Transitioning to www.drratcptips.blogspot.com

I blew it. I knew I had started a prior CPTIPS blog before focusing on a Facebook page, but could not track down the URL. So in frustration I started a new one.

What I am going to do over the next few weeks is transition these posts over to the new blog which I believe has the better format.

• It has a clearly visible option to sign up for emails at the time of new posts. 
• And best of all. it has a search box that will let you look for key words both on the blog as well as on the CPTIPS website. A big plus in my mind as the amount of information has increased over the last few years.

Once again, my apologies. Here is the link:  www.drratcptips.blogspot.com

TRAVEL - can I do a trip on my own?

Taking that first trip with a commercial company is a nice way to ease into traveling. If you do it yourself there are a myriad of details to be taken care of  -  pulling together all the equipment, reservations, and maps for a self supported venture. With a commercial trip you are provided with a basic equipment list plus other reminders about details. The rooms reservations are taken care of. and you always have someone to answer questions as you work through trip prep.

And for those who aren't quite ready to begin at square one there are some options.

Companies such as Nichols Expeditions provide a self guided option for a trip to areas they know from their own tours. They will make your arrangements for lodging, baggage transfer, and provide maps of the area including suggested routes. They give you a phone number if you need local help - and rental bike options for the area. It is essentially a guided trip without the guides. You save a few dollars, but also get to pick the group you invite, the type of accommodations you would like, and the timing of the trip. I worked with them to set up a trip this Fall in Italy and it was easy.

And there are companies that will arrange just  baggage transfers for you. In that case you will have complete control. Online tools such as Google maps and websites like Trip Adviser make it a lot easier to plan a trip than it was even 10 years ago. 

TRAVEL - picking a tour company

Service and cost are the big items. Just as with lodging, there are many choices. The high end companies (Backroads is an example) stay at the best places, eat at better restaurants, and will run a trip with only 4 to
6 people signed up (BTW if you are going with a commercial company, be sure they will guarantee the trip is a "go" before you buy tickets).

Then there is the middle, companies that provide great tours, good food, and comfortable lodging at a reasonable price. Examples of companies I have personally traveled with are Experience Plus
(http://www.experienceplus.com) , Easy Rider (http://www.easyridertours.com/) , and Nichols
Expeditions (http://www.nicholsexpeditions.com/

But in my book the real finds are the smaller companies just getting started and focused on a specific area. My son and his wife (a guide) decided to start a travel company focused on central Europe and The Czech Republic (Pathways Through Europe  http://pathwaysthrougheurope.com/).  I talked them into doing a bike tour and it was one of the best trips I have ever taken. Not only did they cover the small things (a beer after the ride was included while most companies charge separately for alcohol) but we stayed in local lodging,
ate local foods, and got to experience first hand the culture of The Czech Republic. In addition, they gave it the real personal touch with a day filled with non biking opportunities. Best of all, the price was better than the "Big Boys" who offer tours in the same area.

So keep an open mind as you look at the second (or third) page of a Google search.

More tomorrow - and more details at  http://www.cptips.com/trvpln.htm

TRAVEL - Where do I start?

You've already taken the first step  - you are reading this blog, thinking about biking somewhere new. And not just new roads from home, but traveling there. You may have a general idea - a place you've heard or read about. I find that many of my trip ideas come from people I have ridden with, or an interesting ride I find online while researching something else.  When you meet new riders, you generally get to talking about bike gear or food (where to stop for a snack or on the bike snacks) but a third common discussion is about places they (or their friends) have ridden.

So once you have a general idea, I have found Google a nice place to begin to firm up a plan. You not only can look at common routes on trips offered by commercial companies (usually bike friendly/low traffic volume if they are using them for their tours) but also get a sense of the time of year that is best for that area. If they run tours over several months, I will generally pick the middle of the season as statistically the best time. Too early and it can be wet/cold; too late and you have the issue of too hot if it is in the south.

