Cycling Reviews

 

Wouldn’t it be great if you could ride the Alpe d’Huez during the Tour de France – suffering through every climb and every hairpin turn — while on your trainer at home?

Definitely cool. But think of what it would take for somebody to create that …. I mean, first, they’d have to get someone to climb the Alpe d’Huez during the Tour with a video camera on their helmet, while somebody else recorded every feature of the road and synced it up with every moment of the ride.

Then, they’d have to calculate what you’d need to do on your trainer to generate the same stresses as on the actual terrain. But, since your trainer wouldn’t really be able to accurately replicate every screaming, downhill run or brutal, uphill climb on the mighty Alpe, they’d have to create an extra brake unit that could do it — in perfect synchronization with what you were seeing when you watched the video on your screen.

If they did, all you’d have to do would be to hook up your bike to a trainer base, add the steering frame, then pop the video in and you’d be riding the Alpes – pushing past the cheering crowds, as the pressed onto the road ahead of you, cranking up the watts and suffering like you’re gonna die!

It would be truly awesome. But who would make such a thing? Tacx already did. Not just for pros — for me and you. And believe me, a description won’t suffice. The i-Magic Fortius Virtual Reality Trainer will completely blow you away!

Even VeloNews says, “Fortius is billed as a ‘virtual reality trainer,’ a claim that may seem overly modest when you witness the stunning capabilities of this amazing device.”

Tacx hasn’t just created live action rides from the Alpe d’Huez either. They’ve got live rides on the Mont Ventoux, the Tour of Flanders, the Passo Gavia and the Iron Horse Classic and others. Now that they’ve got people dazzled, it’s obviously in their best interest — and ours — to keep adding more.

The Fortius also allows you to create your own virtual reality race, choosing male or female riders, the attributes of the race and a variety of terrains. Naturally, it also comes with Analyzer Software to give you training information about the ride.

It isn’t cheap, but as with all technology, it costs to be an early adopter. And the Fortius is truly cutting edge. Do not avoid watching one of their demos. [Click Products / VR Trainer / Real Life Video then any selection to see a demo.]

Check out the unbelievable range of rides and variations available for this trainer on the site for Tacx too. You might be there for hours, but you will not regret it! 

The look isn’t everything. Of course. You know that. Still, if you’re going to put in the time, it can’t hurt to get it right.

When someone whips past you on a ride, pimped out in a team jersey on a somewhat excellent bike, and you can see they don’t just ride, they take the road, how do you know if they’re a wanna-be or a pro?

OK, the legs for one thing. You don’t get those hard-cut sinews from eating chips and watching TV. But even when you haven’t caught a glimpse of a pro’s steely calves, you know. So what is that? And how can you get it?

Some of it’s pure mystique. But here are a few other elements. Imitate these well and you might just start to look like the real thing…

Ignore the World
Watch out for red lights, pedestrians and truckers with an evil gleam in their eyes. But after that, it’s ruthless, relentless focus. You’re not out for an afternoon stroll, you’re burning up the road. Pour everything you’ve got into your legs and watch the world just melt away.

Lighten Up
Needless tension is a time bomb. If you keep your shoulders tense while you ride, you’ll pay for it later. Pro racers have learned to relax without even thinking. You, for now, might have to notice. If you ride with a scowl, clenched teeth, locked elbows or tight jaw, stop doing that. Remind yourself the whole ride, if you have to, but break the habit.

Pedal like a Pro
Amateurs pedal erratically. You can feel their effort and lack of control at a glance – the jerky movements, the sudden, earnest push as they climb a hill, the way they wag their whole bodies just to move their legs. The smooth pedal stroke of a pro is unmistakable. It’s a language all its own. Pedal all the way through the stroke, pulling up to knee the bar, then controlling the motion all the way through. Keep the rest of your body still.

None of these things will set you apart from Floyd Landis or Jan Ullrich and give you a shot at winning the Tour. But if you keep doing things right, you might just end up with those sinewy calves!

Endurance cycling is about pushing the pedals over long stretches of road, no doubt. And, if you do it right, you’re going to suffer. But suffering because the wrong cycling form is a bad idea. It can lead to injury and impair your performance.

Here are a few tips on suffering-free cycling form to help ease your pain:

• Maintain a cadence (RPM) of 80 to 95. Shift to keep your pace above 70 when you hit an incline or a hill, if you can. The faster pedaling motion will reduce your odds of knee strain.
• Pedal with the full range-of-motion. Pull up through the top of the stroke. Push down with your heel, as if you were scraping mud off the bottom of your shoe. Cleats or clips will help.
• Use a smooth, even pedal stroke. It is more efficient and easier on your joints and muscles. One of the first things you notice about a pro cyclist is that smooth, even stroke. Make it your own.
• Make sure your joints are flexible and strong. Do the extra work. Cycling involves both repetitive motion and virtual immobility. It’s going to take effort to offset the disadvantages of this. Core body strength exercises are crucial. Balancing your hamstrings and quads while you work your upper body will dramatically improve your cycling form.
• Pay attention to your upper body. Don’t wait till your shoulders ache or your neck is stiff. Keep moving as you ride. Put your hands in different places on the bars. Lean backward to stretch your back. Make a conscious effort to relax your shoulders and elbows, rather than keeping them tensed.

Do these things and you’ll save yourself a lot of needless suffering. Not that there’s anything wrong with suffering… The point is to make your suffering count.

When you are hammering up a hill 2 hours into a training ride, what matters most: your training or your glycogen stores?

Training matters. It builds muscle strength and endurance. But if there’s not enough glycogen to fuel your legs, you’ll bonk.

Glycogen and fluid are vital. Cycling burns up 40 kcal per mile. That’s 4000 calories in a century. Your body can’t run on that kind of deficit. You need to build up your glycogen stores before you go, then take good hydration and supplies on the ride.

