Any cyclists here?

[Atmasphere]

https://bikepacking.com/news/ulrich-bartholmoes-winner-2023-tour-divide/

Since the 2023 route is longer and harder than the route on which Mike Hall (RIP) set the record in 2016, this is actually a new record despite what the article says. The 2023 route has a portion in Canada known as Koko Claims, which has an unridable 1700' gain in 2.2 miles. The 2016 route was shorter and had two less passes to deal with. The change was made due to a bridge outage in the Flathead Wilderness.
This is still considered the hardest bicycle race in the world. Top competitors will often do over 200 miles in a day, on a bike that likely weighs between 45-55 pounds, on dirt, gravel and about 15% of the route on pavement.

 

[MarkusBarkus]

...super-model cute, and she will crush you alive on the bike. Wonder if she likes audio gear?
PF-P. Dominant. Again. Awesome.

 

[Gregadd]

This one method. Whatever works for you is good. If you are having pain in the knees,your hips are rocking or knee is hyperextended something is wrong.

 

[Atmasphere]

This one method. Whatever works for you is good. If you are having pain in the knees,your hips are rocking or knee is hyperextended something is wrong.

Hips rocking is the seat too high.

Knee problems can be a variety of things but bike manufacturers really don't like to talk about the fact that people need different crank lengths as well as a different seat height. You can make plenty of power with a crank that is too long, but no more power than you can if the crank is the right length. However, you can make more torque with a longer crank and that torque bears directly on the knee. So if you want your knees to last, shorter cranks are how its done.

When Lael first set the women's record on the Tour Divide, she rode to the start line in Banff from her home an Anchorage. This year she took first place again:
https://bikepacking.com/news/lael-wilcox-2023-tour-divide-winner/

The Women's Single Speed first place and a new record for that on the Tour Divide was set by Alexandera Houchin:

https://bikepacking.com/news/alexandera-houchin-2023-tour-divide-singlespeed-record/

 

[Gregadd]

Crank length is important
On general road races have less severe corner and more hills. You can use longer cranks and not worry about your pedals scraping the ground.
Criyeriums have more severe corners and less hills. Shorter crank lengths are in order

 

[Atmasphere]

Crank length is important
On general road races have less severe corner and more hills. You can use longer cranks and not worry about your pedals scraping the ground.
Criyeriums have more severe corners and less hills. Shorter crank lengths are in order

IME crank length is also important for knee health. I've seen a number of people that had to drop out of the Tour Divide Race due to knee issues brought on by cranks being too long. I got to examine the bike they were using in several cases- and they all had 175s (which are common on MTBs), even when the rider was only 5'5"!

That can mess with the Achilles tendon too, especially if the racer is using Ibprofen to control pain!

A friend of mine did the entire Tour Divide route with a torn meniscus by using 155mm cranks, which minimized repetitive injury. She was a pretty avid racer until a spinal leak stopped her.

 

[Gregadd]

Repetitive motion exacerbates injury. See, Repetitive Strain Injury. Over 3 million US cases per year. Rest is a vital training element as is light training. The body needs time to rejuvenate from stress.

 

[Atmasphere]

Repetitive motion exacerbates injury. See, Repetitive Strain Injury. Over 3 million US cases per year. Rest is a vital training element as is light training. The body needs time to rejuvenate from stress.

It does! You can minimize the stress with proper bike fit. IMO/IME proper crank length is part of that. In my case 170mm is the maximum I can handle. This calculator seems to be pretty good.

 

[Gregadd]

It has been some time.i used 170 for crrit. I used longer for road. I was lucky to never have leg problems. Despite riding 200 miles per week in season.
Yes I pushed big gears.

 

[Atmasphere]

https://www.instagram.com/mira_la_perra/

 

[Gregadd]

I would add i had a serious off-season leg weight training program.

 

[Audire]

I rode a Cervélo for years. Awesome bike. Unfortunately, when I got sick and couldn’t ride any longer I sold it. It was a great bike! I miss my 30 mile daily trips.

