Old 06-10-19, 05:48 PM
  #11  
rm -rf
don't try this at home.
 
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Originally Posted by horatio
Yes, I'll admit the gears are probably not (yet) low enough, but a new cassette should fix that. The SIX has a compact crankset, and I may have an 11-28 cassette stashed away somewhere. I was using a compact crank and a 26 or 28 tooth "granny" when I last tried Paris Mtn, my second attempt. I blew up on the first! My legs gave out on the second, 100 yards from the summit! We have a lot of rollers around here, but not much for sustained pacing, so I'm kinda stuck with hill repeats for now.

I "trained" much like you seven years ago, using group rides to push my fitness levels. I may tag along on some rides next year. No way I could keep up this season.

I see you're a fan of power meters. Any particular recommendations? I was thinking of pedal systems, but a PowerTap rear wheel might be a better option.
You should be able to find some group rides going your speeds. From slow casual conversational paced, to steady efforts, to strong hill climbing, to race pace. I can sit in the draft on faster rides that are fairly flat, but those same riders are much stronger on hilly rides.

Lower gears than 34-28 are helpful. It's funny, 6 or 8 years ago, a 34-32 was for the weaker riders that struggled on hills. Now it's the new normal gearing.

No local hills? My hills are mostly 250-300 feet tall, with any grade percentage that you could want, from long and shallow, to short and very steep. You could train for longer climbs with a moderately low cadence and a sustained hard effort on the flats -- but that's not as good as actually climbing hills.

I used a heart monitor for many years, mostly for pacing on climbs. Back then, I knew from experience that I could maintain 140-145 for hours, but over 150 only for shorter periods. The HRM kept me from starting too fast.

I like to spend on bike stuff, so I got a 4iiii crank power meter. It's fine for my usage, which is mainly for pacing and after ride analysis. I don't think power meters are necessary. But riders that like ride statistics will enjoy them.

It did work very well this weekend for pacing me up a local 7% 300 foot climb. Kind of fun to see if I can hold the same power all the way to the top.

Power is surprisingly variable from one second to the next. It's very hard to hold a set power: Power meter readings might show 192w, 205, 212,233,200, 202, 183, 195, 197... So most bike computers can average 3 seconds, 10 seconds, 30 seconds.

Last edited by rm -rf; 06-10-19 at 06:01 PM.
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