Cycling Thread

[[old] johnmcclellan]

<!--quoteo(post=58856:date=Mar 9 2006, 01:49 PM:name=Yukon John)--><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><div class='genmed'><b>QUOTE(Yukon John @ Mar 9 2006, 01:49 PM) </b></div></td></tr><tr><td class='quote'>Yesterday I did the workout that John M. recommended, 3 sets of 8X2:00, rest interval 2:00 with 5 min. easy cycling between sets. It took two hours with a short warm up/ cool down. I liked it! <br /> </td></tr></table><br />John,<br />Glad that you liked it - how do your legs feel today? I've found that I feel significantly fresher after that workout vs. w/ a comparable amount of work with longer intervals. Then as the season progresses, up the time at LT, drop the rest. Fun times!<br /><br />CTS has a devilish one for later in the season (for Northern types - the boys in Texas are doing them already ) - the "over/under". A block just under LT, then a block over, back under, over, etc. No recovery. Simulates being in a break - riding near the limit, picking it up to try to break or to cover a break, and then back with the group, but no real respite. Watch a video of Paris-Roubaix or Tour of Flanders. Really fun times!

[[old] ebolton]

<!--quoteo--><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><div class='genmed'><b>QUOTE</b></div></td></tr><tr><td class='quote'><!--quotec-->Ed,<br />Londonderry. I've never been there, but some folks at the Concord TT told me about it.<br /><a href="http://www.leadcycling.com/index.html" target="_blank">http://www.leadcycling.com/index.html</a><br />I'm really interested in trying it out - too many things to do, too little time! </td></tr></table><br /><br />I'll be darned! It's practically under my nose. I'll have to go check it out!<br /><br />Thanks,<br /><br />Ed

[[old] Yukon John]

<!--quoteo--><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><div class='genmed'><b>QUOTE</b></div></td></tr><tr><td class='quote'><!--quotec-->John,<br />Glad that you liked it - how do your legs feel today? I've found that I feel significantly fresher after that workout vs. w/ a comparable amount of work with longer intervals. Then as the season progresses, up the time at LT, drop the rest. Fun times!<br /><br />CTS has a devilish one for later in the season (for Northern types - the boys in Texas are doing them already ) - the "over/under". A block just under LT, then a block over, back under, over, etc. No recovery. Simulates being in a break - riding near the limit, picking it up to try to break or to cover a break, and then back with the group, but no real respite. Watch a video of Paris-Roubaix or Tour of Flanders. Really fun times! </td></tr></table><br /><br />My legs feel pretty good today. A bit tired but since I haven't been cycling very long. I guess that's to be expected. Two questios for you John; It's not very scientific, but since I haven't had LT measured I just go by perceived effort. Do you know or would you recommend a better way to figure this out? Should I be going at a % of max for this? (OK, I guess it's three ?s) You mention using wattage in your training. Is this something that you have on your cyclo-computer or something else? <br /><br />Thanks again for listing what you're doing for some of your training. For someone like me that doesn't have much experience with intelligent training in this sport, it's invaluable! (OK, forth question ) A lot of my training background was in Cross Country Skiing, and we used an intensity scale to plan our training like at this web site <a href="http://home.hia.no/~stephens/xctheory.htm" target="_blank">http://home.hia.no/~stephens/xctheory.htm</a> . Do you use anything similar in your training? Thanks again. John

[[old] Jim Barry]

Londonderry looks like FUN. It's a little over an hour away I think. ebay has some good track bikes for 300-500. I could get into it. The "no brakes" thing would be weird but I'm warming up to the idea.

[[old] Don Seymour]

What kind of indoor trainers do you all ride? I've recently moved to New England and have dusted off my very old Kreitler rollers with the "killer" head wind unit. Do people still ride rollers or is that considered old school these days? I like the fact that you really have to concentrate while riding them, at least I do, so you don't crash, a little like S10MPS with some fear thrown in. There's no monitor though giving watts etc...<br /><br />-Don

[[old] Citroen]

<!--quoteo(post=58992:date=Mar 11 2006, 06:19 AM:name=Don Seymour)--><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><div class='genmed'><b>QUOTE(Don Seymour @ Mar 11 2006, 06:19 AM) </b></div></td></tr><tr><td class='quote'>Do people still ride rollers or is that considered old school these days? <br /> </td></tr></table><br /><br />There's one member of my club who has a set of rollers. But it's a bit retro. Most other folks have a Tacx turbo. (I've got a tacx but I very rarely, if ever, use it. I prefer the road and the green outdoors.)

