Pedal Power Thread

TriggerHappy said:
Have you collected it, Al?
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Got it this afternoon :) - but not got the shoes yet so a bit odd pedaling on the SPDs with trainers. Will probably change the pedal over to flats and commute in Monday.

Went up and down a fairly steep incline and did not feel 100% on the brakes :eek: but think I just need to get use to it. The drops certainly still feel a bit odd.....but going up certainly felt better. Only had 20 minutes or so, looking forward to getting out for some longer rides.

I'm pleased but it will take a bit of practise, looking forward to getting the shoes to clip in.

Will try and get a photo up later or tomorrow.
 
I don't spend that much time on the drips at all, much prefer riding on the hoods, easier to shift and no hassle in braking. Even bleating down hills I prefer the drops, dunno why really, might just be me.
 
Nikon_Nick said:
Thanks for that Jamie, I'll definitely look into varying the rides.

And yes, I DO have the weight to lose ;0)
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Go for it! I have lost alot of weight by introducing cycling and other sports. I bought a road bike and built up from 5 mile rides and now regularly ride 80 miles +.

I'm well into my running now and again built it up, I could do 100 metres when I started and was dead on my feet, today, I'm just packing my bag for the Portsmouth coastal half marathon.

Nick, as others have said listen to your body! I was 20 stone and suffered numerous sore days! Lol. Try spinning as well, brilliant!
 
stokes said:
Go for it! I have lost alot of weight by introducing cycling and other sports. I bought a road bike and built up from 5 mile rides and now regularly ride 80 miles +.

I'm well into my running now and again built it up, I could do 100 metres when I started and was dead on my feet, today, I'm just packing my bag for the Portsmouth coastal half marathon.

Nick, as others have said listen to your body! I was 20 stone and suffered numerous sore days! Lol. Try spinning as well, brilliant!
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Cheers Tom. Getting ready for a 'little' 10 miler this morning, so I'll let you know how I get on. Did only a few miles yesterday, but I think I must have been a bit excited to get the new bike, and probably pushed myself too hard ( I needed to see how fast I could go) :0) So, I shall be taking it a little easier today.
 
One thing I found helped me, was tracking my activities. It's been amazing to see my own mileage increase and times decrease, and heart rate drop as well. There are loads of phone apps out there, worked for me, just a thought
 
stokes said:
One thing I found helped me, was tracking my activities. It's been amazing to see my own mileage increase and times decrease, and heart rate drop as well. There are loads of phone apps out there, worked for me, just a thought
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Yeah I've been looking at loads of apps recently, so I've downloaded one called Strava...seems pretty good, and also one called Sports Tracker, so I'll try them both over the next week or so and see which one I prefer.
 
First training ride done! 11.1 miles, and my backside is killing me!! It was like sitting on a set of brass knuckles...

I'll get used to it I guess...
 
Nikon_Nick said:
First training ride done! 11.1 miles, and my backside is killing me!! It was like sitting on a set of brass knuckles...

I'll get used to it I guess...
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Have you got a pair of padded cycling shorts? Your arse will toughen up a little but I would never want to spend any length of time in the saddle without proper shorts.

Well done on your first 11 miles!
 
TriggerHappy said:
Have you got a pair of padded cycling shorts? Your arse will toughen up a little but I would never want to spend any length of time in the saddle without proper shorts.

Well done on your first 11 miles!
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Cheers. Proper shorts are on my shopping list for next weekend, along with a few other bits.
 
AndyB1976 said:
If you think its sore today, its likely to feel much worse tomorrow!
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Yeah....thanks Andy :0) Not looking forward to the morning!
 
Cycling shorts and proper socks make it much more bareable, also spds I just serviced my mtb and plan to commute the 10 miles a day to work need to loose about a stone.
 
disco41 said:
Cycling shorts and proper socks make it much more bareable, also spds I just serviced my mtb and plan to commute the 10 miles a day to work need to loose about a stone.
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And chamois creme...
 
I have my Kona Fire Mountain for riding in the woods. Its a 1997 model with steel frame, I got it 15 years ago and have loved it since. I'll never sell it as my friends (rightly) refer to it as 'Triggers Mop', everything on it has been replaced apart from the shifters, frame and wheels.

I commute to work on a Raleigh 200 road bike, it's pretty decent for what I ask of it.

image.jpg
 
disco41 said:
Cycling shorts and proper socks make it much more bareable, also spds I just serviced my mtb and plan to commute the 10 miles a day to work need to loose about a stone.
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Excuse my ignorance, but what benefit do you get from cycling socks? I didn't know there was such a thing :0)
 
AndyB1976 said:
:lol:...might not be apparent when you wake up, but once you get in the saddle :eek:
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Well, luckily for my backside, I won't actually be cycling tomorrow. My next ride will be Tuesday morning ;0)
 
Nice little spin this morning - intended getting out for a hour or maybe two, but the sun was shining, and it soon warmed up to manageable levels - next thing I knew, I was rolling back home nearly 4 hours later with a metric century under the tyres :) Kept me out of mischief for a while, anyway.
 
