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Thanks Willy - Good idea on the bike check video. The frame is a 54cm and I’m about 5’8” - I definitely wouldn’t want to go any larger than a 54, but I could probably easily ride a 52 and be comfortable on it as well.

@@TBBCycling Thanks for sharing, for a 5'8, 61kg is pretty light.

@@willyturing1803 Yep - I've certainly never been described as heavy!

Thanks Richie - great racing with you and congrats on your first race!!

Thanks Jason - great racing with you as well and well done, especially for your first race!!

Thanks Bill - super strong move at the end - I thought you had it!!

Sorry man - my fault!! Next year def - it’s a much different atmosphere than the crits and was actually way more race-y than I expected this year. Your tactical skills would definitely have helped me!

Thanks Chris!

I probably will check them out at some point. This was the first time I had ever done a structured training plan, so really didn’t know if I was even going to stick with it, so didn’t really want to shell out any extra money (other than the Zwift fee, which I was already paying for obviously). What makes the TR plans are so much better btw - have you tried both? I’ve heard from others that TR plans are better as well, just not sure why.

I did this in the middle of winter, so didn't do really any group rides during the plan. The first few weeks were light enough that I did do a Zwift race or two every week, but that stopped after the first few weeks as the load got larger.

Thanks for the heads up on the Conshy race - it wasn't on my radar at all actually. I'll be away next weekend, but will definitely keep on the lookout for it next year. Good riding with you!

Thanks Kishumaru - we'll see you there next year!

Sorry you went down man - I gotta say I was more than a little surprised to come upon a crash at that point! Amazing work jumping back in while injured and nice finish!!

Nice racing with you!

Thanks Chris - nice prime in your race!

Thanks Chris - I kept waiting to turn, but it never happened, just kept going!!!

Yep - about 62kg. I'm only just barely 5'8" though - that extra height makes a big difference.

Nice - keep at it! Those last couple of weeks are tough. Let us know how you make out!

Yep - I didn’t quite have the extra data to mention this in the video, but now that I’ve done a few more races I can say that I’m pretty consistently about 0.2-0.3 w/kg above where I was at the end of last year (before I did the training plan) for most of the peak x minutes peak power. It’s nice to see this obviously since real world speed is what we’re all after!!

@@TBBCycling Nice! I would kill for such an improvement!

It's the Insta360 x4 - super cool 360 camera! I'm still figuring out the best mounting setup for races - right now I've just stuck a super clamp to the bars with a selfie stick - definitely wouldn't fly in a crit! I'll be away for Hummelstown unfortunately, but should be a good one hopefully!

Thanks for letting us know - I'm super curious about the repeat results as well - keep us posted!

Thanks Chris - I definitely had the wrong idea about the neutral lap and was caught off guard! Great race overall though - the course was ideal!

Yep - I probably average a couple pounds less now - I'm only 5'8" so I'm sure there are many larger 12 year olds!

@@TBBCycling I'd be jealous of your weight if I lived anywhere mountains were abundant, but I live in Florida, so it's very flat. Moving to the mountains in Tenn in a few years though, so maybe I'll have to shed some weight to make it easier on myself.

@@shepshape2585 Good luck in the mountains!

It was quite an event - we’ll see you there next year!

@@TBBCycling For sure, and good luck at your next event!

Although maybe in gravel if you watched Dylan Johnson’s latest video!

Thanks Chris! Yep - live and learn and next time I'll be prepared.

I was talking to my team about this race, we (cat 4/5), need to work more as a team when broken from the peloton. My teammate and I were close but it was just two of us trying to chase 40 riders.

@@northeast.beast1 Agreed man - the peloton took off like a rocket. Even if we could have caught back on I would've used all my matches. I also found it hard to rotate as a small chase group because of all the corners, but that could just be my inexperience.

I'll add a little clarification - the rules says it's a referee decision if your being impeded is significant enough to give you a free lap. Meaning you had to go off course, step off you bike or otherwise: "IMPEDED: Riders significantly delayed by a crash that causes a temporary blockage of the road (not a race stoppage) may request a free lap. Riders that have been significantly delayed (having to get off bikes, step over riders, forced detour off course to continue, etc.). may report for a free lap. Riders reporting are subject to the decision of the officials monitoring the course to allow the free lap" I have been denied a free lap in the past :(

Thanks Chris - this is really interesting actually and important for me to know! So this is the wording that I found: IMPEDED: Riders significantly delayed by a crash that causes a temporary blockage of the road (not a race stoppage) may request a free lap. Riders that have been significantly delayed (having to get off bikes, step over riders, forced detour off course to continue, etc.). may report for a free lap. Riders reporting are subject to the decision of the officials monitoring the course to allow the free lap. When provided by the race organizer, riders should report to an area that allows staging for re-entry without interfering with crashed riders or those that need mechanical assistance in the pit. All re-entry into the race shall be under the supervision of the pit official. So it seems like it's up to the race official I guess?? Maybe sort of a gray area? I definitely had to put my foot down and come to a complete stop, so perhaps it was better if I just fell over!

