Modern equipment and Net Thrust!

Perhaps we should call fitting "Speed Fix".  What speed do you wish to go?

With modern equipment, a difference in speed can be as much as 5 mph.  But don't forget, speed principally depends on athletic ability and your body & your understanding shape &  forces.

We just spoke with MD Steve Smith who's wife Kristin Smith just won her race, plus put abouttime (30 min.) into her rivals in the Boise Ironman 70.3.  We have worked with Kristin on her body potential on the bike.  She is some what muscled, yet a very good endurance athlete.

When we did the fit for her, we had only one real option to make her faster, that was her buying some aero bars that cost her $1,300 bucks.  Most people would not do this, but she wanted to go faster.  The bars where the only bars on the market that would allow us to put her body in the correct shape.  We also got her to buy a good helmet, allowing her more mph!  The rest is history!

She learned she has an downhill advantage, can make more mph on the flats, keep pace on the false flats, plus how to not to loose the distance and maintain that pace on the uphill.  It's her open mind to learn, plus the many years of having misleading info presented to her by coaches that allows her to kick butt!  Most people don't care, don't know,  and they can be sold anything i.e any fit, any idea?  Marketing!  Training can help you apply more power, but if you don't know how? 

Truth is, an average healthy adult can make the watts to move along, and almost any bike setup and at any age.  Just note the folks on the low rider bikes, town bikes, etc...   Put them on a hill and game over!  Gravity kicks and the weight of the bike & body is a factor.

It is hard to say what is the optimum weight, as we come in many shapes & sizes.  We have seen that through the many years of working with all types of bodies, and we have about 30 different body types winning the biggest races in the world we can all learn where we can level the field. The range can be from 115 lb to over 200 lbs for some of the fastest guys & gals on a bike.

Common sense, points out short-term anaerobic exercise uses energy stores in muscle more than a steady state, due in part of the slower metabolism that so many are trying to find your best cycling profile.  What's wrong with this profile?

The real problem is that steady state is more the most part a myth!  In the outside world, not on a track, the amount of oxygen you can absorb in the blood and then convert to working energy is always going to change.  Yes, you can improve your capacity to absorb O2 by training. The muscles that aid in breathing need to be trained and that makes a difference up to 25% or more? That depends on the time and the focus of the person towards training.  Few find the time or care, they just want to go for a ride!  Most people have a job, so they can't pick the best time of day i.e. temps to go train!

If a person doesn't have to work for a living, has a sugar daddy or sugar mommy, they have a very real chance of being a pro.  It's mostly about time and learning what you can and can't do with your body type.

Many of the folks just want to use the game as a way for weight reduction, be social,  and to burn the calories they get from their beer or wine (about 800 calories per hour).  The rate of calories per mile are constant until you start more wind resistance that comes from more speed.  So if you want to look cool,  have your own club, have a cool kit you can have about any fit as most clubs have the no drop rule. But if you want to burn more for the buck, don't use no drop club rules with cycling, go walking!

What does this mean?  YOU BURN MORE ENERGY GOING FASTER!  Most people prefer to ride more slowly, talk, so they have to compensate by going longer distances (more time), but understand that means more wear and tear on the body and maybe your mind hearing all the gossip!  

Perhaps, it's better to understand you have more pressure on your body parts i.e. saddles, hoods, feet, etc... where they interface with the tool of choice. Again, if you want to burn more energy, don't cycle, go walking (esp. uphill) or running, a bike is only about 1/3 the need of energy for the same distance.  

Another myth, you will also hear that a round tube in the wind doesn't change the drag coefficient?  Who is selling you this?  A round tube takes 10 times the energy to move through the air.  Round tubes work great for mtb, but not so for higher speed, but if you go slow say about 15 to 19 mph, who cares. Flat faces, sharp edges are even worse!  More than round tubes!  

Air turbulence outweighs the benefits for saving weight, even all day! So you smart guys out there, putting holes to save weight is only going to cause more drag!  As in much of the industry, it comes down to production cost of x, y, z and who is willing to to make the shapes and to take it to market!  The industry retards what we can do more than you know!  Very Sad!

Much of the friction drag is caused by (viscous shear) or by the the layer of air that is moving parallel to a surface.  Polished surfaces work better than rough!  Then you have pressure drag i.e. high vs. low.  At higher bike speed, pressure drag is much higher than the polished surface drag, so if you go faster, a streamline bike, wheel, etc... is most effective.  So pick you frame and parts with that in mind!  Again, what is it you intend on doing (slow climbing, fast speeds, etc...)

