Training for improved climbing is one thing. Training for the Dirty Dozen is another. Given the fact that probably less than 1% of the hills one normally climb are as steep as those of the Dirty Dozen, it doesn’t make sense to train for this level of power requirement. That is, unless you actually want to survive the 5 plus hours in November as you climb more steep ascents in one day than you normally do in an entire season. Throw in the fact that I …

Ever since I heard about FLYWHEEL, a new Indoor Cycling system in New York City I’ve been trying to learn about how their new technology called the TorqBoard worked. They apparently developed “add on” technology to an existing Red Knob bike. “Red Knob bikes” are what I call ALL the pre-power bikes of the current era – the standard type that have no gears or indicator values for resistance. This add-on was supposed to measure Power as well as RPM. Being the power partisan that I …

If you’ve followed this blog for any amount of time, you know that I have a passion to see Indoor Cycling become all it can be. The desire to share the joys of riding outside with those whose only experience is in the gym has translated to many new riders hitting the trails, roads and single track outside in PA. At the same time, I’ve finally convinced enough of our “elite” racers to give the Indoor Cycling program a good try to see the results for themsleves. …

Being a Power Training fanatic that I am, I also regularly monitor the forums and various blogs about power on the internet. I came across a fantastic thread of conversations on the Google Wattage forum (a place where serious cyclists, with serious money, talk about serious power). If you don’t ride outside, you might not be aware that there is a general disdain from cyclists about indoor cycling, and especially Spinning®. They lump all indoor riding into the same bucket and consider it a last resort for …

We have become a nation of excuse makers. Instead of admitting we are lazy, we say we are busy. Instead of being honest about our eating, we claim we just “can’t seem to do anything to lose weight”. Instead of being disciplined with our time, we complain that there just aren’t enough hours in the day. We have become overweight, out of shape, and worst of all, we feel justified because everyone else tells us that it’s “OK”.

Nothing frustrates me more than small thinking.  In fact, if I can point to one factor that has compelled me to virtually every entrepreneurial endeavor I’ve ever done (of which there are many) it would be small thinking.  Small thinking is what makes a great idea fizzle and die.  Small thinking takes opportunity and handicaps it.  Small thinking is fueled by fear and a lack of confidence.  Small thinking is expert at discovering all the reasons why something won’t work, and is blind to all the reasons something will work.  …

These are the words that rung in my head just before we headed out the door, helmet & gloves on, bikes ready to roll. My 19 year old daughter had a simple goal a few months ago – to lose weight and get in shape (sound familiar?). She had done a good job on her own, but hit the proverbial “wall”… little to no additional progress. I knew that if she was going to take it to the next level, she needed to have her sights set …

To all my Spinning® buddies and fanatics out there, don’t get too excited. I have nothing but kudos and good things to say about Spinning®, and have huge love for what Johnny G did to bring indoor cycling “to the masses”. Frankly, if it wasn’t for his work in the 80s, we would probably still be fighting to build the “perfect trainer” while a stationary bike is simply the perfect solution for both the class environment and introducing folks to cycling for the first time. If we …

Reflecting on the Giretto, after being home for more than a week now, I feel like I’m still waking up from one of the dreams that you could swear was real. It was grueling, exhilarating, exhausting, rewarding – each emotion at its peak. The overwhelming feeling I am left with is “I can’t wait till next year!” The logistics were as challenging as the training. The fund raising was as challenging as the riding. But the experience was well beyond what I had expected, even …

On my last post I told you how yesterday’s 8 hr in the saddle, concluding with both a Category 2 and a Cat 1 climb wasn’t really over after we stopped riding. The strength of our riding group was consistently Nina leading the way, and Jennifer brining up the rear. We all shared our time in the front pulling on the flat lands, but in the mountains, this is how it shook out. These climbs were no joke – each one taking 1 to 2 hrs …