By Chris Carmichael, Founder and Head Coach of CTS I hate wasting energy and it bothers me to no end to see athletes do things that are self-defeating. You spend so much precious time and effort developing fitness and building your capacity to produce power, and then you waste that fitness through poor decision making …
By Jason Koop, Head Coach of CTS Ultrarunning Races will be back in 2021. They might be different and maybe not all races will return, but mark my words now, ultramarathons will be back. Many runners with rollover entries from 2020 have copious amounts of time–now that they don’t have to wait for lottery …
By Jason Koop, Head Coach of CTS Ultrarunning The folklore of ultrarunning is riddled with tales of hallucinations, out of body experiences, paranormal activities, and even an alien sighting or two. Given enough time and sleep deprivation, ghouls and goblins, devil and demons, witches and wildlife alike will inevitably come to life, haunting even …
By Chris Carmichael, Founder and Head Coach of CTS We had big plans for 2020. Throughout the year, we were going to celebrate the 20th Anniversary of the founding of CTS, and then I was going to throw some kind of party or event with the coaches for my 60th birthday (which is today, …
By Jason Koop, Head Coach of CTS Ultrarunning When Gordy Ainsleigh first finished the Western States Endurance Run in 1974, he did so by drinking from creeks and stashing quarts of Gatorade along the course. He had no softflasks, no handheld water bottle, nor a hydration pack to carry fluids to aid his quest. Heck, …
By Chris Carmichael, Founder and Head Coach of CTS Major disruptions can be great opportunities for learning, and at least in my lifetime there has never been a more far-reaching disruption than the COVID19 pandemic. While it has had–and continues to have–tragic effects on many lives around the world, it has also created research conditions …
Despite the fact athletes didn’t have a lot of events to participate in during the 2020 summer season, the rapid approach of cooler weather and shorter days means there’s a change coming to training for most of us. Staying closer to home and not interupting training with races and events has ironically led many masters …
By Jason Koop, Head Coach of CTS Ultrarunning This summer and fall I had one objective in mind: to finish the Nolan’s 14 route in Colorado’s Sawatch Range. Sadly, I struck out on all three of my attempts there, the last one ending in quick fashion as I dislodged a rock and took a decent …
By Chris Carmichael, Founder and Head Coach of CTS Nearly 50 years of riding (and crashing) bikes have taken their toll on my body. Nonetheless, I count myself as fortunate; injuries haven’t taken me away from the activities I enjoy or left me otherwise debilitated. But this year, as I near my 60th birthday, …
This is the time of year when a lot of athletes ask about strength training. Should they? Shouldn’t they? Should they lift heavy or light? Free weights or machines? And what about Crossfit? Coaches have been debating the effectiveness and necessity of strength training for endurance athletes for many years, and even my own view …