Help! Cycling Camp Cancelled. Where should I go? [Archive]

Keeping up with Junior

03-23-2007, 04:56 AM

...a place where I can go train in the Eastern US...

Give Aldo a call at
http://www.alabamacyclingcamp.com/

You may be able to get into this camp on short notice. Great week full of base training miles in gently rolling terrain. Coaching sessions in the evening. Very laid back and enjoyable. Talk to Aldo and find out if the camp fits your needs and if he has an opening for this week.

My wife and I did Hellweek three years ago and did the Alabama camp two years ago and had a better time in Alabama. My son (Cat 3) and I went down last spring. The roads are well paved and quiet. We saw maybe ten cars a day and they wave with all five fingers.

Kind of busy at work today but if you post specific questions I will try to give you quick answers.

Edit - Just found a review I wrote up on another board:

I'll share my wife and my experiences at Aldo's Alabama Camp in March 2005. Just for background I race US Cat. 4 and my wife is a fast tourist/hammerkitten able to hold her own with all but the true racers. We took both our single bikes and the tandem. We are from Indiana so were looking to escape the snow and cold for some spring miles/kilometers.

The riding was GREAT for building base. Gently rolling hills with a few long, gentle climbs thrown in. My low gear was a 42x23 and I never found myself looking for more. Each morning would be a group stretching session after breakfast and then a group ride of around a 90-100K. I would guess that we did not see more than a dozen cars each day and they would wave with all five digits. We would return for lunch and then maybe a half dozen of us would go out for a 35-40K loop. My wife was afraid she might get dropped at the "racing" camp but she was able to hold her own although she did linger at the back on a couple of extended climbs. There was a leader and a very strong sweeper on the rides to make sure everyone stayed together. The groups were very smooth and the tandem mixed in well. At the end of each day I was tired, but did not ache so much that I dreaded the next days ride.

After dinner each evening Coach Aldo would conduct a seminar on various topics. These were fairly informal but very informative. Aldo has been around a long time and is kind of old school but also filled with a wealth of knowledge. Many things he said I had read and heard other places so he seemed to know what he was talking about. The informal setting and size of the group lent itself well to interaction and other campers were able to share their individual experience and expertise as well.

Aldo also did a bike fit for everyone with video analysis. I was very pleased that the only change on my bike was lowering the seat 5mm which confirmed that the setup done by my LBS was accurate for me. He also took a guy who was a triathlete and spent a good deal of time really dialing in his time trial bike.

While we were there the Canadian schools were on break so there were a half dozen juniors at camp too. Aldo is very active in supporting juniors and the camp is a good place to send them. I may take my 18 year old son this spring.

Food and lodging is what you might expect if a group of recent college grads got together, rented a big house and kept the cost to a minimum. Food was served family style with a good breakfast with a lot of variety. Lunch was fairly light with maybe cold cuts, soup and pasta salad. Dinner was a big meal with pasta and rice and a meat. The chefs were accomodating to vegans. The food tasted good, was plentiful and well prepared. Lodging was 3-4 to a room and share bathrooms. I think it might be the first time I slept in a bunk bed since I have been married.

So overall my conclusion is that the riding is great and that the camp is a good value. When you look at the overall cost per day for riding, lodging, food, coaching it is hard to beat. In 2004 we went to Texas Hell Week and spent more money and had less fun. We will probably be back in Alabama again.