Training Challenge

[the bear]

why would you want to mash the pedals in a sprint? In my point of view, sprinting is still about fluid pedal stroke and at the end of a sprint, if executed properly, you will be starting to spin out. High cadences in sprints need good control of your pedal stroke and mashing the pedals will not help that.

Cycling shoes and pedals help train a more efficient pedal stroke - however, it still takes alot of practice and it is still very difficult to master a perfect pedal stroke with clip-ins - a large percentage of riders still have a dead spot near the very top of the stroke and this becomes more pronounced when fatigued. When you are doing long distances on a bike, pedaling efficiency is important and if you can spin at higher cadences you will conserve your legs for longer.

newbies love to mash...its just the way it is.

you is right of course but sometimes its ok to have fun on the bike too. we aren't all trying to win olympic gold after all.

[Bikedan]

Haha - spinning is more fun than mashing no difference if you are just in it for fun or going for gold.

Its just a bad habit to pick up when you are starting out and can be difficult to erase later. People are free to choose any style of pedaling they wish. Just know that mashing can potentially lead to knee problems and it is very energy consuming!

[irishstu]

Well I got finished respraying and rebuilding my beater, and took it up Chongde St on Sunday (what a lovely day).

At first this was just going to be a test ride to make sure I'd set up the bike right, but as I got to the start of the climb, I though, "Bugger it, I'll just time myself anyway."

I probably put in about 90% as much effort as I did last time on the monster bike, but I managed to shave over a minute and a half off my best time anyway.

Here's the beater:



And here's the clock, stopped at 13:42:

[the bear]

Well I got finished respraying and rebuilding my beater, and took it up Chongde St on Sunday (what a lovely day).

At first this was just going to be a test ride to make sure I'd set up the bike right, but as I got to the start of the climb, I though, "Bugger it, I'll just time myself anyway."

I probably put in about 90% as much effort as I did last time on the monster bike, but I managed to shave over a minute and a half off my best time anyway.

Here's the beater:

hmm 3 seconds better than my official best time. I was set to break the magic 13 minute barrier last Wednesday but tragically got stuck behind a large blue truck on the run in to the finish line.

[irishstu]

Well I got finished respraying and rebuilding my beater, and took it up Chongde St on Sunday (what a lovely day).

At first this was just going to be a test ride to make sure I'd set up the bike right, but as I got to the start of the climb, I though, "Bugger it, I'll just time myself anyway."

I probably put in about 90% as much effort as I did last time on the monster bike, but I managed to shave over a minute and a half off my best time anyway.

Here's the beater:

hmm 3 seconds better than my official best time. I was set to break the magic 13 minute barrier last Wednesday but tragically got stuck behind a large blue truck on the run in to the finish line.

Interesting. We should get together and try going up together. I'm sure we would both get better times trying to pretend it wasn't killing us.

Getting stuck behind a truck is a bugger. Sorry.

[Bikedan]

Today I did Shooters Hill for the 2nd time. This time I ensured I paced well. I also did the 4km climb twice with a 7min recovery between each climb.

1st climb - 12.02 - average power 373 watts - 19.3km/h avg
2nd climb - 12.23 - average power 353 watts - 18.7km/h avg

I came very close to breaking the magical 12min barrier! So I'll try again in a week or two. The second time up saw a loss of 20 watts in power which equated to a 21 sec loss. Second climb was slower due to first climb perhaps done a little too quickly.

Here's the new challenge - time yourself up Shooters Hill the first time and then try to achieve a second time within 20 seconds or so. This is good training for building up your tolerance for hard efforts! If your best time is 14mins for example, then your second ride up should be about 14.20 or if you can do it, do two 14min climbs! Requires focus and perfect pacing

Let us know how you get on.

[Bicyclesidewalk]

Second climb up Shooter's Climb -

Today I arrived at the top with a time of 15.02.

Rode in from Danshui - if anyone here rides/lives in the Danshui, Sanzhi, Shimen area let's link up for a ride.

Garmin link for the ride -
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/21067699

In Danshui there is a similar hill climb - 4.4km 270 meters of climbing - Denggong Rd - can introduce if anyone is interested.

[Kea]

Rode in from Danshui - if anyone here rides/lives in the Danshui, Sanzhi, Shimen area let's link up for a ride.

Garmin link for the ride -
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/21067699

In Danshui there is a similar hill climb - 4.4km 270 meters of climbing - Denggong Rd - can introduce if anyone is interested.

I used to live out there-here is one of my favorite rides:

here's one you could try, I've done this quite a few times in the past,just over an hour on a mountain bike with road tires, quickest down was 29 minutes. Check out the elevation gain-very steady all the way
http://www.mapmyride.com/route/tw/%25u6 ... 9814864786

[Bikedan]

any up-dates from anyone?

[the bear]

any up-dates from anyone?

1st time out on the new Kuota I did 12.52 for the cemetery climb. And that was New Years morning after going to bed at 5 am so I'm sure the 12 minute mark will go on my next attempt.

(you doing this ride to Taichung on Sunday bro?)