Well done on the 11 miler nick! Finished my half marathon with a new personal best of 1:53:08 :) well happy
 
stokes said:
Well done on the 11 miler nick! Finished my half marathon with a new personal best of 1:53:08 :) well happy
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Thanks Tom. Well done to you too for your half marathon!
 
45 minute pyramid session completed today. They aren't easy on the thighs!
 
Nikon_Nick said:
Excuse my ignorance, but what benefit do you get from cycling socks? I didn't know there was such a thing :0)
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They wick away the sweat just the same way a good base layer will do I was shocked when I slashed out for some decent ones, they also stopped the hot spots I had on the balls of my feet.
 
Mark G said:
I have my Kona Fire Mountain for riding in the woods. Its a 1997 model with steel frame, I got it 15 years ago and have loved it since. I'll never sell it as my friends (rightly) refer to it as 'Triggers Mop', everything on it has been replaced apart from the shifters, frame and wheels.

I commute to work on a Raleigh 200 road bike, it's pretty decent for what I ask of it.
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I have a 2006 fire mountain will slicks on its a bit heavy but commuting is no problem just set the fork to hard and it doesn't bounce too much on the climbs, changed the rear sprocket to different ratios as I seemed to be always changing between 2 gears now the ratios are better suited to road riding.
 
Not the greatest photo, but here she is:

20130217_132403.jpg
 
disco41 said:
They wick away the sweat just the same way a good base layer will do I was shocked when I slashed out for some decent ones, they also stopped the hot spots I had on the balls of my feet.
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Ahhh ok, thanks.
 
TriggerHappy said:
45 minute pyramid session completed today. They aren't easy on the thighs!
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Just looked them up - when you break them down does not look too bad, but I can imagine it's pretty hard going. we'll give them ago once I've built up my fitness a bit more.

Found an article on trainers, have some info on pyramid training as well for anyone interested (I suspect you'll know all this already Jamie!) http://www.220triathlon.com/train/turbo-training-triathletes
 
Nikon_Nick said:
Yeah....thanks Andy :0) Not looking forward to the morning!
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You'll be fine, just don't sit down! Just remember it gets easier (well unless you are Jamie and kill yourself on a turbo!)
 
akr said:
Just looked them up - when you break them down does not look too bad, but I can imagine it's pretty hard going. we'll give them ago once I've built up my fitness a bit more.

Found an article on trainers, have some info on pyramid training as well for anyone interested (I suspect you'll know all this already Jamie!) http://www.220triathlon.com/train/turbo-training-triathletes
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That's similar to what I do but without a heart rate monitor (for now :D ) I go off gearing rather than my heart rate.

This is the exercise I did earlier:

Over 10 minutes warm up to a gear that just has you struggling to speak full sentences (translates to a heart rate around 135-140bpm). Then switch down a gear and hold it for 1 minute, before switching down another gear and holding for another minute and so on until you reach about your limit (5 gear changes for me), and then reverse the gears back in one minute intervals back to the base. 2-3 minutes recovery at the base and then go again, this time only 30 seconds per gear but aiming to drop 2 or 3 gears further and then reverse back in 30 second increments just as you did before. Another 2-3 minute rest at the base level before you go one last time doing the 1 minute pyramid. Finish with a cool down of around 10 minutes that ends on a very easy gear.

I use an iPhone app called Seconds to create my own interval timers so that I don't cheat or lose track.
 
akr said:
You'll be fine, just don't sit down! Just remember it gets easier (well unless you are Jamie and kill yourself on a turbo!)
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Cycling never gets any easier, you just go a little bit further and a little bit faster in the same amount of pain :D
 
TriggerHappy said:
Very nice! Not surprised it feels a little weird in the drops, they're some deep drops to get used to!
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The guy who owns the LBS use to race at a really high level, and is reputedly still pretty good and a great mechanic as well. I remember when I got my hybrid serviced there last year before my triathlon, and he wished me luck on it and gave me some energy gels out of sympathy \ despair I think.

We'll see how it goes - I think I'll stick to the drop mainly for training in parks \ quieter roads, they are quite low for commuting.
 
Went up to Lee Quarry on Saturday, snow has all but gone. Top mornings riding managed a couple of laps and some playing around on the skills area.

Was very misty to start with could barely see anything made it a bit more of a rush riding down this bit.

