Silly Commuter Turbo Stats

13567…11

Comments

  • itboffin
    itboffin Posts: 20,064
    Glad you enjoyed it but it just sounds to dicey for me, I'd be on my arse in seconds.
    Rule #5 // Harden The Feck Up.
    Rule #9 // If you are out riding in bad weather, it means you are a badass. Period.
    Rule #12 // The correct number of bikes to own is n+1.
    Rule #42 // A bike race shall never be preceded with a swim and/or followed by a run.
  • spasypaddy
    spasypaddy Posts: 5,180
    at the beginning i was thinking, i wish id got a turbo but by the end i was glad i didnt get a turbo.

    maybe see if you can get a pair off someone for a go
    BMC TM01 - FCN 0
    Look 695 (Geared) - FCN 1
    Bowman Palace:R - FCN 1
    Cannondale CAAD 9 - FCN 2
    Premier (CX) - FCN 6
    Premier (fixed/SS) - FCN3
  • itboffin
    itboffin Posts: 20,064
    Snowing again here :evil:
    Rule #5 // Harden The Feck Up.
    Rule #9 // If you are out riding in bad weather, it means you are a badass. Period.
    Rule #12 // The correct number of bikes to own is n+1.
    Rule #42 // A bike race shall never be preceded with a swim and/or followed by a run.
  • Zachariah
    Zachariah Posts: 782
    Well, I've had my turbo for a few days now. An Elite Crono Mag (the cheap one with remote variable resistance, though at £111, 'cheap' only in relation to the full spectrum of turbo prices).

    Wiggle initially sent me the hydro mag trainer and, like an idiot, I told them. Had to wait another week for the right one to come and the wrong one to be couriered off. And no Haribo either! Black mark, Wiggle (I'm not expecting a reward for essentially not being a thief, but a thank-you would have been nice).

    So far it's been great. Easy to set up and it's fantastic to be able to get on the new bike and give it a damn good thrashing. I've had four good sessions so far, totalling just over four hours. DIY front riser works fine. Wife has got me Time-Crunched cyclist for Xmas so until then I'm randomly following plans off turbotraining.uk or just spinning away. The turbo is very solid and I can stand up on it fine, but without being able to swing the bike side-to-side it doesn't feel right while out of the saddle.

    One unsung benefit of the turbo is that it allows you to fine-tune your riding position easily and comfortably. Even in the best of conditions, out on the road it's a real pain to stop every few seconds if you want to try a new saddle position or adjust your cleats. On the turbo you just sit up and do it. Also, this type of turbo allows you to run the wheel off the roller, so it's a truing stand and a workstation for gears too. All this and it gets you fit too!
  • itboffin
    itboffin Posts: 20,064
    Is it wrong to mix turbo and road sessions?

    I've found that a quick warm up on the turbo before a ride is great for reducing the number of layers I would usually leave the house in, then 10 mins down the road have to strip off. :oops:

    Also i've found that a couple of steady miles on the turbo after a long road ride is great for stretching those tight hams and bands.

    :roll:
    Rule #5 // Harden The Feck Up.
    Rule #9 // If you are out riding in bad weather, it means you are a badass. Period.
    Rule #12 // The correct number of bikes to own is n+1.
    Rule #42 // A bike race shall never be preceded with a swim and/or followed by a run.
  • jonginge
    jonginge Posts: 5,945
    itboffin wrote:
    Is it wrong to mix turbo and road sessions?

    I've found that a quick warm up on the turbo before a ride is great for reducing the number of layers I would usually leave the house in, then 10 mins down the road have to strip off. :oops:

    Also i've found that a couple of steady miles on the turbo after a long road ride is great for stretching those tight hams and bands.

