Got a pair of PC's - now what?

Triathlon Forum
1

Just won an auction for a pair of PC’s. Since it’s the beginning of the season, what should I do?

  1. Put them away and wait patiently till fall?

  2. Put them on and ride them exclusively. This would most likely significantly reduce training volume for at least a few weeks, but would it be worth it in the long run? First A race is in August.

  3. Put them on second bike, ride it on off days just to get some HF development?

Anybody have a good training program to use with these? Seems like for a few months at least I’ll be relegated to low rpm, big ring work. How do you maintain leg speed/snap during this phase?

Really looking forward to maknig the commitment, just not sure on the best timing.

Thanks

Ron

2

I’d love to have a pair. I’d put them on my stripped down frame and ride them a couple of three times per week. even if only 20-30 min. might as well make that extra 1% gain

3

"Just won … what should I do? "

Send them back to Frank. Mabe he’ll give you a $$ refund.

4

I’d say ride them exclusively - otherwise you’ll never know if they work. Ride short/frequent rides until you can ride fairly well for 30+ minutes. I had to so 1 minute intervals with rest at first until my brain started figuring it out…its very easy to get frustated… Be careful when outside until you’ve figured them out - its hard to go over speedbumps and very tough to clip in going uphill…ride as much as possible - you’ll get your mileage up pretty quick if you are consistent…

Dave

5

Ron,

I started riding PCs 10 days ago. 6x5min on rollers the first day, 5x10min the second day, 80minutes outside the third day, and every session pretty painful by the end of it. Changes have come quickly and I did a 3 hour ride on Saturday (day 6) and also learned how to climb out of the saddle.

I would recommend riding them as exclusively as you can and try to get in as many sessions as possible. 2-3 sessions a day if possible, as most people don’t seem to last more than 15-20 minutes the first few times.

As you note, your cadence will drop initially or alternatively your hip flexors will be begging for mercy very early if you try to keep the cadence high.

Your focus will depend somewhat on the type of racing you do. If you do mostly road races then keeping your cadence up will be more important than if you are a triathlete. Either way I think its important, just likely more important for the road cyclist to go with a break so you don’t get dropped.

My priorities are 1) Build endurance on the PC 2) Learn how to ride them aero 3) Get my cadence back up (I normally race at 105rpm or so; and ride the PCs at about 90-95rpm. In order to meet these training goals I am trying to put in as much mileage as possible and have done about 18 rides in the last 10 days (some days 3 times a day and some rides very short 20-30 minutes)

I also have been breaking the ride into focused segments. ie Ride with a cadence of>100 rpm for 10 minutes, ride aero for 10 minutes, push a big gear at >300 watts for 10 minutes…repeat until hip flexors are screaming then do it a few more times.

Its very hard work but I’m definitely recruiting muscles I haven’t used before when riding and I’m pretty confident it’ll pay off when the important racing rolls around.

I was able to do my first CP30 based interval session on the PCs this morining. 4x8min at CP30. The only problem is the recovery is almost as tough as the intervals as spinning is pretty damn hard still with the PCs.

The bottom line is to adapt as quickly as possible, you need to make a real commitment to the PCs. Ride’em as much as your HFs will allow and ride 'em often. I think the neuromuscular adaptation is the biggest thing in the first few rides and frequent shorter sessions will helwith that. Basically try to build back to your normal riding as much as possible, recognizing that your mileage and your cadence will take a hit for the first while. Not to mention the relentless beating your HFs will take.

IMO Commit 100% for 3 weeks and then reasses things.

Enjoy

Seth

6

Put them next to your half used ‘Bio pace’ cranks of the late 80s…another gimmick.

JFT, as some people say.

7

Kiwipat,

And your comments are based on what?

If experience, then maybe just maybe you have something valid to complain about. If not, you have a right to your opinion, but it’s a groundless opinion.

Of course, that’s just my opinion, but I also train with PCs and haven’t sent them back. Nor do I plan to.

8

Hi there mate

Listen, not complaining, nor dissing anyone for trying anything which they think might help their training etc.
Apologies for any flippancy, but I am a bit of a sceptic about these things. Aero this, super light that…you still have to pedal the f**** thing, right?

Aroha.

9

Ron,

Just do what everybody on PC’s do. Start riding a lot more than you did before, just because you’re interested to know if they really work and because it’s advertised that they only work above a certain mileage over a certain period.

