"Add a little emotion from both sides... and the fact that neither side has the evidence to prove their case and these threads ensue."

okay, thanks. i just wanted to make sure i'm still up to date, and that nothing happened during the last 1300+ posts that has changed the dynamic. carry on.

[snip]

let me see if i understand the issues here.

there are people who believe that engaging hip flexors, and perhaps other muscles that aid the recovering leg, is generally accretive to faster cycling overall. those (like joe friel) who ascribe to the idea of a pedal stroke exhibiting a "flatter torque profile" fall into this camp as does, obviously, powercranks and its owner frank day. you can also throw in the people who ascribe to isolated leg training, one-leg drills, and the old (andy will remember this) "spin coach" sold by ralph ray.

then there are those, and i think perhaps ed coyle (u of texas) might be the best known exemplar, who believe that you just stomp down hard on the pedal, not unlike what we used to do as 3-year-olds on our tricycles. these people believe that what you do on the downstroke is what matters almost entirely, and engaging your hip flexors or flattening your torque profile is counterproductive to being a good cyclist.

am i on the right track so far?

http://forum.slowtwitch.com/...iew_flat;post=980672

that should work


Grant

really? the guy says "mus-kle"?

there are those, and i think perhaps ed coyle (u of texas) might be the best known exemplar, who believe that you just stomp down hard on the pedal, not unlike what we used to do as 3-year-olds on our tricycles. these people believe that what you do on the downstroke is what matters almost entirely, and engaging your hip flexors or flattening your torque profile is counterproductive to being a good cyclist.

am i on the right track so far?

Ed is from Queens, NY, so no, he doesn't speak with a German accent.

...and engaging your hip flexors or flattening your torque profile is counterproductive to being a good cyclist.

"as in fact he's still a faithful believer in the concept of "spreading the work around"."

i'm going to have to go back and investigate that. i spent a couple of days with several of his alums in austin two years ago, and i left there with the view that he believed that hip extension was the only thing that mattered.