Davis Phinney and Liza
Carpenter/Phinney Women's Camp
by Liza Weissler
Ladies! Are you looking for a place where you can improve your cycling skills in the company of world-class cyclists and coaches, and not only emerge a better cyclist, but with your self-esteem intact? :-) If so, the Carpenter/Phinney Women's Bike Camp is definitely the ticket.
The Carpenter/Phinney bike camps (http://www.bikecamp.com) are the brainchild of Connie Carpenter (1984 Olympic gold medallist) and Davis Phinney (1991 US pro champion and two-time Tour de France stage winner). At least two CVC members have been to previous camps; I attended the Women's Camp in Frisco, Colorado in August. Frisco is nestled in mountainous Summit County a couple of hours west of Denver, conveniently close to the ski resorts of Keystone, Breckenridge, Copper Mountain, Arapahoe Basin, and Vail; the town of Frisco itself lies at about 9000 ft. elevation.
Camp began on Sunday night with a welcome dinner at the Galena St. Mountain Lodge, a beautiful bed and breakfast in Frisco. The 42 camp attendees were greeted by Connie, introduced to the very professional staff, and filled in on what our activities would be. As we read through the description of rides and it started to sink in what we had all gotten ourselves into, we were broken up into small groups based on ability (in turn based on questionnaire input prior to camp, answering questions like how many miles do you ride per week, average speed, how many hours exercise overall, do you want to race, etc.), and assigned a coach.
The camp attendees ranged in age from 15 to 65; my group of six riders constituted the "we like to ride 14-16 mph, but don't want to race, and we think we all know how to ride in a pack" group. Our coach was Bill Lahman of Colorado Springs, currently working with the USCF and for PowerBar (we had lots of free PowerBars that week), and himself a racer.
The general plan of the camp was to ride in the mornings for 3-4 hours, each ride emphasizing a particular skill, for example, pacelines, echelons, climbing and descending technique, cornering, etc. Before returning to the Galena for lunch, we'd stop either at a nearby park or a convenient parking lot to work on specific bike handling skills, including cornering, countersteering, bumping, and wheel-tapping, the goal always being to learn to stay in control and not eat any pavement. (And it wasn't all completely serious - one day, even though our group didn't want to race, some of us practiced "crossing the finish line", hands outstretched - amazing how much fun everyone had with that!)
Afternoon sessions included talks on various cycling and general fitness topics, including bike fit, nutrition, training goals, and a popular "girl talk" session, where people could ask all the questions of the female staffers that they were too embarrassed to ask the men. (Funny how the answer to most questions was "Vaseline".) Dinners were on our own, except for the first and last evenings. Evening sessions were primarily psychology-oriented, including sessions on positive thinking, how not to talk yourself out of succeeding, visualization, and so forth.
Overall, the five day program worked on building confidence while improving technique, and it is a bonus that we were riding through some of the most spectacular scenery one could imagine. Rides were primarily on separate bike paths (mercifully nearly completely free of the bike path beach traffic we're used to seeing in SoCal), and off the main streets. Each day we skirted the shores of Dillon Reservoir, a deep-blue lake that reflected the nearby snow-capped peaks, and rode up to one ski area or another. Breckenridge the first day; Copper Mountain and Vail Pass (10,400 ft) the next; Montezuma ski area the third day (10,500 ft).
And the highlight of the week for me was on the fourth day, riding up past Arapahoe Basin to Loveland Pass, elevation 11,990 ft. What a feeling! (I'd have looked around for a 10-ft rock to stand on to say I'd made it to 12,000, but it was just too darn cold up and windy up there - which in turn made for a cold and nerve-wracking descent, but that's another story!)
Overall, the week was a marvelous experience, and if I had enough vacation time, I'd go again in a heartbeat. Connie and Davis were both incredibly supportive; Connie's encouragement and positive outlook (she had everyone walking around saying YES! by the end of the week) were marvelous, and it was great to have Davis and our coach Bill riding alongside everyone at one point or another, checking our cycling form and offering tips for improvement.
At the beginning of that week, reading what was in store, I had serious doubts about whether I could make it. (Turns out most of the others I spoke with were equally apprehensive.) By the end of the week, I felt confident and in the best cycling shape I'd ever been in, and wishing I could stay for more. I strongly recommend this camp for anyone who wants to improve their cycling, no matter what level you're at. As Connie would say - YES! You can do it!