This athlete won this past weekend's Virginia State TT Championships--by five minutes!

He has done nothing but impress me. He came to me as new to cycling about three years ago. He was pretty impatient at first (aren't we all?), but he settled in, followed the plan, dialed in his TT bike--and now he is on form.

In that time, he crashed and broke his collarbone, and we had to bring back his fitness. Then he had a shoulder replaced, and we had to bring back his fitness. Then last September in Maryland, he crashed during a race and received an ambulance ride to the hospital. Once again we brought him back--and he's now stronger than ever. With no end in sight.

In this past weekend’s race, he won his 21-mile TT by five minutes. For 48 minutes, he averaged 302 watts with a speed of 26mph--and hitting his all-time best 20 min. This was not his "A" race. That was many weeks ago. Now, he's just racing and having a blast, with several more TTs this season.

He is a great example of the penultimate principle in endurance training: there is no cramming for the exam. Endurance sports are a year-by-year layering of workload--while facing numerous obstacles, soaring heights and debilitating lows--to achieve your goals.