Manatee Express Group - Full (Page 8)

Back to some sort of schedule. Group ride planned for Saturday. Last weekend's highs were in the 40s, today is supposed to be near 80. Just wish I could be outside to enjoy it!

Cheri, Mardi Gras was a lot of fun. Mobile is the birthplace of Mardi Gras and enjoys a reputation for having a fairly family-friendly carnival season. There is a 5 K run on the Sunday before Mardi Gras in Mobile, on Joe Cain Day. You will have to put that on your race calendar next year.

Great ride on Saturday. Good to be outside...only downside was the wind. But can't complain too much. The temps are much better and at least we aren't battling the mess the folks up north and out west are seeing!

Cheri, how is the new bike? 

My goals were shot for Feb so I am carrying forward to March. Hope the longer month and no scheduled travel will help me meet them this time.

I am so tired of my trainer too. I am looking forward to seeing more daylight hours starting next weekend!! The downside is less morning hours for a few weeks

Hi everyone....hope everyone is off to a good start this week.

On the subject of trainers: does anyone has a unit that really feels flaming hot in the mechanical area after about 50 minutes or so? Or is that usual? I have a fluid trainer but it's a few years old (about a 2002 or 2003 model?)

Manatee Express - 2007-03-05 9:05 PM

GTAUSP3 - 2007-03-05 11:57 AM

Hi everyone....hope everyone is off to a good start this week.

On the subject of trainers: does anyone has a unit that really feels flaming hot in the mechanical area after about 50 minutes or so? Or is that usual? I have a fluid trainer but it's a few years old (about a 2002 or 2003 model?)

Interesting question, you must be going really fast to boil the fluid. I will check the temp on mine next time i ride it.

I am confident that is not the problem!  

I'll check mine at the end of my 30 minute ride tomorrow morning!

 No excessive heat from the tainer this morning.  I've got a magnet though, not fluid!

Bike training question: What is a "good" cadence and gear ratio to work towards???

I am just getting back on my bike from last Fall. I've always wondered 'if I'm doing it right' in terms of my goals and my training routine for biking. Currently I have a road bike with a triple crank and 9 gear cassette. I usually ride (and train) with the front on the middle gear and the back at the smallest or second to smallest gear. I set my cadence between 68-75 max. I've had others say this is a hard ratio to push and I'll wear myself out, but no one offers an alternative. In addition, I've ridden up to 85 miles at this ratio. What's RIGHT or BEST, in general???

Thanx,

I did 85 miles of a century ride (Seagull Century 2005 in Salisbury, MD) like that in rain and wind (cried tears due to horrible conditions, but that's another story). The cadence I do feels rather comfortable but I'm not improving much beyond that. I've been riding since 2004 and have not increased much in speed at all. So something must be wrong, but I don't know where to look for changes (not counting the need for weight loss).

I try to keep my cadence between 80-85. Today was a little windy so it was probably more like 75-85. I don't think I am very gear savy, just trying to keep going at a somewhat regulated pace.

Ken, I am interested in seeing something on this too.

ctreanor - 2007-03-11 8:31 PM Ok, this is a bit off topic but I have to ask some experts............ I can't seem to get a way from this idea that having music is great for your workouts. It makes you work harder so you get the best results. Now here's my problem. I've been doing my tri training with either nothing or TV/Music when I'm inside on the treadmill or fluid trainer. I agree that Music can really get your blood and pulse going especially if it's some pumped up music. However, since my training is all HRM based I'm not sure that'll get me to the results I'm interested in. Does this make sense? What do the rest of you do for music while exercising? Any other thoughts? I'd also be interested to know what's on your iPod????

I use my iPod too when doing inside work. You are right, just makes things go so much better. But here is my personal experience caution: when you use music too much, it makes those times without it much tougher. When training for my first tri, I always ran with music. I struggle with running and music helped so much. But when I took off on the run in that first race, I had trouble "getting into a rhythm." Again, this was my experience but thought I would share those thoughts.

What's on my iPod? Since it's a hand-me-down from my oldest child there is a wide range of music. I really like most of the playlist but some tunes I really wish would go away.