Powercrank Season

In the DVD "A Ride With George Hincapie" the interviewer harasses an ever patient George, who is riding his bike, with all sorts of intrusive questions. In one answer, George uses the word "suffer", and the screen shows text claiming George used that word 27 times (or something like that) during the interview.

Suffer may be the most common word in cycling. All racing cyclists suffer. Some of them suffer while holding 400 watts and winning long climbs in the Tour de France, others suffer while holding 240 watts and finishing mid pack in their MABRA masters race.

The Wheelsucker suffers whenever he is going hard (hard for a Wheelsucker, not necessarily hard for you), which is pretty much anytime he is not doing a recovery ride.

But there is another kind of suffering. The normal suffering is when you hurt all over, cannot get enough oxygen, cannot push the pedals any harder, your heart rate is close to max and in the eloquent words of Ace McDermott, you are "cross eyed and blowing snot bubbles." This other kind of suffering doesn’t get your cross eyed, heart rate is not elevated, and pushing is not the problem. This is the suffering of riding Powercranks. For the four of you who don’t know what Powercranks are, see www.powercranks.com and note that the two crankarms are not connected and the only way the crankarm comes up at the back of the pedal stroke is if your leg and foot lift it.


Unless you have a perfectly balanced pedal stroke, or at least have been riding Powercranks for a few weeks, you will be in discomfort after 30 seconds, pain and suffering at 60, and at two minutes will do ANYTHING to stop pedaling (if you still are). But the thing is, you have to go as long as you can, rest and then go again and again, and eventually, you can do it for three minutes, then five, then ten, then 30.

But until you get there YOU WILL SUFFER!!!! And your legs will be so tired that you will find it very hard to lift your leg up enough to get your cycling shorts off that leg.

So welcome to Powercranks season. Work on the single leg pedaling if you cannot do complete pedal strokes, coast when you have to, and enjoy the looks of the people who notice your wacky cranks (mostly kids, adults are oblivious).