@@TBBCycling it's definitely up to the official if you didn't fall. In my case, I was told that I had to catch up so I just dropped out. Talking to a different official afterwards he said along the lines of "if you go down, there is no judgement, you fell", he smiled, said I didn't tell you to fall and walked away. It's always worth asking, but remember, it will take time to ask and if it's denied, you're even further back. At any rate, sorry it happened to you, I would have continued as you did, even though there was very low probability you were going to catch back on.

It was a fun race regardless of the incident. They really do a great job in Easton. Glad you had a nice race!

That Early and Being a cat 4/5. the officials would have let you back..PLUS. Lean forward and adjust your Break or Bang on Hood Like to put it back in place if you have disc brakes. I am more concerned about your cornering and drafting skills - Thanks for sharing.

This is an excellent idea - I could totally see this being the norm at some point in the future.

Yep - I’ll happily roll along in comfort knowing that I’m just as fast!

This isn’t a sponsored video or anything, I was just switching tires and wanted to see which was faster. You’re welcome to send me a set of 32mm GP5k AS to donate to the cause!😄 Everyone keeps saying that thinner tires are faster and I know the theory - they should be, but I have yet to see it happen in anyone’s real life testing (even with the same tire type). Maybe most real life roads are bad enough to make up the difference? Or we’re not going fast enough for the better aerodynamics to matter? Either way, it was a good test for me knowing that the faster tire was still faster for me, even in the wider width.

@@TBBCycling i just told y, the wider tires have better rolling resisitance and you did more power.

Wrong

@@sevenrats right ▶️👍

Thank you - and you too!!

Thanks Jack - nice video from you as well - and passing someone, well done! It was a fun race.

Congrats on completing the plan John - it certainly go tough at some points - for me anyways. Sounds like you were a little more structured than me going in - I think part of my gains just came from increased time in the saddle, which sticking to a plan made me do.

Whoa - while I very much appreciate your passion over my equipment choices - there’s no need to shout!! Seriously though - I’m guessing when you say “ITS PROVEN” you mean on a track - I don’t ride/race on a track and the roads around me are far from smooth. The surface being ridden makes a big difference in real world speed. So I will quite happily plod along on my 32’s in comfort knowing that I’m just as fast in most circumstances instead of rattling my teeth out on 19’s. Heck - I may even switch to 35’s at some point when my frame will take them!

Because track racers are riding on a well maintained and super smooth surface that won't be found outdoors...just saying.

Recently in 2023 the UK Track Racing team has been riding on 28mm tubeless tires. So check your « knowledge » maybe?

Very interesting!

You're just wrong. Multiple groups have tested different tire sizes.

Thank you! Good luck with your plan. My thought was that nearly any structured plan was better than nothing. At the very least it would motivate me to stick to a stricter riding schedule, but I actually think it made me a stronger cyclist overall as well. Next off season I may aim to do a more targeted crit specific plan, but this was a good introduction to training plans in general I think. +1 on the core strength! I think mine is also weak and have suffered with lower back pain on/off for the last 10 or so years. A few years ago I started lifting weights more regularly and that definitely helped for a while, but when I put that time into cycling instead my back started acting up again. I think that core strength is a weakness for many cyclists, so if you find a good training plan for that let us all know!

Perhaps, but only if you blindly believe the marketing - I like to check these things for myself and now I know. There's also maybe not that big of a difference in rolling resistance than you may think. I don't have access to the 'member only' data from Bicycle Rolling Resistance, but at 90psi they measure the AS 28mm CRR=0.0033, which is less than the S 32mm at 44psi of CRR=0.00384. Obviously you'd want to compare similar psi, but the difference may not be as far off as you would expect. A BRR member may be able to let us know.

​@@TBBCycling You never ride different width tyres at same pressure for a shitload of reasons. But your pressure difference is way off any reasonable bounds. Under same conditions the correct diff between 28mm and 32mm is less than 20psi. Check Silka tyre pressure calculator. Your measurement is useless.

If you read my comment you know that the only reason I referenced those pressures was because I am not a member at BRR, so I don’t have access to all of their measurements - this was just to show that the rolling resistance difference probably isn’t as large as one would expect. These aren’t my measurements and I certainly wouldn’t recommend riding at those pressures. If you’re a BRR member and have useful measurements please do share.

Thanks man - Most the roads around here I would say certainly would be considered bumpy!

Also, do multiple repeats of your tests in bunch of conditio🎉n and look overall ...

This was all just my informal testing, so certainly not a scientific study! You can make your own conclusions, but I’d seriously doubt that the extra 5 watts would make me 37s faster.

I’ve never looked into tire inserts actually - what is their purpose?

Inserts are just to ride on a flat tire. Totally unnecessary unless you're a pro riding with a support team.

Good advice! I plan to test them out today, so I’ll let you know how I make out. I think I’m making a bigger deal than necessary about them - it’s really only .25-ish long.

Could be! But if I can go the same speed (or faster) with more comfort and it’s safer (at least in my case with the hookless rims) then I’ll take that.

