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Beat the Winter Blues - PowerTap Cafe

GSAstuto

Maximum Pace
Oct 11, 2009
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I've got several PowerBeam Trainers and PowerTap Wheels available at my shop. I'm thinking about doing a monthly (or could be weekly) test session. Format would be very informal and we could choose among several protocols. Probably the simplest (and shortest) is Conconi style deflection test. Here's how it works:

1) Warm up for 10-20 min.
2) We want to measure heartrate incrementally as we increase power in stages
3) Start at low power and smooth cadence around 80-90rpm - I usually start at about 100w effort.
4) Then the rider bumps up the power reading by 20watts for 3minutes each time. Either by shifting higher (more spin) or increasing resistance, or both.
5) We keep bumping this up until finally you can't hold the power @ given rpm for the full 3minutes.
6) Then just to make sure, allow a short recovery and bring it up to that last value once again.
7) The whole test takes less than an hour and will give you a fairly decent benchmark of your AT and let you guestimate a working FTP.

Even if you don't ride with a powermeter or other powerdata tool, this gives you a way to put some numbers to the 'feeling' when you are out riding or training. It's also a good way to sneak in some winter intervals when you really don't feel like braving the chill. Having a few people at the same time helps motivation and makes this kind of fun gathering.

This is a strenuous exercise. If you are not comfortable with pushing yourself close to your maximum heart rate, or are limited by a medical condition then please let me know! It is NOT a competition, but merely a scaled power test to give YOU and idea of your power potential with respect to your heart rate.

Location: ASTUTO CONTINENTAL
Address: 港区赤坂4-9-19赤坂T.O.ビル1,2F, Minato-ku, Tokyo, Japan 107-0052
Time: 1800 - 2100
Cost: FREE
 
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@Musashi - yes. The test is pretty much the same. Powercal calibration uses a ramp test and then you take the values to update the Powercal firmware accordingly.
 
Very interested. How much for a game?
 
@Mike , no charge planned for these informal events. If there is enough uptake, I will coordinate with a cycling coach and put together something more rigorous and ongoing.
 
Sounds fun and, like Mike, I would be interested in price, etc. I was considering getting a Powercal so might be a tie-up
 
I'd like to start with 6 people. I currently have 3 stations and we can do this as kind of a dry run. I think most of you will be riding on the weekends - so perhaps the best time is a mid-week after work? Even though it's not optimum for max performance metrics it will still be a good session. How about 7pm -> 9.30pm?? Wednesday or Thursday, or?? My shop is very close to Akasaka Mitsuke and Aoyama Itchome so it should be convenient to get to quickly from work.
 
@Mike. Yes - I have the wheels and trainers. (And facility). If you already have a PT wheel or SRM device, that works, too. Espresso is 200 yen, though.
 
@Mike - that works for me! 1st Session then --

December 26th at 1800 (6pm).
Please sign up here. More people are welcome, of course, but each session will take roughly 30min (plus whatever warmup).
I will also put a set of Pro rollers and another trainer so people can warm up before jumping on the Power Beam.

Outside of this. If you have purchased a Powercal (anywhere) , then please feel free to schedule a calibration / sanity check session when we are regularly open. (Tuesday - Sat 11am-7pm)
 
I started a separate thread for the weekend sessions --- namely to coincide with the Palace Sunday Cycling program.

Palace Cycling Sundays
 
So far:

HFC Mike
Jason
Chirag
 
Hi Gunnar - does that mean 18.20 you can arrive? Or must leave by then? Thanks!
 
Sorry, Arrive 18:20. what's the temperature gonna be like? If its heated inside, would have to change, if like outside I don't.
Byop?
 
Sorry, Arrive 18:20. what's the temperature gonna be like? If its heated inside, would have to change, if like outside I don't.
Byop?

Got it, you bring your own bike, but switch wheels. Ill bring Vlad from Equilibrium Cycles.
 
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