November 25, 2021
Fit for Life
By Coach John Hughes
Happy Thanksgiving! We don’t have enough snow in the mountains of Colorado to ski yet so my wife and I are head in Santa Fe and Taos for some New Mexican sunshine and culture … and perhaps burritos, chile rellanos, chips and salsa instead of turkey.
Here are nine columns I wrote when my biological age was 67. Although the calendar says I’m 72 now, I feel like a 60-something. I ride on the road, mountain bike, hike, cross-country ski and snowshoe almost as well as five years ago. And we’ve taken up kayaking — a great upper body workout on a recovery day from cycling and hiking.
Here’s how I stay (relatively) young. Read more.
Q&A: Brake Cables: When to Replace and How to Stop if One Breaks
By Jim Langley
Thanks to a reader’s excellent question,” I get to tell a brief “adventure story” from one of my first long rides, which took place in the mid 1960s aboard a “3-speed racer.” That’s what we used to call British road bikes, such as Robin Hoods, Phillips, Triumphs, etc.
They were “racers,” because they were a lot lighter than the more popular American one-speed bikes at the time. Plus they sported Sturmey-Archer 3-speed internal gearing. More gears makes you faster, right? Read more.
The Snowflake Theory Can Work Wonders for Your Cycling — and Psyche
By Kevin Kolodziejski
Equally as significant, the “healthier” diets didn’t always improve health. For instance, many mice actually gained weight on the Mediterranean diets. In summary of his group’s research, William T. Barrington writes: “A personalized . . . approach to dietary recommendations may yield better health outcomes than the traditional one-size-fits all approach.” When I considered that and the “The Snowflake Theory of Dieting” along with my cycling, here’s what I decided to do: Read more.
Swapping Out A 172.5mm Ultegra Crankset For A 170mm Rotor Crankset, Part 2 Installing Rotor Crankset
By Rick Schultz
In part 2, we will be installing a Rotor VEGAST crankset with 24mm axle – (a 30mm axle version is also available), which is a modular crankset comprised of the crank arms, spider, axle and chainrings. Rotor also makes the ALDHU crankset. The differences? The ALDHU is lighter but at twice the cost of the VEGAST. Look, feel, form, fit function are the same, just the weight is different. The cranksets come in two options, depending on the Spider, you can opt for either 1-piece dual chainrings or more conventional individual chainrings. I chose the individual chainring option. Read more.
Quick Tip: Ring that Bell
By Greg Conderacci
Recently, RBR launched this new series to enlighten our ultra-cool readers about the benefits of dorkiness.
In Part I, we explored screening your helmet; in Part II, we messed with your handlebars; in Part III, we reflectorized your machine; in Part IV, we prepped you for flats; in Part V, we praised electrical tape; and in Part VI, we recommended kinesiology tape for sore knees; and in Part VII, we raised your aerobars; and in Part VIII, we swore off black jerseys and in Part IX, we turned on a blinking headlight.
Today, I’m going to remind you about your first bike. It had a bell, right? Wasn’t it fun to ring that thing? Read more.
How to Electrify an Existing Road Bike — With Help From the Ebike Underground
By Stan Purdum
Ebikes are a booming growth field in the bicycling industry, and many companies, including both established bike brands and new startups, are now churning out an impressive array of these electric two-wheelers, some as low priced as $500, with some quite good ones starting around $1500.
But the commonly available ebikes in that price range generally do not include road bikes, which typically cost $5,000 or more in the e-version. But even some of the most dedicated road bike riders reach a point where, for any number of reasons, they may want to consider an ebike. Read more.
Proviz Sports REFLECT360 Platinum eBike Jacket (Men’s and Women’s styles)
By Sheri Rosenbaum
Proviz Sports may call this an eBike jacket, but it has many other applications, like fat biking, commuting, and hiking. The company developed this new winter jacket as a result of feedback from eBike users. When riding a pedal-assist eBike, it requires less effort, and the rider doesn’t produce as much heat, thus getting cold. Every detail of this jacket is purposeful and impressed me. Read more.
Stacking Works Elsewhere – How Teaching Children Poetry Might Help Set A New PB
By Martin Sigrist
Previously I’ve talked about using “stacking” to transform a workout from being just about improving physiology to instead not only get you fitter but prepare for all aspects of whatever challenge is being trained for.
Stacking isn’t just for cycling. It’s a powerful concept that can be used in all aspects of life. Read more.
Cycling Past 60 Bundle
Cycling Past 60 Bundle Part 1: For Health and Part 2: For Recreation, by Coach John Hughes, describes how if you exercise correctly you can slow the effects of aging; if you exercise incorrectly, you can speed up aging. He describes how your whole body ages. Cycling only keeps relatively young the cardiopulmonary system. If all you do is ride, you lose muscle mass, bone density, flexibility and balance, which you need for activities of daily living.
Hughes gives you six different health maintenance objectives for different components of your physiology and comprehensive fitness programs that address these objectives. He shows you how to gauge your “athletic maturity” to assess your relative fitness in terms of each of these aspects of good health and includes three balanced, full-body exercise programs for different cyclists of different athletic maturities. Also included are nutrition tips for healthy aging as well as advice on the importance of rest, recovery and sleep.
Question of the Week
Do you use reflective or high viz cycling gear?
Other Cool Stuff to Read
NY Times: The Popularity of E-Bikes Isn’t Slowing Down
WaPo: More than 2,900 miles in the West and Midwest have been added to the U.S. Bicycle Route System’s national network
Bicycle Retailer: Industry still struggles to grasp impact of e-bikes
Road.cc: $1.5 million high-end bike theft ring broken up in Colorado
End Note
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