After this period of increased riding, you will be a better cyclist. And because you were on PC’s you think it must have been the PC’s working… right? :slight_smile:

Paulo

10

Mileage minimums to see improvement? I missed that part of my PC research. In fact I will argue that you can train less than you normally do and see improvement…on one condition, that you already are biking decent training mileage. There are no shortcuts to being a strong cyclist. If you are one of the athletes that rides 100 miles a week and thinks you are even scratching the surface of bike endurance, then PC’s, IMO are not for you. If you are serious about making improvements and commited to putting the time in, then get a pair, and see how much you have to gain. My comment about a 100 mile training week is not meant to be a flame on anyones training.

11

sell them to me for $300.

13

I’m with you on this. Putting in the extra time cycling is most of the gain. Plus I will say it again that IMO doing isolated leg drills on your trainer to strengthen HF’s is just as effective. Also, to improve overall efficiency in your pedal stroke ride in the hills/mountains. Best thing about this whole plan is it’s free! Curious to know how PC’s hit your HF’s any harder then single leg drills???

15

But I’m not trolling here… I’m not the one starting “Iraqi prisioners” threads… :wink:

Seriously, this gizmo sure is clever and it might be hard to master pedalling on it, but I seriously doubt it brings improvements over regular cranks.

16

I was thinking of giving PC’s a try as well, but then ran into a drill that would seem to provide the same benefit - riding out of the saddle while in an easier gear on my small ring, say 39/15. I really need to work the HF’s and keep cadence up in order to stay on top of the pedals. Any PC users out there who practice this drill and/or see a difference between it and PC’s?

17

I do see a differnece…I did every kind of drill possible to try and simulate what PC’s can do for you…you just cant get the effect from drills once in awhile…ya have to ride that way 24/7 and train your brain to think that way.

19

Good question, they say that in swimming it takes at least 10,000 yards of swimming to make a correction in your stroke. Dont know who said that, but seems right for me. After doing those drills, for example an extended followthrough when finishing your stroke, you are suppose to continue emphasizing your weakness while doing the yardage of practice. This works triceps hard as you know. After awhile your triceps will tire and you will go back to the sloppy shortened stroke…with PC’s you have no choice but to do it correctly, all of the time…how many have the discipline mentally to continue to pedal when hip flex’s are smoked? Or can ride for hours doing one legged drills… not me…it is brain training as much as physical adaptation.

20

Scott,

Doing high-cadence work should be a part of any cycling program. Through high-cadence you learn to engage more your hip flexors and more importantly you learn how to “fire” all the muscles involved in cycling in a more efficient way. Even cyclists that use low cadences should do high-cadence work. For all the science behind this I said, just wait until Rip gets involved in this thread.

21

rfark. what would a PC thread be without a bunch of yayhoos who have never experienced them spouting off on that which they know nothing? i particularly like the “JFT” guy, as if riding PC’s is some sort of shortcut. get on them today and ride 100 miles on them by saturday and then come tell us about how much of a shortcut they are. :slight_smile:

anyway, i got mine from mr day as a sort of ‘dare’, ten weeks before an IM. i got on them rode them exclusively at the same miles . . . . well not exactly. . . the same TIME as i had been doing before ( some days it was ugly). it hurt, and i suffered like a vietnamese street cur, but i rode those mofo’s like i said i would. inane comments from guys who who do not think i or other PC riders know what their own body is doing notwithstanding ( where DO those guys get that thinking, anyway?? ). . . . like everybody else who actually uses them i was clearly convinced they helped in my riding and racing over that time. i am possessed of very average talent. point being, it is not a given you will have to cut anything apart from your attachment to your current average speeds on your training rides in the short term. IMHO they will not hurt you. with that said, either of your plans are fine - if it makes you nervous now just wait till fall and mount them up and have at it - it will add enjoyment and a new focus to your winter training. i mostly ride mine nowadays on the rollers in winter . . . . . enjoying singlespeeding and fixie riding and suchlike - not to mention the benefits of PCing on those activities - in the short wisconsin summer ( has it started yet?). have fun.

22

Absolutely. I guess the hard part of the cycling interval is getting out of the saddle in an easy gear - that’s what really challenges the HF’s. The higher cadence aspect is secondary.

23

uhhh,absolutely not. you have a better chance of killing yourself by holding your breath than you do of duplicating voluntarly what PC’s make you do. if you rode them, you would know that.