Spring is here, meaning double work-outs.
I did am/pm doubles on Mon/Tues... 120 miles total. Had to wake up at 4am Mon and 4:30am Tue to work it all in. Primary efforts included across all 4 workouts: 2x15 minute @ 250W, 3x10minute climbs @ 300W (I'm not a climber so these sucked), 2x15 minute @ race 250W, 1x10minute climb @ 350W, 1x5min @250W ending in sprint for 30 seconds (avg 500W), then 1x30min at race pace (250W) on a circuit with 1 minute @ 500W at the end of every lap. Also bumped up my recovery pace from 15mph to 18mph to really increase the pain.
― taco al pastorius (Steve Shasta), Wednesday, 23 March 2011 18:07 (thirteen years ago) link
Had to wake up at 4am Mon
!!!
― in a wonderful balloon! (Nasty, Brutish & Short), Wednesday, 23 March 2011 19:09 (thirteen years ago) link
that's me booked my B&B for next year's etape caledonia
anyone else fancying it...?
― taylor, the creator (cozen), Friday, 20 May 2011 09:26 (twelve years ago) link
I am considering letting you talk me into this..... Nb I have done 0 research on it
― problem chimp (Porkpie), Friday, 20 May 2011 12:30 (twelve years ago) link
only has a tiny wee hill in it
mark C should surely be willing
― taylor, the creator (cozen), Friday, 20 May 2011 13:44 (twelve years ago) link
LOL no
― Mark C, Friday, 20 May 2011 17:23 (twelve years ago) link
what does it mean exactly to "stay on top of the gear"?
does it mean avoiding shifting to a shorter gear (esp on inclines)?
i've heard it used a few times but never with any explicit definition.
― it's a meme i made and i like (Steve Shasta), Tuesday, 7 June 2011 20:24 (twelve years ago) link
cutty just IM'd:
perhaps to focus on the back stroke portion of the revolution, ie, not mashing.
― it's a meme i made and i like (Steve Shasta), Tuesday, 7 June 2011 20:27 (twelve years ago) link
yeah, turning it over without getting pushed to the back of the saddle, not mashing.
where is cuttye? (miss you man!)
― so come right back, we have count dracula and we have adam rich (Hunt3r), Tuesday, 7 June 2011 21:28 (twelve years ago) link
^^cosign this
― hilarious meme-related pun (haitch), Tuesday, 7 June 2011 23:42 (twelve years ago) link
Where is my sweet prince, CUTTY?
― cop a cute abdomen (gbx), Tuesday, 7 June 2011 23:46 (twelve years ago) link
hi! i'm back training my balls off. 3 hour ride before work tomorrow morning, 2x20 tempo.
can't really ILX because i have hardly any downtime at work to parse through this crazy place.
― cutty, Wednesday, 22 June 2011 01:47 (twelve years ago) link
Good to see you again, I'm down 10kg this year. Can't imagine 3 hrs before work, when do you sleep?
― American Fear of Pranksterism (Ed), Wednesday, 22 June 2011 01:56 (twelve years ago) link
all good!
― only pick one (meme) (Hunt3r), Wednesday, 22 June 2011 01:59 (twelve years ago) link
I just joined a gym, quite a big and well-appointed one, and they have four exercise bike which are basically MTB simulators! You watch what's essentially a computer game but instead of using a control pad, you pedal faster/slower, change gear, brake and steer (i.e. lean the bike over) as you go round the MTB course.
http://www.bikeradar.com/news/article/first-look-trixter-xdream-exercise-bike-20073/
I rather enjoyed it tbh - the only less good thing is the problem I have with any racing computer game - lack of feedback makes things like when to brake or change gear less than intuitive. And the gear system is much too vague and unsubtle. But otherwise, it makes 20 minutes on an exercise bike go past much more quickly than normal.
― Mark C, Monday, 27 June 2011 10:47 (twelve years ago) link
My new training partner is the current Masters state champion in both the road race and the criterium disciplines... Guess what he had in his spare bottle on our training ride last night?
5 pounds of fishing weights.
O how I lol'd.
― citation needed (Steve Shasta), Thursday, 17 November 2011 01:53 (twelve years ago) link
maybe he wanted an arm workout???
― i love pinfold cricket (gbx), Thursday, 17 November 2011 02:01 (twelve years ago) link
maybe he's a machine that drinks metal?
― jaxon, Thursday, 17 November 2011 03:04 (twelve years ago) link
i'd fill it with quarters. that way, if you ever need to do laundry while riding, you have a bottle full of quarters with you.
