Five Credible Tips from an Olympian Cyclist

Geezer prefers the kind of advice that recommends spending less money on fancy sports gear, not more. So when the manager of an Olympic-speed cycling team tells him that the difference between a $1,500 bike and an $8,000 bike is very small, Geezer knows the man must be very smart. Consequently, Geezer pays attention to all of the advice in this short and helpful story on training for a bike race, which is part four of the NYT’s “Faster, Higher, Stronger” series.
In this piece, most of the advice comes from Vande Velde, a cyclist who appears to have a lock on a position on the racing team for the summer Olympics. In addition to his wise counsel on how not to overspend on equipment, Velde talks about power output–how to measure it and how to pump it up; nutrition–even average riders burn through 500 calories per hour; why we don’t really have to train on hills; and how to go downhill fast (and safely). Read more in the New York Times.