Howdy, Stranger!
Categories
Options
The Sh*te on a Bike Thread
The materials in this website are in no way intended to replace the professional medical care, advice, diagnosis or treatment of a doctor, qualified personal trainer, therapist, dietitian or nutritionist Runners's World, Part of the Hearst UK well-being network © Copyright 2017
Comments
excellent, just saw on newsnight the genetically modified mice that can run at 20m/m for five hours, the equivalent of cycling up an alpine market, i mean alpine mountain (the presenter quickly corrected herself).
so, i just need a team of mice to help me.
Blimey D74, I never even considered doing intervals and stuff on my way to/from work. I'll have to give that a go a bit later. Yes, lots of kit required, I carry my laptop in a gergan but I suppose I should really just leave it at work. Must invest in some wet weather trousers and socks though!
Thanks for the advice.
Forget the trousers. No use to anyone. Wear longs to keep warm, and use the wetsuit approach, keep a warm layer of rain against your legs. Waterproof trousers will leave you boil in the bag. Same with the top, it's windproof and warm you're after accept you'll get wet.
I've a decent altura panier bag that in normal use looks just like a soft shoulder carry laptop bag, but has hidden clips and turns into a waterproof panier. Was pricey though, and I'm not totally convinced as I've big feet that tend to catch my ankles on paniers. SOcks end up holding the water too, but I still wear them for no known reason...
Oh, and top tip for drying stuff, forget heat / warmth, just use a fan (ie the white summer use type) on low setting blowing over your shoes / socks and they'll dry out in about 4 hours from dripping wet. Have th efan blowing from the heel over the mid to the toes as that goes inside too, and dries from there.
Wow that is pretty good - I really do think you go well on the bike given the amount of riding you've done.
Think about running shoes. Do you just get the the first pair that your feet squeeze into? No, you try 3 pairs, buy the ones that are right for your gait, shoe size and shape (ie wide / long) and generally 'feel' best. With bike fit then of course you can just chance it, and you may not get injured, you may get 90% of the power out and you may not be worried about the rest. But for £30 given that there will be plenty of people that have spent at least £600 (ie 5%) then I'd say that was a sensible option. You'd not run in £100 trainers without spending £5 on laces would you, and that's part of making the shoes fit.
True enough D74. First day today of riding to work and on the way home nearly knocked off by a twit turning left who didn't see me. I am a pretty savvy bike rider albiet used to having a bike with an engine, but jeez, it makes me mad!
Strangely enough I "feel" a lot more comfortable on my MTB. I think the riding position is better and I get more power and am more economical with it. I guess I am faster on my racer but I feel cramped, awkward, uncomfortable and not at ease at all. This time my new bike will be properly sized and fitted and not bought cheap as chips from ebay.
Candy - that's one of the reasons I think I need a person.
D74 - they're the reasons I want to get the bike fitting!
Lee - my husband bougt our bikes over the internet though I had sat on the bike in a shop so knew that it was basically the right size but my comfort and speed were much improved when the LBS did a few basic adjustments for me.
I think the key is that there's no guarantee that the people in hte shop know what they are doing though. Most bikes have a lot of adjustability, and even if it means getting a different stem, or new saddle post then it's cheaper than a new bike.
I really feel odd on my MTB now as I don't get to ride it anywhere near as often as I should, but am used to the position and handling of my road bikes.
LMH - I'm not saying you don't need to adjust your position - but I would discount the pain in your hip/shoulders etc as a reason - and the reason is because as you say yourself today was a "New long bike record". A little bit of discomfort is maybe not inevitable but I don't think it indicates a poor position. If you had continued discomfort after doing a lot of riding then it might be a reason to start thinking about changing.
If you do get a bike fitting I'd agree that you need it in person - not a video - I can't see that anyone can make adjustments of fractions of a cm by a video. I don't know of anywhere that does bike fitting locally - personally if it were me I'd just work it out myself by making small adjustments - and if you aren't sure asking other people their opinion and trying things. Maybe Lizzy B could suggest somewhere in Nottm, maybe Langdales, I think that's the shop she uses. Even with professional bike fitters it is just their opinion and whilst I'm sure cycle fit are better than most if you look at cycling forums some people will still say they wasted their money with them. There is no perfect fit - sometimes comfort, power, handling may be trade offs and it's down to feel what is right - you only have to look at how Merckx adjusted his position throughout his career - sometimes mid-race if you watch him in Paris Roubaix in A Sunday In Hell.
500!
have another question, but will save that for the next page!
Do those of you who use turbos regularly have a second wheel/gear cluster??? I've changed tyres on my back wheel to a turbo tyre (why is that so much easier at home) set the bike into the turbo and then bang - week off and it's sunny! How irritating is that?
What's the general concensus:
a - become pretty slick at changing tyres
b - second wheel
c - turbo on normal road tyres
Second wheel definitely,
I just wouldn't use the turbo otherwise. And I intend to become very closely acquainted with mine this winter.....
And to your first question, then don't see it as cycling 30 miles to test position, see it as making tweaks to your position, then doing your normal training and if it's still giving you a problem after a long session, then change again. Only make small changes at a time, and only make another change after a short time if it's resulting in pain, and then definately change sooner rather than later. Remeber that one change may well effect something else. Dropping the front 5mm will close your hip angle, and put more strain on the hams, so to preserve that then you need to move the saddle forward slightly, and if you do that then depending on your bike seatpost angle then you may need to adjust the height to maintain the distance between pedal and seat.
Changing position on the turbo is ok, but you do need some checks outside as you will ride a bit differently out there.
Many thanks for the answers. Second wheel it is then! Started tweaking yesterday and all of the points above are spot on. Dropped bars 1cm, seat forward 2cm, twisted cleat about 5 degrees and bingo, comfy for a half hour thrash on the machine. May lift the saddle a touch next time. Will see how it feels. Also fun practicing taking shoes off without unclipping - I can see how that would lead to a whole new world of embarressment in a race if you cocked it up
LMH, join a gang of us at Bala in June if you fancy going to half IM!
Weekend ride got me into the 30 club
10m TT
WildWill 36m 43 (94% WW IM)
Maddy 35ish
MaxPower: 31m 34
Stump: 29m 51s
JPenno : 28m 40
15m TT
MaxPower: 47:52
25m TT
Stump: 93 min 41 secs
MaxPower: 90:50
30m TT
Morning all
Decided to go out on my MTB for my weekend long ride this week - did a 36mile out and back ride one the Sustrans C2C rout down to Roke then went up the cast for a bit
Took 1:30:45 to get to the turn around point the 1:31:25 to get back so quite pleased with that
Total ride 3:02
Legs are a bit tired today