― dead precedents politics as usual (Hunt3r), Thursday, 17 November 2011 05:19 (twelve years ago) link
or gold, because... gold, y'know?
― dead precedents politics as usual (Hunt3r), Thursday, 17 November 2011 05:20 (twelve years ago) link
I put lead in my drinks
― Nasty, British & Short (Nasty, Brutish & Short), Thursday, 17 November 2011 07:25 (twelve years ago) link
I think I am riding with 5 extra pounds of pies since the weather changed.
― American Fear of Pranksterism (Ed), Thursday, 17 November 2011 11:24 (twelve years ago) link
I had a dream last night that Brian May came to my party riding a bike made of lead, which I then broke with some pliers.
― Mark C, Friday, 18 November 2011 11:03 (twelve years ago) link
^^^shastanomics ftw
― Mark C, Friday, 18 November 2011 11:07 (twelve years ago) link
I did the Trainnerroad 8 minute FTP test and scored 308W. (Trainerroad estimates my power about 50W higher than my trainer). Not sure what to do with this info except test again in 6 weeks.
― American Fear of Pranksterism (Ed), Saturday, 4 February 2012 17:44 (twelve years ago) link
Great number, most accurate in relation to subsequent tests, rather than absolute. Very sensitive to tire pressure and roller tension. If you keep those consistent every ride it should be good.
― dead precedents politics as usual (Hunt3r), Sunday, 5 February 2012 02:38 (twelve years ago) link
Tyre pressure was probably low and the wheel circumference was definitely wrong. My W/kg is probably less good.
Anyway, relative is much more useful than absolute. February is about intervals.
― American Fear of Pranksterism (Ed), Sunday, 5 February 2012 03:17 (twelve years ago) link
the lower the pressure, the greater the resistance, the greater the roller tension, the greater the resistance. if so, i need to put on a tubular at 160psi and like half a turn of roller tension, then i might hit 300.
― dead precedents politics as usual (Hunt3r), Sunday, 5 February 2012 03:21 (twelve years ago) link
LOL we are family
how do you like that tacx?
― dead precedents politics as usual (Hunt3r), Sunday, 5 February 2012 17:19 (twelve years ago) link
It is pretty nice, very quiet although they seem to have a few quality issues. When I first got it, the fan that cools the heatsink was installed upside down so it would over heat and beep at me. Also the clamp that holds the wheel is a nice design, poorly executed so it jams sometimes and I have to hit it about a bit to loosen it. The wireless is nice although I can't help thinking that given that the brake is generating power it would power the computer as well.
Also, updating the firmware has been a hassle. In all its a more complicated trainer than I need but it was a gift so what the hell. During updating the firmware I tried a demo of the virtual trainer software. It's not very well executed and I'm not really all that interested in competing in 3d VR bike races (also the subscription prices are stupidly high).
I should try some experiments with tyre pressure and roller tension to see if I can get trainerroad to match the trainer more closely. 50W difference seems a lot. I'd be interested to know what firmware trainload based their resistance curve on, it changes with version.
― American Fear of Pranksterism (Ed), Sunday, 5 February 2012 21:47 (twelve years ago) link
I've been doing these drills where you find a 2km stretch of 2-3% grade, then do repeats in your tallest gear (mine's 120 gear inches), staying seated, relaxed upper body (no rocking), deep breathing, but just grinding this big gear out. It's deceptively difficult because your cardio is never taxed but your legs feel completely wasted by the end.
― queequeg (peter grasswich), Thursday, 16 February 2012 07:00 (twelve years ago) link
What does that help with? (I mean, obviously it helps with strength/power, but what is it specifically useful for?)
― Monkee Trial (Nasty, Brutish & Short), Thursday, 16 February 2012 14:03 (twelve years ago) link
Muscular strength and pedal stroke efficiency.
Peter
― queequeg (peter grasswich), Thursday, 16 February 2012 14:58 (twelve years ago) link
is anyone else aware of the VE method for coastdown testing of real world CdA and Crr? i am, and now im _really_ fucking pathetic. *scouts acceptable hills*
― that's real banjo bro (Hunt3r), Thursday, 7 February 2013 19:03 (eleven years ago) link
i cant figure out the embed for this, but i think i'm becoming too much like rod (and also, tt people were a fave target of derision for me when i raced bikes).
http://www.stevehoggbikefitting.com/blog/2011/07/tt-rider-rod-and-bikefitter-discuss-the-secret-of-speed/
― that's real banjo bro (Hunt3r), Tuesday, 12 February 2013 17:32 (eleven years ago) link
jfc i'm fat now
― jason waterfalls (gbx), Friday, 10 March 2017 21:06 (seven years ago) link