Speedy Delivery

Mr. McFeely passed by my place in Québec City with a special "Speedy Delivery".  Just kidding.  The UPS guy did though.  I posted the photo of the mystery box on Facebook and Twitter, and asked what you thought could be inside.

A lot of people presumed it was nailpolish.  I hope that one day I get a box of nailpolish delivered to my door.  My birthday is in April.  (Hint, hint.)

But there was actually a fancy tin box inside from TIME-SPORT USA.  TIME is a French company that makes high quality carbon bikes and frames, bike accessories, and pedals.

Check out the stats on Xpresso 8 carbon pedals HERE on TIME's website 

They had shipped me a brand new pair of TIME Xpresso 8 carbon pedals.  I knew they were coming but didn't expect them to arrive this quickly.  It's uncannily fitting though.  They say Xpresso is the FASTEST PEDAL EVER INVENTED.  Sweet, because I'll be racing and training with them this season! 

...I love special, speedy deliveries.  Thanks TIME.

February 2013 : What's to Come

Follow Lex Albrecht on Facebook and Twitter. The race season kicks off at the end of February, in Merced, California.  Here is the upcoming schedule:

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February 1 - 7
Training block: POWERWATTS Studio (Montréal, QC, Canada)

February 8 - 17
Canadian National Cycling Team training camp (SC, USA)

February 18 - 26
Training block: POWERWATTS Studio (Montréal, QC, Canada)

February 26 - 27
Final fitting, & Body Geometry Fit education at USA Specialized Headquarters (Morgan Hill, CA, USA)

February 28 - March 3 
RACE : Merco Cycling Classic (Merced, CA, USA)

March 3 - 12
Training Camp with NOW and Novartis for MS (Santa Barbara, CA, USA)

Message from LEX:

This winter, I have done a lot of hard, focused work on my bike indoors.  I have followed a strength and conditioning program put together by my physiotherapist.  I have logged a lot of intense workouts cross-country skiing (freestyle, or "skate" is my favorite!), and off-trail snowshoeing.

I am almost ready to kick off the 2013 race season.  I'll be making the most of the remaining training days left for preparation.  I'm looking forward to getting back into the race peloton and tearing up the scene with my N.O.W. and Novartis for M.S. teammates

Another huge thing that I am really looking forward to is getting fully kitted up in Specialized equipment for 2013.  I've already been sporting my favorite Specialized T-shirt in anticipation...

Lex Albrecht Riding for NOW-Novartis Professional Cycling Team 2013

I am proud to announce that I will be racing for NOW-Novartis Professional Road Cycling Team in 2013.  Here is some more information on the team, including the official press release:

In 2011 Phil Keoghan, (Host and a Producer) of “The Amazing Race” on CBS, and co-founder with partner Louise Keoghan of No Opportunity Wasted (NOW), teamed up with Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation to create the first-of-its-kind pro cycling team, NOW and Novartis for MS. “Our world class riders are not only out there winning the countries’ top cycling events but they are using that energy to help create awareness for those living with MS” said Keoghan.

The NOW and Novartis for MS Women's team has announced its 2013 roster, led by 2013 standout Alison Powers (Pinecliffe, CO) and 2011 National Champion Robin Farina (Charlotte, NC). The team, which had 28 victories and more than 70 podium finishes in 2012, has added a mix of talent for a 10-rider roster.

The team will continue under the direction of Kurt Stockton, 1990 US Professional Road Champion. “Our 2012 team results and performance exceeded my expectations,” said Stockton. “One of my main goals for the team was to build a program where motivated athletes can flourish and reach new levels of performance. This was integral to our success in 2012 and will continue to be a main focus of our 2013 program.”

Joining Powers, who had 13 victories in 2012, and Team Captain Farina are three returning riders. Olivia Dillon (Fairfax, CA), the 2012 Irish National Time Trail Champion; original team member Devon Gorry (Logan, UT), winner of the 2012 Lake Bluff Criterium; and triple Pan Am Championships medalist Beth Newell (Oakland, CA).

New for 2013 are climbing talents Katie Donovan (Oxnard, CA), a former Tour of the Gila ‘Gila Monster’ stage winner, and Lex Albrecht (Québec, Canada), 2012 Cascade Classic QOM and Young Rider winner. Also joining the team are multi-time Junior National Road and Criterium Champion Alexis Ryan (Ventura, CA), who will ride her first season as a U23, and Maura Kinsella (Santa Clara, CA), a multi-time, top-three finisher in the U23 National Time Trial, Road Race and Criterium. Rounding out the roster is Lauren Rauck Komanski (Winston-Salem, NC), a former D1 runner at Columbia who took several regional wins in 2012 and is coached by Farina.

What makes the NOW and Novartis for MS team unique is that the riders not only race their bikes at the highest level but also are paired on tandem bikes with people living with Multiple Sclerosis at select high-profile charitable Bike MS events around the country. The goal is to show the world that MS does not define those living with the disease.
“Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation shares our passion in the battle against this disease and we are lucky to have them as our title sponsor again in 2013,” said Keoghan.

For more information on NOW and Novartis for MS, visit TogetherinMS.com.

Travel Roller

CLICK THE PHOTO ABOVE, CHECK THE TRAVEL ROLLER OUT!

Lex Albrecht : Proud owner of the coolest stretching (or myofascial release system) in the world. 

Seriously (and I was above) my hips and IT bands are notoriously tight.  I kind of left it up to our team soigneurs to keep me nimble.  But 30min massages after races wasn't enough.  My physio told me I needed to start being a little more proactive and taking care of them on my own. 