 

[Atmasphere]

I rode a Cervélo for years. Awesome bike. Unfortunately, when I got sick and couldn’t ride any longer I sold it. It was a great bike! I miss my 30 mile daily trips.

I hope you are able to recover so you can ride again!

Because of a broken back, I'm not all that comfortable on dropped bars and most of my bikes don't have them.

Although I have a nice road bike and a couple of nice mountain bikes, my main ride is a 1972 Raleigh Superbe 3-speed, which is properly serviced out. I use it to go to work and run errands as it is so much better equipped to do so, having a built-in fork lock, built-in lighting and a competent rack on the rear. Even though I put in long rides on my other bikes, the Superbe gets the most miles simply because I use it so much.
https://www.sheldonbrown.com/english-3.html

3-speeds have become a bit of a guilty pleasure. I used to ride them a lot in junior high and high school. About 15 years ago I discovered the Lake Pepin 3-Speed Tour which got me back on a 3 speed, where I realized that you don't need a high end bike to cover serious ground (and in fact prior to WW2, if you wanted reliable wide range gears, the Sturmey Archer 3-speed hub was the only game in town).

 

[rando]

3-speeds have become a bit of a guilty pleasure. I used to ride them a lot in junior high and high school. About 15 years ago I discovered the Lake Pepin 3-Speed Tour which got me back on a 3 speed, where I realized that you don't need a high end bike to cover serious ground (and in fact prior to WW2, if you wanted reliable wide range gears, the Sturmey Archer 3-speed hub was the only game in town).

One moments thought about English women astride a bike and tea is enough.

Rando's prefer a rolling picnic of life in true style, in the French manner.

 

[Audiohertz2]

I would add i had a serious off-season leg weight training program.

Tell us more struggling with leg strength since my return 2 yrs ago after a 20 yr hiatus ..!



Regards

 

[rando]

Tell us more struggling with leg strength since my return 2 yrs ago after a 20 yr hiatus ..!



Regards

In cycling listening to your body before it screams is antecedent to any gains. Start at the base by planning a day to encounter numerous very short extremely low intensity rides followed by unforced rest of a few hours. You will in a matter of months find the same effort level leaves you fresher at the top of rises. As well as ease with holding or adapting cadence through momentary conditions. What you need to establish after 20 years is a regimen preparing your body for the effort. This takes a few years of fairly steady, similar workload and timing year to year, riding out physiological changes reeducating your internal organs and head! Muscles will fire and recover at any time.

Unless you are sprinting out of 4-20 corners for an hour straight or need to touch +40mph at the end of a 5 hour ride. The only gym work you should be at all considering is reestablishing your core muscles and a minor touch on opposing muscles. I directly quote a string of high level amateur through multiple rainbow stripe wearing WC here, "Strength is the easiest part of being fast." Any moron can (does) put on muscle.



Relax

Smooth

 

[MarkusBarkus]

...there are several things that will contribute to making progress on the bike. The usual caveats apply re: talk to your doc, etc. since I/we don't know you @Audiohertz2 and we don't want you to become Audiohurtsonthebike2.

Assuming all is well health-wise, it might be worth a check of your bike. Does it still fit? If you had a pro fit of 20 years ago, it may be old news. My position on the bike isn't what it used to be when I was racing. Although, it's not too far off. A little stiffer back, so stem is up a bit.

And knee replacement 11 months ago changed things too. I actually raised my seat a bit on my "gravel" bike for different extension.

I started riding with two days off, than ride again. I am 65 years old, BTW. Then ride, two off. Now I'm every other day, as possible with life and weather. And one needs saddle time to get the butt used to sitting on a perch again. I am only doing 25-30 miles which for me is a little sad, but that's what it is. Three years ago, I was still hitting mid-50s mph downhill and 40 mph sprints for short peaks. Gone.

I have currently mixed in some weight training on non-riding days. Primarily front squats and dead-lifts. Lighter weights/higher reps. Weight training is a plus, IME. But @rando 's note is not lost on me: building "souplesse" in cycling is always a goal. And core strength is important to stabilize your spin.