Start the Night Before

If you’ve got a long ride scheduled, start eating for it the night before. If your muscles are crammed full of glycogen at night, your stores will be fuller the next day. You’re going to need a full tank.

Hydrate the beforehand too. Make sure you drink eight full glasses of water on the day before a long ride.

Eat a Cyclist’s Breakfast

If there’s time in the morning, start eating about 3 hours before you plan to go. If not, eating an hour before makes the most sense. The food you cram into the last 30 minutes should be considered carefully. Some cyclists find that heavy foods upset their stomach on a ride. You’ll learn from trial-and-error what works best for you.

Before they ride, women need about 60 grams of carb and men about 80 grams. You can add in protein or fat, if that comes with your favorite breakfast, but what you’re really wanting to store the most is carb.

Cereal and fruit with regular milk cut with water or skim milk works well. A bagel and applesauce or peanut butter is another favorite.

In the hour before the ride, a final boost of a sports drink, recovery drink or gel and water will send you out the door prepared.

Keep Eating & Drinking

The rule of thumb is to take a sip of water every 10 to 15 minutes on the ride. Don’t guzzle, just sip. About 4 ounces is all you need to keep up. Your thirst will only be activated once your body is starting to dehydrate, so don’t wait for that. If you get used to taking a sip every few minutes, the habit itself will remind you.

While you ride, your food replacement should be equal to about an energy bar per hour. Some cyclists cut a bar in four pieces and put it in a plastic sack, so they can take out portions throughout the hour. Others make sure to eat about 20 grams of carb every half-hour of the ride. Small peanut-butter-and-jelly sandwiches, fig newtons, fruit and nuts are good alternates to commercially prepared energy bars or gels.

Attend to Recovery

The magic window for replacing your glycogen stores after a ride is 30 minutes. If you can have a recovery drink during that time and eat a high-carb meal within two hours, you’ll be optimizing your muscle recovery and making it easier to sustain your stores the next day.

 

 

If you just need to get it out of your system, the Mega Horn will attach to your handlebars easily and give you a loud way to strike back at raging traffic, oblivious pedestrians, rampant pets and the occasional low-flying bird. It lets out a 105 decibel scream that will cut through traffic noise and take no prisoners. It’s used by police departments across the country. But make no mistake, with this horn, you’ll be the bad guy.

When you’ve been neglecting your weekly maintenance, your chain can pile up with crud. One day, you look down and notice all you can see is a heavy line of grease rolling past where a nice, clean chain used to be. The best solution is to pull out the brushes and cleaners and go at it in earnest, like your bike deserves. But for down-and-dirty, this little Chain Scrubber gadget will give you a quick way to scrap off the worst of it without removing the chain. Lazy and lame for a serious cyclist like you, but if that’s where you’re at, it’s better than nothing.

You’re not always going to want to ride with extra lights flashing on your spokes, but some situations might warrant it: foggy days, urban traffic situations or long, lonely rides down country lanes at night. These Warning Flashers are motion activated. They lay dormant by day, but spring into alert the moment you start riding in the dark. For those special situations where you need the extra visibility or just want the attention, these lights will get it for you.

You’ve tried it, haven’t you? You stop for a traffic light and when you roll out into the intersection, you suddenly notice you can’t see! Your glasses are fogged up. Those few seconds without motion made the difference. Your own breath bounced off your clothing and somehow wafted up along your face to turn your nice, crisp lenses into an absolute blur.

So now you’re doing it – twitching your head to one side to let cool air flow in, scrunching up your nose, holding your breath, raising your eyebrows up and down like a lunatic – anything to clear out the fog so you don’t have to stop – or be stopped by something in your path.

In extremely cold weather – or in summer – fogged glasses are a non-issue. There’s not enough moisture in the air to cling to the lenses. What moisture there is either freezes or melts away.

But in simple, downright cold weather – and definitely in rain – it’s another story. Pause for a moment or tilt your head wrong and you’re like a plane flying in a cloud. Zero visibility. In this situation, slamming into something is definitely a higher probability.

So what are your options?

High-Tech
In the range of anti-fog tech on the market, some work better than others. Three of the best:

• Clarity Fog Eliminator. A dry system with a great reputation and a nice video stream.

• Bausch & Lomb Sight Savers Tissues. Reliable, but made for less intense conditions … like reading.

• RainX. Made for car windshields. Good for eye windshields too.

Home-Made
If you’d rather do it yourself or cheaply — or you just haven’t gotten around to buying the tech – try soap. Dish washing liquid, to be precise.

Put one drop on each lens, then let the tap water rinse over it. Dab them dry, but leave a glaze of soap to kill the fog. (Too much and the soap will warp your vision, too little and you’ll have the same problem you had before: fog.)

The tech version is more likely to last all day and it comes in convenient little packs. The home-made version is cheap and right next to the sink. After that, your solutions run to ski goggles with built-in mini-fans. But that’s where you’re on your own.

The great thing about these Powder Stretch Fleece Tights is their two unique surfaces – a wind-resistant outer layer and a soft velour fleece inner layer. They give you cosy warmth without lots of bulk and a comfortable 4-way stretch.

There’s another unique thing about these tights too. At Foxwear, you can order them off the rack or request tailoring to customize them to your length – not an option you’re offered every day.

The EVap Light Jacket is made to resist. It’s anti-water, anti-wind and anti-sweat. Not only is is windproof and water resistant, it is lined with wicking fabric to keep you dry on the inside too. The armpits are lined with Power Stretch fabric to give you ease of motion as you ride. It comes in black, three shades of gray, purple, turquoise green, cornflower blue, oatmeal brown and navy.