So what's up with a lower racing position?  If you want to go faster,  you burn more energy, you have to be able to make more power to over come the higher wind resistance that comes from pressure drag.  So why would you set the bike up for going faster, only to not  i.e. the many fitting ideas that want to sit you up more?  Myth!

So you want to use energy to control your weight and you want to use a bike to do so? Remember a bike requires more time to use the k-calories if you only intend to poke along!

Forces (aerodynamics, gravity, tires, bearing frictions, chain tension, inertial "accelerating/decelerating", braking  slow speeds) do retard your thrust that comes from the rear wheel, but also the front tire when you i.e. go uphill below 8 mph! 

On the other hand, if you are more muscular and more times than not, you are then are more compact, or your bike is more compact you need less power.  You can see this with some of the tri guys & gals and the way they have their bikes setup.  It is common knowledge that speeds over 25 mph, wind resistance is over 90% the retarding force.  Now think about how many don't check their tires, the tire contact patch, rolling resistance with velocity makes a difference in your velocity tailwind or headwind.

The direct function of muscle mass and its cross-section produces power.  So when you pull up next to someone, get in race mode, and think you are the king or queen of endurance, all the time you are sizing up your rival with the compact body type like "toad", be aware on the flats that well-conditioned (with the cardiovascular conditioning) "toad" can make more power output in which leads to a higher mph i.e. sprinter, and they might be able to hit 40 mph for over 200 to 300 meters. They might even have the correct tire psi (high pressure) that lowers the drag that comes from dynamic friction.  They might even have dish, in which reduces the egg beater effect i.e. rotational air drag of the wheel, also a function of velocity.  This is true even when the rear wheel is in a stationary bicycle trainer.  

Now let's look at a lighter cyclists, who will always have an advantage climbing hills as slopes change.  So I think it is safe to say, the game is all about the rider knowing what the net thrust is to the rear wheel after losses through the many forces.

The front wheel doesn't provide net thrust, but it can slow you down!  You can streamline forces by choosing shapes that move through the air more efficiently i.e. fish!  

So maybe that is why you don't see the full dish wheel on the front?  Should a wind come up, it would be hard to control the bike.  So if you do use a streamline to move through the air more efficiently, you might want to get your brain on what that rear wheel is doing in the wind. Ha!

Boise's 70.3 Ironman How'd They Do That?

A lot of people don't understand cycling and even more in tri events. It's more about "Why not try, and just finish the race!" The styles of movement are many!

I do recall the hours on the phone with a guy named Ed, sharing our insight on fitting. We were under the impression he was wanting to learn from us to become a dealer. He started his own fit system, has his own schools and dealers. He also has a website that is Tri focused.

We don't mind the competition, we just find it funny all the many different ideas on how to go faster(?) on a bike.

We had a very nice chance to do some field testing here in Boise, ID this past weekend. We watched swimming and distance running along with the highly variable nature of tri cycling. No drafting, many different tactics, environmental wet/wind and lighting. Meaning, it is more of a means to monitor the real world of cycling. We could note what athlete (novice to elite) failed to achieve optimal performance and we have it on film. You just need to know what to look for.

Ok, you swim in snow runoff in a lake, jump on the bike and do 56 miles with many uphills, then finish it off with a 13 mile run. Not easy in good weather, but this spring in Boise, ID it was very wet, high winds, storms, flash floods and more lighting for this spring than normal.

We were at the race to watch a number of users of the Wobble-naught & Myo-facts sEMG/Dartfish. We even have a 6th rank tri pro Kevin Everett of Boise, ID in the event. We have worked with Kevin on his bike in the real world for a while now, our focus, his bike skills.

He has the swim down and knows best how to run with his own style. It must be noted that Kevin was first out of the water and even had a very good bike lead until two "course marshall's" working to keep cars from getting on course had the lead car stopped in the middle of the course, only for Kevin to have to slow, even having to go to the right of the parked car to pass around and get back up to pace? This was at a point where he came by 1/2 the distance to an area called "The Birds Of Prey". I could not believe how quick a much too tight group of pros working together started pulling him in! This had to break his focus! You just put time on the field and now they are coming hard. A big deal when you are racing world champions and it came down at the very spot I was attending. I have to say my blood pressure was up! The lead car stopped in the course and my guy has to go around it and put that much more effort to get back up to pace! Can we say the group of racers behind Kevin jumped on that one? I didn't think they where allowed to draft? Why where they riding in a group?

