Cycling | Stronger Cyclist

cycling app strava and mytracks review

posted on November 20th, 2011 in Cycling, Cycling Tips, Mt biking Dogs, Reviews by Stephen

Strava vs. MyTracks Droid apps for tracking your cycling.
UPDATED:

I liked MyTracks for a long time, but to me it seemed to use too much of my battery (more on this later). MyTracks was very useful as I was learning some new Mt biking trails in North Georgia. I found that I could take it off ‘satellite’ put it on ‘map’ mode it would download my location much faster.

But as the summer cycling season was starting to reach it’s peak and I was doing group road rides, I found Strava and started trying it out. I really started enjoying it’s features.

Strava can be Fun. You input some data about you and your bike (from which it will estimate your wattage). Then record your ride via GPS, once you finish and save the ride, it quickly uploads. Then it will show you how you did on various climbs on a social network – Strava.com, compared to others in your area that have done the same rides or climbs – whether or not you are following them.

This can be Fun, challenging and give you new goals to push yourself for. Get a PR or even best some of the riders in your area. I have to admit, I did a couple rides this summer with no other intention than bettering my time on a couple climbs during a group ride.

But suddenly this weekend a glaring difference was found and now, I am mixed between the two apps and will keep both on my phone – but for totally different reasons!

I made my way to an area of Mt biking trails that I had never been before. So while I was getting prepped, I did my usual of turning on Strava, and my dog Apollo and I hit the trails…. only Apollo was tired from a fun dog day on the farm. I though we would knock out 5-6 miles, like we usually do – he barely made it 2.

Suddenly I was in the middle of unknown area of trails, and needed to get back to the car along the shortest route possible. I went back to the Strava app, but all it would show me was our ride time and our pace. I attempted to figure the best possible route and forged onward. Apollo was getting more tired, we stopped again & I re-evaluated. And then suddenly I remembered MyTracks.

The reason that I went back to MyTracks is that during the ride, it will give you a map of where you are & a red line indicating where you have been. This makes it much easier which direction you are going on the map, and figure out which way you need to go. Both apps allow you to view where you have been on a map from a computer, but only MyTracks allows you to view that map while you are riding.

Although I do like both apps, I now really feel that they both have a separate purpose that (for now) neither can fulfill.

MyTracks is Great if you are exploring or you realize you are lost & attempting to get back to where you started.

Strava is Great to compare and keep up with how you are doing along a route, against yourself or others.
With Strava you can review the map after the ride.

Bonus Tip: Strava and I think MyTracks can both be turned on for a minute to ensure satellite connection then, you can put your phone into airplane mode to save battery!

See my previous post about MyTracks

While recording using MyTracks, you can:

1. See location / progress on a map
2. Monitor real-time statistics: time, distance, speed, elevation
3. Create waypoints
4. Create statistics waypoints (splits tracks into subtracks)

UPDATE:
Thanks to the comment below, I have successfully uploaded .gpx files from MyTracks onto my computer, then uploaded them onto Strava.com.
Although this is more of a pain due to the extra steps, it is good work-around.

How to paceline

posted on July 19th, 2011 in Cycling, Cycling Tips, Ride Reports by Stephen

A few weeks ago, I was doing a road ride with the Wednesday night group. We were rolling down the road with a rotating pace-line. As we got to a slight downhill, I noticed that some riders that I hadn’t seen at the front suddenly hopped into the pace-line – but instead of keeping things smooth, it suddenly got all messed up. Riders were either pulling too hard through the pace-line or riders were pulling up to the front rider, and NOT pulling through.

It was like they got themselves to the front of the group ride and suddenly realized they were in a little over their head, and didn’t know how to get themselves out of it. So, I attempted (in a helpful tone) to get them to move over to the left and allow the rotation to continue again.

I have read several articles that tell you how you are supposed to do a paceline, but I think they all miss the mark for 1 important reason:

The paceline is an ever changing thing, and you have to adapt accordingly.

There isn’t always a proper rotation.
1) The lead rider should gradually pull off the front – no sudden side motions. (also, there is no need to point if you make your movements gradually and steady).

2) The lead rider should pull off into the Headwind.

3) Once the lead rider pulls off the front, they should also gradually and slightly reduce intensity and speed to allow the next rider to pull in front of them and then draft off the next rider (assuming a consistent rotating paceline) – think of it from an over-head view, the cyclists going through the paceline should draw an oval, not a rectangle.

A good video example:

4) If there is no headwind then it doesn’t matter which way the paceline rotates. Sometimes you will pull through and no one will be behind you, and suddenly the pack is single-file with you at the front. You can continue your effort if you like, and wait until someone pulls through allowing you to draft, or you can simply flick your elbow and ease back to the other side of the road, hoping that the rider who is now behind you will pull through. If he does, then the paceline has just switched rotation.

There isn’t always a specific amount of time on the front.
Generally in the U.S. we keep a steady rotating paceline, so as soon as you are at the front, you gradually begin to slide over in front of the next rider – this allows the rider being passed to adjust speed to get into your draft, and it allows the next rider in the paceline to adjust intensity to keep the pace steady.

If your group wants each rider to ride at the front for a longer period of time then the intensity of the effort will have to be your gauge for how long you stay on the front. This should allow the weaker rider to rotate off the front sooner, and the stronger rider to stay on the front longer.

All of these things may change on the fly – and being able to adapt is what is important. And always remember that your actions will cause reactions to those behind you, and visa versa, so be steady and as predictable as possible.
When pacelines run smoothly it is the Faster Cycling way for a group to ride together!

How guys pee while cycling

posted on May 18th, 2011 in Cycling, Cycling Tips, Ride Reports by Stephen

When you hydrate, at some point, you have to take a nature break. And if you are a racing cyclist, sometimes you can’t stop to take a nature break.

I have found the ability to pee while riding has come in handy in a couple of races. I remember 1 race in Augusta that is on a Army Base, I didn’t realize that our vehicles were going to be inspected before we were allowed past the gates. I was topping off the hydration on the way there & basically had to go when I pulled up to the base – once my vehicle was allowed onto base – I REALLY had to go….. but, now I was cramped on time and had to go straight to race parking.

I quickly dressed & hopped on the bike thinking I could find a porta-potty – what I found was the whole Pro1,2 field lined up and the referee giving pre-race announcements. I got inline with the other riders and a moment later we started the race.

So, there I was feeling like my bladder was about to burst before we even started the race….I basically had the choice to stop and have to chase back and probably be out of the race or pee while cycling. I choose to pee while cycling.

- This is best done on a slight downhill grade. Stability can be tricky while doing this, so a consistent and long, gradual down-hill grade is ideal. Make sure that the road ahead is clear of obstacles, potholes, etc. this maybe the worst moment to have a crash.

Also, it is best done at the BACK of the pack, with no one behind you.

There are 2 common options for this
1) Stand, put most of your weight on your right leg, rotate the hips to the right side, ideally you will be holding the saddle with your legs as extra stability, use the left hand to hold the H-bars straight, pull down bibs/shorts pull out hose, and ‘make water’.

2) roll up right leg of shorts using right hand, shift the hips slightly to the right, stick out right knee, pull out hose, try to relax, make water allowing the flow to go between the knee and the bike frame. This allows the wind to take away the stream.

Here is a PG description from 1 of my favorite interviewed cyclists, Dave Zabriski:

It is best done on a long gradual downhill, however, if a downhill isn’t available or not long enough, maybe you can enlist the help of friends or a team-mate to assist you. NOW this can be tricky!
The key is to maintain a consistent push, because otherwise there is no telling who will get sprayed, or potentially fall and get road rash.