Catharine Pendrel

  It was my comeback race, it was not glorious, but it was ok and I am back doing what I love with the people I love Exactly 10 weeks before the Mont Sainte Anne World Cup I broke my left humerus.  It was a pretty random crash with a rock shifting under my tire as I went high speed through a small rock garden. It happened fast and I thought I would just roll out of it, but when I sat up I couldn’t move my arm.  I didn’t have a single scrape on me otherwise and had almost convinced myself I had just really hit a nerve…almost. When I saw my x-ray my heart dropped, but I immediately started thinking of my rehab plan. The doctor seemed reluctant to dash my hopes of returning back as quickly as I did from broken collarbones, in 6 weeks, but cautioned me to think more long term.  The first two weeks of an injury are the hardest.  You’re uncomfortable, restricted and having to reset some deeply desired goals.  My husband and friends were amazing and helped me rig up a t

Dropping into the Stadium in Stellenbosch:  Matt Delorme Photo Dropper seat posts are extremely popular now and for good reason.   All 6 women that placed in front of me this weekend at the World cup opener were on one.  XC evolution!  They can transform your comfort on steep terrain, allowing you to lower your center of gravity and increase your stability.   With more room to move vertically up and down on your bike it’s also easier to jump, manual and lean the bike through a corner. I started the 2017 season with a dropper seat post on my full suspension bike wanting to give it an honest test.   These days they add about a pound to your bike, which can be well worth it if they help you gain more seconds in corners and descents than you would possibly lose on climbs due to added weight. Getting low in the rough stuff in Czech on a dropper last year! Photo Rob Jones But the question is, after years of racing pretty gnarly courses with your seat up, are you able to

Not all hours are created equally:  For me winter hours are a combination of focused trainer rides, xc skiing, fat biking, gym, and running.  -20 and combination workouts can often mean a little less hours and more quality is more benefit.  Being able to stay home during the winter and train with focus is key for my summer energy level and desire to push the pedals come spring! This winter I shared some of my thoughts on training volume for endurance athletes and wanted to expand on that topic here with some additional thoughts for both recreational and elite endurance athletes. My Original Instagram post: Training volume is a hot topic right now in endurance circles and it’s an interesting one because so many different athletes are successful on different amounts of training. Currently the trend is towards more, but probably my best season was 2011, where I did almost 100 hrs (12%) less than my mediocre season last year (about 780 vs 880). In training, more isn’t always more