Honestly, no matter what level you are at, or hope to get to, doing some hill repeats and sprints will help you build fitness quicker. Sprint to a traffic sign (do 5-10 of these). Find a safe hill and do it five times. It will help a lot, and shorten your fitness gap time. Frankly, this stuff will probably help more than weight work, although that absolutely depends on your level of fitness and overall athleticism, as well as any short-comings you may have with specific muscles/groups.

And should you hit the gym, my strong recommendation is to avoid "open-chain" exercises. Leg extensions are terrible for the knees. Squats, even box-squats with light weights (and good form) are much better for you. If in doubt, get a few sessions with a trainer.

But generally: ride your bike! But if you add some hill repeats and sprints, you will improve more, more quickly. And be safe out there. It's a jungle. Happy trails, fellas...

 

[Gregadd]

I

Tell us more struggling with leg strength since my return 2 yrs ago after a 20 yr hiatus.



Regards

I have always believed in a wholistic approach to strength training to avoid injury. If you are over firfty some muscle atrophy has probably occurred. You are probably not going to be able to make a lot of new muscle, therefore it is a matter strengthening the muscles you have.
Proper warmup is essential. Begin with high rep low intensity exercise. If you belong to a gym, they will have the equipment you need to work the entire body.
To streamline.
Incline press
Squats
Deadlift.
There is no substitue for being in the sattle. You should have a major hill in your route. Intervals are crucial. You wantto finish with a sprint. Leaving time to cool down. You should have a little time left to cool down. If you ride with a group or a partner, let them go off the front and chase them down. Or you go off the front and have them chase you.

You will note almost no focus on the knee.

 

[Gregadd]

Remember soreness and lactic acid buildup is normal. Pain should not be ignored.

 

[Audiohertz2]

Well , its a new Bike not old i do still have my oldies and i’m of similar age to you. My 40+ Mph flat speed days are behind me , I’m lucky to hit 33 these days and not comfortable doing more than 30-35 miles due to seat discomfort ( working on that ) so my rides are confined to 20-33 miles typically when i do go out . I do have easy spinning days , do have my interval sprinting days and do rest 2 days min after a hard flat ride ..!

Working on diet now , feel my diet is a limiter and needs modifying ..!



Regards

...there are several things that will contribute to making progress on the bike. The usual caveats apply re: talk to your doc, etc. since I/we don't know you @Audiohertz2 and we don't want you to become Audiohurtsonthebike2.

Assuming all is well health-wise, it might be worth a check of your bike. Does it still fit? If you had a pro fit of 20 years ago, it may be old news. My position on the bike isn't what it used to be when I was racing. Although, it's not too far off. A little stiffer back, so stem is up a bit.

And knee replacement 11 months ago changed things too. I actually raised my seat a bit on my "gravel" bike for different extension.

I started riding with two days off, than ride again. I am 65 years old, BTW. Then ride, two off. Now I'm every other day, as possible with life and weather. And one needs saddle time to get the butt used to sitting on a perch again. I am only doing 25-30 miles which for me is a little sad, but that's what it is. Three years ago, I was still hitting mid-50s mph downhill and 40 mph sprints for short peaks. Gone.

I have currently mixed in some weight training on non-riding days. Primarily front squats and dead-lifts. Lighter weights/higher reps. Weight training is a plus, IME. But @rando 's note is not lost on me: building "souplesse" in cycling is always a goal. And core strength is important to stabilize your spin.

Honestly, no matter what level you are at, or hope to get to, doing some hill repeats and sprints will help you build fitness quicker. Sprint to a traffic sign (do 5-10 of these). Find a safe hill and do it five times. It will help a lot, and shorten your fitness gap time. Frankly, this stuff will probably help more than weight work, although that absolutely depends on your level of fitness and overall athleticism, as well as any short-comings you may have with specific muscles/groups.

And should you hit the gym, my strong recommendation is to avoid "open-chain" exercises. Leg extensions are terrible for the knees. Squats, even box-squats with light weights (and good form) are much better for you. If in doubt, get a few sessions with a trainer.

But generally: ride your bike! But if you add some hill repeats and sprints, you will improve more, more quickly. And be safe out there. It's a jungle. Happy trails, fellas...