geographically removed from the athletes that I work with. This remote-based method works surprising well and it’s been my experience that nearly everyone who has tried it has also had success with it.  At the same time I realize that some people would prefer more of a local coach, someone who has established a rapport within a given community.  This is the component that I’m adding to the business that I already do.  The local connections here will operate just as the remote ones do; it is just that the local proximity creates some sort of connection that some find challenging to find through the phone and internet alone. This new home base will also allow me to offer things such as performance testing, winter or spring training camps for those of you in the frozen portions of the country and also it will provide me the opportunity to work with clubs such as the U of A cycling team.

All of what I’ve done in the past as a coach will remain and I’m only expanding on the interactions that I’m able to share with the athletes that I work with. Of course there is a lot of time and energy that will go into this, but I’m very excited at the though of what opportunities exist for me here in Tucson.  You can expect more frequent reports once again now that I’m back in the blog mode. Keep it Real & don’t forget the sunscreen, -TJ