There isn’t a lot about a climb several kilometers long ending in a sustained 20% cobbled gradient that communicates ‘Attack’ and/or ‘Respond’. Certainly not when it comes after 240 kilometers with only 20 left to race. Nope, I’ve double-checked the calibration and used a control-case: the only reading I’m getting on the Pain Gauge is the needle dropping all the way over to and past ‘Survival’.
Here we have Roger De Vlaeminck containing a vicious attack from Freddy Maertens on the hardest bit of the climb, giving more than a little bit of insight into why we refer to these guys as Hardmen. On an unrelated note, I find it to be a crime beyond articulation that the Kapelmuur won’t feature in this year’s Ronde van Vlaanderen; but that won’t stop us from riding it during the Keepers’ Tour; we’re all about history and tradition. I want to keep seeing this scene repeat itself over and over. After all, if a joke is funny once, it should be funny a thousand times.
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Frank, while risking being burned at the stake for heresy or excommunicated from having access to this part of the Internets, I will question the benefits of a 10 hr ride now if the goal is the cobbled Classics trip. I would offer that a 4-6 hr ride would offer the same benefits at this time of year, and if supplemented with another 3-4 hrs the following day would be much more beneficial towards your goal of dropping Museuuw. If I am now banished from this Blog, I will commit to do hours of hill repeat intervals in the rain.
@frank, curious what was your reference to flywheels all about? On the whole cadence/drivetrain banter when I am going really well and riding around 100 with a smooth stroke, I get the sensation that the guns are not just working over the pedals but that the momentum generated by the moving mass of the guns is contributing a flywheel effect to the pedalstroke.
Then Jurgen Leth's narration of Ole's TT starts running thru my head.
Also, I share the concern about the fate of the Muur. An unspeakable abomination. It is not even in the new parcours, no? The fact that the Koppenberg is now later might be a slight compensation but also aren't they tossing in a circuit?
@mblume
For me, at least, at this stage in my cycling life, the epic ride in the future might be an inspiration but today's ride always takes precedence. I still race a bit but the most important thing to me is to get on my bike and feel the ride between the bike, myself and the road. Always searching for that ever elusive La Volupte.
Sure, I might ride a long way today b/c I have a big race/Cogal/group ride next month/year, but it is the ride today that matters most.
@mblume
I strongly doubt it will make any difference whether he does a 10 hour ride or a two hour ride four months away from the Tour des Gardiens.
@ChrisO
Agreed. My take on how to optimize one's Stroke is that daily efforts are the key to Merckxess
Alright, so I was watching some videos on the 'tube and realized how incredible Boonen was in 2004-2006. Damn, winning Classics, winning TdF stages, lots and lots of wins.
Do ya'll think he's past his prime? Simply having a lull? Turning into another type of rider? He's only 31 so should have some good years left in him, but I got to wondering if we've seen his best seasons.
I do realize those seasons are very, very hard to replicate. And, I also realize how incredible all PROS are, much less the best of the best. So, calling him "off" or in decline isn't really fair. I also wonder though if he could be considered a disappointment, or, if it's just really hard to have such magical seasons more than once or twice.
I wonder if folks think he reached his potential or maybe got very good, then didn't continue to get better. (again, not so much criticizing him, since I think he's awesome, but just looking for some opinions)
@Ron
White line fever?
@Ron
What kills me is how incredibly a marked man he was after winning Flanders in '05 and he still managed to win 3 P-R's and another Flanders while "allowing" his teammate to win two Flanders. The dude was simply f'king amazing from '05 through '10. Totally marked and never bitched and still won four monuments.
That is why I will never get on the Cancellara fanboat. The guy was a marked man for one year and all he did was whine like a little bitch. He NEVER was marked like Boonen until last year and he did not pull it off. No class. Cancellara can ride like hell but he's not the rider Boonen was 5 years ago.
I hope that Boonen comes back strong this year. Last year was a year coming back form knee problems. Hope to see him in the mix this spring!
@mblume
Great question, but assuming I maintain the form, I disagree that low-intensity riding now won't benefit me in April, even if that was the goal for doing it. Could I start later and have similar results in April? Sure, but why wait? Base miles are base miles. I've got the opportunity to spend the entire day on the bike due to scheduling and the VMH being in Vietnam. A combination of factors that give me an opportunity I don't want to miss.
Plus, I've always enjoyed really long, low-intensity rides. Modern training theory is gravitating towards shorter, harder rides, but me not being a Pro affords me the opportunity to train the way I enjoy training. We always trained in the philosophy that in training you go much longer and get yourself much more tired than you ever do in a race, that way your body can take much more than you'll be able to give it in the race. There is something about spending a day alone in 0 degrees riding for every hour of daylight that connects me to the sport in a way that a 2-hour hammerfest will never do.
Also, I've always believed really long rides do something that normal training can't: Get yourself so tired that you don't know how you'll continue. At that point, when you just keep going, your body has to figure out how to pedal more efficiently and smoother - it stops allowing you to waste energy and all effort goes into efficiency. I'm not talking about getting tired and pedaling squares. I'm talking about getting tired, pedaling squares for a few hours, and then your body breaks through to the next zone. Those benefits never leave you, you just become a better cyclist.
When I was serious about sport, my longest training sessions were usually 6 months before the biggest events; doing 14 or 16 hour mountainbike rides in Idaho in June, July, and August, for races I was doing in February. Unorthodox, and we were the only ones doing it. But the results spoke for themselves.
I'd have to double-check my source on this, by the way, but I think the theory of training came from Gunde Svan, the Merckx of Nordic Skiing. The man was/is a total badass.
Anyway, fun topic to bring up; coincidentally I was thinking about these very same things while in agony yesterday, and the "why the fuck am I doing this" shit started cycling through my mind!