Newsletter Issue No. 819
July 19, 2018
PDF version for Premium Members is here.
Learning from the Pros: How to Recover
By Coach John Hughes
The Giro d’Italia Internazionale Femminile (known as the Giro Rosa) has been one the women’s most prestigious stage races for nearly three decades. This year 24 teams from around the world raced the Giro Rosa.
It finished this past Sunday, July 10. The women started on July 6 and for 10 days the women raced 980 km across Northern Italy. It was one of the toughest routes in its 29-year history with the racers climbing one of the most iconic Italian climbs in professional cycling – Monte Zoncolan. Read more.
CeramicSpeed’s Revolutionary Driven Drivetrain
By Jim Langley
By the time you read this I’ll be on vacation and enjoying some beautiful riding along the seacoast of New Hampshire and Maine. If you spot me on my blue Bike Friday Pocket Rocket Pro give me a wave! I was in a rush to pack my gear and skedaddle, so this Tech Talk is a quickie, but hopefully interesting nonetheless. I want to show and get your comments on the fascinating new drivetrain from CeramicSpeed that debuted at Eurobike, which just took place in Germany. Read more.
Don’t miss this Training Series discounted bundle from Coach John Hughes!
How to Become a Better Cyclist: The Six Success Factors – A new eArticle totaling 36 pages.
Your Best Season Ever, Part 1: A 32-page eArticle on how to plan and get the most out of your training.
Intensity Training 2016: A 41-page eArticle with the latest information on how to use perceived exertion, a heart rate monitor and a power meter to maximize training effectiveness.
Optimal Recovery for Improved Performance: A 16-page eArticle with 10 different recovery techniques illustrated with 14 photos.
Eat & Drink Like the Pros: A 15-page eArticle of nutritional insights from pro cycling teams. It contains a dozen recipes for you to make your own food and sports drinks.
Smith Podium TT Helmet with MIPS Review
By Sheri Rosenbaum
Smith’s Podium TT helmet is not necessarily for your typical club rides unless you are looking for every little aerodynamic advantage. It’s specifically designed for time trialing or even triathlon racing. The aero styling can help to save you watts and increase your speed. Testing the Podium TT was my first experience riding with a TT style helmet with a full shield. In the past, when racing, I’ve used my standard road helmet for time trials and triathlons. Due to a surgery earlier this year, I’ve taken 2018 off from racing and plan to be back next year. In the meantime, I tested this helmet on both solo and club road rides. To my shock and delight, I didn’t just look fast, I had some of my fastest times on a handful of Strava segments. Read more.
How to Achieve the Perfect Bike Fit
By Rick Schultz, MBA, DBA
I recently had a great discussion with one of the premier fitters in the U.S. – Happy Freedman. The original discussion revolved around me asking, “What differences (angles, etc.) are you seeing between fitting someone statically or dynamically?” Happy replied, “It’s actually more complicated than that.” He went on to explain that there is a greater difference in measured angles depending upon the time of day. Read more.
How to Deal With Numb or Tingly Fingers Cycling
By Fred Matheny
Cycling can make your hands buzz like a beehive or, worse, put your fingers to sleep. Hand discomfort is usually caused by improper bike fit. But poor riding technique also plays a role. Gripping the bar in one position for long periods is a sure way to make hands and fingers feel like an electrical current is running through them. Read more.
Question of the Week
Do you have a special recovery routine?
I recently discovered a great substitute for “Finish Line Gear Floss” for cleaning between cassette teeth. The Finish Line Gear Floss is stranded and catches easily on sprocket teeth. It is also expensive. I discovered “Blanket Yarn” in the sewing dept of Walmart or on Amazon. It is large diameter and comes in 108 yd lengths. It is not stranded so doesn’t catch. It is ~$4.00 for the 108 yds or ~1.25 cents per foot. (http://tinyurl.com/ybo3o849)