Team BKool CycleChat

[RickB]

Hmm, did I miss something or is Bill not the winner of Oct/Nov 2015 Cyclechat Chaingang series?

Pretty much - unless someone reruns the finale at record pace. No official announcement until after the weekend

 

[BILL S]

Pretty much - unless someone reruns the finale at record pace. No official announcement until after the weekend

It's not over until it's over !!

And there's still time for a few position changes before the Mountain Goats finishes too

 

[theboxers]

Well that hurt, again . Another rerun on the T100 and another PB. I am re-doing the sessions I did prior to the firmware update. So far 5 from 5 improved. But still very painful for me .

That is Porlock done this time. Tomorrow will be the rake and chapel fell.

What do they say

I am not insane then

 

[GuySJ]

Wonder does bike make much difference? I'm running an old racer (Commencal Colt) with a wobble in the crank due to a knackered BB. It does have sticky 23 width tyres though that seem to work well (pumped to the obligatory 120PSI )

The gearing will make a difference on a course like last night if you want to keep a good speed up, I was spinning with 135-140 cadence on a 53 11 at times to keep the speed up, you couldn't go that fast on a compact.

 

[RickB]

The gearing will make a difference on a course like last night if you want to keep a good speed up, I was spinning with 135-140 cadence on a 53 11 at times to keep the speed up, you couldn't go that fast on a compact.

I 5hink my bikes are practically the same gearing. Both compacts for sure. The rear may be a 27 on the bkool bike compared to a 28 on the good bike.

 

[theboxers]

The gearing will make a difference on a course like last night if you want to keep a good speed up, I was spinning with 135-140 cadence on a 53 11 at times to keep the speed up, you couldn't go that fast on a compact.

I have trouble doing a 100 cadence for more than a few seconds. I can do a steady 90 and I am slowly working my way up the gears at that cadence. I can generate 200+ watts for a reasonable, for me, amount of time @90 on the flat. But any higher cadence or more power and the legs just disappear.

I am improving but wow, just wow

 

[Vertego]

Paul,
I emailed Bkool the link plus sent it to Craig Harrison the USA rep who carries weight with them.

Here's the answer I got from Bkool:
Richard,
Thanks so much for your message and for the intereset. We forward your suggestion to our software/web developers, we hope it will soon be fixed.
See you at Bkool,
Bkool Team.

Whoever replied obviously didn't bother reading my email or the link by the sounds of that!

Similar response here to a suggestion...

Thanks for your message. We forward your suggestion to our software/web developers, we hope it could be implemented.

See you at Bkool,

Bkool Team.

 

[bobinski]

Confused over watts per kilo. Looking at the last chain gang race fwiw I came 3rd. Yet my watts output seems much lower than those who posted longer times than me. Is my power output accurate? Or is it a bkool thing and I am being flattered?

 

[theboxers]

w/kg is just a guide and as Guy found yesterday bsim can be... Flattering.

I am starting to get some better times on my T100 league sessions. But in no way have I improved, to the extent that my times have, since the firmware update. I am not complaining and I would be reluctant to do any further updates, to the trainer firmware, as I am liking the latest version I have.

But it is a simulation, all be it, for the most part, a fairly good one of your current fitness levels..

 

[GuySJ]

I have trouble doing a 100 cadence for more than a few seconds. I can do a steady 90 and I am slowly working my way up the gears at that cadence. I can generate 200+ watts for a reasonable, for me, amount of time @90 on the flat. But any higher cadence or more power and the legs just disappear.

I am improving but wow, just wow

Power is simply how much torque you apply to the cranks x how fast you are turning them. Low cadence pushing hard on the pedals is relatively easy on your lungs but hard on your legs. Do this too much and you soon run out of steam. High cadence is hard on your heart and lungs but your legs can do this all day. I did a 220 mile ride earlier in the year. My goal when I started was to not push on the pedals no matter what, just keep spinning. I still averaged 17 mph. My point is if you want to get faster don't worry too much about power, that will come on its own but spin and you will get fitter and faster. Watch Froom going up hill, staggering (as long as he doesn't ride into something).

 

[GuySJ]

I 5hink my bikes are practically the same gearing. Both compacts for sure. The rear may be a 27 on the bkool bike compared to a 28 on the good bike.

Both good for the hills then. I use a compact on the goats rides no way I would get anywhere with my road bike( no hills of any note where I live)

 

[GuySJ]

Confused over watts per kilo. Looking at the last chain gang race fwiw I came 3rd. Yet my watts output seems much lower than those who posted longer times than me. Is my power output accurate? Or is it a bkool thing and I am being flattered?

I've also seen that the watts on the ride summary are totally different when you export to Strava. Bkool said I was at about 310 average and Strava said about 290. How can the same file have different values?

 

[theboxers]

I've also seen that the watts on the ride summary are totally different when you export to Strava. Bkool said I was at about 310 average and Strava said about 290. How can the same file have different values?

I've noticed that on Garmins connect site as well. What Bkool does is take your average over the active/main part of the session. Garmin take the average over the full session, warm up and down included, as that is what is included in the exported fit file. Maybe other sites do the same.

 

[Insomina]

I did a 220 mile ride earlier in the year. My goal when I started was to not push on the pedals no matter what, just keep spinning. I still averaged 17 mph

Can we swap bodies please.

 

[theboxers]

Power is simply how much torque you apply to the cranks x how fast you are turning them. Low cadence pushing hard on the pedals is relatively easy on your lungs but hard on your legs. Do this too much and you soon run out of steam. High cadence is hard on your heart and lungs but your legs can do this all day. I did a 220 mile ride earlier in the year. My goal when I started was to not push on the pedals no matter what, just keep spinning. I still averaged 17 mph. My point is if you want to get faster don't worry too much about power, that will come on its own but spin and you will get fitter and faster. Watch Froom going up hill, staggering (as long as he doesn't ride into something).

When I started back on the bike, in Aug 14, I was having trouble maintaining 60. I put it down to 30 odd years of essentially no exercise outside of walking around work. I was also working on giving up a 30 odd year cigarette habit, I am now tobacco and nicotine free, but still using a vaporiser to occupy my hands. I gained a bit of weight, not too much surprisingly, but I was big anyway.

I have been trying to get my cadence up as I have found the faster you spin the 'easier' it is . I am still in the upward trend as far as improving goes. My average heart rate max is still going up. I am not sure if I have hit my true max heart rate, I've read it is lower on a bike. I would have trouble coping with a 125 average HR when I started. I am now just short of 145 over 30 minutes and about 142 over an hour. After an hour I start to tire.

I am mixing the zones of my rides for rest, recovery, endurance and power development . It just takes longer than I would like . But I am realistic. I abused my body for 30 years it's now payback time.