Racing and Crashing

Hate to say it..but if you race a lot..sooner or later you're gonna crash. Crashing is an inescapable part of racing. And, a lot of times it's a matter of being in the wrong place at the wrong time. i.e. being taken out by someone. I'm not going to tell you how to prepare for a crash either..other than to say statistically you're probably better off trying to keep your hands on the handlebars and roll..rather than to use your hand(s) to break your fall.

But, the purpose of this post is NOT to tell you what to do BEFORE a crash but what to do AFTER you crash. Naturally, the first thing to do AFTER is to assess your own health/condition. Did you hit your head? Are you cut? Did you dislocate or break anything? If so, seek medical attention right away. The second thing you want to do is to assess your equipment. Is your helmet dinged, cracked or damaged? How about your bike? Do you have a carbon-fiber bike w/ carbon handlebars? If so, do NOT continue the race. Why? Because you never know if you're carbon fiber handlebars or bike frame is not damaged..and you may not only be jeopardizing your own safety but that of the peloton...if you continue. When carbon-fiber bikes and/or handlebars are damaged it's not readily noticeable and they don't bend like Aluminum or Steel when they're failing or about to fail..they shatter. Also, bike helmets are NOT football helmets. Bike helmets are only good for ONE impact...not mulitple impacts like football helmets. So, if you hit your head on the ground at all- regardless of how hard..that's it..GAME OVER! At least for that race. If you're able to read this post, and you hit your head during a bike crash, consider that your helmet did the job it was intended to do..keep your brains from being scrambled. Now go out and buy a new one..that is lighter, cooler, etc.

When you get home from the race I recommend that you take your bike back to the shop that you bought it from and have them look over it REAL good before you ride it again . They're the experts. If you have either a carbon frame or handlebars, they'll probabaly insist that you/they send it back to the manufacturer. Most good bike and bike accessory manufacturers have good Crash Replacement Policies. You may want to check into it before you make your purchase. Here is a link to Trek's Carbon Bike Frame Replacement Policy: http://www.trekbikes.com/us/en/support/limited_warranty/

Yeah, I know it aint cheap to replace your new carbon frame or handlebar..but it's a lot less than ignoring any potential/un-noticed damage and causing an accident that may injure a fellow rider, friend or family member.

Better safe than sorry!

Great Valley Practice Criterium

Went to the GVPC last night (for the first time) w/ a group of CB Velo riders. For those of you that don't know about it..here is some info. I stole from Guy's Bike Shop:

Great Valley Practice Criterium Thursdays - 6:00 pm Location - Great Valley Corporate Center (Off Route 29), Malvern Format - 30 laps, sprint every 3rd lap, 30 miles, flat w/one riser Average Speed - 20 to 25 mph Map - Great Valley Parkway, Malvern, PA 19335

I don't know how old this post is from Guy's but the speed surely picked up a tad. My computer said 26.7 mph for the average speed. I'm not sure who the lead dawgs were but I'd say there were a couple Cat 2/3 racers in the mix..approx. 50 riders in all..which I heard is a relatively light crowd for a Thursday night Crit. Anyway, what I wanted to do is share some post-ride Power Tap data for you Power Guru's out there. Here is the ride data that I downloaded from my Computer:

Dist: 31 miles
Work: 800 kJ (800 calories)
Avg. Normalized Power: 230 watts (assumes const. pedaling)
Avg. Power: 195 watts
Avg. Heart Rate: 173 bpm
Max. Heart Rate: 193 bpm
Avg. Speed: 26.7 mph
Max. Speed: 38 mph

Ok, so what's all this mean? It means when you're sitting-in, you really don't have to produce that much power. i.e. 200 watts for me, and I weigh 174 lbs. But, what you can't see in these numbers are the accelerations per lap that allow you to sit-in. On each lap, I had to crank-out three 20 second intervals of 300 watts to keep me hanging-on. That's in addition to the lessor duration and power output intervals each lap. The peak 20 second interval for each lap averaged around 400 watts...with my max 20 sec. interval of 500 watts. That was when I got stuck pulling out front..bleh. I say bleh, cause I was redlining...almost blew-up..fried the engine.I missed the final sprint, but that's because I lost track of the laps. I'll learn!