    :roll:
    My rollers are in the office. I have found a session on them is a perfect warmup for SCR :twisted:
    FCN 2-4 "Shut up legs", Jens Voigt
    Planet-x Scott
    Rides
  • rjsterry
    rjsterry Posts: 29,336
    This explains a lot, but does rather suggest trying; tut-tut.
    1985 Mercian King of Mercia - work in progress (Hah! Who am I kidding?)
    Pinnacle Monzonite

    Part of the anti-growth coalition
  • jonginge
    jonginge Posts: 5,945
    Ah well. They haven't been used since about april, though. Will start again in the new year with roller and turbo sessions. Need to be a bit more serious about the marmotte next year.
    FCN 2-4 "Shut up legs", Jens Voigt
    Planet-x Scott
    Rides
  • Butterd2
    Butterd2 Posts: 937
    Ok, my turbo set up is as follows;

    * Best bike (CR-1) with crappy rear wheel and turbo tyre.
    * Cycleops mag trainer set to resistance 7 (this appears to reasonably mimic speed to effort from the road)
    * Wife's yoga mat underneath to catch the sweat and towel across the stem / headset
    * Bike is set up next to large sash window in the spare bedroom so plenty of draft available.
    * In front of the bike is a 12" fan, stereo and portable DVD player.
    * Cateye wired cadence computer so speed is taken off the back wheel.
    * Polar heart rate monitor.
    * Finally and most importantly either Angels or The Hunted from http://www.thesufferfest.com playing on the DVD with the music pumping through the stereo.

    I usually manage to do a couple of 1 hour sessions a week and the videos really help the time pass and my daughter loves jumping around on the bed to the tunes so I also get brownie points for looking after her at the same time.

    I would suggest calories burned as a good measure of effort (competition) as this is a factor of both time and resistance on the trainer. According to my Polar I do c.900KCals in my hour workout.
    Scott CR-1 (FCN 4)
    Pace RC200 FG Conversion (FCN 5)
    Giant Trance X

    My collection of Cols
  • symo
    symo Posts: 1,743
    Not really been on the TT much since I came off the motorbike, and a new job and relocation means having the means to excercise is hard, especially with every other week being in Denmark.
    However, next Tuesday the removal men will be dropping everything at our new hous in Fleet, so looking forward to hitting the sufferfest (Downward Spiral, love those intervals) again.
    +++++++++++++++++++++
    we are the proud, the few, Descendents.

    Panama - finally putting a nail in the economic theory of the trickle down effect.
  • jonginge
    jonginge Posts: 5,945
    Been meaning to get some of the sufferfest vids but I was disappointed that The Downward Spiral didn't actually have any NIN tracks on it...
    FCN 2-4 "Shut up legs", Jens Voigt
    Planet-x Scott
    Rides
  • itboffin
    itboffin Posts: 20,064
    rjsterry wrote:
    This explains a lot, but does rather suggest trying; tut-tut.

    Ah but no one can see you doing it, so it's totally allowed :roll: :twisted:
    Rule #5 // Harden The Feck Up.
    Rule #9 // If you are out riding in bad weather, it means you are a badass. Period.
    Rule #12 // The correct number of bikes to own is n+1.
    Rule #42 // A bike race shall never be preceded with a swim and/or followed by a run.
  • tailwindhome
    tailwindhome Posts: 19,313
    itboffin wrote:
    Is it wrong to mix turbo and road sessions?


    Sure that's how the professional do it

    tdf-09-the-schlecks-warming-up.jpg

    Andy likes to have a mechanic on standby....just in case he fluffs another gear change
    “New York has the haircuts, London has the trousers, but Belfast has the reason!
  • Zachariah
    Zachariah Posts: 782
    Had a crack at a couple of turbo TTs. I wish I knew what kind of power curve my model has, as I can't really tell if the resistance is too easy or not. I'm pretty sure I've left it too low (setting 2, Elite Crono Mag). Otherwise, I can do a 10 mile TT in under 23 minutes! (I did put the resistance up to 3 for the last 5 mins of the 25-min session, which really felt tough).