Kevin, who had to slow and the racers in tow where also headed west into a solid black storm, full of fire works, heavy rain and high wind. Talk about Ironmen! No way would I wish to ride in that! I am just pleased that no one was struck by the fireworks in those black clouds that hit the ground; on that open ground with no trees. I would think that they all wanted the bike stage to end in short order and questioned if their life was worth the race.

Perhaps that's a good way to think? When you have about 1,500 people on the bikes coming by you're going to see a number of styles that play a role in how much "time" they spend out on the nasty day. We had a chance to see them all coming & going not only on the bikes, but also during the running.

We also had a chance to watch our 3 time World Tri Champ Matt Perkins on his bike headed out! Just to think that he does this with only one leg. We even saw a guy with no legs, just using his arms. Then after the race, the local news pointed out that someone had even had a liver transplant? Ironwomen! Hats off to them all!

No question, the weather was a major factor to all the racers effectiveness, as in tt, the velocity of the cyclist depends on the amount of mechanical power produced by the energy systems and the amount of mechanical power lost to air and surface friction come into play, plus down pouring rain, wind and lighting on this day!

If you are reading this, you already know the amount of mechanical power depends on the rate at which the aerobic and anaerobic energy production systems are working and the mechanical efficiency of the body-bicycle system.

The performance of the body-tri bike is affected (the direction of) the pedal force, the timing of muscle activation, gear selection, and saddle height! Kevin and Matt both have learned this one. Boy howdy, did we see a lot of saddle heights that didn't make any sense and it could be seen how slow they where going? The feet moving, but the bike going slow. The question arises as to what is the most appropriate setup?

There are a lot of ideas out there i.e. slowtwitch, etc... A test cannot be truly deemed sport-specific if a cyclist is made to ride a laboratory ergometer in which the position or the gearing differs significantly from real world competition. Just the cold wet wind effects a differing physiological responses just like heat would. How do we claim normal? Although this sounds obvious, a indoor testing procedure does not accurately measure what it is designed to do, the interpretation of results may prove difficult at the very best and, at worst, impossible! Consider an athlete wishing to relate maximal O2 consumption with performance. No power, no go!

In general, sources suggest having a high maximal oxygen uptake and peak aerobic power output may prove beneficial to endurance performance. The goal, to have the athlete use the amount of oxygen possible to produce the highest work by the muscle. What is most over sold or looked is the fact that both tt & tri events requires both anaerobic power and endurance capacity. We saw this same debate with training at the UofU with downhill skier vs. xc skier training. One being power i.e. downhill skier and the other more endurance i.e. xc, both are important, and now even the endurance xc has become more powerful! The same is true for the XC mtb events that are full on from the gun. So it's hard to view them as one is more important over the other, but we know that endurance and endurance training makes a difference.

The one thing that is clear (e.g. Hopkins et al. 2001) pertaining to laboratory-based methods of measurement, it is clear that there is no definitive lab-based test that can be used to determine the physiological characteristic of an athlete.

A cyclist would hope to have the highest ability to consume oxygen to deliver as much power as possible. A rider who hopes to achieve a high power output for a short duration would also hope to have a high absolute VO2max. Changes in body mass have a bearing on changes in specific measures and performance outcome.

As a rider becomes more biomechanically efficient, the O2 cost to work at a given intensity will fall. Then their training status increases i.e. the delivery mechanisms. Train the breathing muscles and they help transport oxygen better. Your reach is very much a part of this mechanisms.

We all know that the average cyclist needs to optimize the range of lengths for important power-producing muscles and today it really was needed due to the winds, rain, etc... Clearly, saddle height affects the range of joint angle, it will also affect the contact forces in the joints, which is very likely to be related to the risk of injury. To come up with a profile for more success, athletes should undertake a full physiological profile that is more real world over a submaximal laboratory setting.

So, why in the tri events, are there so many ideas? Good question. All we know, the exact importance of mechanical and metabolic factors in determining the optimal cadence in steady state cycling is still unclear.

In running, there seems to be a direct relationship between speed of progression and the angular velocity of the leg segments. Can we point out that first, the higher the running speed, the larger the negative muscle work. Second, the higher the angular velocity of the leg segments, the higher the shortening velocity of the muscles.

From our science, concentric muscle power is reduced when the speed of progression is increased to high values that so many in tri cycling fits place importance. As I filmed all the pros, review, we don't see it!

Understand, the presence of a gearing system, de-couples the velocity of the cyclist's leg from his speed of progression. In other words, we could not believe our eyes, rather the film that had about 1,400 people going no where fast?

So what is the saddle height, the gearing system, what is the pedaling rate a cyclist should select? How does anyone fit you to the bike and then claim this is the best factor for optimal rate?

