Winning big climbs by climbing fast? What a crude, primitive strategy.
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Bicycle ERA |OT| This Is Why
- Thread starter Jill Sandwich
- Start date
When I say long... I mean anything over a couple of minutes. :P
Well the Castelli large X2 shorts came with the chamois positioned a lot differently than the large Free Aero model that I have. I hope they'll take them back as a manufacturing issue but I'm not going to try the other pair on. Im kind of at my wits end with this stuff.
Edit: you know I think I'm going to have my wife play around with shortening the straps on some of the bibs that are too big. The problem is that they are sagging off me and it's not like they will get any use otherwise.
Edit: you know I think I'm going to have my wife play around with shortening the straps on some of the bibs that are too big. The problem is that they are sagging off me and it's not like they will get any use otherwise.
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Been signing up for a lot of gravel events this spring and summer. Two I'd like to do are on the same day, which is annoying because they're not even that far apart geographically. But I have to try and finish the one I bailed out of last year. I should be in much better shape this year.
If I enjoy myself at these events I think I will invest in a good carbon gravel bike in the fall. The other option would be a Cross bike, but I think I would prefer the lower gears and I don't think I will actually do any cross racing. On the other hand, I have considered looking at some Cross clinics. I think a sense of accomplishment that biking is missing is for most people to get into big races. Runners can train and run in the same marathon as as the best runners in the world. I'm not really a competitive person, but I think doing some recreational racing would be pretty motivational. But Crits kind of freak me out - I don't want to be going full speed in close quarters like that. Cross seems a bit less stressful.
If I enjoy myself at these events I think I will invest in a good carbon gravel bike in the fall. The other option would be a Cross bike, but I think I would prefer the lower gears and I don't think I will actually do any cross racing. On the other hand, I have considered looking at some Cross clinics. I think a sense of accomplishment that biking is missing is for most people to get into big races. Runners can train and run in the same marathon as as the best runners in the world. I'm not really a competitive person, but I think doing some recreational racing would be pretty motivational. But Crits kind of freak me out - I don't want to be going full speed in close quarters like that. Cross seems a bit less stressful.
Speaking of racing, I signed up for a 24km fatbike event next weekend. It's a fairly hilly route but I've ridden it in the summer. Only thing I'm worried about is the weather. As long as there's snow instead of ice it's ok. But our winters are shit these days so who knows.
Depends if your strategy is to have tea and cake at the cafe more than attack the hill.
The question is, are you faster going up that hill or are you clocking the same time?
The phrase: "Cycling never gets easier, you just go faster." could definitely apply to you.
Otherwise it might be an idea to see if you could make your training more functional.
Yeah, that's the real question. It might still suck as much as it always have, but maybe now you do it faster.
How much riding did you do last year? Did you actively try to train, or was it just leisure riding? How is your weight vs then?
How much riding did you do last year? Did you actively try to train, or was it just leisure riding? How is your weight vs then?
If you're trying to ride a climb fast, it's normal to experience high cardiovascular load no matter how strong you get.
If you're just trying to get to the top, there's no fundamental reason that it needs to be stressful on your heart and lungs even if you're weak... as long as your bike is geared appropriately for what you're trying to do.
Is leisure riding on the sense that I don't follow a training regime with a set target. I have lost about 25kg since last year.
It's funny we are talking about climbing because I watched most of this video yesterday about a guy who does mostly time trialing training for hill climbs
He does a lot of training and winds up doing well in the end, but it's a little silly because
1) he's riding what might be one of the most expensive custom bikes in the world against regular everyday people
2) he missed the deadline to ride in the national event, and that's probably where all the best riders are the weekend he does the best
But mostly I thought we should get Psycho to do these hill climb things.
He does a lot of training and winds up doing well in the end, but it's a little silly because
1) he's riding what might be one of the most expensive custom bikes in the world against regular everyday people
2) he missed the deadline to ride in the national event, and that's probably where all the best riders are the weekend he does the best
But mostly I thought we should get Psycho to do these hill climb things.
Sort of. I meant more just riding for the fun of it, rather than pushing yourself to your limits. If you're 25kg lighter then your speeds up the hills should be much higher now.
Maybe 2019. I'm having a much easier year this year!
The climbs are like 1.5-5 minutes long. That's more than easy for you!
Would actually be better suited to sprinters. I tend to excel on stuff that's more like half an hour long.
Why would I be using such thin tyres? :P
(I did all of Leadville's powerline climb on 2.2" tyres, so it's not like you absolutely have to be using skinnies!)
(I did all of Leadville's powerline climb on 2.2" tyres, so it's not like you absolutely have to be using skinnies!)
