with Head Coach Christian Williams

While waiting for my son and another racing buddy to finish a recent road race, I was sitting outside taking in some sun and the race atmosphere when two racers rolled up to their car after finishing their race. One was reading his average and peak wattage from the race, and discussing how he expected the numbers to be higher. His teammate was tersely loading up his gear and getting changed into his civvies. Neither were paying much attention to each other, and neither seemed to have that post-race glow that said, “That was fun!”

The rider who was less chatty pulled out a lap top computer from a bag and hooked up his powermeter for download. He hunkered down, pouring over the screen and then abruptly slammed the computer closed, exhaled loudly and put his head back with his eyes closed. His teammate hopped in the driver’s seat, started the car, and off they went.

A powermeter is an excellent tool for what it does, which is to measure wattage, but it is just a tool. Don’t get me wrong, as I have one strapped to my bars and I analyze the information regularly, but when racers find themselves looking to their files instead of making their way over to the posted results to get their award, I don’t believe they will find the answer in the files from that race.

It may be that the rider was out of position and wasted energy for many minutes leading to this hard effort, or it may be that they weren’t eating or drinking enough, or it may be that they lack the general aerobic fitness to be efficient in the first place. It could be any number of things, and looking at a powermeter file isn’t likely to provide the athlete with the actual information they need to improve their race results.

While a powermeter might know you based upon what it measures, it doesn’t really know you as a whole athlete. A Training Stress Score for one week may not be all that impressive, but if it were done on a week that had you completing a big project at work while dealing with a three-year old with her first ear infection, then it just may be that it was your best week ever, all things considered. It is my experience that many athletes end up hyper-analyzing their files only to add more intensity to their training plan when the problem was actually that there was too much intensity (or, the much abused “quality”) in the first place. Or, riders will spend hours looking at files, searching for some missing "something". Those hours are usually better spent with the family, resting, or even training.

When a powermeter is used in conjunction with a training and coaching plan, the information from the tool can be extremely useful in guiding your training. However, care is needed to make sure "paralysis by analysis" doesn’t occur.

There isn’t enough space in this newsletter to provide my theory on how to best use the powermeter (or for some, if it should even be used at all), so I’ll sum up by saying that this is all supposed to be fun, even for those who are working at it and even those who make a living by racing bikes. If analyzing the data or dealing with finicky equipment is stressful to you, then you really are better off without a power meter. There are many pros and elite racers who are succeeding without this tool, and a large part of that is because they aren’t unnecessarily burdened by it.

I’m not “anti” powermeter, but I do see so many people unnecessarily concerned because they don’t have one, as well as many who fret over all of the graphs. In bike racing, the best indicator of results is what is posted after the race and signed by the race official.

Bill Ripke's introduction to cycling happened in a very typical fashion – the bike was his transportation. What made this intro to cycling unique was that it occurred in France, while Bill was an exchange student. Getting your start on a bike in the land of the world's greatest bike race can’t hurt. When Bill returned home to the states he continued riding and eventually took up collegiate racing at Chico. From this beginning many years ago Bill has amassed over 20 years of cycling experience, which combined with his Master’s Degree in Exercise Physiology enables him to offer clients a wealth of practical and theoretical information.

As a racer Bill rode for local clubs in the San Francisco Bay Area and San Diego before focusing his attention on the double centuries offered in California’s Triple Crown series. These ultra- endurance events, along with the occasional road race, form the bulk of his competitive endeavors these days, although he will occasionally jump in a MTB endurance event like the famous Leadville 100 (where he earned the silver buckle for completing the 100 miles in under 12 hours).

In addition to monthly training programs and consultation, Bill is available for exercise testing to determine lactate threshold, anaerobic threshold, and power at LT. In the past Bill has participated in laboratory testing for leading sports nutritional companies. The combination of hard science with the hands-on aspects of mentoring athletes at all levels is what keeps Bill excited about coaching. Bill often runs or assists in Wenzel cycling clinics in the Bay area, including Racing 101, Bike Fitting, and Descending.

Bill's philosophy is that competition brings out the best in each of us, but he recognizes that competition takes on many forms for different athletes, whether it is racing the individual next to you in the District Road Race, conquering a high mountain pass, or perhaps competing against the toughest competitor of all, yourself.

Besides his Master’s Degree in Exercise Physiology, Bill is certified by American College of Sports Medicine as a Health Fitness Instructor. He is also a USA Cycling Certified Coach. In his role as a Health Promotion Manager for a large company in California for nearly 10 years, Bill has developed exercise programs for literally hundreds of individuals to help them achieve their health and fitness-related goals.

Click here to read more about Bill.

Have a personal or cycling site with some readership following? Between now and May 31st, show Wenzel Coaching your new link on your site to www.wenzelcoaching.com and we'll send you a free water bottle! Limit one per client. Send the link to your page showing the www.wenzelcoaching.com link to info@wenzelcoaching.com.

When you receive an email from Head Coach Christian Williams, you see a quote in his automatic signature that says, "The desire to succeed is worthless without the will to prepare properly." This quote sums up his highly successful approach to coaching and racing. As a full-time professional coach since 1998, Christian has used this philosophy to help hundreds of athletes reach their goals and achieve success.