We know that sprinting and steady-state cycling require different focus. In truth, you only have a zone of fit that allows you with more options. You move all over the bike, and if you throw in the wet, windy conditions we had, you start to understand why so many are so slow! Perhaps the focus is to just finish the race over be faster, rather to focus on the submaximal steady-state cycling that is a myth? That someone came up with the idea that to finish is good enough, that the tri event is too strenuous for a correct saddle height?

Can we say that becoming more aerodynamic is uncomfortable! That racing is uncomfortable, the cold water, the bike, the run. Do you ever eliminate the discomfort? People choice to alleviate by adjusting their distributed pressures only to go slower and fatigue as they are on the bike longer. True, this discomfort is reduced with training, but to train to go slow is just that. You spend more time on the bike the more you are going to fatigue!

The sprint is to maximize power for a short period and that is done by standing, allowing the bike to become a lever to help make more power. So that has more to do with where the hands are in space. Consequently, the higher pedal rate, the lower the average force over the period of shortening , thus the lower the muscle work per contraction, the more time on the bike.

Both come from force build up! Central physiological processes mediated by the cardiovascular system are not the sole performance-limiting factors!

UCI rules prohibit forward seat positions for tt, you have to have the nose of the saddle 5cm behind the middle of the bottom bracket. At tri events you see the saddle much more forward and it's viewed as a low drag-area for the triathlons. Now comes the real issue, the individual morphological characteristics. We have many top pros, who know this to be a myth, that is why they kill it on the bike.

To just say (x,y,z) should have their torso horizontal or just rotate the body about the bottom bracket and attempt to find joint angles to achieve that torso position

is not always going to make you faster! Another issue, is the steep seat-tube angle that causes a rougher ride over the less steep seat-tube. Again, more time on the steep type of seat-tube is gong to fatigue you!

Just the shape of your body, more the muscular characteristics i.e. tall slender riders require less steep seat-tube angles and can get on the stroke quicker, should they find the best zone of movement.

Like our local pro Kevin, he had to learn how to use his best zones! Only after he learned that their is no position, rather learning the many ways to ride the tri bike did he get faster. It's not just about getting a low saddle, low drag-area. Its not just about setting a certain hip angle, width of hands/elbows, rider's shoulders that so many sell as the fit.

True the rider's torso being more aero has a little influence, but if you can't go faster, you spend more time on the bike.

Both novice and elite cyclists will find benefits from improved aerodynamic positioning i.e. 1,400 racers at the Boise 70.3 Ironman. But as a large % of them learned, uphill cycling, head winds, rain markedly reduced their high power outputs so needed for the course. So adopting some position is not recommended. Even with a good tri fit, for any given cycling position, a position can be affected by the movement of the knees, elbows, arms, shoulders and at what time to fire the muscles.

If you want to stay on the bike longer is your choice, setting it up according to the idea of submax comfortable position might allow you to finish, just understand in the real world cycling takes more out of you than you know. Its hard work, or better a labor of love?

The race started at 2pm and many of the racers didn't stop until midnight! Ouch!

Then it occur to you why we win so many 24 hour races? We set the bike up for the best pedal stroke and allow the rider to press the gas pedal (slow or fast), they can decide to get good gas mph or not. But to set them into a submax zone that they can't go only causes them to wear out more and not achieve their potential.

I have to say that the racers who rode faster, achieved their real potential, spent less time on the bike because they hold the knowledge and ride better than the competition.

We are just pleased that Kevin was at the lead of the pack when we saw him! That is success when you note the level of the racers. The best in the world!

We understand the importance of good aerodynamics and at what speeds a cyclist uses most of their energy to go! Funny, this increases with the square of the speed, wind and is even more important at higher speeds.

But to take a person and put them into aerodynamics lab and record the drag area, knowing they can't make the speed (know how to pedal) is not going to help them gain minutes to reduce the time on the bike.

As we saw it, maintaining the same body position with whatever bike didn't increase the velocity. It is assumed that getting more aero provide more savings? There are several variables that can influence exercise performance. We also know there is a ton of advice given, or better to make the decision for you.

We are also not surprised to note a fit service on the front page of the Ironman site state you can't do what we do. That we can't just measure the bones and allow the muscles to be trained to enhance your performance? It will not surprise anyone, that training is perhaps the most important factor influencing performance i.e. novice cyclist. But as the fitness rises, the speed rise also and what can be gained from training decreases, thus in our world, training is not the most effective performance-enhancing variable.

The novice rider is on the course for a longer time, therefore benefits for going faster (increased speed) would be good for both the internal & external factors, leading to larger improvements. Longer time in discomfort (always there) or poor biomechanical position will reduce power output.

