LOTOJA champ offers bike tips

KAYSVILLE — Somewhere around Afton, Wyo., the 206-mile bicycle race from Logan to Jackson, Wyo., changes.

With three significant climbs out of the way, anyone fortunate enough — and strong enough — to still be with the leaders changes.

They're no longer in a fight for survival. Despite there being nearly 100 miles of racing left to go, they are now sizing each other up for the final 100 meters.

"LOTOJA is not an endurance race. It is not a climber's race," Cameron Hoffman, the three-time defending LOTOJA champion said. "LOTOJA is a sprinters' race."

Over the past month, Hoffman has been presenting a series of seminars designed to help anyone — from the weekend rider to the seasoned racer — have a more successful journey.

Hoffman spoke Tuesday to a crowd of about 40 cyclists at Biker's Edge bike shop in Kaysville, where he and a few sponsors shared ideas on how to not just survive the 206-mile race, but to thrive in it.

Those tips ranged from winter training — building core and bone strength through cross training, running and yoga — to hill repeats in which a cyclist charges up a four- to eight-minute climb near threshold only to do it over again several times.

Hoping to share some of the racing skills and knowledge he has picked up over nearly 20 years of racing, Hoffman has launched a Web site — winlotoja.com — and said he is considering writing a book filled with racing tips.

Sponsored by companies such as Rockwell Watches, Sun Valley Mortgage, Edge Composites and Vitality, the Train Smart seminars focus on nutrition, training and the final weeks of preparation — not to mention the day of the race itself.

Hoffman has another Train Smart seminar scheduled for April 15 at Bountiful Mazda — a sponsor for one of the larger Masters level cycling teams in the state.

After that, he said, he hopes to hold a meeting or two in the Salt Lake City area.

HELL OF THE NORTH: The international cycling scene is under way, and cyclists in Utah are joining the party.

After the first two races of the local season have come and gone with multi-day events, Utah cyclists get a small taste of Europe this week with the annual Hell of the North near the Salt Lake City Airport.