Training on a Fixed Gear

My road frame broke at the beginning of August. While I was waiting for my new frame to arrive, I was faced with the choice of riding my fixed-gear or not riding at all. Over the course of a month I have logged over 45 hours and 650 miles without coasting a bit.

I have had the same fixed-gear for a couple of decades, a steel Fuji Club with a front brake and 47 x 20 (62-inch) gear, although I am seriously considering switching to 47 x 18 (69-inch) gear. Over the years I have used this bike to ride and train during the winter months. It's a great rain bike, and I recall one epic 80 mile adventure on the fixie with the last half of the ride done in a wet snow storm.

Serious cyclists used to do a lot of their pre-season and early season training on a fixed-gear 20 and 30 years ago, but fewer and fewer cyclists used the fixie as a training tool until recently. By the way, I'm not really concerned here with those who are riding fixed-gears (or faux fixed-gears) around town as a means of transportation (often with the crazy notion that they don't need a brake). That's a different blog post.

Reputable coaches continue to argue the pros and cons of early season fixed-gear training. Chris Carmichael, who coached some guy named Lance, recommends early season fixed-gear training to improve leg speed and leg strength. In addition to improving one's pedal stroke, you can get a lot of bang for your buck when it comes to endurance. I have heard it said that two hours on a fixed-gear has the same effect on endurance as two and a half hours on the road bike. Joe Friel, coach and author of The Cyclist's Training Bible, recommends fixed-gear training during the base period for endurance, leg strength and speed, and to improve the pedal stroke.

However, not all coaches agree on the benefits of early season fixed-gear training. Josh Horowitz (http://pezcyclingnews.com/?pg=fullstory&id=7831) advocates using PowerCranks to improve one's pedal stroke instead of fixed-gear training. He also claims that any gains in leg speed obtained from riding a fixed-gear do not transfer over to the road bike.

Here are my own thoughts on the subject after riding a fixed-gear for a month straight.

1. Riding a fixed-gear is an exceptional workout if you are riding with a group and everyone else is on a road bike. I suffered quite a bit on a few group rides in August and September, especially on the rollers of east Texas, some of which really don't roll at all.

2. Riding a fixie really is a great endurance workout, 50 miles seems like 70 miles on a road bike.

3. You can improve your pedal stroke by riding a fixed-gear, but you don't get anything for free. You still have to work at improving your pedal stroke, it's just that you will get a subtle (or not so subtle) reminder if you get lazy. I have to confess that I have never tried PowerCranks, and from what I have heard they are a really good tool for improving one's pedal stroke. But I don't own a set of PowerCranks ($$$), and I do own a fixed-gear.

4. Certainly, you will often find yourself pedaling at higher cadences on a fixed-gear, but I wasn't sure at first if leg speed transferred over to the road bike. When I finally did get back on the road bike, it seemed that I was pedaling at the same cadence that I always do, 85-90 rpms. However, when I rode the Pineywoods Purgatory, a well-attended organized ride in east Texas, on the first Saturday in October, I noticed a huge difference. The faster riders roll along at race pace, and I noticed that this year the pace felt a lot more comfortable than last year. But my ability to pedal at a much faster cadence was what really caught my attention. A cadence of about 100 rpms seemed to be most comfortable. My endurance was better than last year too.

The plan for November until mid-January is to get out on the fixed-gear several times a week, especially for some of the group rides. It should be a pretty efficient use of my time freeing up my schedule to spend more time in the weight room. I still plan on doing my recovery rides as well as some longer rides (4-6 hours) on the road bike. I'm anxious to see how this plan works.


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Tour de France in the Pyrenees and the Alps

The official announcement for the 2011 TDF is supposed to be October 19.  Here is the best guess so far on the Alps and Pyrenees.

July 15 - Lourdes to the top of Luz Ardiden.

July 16 - Saint Gaudens for a mountain top finish at Plateau de Beille

July 22 - Modane to Alpe d Huez (Etape du Tour???)

July 23 - Col de la Croix de Fer 2067m Col du Télégraphe 1570 m Col du Galibier

It's looking more and more like Bert will not be there to defend his 2010 TDF title, assuming he still has a title to defend.

I looked to see when I bought my ticket to France for last summer. It was November 23. This means that I am going to wait a bit to buy might ticket for 2011 unless a REALLY good deal comes along. But I am definitely going to France this summer---probably for five weeks.

Here are some possible areas to ride.

Aravis Massif in the French Alps west of Annecy with the Col de Columbière, Col de Croix Fry, the Joux Plane.

Alsace in north eastern France with the Ballon d'Alsace and the Grand Ballon.

The Ariege Pyrenees. Les Deux Velos in Massat is a great place to stay. Col de Port, Col d'Agnes, and Plateau de Beille aren't too far away. Not much traffic and lots of great riding.

Ardeche in southern France is not far away from the Pyrenees. This is supposed to be great riding with not many cars.

Barcelonette in the southern Alps is a great little town surrounded by no less than seven major passes, including Col de la Bonette Restefond, the highest paved pass in Europe.

Le Bourg d'Oisans 40 km southeast of Grenoble. Alpe d'Huez and Col du Galibier. Need I say more? It's best to stay up the valley in Le Freney d'Oisans.

Chambéry in the western Alps with Col du Granier, Mont du Chat, and Mont Revard.

Provence has endless possibilities ranging from Mont Ventoux and the Luberon in the west to Haut Provence, Moustiers Ste Marie, and Casteliane in the east.

The Haut Pyrenees with the Col du Tourmalet, Col d'Aubisque, Hautacam, and Luz Ariden. The Lantern Rouge in St Savin is the place to stay.

The Pyrenees-Orientales has some great riding and a bit of altitude. The climate is a bit drier too.

Other possibilities and Brittany, the Vercors, the Languedoc, and the Cévennes.

A car is a must in Le Bourg d'Oisans, Pyrenees-Orientales, Barcelonette, and parts of Provence. You can get by without one in the Ariege Pyrenees and the Haut Pyrenees. I'm not sure about the other places.

On a final note, the exchange rate is looking pretty dismal today.