Tag: cycling

Ghost Rider: In Memory of Steve Pye

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When people come into our lives we may not immediately realize the impact they will have on our life. But, as we get to know them, as we learn from them, we realize how very important the kindness, generosity and support of friends is to our health and happiness. In September of last year, I met Steve Pye. He was one of the coaches at the USA Cycling coaching clinic that I attended. As I struggled through the serpentine drill, just barely in control of my bike, Steve walked over and stopped me. He put his hands on my handlebars, and …

Crono Vino Time Trial: Fake it until I make it – or just keep faking it

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On April 10th, I received this text from Karl, an athlete that I coach: I clicked the link. I read through the event description.  And, I realized: 1) Karl would do this event, and 2) I should probably hit the “register” button as well. If I’m going to think of myself as a “real” cyclist, then I need to do “bikey” things. But, the thought of showing up at an event for really real cyclists scared the crap out of me. Mostly, I was certain one or more of the following things would happen: 1) I would greatly humiliate myself, 2) I would get my ass …

I am a cyclist? I AM a cyclist.

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I’m coming clean: I’ve been a hypocrite. I’ve talked a time or a dozen about how central our thoughts are for influencing the way that we act. While I walk this talk in most aspects of my athletic life, there is one area where I’ve clearly been lacking – yes, even hypocritical. I’ve said some pretty negative things about cycling. For example, I take credit for the hashtag #BikesArePoopy. More specifically, I’ve said some not-so-nice things about myself as a cyclist. I may have said a time or a dozen that I suck on the bike. I consider a compliment about my …

Thoughts from an FTP Test

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Forgive me, data junkies, for I have been an FTP slacker. It has been just shy of 2 years since my last FTP (functional threshold power) test. Yes, 2 years. I’m not a fan of frequent testing, not only because I don’t like them (which I do not), but also because they require a re-organization of the training schedule. In my training and coaching, I prefer to use prep races and key weekly sessions to gauge improvement and to set “A” race targets. But, even still, some baseline and ongoing testing is needed from time to time. My time had …

Trainer Time: 3 bike trainer workouts for triathletes

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I could blame the colder temperatures for the time I spend on the trainer, but that would be dishonest. I ride (and like to ride) the trainer year-round, and I find for shorter workouts, it can’t be beat for time efficiency – as well as the ability to nail a workout without worrying about stop signs, squirrels, flying saucers or cars. Even so, John and I are just a little bit crazy with the time we are willing to put into the trainer. We’ve done quite a few 6 hour heat acclimation rides, and we are steadily working up to 12-14 hours …

Cycling: Holding My Own

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“It’s been a while since we rode together,” John said. “You’re different.” Pause. “I’m impressed.” I beamed. Wow. That is high praise indeed. To say that cycling has not come naturally to me would be an understatement. It’s like saying that Rinny is an okay runner, or Michael Phleps knows a little bit about swimming, or Lance Armstrong only took a few “natural” enhancements. For the first 3 years that I raced triathlon, I never quite “got” the bike. I had (foolishly) thought that my running history would allow me to power the bike and that would be that. Um, …

The Pain Cave: Suffering Loves Company

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I rowed crew in high school. It was an incredible experience, that taught me the value of discipline and how much fun it could be to suffer with a group of other athletes. To be on the crew team required an enormous amount of discipline, especially for teenagers. We trained hard for hours after school–and sometimes before school. We gave up every weekend for at least half of the year–if not more. As members of the lightweight 8, my crewmates and I restricted every morsel of food that went in to our bodies.  But, it wasn’t all hard work all of …

Road Noise Vest Passes the 100 Mile Test

[Note: Road Noise provided  John and I with road noise vests for our review. We agreed to review the vests and provide our honest assessment.] “So, how did you like the Road Noise vest during the race?” I asked John the morning he ran 100 miles at the NJ Ultra Festival. “It’s the sh!t.” He replied. If you’ve never heard of the Road Noise vest, then I am excited to be the one to introduce you to this invention which solves problems for endurance athletes of all type–runners and cyclists in particular. In sum: Road Noise is a headphone-free way to …

The Fountain of Youth in Tabata Intervals?

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I dislike being anaerobic – i.e., being out of breath. I have said on many occasions I would rather run 50 miles than do a 5k. And, for the most part that is true. However, I begrudingly acknowledge that a little bit of anaerobic action is actually quite a good thing. In fact, I rather enjoy it. Case in point: tabata intervals. On Thursday, I was scheduled to do a tabata intervals style workout for the bike. All told, the interval portion of the workout was a mere 4 minutes. How bad could it be for just 4 minutes? I believe the picture …

Power: Weaknesses and Opportunities

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Our next race is just one week away: Rev3 Quassy half iron distance, in Middlebury, CT on June 3. I’m super excited for this race; so far, I think it’s my favorite half-distance course, especially the bike, which I wrote about last year after doing the race for the first time. During the past week, Coach Vince and I have been working out the race plan. For the first time, I will use the information from my power meter (as well as heart rate) to execute the cycling portion of the plan. When I picked up the power meter at …