Monday, June 18, 2012

Plan for the next few weeks...more PowerCrank focus

Well, we're getting down into the final thrust before Cascade and the speeder (crit and track) portion of the season kicks up.  I'm really hoping my PowerCranks (PC) will help provide me an advantage, so here is my plan for the next few weeks:

  • Monday (6/18) - Resting
  • Tuesday - Racing PIR
  • Wednesday - PC ride
  • Thursday - PC ride + Track racing
  • Friday - Resting
  • Saturday - Pacific Crest Tri (as team)
  • Sunday - PC ride
  • Monday (6/25) through Saturday (6/30) - PC ride + Alpenrose 6 day racing
In all that should provide me with more than twice as many PC rides per week as I've been having the past few months.  Should be fun!

A major race, a run of bad luck, and some continued improvement

I went in to the Mt. Hood Cycling Classic with high hopes based on the training and racing I've been doing, as well as the recent wattage gains I've seen based on my relatively limited PowerCrank training.  During the weeks leading up to Mt. Hood I had primarily been seeing sub-5 minute power improvements and I was hoping that would help me during the first stage as well as the crit.  Here is how it played out:


Stage 1 - The road race started out fast from the gun and I nearly set a 5 min power record on the first climb and unfortunately got a flat shortly after the start of the 2nd lap and never caught back on after getting a neutral SRAM wheel.  Luckily for me one of my teammates was in a chase group and we finished the stage together.  If he hadn't I'm not sure if I would have made it.

Stage 2 - Scary is how I would describe the Stage 2 Time Trial, which was highlighted by 30+ mph side gusts throughout the 18+ mile course.  I love Time Trials, but I don't love wind like that and I was off the road twice and am lucky I didn't go down.  Still, I was surprised by the fact that I set a 40 min power record (~340 watts), because up to that point I hadn't been seeing larger improvements in my longer power efforts.

Stage 3 - The downtown Hood River crit is always an experience and culminates in a downhill hairpin corner that always claims a few riders each year.  The race was fast, sketchy at points, and everything a typical Pro 1/2 crit is.  During the race I noticed less fatigue than I normally have with those types of efforts and I could really feel my legs "pushing over the top" during seated accelerations, which is something relatively new and I would associated with my PowerCrank training.  During the crit I set a 50 min power record, which meant I had two longer power records within one day.

Stage 4 - The final stage of Mt. Hood is beast of a stage capped by 4 hard climbs, a bunch of hairy descents, and only a few moments to catch your breath.  I've rarely had good days during Stage 4 and this year I went into the stage feeling better and fresher than normal, but was caught behind/in a small crash during the 1st KOM climb (about 4k out) and was never able to catch back on.  Dang, both road stages affected by bad luck...that's stage racing for you.

Summary - Bad luck sucks at Stage Races, but I'm starting to see power gains beyond 10 minutes.  Hopefully that will continue to improve as I get more targeted PowerCrank training time during the next 5 weeks leading up to Cascade.

Shorter can be better...who knew?

When I first received my "Entry" level PowerCranks in the mail I couldn't help but wonder why someone would ever want to use a 90mm crank.  It just seemed odd.  Can you even pedal 90mm cranks?  I come from a generation of cyclists who grew up watching and then mimicking riders like Jan Ullrich and Miguel Indurain, who were famous for using long cranks to crush their competition.  In fact, Jan use to ride 177.5 cranks on the road and then would TT using 180 or 182.5 cranks!


As a byproduct I have spent a majority of the past 15 years riding, racing, and training on longer-than-average cranks and have often road 177.5 cranks for TT'ing.  So, when I first installed my PowerCranks I ran through the length options (170, 150, 130, 110, and 90) and immediately selected the 170mm length as my starting point, because it felt like the familiar and easier thing to do.  I should note that I tend to be a stubborn person (just ask my wife) and while I had read Frank's posting on "The Importance of Experimenting with Crank Length" I hadn't really taken it fully to heart.


From there I spent my first ~6 weeks riding 170mm cranks never thinking about whether or not it would be easier or better to try something shorter.  As is normal for me, I just "pushed" through the adaption experience and continued to do my best to develop the strength and coordination that would allow me to pedal consistently for more than a few minutes at a time before I needed a mini-break to allow my hip flexors to recover.  Luckily for me I was able to trade a few emails with Frank and he encouraged me to try out a shorter length (150 or 130). 

With my biggest races of the year coming up rather quickly, and with my existing training and racing calendar limiting my PowerCrank time, I was more than willing to try anything that would help accelerate my adaption and muscle development.  On the eve of the Mt. Hood, for the first time in my life, and with a bit of skepticism, I moved down to 150mm for my tune-up ride.  The difference?  A night-and-day transition in the way I was able to consistently ride my PowerCranks.  Immediately I was able to control my pedal stroke and left/right coordination better, and I was able to ride for 20 to 30 minutes continuously without a break for muscle or brain-power recovery.  Plus, I was able to climb out of the saddle without an issue (albeit for 10 seconds at a time)!  

I don't feel like I can put as much "leverage" on each pedal stroke, but I am able to calm my stroke greatly and already feel like I'm improving my coordination beyond the benefits I was seeing at 170mm.  More to come soon, but I'm excited by the change and will be experimenting with 130mm during the weeks to come.