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The trail back from Crag Quarry is ace so fast and loads of jumps. Hopefully Gisburn Forest next weekend.
 
Nikon_Nick said:
Yeah I've been looking at loads of apps recently, so I've downloaded one called Strava...seems pretty good, and also one called Sports Tracker, so I'll try them both over the next week or so and see which one I prefer.
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I agree with logging your rides being great feedback and encouragement. I went from being new to road cycling June 2012 to now regularly doing 80+ mile rides.

Strava is a great tool. Once you been logged riding a road you can create a segment and track your progress on it. Make the segment private and only your efforts will show on it. So you could create a small looped lap or complete training ride and measure times and average speed as you progress.

A word of warning with Strava though, it can get competitive! I'm a member of a cycle club and its not unusual for a couple of breakaway races to develop for well known Strava segments. It all settles down to back to the group ride after where the bragging or excuses are shared.
 
Cycled to work after a tricky morning. First time I have commuted on a bike for years and did my 14km of London in 45 minutes or so, with a little time required for getting lost! Not bad and quite frankly it didn't feel all that hard. I may need to push harder. I have a Charge Scourer 2012 and found a couple of problems with it but mainly that it has looney wide handlebars that are not great for commuting. May need to get them cut down a little or get a smaller set. They are about 700mm wide!
 
A word of advice for those using strava, be sure to go into the privacy settings and enable the option to hide your location for the first 500m if you leave from your driveway. There have been several bike thefts that have happened because the thieves could see exactly where someone lived from their strava rides.
 
TriggerHappy said:
A word of advice for those using strava, be sure to go into the privacy settings and enable the option to hide your location for the first 500m if you leave from your driveway. There have been several bike thefts that have happened because the thieves could see exactly where someone lived from their strava rides.
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you can actually set a few of these points - so you can either cover a larger area than just a single radius, or you can set a couple for your regular visits (e.g. work locations) as well - pretty much anywhere that you'll be leaving the bike unattended.
 
TheBigYin said:
you can actually set a few of these points - so you can either cover a larger area than just a single radius, or you can set a couple for your regular visits (e.g. work locations) as well - pretty much anywhere that you'll be leaving the bike unattended.
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Annoyingly my go-to segment for checking my performance now falls within this zone so doesn't get registered. Previously you could customise the radius and at 100-200m it was fine, then one day it automatically updated when they changed the system and all my rides automatically got edited with the new distance, losing the data for that particular segment and meaning I could no longer post times to it. Even worse was the the ends of the rides don't get restored by disabling the privacy setting so the only options was to re-upload each of my rides once the setting was off :bonk: I actually deleted my strava account in frustration at that point!
 
TriggerHappy said:
A word of advice for those using strava, be sure to go into the privacy settings and enable the option to hide your location for the first 500m if you leave from your driveway. There have been several bike thefts that have happened because the thieves could see exactly where someone lived from their strava rides.
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Thanks for that. Had just joined up to monitor my own progress and have now added my home address to the privacy bit.
 
TriggerHappy said:
Annoyingly my go-to segment for checking my performance now falls within this zone so doesn't get registered. Previously you could customise the radius and at 100-200m it was fine, then one day it automatically updated when they changed the system and all my rides automatically got edited with the new distance, losing the data for that particular segment and meaning I could no longer post times to it. Even worse was the the ends of the rides don't get restored by disabling the privacy setting so the only options was to re-upload each of my rides once the setting was off :bonk: I actually deleted my strava account in frustration at that point!
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Must have ben annoying - I'm a big ol' diesel engine - I need a good 5 miles or so to warm up, and the same to wind down at the end of the ride, so I've never had problems on that score - any of my "test sectors" are a good way from home or other hidden areas - but losing test data like that is not good - that's why I don't rely on anything online for that stuff - GoldenCheetah FTW! :naughty:
 
TheBigYin said:
Must have ben annoying - I'm a big ol' diesel engine - I need a good 5 miles or so to warm up, and the same to wind down at the end of the ride, so I've never had problems on that score - any of my "test sectors" are a good way from home or other hidden areas - but losing test data like that is not good - that's why I don't rely on anything online for that stuff - GoldenCheetah FTW! :naughty:
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:lol: I like the diesel analogy. I think I'm more of a 1l petrol ford ka with a slightly faulty battery and a few disconcerting but unidentifiable rattles coming from under the bonnet :D

Fortunately I don't use Strava to record my rides so the original data is all safe, it was more the hassle and the slightly aggressive way the changes were forced and irreversible that annoyed me enough to delete my account. I do have a new account now, though I haven't added a single ride to it.

I've been looking at GoldenCheetah and TrainingPeaks for a little while. Once I bite the bullet and get a Garmin I'm going to have to make a decision between the two.
 
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