Greenville Cycling Center Blog

Sweet success!  Picture says it all, eh?

Coach David Curran’s clients posted these results:

A great weekend for many Greevnille Cycling Center Athletes…

Jake Strasser – 2ndJr’s 15-18 State Crit Championship

Jonathan Pait – 3rdCat. 4 State Crit Championship

Jim Cunningham, Sr. – 3rdMaster’s 55+ State Crit Championship

Coach Thea Kent – 4thWomen’s Open State Crit Championship

Richard Bailey – 1stCat. 3 State Crit Championship 2010 STATE CHAMP!

Kelly Patton – 1stCat. 4 Women State Crit Championship 2010 STATE CHAMP!

Good luck to all the Greenville Cycling Center athletes taking a shot at the State Crit Championships tomorrow, April 18th.  Weather looks great, learn that fourth corner and know the wind!

Coach Jim

Jim,  

I had a great 30 mile ride tonight. Really felt more power, much less to no pain in hands and arms, and finished strong with a nice long 23 mph sprint. Thank you for your service and advice.

1) Employ a bike fitting professional and ask for references

 2) be sure your fit specialist checks your bio-mechanics (leg-length, hip flexibility, etc.) as this factors heavily into your bike fit

3) have your fitter look over your shoes and cleats; a bike fit starts with your cleats and shoes!

 4) got carbon? your bike fitter better have an appropriate torque wrench. Simply do not use a fitting service that doesn’t use a torque wrench on your bolts

 5) know what to expect when you leave – should the bike feel great straight away on the next ride?!?!? will you experience new soreness that will fade after several rides? are you able to return for a follow up visit to tweak your fit or take a second look after a few rides?

The above due-diligence will give you the piece of mind you want regarding your bike.  Check out Greenville Cycling Center’s Pro Bike Fit webpage – http://www.greenvillecyclingcenter.com/bikefit.html.

Coach Jim

GCC athlete Jonathan Pait’s fine work with a marker and some masking tape!  Gonna hurt.  Coach Jim

Hey there all you endurance athletes, racers and weekend warriors.  We’re all training and racing hard now and our recovery becomes even more important.  A great way to accomplish quicker recovery is wearing SKINS compression garments.  SKINS Sport Long Tights provide LOTS of positive advantages.  Here’s a quick overview –

Quick Overview

• Heal faster – Feel fitter sooner
  Passive compression delivers more oxygen-rich blood to your resting muscles, reducing delayed onset muscle soreness
• Look good in the bedroom
  Wear after training or competing, or even while you’re sleeping
• Beat jetlag
  Better circulation minimises swelling and dehydration on long haul flights
• The perfect fit
  Super comfortable, even under your clothes
• Stay fresh
  Antimicrobial treatment and moisture management helps you stay dry and comfortable

Greenville Cycling Center just received it’s spring order of SKINS.  Let us know if you’d like to check them out!   See http://www.skinsusa.com/index.php/en/sport-men-s-long-tights.html.

Coach Jim

It’s spring 2010 and in the cycling mecca of Greenville, SC, that means it’s time to climb, climb, climb!  Just around the corner are:

Three State, Three Mountain (Chattanooga, TN)

Assault on Mt. Mitchell (Spartanburg, SC)

Tour de Cashier (Cashier, NC)

Brasstown Bald Buster Century (Helen, GA)

Bridge to Bridge (Lenoir, NC)

And many others!

With many Century and Metric Century ‘cookie rides’ or ‘timed rides’ looming, the time is now to improve your climbing.  Even if you’re doing the likes of Mt. Mitchell Training Series, Miracle Hill Training Rides, Wheels for Meals, etc., it is important you climb, or train to climb, in and effective and efficient manner.

Training to climb…

Not only should you include climbs in your endurance ride each week but also climbing repeats or multiple climbs mid-week.  The best choice in Greenville, SC is repeats on the Furman University side of Paris Mountain.  Use the climb of your choice though; just make sure it is 2 or more miles long.

Progression is the key:

Start with one-two climbs after a 15-30 minute warm up on the lower-elevation roads.  You should complete these climbs at an RPE of 7 or approximately 85% of your maximum heart rate or in zones 3-4 (heart rate if you know them).  If you’re using a power meter, complete the climbs at 88-93% of your Functional Threshold Power®.  Try to maintain a cadence of 70 rpm’s or higher.  If you cannot, do your best each week to get closer and closer to 70 rpm’s average.  Most of the climb should be done in the saddle.  Very your hand position from ‘tops’ to ‘hoods’ for variety.  Find what hand positions feel best to you.  When the pitch swings up, put your hands in your hoods and alternate between standing and seated climbing.  Also work on your descending skills on the way down.  Brake before, not in, turns & corners and do your best to enter each one wide, cross the apex of the turn and exit the turn wide.  This is safest and fastest route.

As you improve you climbing, increase the number of repeats you do up to four or even five.  To further increase your climbing ability, pepper your climbs with 5-10 second accelerations every five minutes to mimic the changes in acceleration you’ll experience in groups.  Try to settle back into your rhythm after each of these; don’t slow down!

Think positive!  Focus on 1-3 minute segments at a time and not the entire climb.  Or aim for that next corner and once there then start thinking about the next one.  Visualize yourself as the exceptional climber you would like to be; remember, positive thoughts lead to positive action.

Finally, review what you accomplish each week.  Are you climbing faster?  At a higher cadence?  Have you found the hand position that feels best?  Are you descending more quickly than before?

Include some or all of these tips and have a great 2010 cycling season!

Working hard the last two days at the US Paralympic Military Program, Lakeshore Foundation Camp, Birmingham, AL.  This event is for para-athletes of all types that are interested in a number of sports such as cycling, basketball, archery, track & field, aquatics and more.

My job has consisted of four sessions with groups of eight in which bikes (upright, tandem and hand-cycles) are quickly fit to the athlete, some quick laps on a 200-meter track and then a trip outside to experience the road.  Some are avid cyclists and will continue with their quest of becoming a Paralympian, some are new to the sport of cycling.

Talent identification is part of my job here and I’ve definitely found some that not only have the desire but very possibly the skill to get a spot on the US Paracycling National Team.  Time will tell.