Greetings from Breakaway Bikes & Fitness!

What follows here is the first of what will become a monthly update of all the happenings and upcoming events at Breakaway.

Though following the New Year temperatures cooled off the city dramatically, upstairs in Breakaway's state of the art training center, RPM classes were just heating up. For those of you who are unfamiliar with RPM, you can read about its history here if you'd like, but what you need to know is this: RPM lets you train on your own bike, using the same methods the pros use. Each athlete receives individualized training zones corresponding to different wattage, heart rates, and rates of perceived exertion, as well as a power profile that helps predict whether you're built to be a killer track sprinter, a time trialing machine, or a GC-candidate all-'rounder.  The coaches then create workouts that will improve your capabilities in all of these zones. Said one participant in 2008's winter RPM collegiate program: "RPM made me fast last season.  It took the unmolded lump of clay and cycling potential that I was and gave me the legs to ride with some of the best not just in collegiates but also in USAC races as well.  It was also crucial for helping me see how far I could push my legs and my overall fitness and what I needed to do to take care of myself and my legs" (Brenton Swartz, Sr., Temple University). Brenton added: "Bottom line is this: if you want to go fast and crush skulls in races then RPM is you're only choice." But even if you have never desired to crush any skulls, as it were, but, provided we accept Brenton's conditional, it is cool to know that should it come down to it in a post-nuclear fallout world, perhaps, you'd have what it takes to survive?  We have Spring Classes Forming now that will have you prepared for those Summer Triathlons and Charity Bike Rides.  Details are found here.

 

For those of you who wish to take their cycling to the next level, biweekly RPM classes may not be enough. Or perhaps your cycling is strong but you want to improve your swim and run splits in your upcoming triathlon. No problem! Already numerous traithletes, from iron-man members of Team USA to absolute beginners looking to improve have come to Breakaway and seen their times drop and their skill levels rise. At Breakaway, we offer a variety of different, more personal coaching plans. For just $79/month, a Breakaway Coach will provide you with monthly workouts specific to your goals and aspirations. Access to the Breakaway Training Log and a 25% discount on testing services like VO2 Max and Lactic Acid Threshold measurements, and monthly athlete-initiated training consultations with our coaches are additional benefits for this coaching plan--and all for less than you spend on that daily grande latte. From this our starter package, to our Olympic package where you have weekly access to Breakaway's state of the art training facilities, fit to your schedule, and weekly updates and analysis to how you are progressing, we have the training package for you. You can read more about the training packages online, or stop by the shop and have a chat with one of our cocahes. We're conveniently located at 1923 Chestnut Street in Center City, Philadelphia.  

 

Coaching, not surprisingly, is a big part of what the coaches at Breakaway are there to do--but it isn't all! In addition to the above-mentioned VO2 Max & Lactic Acid Threshold tests, the fitness center upstairs at Breakaway is also full of equipment for getting you in the proper position to ride your bike. Even the grey lady has picked up on the fact that bike riding should be as comfortable as possible--insofar as climbing that hill on the commute home can be comfortable, anyway. This is why we have two different bike-fit options, where we get you dialed in to the proper position on your bike. No more lower back pain, no more knee pain, no more neck pain--that's what a fit can offer you. And best of all, with the purchase of a bike of $1000 or more, your fit is free!  To schedule your fit send an email to [email protected]

 

In addition to adjusting your bike to fit you for both comfort and performance.  Breakaway will help your allignment with custom footbeds that can be used for a multitude of activities.  We're very excited to offer e-soles custom footbeds. The machineine that scans your foot is capable of recording over a million data points to render a 3-D image of your foot. From that image, we can construct a fully customized footbed to place in your shoe, in order to optimize your performance and comfort for not just cycling, but running, walking, golfing, skating...you name it, we can do it! We also can do one of many semi-customized inserts that account for dozens of different combinations between different arch patterns. These simply make sense; enough sense, in fact, that nearly 90% of the pro peloton uses customized foot beds, and the pros, as American cycling legend and Philadelphia local Bobby Julich did with head coach Joe Wentzel, are coming to e-soles, and e-soles doesn't even have to sponsor them to attract them.  To schedule your e-soles evaluation contact [email protected]

 

And even if putting out watts is not a primary concern of yorus, there's plenty of reasons still to drop on in. The very first Scott Plasma LTD in the United States will be arriving at Breakaway this month. This is the Time Trial bike ridden by Team Columbia High Road, plain and simply the single most winningest team in professional cycling last year. Not only is this bike fast enough to suit the needs of the World Time Trial Champion Bert Grabsch, Not only is this the bike ridden during the year by the winningest team in professional cycling, its updated design is simply beautiful to behold. And it outperformed even the Cervelo in diminished frontal drag in a slow speed wind-tunnel. Check it out on Scott's Website!

 

In addition to Scott, Breakaway has in the past carried Giant and Fuji Bicycles. This year, Breakaway welcomes Felt to its family of bike lines. The story behind Felt is here. At Breakaway, upon learning Felt was being added to the line, the excitement amongst the mechanics, salespersons, and coaches alike was palpable. Their fabulously fast line of road bikes have been recently popularized by Team Garmin-Slipstream. The fashion forward "argyle armada" has paved the way in style in the peloton, without sacrificing substance. They rode their trademark blue-and-orange argyle bikes to a first place in the Team Time Trial at the Giro d'Italia, and paced the highest American Finisher at the Tour de France this year, Christian Vandevelde (4th place overall) to the line.

 

Finally, Breakaway is proud to recommit to the Philadelphia community, sponsoring the T3 triathlon team as well as three area cycling teams. Especially proud are we of our collegiate teams at Temple and UPenn. Come check out our proudly displayed on their and all our teams kits in March as they race in the annual Philadelphia Phlyer.  Find info on all our teams here.