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A Pair Of Good Noob Tips

10.19.2010 by Ray Niekamp // 2 Comments

When I first started checking out Ray’s blog, it was because I was in search of tips. After years of riding a hybrid, I had made the move to a road bike, and found myself with a lot to learn. I’ve now been a “roadie” for several years, but I still remember a few of the lessons I learned along the way.

Time to share…

Feel Your Pedals

Ray gave a nod to this in a previous post, but it’s worth revisiting. For best results, it’s better to “feel” your way into Shimano-style road pedals than to look and aim.

Why? I’m not quite sure. But I know that early on in my experience with road pedals, especially when in traffic or on a group ride, I frequently fumbled with trying to click in properly. Alone it was often no problem, but when the pressure was on I often missed. Then I took a fellow rider’s suggestion to just feel my way in, rather than try to aim and click in, and found much better results.

Try this on your next ride. As you push off, hesitate for a moment to allow the pedal to swing into its natural, up-and-down orientation. Then without looking, swing your toe forward at a downward angle. It should naturally find the front of the pedal, allowing you to then simply push down and click into the locked position.

That’s a technical explanation, but it’s not a technical move. Rather, it’s one that works best when you don’t try, don’t look and aim, and just feel your way through it.

Relax Your Shoulders

Next time you’ve got the sun above and behind, check out your shadow. I was watching mine the other day and it showed me some bad form — namely I was hunching my shoulders.

I’ve noticed a lot of people do it, especially noobs. Riding with our hands on the brake hoods, we often brace our arms to hold ourselves up, rather than relax the shoulders and bend at the elbows. It creates a lot of tension in the neck and upper back, as well as puts a lot of pressure on the hands. I had been dealing with numbness is my hands a lot as of late, as well as having some saddle issues. Forcing myself to relax and drop my shoulders felt weird, but I could tell by my shadow put me into a more proper riding position. For the first time in a long time, I had no numbness in my hands…and that was over the course of a nearly 50-mile ride.

Sure, you’ll likely feel it in a few other places. Your core muscles are engaged more in this position, and you can also feel it in your triceps. But if you really focus on the proper form, it will become second nature after several rides.

Just remember, Frankie said RELAX…not shrug.

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Categories // guest post, Tips Tags // guest post, Hemmel, tips

Setting Goals

10.07.2010 by Ray Niekamp // 5 Comments

Guest poster Don Blount sets goals for his biking.  Do you?

How goal oriented are you?

What are your biking goals?

And how committed are you to reaching those goals?

After returning to the bike at the end of July, I set a few biking goals.

1) Ride 100 miles a week.

2) Ride 400 miles a month.

I chose those figures after talking to my doctor, who is also a cyclist and has encouraged me to ride.

I am active but was not getting regular aerobic activity. My riding was irregular depending on the demands of my job and family commitments. As a result I had some suspicious health indicators. My blood pressure was a bit elevated (stress) and tests showed that my glucose levels were high, meaning I had a sign of becoming pre-diabetic. A history of high blood pressure and diabetes runs in my family and I wanted to stay as far away as possible from any health problems that could be avoided with proper management.

It was time to take my exercising a bit further and lose that nagging 10-12 extra pounds and get in better shape.

So I turned to the bike.

In August I rode 402 miles and in September I rode 425 miles. My mantra became “every little bit helps.” I rode metric centuries, I rode short recovery rides. But I rode whenever I could and I also managed to get to the gym.

I only fell short of the 100 mile weekly goal just once in two months.

I am riding more often, farther and harder than I had before I committed to those goals.

As the weather cools and the days get shorter, I may have to adjust. But for now I am leaving my goals unchanged, instead I have been preparing my warmers, rain gear and rollers.

I enjoy the satisfaction of texting my doctor at the end of the week to let him know my totals. He is always encouraging. For me, I learned how committing to a fitness goal motivated me and helped me. More importantly, my bike fitness is improving, my weight is dropping and I am having fun.

What about you?

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Categories // guest post, Mental Tags // motivation

Close Encounters of the Furry Kind

09.21.2010 by Ray Niekamp // 11 Comments

It seems everyone has a story about a nasty dog. Lately, I’ve been having more encounters on my bike with the smaller critters of the animal kingdom.

The squirrels I’m getting used to. I frequently ride a paved rail trail through my county, and the little buggers seem to enjoy hanging out at the side of the trail and then making a break for it once you’re right on top of them. Sure, go ahead and laugh, but I swear they’re playing chicken. Most have just been close calls, but this past Spring one darted between my friend’s tires…and right under my front wheel. There, he somehow got picked up by my wheel and flung into my left shin, before shaking himself off and running away. Since then, numerous friends of his seem to be taunting me on nearly every ride.

Hey, just because I’m paranoid doesn’t mean they’re not out to get me…

Today’s encounter, however, takes the cake. This morning I was out at a local state park, churning down a flat road empty of traffic. On the opposite side of the pavement I spotted two raccoons, busily dealing with something at the edge of the blacktop. I saw them at the last second, but quickly rationalized I was fine. I was almost past them, moving at about 20 mph, and they were on the other side of the road, distracted. I’d be gone before they had a chance to flinch. But that’s when one of the pair suddenly decided to channel Usain Bolt and sprint at world-record pace across the entire width of the road…and right into my path.

Now, don’t get me wrong. I’m an animal lover. But I’ve heard many a story of people flipping their cars, or yes, crashing their bikes, trying to avoid an animal at the last possible second. And long ago I decided that in these unfortunate, but unavoidable situations, I’m looking out for my best interests. That’s why I didn’t try any crazy last-second swerve that would have left me skidding across the road, or didn’t slam the brakes and eat it over the handlebars. Instead, I just kept my bars pointed straight, held on for dear life…and ran right over him.

Let me tell you, hitting a large raccoon at 20 mph…with your front tire…is a thrill I don’t care to repeat. It left me briefly careening out of control, swearing up a storm…but miraculously able to keep upright and ride away. Sure, I feel bad. No one, at least no one normal, wants to harm an animal. But I would have felt worse had I gotten seriously injured trying to avoid him. I turned back to see the raccoon make his way off the road and into the tree line, but he was obviously hurt. I stopped at the park office to report what happened in the hopes a ranger might find him. But as I walked out, those bad feelings were tempered by the comments from the woman behind the desk: “I’m glad you weren’t seriously hurt.”

Believe me, so was I.

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Categories // guest post Tags // guest post, Hemmel

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