Team BKool CycleChat

[RickB]

I'll be off the turbo for the next week or so because of a 24 hour race I'm doing in Scotland this weekend, so with all the preparation that involves and the need for me to rest now, I probably won't be able to re-run that if you're looking for any further comparisons between the trainers. Any other time I'm happy to do rides like that, as it improves our knowledge of the units. Maybe someone else here would like to give it a go and see if they produce a similar graph to me.

I'm sure you'll still be on the forum most of the week but in case I forget to say later on......

All the best with the race and I really want to hear the full details afterwards. Amazing feat tackling something like this!

 

[Alfonzo]

Havent been on here since before christmas, not done much on the trainer til last week either, due to family things.
Happy New Year (belated) everyone. Just looked at the website for the Strathpuffer Bill , loads of respect for
that, hope it goes well , good luck

 

[Add]

Yes, good luck Bill, it amazes me not only that you've done it before, but that you keep going back for more! That shows real grit.... or the absence of your self preservation gene.

 

[bobinski]

Thanks Randy. Yes, I'm riding solo again, and will try to avoid the usual 2-3 hours sitting ill in my car around 5am. That always seems to happen since I upped my pace the past couple of years. Enjoy your McDonalds .

Bill, have you got a GoPro or similar? Do we get to see some film of your suffering?!?
Yes, I think I might also have my annual Dirty Mac' In celebration and honour of this noble feat! Good luck matey

 

[BILL S]

Still suffering repercussions from that ridiculous Double Devil Bill?

Hi Add . The Double Devil (in those conditions) was every bit as torturous as the Puffer24 but all compressed into much fewer hours. The state it left me in was proof enough of that and the time it took to recover. I think my fingers only regained their full strength after about 4 months and my elbow has taken about until now to be fully healed (hopefully). So yeah, trying to be optimistic about being ready for this, having only been riding the turbo since.

 

[gbrown]

couldn't generate my normal (albeit rather weak and girly) power. I finished the ride and finally realised the problem-a fairly soft back tire!
I know everyone has said how important tire pressure is but I hadn't really appreciated it-I will always check now

Good point ... I've added it to the FAQ for new comers ...

Bkool FAQ

 

[BILL S]

I'm sure you'll still be on the forum most of the week but in case I forget to say later on......

All the best with the race and I really want to hear the full details afterwards. Amazing feat tackling something like this!

Thanks Rick. I will of course let you know how I got on, and hopefully be able to join the following Thursdays Chaingang as usual, assuming I survive uninjured. It's a great fun event that anyone reasonably fit (which includes everyone here) could do. I think the preparation and work before and after is the hardest part.

 

[BILL S]

Bill, have you got a GoPro or similar? Do we get to see some film of your suffering?!?
Yes, I think I might also have my annual Dirty Mac' In celebration and honour of this noble feat! Good luck matey

Cheers Bob. Unfortunately no GoPro to show you, but I can assure you that the amount of suffering will be huge. What does make it all worth while is the hot bath and the 12 hour sleep afterwards .

 

[BILL S]

Yes, good luck Bill, it amazes me not only that you've done it before, but that you keep going back for more! That shows real grit.... or the absence of your self preservation gene.

Yeah, I don't have a very strong self preservation gene, and as I've said before, a very poor memory for pain. Every year I say "never again" but always end up doing it. This is now the 5th year.
Anyway Add, great to see you're back here for more too, so expecting you to be up to speed in about 2 weeks the way you approach your training. This can mean only one thing: More pain and suffering for the rest of us .

 

[BILL S]

Havent been on here since before christmas, not done much on the trainer til last week either, due to family things.
Happy New Year (belated) everyone. Just looked at the website for the Strathpuffer Bill , loads of respect for
that, hope it goes well , good luck

Thanks Alfonzo. It's looking like it'll be a warm muddy one this year, so hopefully manage to keep plodding round and try to avoid falling off this time. All the time spent on the turbo will help to minimize time off the bike pushing up hills.

 

[Add]

Yeah, I don't have a very strong self preservation gene, and as I've said before, a very poor memory for pain. Every year I say "never again" but always end up doing it. This is now the 5th year.
Anyway Add, great to see you're back here for more too, so expecting you to be up to speed in about 2 weeks the way you approach your training. This can mean only one thing: More pain and suffering for the rest of us .

Bill, you will see me into an early grave. We have a very similar approach to training you and I, and are every bit as competitive as each other. The biggest difference being that you are further up the training curve than I think I will ever be. Your staying power is phenomenal. I had nothing but admiration for you after you tackled that DD, especially in those Hellish conditions. Your endeavours have been brought up on several boozy occasions since. I'm sure several of my friends think you are a character from Marvel's Avengers Assemble. It's nice to be back on here too, I did miss the piss taking banter that was so rife in this forum, and would ask you not to pull your punches now I am back....because I won't.

 

[Add]

I think it is the banter in here that spurs me on to train, more than anything else.
I am starting to look forward to it again already. Just need to ensure I get those cadence sessions fitted in between my stupid balls out, die if I must league runs.
Otherwise I may as well rip the bloody seat off and just stand up all the way round the Velethon.

 

[bobinski]

Bill, you will see me into an early grave. We have a very similar approach to training you and I, and are every bit as competitive as each other. The biggest difference being that you are further up the training curve than I think I will ever be. Your staying power is phenomenal. I had nothing but admiration for you after you tackled that DD, especially in those Hellish conditions. Your endeavours have been brought up on several boozy occasions since. I'm sure several of my friends think you are a character from Marvel's Avengers Assemble. It's nice to be back on here too, I did miss the piss taking banter that was so rife in this forum, and would ask you not to pull your punches now I am back....because I won't.

We are allowed to take the piss out of each other?!? Theres' gonna be some and some & but after all that some &

 

[one_legged_rider]

I learnt such a lesson over the last 2 days. I did a goat ride yesterday and just kept losing masses of time on the downhill bits. I gained on the ups but not nearly as much as I expected. I had to nearly kill myself to beat Whorty (sorry) on the final climb.
I thought I would go on Zwift today for a change but abandoned after a few miles as I couldn't generate more than 110 watts although was working really hard-I thought there must be a software glitch. I went back and did another bkool climb but still couldn't generate my normal (albeit rather weak and girly) power. I finished the ride and finally realised the problem-a fairly soft back tire!
I know everyone has said how important tire pressure is but I hadn't really appreciated it-I will always check now
Big dilemma-am I going to go back and do the goat ride again?

I'm just about to attempt the goat ride. The shorter (but still very tough looking) first one
I haven't worked out how on earth i'm going to get up that 17 mile one yet. '
I don't thing either my legs or the battery in my laptop are going to last long enough for that one.

 

[LBHIFI]

I tried some 400 watt intervals on the BKool Pro the other day (my stupid Tacx Genius controller died on me), and I swear it feels like 500 watt on the Tacx. Amazing that you guys can keep that up for so long.

Just managed to bring my controller back to life long enough to hit the start button. I was wrong, 400 watt on the Genius feels the same as 400 watt on BKool. Either it's the sub-zero (Celsius) conditions, or I'm not as fit as last year.
Interesting to compare the two sessions, which are almost identical watt wise (1 minute at 400 watt 5-6 times), but have almost opposite speed curves.

On BKool I instantly increase the speed to an unrealistic level but after 30 seconds or so the speed has dropped to normal.

On the Tacx I slowly increase the speed throughout the whole interval and actually ends up at a little higher (and unrealistic) speed.

Bkool
http://www.strava.com/activities/469554072/analysis/150/480

Tacx
http://www.strava.com/activities/473144059/analysis/936/1791