T-Blog

If you've read my blog before, you know I'm hooked on Graeme Street's Cyclo-Core programs for cyclists. I'm a member of the Cyclo-Core "team". We don't race, we're just a cross section of male and female riders of all shapes, abilities and ages who share a love of riding and a commitment to fitness through Graeme's programs. The cool part of being on a team is having Graeme as a coach and wearing the team jersey.

Like all coaches, Graeme seems to anticipate my shortcomings as a cyclist. Just last week, I was thinking to myself that I'd been letting a few things slide, like periodic stretching and recovery. I mean, really letting them slide. No sooner had I started to feel guilty than an email from Graeme arrived. Just a reminder that if you're not a flexible cyclist, you're not as strong as you could be. And I quote, "A stiff cyclist is a restricted cyclist and even though you may have strength and fitness, the lack of flexibility will always hold back your true potential to perform and ride with more strength and power." What a waste. I made a mental note to stretch after every other ride.

The second part of the email was a little harder to digest. Recovery. As in, stay off the bike for a day here and there. Yes, I know this is important. Why just yesterday I read an article about Dave Lloyd, a former TI-Raleigh pro rider who now coaches racers. Dave said, "The most important sessions are rest. You have to train hard, but you have to give your body time to adapt. I didn't do that, and sometimes it cost me."

But Graeme, I live in an area of the world that doesn't see the sunny side up until June. And even then the season may only last three months. And you're asking me to watch a day of that go by without being on a bike? Without feeling my tires humming down a favorite road? Without the fragrance of summer flora teasing me on?

A mental tug of war ensued. Graeme on one shoulder, the "dark side" (personified by VW's "Fast" for some unknown reason) on the other. Graeme wouldn't be deterred: "Your fitness will slide, you'll become a grouch, you'll be tired, you won't be able to sleep, you'll feel like you're on a treadmill; why are we doing all of this if we're ignoring recovery?" Fast just growled into my ear, "Lose this guy. I want to ride."

Graeme, can we compromise? Does a four hour ride in Zone 1 constitute recovery? What do you think? Would that be okay? I won't push it or anything; I'll go very easy. Graeme? Graeme? Aw, come on, Graeme..........

Tailwinds,
Georgena
talktous@terrybicycles.com
www.terrybicycles.com

Posted by Georgena Terry at 10:02 PM | Permalink

My desk is covered with snippets of this and that; articles torn out of magazines, dog-eared pages. All representing things that catch my eye. I thought you might also find some of these of interest.

After a long day in the saddle, do you ever climb into bed only to find you're still pedaling? Maybe your legs just feel that way or maybe they really are making circles. Science in Sport, a UK company, has developed Nocte, a before bed drink just for this situation. The Nocte concept makes perfect sense. There's a lot of recovery going on when you sleep. Nocte is formulated to "help reduce muscle twitching and restless leg syndrome" which may occur because of not enough magnesium in the body. A unique protein complex also aids in muscle repair throughout the night. Visit Nocte's site for more information. Unfortunately, this product appears to be available only in the EU. Sadly, my email inquiries to Science in Sport about US availability were not answered.

If you're looking for a good read, indulge yourself with some wonderful bicycling prose by Sam Walker, who maintains the site, www.bikereader.com. Well worth the visit. Described as "looking moody and windswept" (think pre-Yankees Johnny Damon), Walker has put together a collection of his own elegant writings and those of others as well as photos and graphics. Very impressive. In a recent column in Cycling Plus titled "Give me room to ride", he wrote: "Even if you can't imagine life without a car and only saddle up when high summer days thaw the bike lock and you have to ask the neighbour's kid for a pump to elevate the rims above ground zero, you owe it to your fellow road warriors who, after all, are taking up much less space than that 4x4: please give them a little room to breathe free, to live and to ride." Bookmark his site and go back often.

Fix it. Park Tool's products are found in every shop and shade tree mechanic's tool crib. Now they have an on-line repair guide for cyclists. Just click on the part of the bike that needs attention and you'll find complete instructions. Another neat goodie on their site is a downloadable pdf of a form on which you can record every pertinent statistic about your bike. It will give you a perfect "snapshot" of your machine. Invaluable (what if you need to set up a new bike just like your current bike? what if you want to compare your bike to a bike you're thinking of purchasing?)!

Looking for a clever way to carry a saddle bag? Maybe you have a carbon seat post and don't want to clamp anything to it. Carradice makes a product called the "Bagman" that attaches to the rails of the saddle. It has a retro look about it, but is very functional and adaptable. Peter White Cycles stocks both the rack and the bags.

Any news about trends in the pro peloton is always of interest because it gives us all an idea of where our products may go in the future. Two interesting directions came to the surface during the Spring Classics. First, carbon has not completely taken over the world of bicycle frames! Titanium and aluminum are holding their own. And the popularity of the "compact" frame design also appears to be waning, given the bounty of horizontal top tubes.

Well, that's it from the desktop for now. Stay tuned for more exciting adventures!

Tailwinds,
Georgena
talktous@terrybicycles.com
www.terrybicycles.com

Posted by Georgena Terry at 09:41 PM | Permalink