​Update

Well, it's been a crazy few weeks on the road. With great times at home for Christmas, to some fun racing at Nationals with an 8th place in the 30km skate mass start, to trekking around Idaho, I’ve finally arrived back home in CO. Unfortunately the post Sun Valley Super Tour race report is a short one. After feeling great during some intervals on Wednesday, and a good pre race on Friday, I pulled up to the race on Saturday feeling ok. Straight after I started, I knew I didn’t have great legs, and after 3km I was dead. After 6km, I decided to pull the plug, as something was undeniably ascue. Ultimately I ended up with a bug, and decided not to start on Sunday's race.

Tips for traveling and racing: the 1 percenters.

Make wherever you stay your home.

Whenever I’m at home, I always have my little routines, whether it’s when I get up in the morning or how I pack my stuff before I head out to train. I like things a certain way. What I like to do as soon as I get to a new place is get things unpacked and organized right away, so I get that “settled in” feeling sooner than later. On top of that, I like to bring a few things that I know most places might not have. For instance at US Nationals, I was afforded the luxury, since I drove out, to bring a number of comforts from home to keep my routine going. I brought a blender to be able to make smoothies, my own pillow, blanket, & a small fan for some white noise and air circulation.

Plan ahead.

Make sure you do your homework for wherever you might be going. Talk to people that might’ve been there before, look at weather forecasts, look into rules, and regs especially if you're traveling to another country. Pack foods that you may need that you aren’t likely to find where you’re going, whether you have a special diet/ allergies, or even certain race/ training nutrition that you know you like. Or, on the flip side, you may learn of some things that you may not need to bring.

Of course a lot of this is dependent upon how much space and weight you have. If you’re limited to two 50lb checked bags, a carry on and a personal bag, you’re not going to be able to bring as much as you would if you were driving in a big pick up truck. But, bringing a couple things that make you feel more comfortable, or sleep better, can completely change how you perform for the better.

That's all I have for you this week on the “hot tips” front. Stay tuned for what's next on my schedule, as there are a lot of balls up in the air right now, and things should soon be decided.

Until next time,

Garrett Butts