"I was was told there would be no math in this debate"
I took that line from a popluar SNL skit where Chevy Chase played Gerald Ford in a presidental debate. Chevy was a god when it came to stumbling-bumbling character acting.
Now where was I...oh yes math. I post this link only because I think many of you need to have your head hurt as much as mine did trying to grasp such a simple concept...spin faster, go faster.
Enjoy. And report back on a scale of 1 to 10 on how much your head hurt reading this. Ten being you tried reading, couldn't get past the first paragraph without skipping words, looking for key phrases and then just bookmarking it and telling yourself you'll read it later and know that you won't but the information is really useful anyway.
I'm a 9. I would be a 10 but I have actually gone back twice to read more of it. Then the headache sets in.
posted by Comm's @ 11:52 AM
9 comments
9 Comments:
I have to admit my head didn't hurt at all... :) Thanks for the link.
smarty pants. rub it in.
I was told once, in an interview, based on an aptitude test, I would need a calculator to do my job. My answer..."No shit" I still got the offer, I digress.
I don't need one here, I skipped to the end. My conclusions, Fat guys, like me go faster downhill, skinny guys, like whoeever, go faster everywhere else. That's not that complicated to me, but that's me. I'll probably go back and look at it again anyway.
It's not the math that's the problem (yeah, I'm a geek). The real problem is that is based on a french book. That's what's wrong :)
I was told there would be no math in this link...
10
and, I have a Bachelor of Mathematics.
mostly, i felt like i was in an F14, spinning madly out of control, with sudden impact into a body of water imminent, my only thought was to reach up for the ejection handle, grasp it firmly, and pull before i lost complete conciousness...
I enjoyed it! The kicker is one of the last statements: "Whereas, on the flat, and out of the pack, the bike racers with the most power and best aerodynamic position will do the best, even if he weighs slightly more, when it comes to going up steep hills, the rider with the best ratio of power to total weight will excel."
Duh, I knew that. I am small, ride in an aggressive aerodynamic position, and my power to weight (kg) ratio at Functional Threshold is 3.48.
So, ultimately, to become the fastest possible cyclist, you can improve your speed by 1) reducing your weight 2) getting a better position 3) lightening your bike 4) training harder to lift your FT.
Many people try and go with the #3 option, which is crazy, unless they have ZERO weight to lose. It's generally cheaper (maybe not easier) to lose 1lb. of body weight than it is to lose 1lb. of bike. But you still need to train.
And then consider this: some people get a nice, lightweight bike, a good fit, and then they go into a race and weigh the darn thing down with enough food and liquid for a week! That defeats the purpose of the bike setup. Only carry what you absolutely, positively need, and train to that so you know what to expect in a race.
I agree with a lot of what Sheila just said. Although I am guilty of weighing my bike down with liquids. I'm not a weight weenie for my bike though. Over at Hed's site, there was some statistic that a bike that weighs an extra three pounds only slows you down by a three seconds over a 40k. I'll carry an extra water bottle if it means that I absolutely will not go thirsty over that hour for those three seconds. But I guess all that depends on if you're racing to place (which I don't) or finish and if you're doing long or short course.
The math was probably about a 2 of 10. I'm a math nerd like that though. :) Still, the last sentence summed it all up: "Experience can tell us better than any calculations how much power we are putting out, and, over both short and long intervals, what our optimum power output should be."
HRMs and power meters aside, your experience knows best and isn't something that can be bought! JFT! :)
I stop reading and start scrolling down the page..maybe my brain wil l pick something up un consciously.
I was at maybe a 2 - there was one unit of measure in there (the Wright) I'd never seen before. But in the interest of full disclosure, I used to be on the math team : )
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