The next decision is whether this is going to be self supported (you and a few friends) or are you going to go with a commercial company. If this is your first time, and you haven't been able to talk anyone else into signing on, a commercial company may make sense. It will get you to actually commit, I can guarantee you will  meet really interesting people (some of whom will become life long friends), and you won't have to worry about mechanical support if you have a breakdown.

More tomorrow - and more details at  http://www.cptips.com/trvpln.htm

Performance, training, and now traveling

When I first started this blog, I wanted to mirror the focus on the performance and training of the Cycling Performance Tips website.  But another passion of mine that has grown over the years is cycling around the US (initially) and then overseas.  Traveling on a bike is a great way to see places I have always read about with a depth that is missed while riding in or driving a car, while at the same time covering more ground than on a walking trip.  I have had many experiences of taking a break or fixing a flat where someone will walk over and start up a conversation. I remember one time in a small Italian hill town where a couple of fellows walked over and started the conversation asking about my bike and then we moved on to their trips to the US. Or a time in France when I was taking a break and an elderly man walked over and we communicated only with gestures and a map as a way to discuss where I had come from/and was going. That never would happen on a bus tour or car trip.

Now it is Spring and time to think about new places to ride this year. As I work through the logistics - looking at places that are bike friendly, timing and other aspects of planning, and ultimately traveling it seemed a nice series of good short subjects for my blog (with more detail on wwwcptips).

To keep things clean - training/performance versus traveling - I will add a key word (TRAVEL versus PERFORMANCE) to each title to make it easier for readers. We'll see how this goes.

I am still committed to getting out the facts on training and performance, so for those of you interested in that focus, please keep an occasional eye on the blog and send me questions you might have.

Designing a your own training program (riding and nutrition) using CPTIPS

I developed the Cycling Performance Tips website over time as a series of webpages addressing a multitude of training and nutrition topics. For those interested in getting started on their training, and researching the nuances later, it was often difficult to extract the relevant information (which is spread over many webpages).


In response to this common comment, I pulled together a series of webpages to lead one through the logical development of a personalized training program - both mileage/effort as well as nutrition. I posted it on my site rather than publishing it as an ebook, as the latter could not be updated once downloaded. The website approach allowed me to amplify and modify content as reader questions arose.


The following link will get you to the opening page.  http://www.cptips.com/readme.htm

Cadence - can you get something for nothing?

Q. I weigh about 200 lbs and am 6 ft 3 inches tall. I am currently using a compact chain set 50/34 with a standard 25/12 cassette. When cycling with some (lighter) friends recently in the hills in the Dordogne there was a lot of chat about gearing etc. Because of my weight I was obviously having to use more power to maintain the same speed as my friends on the longer climbs of about 5 miles.


It got me thinking that if I could have gone to a lower gear and used a higher cadence I could have maintained the same speed and maybe used similar power to my lighter friends? Then the conversation went to crank length (mine is 175) and the whole think started to seem overly complex with too many theories and a cafe seemed the best idea! - B.

Can you gain an advantage by using a larger cassette (lower gear) and spinning faster?

Let's assume you measure your power output at the back hub. That tells you how much work you are doing (generally expressed in watts per minute). Training is the only way to increase your maximal total power output per minute. This includes interval training (which basically stresses your muscles to exert more watts per minute - and your body to recover from the anaerobic stress of doing so).

Assume you are exerting to your maximum - and producing your personal maximum watts per minute at the hub. You can deliver this power with multiple cadences. If your cadence is higher, the power per stroke is less, but total power per minute measured at the rear wheel is exactly the same as if you used a lower cadence with more power per stroke. You are not going to get "more power" by spinning faster.

The reason I encourage riders to spin at a faster cadence (90 - 100 rpm) is that there is less stress on your knee per revolution (remember, faster cadence = less power per revolution = less stress on the knee joint, than a slower cadence - assuming the same total power output per minute).

As far as I know, there are no short cuts. A good base, training at the length of the event you are aiming for, and intervals to force physiologic adaption and improvement are the components of a successful training program.