Anyway, if you want a GREAT TRAINING CRIT..this is it folks. If you get dropped...so what..you just try to get back on when the group comes back around. We meet at Jason Wood's house off of Cold Spring Creamery Rd. at 430pm. That works for me since I live 2 doors down from Jason on Boxwood Circle.

Cheers Rob

Tapering for the BIG Event

Ok, you've got a BIG race coming up and you're wondering how much/how little training you should do with the remaining days. Train too much up until the event and your legs will be tired, train too little and you'll be stale. But, what is too much...or too little? To peak for the BIG event, you want to reduce your training volume the week before but maintain the intensity. So, if you've been averaging say 200 miles per week on the road, cut it down to less than half of that..around 75 miles per week. Continue doing interval training because that will help retain muscle enzymes that help you process lactate. This type of taper combines rest with intensity. It allows recovery but encourages speed. Fast riding will also allow your neuromuscular system to stay accustomed to going fast when you ask it to go fast during the event.

Say you have a 40k TT coming up. If so, do 5 min. intervals at race pace intensity (L4/L5). If you're doing a shorter TT or a Crit, do 3 min. intervals instead. Remember, you don't want to do too many of these intervals. You're just trying to give your legs a wake-up call without tiring them out.

Here's a sample pre-week interval workout for a 10 mi. TT I have coming up. Don't forget to warm-up for at least 15 minutes prior to the intervals:
Day 7- 5x3 at L4/L5
Day 6- 4x3 at L4/L5
Day 5- 3x3 at L4/L5
Day 4- 2x3 at L5
Day 3- 1x3 at L6
Day 2- 30-60 minutes of easy riding at L2/L3
Day 1- Race Day

Go Fast! Good Luck! Have Fun! Coach Rob

Burning a Match

We all know what burning a match is...we did it as kids. Didn't we? At least I played with matches as a kid...hahaha. And, we all know what a matchbook is right? If you don't, that's the paper/carboard jacket that all of the matches are held in place with. And, there are a certain number of matches within this matchbook. There could be 3, 5 or even 20...but nobody has an infinite number. Sorry Lance, not even you.

So, what's this have to do with cycling? Well, every cyclist has a matchbook with a discrete number of matches in it. When you're done all your matches..you bonk...game over..end of race day...especially if you burn them prematurely. Question is: how do you know how many matches you have in your matchbook? Equally important question is: how do you know when you burned a match? I'll answer the initial question first: the best way of knowing how many matches are in your matchbook is through hard training and/or racing experience. The answer to the second question is: you can tell if you burned a match based on the following chart:

All you have to know is your FTP, and you can determine what a burned match is for different durations. Pretty nice/easy eh? For more information on, "What is a Match?" refer to Allen/Coggan, "Training and Racing with a Power Meter".

Derby Ride- May 25th at 0900

Our next D-Town Derby Ride is this Sunday, May 25th at 0900 leaving from Cold Spring Elementary School. (See details on CB Velo Blog for more info) Hope to see you all there!

2008 Philadelphia Amateur Time Trial

Join me on Saturday, June 7th, 2008 in Philly for the "2008 Philadelphia Amateur Time Trial". You can register online with BikeReg.com The TT is a flat out/back course on West River Drive starting at the Philadelphia Art Museum. The distance is 8.4 miles and all categories included. Starting time is 0730. If the Category listing on their flyer is any indication of proposed starts it is: Men Cat 5, Cat 4, 40+, 50+/60+, Cat 3, Pro 1/2, Women then Juniors. Start times will be posted one week prior to the event at: www.tristatevelo.com

The event is hosted by Tri-State Velo Club and is a Commerce Bank Official Event. It's also a PA Cycling Association BAR Event.

