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I feel that the articles were chosen to have a timeless slant as there aren't many examples on equipment, most of the articles are on technique.Specifically I found the few articles on training that included examples to be helpful, like the suggested trainer routines, use of an heart rate monitor, and estimating calories burned.This type of book is what I call a bathroom book, as the short articles are perfect reading when you want something to read for a few minutes.The book is also a success in that it helps get you in the mood to go riding. I'm an experienced cyclist and I found this a fun read. It's a collection of articles that were published in Bicycling magazine back in the 90's on various aspects on road cycling. There's not a lot new here, but it's fun to read someone elses opinion on something most of us already know how to do. There are sections on skills, training and nutrition and I found useful information throughout the book.
His final conclusion is sound - that countersteering (see Wikipedia for an explanation) is how you steer effectively, but he prefaces it by asserting erroneously that there are 3 ways to steer. How am I supposed to trust anything else he says, if it's nothing more than his assertions based on his own gut feeling. Most of us never realize that is what we're doing. The key to good steering is to use deliberate, active and controlled countersteering - a skill which becomes obviously essential on a motorcycle, where the increased weight makes it impossible to muddle through a turn on unconscious control.He comes to the right conclusion - so what's the big deal. Some information in this book I find implausible, and some I /know/ to be false, which further reduces any confidence I may have in the rest of the information.
Ed Pavelka seems to only have the latter skill, which gives his advice no firm foundation.A case in point is the brief article on steering. To paraphrase, he says you can steer simply by pointing the handlebars where you want to go, without leaning the bike at up to 15mph (defying the laws of physics), or you can steer just by leaning the way you want to go, or you can countersteer. Well, to me, the big deal is he's made me read and try to understand false information which is of no use whatsoever, and /his/ understanding of the subject is flawed. Frequently, theory alone is insufficient, very occasionally practice trumps theory, but best of all is practice based on theory. For a subject like cycling, you need someone who understands the underlying physics as well as helpful subjective seat-of-the-pants techniques.
There is only one way to steer: countersteering. _Sound_ theory. Most of us learned to do it unconsciously on the day we first learned to ride, and from then on we muddle through with a unconscious "micro-countersteer" that starts the bike falling sideways, which we catch by turning the corner.
I always look forward to my mail for this one, however the ads are a bit much.
Very good especially for the beginning rider excellentbook I learned ALOT.
this book has good info but nothing you couldnt find on the internet for free.
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