[[old] mpukita]

I just ordered a Tacx Fortius i-Magic trainer yesterday, after considering pros and cons of the available trainer options. Chris (cbrock) was a real proponent of the Computrainer, but I felt, for me, the Tacx offered more motivational "distractions" that will keep me training at a higher level ... I am not so dedicated that I can do what the top level performers do ... focus on every stroke or every spin ... except for very short pieces/distances. I need some mental distraction to help me work through the pain. That's what I love about L4 Wolverine Plan workouts, and S10PS workouts ... so much to keep track of, the pain becomes more of an afterthought.<br /><br />I understand the Tacx is not as accurate as the Computrainer, nor does it give all the latest and greatest performance data (as the Computrainer does), but I figure if I ever get that serious, I'll buy the Powertap system. Does this make sense to any/all of you?<br /><br />I'd be curious if anyone else out there owns, or has used, the Tacx ... and what their experience has been.<br /><br />I'll defer the new bike purchase until I can sort through the options and figure out what I really need. The whole road bike vs. touring bike question for me is still open. Any suggestions in this regard would be appreciated. I expect to be doing no racing, just long rides or perhaps some time trials, just for fun and to set some training goals. Don't expect to be packing it, so the ability to handle a load would not be important. I'm still having a hard time understanding the different frame geometries, and how they impact ride and performance.<br /><br />Thanks!

[[old] Yukon John]

<!--quoteo--><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><div class='genmed'><b>QUOTE</b></div></td></tr><tr><td class='quote'><!--quotec-->I just ordered a Tacx Fortius i-Magic trainer yesterday, after considering pros and cons of the available trainer options. Chris (cbrock) was a real proponent of the Computrainer, but I felt, for me, the Tacx offered more motivational "distractions" that will keep me training at a higher level ... I am not so dedicated that I can do what the top level performers do ... focus on every stroke or every spin ... except for very short pieces/distances. I need some mental distraction to help me work through the pain. That's what I love about L4 Wolverine Plan workouts, and S10PS workouts ... so much to keep track of, the pain becomes more of an afterthought. </td></tr></table><br /> <br />Right on Mark! I'm not familiar at all with the latest trainers, but I looked up the Tacx system and it looks like a lot of fun . I can't afford it myself. I'll have to stick with the old noisy wind trainer that I have . But at least I've got it in a room with lots of windows, so I can pretend I'm rolling through the hills . One of the better riders up here uses the computrainer and really likes it. I'd imagine they're pretty similar? Have fun! I'm envious right now of Dougie and others where they can currently ride outside. It's snowing here at the moment and the lows for the next week are supposed to be -30C. Brrr.<br /><br />I'm just trying to figure out if I can keep my bike where it is. We're getting a new puppy today and were thinking of keeping it in the room where I keep the bike if we have to go out. Has anyone had experiances with puppies chewing on tires ?

[[old] Citroen]

<!--quoteo(post=59031:date=Mar 11 2006, 05:17 PM:name=Yukon John)--><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><div class='genmed'><b>QUOTE(Yukon John @ Mar 11 2006, 05:17 PM) </b></div></td></tr><tr><td class='quote'>I'm envious right now of Dougie and others where they can currently ride outside. It's snowing here at the moment and the lows for the next week are supposed to be -30C. Brrr.<br /> </td></tr></table><br /><br />It was horrid for the time trial today, strong NE wind (so we got a blow out to the first turn then hard for the rest of the course). I did an astonishingly crap time - got la lanterne rouge. <br /><br />It then turned very cold. The forecast is snow for tonight (but only just sub-zero °C temps). So tomorrow's Sunday ride might be a non-starter.<br /><br />[Note to self: don't go and do a 10K row in the morning when you have a 19mile TT in the afternoon, bozo.]

[[old] ancho]

Hi,<br />altough I'm more a rower and then a runner, I also enjoy mountainbiking.<br />My bike was stolen some months ago, so actually I ride a vintage Alpinestars, not as often as I'd like.<br />I'm now arriving to the age I thought could never arrive, where I enjoy more going uphill than downhill (each time I fall off the bike, it hurts more , so I tend to go more carefully now than some years ago).<br />I had spared somem money to buy an up-to-date bike, but I don't know how, I've finished with a Model D in my living room , what makes my biking and running mileage be very modest now...<br />Nevertheless, past friday I gave it my first try on "spinning" (don't know if you call it like that) in the gym, we had great fun and generated an acceptable amount of sweat <br />What do you "real bikers" think about the spinning modality?<br /><br />Cheers

[[old] FrancoisA]

