Bike Forums - Riding to cadence.

Out on another ride this evening and it went a bit better than lastweeks. Not much- But enough to say I am happy with tonights ride.

I have a ride after work and although the route might vary a bit- it is 10 miles down to my Cafe and 10 miles by a differing route home. Tonight I took the Slopey Road route and I was getting annoyed by the 15 to 20 mph head wind that did not let up. Once again The I Pod set the cadence and It did not matter how steep the slopes were(Max would be 8% but generaly around 5%)-I kept in the same gear from the bottom to the top. Whatever gear I was in at the bottom- Cadence set by music and without changing gear just kept the cadence the same all the way up. Did mean a bit of strain on the Quads a few times but breathing OK and legs OK. Got down to the cafe and No Wind. The headwind was my speed as I travelled in still air.

Way home and set a faster cadence. Kept strain on the legs all the way and still kept to the Cadence and no gear changing up the hills. Couple of longer slopes on this route so found it a bit harder. Funny thing was that headwind was stronger. Got home and Checked the computer and Average for the ride was 14.9 mph. not fast but it did mean that I had come home in a faster speed than I have ever made on this route. Don't know what happened on the way down as it was just average.

Checked the cadence on the I Pod and the music on the way down was mostly about 90. A couple were down to 70 but all I did was gear down to keep the pressure on the legs. Way home and the cadence was 95 for most of the way- but one section went up to 105.

Now the funny part was- No wind at all but one section of road I did on both routes. On the way down I pushed hard and got to 18mph- slightly downhill. On the way back- faster cadence and 21mph constant- Slightly uphill. That faster cadence is what my legs and me seem to prefer. Only 5 faster but it does seem to suit my legs and comfort.