Originally Posted by merlinextraligh

If you're comfortable with doing then distance, then you can absolutely hang with your friends, and perhaps torch them, with a structured six hours a week training program, that incorporates intensity, specifically lots of intervals aimed at raisng threshold power.

Waterockets made it to Cat 2 training 6 hours a week. The key is if you're oly training 6 hours a week, you've got to make every hour count, and you don't get the luxury of many long endurance rides at moderate pace.