Online registration will close at 11:45 pm on Wed, June 4. There is NO day of registration!!

Contact me if you're thinking of going, or already signed-up. mullerrj@comcast.net

Lake Placid Ironman Training Weekend

Just got back from a weekend training in Lake Placid. I'm not participating in Ironman Lake Placid in July, but I had an AWESOME time training with those that were. The weather was PERFECT, food/drink good, and the company even better. If you're interested in joining me and TWiley Sports next year, drop me an email and I'll tell you more about what we're planning...which will be bigger/better I'm sure. Here are some pics from this years weekend:
http://www.pbase.com/mullerrj/lake_placid

Pre-Race Prep 101

I thought I'd give you some tips on how I prepare for races...specifically my next race which is tomorrow, Sunday April 20 in Harrisburg, PA. It's a 20k Time Trial. Here are my Top 10 tips:

1. The first thing you want to do is check to see when your start time is. For me, it's early 7:42 a.m. to be exact..bleh. The last thing you want to do is miss your start time...or your warmup.
2. What time do I need to be there? Well, the shorter more intense efforts require more warmup time. So, that would be at least 60 minutes for me (incl. registration, bike setup, dressing, etc.)..everybody is different. I HATE BEING RUSHED FOR A RACE!
3. Where is the race? Find directions and print them out. If your'e a geek like me, you have a GPS so program it now, don't wait. I ALWAYS recommend printing out maps ahead of time, even if you have a GPS..cause if your GPS goes tits up..you're lost. Hey, it's happened to me!
4. How long does it take to get there? For me, from my home in Doylestown, it usually takes 2 hrs. to Harrisburg. Always check to make sure there's no traffic delays or construction enroute. Ok, so that's 2 hrs. to get there, and 1 hour warmup with a 7:42 a.m. start time. So, I'd have to leave my home at 4:42 a.m. That's LEAVE at 4:42 a.m...not get up at 4:42 a.m. I'd have to get up at 4 a.m. then drive for two hours..bleh.
5. Well, I'm not getting up at 4 a.m., so in this case, I decided to get a room tonight/Saturday night. Red Roof Inn, Harrisburg- $54/night AAA rate. It's a room..what can I say. Write the confirmation number down and telephone number.
6. Ok, got your directions, booked your room now what? How about your equipment? Bike all setup? Got your helmet, gloves, shoes, kit, glasses, booties/bandanna, etc? Got all your nutritional items: Gu's, Power Bars, Accelerade/Gatorade, Recovery Bars, Food, etc. for the race and after? Tire pump? Tools?
7. How about money, waiver and your racing license? Did you fill your car gas tank? You don't want to have to stop if you don't have to. Clean the windshield? Oil ok? Tires?
8. Got your cell phone? (Hard to believe anyone leaves without it these days) How bout clothes and a towel for the ride home? Relaxed? The day before is NOT the time to get in a last minute workout.
9. How about a trainer to spin on before the race? I used to laugh at guys that did this..but now, I think it's a great idea...for various reasons. Especially when you can't ride the course ahead of time. How about an iPod w/ some crazy tunes to get you pumped up while on the trainer?
10. Ok, you think you're ready..and you have all your stuff..now what? Do you know the course? Have you ever ridden it? If not, DEFINITELY try to get out and ride on it in advance..even if it's with your car. If you can't, I HIGHLY recommend you check out the course with Google Earth. Google earth will show you the elevations so you know EXACTLY where the hills are. You don't want to be surprised on race day. I even print the course from Google Earth.

By the way, this is all easier if you go with a group..because you have people to bail you out if you forget something, or if you get lost, have a mechanical, etc. Heck at my last race, three cars got stuck in the mud and had to be towed out. Unfortunately, I don't know anyone from my area going to this Time Trial..so I'm on my own. If you got any OTHER tips I missed, please email me and I'll include them: mullerrj@comcast.net

HAVE FUN...GO FAST!