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The rider we were talking about was already doing that workload though (500/600km weeks).
In terms of the training load yeah some of those guys were doing the same as some of the domestic pros with regular 20hour weeks. You're right that if you can manage it you're always going to have a distinct advantage over most other amateurs who just don't have that time/will to train that much.
I'm no huge RPR fanboy but I've seen the way they train and race for the last few years (coincidentally I was at one of Arlen's first cat 4 races - he was ludicrously strong). The intensity at which they ride is perfectly suited to making large gains very quickly provided you can keep up the workload. Tom Percival's blog is a good insight into just how much work some of those guys are doing.