Is my training program crazy?

I'm all for listening to my betters, and many of them insist that the off season is when we should take a break from cycling, and then ride nice and easy as prep for the race season. But this time I will be continuing to ride hard during the off-season as prep for my 2008 racing season, based on stuff I've read here and there, and what my friend/coach Mark Edwards sez.

But Larry Nolan, local hotshot cyclist and National Champion at various times, has this to say:

Folks that are doing 100% intensity work in late October are either training for some late season event (eg season cut short by injury) or they have no clue as to how to structure a racing season. It is my hope that riders will stick to their plans during the day and get the workout that they had planned. Heck, I encourage riders to have a plan for EVERY ride! ... Larry

Boy, that really hit home for me! I am literally clueless in his eyes by riding hard now. And he could be right, after all he has the palmares to back up his program! And I had great success with my 2007 season training, following a program similar to his.

Pez Cycling News also had a guest coach write something similar.

I really can't say that I'm right and he's wrong. If I follow a traditional training program I will be following safely in the steps of giants. But unless I have his natural abilities, which I doubt I do, I will forever be doomed to being an "also-ran" against guys of his caliber. By taking a chance on my 2008 training I have the potential to train smarter than him.

In the meantime, I need to recover from a cold I picked up last week. Larry would probably say I caught it by overtraining!


We'll see whether my gamble pays off, or not, in about a year! :-)