Winter Training in the U.P.

SISU is a Finnish word. The word is well known in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan and means toughness. The UP gets 200+ inches of snow a year, which makes training for bike racing tough to do. All of my work in the winter relies on two things, cross country skiing and rollers. Most of the winter I ski both classic and skate ski. I ski for the High School team and in previous years competed in nationals. Normally early March, I transition my time from skiing to riding. This year I'm committed to NCCF/Specialized and made my transition much earlier. I was racing on skis every weekend competing with kids that train for skiing year round. I found out a lot about my body this past cross country ski year. I found out the harder the event, the better I did. I ended with a very respectable ski season, winning the 24k Skate Noquemanon.

The transition from the skis to the rollers was a tough change. Normally I'm tired of skiing and ready to ride, but this year leaving the ski season on such a high note made the transition super hard. I knew that I have a huge race coming up (Valley of the Sun). Knowing that, I have been motivated to get the trainer miles in order to be in the best form as possible. It's tough on your mind to sit in the basement on the rollers looking at the snow falling and seeing all your buddies' pictures on Facebook and Instagram.. This is when I think of the word SISU. I always remind myself that all the hard work is paying off, the thing that keeps me the most motivated to keep on going is my love towards the sport.

Coming off of the ski season, I will be going into Valley of the Sun with pretty good form. I'm looking forward to sacrificing a lot for this cycling team. I'm excited  to be wearing and representing NCCF/Specialized to the best of my abilities.

So when the times get hard and I'm really working hard I will think of one Finnish word, SISU.