    (I work that out by keeping to 90rpm on 53x14. Here's a good tip for cheapskates like me who dont have cadence sensors but do have a computer and internet: Find yourself an online metronome (my favourite is the Gieson one). Set it to double the cadence you want to keep (in my case, 180). Set the beats to '2' and there you have it, a visual and audio cue for both feet to keep time with)

    Almost everyone is of the opinion that turbo sessions are, if anything, more strenuous than road ones, but I seriously doubt I could repeat this outdoors.
  • itboffin
    itboffin Posts: 20,064
    Just did 30 mins on the turbo :?
    Rule #5 // Harden The Feck Up.
    Rule #9 // If you are out riding in bad weather, it means you are a badass. Period.
    Rule #12 // The correct number of bikes to own is n+1.
    Rule #42 // A bike race shall never be preceded with a swim and/or followed by a run.
  • itboffin
    itboffin Posts: 20,064
    What a stupid idea that was ....
    Rule #5 // Harden The Feck Up.
    Rule #9 // If you are out riding in bad weather, it means you are a badass. Period.
    Rule #12 // The correct number of bikes to own is n+1.
    Rule #42 // A bike race shall never be preceded with a swim and/or followed by a run.
  • tailwindhome
    tailwindhome Posts: 19,313
    That funny shaped box under the tree was revealed as a Cyclops Mag Turbo Trainer


    Let the games begin
    “New York has the haircuts, London has the trousers, but Belfast has the reason!
  • itboffin
    itboffin Posts: 20,064
    3 times today my outstretched arm sent an off the scale shock up my arm, fucking arse wanker bollocks I really thought I was fixed.

    :cry:

    I just hope this is part of the recovery process
    Rule #5 // Harden The Feck Up.
    Rule #9 // If you are out riding in bad weather, it means you are a badass. Period.
    Rule #12 // The correct number of bikes to own is n+1.
    Rule #42 // A bike race shall never be preceded with a swim and/or followed by a run.
  • tailwindhome
    tailwindhome Posts: 19,313
    The Cyclops Mag trainer came with a quick release skewer. This is to replace the existing skewer so the wheel fits neatly into the turbo.

    Is this skewer suitable for road use?

    It'll be a bit of a faff if it's not.
    “New York has the haircuts, London has the trousers, but Belfast has the reason!
  • mkirby
    mkirby Posts: 365
    I have a tacx flow and left my skewer in a whole year. Went a bit rusty on the outside but a quick scrub with wire wool fixed that.

    There no different to normal skewers so just leave it and forget about it, unless of course your one of those OCD types who has to have matching skewers.
  • Zachariah
    Zachariah Posts: 782
    Thanks to parent's gym mebership I had a session on a flywheel watt-bike type-thing with cadence and power readings. Very interesting - I seem to have a natural cadence of around 100rpm and did a few 5-min intervals at 320 watts as told by the little computer. An interesting toy!

    Then aftwards tried something called a 'Power Plate' which turns out to be a vibrating platform. I think too much of that would loosen a knee joint!
  • mkirby
    mkirby Posts: 365
    hey ITB have you discovered the delights of turbotraining.co.uk yet?

    Has loads of sessions you can use and it adusts them to your HR/Power levels. Even lets you keep stats on stuff and their are leagues for 10 Mile TT's and 10 min efforts.

    Should keep you busy until your back on the road again.
  • itboffin
    itboffin Posts: 20,064
    mkirby wrote:
    hey ITB have you discovered the delights of turbotraining.co.uk yet?

    Has loads of sessions you can use and it adusts them to your HR/Power levels. Even lets you keep stats on stuff and their are leagues for 10 Mile TT's and 10 min efforts.

    Should keep you busy until your back on the road again.