Myth - In general, it can be seen that someone with a suboptimal position easily can gain significant amounts of time. You got that right, you stay on the bike longer! At the elite level, enormous efforts may result in (real world) relatively small improvements of power output.

You have to think carefully about all the factors that will help improve your performance and time on the bike is a big one! In the race, the less time, the more distance, the better! All of these people had to then run 13 miles after the 56 mile bike. You should have see the looks on their faces after the bike stage, that tells a real story!

In summary, assessment for any sport can give a coach and athlete useful feedback. Standardizing some factor in a lab setting is easy, the field - based testing also provides valuable, meaningful comparisons i.e. the ones who are in the lead and riding off into the sunset!

More truth & facts! Disc Burner 6 &12 hr & Teva Games, CO!

Our Principles and Concepts of Legged Locomotion seem to be getting high grades over all comer's? 

The mechanics and energetics of cycling powered by the endoskeleton system is standing the test of ideas, after all we are invertebrates! We are not a exoskeleton system like some ideas think?

Humans do well to use about 22% of available chemical energy.  The rest is liberated as heat.  The value of efficiency depends on the positional zones on the bicycle. 

WN-Myofacts sweeps the podium at the Disc Burner at Knoxville, TN., both 6H &12H.

Eddie O'Dea to Tom

7:13 AM (6 hours ago)

Reply

Disc Burner 6 & 12
Knoxville, TN

6 Hour Solo Male
1. Andy Applegate (Velo Sport)

6 Hour Solo Female
1. Carey Lowery (55nine Performance)

12 Hour Solo Male
1. Jarret Kinder (55nine Performance)

12 Hour Solo Female
1. Susan Williams (55nine Performance)

12 Hour Duo Open
1. Topeak-Ergon Eddie & Namrita O'Dea (55nine Performance)


All on them are on the WN-Myofacts fit! That is a very telling trend.



Eddie O'Dea
55nine Performance
http://55nineperformance.com

Teva Games Vail, CO.

Women's results

• 1 138 COMPTON Katie Colorado Springs 1:34:22
• 2 314 GOULD Georgia Fort Collins 1:35:00 38.25 WN & Myo-facts sEMG/Dartfish
• 3 191 IRMIGER Heather Boulder 1:36:34 2:11.99
• 4 257 SAWICKI Pua Yucaipa 1:38:19 3:57.15 WN & Myo-facts sEMG/Dartfish
• 5 385 FREEMAN Judy Boulder, CO 1:41:35 7:13.16 WN & Myo-facts sEMG/Dartfish "Nat Ross"

Let's see, that is from the West Cost at Mt. Hood, OR, to the Teva Games in the Rocky Moutains Vail, CO, to the East Cost of VA, Down to the South! That about covers it!

Why? Because we know what we are doing, and we know how to teach it and it shows!

• Do you want to get better or do you want to
• pay good money for something less?
• Our racers love the new mass marketing ideas!
• It allows them to have a very real edge!
• They tell us they can put some real time on their rivals.
• Truth & Fact are in the from short races to long races, we get Results!

Jeremiah Bishop (Mona Vie Cannondale) " #1 Hoo-ha" by 6 mins!

Complex sequential movements, such as mtb cylcing, requiring a higher skill and must be broken down into phases before an orderly analysis can be delineated!

In other words you can't use a static trainer to find more performance!

Jeremiah wins Massanutten Hoo-ha by 6 min! This single track course puts big demands on handling skills and that is key for a mtb setup!

Before there was front-suspension, clipless pedals, and 9-speed rear cassettes there was the Massanutten Hoo-Ha. An East coast tradition since 1989, the Hoo-Ha has been a showcase event for riders up and down the Eastern seaboard.

Majestic Massanutten Resort is a 6,000 plus acre get-away located in beautiful northern Virginia on the edge of George Washington National Forest. Massanutten Resort offers 25 miles of pristine single-track mountain bike trails.

George Willets has been involved with the Hoo-Ha since it’s inception, first as a racer and now as one of the event’s promoters. Willets can’t say enough about the uniqueness of the Hoo-Ha and the local cycling culture. “Harrisonburg and the local area is really the hub of East Coast cycling. We have an outstanding trail system, which just keeps getting better. The Shenandoah Valley Bicycle Coalition (SVBC) builds all our local trails with the help and input of phenomenal riders like Jeremiah Bishop and the outstanding Sue Haywood.”

We know what goes up, must come down, plus move all around!