<!--quoteo(post=58992:date=Mar 11 2006, 06:19 AM:name=Don Seymour)--><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><div class='genmed'><b>QUOTE(Don Seymour @ Mar 11 2006, 06:19 AM) </b></div></td></tr><tr><td class='quote'>What kind of indoor trainers do you all ride? I've recently moved to New England and have dusted off my very old Kreitler rollers with the "killer" head wind unit. Do people still ride rollers or is that considered old school these days? I like the fact that you really have to concentrate while riding them, at least I do, so you don't crash, a little like S10MPS with some fear thrown in. There's no monitor though giving watts etc...<br /><br />-Don<br /> </td></tr></table><br />They are not old school! The Kreitler are still considered the best rollers, and with the "killer" head wind unit, you can get sufficient resistance. The rollers force you to have a smooth (and hence more efficient) pedalling motion, as well as develop your balance and ability to ride a straight line. Also the required concentration makes time fly! Even though there is no monitor showing watts, you can still track your progress using a speedometer with cadence and a HR monitor. You must also be consistent with the setting of the "killer" head unit, as well as the tire pressure.<br /><br />Happy training on the bike (and on the erg)!<br /><br />Francois<br /><br />

[[old] Don Seymour]

Thanks Francois,<br /><br />I heard it said once that you can tell in the spring who has been riding rollers vs. trainers once everyone gets back on the road. The roller riders go straight as an arrow while the trainer riders drift around a bit until they get their feel back. You hear a lot of hype about all the fancy new trainers and not much about rollers so I'm glad to hear that they're still considered a good thing. I'll stick with what I got.<br /><br />-Don

[[old] whp4]

<!--quoteo(post=59111:date=Mar 12 2006, 09:09 AM:name=Don Seymour)--><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><div class='genmed'><b>QUOTE(Don Seymour @ Mar 12 2006, 09:09 AM) </b></div></td></tr><tr><td class='quote'>Thanks Francois,<br /><br />I heard it said once that you can tell in the spring who has been riding rollers vs. trainers once everyone gets back on the road. The roller riders go straight as an arrow while the trainer riders drift around a bit until they get their feel back. You hear a lot of hype about all the fancy new trainers and not much about rollers so I'm glad to hear that they're still considered a good thing. I'll stick with what I got.<br /><br />-Don<br /> </td></tr></table><br /><br />You can tell the brand-new roller riders, too - they look like they might have ridden their bicycle into the washing machine or basement steps by accident <br />

[[old] Yukon John]

Here is some cross training stuff that could apply to either the running or cycling thread. Pliometrics could be beneficial to both.<br /><br />I found this article while wasting some time surfing the net about cycling. <a href="http://www.bicycling.com/article/0,3253 ... ory_id=363" target="_blank">http://www.bicycling.com/article/0,3253 ... _id=363</a> I'm going to start doing plios hopefully in a week or two, once our current cold snap, snaps . I've also put a link to a short thing I wrote a while back about different ways to do them. A good one that I forgot is called hill bounding. Here is a site that describes them and has some video footage. Notice that the back leg hangs there for a while then comes forward at the last second. That's the secret to figuring them out. <a href="http://www.performancetrainingsystems.c ... nding.html" target="_blank">http://www.performancetrainingsystems.c ... tml</a><br /><br /><a href="http://concept2.ipbhost.com/index.php?s ... st&p=51995" target="_blank">http://concept2.ipbhost.com/index.php?s ... p=51995</a>

[[old] rr1kirk]

<!--quoteo(post=58992:date=Mar 11 2006, 01:19 AM:name=Don Seymour)--><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><div class='genmed'><b>QUOTE(Don Seymour @ Mar 11 2006, 01:19 AM) </b></div></td></tr><tr><td class='quote'>What kind of indoor trainers do you all ride? I've recently moved to New England and have dusted off my very old Kreitler rollers with the "killer" head wind unit. Do people still ride rollers or is that considered old school these days? I like the fact that you really have to concentrate while riding them, at least I do, so you don't crash, a little like S10MPS with some fear thrown in. There's no monitor though giving watts etc...<br /><br />-Don<br /> </td></tr></table><br />I have a Compu trainer and a set of homemade rollers. The rollers have six 2" diameter rollers rather than 3 x ? dia. Judging by my heart rate they have about 200 watts of resistance when I spin a 42x22.<br />I prefer them for any distance ride because they just feel better under me. The fact that the bike moves side to side is also a lot easier on my but than a fixed trainer. <br />Just change up the gears and they will put out all the resistance I'll ever need.<br /><br />Cheers,<br /><br />Kirk