I've said this in the past, but you'd be surprised how fast you can be on tires that wide
I'm speaking relative to hills. You can be on an 18lb bike and I can be on 21lb with 45mm tires, but still beat you up. It's all in the person riding the bike
Well, that's sort of what I am saying. I want Psycho to roll up there on his mountain bike and smoke some people.
I generally find wide tyres are a much bigger hindrance on the flats. I regularly eat roadies alive on hills only to have them stream past me on the flats.
Mountain bikes do okay on road climbs because the low speeds mean that both rolling and air drag are very small, and gravitational resistance dominates. The added weight of a mountain bike is of course a disadvantage in circumstances where gravity is the dominant resistance force, but an extra 10 pounds to the bike might slow you by "only" 5% or so.
Whereas when you're rolling fast on flat pavement, the rolling losses of the beefy knobbly tires can get significant, and it takes a lot of effort to pedal hard in a good aero posture on a typical MTB fit. Those two can combine into a much larger performance hit. It's also just plain harder to get into a comfy rhythm on an MTB, since the gears tend to be widely-spaced and the cranks tend to hold the pedals in a very wide stance.
I haven't found the tire width in itself to be much of an issue.
I wouldn't have said any of the people I passed had any sort of decent aero profile. These weren't time trialists. The bike itself tends to be far slimmer though.
You mean you're not supposed to gear it and climb like Contador?
I rode in a pair of dhb Aerons today (size medium!) and damnit if they don't fit me really well. Maybe I have a British body even though all my blood is Eastern European.
They still need to be put up to the full teggy sweat test, but smh I may be importing all of my bibs.
Also Zwift miles now count toward Strava challenges.
They still need to be put up to the full teggy sweat test, but smh I may be importing all of my bibs.
Also Zwift miles now count toward Strava challenges.
Went to the fatbike event on Saturday. The snow conditions were tough and I was redlining after a single lap of 12km. On top of that my front brake was busted so I called it there. Felt a bit bad about it until my friend, far fitter than me, came around on his first lap and was like please can we stop here.
Upon arriving home I realised the brake issue was just a cable housing end that had popped out of the lever when I crashed in a snowy chute, and it was trivially fixed.
Upon arriving home I realised the brake issue was just a cable housing end that had popped out of the lever when I crashed in a snowy chute, and it was trivially fixed.
LBS has the Genesis Vagabond 2017 in my size reduced significantly. Took it out for a ride yesterday it's a great fit for me, but I'm not sure I like the gears so not sure if I'll buy it or not...
Good news for what will soon be my local trail centre...
http://www.mbr.co.uk/news/trail_news/cwmcarn-371431
http://www.mbr.co.uk/news/trail_news/cwmcarn-371431
This will be my first real outdoor ride of the year. Personally, I'm hoping it's light on mud.
https://www.vermontoverland.com/vomar
https://www.vermontoverland.com/vomar
Froome announces his first race of the season will be Ruta Del Sol. Turns out he can potentially race one or more grand tours before a verdict, and even if he's found guilty he won't lose the new results.
So basically he's free to blaze over the mountains and hotbox the team bus as long as he doesn't get caught a second time.
http://inrng.com/2018/02/froome-quently-asked-questions/
So basically he's free to blaze over the mountains and hotbox the team bus as long as he doesn't get caught a second time.
http://inrng.com/2018/02/froome-quently-asked-questions/
Hey everybody, what is your take traffic rules, do you follow them all to the letter when out riding?
I find car drivers are far more concerned about my obeying the rules than themselves. I cycle home through a residential area with loads of stop signs, and I slow down but might not stop unless there is something coming from either side... A woman got very upset with me about that yesterday yelling out of her car while I was rolling past her. I am sure she always obeys all traffic laws...
Or in the mornings I will stop at red lights but if nothing is coming I might then take off...
I feel at a disadvantage cycling in LA anyway, so I feel like taking some liberties is only fair. :p
I find car drivers are far more concerned about my obeying the rules than themselves. I cycle home through a residential area with loads of stop signs, and I slow down but might not stop unless there is something coming from either side... A woman got very upset with me about that yesterday yelling out of her car while I was rolling past her. I am sure she always obeys all traffic laws...
Or in the mornings I will stop at red lights but if nothing is coming I might then take off...
I feel at a disadvantage cycling in LA anyway, so I feel like taking some liberties is only fair. :p
FliXFantatier , I obey the rules of the road to the letter, for a couple of reasons.
The first is that I don't want to do anything that might contribute to a accident. The second is that I don't want to encourage non-cyclists to think that bike users are tools who don't play fair - I find that there's a pervasive attitude amongst drivers that cyclists don't follow the rules which in turn leads to drivers treating cyclists like shit.
Stuff like cycling through red lights or cycling on pavements is a massive no-no for me. I'm also especially conscious that while I'm at risk of being injured by motor vehicles, I could really spoil the day of a pedestrian, particularly a elderly one or a child.
