Crazy Germans

Since I was asked, here is a picture of our Christmas tree with real candles. It sounds crazy, but it looks really pretty. Having an awesome time in Balingen btw, spending time with my folks.

Now I know why

I had such a hard time yesterday clipping into my cleats. Seems like after years of use (9 I suppose) the little hook is finally worn off. I can't believe I gave to replace these now, with only a few months left before the garmin vector pedals come out.

Powercranks week 2

So I just finished week 2 of training with my powercranks. I didn't change much compared to last week, trained 3 days this week indoors on my my trainer and did 2x15 min with an easy to moderate intensity. Sometimes it seems actually easier to go harder, but my resistance unit gets too laud, and I am worried about my downstairs neighbor. Slowly the pain gets replaced by boredom, which I guess is a good sign.
I finished off this week by doing a 50 mile ride with the Golden Gate tri club. While it did hurt in the end, I was able to all the way, which was great. We'll see how the legs will do tomorrow at the Christmas relays.
Maybe a few more rides this week, but then I am out for the Christmas break. Next year should be fun!


Here is another video on powercranks. This time with Mirinda Carfrae, must be good then I think ;-)

Powercranks Week 1

Quick summary on week one using the powercranks. Set up was easy since I had a matching BB in my old faithful Giant TCR. Decided I better get some indoor trainer miles in before heading out on the road. So here is what I did:

Monday: 2 x 10min small chainring, easy. Yeah, it hurts

Tuesday: 2 x 12min small chainring, easy. Still hurts

Thursday: 2x15min, second 15 on big chainring (growing up), medium effort. Feels OK (as in not great)

Saturday: GGTC pre Kona viewing ride: Wasn't brave enough to go out all unlocked, but left the house in the unlocked position and rode to SB Presidio. Clipping in was interesting but I think that relates in part to the fact that my cleats are worn. Then locked them so they operate like regular cranks and rode with the group to Tiburon. There seemed to be some confusion and I found myself alone so I decided to unlock the cranks again. That's about one hour to get home. This time it felt pretty good. Still not as swift clipping in, but had no problems riding. Eventually caught up to Virgilio (OK, he was waiting) and we made the return via Bunker road and a small headlands loop, where it happened! I did manage to get out of the saddle! So excited! Had to shout out loud! OK, only for a short bit, but I did!

What's next? I'll keep the trainer rolling a few more times, but I think I am ready for some outdoor rides. Cool stuff.

Also decided to post some videos here. I will try to find a good balance between advocates and charlatans.


Power Cranks Review: Part II from MovePress, LLC on Vimeo.

My Christmas Tree

Looking around in the Marina I got inspired tonight to pull out some of the christmas decoration that I had in a box somewhere. Short of buying a tree, I thought it would be fun to decorate my bike. Here it is! Happy Holidays!

Marin Headlands - so awesome to have this outside my front door

On my way to the Northface Endurance Challenge aid station, manned by GGTC, I captured this awesome footage of a section of the coastal trail. How awesome is it that we have this amazing terrain so close to San Francisco. Aren't we lucky that the Marincello development failed (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marincello) and we have this land available to us to enjoy.

New training toy - Mission iSUB9

After entertaining the purchase of PowerCranks for the last 3 years, I finally gave in. Thanks to a 'steal' on eBay I am now the proud owner of set of PowerCranks. These clutched crankarms operate independently and are supposed to optimize your stroke efficiency, akin to doing single leg drills - only during the entire ride.

There have been a few studies trying to analyze potential performance benefits, with mixed results. Some focused on VO2max in a short TT style training regimen, but none to my knowledge have analyzed a typical bike-run pattern that would be applicable to me. I see the most benefit in this combo, ie. pedal more efficient (but not necessarily faster) - then put in a wicked run. Time will tell. I shall report back in a few weeks. Oh ja, and I wimped, I go the lock-out option, so I can keep up with the crew.

Now it's time to actually use them, which should be fun ;-)

 

Stefan's new toy

Interested? --> powercranks.com