I was agree with that sentence until I swap my 28c to 32c. If that marketing bs, than I take that BS because it feels more comfortable and the brake are grippier, and could take some small section of smooth gravel easily.

@@laillosidgar +1 - after a couple of test rides I'll take the BS! Now I just have to figure out the best tire pressure for me.

You are safer with the 32 mm tires and lower pressure. Silca just released a video that addressed the problem about max tubeless pressures vs optimal pressure. And if your optimal pressure is higher than the rim limit, Josh Poertner says you need a wider tire. I got a new bike last summer and had a set of wheels built with hooks because I was concerned about the hookless issue and I didn’t want to run a tubeless setup on my road bike. 32 mm GP5000 with TPU tires is working great!

@@randallsmith7885 That's exacly what I was thinking. My recommended pressure was getting close enough to that hookless limit that I just didn't feel comfortable with it. Glad the new wheels are working out for you!!

I did not and I think that’s where some of the extra weight came from - apart from the different types of tires. I started with similar amounts when I originally installed the 28’s about 8 months ago, then added a few mls periodically overtime.

@@TBBCycling Easiest way to solve this would be to weigh the tyres each

I could certainly do that, but tbh they’re already mounted, so I’m not really interested in taking them off again. I’m happy knowing that the new setup is lighter, doesn’t really bother me where that weight saving is coming from specifically.

Yep - I’m only about 62kg. I’ve never actually used the Zipp tire pressure calculator - looks like they recommend quite a bit less than Silca, which is interesting. I actually think the pressure is probably more important than the width, but that’s a test for another day!

Measuring tire height/diameter is something that I didn’t do, so you could certainly be on to something!

Thanks Luke - I'll likely dig into the math at some point - I was a physics major, so this stuff is really interesting to me. It's so counterintuitive for the wider tires to be faster, but this seems to be consistent across all the reviews/tests I've seen. I'm curious how smooth the road has to be for the skinnier tires to be faster? The roads around me tend to be fairly rough. Tire pressure I think has a huge effect on this also. How fast do you have to be riding until aerodynamics really matter? Zipp says that the 303S was designed for 28mm tires for optimal aerodynamic efficiency, but didn't seem to matter in this case for me. Weight was interesting because the wider 32's were actually lighter in this case, so that throws the calculation off a little bit. Anyway - I'm glad that I did the test and until I can prove it to myself that the skinnier tires are faster in the real world I'm sticking with the 32's!

I think wider tires being perceived as faster is a placebo effect. It helps to sell drugs and it helps to sell cycling equipment. If you look at the question at hand scientifically, there is not any definitive evidence that wider rims are faster or slower, at least I can't find any. We even might even need serious blind studies in real world conditions employing sophisticated measuring equipment (off-the-shelf power meters might not suffice) to address such small differences. Using just power data won't suffice because we cyclist tend to change posture if we think we are going faster and that messes with aerodynamics. And how do we even do blind studies if the tire is in front of cyclist nose? Moreover, we all know there is no financial incentive for doing this. I am not saying that those youtube tests are totally worthless. But I am leaning more into theory nevertheless. So I have come up with those "postulates": - rolling resistance on relatively smooth surface is small compared to aerodynamic drag (except on very steep climbs where rolling resistance is very small compared to dynamic component of gravitation) - difference in rolling resistance between narrow and slightly less narrow tire is extremely small - wheel with wider tire has significantly greater surface area - wheel with wider tire has less favorable thickness-to-chord ratio Based on that I would choose narrower tire-rim combo as a faster option. I am not 100% sure though, aerodynamics are very unpredictable.

The only reason why wider tires became the buzz is simple, a few decades they started to use carbon fiber composite instead of of metal alloy bike frames. They are to stiff for the comfort, Jess it’s good for smooth surfaces, not so much in other circumstances. So industry sought compliance in other way, dampeners and wider tires for the difference in stiffness. …

And rider comfort gives speed, in many of those tests

vibrational losses?

Thanks Seth - doesn't seem to be much of a reason not to switch to be honest. I'm glad that I went through and tested them just to prove it to myself!

Thank you!

👍

Could be - it was tough to tell from my vantage point. I talked to the red jersey rider and he said his wheel slipped, could have over-corrected. Luckily he was OK too, just lost some skin.

I think thats what happened. He was pedaling through almost every corner. Very strong rider, he attacked and counter attacked. Great race and great commentary.

@@mikecorb1974 Thanks Mike - indeed - he (and you!) were killing it all race.

Thanks Man - great race from you as well, sorry I missed the attack! Safe healing and we’ll be sure to be ready for Easton!

Hopefully I’ll see you on Monkey Hill!!

@@wstewlock You know it!

I know - but good to know that I was right there up until the end. I don't typically have an attacking mentality, so I think it's tough for me to get into that mindset, even when I'm planning to. I think you're right in this case though, I was so focused on sticking to wheels and trying to stay upright, that race tactics was barely on my mind!

Thanks Shawn! That was certainly my thinking - give this structured training a shot over the off-season. I think it was a good introduction to planned training for sure, without dropping a bunch of money on a coach.