The first is that I don't want to do anything that might contribute to a accident. The second is that I don't want to encourage non-cyclists to think that bike users are tools who don't play fair - I find that there's a pervasive attitude amongst drivers that cyclists don't follow the rules which in turn leads to drivers treating cyclists like shit.
Stuff like cycling through red lights or cycling on pavements is a massive no-no for me. I'm also especially conscious that while I'm at risk of being injured by motor vehicles, I could really spoil the day of a pedestrian, particularly a elderly one or a child.
Rolling through a red light/stop sign and blowing through one are two different things. Sometimes it could be safer in that if you don't have a bike lane and will be in a merging lane it may be safer for you to ride through when no traffic is coming to get out in front of that merge.
Salmoning is a no-no in my opinion. Going against the flow is extremely dangerous
Lane splitting at stop lights? Yeah, go for it. If no traffic is moving and it gives you the chance to get to the front of the traffic lines which makes you more visible, it's a safer option. Just be mindful to not do it in right hand turning lanes if your area allows rights on red
In my experiences you can ride to the letter of the law and still be in danger. Coincidentally, sometimes you need to ride super aggressive to avoid situations that may put you at risk. Again, big difference between blowing stops and rolling stops like a car will do. Two wrongs don't make a right, but until cities begin to provide better support of bikes I'll ride in a manner that makes me feel safe within the limits of the law.
TarpitCarnivore , I was going to add to my post to say that I only break the rules of the road when not doing so would put me in danger (and doesn't endanger anyone else). As you say, unfortunately there are times when absolutely adhering to the rules can be unsafe, due to lack of safe cycling spaces.
Stage 6 of the Tour of Sufferlandria done. The next three days look horrible... and the final day (3 hours) can fuck right off.
Zwift manages to handle the shitty internet in my loft pretty well. The trainer connection to your computer is what really matters. Zwift seems to have simulation shit for lag, so when your connection drops, you keep at the sample place / pace. It's looks correct though in strava or whatever afterwards as the info from the trainer was right all along.
Depends how you define power. Sprint power is about muscles.
But yes, it's about pain tolerance, breathing patterns, lactate processing and VO2max.
But yes, it's about pain tolerance, breathing patterns, lactate processing and VO2max.
Just keep putting the time in. I mean, longer is better for that sort of thing really, but you can also do it with shorter sessions and interval style training.
Set your effort level as "this sucks, but I can cope" rather than "this sucks, I'm never coming back". Anything less than "this sucks", and you're probably not making decent progress. ;)
I'm a big believer in the structured approach of TrainerRoad and The Sufferefest... but at the end of the day, as long as you ride regularly (3x a week minimum) then you'll see gains.
Set your effort level as "this sucks, but I can cope" rather than "this sucks, I'm never coming back". Anything less than "this sucks", and you're probably not making decent progress. ;)
I'm a big believer in the structured approach of TrainerRoad and The Sufferefest... but at the end of the day, as long as you ride regularly (3x a week minimum) then you'll see gains.
Coming back to the discussion the other day about the absurdity of the road rules...
It looks as if I am technically not allowed to cycle on the bike lane which I usually take to work, because it is not adjacent to the roadway at all times?!
It looks as if I am technically not allowed to cycle on the bike lane which I usually take to work, because it is not adjacent to the roadway at all times?!
Yeah, I'm in for the long haul. Right now I'm doing a "beginner" 6 week ftp builder to get ready to start riding outside and then I'll move on to something tougher.
I was just a bit discouraged by how I was still lagging way behind even after building up to century distance (which I completely lost last year by slacking off). Maybe I'm not built for going really fast (I definitely have exercise induced asthma) so I'll just keep putting in the work and see what I can do and not worry about other people.
But sustained 2w/kg is my goal right now and I think it's doable.
Well riding a century and riding for speed/power is two very different things. Anyone can ride a century, but riding a century at a higher consistent speed requires a lot more work. You may very well be above or below average speed, but that is just going to be natural fitness level. This is something Joe Friel hammers home in his training books very early on. All our bodies are different with some being more naturally gifted in VO2 or LT so those of us who aren't may need to work much harder to achieve those goals. Whereas those with higher than average VO2/LT just need to train to better "unleash" the potential. This is another reason your local 20 year old rider that is dominating crits may not stand a chance at national level.
Riding a century is purely stamina be it physical or mental. You're just pedaling with the goal of going as far as you can so you're going to be more inclined to settle into your comfortable area of pace and build on that.
Building speed requires pushing beyond that comfort in different ways as to target the different things psycho mentioned. There's a reason folks who do crits build up to 2x20 repeats because in a crit you may very well be needing to ride just below threshold for 10/15/20 minutes at a clip.
Does this make sense?