Snapple Elite Training Camp at Lost River Barn
RosePT is the official spnosor of Team Snapple, which is an elite and amature triathlon team focused on building the triathlon community and also on fielding a competitive team at events. A focus on results and fun matches our approach exactly, so we love supporting this group of athletes and friends!
As physical therapists, we love hearing everyone's stories about competitions, but we rarely get to actually see people prepare and compete. In addition, we all know that one of the ways college and professional athetes can push their limits is by getting top notch therapy at the right time, which is usually concurrent with their workouts. So we wanted to be there for Team Snapple at training camp this year, a time when they really buckle down and go through some serious training. In fact, Snapple training camp is so gruelling that most athletes do a ramp up to the camp, increasing mileage and physical therapy to prepare for a few days of pushing the limits.
Training camp was held at the Lost River Barn in Lost River, West Virginia. We have known about LRB for some time now because it's a regular host to professional cyclists, teams, and also was profiled by the British cycling clothing manufacturer, Rapha, who also happens to have Tour de France championships under their belt.
By the time we broke away from the clinic and got down to the Barn on a Friday afternoon in April, the team had already put in about 150 miles of riding and running on the hills. So we got right to work doing Active Release Techniques (ART) stretching, McKenzie MDT exercises to loosen up backs, and we also played with one of our newest toys, a Normatec compression recovery system. We also worked a lot on foam rolling, and at various times it felt like the whole team was rolling around on the floor. Whatever it takes!
We provided ride support through the weekend. This meant driving sag wagon for the team as they raced around the West Virginia mountains. We only had one flat tire and for the most part the team stayed together. Jay from Lost River Barn accompanied the team in his Raw Talent Ranch kit for about half the ride. We drove ahead of the team in a minivan we had loaded up with coke, water, and Osmo nutrition.
The team rode as hard as we have ever seen, constantly attacking each other, pushing their limits to the cracking point. It was an awe inspring performance. Many team members made runs at Strava segments and were able to track yearly progress versus previous training camps. We were really impressed.
To cap off training camp, we had a huge barbecue, apple crisp, and enjoyed stories around a bon fire. It was truly a weekend we won't forget, both for the friends and Snapple family and for the amazing training efforts these men and woment went to.