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Century and Gran Fondo Training – Podcast #41

Last time on the Tailwind Coaching Podcast I talked about how to get started with road racing.  So far, I've received a lot of positive commentary on it, but a number of people felt that I was leaving some things out.  Comments were made to the effect of “What about gran fondos?” and “What about centuries?”

I realize that the majority of cyclists out there aren't racers, but still find joy in searching out tests of their endurance, climbing or overall fitness.  Many of those ways involve planning for a century or gran fondo.  Do you want to complete that event, or do you want to CRUSH that event?

In today's podcast, I'll discuss what you need to know to not only be successful in pursuit of that goal, but to shatter your expectations.  I'll cover:

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How to Start Road Racing – Podcast #40

Every year, the Tour de France comes around, being brought to the masses through Eurosport, NBC or various Twitter or internet tickers.  Concurrently, there's always a spike in cycling interest around the tour, and I get plenty of questions about racing and starting to race.  I guess watching people turn themselves inside out on TV is inspiring for those among us who are inclined to pin on a number.

Regardless of your motivation, it's always awesome to see riders thinking about jumping into the deep end of the racing pool.  Many times, your average cyclist doesn't really know how to “go about getting involved in racing.”  Well, I'm going to put some of those fears to rest with today's podcast.

I'll cover the following:

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Being A Better Criterium Racer (Podcast #38)

Racing season is well and truly upon us, and here in the US we have a glut of the fast, closed circuit racing known as criterium racing.  Run on race courses that are generally less than 3K in length (that's about 1.8 miles or so), most crits are full of fast corners, accelerations, twitchy riders and (unfortunately) crashes.

Many people cut their teeth on criterium racing in Category 5, which can be prone to certain “issues.”  Because anyone with a bike and helmet can sign up to race cat 5, simple things like learning where to put your hands, braking safely, how to corner or how to hold a line are always suspect.  Taking the next step of knowing when to attack and simply how to train your energy systems to handle the rigors of crit racing are a few of the more advanced things you can do to be a stronger and safer crit racer.  Trust me, all those around you will thank you for it.

In today's podcast, I'll cover the following:

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SRAM True 22 Unveiled

SRAM-Force-22-crankset-chainrings-intro01-600x399[dc]C[/dc]ampy started the trend a few years back.  Shimano jumped on board with Dura Ace 9000.  Now SRAM is following suit with the release of their two new group sets, dubbed "Force 22" and "Red 22."  Obviously the 22 in the name refers to the total number of gears available, and also obvious is the official release of the Red hydraulic brake offerings that have been teased for months.

What is less obvious are the changes to the existing Red group and the changes to the Force group.

After the jump, we'll take a quick look at those changes.

 

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Knee Pain Primer

Knee injuries can destroy a season

[dc]W[/dc]ith spring rearing it's much welcomed head, a lot of riders are in the midst of building fitness towards their early season racing programs.  A lot more are just ramping it up getting ready for the beck and call of sweaty summer club throwdowns.  But whether you've been riding hard since December, hoping to podium at that spring "classic" or you're just starting up your training, one thing can slow all of us to a crawl: knee pain.  At some point in our cycling lifetime we'll all experience it, and we'll all know the suffering of sitting on the couch while we wonder "why me" or "why now?"

Instead of asking those questions, it's more prudent to ask "what caused this" along with treating the symptoms that put you out of commission.  Here we'll take a quick look at some of the reasons your knees may be throbbing and help you shed some light on why you're couch surfing.

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