Confidence

This is something taken from Joe Friel's blog.  Good stuff...

I believe that the most important thing an athlete takes to the start line on race day is confidence. It may even be more important than fitness or form. There are several things I do to help build confidence in those I coach. But the bottom line is that it has to come from inside. I can’t instill it; I can only encourage it and provide an on-going training experience that fosters it. Here are two little things I’ve learned along the way about how athletes can build their own confidence.

One of the things you can do to promote self-confidence is to build a bank account of successes. It’s easy. Every night when you go to bed, after you’re turned out the lights, you have the only time in the day when there are no external interruptions. This is a good time to run a quick check of the things you did that day in training. Find one thing you did well. It may not seem like a big deal. Maybe you climbed one hill well or had a good set on intervals. Relive that moment several times until you fall asleep. You just made a deposit into your confidence bank account.

Some of the deposits will be big, some will be small. But your account needs to grow each and every day. The week of a race you can start making withdrawals. Any time you feel a bit of anxiety about the upcoming race go back and pull one of those vivid success memories out of your account. Relive it. When the little voice in your head says you can’t do it make another withdrawal immediately. When someone expresses doubt about your chances of success make a withdrawal. When you step to the starting line make a withdrawal.

Never deposit the bad things or unwelcome moments in training. Never. Let them go. They’re trash. Stay focused on the positive experiences. Deposit only them in your account. Withdraw only them.

The second thing you can do to boost confidence and therefore performance is to “act as if.” Always assume the posture and disposition of a confident athlete. Always. Act as if you are confident. You’ll be amazed at what that does for your confidence.

So how does a confident athlete act? Look around and find athletes who exude confidence. What do they do and say that’s unique? Study them. What you will probably find is that they stand tall and proud. Their heads are up. They look people in the eyes when talking. They don’t denigrate others to try to elevate their own self-esteem. They move slowly, precisely and fluidly. Like athletes. It’s obvious they think of themselves positively.

Now you may not feel that way all the time but act like it anyway. Fake it till you make it. It’s remarkable how taking on the posture and demeanor of confidence breeds confidence even when you’re not feeling that way. It’s not possible to be confident with a defeated posture and demeanor. It’s like saying “yes” while shaking your head “no.” The two don’t go together.

So that’s the conversation I have with the athletes I coach when they need to build confidence. I’ve seen it work. Give it a try.

Great Grease Monkey Wipes Review

The Bottom Line

Grease Monkey Wipes are a handy little thing to keep around, whether in your garage or in your bike bag. You'll be thankful you've got them when your hands are covered with grease and there's no easy way to get them clean. One little foil pouch produces a hanky-sized wipe with enough cleaning power and durability to take the grease right off your hands. And it's just the right size to throw a couple in your bike bag for those repairs on the road.

Pros

• Powerful cleaner to take grease away quick
• Durable wipes offer plenty of stamina for tough scrubbing
• Fresh citrus smell makes your nose happy
• Convenient size pouches for throwing in your bike bag
• Larger cannister works good for your garage

Cons

• Nothing to gripe about with these!

Description

• 7"x8" wipes
• Made of durable cloth-like material
• Fresh citrus smell
• Sold as individual-use pouches or in larger cannister

Guide Review - Review: Grease Monkey Wipes

Picture yourself eating ribs. Your hands are sticky with BBQ sauce. Somebody hands you a wet-nap and suddenly all your problems are solved. This is what Grease Monkey Wipes do for you when you're working on your bike. Think about the truly greasy hands you get when you're cleaning your chain or working on anything with bearings. Grease Monkey Wipes are the wet-nap that takes that grease right off your hands.

I had the chance to try out some of the Grease Monkey Wipes in the individual packets. They didn't look like much at first, just little foil packets roughly the size of a business card. So I put them by my tools and kinda forgot about them until the day came that I had to work on my chain, and got my hands totally covered with grease. You know, the kind where you're trying to open the doorknob with your elbows because your hands are so nasty? Yeah, like that. So I got one of the Grease Monkey Wipes, tore the packet open, and unfolded the nice-sized 7"x8" wipe.