Christian is a fixture in the competitive Texas racing scene and currently races with a Category 2 license on the road and track and as an Expert in mountain bike races. He has been involved in the sport at many levels including team development, board of directors for the Texas Bicycle Racing Association, and local cycling publications. This intimate knowledge of the local racing scene provides a tremendous advantage to the athletes he coaches.

His experience juggling his job and family responsibilities with a successful racing career allows him to give athletes insight into what it takes to reach a balance in their training. With three children of his own, he understands the difficulties faced by other racers in this position and can provide tips based on his personal experiences. As a self proclaimed “no talent” racer, Christian has relied on careful planning and purposeful training to find racing success after battling a childhood lung disease.

Christian feels that one of his main assets as a coach is his ability to get to know the athletes he works with and he strives to treat each athlete as an individual. The resulting relationship allows him to make individualized adjustments in athletes training plans as they are needed and he is able to keep a close eye on warning signs of trouble.

Evidence of Christian's ability as a cycling coach is apparent in his recent promotion to "Head Coach" for Wenzel Coaching. While he will continue his regular coaching responsibilities he will now also focus on coach education and development of fellow Wenzel Coaches.

Click here to read more about Christian.

Tom Butler - 6th Place - Jiminy Peak RR, 45+ - 5th Place - Palmer Library RR, 45+

Matt Brewster, UMASS - 2nd Place - ECCC Conference Championships, B Men

UMASS Men B Team (Matt Brewster, Alex Duggan, Chris Kessler) 2nd Place, ECCC Conf. Championships TTT (with only 3 riders!)

Cameron Hughes,�3rd on 4th stage of Tour of Shenandoah, Pro 1/2

Doug Pielet,�2nd at Tour of Cashiers, including 10,500 ft of climbing!

Anne Samplonius, 1st, Stage One Time Trial, Second Place Overall, Tour de Gila

Collin McKenna - Achieved season goal by completing the Grizzly Peak Century

John Wooldridge - EMC2/Vellum Criterium, M35+ 4/5, 1 Prime plus 1st Place

Hanns Detlefsen - Pinole TTT, Elite 4s Team, 1st Place

Matt Dion - Southridge NORBA #1, Junior Beginner 15-16 2nd Place

John Mundelius - Napa Valley Dirt Classic, Expert 40-44, 2nd Place

Marc Cesare - NY Spring Series, Prospect Park, Master 35+ Open, 3rd place

Paula Plant - Opus Crit #1, 3rd Woman

Tony Homes - Upgraded to 3s

Blaine Tomimoto - Upgraded to 4s

Tom Luttrell - Upgraded to 4s

Tony Justman - Power at 80% of max heart rate now exceeds power at threshold from last winter

Virginia Perkins --Ronde Van Brisbeen Omnium - 2nd W4 -- Sierra Point Criterium - 2nd W4 -- 3rd Madera RR - W4 -- 1st - Copperoplois RR W4

Marie DeWitt -- upgrade to W3 on points

Allison Paine -- 3rd UC Santa Cruz HCTT Women A's

Bill Gallagher -- Decreased his swim time by 7 minutes (Olympic length triathlon) -- Decreased his run times by over 1:30 minutes per mile (Olympic triathlon distance)

Matt Leimbach - 5th PIR (May 2nd)

Coach Melissa Sanborn - 3rd PIR (May 1st)

Scott Baker - 1st Place The Hoehn Motors Del Mar Criterium Series #3

Keith Hargis -- NORBA National - Fontana, CA - 5th Semi-Pro Short Track -- Bar H Bash - 8th Pro/Semi- Pro

Bryan Wadie - 1st Place Royce City TT Series (5/6) -- 4th Place - Texas State Age-Based Time Trial Championships

Keith Shurtleff - 3rd Place - Ride for the Eagles

Noah Williams - 1st Place Texas State Age-Based Time Trial and Criterium Championships

Tammy Sporleder - 2nd Place Texas State Age-Based Time Trial Championships

Clay Hobson - 9th Place - Texas State Age-Based Criterium Championships

Sten Schmidt - 6th Place - Texas State Age-Based Criterium Championships

Dennis Comeau - 4th Place - Race #2 Campionato Provincial (Tuscany)

Wenzel Coaching offers signed copies of Bike Racing 101 for only $15.00 plus shipping! That's nearly $4 off the list price!

Click here for more information.

Portland, OR ~ May 20 & 21, 2006

What: Learn cycling skills and potentially learn to race!

Where: NE Portland, OR. On-the-road skills on Swan Island.

When: May 20, 21 -- Attend one or both sessions!

Clinic limited to 20 participants. Register all the way up to the day of the event!

Whether you are a very first time racer or a rider with a few races under your belt, this clinic will help you become a more confident and smarter racer and pave the way for you to become a stronger one.

Join Coaches Kendra Wenzel and Melissa Sanborn for a weekend of cycling learning both on and off the bike! Saturday's morning session will cover everything from cycling terminology to cornering and evasive braking. On Saturday afternoon we'll take everything we learned in the classroom in the morning out into the field!

Sunday's clinic will include entry into the Swan Island Criterium. Swan Island is the perfect course to learn to race. With great pavement, gentle turns and flat terrain, there couldn't be a better beginner's course. We'll talk about race training, preparation, nutrition, and tactics, and then we'll take it right to the field. We'll guide you through every step of the way including everything from registration to post race analysis and get you on your way toward racing your next race!