Keeping my hips and IT bands flexible is going to increase my range of motion and make my pedal stroke stronger and more efficent.  The Travel Roller is coming EVERYWHERE with me this season.

Oh. Yeah.

If you want to hook yourself up with one of these puppies, check out the Travel Roller website by clicking their logo in the righthand column of this page.  LET'S ROLL!

Check them out by clicking on the link below:  

De la pluie en janvier au Parc de la Mauricie

Mon activité cross-training préféré : le ski de fond
Mon endroit préféré pour en faire :  Le Parc National de la Mauricie
Le temps qu'il faisait le 13 janvier 2013 : très doux, beaucoup de pluie. 
La condition des pistes : MAGIQUE...avec quelques branches sur les pistes dans le bois. 
(Ça ne faisait que des obstacles à éviter, un jeu génial et un petit défi de plus.) 

Je suis allée en Mauricie pour skier avec deux super athlètes: Victor et Hugo.  Merci à Victor de m'avoir fait un cirage de ski qui valait $300, gratos.  Hugo en avait un qui valait $200.  Merci de me donner des chances à vous suivre, Victor. 

Les points aujourd'hui :
  Lex : 3
  Victor : 1
  Hugo : 0
Malheureusement, les points fonctionnaient de la même façon que ça marche au golf.  On en veut le moins possible. Quand les conditions de ski sont rapides, j'ai tendance à tomber.  1 point par chute.  J'ai perdu.

À la radio, ils annonçaient la fermeture des patinoires extérieures ainsi qu'un centre de ski en Mauricie.  Mais dans le Parc, il fait toujours beau.  Qu'il fasse soleil, ou qu'il pleuve.

Already Accomplishing in 2013

I made three Non-Resolutions on January 2. Here is how they're getting ACCOMPLISHED:

1- I'm finishing Steve Job's biography lent to me by a friend who calls it her BIBLE.  Gotta love it.  I have 8 chapters down and I'm getting into the good-and-juicy stuff.

2- I found the perfect product for my myofascial release work and hip loosening : Travel Roller.  I should have it later this week when I return to Québec City after a 9-day training block in Montréal, and I'll tell you WHY it's so cool.

3- This is the most exciting of all : PowerWatts Studio.  I want to push more WATTS.  If you want to get the job done, get yourself hooked up with the right tools.  Power Watts has leading edge training techniques, approaches and facilities.  Just check out their testimonial page to see who they've worked with in the past.

A body composition scan, a resting lactate test, double checking of my new bike measurements, and 1h45 of pure pedaling pleasure were on today's menu.

One of the "hugest" bonuses: I don't have to ask questions about whether I'm training right or not.  Everything from what I'll do before my warm-up to my hardest intensities are written out for me...and when I'm in the red zone and forget everything (it always happens) I just have to look up at the whiteboard to figure out what I should be doing.  That, is my style. AMEN.

Warming up on the rollers at Power Watts.  Lactate testing equipment is beside me, waiting to monitor my levels

My Orbea Orca is sleeping over at the PowerWatts studio, because I'll be back tomorrow and the next day for some more fun...

I love having the right tools to get the job done.

Nuheat and Lex, Teamed up for 2013!

I am proud to announce that Nuheat Industries, the leading manufacturer of electric radiant floor heating systems has sponsored me in my cycling endeavours for the 2013 season.  I was grateful to be sponsored by this Canadian company in 2012 and am excited to continue our relationship through the next season.

Christy and John of Nuheat, showing the signed Best Young Rider Jersey from Cascade Cycling Classic (Bend, OR. 2012) from Nuheat sponsored cyclist, Lex Albrecht

Not only does Nuheat help make living my dream as a professional cyclist possible, they also indirectly get me to visit my Mom more often...

My Mom lives a 13hr drive or 1.5 hr flight from me, and I love her to bits but I'm not a big fan of driving or flying when there isn't a bike race at the destination.  Texts, e-mails, and phonecalls usually suffice.  But she has Nuheat systems installed under her floors and it's hard to resist getting my barefeet on those warm tiles.  And if you think the idea of heated floors sounds nice, just wait until you get your feet onto one.  Words can't do the feeling justice.  You'll be hooked.

Resolutions of a Non-Believer

New Year's Resolutions: I don't believe in making them because when something needs to be changed, the time is NOW.  Not tomorrow,  not next week, and certainly not at the beginning of the next year. 

But, every one of my good days (there are about 358 of them, annually) I :

I want to be a well-rounded individual...figuratively speaking.  It'll make me a better athlete.  So, I took my reflections from January 1st, and made them into resolutions.  Just for the sake of calling them that.  But they're not "New Year's Resolutions", because I don't believe in that, remember?  Here are 3:

1.  Time to give some loving attention to my imagination and make a bit of an investment into becoming more cultured.  I'm a newspaper addict.  But I need to read more books.  They do the trick, in a way newspapers cannot. I'll take the time to read a book a few days a week.

2.  If you want big success, you've got to pay attention to small details.  My hips and legs are often tight and I could have a more powerful pedal stroke if I loosened them up.  I'll get hooked up with the best myo-fascial release tools, and be diligent about using them.

3. I want to crank out more watts.  There is more than one way to train, and the more you're willing to explore, learn, and discover, the greater the chances are of finding cool ways that work best for you.  I'll scout out some new techniques and training tools from sources that I can put my full trust into.  Because second-guessing and questioning training plans and techniques is not cool, and not effective.

Okay, okay.  One more.  I'm going to create and sport some rockin' nailpolish designs this year.  Just because I like to.  And that, is good for the mind, heart, and soul.  ;)

HAPPY NEW YEAR!