The first thing I noticed was that the wipe was made from a durable cloth-type material that stood up to a rigorous wiping for several minutes on my palms and fingers and in and around my knuckles without ripping. Way better than the flimsy stuff an actual wet-nap is made from. The second thing I noticed was a fresh and pleasant citrus smell, just the same as the smell that permeates the tubs of commercial hand cleaner the mechanic uses down at your local shop. The third thing I noticed was that it took the grease right off my hands. This is the kind of oily, dirty soiling that just scrubbing at with soap and water wouldn't have made a dent in. And the Grease Monkey Wipes took it right off like nothing.

So was I impressed? Yes. This is a handy thing to keep around, either in your shop or especially in your bike bag. If you're out riding and have a breakdown that you gotta fix, these wipes will clean you up fast, so you're not having to either ride with greasy hands or having to wipe them on your jersey to keep a grip on your handlebars.

Oh Floyd...

Disgraced rider Floyd Landis, the man who was stripped of his 2006 Tour de France title for doping and accused Lance Armstrong of cheating, has retired, the American said.


"I'll never start on a line on a road and try to get to another line on a road faster than another guy. That's over," Landis, 35, told ESPN.com.

Landis won the Tour in 2006 but failed a dope test for testosterone during the race and was stripped of the title.

He denied any wrongdoing until last May, when he admitted to doping and accused former team mate Armstrong, a seven-times Tour champion, and others of doping when they were both riding for the U.S. Postal team.

Landis took part in a few races in 2010 as an independent rider but failed to secure a proper contract.

By George I think he likes it

It goes without saying that George Hincapie is one of the most recognized riders in the world, with numerous world championships, national championships and professional victories to his credit.  Not only that but apparently he likes Grease Monkey Wipes.    I knew I liked him for a reason.

Doping scandals mar cycling year—again

PARIS (AP)—In many ways, cycling’s year was summed up by two key days. The first was when Alberto Contador took the Tour de France lead with a clever attack on a steep uphill climb in the Pyrenees. The other came just 48 hours later, when drug testers took a urine sample from the future Tour winner that contained traces of a banned substance.

In what was regarded as the defining moment of the Tour, Contador’s attack helped him drop runner-up Andy Schleck in the very tough climb of the Port de Bales during stage 15.

Schleck actually attacked first, but his chain came off and the three-time Tour winner sped ahead—taking the yellow jersey from his Luxembourg rival and gaining a 39-second advantage that would become his exact margin of overall victory a few days later on the Champs Elysees.

Many observers criticized the move, saying Contador had broken the sport’s unwritten rule about not taking advantage of unlucky breaks a rider can’t control—especially when he was wearing yellow.

The epic battle between Contador and Schleck during arguably the most thrilling Tour since Lance Armstrong won the fifth of his record-seven titles in 2003 at the expense of Jan Ullrich, was widely seen as the birth of a new great rivalry.

Fans and pundits cheered for the two champs and were bracing for a mouthwatering new era for a sport still reeling from years and years of doping scandals. But the celebrations didn’t last for Contador.

Only two months after triumphing in the heat of the French summer, the news broke that Contador, who also won the Tours of Spain and Italy in 2008, had been provisionally suspended by cycling’s governing body after small amounts of the banned muscle-building and fat-burning drug clenbuterol where found in one of his Tour samples.

It later emerged that a urine sample taken from Contador also showed abnormally high levels of plastic residues that could indicate he received a transfusion of his own blood during the race.

A tearful Contador denied everything, claiming his positive test resulted from eating contaminated meat. Whether or not he is eventually convicted of doping, great harm was done.

If Tour officials do strip his title, Contador would be just the second cyclist to be forced to relinquish it. The first was American Floyd Landis, who was stripped of his 2006 Tour title after a positive test.

UCI president Pat McQuaid continued to claim that cycling is the “cleanest of all sports,” while Italy’s anti-doping prosecutor Ettore Torri said in October he is convinced that all cyclists are doping.

A decision on whether Contador doped is expected early next year. But WADA and the UCI could appeal if they feel that justice was not done. That means Contador’s case could end up with the Court of Arbitration for Sport.

Should Contador be banned, next year’s Tour could be deprived of its two most influential figures after Armstrong said last summer’s Tour was his last.

The American got off to a strong start but blew a tire on cobblestones in stage 3 then failed to recover in time from three crashes during the eighth stage, just before the tough Alpine climbs.

“With the first crash, my body never felt the same after that, and the second was the nail in the coffin,” Armstrong said. “So you could look at it like that, and yeah, it was one (Tour) too many.”

