Singlespeed & Fixed Gear - sprinting

how does one get better at sprinting on a fixed gear, or just in general? any training tips (both outdoor riding and indoor winter training)?
i'm sure the obvious answer is to just ride more, and relating to that: recently i've been doing 18mile (i think) loops around the charles river (boston) and the only real straight, flat areas where i can attempt to really go all out have some pretty ridiculous win resistance; so any boston riders know of good places?

thanks.

Look up interval training.

Sprint, rest, Sprint, rest. etc next time out sprint harder, rest less. Continue...

lower the gear and spin faster

Sprinting into the wind is actually pretty good training, kind of like those parachute rigs that track runners use.

Try the small gear thing. You'll build your cadence while your at it. I worked for savannah pedicab and I always got stuck on the cabs with the small gears, so when I ride after work on my bike, I'd haul ass without much effort.

what route on the charles do you go. I've noticed the path kind of goes from around the fleetcenter to newton. Well, that is more sidewalk on nonantum road, but there is a bike lane on charles river road into watertown square. I don't know if there is a path in newton on the charles though.

i know running up hills help you sprint, dont konw if its the same for bikes, oh and time yourself.

Run? ha.

I actually enjoy riding up hills[48-17]. I'm not sure why, but its kind of fun.

Try the small gear thing. You'll build your cadence while your at it. I worked for savannah pedicab and I always got stuck on the cabs with the small gears, so when I ride after work on my bike, I'd haul ass without much effort.

what route on the charles do you go. I've noticed the path kind of goes from around the fleetcenter to newton. Well, that is more sidewalk on nonantum road, but there is a bike lane on charles river road into watertown square. I don't know if there is a path in newton on the charles though.


i do this:
http://www.mass.gov/dcr/parks/metroboston/maps/bikepaths_dudley.gif

it does go all the way to newton/watertown, and down to the science bridge, then back along the esplanade. apparently it's 18miles, but i still don't believe it. it's straight and flat along the esplanade, but the wind coming off the charles is brutal. i am looking for other good routes to ride though.

well i ment if you want to be a fast sprinter running, you would try by running up hills, steep ones as fast as you can. I dont know if sprinting your bike up a hill would help you become a better sprinter. I'm sure it would.

How about riding as hard as you can everywhere you ride.

that looks like a nice ride, but I don't like the path in downtown all that much. Mostly the storrow section.

Use this to calculate the miles
http://www.gmap-pedometer.com/

http://www.blisstonia.com/eolson/notes/bridgedistances.pdf
http://www.math.harvard.edu/~knill/run/region.html

First one says the longest loop is a little over 17, so you're not far off. The map you posted is weirdly out of scale, the second link I put up has a more accurate map.

http://www.blisstonia.com/eolson/notes/bridgedistances.pdf
http://www.math.harvard.edu/~knill/run/region.html

First one says the longest loop is a little over 17, so you're not far off. The map you posted is weirdly out of scale, the second link I put up has a more accurate map.


either way, i do it in about an hour, and for some reason i never pictured myself riding 17-20mph. really shows how much i need to get on an indoor bike or get a bike computer so i can see how fast i ride and what my cadence is.

thanks for the maps.

17-20 is a nice speed for that distance. its not massively hilly, so your speed won't vary too much.

17-20 is a nice speed for that distance. its not massively hilly, so your speed won't vary too much.

yeah, the only real resistance is the wind in the flat areas. but it's a good ride; i've been doing it everyday for the past 5 days because of the nice weather.

How about riding as hard as you can everywhere you ride.

That's not effective.

lower the gear and spin faster

+ pizza.
i ride 36/18 for kicks sometimes. real good workout, and you get real good at spinning.

damn lowest I go is 42/16 and thats a huge dop from my usual 49/16

17-20 is a nice speed for that distance. its not massively hilly, so your speed won't vary too much.

correction. i finally got around to timing myself on my ride this morning, and it comes out to 24-26mph, which i'm still having trouble believing.

Sprint, rest, Sprint, rest. etc next time out sprint harder, rest less. Continue...

except next time you should sprint harder, rest more. If you really want to improve your sprint your rest should be almost coasting along for a few minutes and the sprint like ten seconds long.

sprinting up hills....yup

I can assure you that you are not riding the Charles River Path at an average of 24-26mph. The turns, pedestrians, road crossings, etc. would probably equate this to averaging 32+ on a flat road. Unless of course I am talking to a guy who should be riding pro in Belgium or something...

The Charles Path is great for what it is, but the quiet roads within a short ride of Boston are endless. My favorite resource is the cue sheets on the Charles River Wheelmen site. I get sick of following complicated directions, so I follow their arrowed rides. Spray painted arrows at every intersection makes life easy. This should keep you busy for a while:
http://www.crw.org/CueSheets/index.htm

Other than that, for sprinting there are countless long straightaways around town.

Everything mention is true but final word is you have to sprint to get better at it.


So take what the guys are listing here build a plan around it, if and make time and Sprint!!

Good luck and have fun.

I will find time to post some stuff later.
S/F,
CEYA!

if you want to be a better time trialist, time trial more. if you want to be a better climber, climb more. if you want to be a better sprinter, for god's sake grab a fixed gear.

oops almost forgot...
and sprint more.

Not sure about the smaller gear thing, you'll end up spinning out. On a geared bike you push a very large gear if you want to win a sprint. Try to sprint with other riders as tactics are very important. Having someone lead you out is also very helpful. When alone, train by sprinting up small steep hills. Try to pick a "finish line", some landmark and learn how to start your sprint early (500+ meters). To build anerobic, fast twitch, muscles train in intervals. Stay in the drops.