We also noted that 2nd was taken by another WN & Myo-facts/Dartfish user "Sam Koerber (Gary Fisher 29er" who was fitted by Andy Applegate in Western NC.

We called Andy Applegate to check how his fitting services are going. He said, super! He loves the fact that there is major fiitng rival service in the very town I grew up in. He also pointed out that he did a 6 hour race and had a 40 min. lead at the end of the event.

YOU CAN'T GET AROUND THE STRUCTURE AND FUNCTION OF SKELETAL MUSCLE!

There are 434 muscles, 75 pairs that work with posture & movement!

A tendon collects and transmits forces from many different muscle fibers onto a small area of bone, the site of the tendinous attachment. The structure of the insertion of the tendon onto the bone and it's behavior under mechanical loading (its size and shape, speed) of loading on it are some of the major factors of its strength.

During normal activity a tendon experiences only 25% of maximal stress; very rapid, unexpected stretches of a tendon are common conditons for tendon rupture. For example, having your heel unexpectedly drop into a hole in the the ground could cause rupture of the
Achilles tendon i.e. heel down pedaling style.

So a word on muscle insertions and levers. When a muscle contracts strongly, it tends to move both of the bones to which it is attached, but to simplify the problem it is usually assumed that the bone moving least is more stationary (more proxiamal) vs. the (more distal) moving bone. The muscle insertion (whether proximal or distal) is the place where the force is applied to the bone.

The musculoskeletal machine is basically an arrangement providing relatively large forces for the rapid manipulation of long lever arms. The mechanical system possesses a low mechanical advantage, with the result that high speeds of motion are made possible only at the price of great exertion.

Its the internal structure of muscles - that is, the arrangement of their fibers-bears an much over looked relation to the force and distance of their contraction. The fiber and physiologic cross-sectional area is needed to better understand what it is you want to do i.e. long & slender muscles are not capable of producing large forces. However, these types of muscle can shorten through a large distance and can have higher shortening velocities. You just need to know what phase you need to start the shortening!

From cost to cost Mona Vie Cannondale mtb team is getting super results!

What's in your game?

Check for more race coverage at www.cyclingdirt.com

Sue Butler (Monavie Cannondale) teaches climbing at Mt. Hood.

We know why Hometown favourite Butler takes Wy’East ahead of surging Pital

We where on the phone w/ Sue about what to focus on!

Sue Butler lives in a area (Portland, OR)where cycling fits are as common as wearing a helmet!  She could have any fit solution she wants!

When you don't have a rode team, it is hard to race a road race against other teams.  But just like the tt, the climbing is you and your skills against the course. There is no question that our fit solution allows you to out climb your rivals. If you don't have the best solution or setup, it really shows when you ride into a wind or uphill.

In fact, in most cases with the many road fit ideas, if you are in good shape, you can take a fit that is close and just suck a wheel with a good strong team.

Sue Butler was on her own in the 92 mile slugfest, with no teammates, racing very strong teams. So she had none of that team slowing her down, so she showed her skills climbing and that makes the win even better!

"I didn't have any plans to attack when we started. It was just going slow and no one was pulling into the wind," said Butler. "It was kind of all or nothing – either I blow up spectacularly or I'm going to win the stage – so I went for it."

Butler's move started with Erin Ford (Veloforma), but eventually she rode free off the front to gain an advantage of up to two minutes. She had one minute ahead of the classification favourites in the final kilometre of the 56-kilometre climb to the Mt. Hood Meadows Ski Resort.

We have been on the phone with her and getting her head around a few important moves. You see, even with the perfect fit, you still need the perfect mind set!

Women   

1 Sue Butler (USA) MonavieCannondale.com WN & Myo-facts            5.03.49 

2 Edwige Pitel (FRA) Sorella Forte                                 0.29 

3 Gillian Moody (CAN) Total Restoration Cycling Team                    

4 Alisha Welsh (USA) PCIM                                               

5 Teri Sheasby (USA) Bend Bike N Sport                             0.32 

6 Leah Goldstein (CAN) ValueAct Capital Cycling Team                    

7 Melissa Mcwhirter (USA) Veloforma                                     

8 Robin Farina (USA) ValueAct Capital Cycling Team                 0.40 

9 Alice Pennington (USA) Veloforma                                 1.00 

10 Marilyn Mcdonald (CAN) Specialized D4W/Bicycle Haus             1.16

Way to go Sue!  Thanks for the "minds ear", and using our Wobble-naught & Myo-facts sEMG/Dartfish know how!

We are not just a bike fit! We teach those who matter!

We are in business to help people get better! 

 You need a mind first!

Without a goal, what are you doing?