Armstrong finished in 23rd place, nearly 40 minutes behind Contador. He has not officially retired and will compete in smaller races next season as an ambassador for the fight against cancer.

Armstrong’s last ride in the race which made his name and wealth started amid controversy following accusations by Landis, his former teammate, that he had used performance-enhancing drugs to win.

The allegations against Armstrong and others ignited a federal investigation in the United States that reached new heights last month when American agents traveled to France for two days of talks with police officers and other officials from various European countries.

Armstrong has denied using drugs and his lawyers said the investigation is a huge waste of taxpayers’ dollars.

Despite the years of drug scandals, the Tour de France still attracted massive crowds, worldwide television audiences and reported increased income. In Luxembourg, a new team found big sponsors and a budget big enough to lure away some of the sport’s biggest stars from rival squads.

The new outfit reunites the Schleck brothers and Fabian Cancellara, and their main objective will be victory in the Tour de France.

Cancellara was accused in 2010 of using an electric bike after his wins in the Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix, but nothing was proven. The accusations prompted the UCI to implement bike checks during the Tour, and Cancellara, who was cleared and escaped sanctions, eventually won a fourth time trial world title in September in Australia, where Thor Hushovd powered to victory in the road race.

Also worth noting in 2010 was Ivan Basso’s victory in the Giro d’Italia for his first major title since returning from a two-year doping ban. Several other riders who served doping-related suspensions, including Denmark’s Michael Rasmussen and Italy’s Riccardo Ricco, are set to return next year.

Ricco, who tested positive for blood-booster CERA at the 2008 Tour de France after winning two stages, signed with the Vacansoleil team.

“I’ll just say that the leaders of this team were naive,” McQuaid said. “If I am the sports director, Ricco never joins my team.”

Team Radio Shack Munches on Quiznos

DENVER (AP)—Lance Armstrong’s team has signed up to race in Colorado’s inaugural Quiznos Pro Challenge.

Race organizers announced Wednesday the first five teams to sign up for the event, which will be held in August. Lance Armstrong’s TeamRadio Shack is led by manager Johan Bruyneel, who has nine Tour de France victories as race director.

The other teams who have committed are HTC-Highroad, BMC Racing Team, Slipstream Sports/Team Garmin-Cervelo, all of the United States, and Liquigas-Cannondale of Italy.

Armstrong was instrumental in establishing the new race. It features seven stages through 11 cities, including Vail, Aspen and Denver.

Vanspeybrouck best of 'Boonen & friends' charity race

Pieter Vanspeybrouck (Topsport Vlaanderen) won the second edition of the charity cyclo-cross event 'Boonen&Friends' around the Silver Lake in Mol, Belgium.

The 'Boonen&Friends' cyclo-cross race collects money for the project 'Move to Improve' which supports people with physical disabilities caused by brain damage. Last year they raised 40,000 Euros at the event.

The extreme cold of the last week turned the course into a toboggan-run but that didn't keep the riders from racing. Last year's winner Maarten Wynants (Quick Step) finished second ahead of Wouter Weylandt (Quick Step). The all-star race was won by triple cyclo-cross world champion Erwin Vervecken.

The Belgian won ahead of Dutch former professional and Sky directeur sportif Steven de Jongh and former CSC-Tiscali rider Koen Beeckman.

Tom Boonen, who has been training for the start of the 2011 season after a year wrecked by injury, started with a bang. He led the field from the start but quickly noticed the course was rather slippery and dropped back. After a flat tyre for last year's winner Wynants, the road to victory was paved for Vanspeybrouck. The latter is a former junior Belgian cyclo-cross champion.

Vervecken had to work hard for his victory in the all-stars race which was held just before the pro's race. De Jongh fired away after the start and for a long time it seemed he would win the race of retired cyclists. “Everybody expected me to win because I retired only recently.

When De Jongh created a gap right after the start I didn't think I would be able to close it down. I died twice during the race but in the end I managed to catch him,” Vervecken told cyclo-cross.info.

Big names like Michael Boogerd, Johan Museeuw, Eric Vanderaerden, Tom Steels and motorcross star Stefan Everts felt far less comfortable on the frozen course and finished at long distance from winner Vervecken.

Museeuw had a severe crash. He went over the handle bars and crashed in the snow. The former Spring Classics specialist abandoned the race little later.