Team Boardman Cycling Plus – Chris Bowler
khodgins | Blog, Cycling Plus | 06/07/2011 14:18pm
Team Boardman Cycling Plus will be updating you each week with the highs and lows of their training as part of the team. This week Chris gets the full works from Claremont hospital…
Having spent 33 years studiously avoiding doctors outside of anything other than life or death interventions it was with some trepidation that I travelled to the Claremont Hospital for the examinations. In fact I think it was Cycling Plus deputy editor, Neil’s repeated cry of ‘You’ll love it, it’s what the pros do,’ that caused my brain freeze of locking the bike to the car and leaving the keys at home. In part, the mantra of ‘This is what the pros do,’ was the hub of my anxiety. If it’s good enough for the pros, what value would a keen but limited touring cyclist in his mid thirties get from it all?
After having the bike sawn from the bike rack with journalist and photographer in attendance for maximum impact I was a walk up start to the performance assessment. Dr Bailey was a legend, almost apologising for being a Cat 1 rider – perceptions of excellence having spent so long in the BC infrastructure – and immediately putting my needs and an understanding of my goals at the centre of the test. The performance assessment is hazy after the warm up although I’m sure I could have gone harder with hindsight (I bet they all say that)…
Then it was on to the bike fit. I was hoping this session would help me with a persistent pain in my left shoulder that I’ve had with the new bikes. I’d been told beforehand that Dr Edmundson wasn’t afraid to tell a rider, ‘There’s nothing I need to do, your position is perfect.’ He wouldn’t make changes for the sake of change. Well that may be the case but for me, there were some major changes. Saddle height, saddle angle, stem angle, bar width, bar rake. Since then (and with some physio intervention) the pain is greatly reduced, I feel much more relaxed on the new bikes and my perceived fatigue is reduced on long rides. All in all this bike fit was the very, very best single piece of analysis I’ve ever had done on a bike. It was a rigorous process but I now see bike fits like eye tests; I wouldn’t wear a pair of spectacles because I like the frame regardless of the prescription. I think anyone shelling out significant cash on a bike should have it fitted by Dr Edmundson.
The physio exam with Ian Brocklesby was also very helpful. An area of pectoral tightness was identified and I was given a series of stretches that I can do regularly rather than do once and get sick of. The tightness is still there but one of the things I learned is that loosening muscles is a process so I’m looking forward to the results over time.
There was, indeed, one last surprise – a brand new PowerTap wheel. It hasn’t made the trip to Sydney (where I am currently holidaying) with me so it will be three weeks before I use it but I have no doubt that this will be a significant tool in conjunction with the data I get back from the performance assessment.
Who are Team Cycling Plus?
Team Boardman Cycling Plus are readers Sean Lacey, Alan Thew, Lindy Edwards and Chris Bowler. We’ll be following them in the magazine for the next few months as they train towards their personal cycling goals under the guidance of coach Joe Beer and other experts and we will be publishing their weekly trials and tribulations here too. For regular updates check our Twitter page and the Team Cycling Plus 2011 Facebook page.
This entry was posted on Wednesday, July 6th, 2011 at 2:18 pm and is filed under Blog, Cycling Plus. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.
