Get Ready To Ride!

1. Sunday 12-14 Endurance Ride
2. Monday 12-15 Spin Cancelled
3. Wednesday 12-17 Ride
4. Eating and Drinking Habits

1. Sunday 12-14 Endurance Ride
We will meet in the El Cerrito High School parking lot at 9:00 am. Be dressed in cycling clothing and prepared for cold/rainy weather. Dress in layers so that you can take clothes off as we are riding. Be sure to eat a healthy breakfast at least an hour before showing up for practice. Arrive with water on your bike and some food in your jersey pocket. Make a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Quarter it and wrap each piece in a separate piece of aluminum foil. ride with them in your camelbak or jersey pocket. Arrive on time so that we may leave in a timely manner.

We will split into three groups.
* Coach Barry will lead Chris, Miho, Lyndsay, Lyman and Patrick on a ride.
* Coach Jeremiah will lead Julian, Cassara, Colin, Liana, Robert, Brennan, and Evan on a ride. Robert Studdeford will join this group.
* Coaches Robert Ramirez and Phil Martien will lead Martin, Victor, Brian, and Adrian on a ride.
* Coach Annie will lead Julia, Yvonne, Hadley, Gabe, Jacob, Ksusha, and Yoline on a ride. Jeff Albrandt will join this ride.

The different rides will end some time between 12:00 and 12:30 pm.

2. Monday 12-15 Spin Cancelled
The Berkeley coaches and I will be meeting with the owner of the Gym next week. We are ironing out all of the wrinkles and I expect our first spin to be Monday January 12th.

3. Wednesday 12-17 Ride
We will meet at the EC Community Center at 3 pm Wednesday December 17th for our last practice before the Holiday break. Please arrive early so that we may maximize our riding time. Do not forget to bring water and a bit of food. How about a PB&J quartered and wrapped in foil. Sounds delicious!

4. Eating and Drinking Habits
Avoid overly processed foods, fast food, and large doses of simple sugars. AVOID DRINKING SODA unless you are doing so at the concusion of a long ride. Eat a variety of healthy foods and drink plenty of water. Eat lots of complex carbohydrates. Chhose whole wheat over white bread. Water is a critical nutrient for athletes. Dehydration can cause muscle cramping and fatigue. Monitor the color of your urine. Anything darker than light straw is a sign of dehydration (A daily vitamin will also turn your urine yellow).

Take care of your bodies.

See you at practice,

Coach Jeremiah

Team Update – December 4th

1. Nagging Tone of Items 2, 3, and 4.
2. Attendance at Meetings
3. Check The Blog
4. Team Forms
5. December Schedule
6. Bike Check at Solano
7. Future Google Group Account

1. Nagging tones of items 2, 3, and 4 – All team members have responsibilities to the team. I expect you to understand what is expected of you and to seek me out when something is confusing to you. In general the new members of the team have been extremely responsible with regard to communication and attendance at meetings and the returning members have not. I do not want to nag anyone, and I will not do so. Come to meetings, read the blog, and ask questions when you are confused. The tone of the following three items creates a mood I do not enjoy expressing. I will not have to do this again, right?
2. Attendance at Thursday Lunch Meetings – It is crucial that all team members arrive to the Thursday Lunch meetings promptly. The new riders are showing up early, and we have had to wait for the returning riders to show up. Several returning riders do not even come! Returning riders need to set the appropriate tone for the team. Be present! Be early! Important information is discussed.
3. Check The Blog – The blog has a great deal of information on it. Check it regularly as it is frequently updated during the season. For three weeks 10 returning members of the team have been asked on several occasions to register for the December 6^th skills clinic and none have done so! The link to register has been discussed in team meetings and available on the blog.
4. Team Forms – Only half of the team has their forms in. The forms were supposed to be turned in Thursday December 4^th. Get them to as son as possible. Team members will not be able to participate with the team until al forms are in. Get the forms to Jeremiah as soon as possible.
5. December Schedule – Our December schedule has changed due to circumstances outside of our control. Here it is:

· Wednesday ride December 10th
We will meet at the El Cerrito Community Center at 3:00 pm. The ride will begin at 3:15 and we will ride as long as the light allows. Wednesday rides in December will only last until 4:45 pm.