We speak our mind to you!

We don't tell you what you want to hear!

We tell you the truth!

"Speak your mind because those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind." - Dr. Suess

(Mind) noun

1 The element of a person that enables them to be aware of the world and their experiences, to think, and to feel; the faculty of consciousness and thought : as the thoughts ran through his mind.

•     a person's mental processes contrasted with physical actions i.e. pedaling!

2  A person's intellect.

• The state of normal mental functioning in a person i.e. riding like the rest of them!

3  A person's attention.

• the will or determination to achieve something above the functional needs.

 

There are lot of ideas on how to swing the golf club in space and it is amazing how many play the game poorly, mindless? The same holds true for the pedal stroke, as so many don't seem to mind?

Closing one's mind to refuse to consider or acknowledge your cycling skills, i.e. doing something half minded, will reward  you with more time on the bike and use your mind on what ever is not the task at hand!  

If you are mindless, you can always find a perspective on what you should do and they will glad to take your money! Scientific advances in many areas have made improvements, but if the horse is not ready to drink, he doesn't care!

There are many variables that can never be proven due to the mind.  

An important issue to keep in mind is to adequately mimic actual cycling in the laboratory, a difficult task especially when you consider the long duration of most races or rides.

The fact that most fit solutions come from a static trainer is major problem. It's not real world even if you use 3D leds, or anything on top of the skin.  The  skin moves over the top of a joint and doesn't look at (compression, shearing, tension).

We are working with Kurt who makes the "Rock & Roll" to change this!  To capture more truth, not hype!  Because they mind!

Take in mind, the "levator palpebrae superioris", a muscle that elevates the upper eyelid. the muscle is linked to the uuperior rectus muscle by a check ligament, thus there is elevation of the upper eyelid when you gaze with the eye down the road.

It is important to appreciate that all eye movements usually require the coordinated activity of several muscles.  Muscles, which aid each other in a particular movements 'synergists". 

This concept is further complicated in the case of the eye where coordinated movements of both eyes are required in order that corresponding points of each retina will fixate on the line.

You can go out and note how few people understand that the 'mind's eye' has a lot to do with where and how you want to go and how well they do it? The next time you go out, note how many tilt their head to one side or the other?  Just wearing a bad pair of shades can retard your efforts!  Bad bike setup are the cause, and that comes from a lack of  common sense, plus a poor understand of motion sports!

Good thing cycling has slow speeds for the most part.  Going slow allows more time to do it poorly and check where should be going!  Your head/mind/eye is attached to your spine and there is only so much movement each one has! 

There are many who are blind to, lacking perception with concern?  We wonder why they are unable to appreciate or notice something so apparent?  Take a look at many of the tt bike setups!

 

A Testimonial:

I taught myself the ride when I was little and I've been riding ever since.  Before Wobble-naught and the use of Myo-facts sEMG/Dartfish, I was plagued by knee and back pain.  For years I read all the books and nothing was working, like so many did not pick my parents.  I have short legs and a long spine and it's hard to find bike that even works.  After finding the best solution, learning I need more reach, the pain was gone and I was able to ride longer and harder and see where I was going!  The Wobble-naught solution has allowed me to focus more on my riding. My back feels the best when I am on the bike!

James Lang, PA-C 

Physician Assistant

Boise Veterans Medical Center

A mind who cares!

Luna - Luna - Luna - Pua in Alabama! Not hypothetical!

Pendrel bumps Georgia and grinds to her first U.S. Cup win!

US ProXCT #3 and Kenda Cup East #2 - Bump and Grind - 3

Pelham, Alabama, USA, May 31, 2009

At some point you have to call anl an Ace an Ace!

To be successful in mtb requires optimally conditioned physiological systems, also a level of technical skills "moving in & out of balance" not seen or required of a road cyclists and put it together for training and competition. Note tracking the physiological demands is also difficult.

XC requires unique technical skills, correct pacing and race tactics, to better the ability to maintain a high work rate. Then one has to tolerate adverse environmental conditions i.e. temps, elevation, mud, etc..., resist the effects of mental and physical fatigue i.e. 24 hour, 12 hour, 2.5 hour physical fatigue due to the energy depletion & dehydration. One tough game!

Georgia Gould (Luna) leads the ProXCT series and she is an ACE!  This is not the first time we have seen her lead!  Georgia uses our systems because it works and so do many of the other racers.

It’s all about the cyclist that can generate high power outputs for both long & short durations. That's why our CAD, addressing the bare bones of the skeletal system, allows the muscular system to meet the primary requirement for high performance cycling. This capacity is relative to the body mass of the individual, the bike setup and their cycling potential.