    Yeh I used it a couple of times
    Rule #5 // Harden The Feck Up.
    Rule #9 // If you are out riding in bad weather, it means you are a badass. Period.
    Rule #12 // The correct number of bikes to own is n+1.
    Rule #42 // A bike race shall never be preceded with a swim and/or followed by a run.
  • itboffin
    itboffin Posts: 20,064
    2011 will be all about the turbo
    http://turbotraining.co.uk/

    Why not join me for a new year spin? http://turbotraining.co.uk/indoor_cycli ... php?id=813

    Guaranteed to sweat off that hangover
    Rule #5 // Harden The Feck Up.
    Rule #9 // If you are out riding in bad weather, it means you are a badass. Period.
    Rule #12 // The correct number of bikes to own is n+1.
    Rule #42 // A bike race shall never be preceded with a swim and/or followed by a run.
  • cjcp
    cjcp Posts: 13,345
    Will join you tomorrow. Am "synching" my iNano thing so I can listen to music instead of the kids.
    FCN 2-4.

    "What happens when the hammer goes down, kids?"
    "It stays down, Daddy."
    "Exactly."
  • cyclopsbiker
    cyclopsbiker Posts: 516
    went for a run instead...a very slow and steady 7.11km. I won't share the time...tis far from impressive but I did run most of the way :)
    don't have any computer thing on my turbo anyway....might get my cateye rigged up on it....
    www.globaltherapies.com
    http://globaltherapies.blogspot.com

    Looking for a cycling buddy?
  • itboffin
    itboffin Posts: 20,064
    Doing 41 miles tomorrow with a stop halfway to watch Wessex series CX race at Thruxton, then on to the in-laws for Sunday lunch - happy days!!!!

    Oh and i'll be on the CX bike so I expect a little off road shenanigans :wink:

    ie. getting lost, muddy and crashing
    Rule #5 // Harden The Feck Up.
    Rule #9 // If you are out riding in bad weather, it means you are a badass. Period.
    Rule #12 // The correct number of bikes to own is n+1.
    Rule #42 // A bike race shall never be preceded with a swim and/or followed by a run.
  • itboffin
    itboffin Posts: 20,064
    All set now, bikes ready for action including turbo http://turbotraining.co.uk/. Training diary at the ready http://www.trainingpeaks.com/itboffin

    :(

    Snowing lightly outside

    :(

    Work tomorrow

    :cry:
    Rule #5 // Harden The Feck Up.
    Rule #9 // If you are out riding in bad weather, it means you are a badass. Period.
    Rule #12 // The correct number of bikes to own is n+1.
    Rule #42 // A bike race shall never be preceded with a swim and/or followed by a run.
  • Greg T
    Greg T Posts: 3,266
    We need to talk about my perineum.....

    So, due to snow, holidays and close time management regime imposed by the hausfrau I've not been spending a lot of time on the bike but have been spending a lot of time eating mainly roasted food and drinking goose fat.

    In order to prevent my inclusion in the upcoming Sky series "Look at the big fat guy" I decided to dust off the Turbo that has lain dormant these last four years.....

    So....

    On I get and do 2 X 20 mins at circa 80% MHR just to "get my eye in". Bit uncomfy on the rumble strip but manageable with a short leg stretch between sessions....

    A couple of nights ago i decide to do a full hour between 80-85% MHR....

    By the end the "corridor" was in bad order - even for me the ache was becoming troublesome rather than mildly amusing / arousing.

    The bike's a CAAD9 with a standard alloy seat post - does the hive mind think the alloy frame / seat post is transmitting too much "buzz" leading to the gooch becoming sore and painfull or is it just the constant loading and lack of variation?

    Also - rollers.....

    I am tempted by rollers as the turbo needs no core effort to stay upright. Should I invest in rollers to improve my overall condition?
    Fixed gear for wet weather / hairy roadie for posing in the sun.

    What would Thora Hurd do?
  • cjcp
    cjcp Posts: 13,345
    Very unpleasant, Mr T.

    Saddle height and/or position? A change of saddle?
    FCN 2-4.

    "What happens when the hammer goes down, kids?"
    "It stays down, Daddy."
    "Exactly."

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