It’s Not About the Bike
Lance Armstrong once said “It’s not about the bike”, and he was right. A lot of cyclists spend way too much time obsessing over their bicycling equipment instead of just enjoying cycling. This problem is common in newer cyclists who, lacking real experience related to equipment, simply believe all of what they see in bike magazines and Internet advertisements. The marketing hype related to high end bike and equipment has created an illusion that if you’re not riding a high end race bike (all carbon, of course), then there’s no way that you can be competitive or even enjoy cycling. Marketing folks are paid well to make sure this happens.
Those of us who have spent a few years on bikes understand the fallacy of this marketing hype. For 99% of all cyclists, having a bike that fits properly, knowing how to ride it correctly, and then doing the required training are what’s really important. Putting an average cyclist on a $5,000 carbon Tour de France race bike or high end TT machine is simply a manifestation of our society’s need to “buy skill”. The really funny aspect of this is that I just finished building up a new all carbon time trial bike a couple of months ago. It’s sleek, light weight, and – if ridden by a strong cyclist – would probably be fast. However, I’m finding that for 95% of my bike workouts I prefer my cyclocross bike. It has a generic aluminum frame, double wrapped bars for more shock absorption, non-aero wheels, and (gasp!) is set up with a small 48 tooth big ring and a 12-32 mountain bike cassette on the rear. With that gearing, I can’t go much faster than 32-33 mile per hour on level roads. Must be the bike’s fault that I’m so slow, eh?
Triathlon training group update
The Monday evening triathlon training group is going well. Nick Mathers, a local triathlete and swim coach, facilitated the session last Monday and provided some entry level swim instruction and tips to participants. The 3rd session (June 1st, 6:30 pm), will focus on bike fit and bike workouts. These Monday evening sessions are free and open to the public. E-mail bcullins@verizon.net with questions.
Structured training plans
I hear a lot of cyclists and runners asking “how do I get faster”? The answer to that question for most people is to follow a structured training plan. Here are the most common mistakes that I see: (1) doing the same workouts at the same speed day after day and week after week, (2) not going hard enough on hard days and not easy enough on the base endurance days, (3) not cross training (i.e., no strength and flexibility training), and (4) not taking recovery days and recovery weeks. For an overview of Periodization, visit http://cyclingupdate.com/index2.php?option=com_content&do_pdf=1&id=433.
San Angelo newspaper’s emphasis on fitness
It’s probably the result of having cheap contract columnists, but hats off to the San Angelo Standard Times for printing a lot of fitness related articles. During the past week, the newspaper published two columns related to running, one on general fitness, and one cycling column. Good job, Standard Times!
Lance Armstrong once said “It’s not about the bike”, and he was right. A lot of cyclists spend way too much time obsessing over their bicycling equipment instead of just enjoying cycling. This problem is common in newer cyclists who, lacking real experience related to equipment, simply believe all of what they see in bike magazines and Internet advertisements. The marketing hype related to high end bike and equipment has created an illusion that if you’re not riding a high end race bike (all carbon, of course), then there’s no way that you can be competitive or even enjoy cycling. Marketing folks are paid well to make sure this happens.
Those of us who have spent a few years on bikes understand the fallacy of this marketing hype. For 99% of all cyclists, having a bike that fits properly, knowing how to ride it correctly, and then doing the required training are what’s really important. Putting an average cyclist on a $5,000 carbon Tour de France race bike or high end TT machine is simply a manifestation of our society’s need to “buy skill”. The really funny aspect of this is that I just finished building up a new all carbon time trial bike a couple of months ago. It’s sleek, light weight, and – if ridden by a strong cyclist – would probably be fast. However, I’m finding that for 95% of my bike workouts I prefer my cyclocross bike. It has a generic aluminum frame, double wrapped bars for more shock absorption, non-aero wheels, and (gasp!) is set up with a small 48 tooth big ring and a 12-32 mountain bike cassette on the rear. With that gearing, I can’t go much faster than 32-33 mile per hour on level roads. Must be the bike’s fault that I’m so slow, eh?
Triathlon training group update
The Monday evening triathlon training group is going well. Nick Mathers, a local triathlete and swim coach, facilitated the session last Monday and provided some entry level swim instruction and tips to participants. The 3rd session (June 1st, 6:30 pm), will focus on bike fit and bike workouts. These Monday evening sessions are free and open to the public. E-mail bcullins@verizon.net with questions.
Structured training plans
I hear a lot of cyclists and runners asking “how do I get faster”? The answer to that question for most people is to follow a structured training plan. Here are the most common mistakes that I see: (1) doing the same workouts at the same speed day after day and week after week, (2) not going hard enough on hard days and not easy enough on the base endurance days, (3) not cross training (i.e., no strength and flexibility training), and (4) not taking recovery days and recovery weeks. For an overview of Periodization, visit http://cyclingupdate.com/index2.php?option=com_content&do_pdf=1&id=433.
San Angelo newspaper’s emphasis on fitness
It’s probably the result of having cheap contract columnists, but hats off to the San Angelo Standard Times for printing a lot of fitness related articles. During the past week, the newspaper published two columns related to running, one on general fitness, and one cycling column. Good job, Standard Times!
Bike for Sale
If anyone is looking for a good used road bike, Dean Mackenzie has one for sale. Visit this link for details: http://forum.cvmconline.com/index.php?topic=65.msg267#new
If anyone is looking for a good used road bike, Dean Mackenzie has one for sale. Visit this link for details: http://forum.cvmconline.com/index.php?topic=65.msg267#new
Upcoming events
June 4: Mountain Bike time trial, sanangelobicycleassociation.com
June 11: Road Bike time trial, sanangelobicycleassociation.com
June 13: Bulldog Run 10K, roadlizards.org
June 21: Tour de Burma, sanangelobicycleassociation.com
July 12: Suddenlink Lake Nasworthy Triathlon, roadlizards.org
June 4: Mountain Bike time trial, sanangelobicycleassociation.com
June 11: Road Bike time trial, sanangelobicycleassociation.com
June 13: Bulldog Run 10K, roadlizards.org
June 21: Tour de Burma, sanangelobicycleassociation.com
July 12: Suddenlink Lake Nasworthy Triathlon, roadlizards.org
August 8-9: Texas State Time TRial Championships, Castroville (near San Antonio), http://www.txbra.org/events/event.asp?EventID=1788
August 9: Wool Capitol Traithlon, http://www.ironheadrp.com/
August 29: Tiperrary Creek King of the Rockies mountain bike race, Winter Park, CO, http://www.epicsingletrack.com/default.asp?page=racedes/race8des.html
Dec. 10-13: Cyclocross National Championships, Bend, OR, http://www.visitbend.com/Bend_Oregon_Activities_Recreation/National-Championships/Cyclo-cross/default.aspx
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