· Riders must arrive on time and be ready to ride with the appropriate clothing and hydration. The elbows and knees of all riders must be covered in temperatures below 65 degrees. Riding shells are necessary in cold/windy conditions and when it is raining.

· I have asked all team members to let me know if they lack clothing.

· Sunday Endurance Ride is December 14th

· We will meet in the parking lot of El Cerrito High School at 9:00 am. The riders will return to the high school by 1:00 pm.

· Riders must arrive on time and be ready to ride with the appropriate clothing and hydration. The elbows and knees of all riders must be covered in temperatures below 65 degrees. Riding shells are necessary in cold/windy conditions and when it is raining.

· Be sure to eat a healthy breakfast at least one hour before showing up. Definitely eat before 8 am.

· Monday Spin at Berkeley Ironworks December 15 – Monday spins are the chink in the armor at this point. I still have not completely ironed out all the details with ironworks. There is a small chance this practice will be cancelled, but let’s move forward imagining that I will have all the details worked out.

· Directions: From El Cerrito - Take San Pablo Avenue headed south toward Berkeley. Turn right on Ashby Avenue headed west toward the bay. Continue until Seventh Street (you'll see the Grainger store on the corner). Turn right on Seventh and then make an immediate left on Potter St.

· Dress as if you are biking on a warm day. Wear cycling shorts, a cycling jersey, cycling shoes with SPD clips if you have them (sneakers if you do not), and bring a water bottle.

· Arrive at Berkeley Ironworks at 4:00pm and be ready to spin by 4:15 pm. It is helpful if you are already in your cycling gear when you arrive. Students with a Block 4 class can change quickly into their gear at the gym.

· We will actually be spinning from 4:15 pm to 5:15 pm. Another class starts at 5:30 pm so we need to be quick on the way out the door, and we MUST ALWAYS BE ESPECIALLY CONSCIOUS that we do not leave a mess. The Spinning room should be left cleaner than we found it. After all, the gym is allowing us access for free.

· Please bring a warm pair of sweat pants and a warm sweatshirt to put on over your cycling clothes before you leave the gym and head out into the cold night.

· We will work on coordinating rides to and from the gym, especially for our Block 4 students.

· Wednesday ride December 17^th

6. Bike Check at Solano Avenue Cyclery – Anyone who did not attend the Level I skills camp at Folsom lake and who does not attend the Santa Cruz skills camp on December 6^th must be at Solano Avenue Cyclery on Sunday December 7^th at 2:00 pm for a bike check. You need to bring your bike and your helmet. The people who I believe must attend: Lyman, Robert, Miho, Julian, Cassara, Brennan, Patrick, and Colin.
7. Future Google Group Account – In the future I will create a google groups account. I will both email to the google groups account and post the same information on the blog. I hope this will help with getting the communication out. Let me know if you have any ideas.

Jeremiah Holland

510.913.1430

A Message to All Of You From Coach Gordon

Friends, mountain bikers and coaches at El Cerrito High school-

I moved to Walnut Creek in August and will be coaching the Contra
Costa Composite team this year. This move presented me with an
opportunity to help grow the Norcal Highschool Mountain Bike Racing
League in Contra Costa County. I miss all the familiar faces and
sounds (Jeremiah's call of the wild). Each one of you gave me a great
sense of pride with your dedication, hard work and constant
improvement. I look forward to seeing you guys out on the trails and
at the races.

Thanks for all the great memories.

Train hard and ride safely.

Your friend,

Coach Gordon

aka: Thunder

Thursday Lunch Meeting

We will be meeting every Thursday during the beginning of the season. Bring a lunch on Thursdays and high-tail it to my room so we can start.

We will talk about:
1) ECHS Team Forms. Bring forms to this meeting.
2) Our practice schedule.
3). The December 6th Skills clinic in Santa Cruz. Brennan M., Patrick S., Evan S., Casarra C., Miho H-G., Yoline B., Chris B., Colin T., and Robert R. should all attend this camp. You can use this link to find the camp reg. forms:http://norcalmtb.org/race/Fall_Camp_Reg_Forms.pdf Get your form in on time!

I'll see you at the meeting.

Jeremiah Holland