In Reply To:
In Reply To:
He is not the first. I have been using Power Cranks since Jan 2005 on a Taxc excel turbo trainer that i train on approximately four times a week for 45 mins each time in addition to 200km a week on the road. I am a 40-44 FOP AG and
devoting the same training time with power cranks vs normal cranks i experienced quite a significant improvment.
Prior to Power Cranks my 40km TT time was just over 59mins and after 8 months this had improved to sub 58 mins. In March 2006 i did a 57.19 at the Commonwealth Games in Melbourne and at the 2007 ITU World Champs in Hamburg i had one of the fastest bike splits of all AG's. At Ironman UK 70.3 19th fastest bike split overall and am now sub 55 for the same 40km TT that i used to do in 59mins. I can be sure of the same training time as i have four kids - 12,10,6 &1 - and every minute of training time is very valuable to me!!!
I have no hesitation in putting a large amount of this improvment to Power Cranks - despite all of the abuse they get on ST - although to date i have not seen any improvement in my running.
This is the kind of anecdotal "evidence" that Frank thrives on.
First, since you don't measure power, there is no evidence of an actual power increase since you have been using PCs. You are faster, but how much of this is due to equipment and body positioning? I am several minutes faster on the same 10-
mile TT course on the same power output. Faster tires, faster equipment and better body positioning.
Second, has your training regime (not total training time) changed at all? I spend less time on the bike than I used to (because I am swimming and biking more) and yet I just set a personal best for my VO2max interval power. Different training focus.
I'm a 40-44 AGer too. I had the 16th fastest AG bike split at the 2008 Vineman 70.3. On way less training time than you - averaging less than 80 miles/week. I don't have anything to sell you though.
Rik
FYI, yearly state champ. 40k results, all prior to PC use
2003 or 2004 - 40k TT on rolling chip seal on a road bike with clip ons and wheel cover - 1:16 or so, affect by the August heat in Texas
2005 - 1:01:30 on my old Hooker setup
2006 - 1:00:10 on a road bike converted to TT setup to open my hip angle up
2007 - 56:50 on a new TT setup
2008 - 58:06 on the same setup as 2007, power down to heat and knowing (well, assuming) I had my age group won
2005-2008 were all on the same course and same time of year.
I did not have power during the 40k's from 2005-2008 and can only go based on perceived effort and what my seasonal power was going into those events. My power was down a little in 2008 (10-15 W) compared to 2007.
A 2 minute swing can be any number of things. The biggest factors are terrain and environmental conditions (temperature, pressure, humidity, wind speed and direction). Ditto rik's comments about equipment.
Your time in a 40k isn't the best indicator of your training/equipment - the best indicator is where you finished. The indicator of whether the improvement was due to external factors (equipment, weather) or internal factors (training) can ONLY be determined by implementing a power meter. A stopwatch won't cut it for those longer events...
You (gibralter, not rik) have to distinguish between objectively and subjectively analyzing the data.