XC requires power outputs that exceed 300 watts or more. No question a relationship between power output and aerobic capacity. Maximum heart rate in the relative exercise intensities of mtb is mostly unknown. We know the % of heart rate is high beats/min or about 90% or more. The oxygen cost of XC racing or riding where the course includes ascending, descending, false flats, etc... has not been determined.

Perhaps more the reason our CAD works so well, is the fact that the demands of mtb is not placed by the laboratory-measured power output! Climbing sections on the course has power outputs in excess of the lab! If you set your bike up for only a % of something it will slow you down in this game. Large fluctuations in average power output are more on a minute by minute and not some steady rate like most road fits.

The demands placed on contracting muscles are quite different from a road bike fit, particularly during the uphill. Therefore, average power outputs recorded during a lab trial (common test by physiologists for predictions) are not very accurate indicators of the power demands under real-world circumstances.
Perhaps that is why we have such a rich history of winning the mtb events? In uphill cycling, the cyclist with the higher or the best (power-to-weight ratio) will likely be the most successful.

Providing measurement in estimating mtb cycling performance appears to be limited. Measuring blood lactate (or attempting to determine blood lactate threshold) has little usefulness for estimating cycling performance, since blood lactate concentrations can be maintained by highly trained endurance cyclists exercising at 85% to 90% VO2peak for about an hour or longer.

Just ask Pua Swaicki or Sue Bulter how hard it is to go hard from the gun! Even in the 24, 12 or 4 hour races, you go hard (you against the course) and that means you need to be able to stay on course and go!

Effective training should not be based on a particular blood lactate for mtb or some arbitrary threshold. Replicating the intensities will more effectively prepare the mtb cyclist for competition than a hypothetical threshold.

Catherine Pendrel is the number one ranked International Cycling Union (UCI) rider in the world. She just hung in there on her team-mate Georgia Gould wheel to the very last second, comes around to the finish and got her first U.S. Cup win today in steamy Oak Mountain Park, Alabama. Katerina Nash made it a clean sweep for the Luna squad by finishing 3rd, while Pua Sawicki (Ellsworth) and Kelli Emmette (Giant) claimed fourth and fifth respectively.

Today in XC, they all know how important the hole shot is, so a lead group formed with the 3 Luna women and United States of America Cyclo-cross Champion Katie Compton (Team Sho-Air) from the gun.

The lead changed frequently due to the pace at the front until Nash was dropped from the group. "I had a little accident and lost the group," said Nash. "On the road stretches I just couldn't close it so the gap kept getting bigger and bigger." Georgia knows how to make the top end speed; she has learned a few things regarding the pedal stroke. Her stroke has really improved through the years.

"Georgia and I were off the front," she added. "That's where we really started to work like a team. The two drove the pace as hard as they could. I don't win many sprints, so I knew if I could jump on Georgia at the last corner I might win…and that's what I did."

Pendrel fought hard and smart on the final run to the finish line, according to Gould. "I pulled the whole way down the pavement," said Gould. "I probably should have gone a little bit more inside on the corner because she kind of chopped me on the corner. But that's racing. I'll get to chop her in the next race."
The race for 4th between Sawicki (WN & Myo-facts sEMG/Dartfish) and Emmett developed nearly immediately. "I had a really bad start so I had to chase a bit and settle in," Sawicki said. "We were right there with each other. I didn't want it to come down to a sprint because I thought she would probably out-sprint me. So luckily on the climb I was able to get a gap and keep it." We have been working on her hole shots, but understand she is very use to racing 24 hours, so a sprint has not been in her soup.

The weather had a temperature near 90 degrees and it’s in Dixie, so relatively high humidity had the riders feeling the effects as the afternoon wore on.
There was a large crowd and they enthusiastically cheered the riders. Many of the racers commented after the race about all the support they got from fans on the course.

Gould retained the U.S. Cup leader's jersey, despite finishing 2nd. The next U.S. Cup race will be in Colorado Springs on June 13-14. That will test the lungs!
Two racers in the top 5, what more can we want!

Results

Elite Women  1 Catherine Pendrel (Luna Women's MTB) 

2 Georgia Gould (Luna WN & Myo-facts sEMG/Dartfish) 

3 Katerina Nash (Luna Women's MTB) 

4 Pua Sawicki (Ellsworth WN & Myo-facts sEMG/Dartfish) 

5 Kelli Emmett (Giant)  

At this level, knowing where your hands are in space are key for handling and reducing the 

neck tension!  We measure this range of motion with every fit!