Adjustable power cranks for use with an octalink BB. Great training tool used by the Canadian National team. Supplemented my winter training when the weather got crappy. No shoe rub, never used while loose, excellent condition. $500
Sorry, you are correct. I was confusing them with Rotor Cranks, as I
believe some of the other posts may have as well. Some of the others
posts discussing the installation difficulties, the cam and the bio pace
issue, which I believe relate to Rotor Cranks.
Power cranks are different in that they are designed to force you to
pick up your foot on the upstroke as the crank arms are not fixed to
each other and will not flip over at the top without applying effort.
These are meant only for training.
Rotor Cranks are designed with a cam to flip the crank over on the up
stroke so you eliminate the dead spot at the top and are pushing down
more, which supposedly allows you to ride a bigger gear. I think most of
the posts were discussing Rotor Cranks and not Power Cranks.
-----Original Message-----
From: Suz Weldon [mailto:Su-@dishchoice.com]
Sent: Tuesday, May 03, 2005 3:28 PM
To: Schreck, George
Cc: Jerry.-@comcast.net; er-@bikemecca.com;
matthew.-@gmail.com; ob-@topica.com
Subject: RE: [OBRA Chat] power cranks
Ummm, no. They are for training, and not normally intended for racing.
For
those that don't know what they are, they are two cranks that work
independently of each other. So if you don't pull UP as well as push
down
(i.e./ pedal in circles) then you won't go anywhere. The learning curve
is
pretty steep at first, but it was fun to learn something new ;-)
I used them last year to help smooth out my pedal stroke, and they did
help with
that. Also helped with hip flexor and general core stength. I
eventually got a
little tendonitis in the back of my knee, but that's because I tried to
ride too
hard, and too far, w/o warming up. Many teammates used them and did not
have
this problem. Difficult to say how much they helped me, but i did have
a very
good season last year, and an increase of ~20-30 watts in LT power.
They kind of helped in unexpected ways also- like making me work a
little harder
when I was riding with slower riders, so I could still get a decent
workout.
They also helped my descending confidence, because it is so dang
difficult that
it makes you feel really "solid' when you get back on normal cranks. I
think
you are supposed to give yourself a transition period of 6-8 weeks on
normal
cranks before resuming racing, as you will probably have a somewhat
slower
cadence on them, and you will ned to work on bringing it back up. I
found it
was hard to sustain a cadence of 85 or more on the PC's.
I used thm a little bit at the begining of this year's training season,
but
mostly just to "re-enforce" what I learned last year. It was much
easier to
ride on them this year, so they did their job in retraining my pedal
stroke.
My husband tried sprinting in them one time, and broke them, as well as
crashing
himself. DO NOT try this at home! They are not intended for sprinting,
especially if you weigh almost 200 pounds!
BTW, it didn't really take as long as they say to install as the
instructions
said it would.
Hope this helps!
Suz
Quoting "Schreck, George" <george.-@pacificorp.com>:
My understanding is that you are expected to use them in TT's. I agree
that for road racing, it might be a different story.
________________________________
From: Jerry.-@comcast.net [mailto:Jerry.-@comcast.net]
Sent: Tuesday, May 03, 2005 1:35 PM
To: er-@bikemecca.com; matthew.-@gmail.com
Cc: bikemecca.com; ob-@topica.com
Subject: RE: [OBRA Chat] power cranks
1. The PowerCranks I owned (before they blew up) were perfectly
compatible with my Campy chainrings ... no problem.
2. Comparing PCs to bio-pace is tricky. Bio-pace were intended to
eliminate deadspots ... and permanently replace your day to day
cranks.
PCs are a training device intended to improve your pedalling
efficiency,
but most folks wouldn't race them. They now make a slightly lighter
version, but racing them would still seem challenging.
For review info you could check out www.pezcyclingnews.com.
Jerry
To respond to the whole group send to ob-@topica.com.
To respond to the list manager send to cmur-@obra.org
To unsubscribe send to obra-uns-@topica.com
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Ummm, no. They are for training, and not normally intended for racing. For
those that don't know what they are, they are two cranks that work
independently of each other. So if you don't pull UP as well as push down
(i.e./ pedal in circles) then you won't go anywhere. The learning curve is
pretty steep at first, but it was fun to learn something new ;-)
I used them last year to help smooth out my pedal stroke, and they did
help with
that. Also helped with hip flexor and general core stength. I
eventually got a
little tendonitis in the back of my knee, but that's because I tried to
ride too
hard, and too far, w/o warming up. Many teammates used them and did not have
this problem. Difficult to say how much they helped me, but i did have a very
good season last year, and an increase of ~20-30 watts in LT power.
They kind of helped in unexpected ways also- like making me work a
little harder
when I was riding with slower riders, so I could still get a decent workout.
They also helped my descending confidence, because it is so dang
difficult that
it makes you feel really "solid' when you get back on normal cranks. I think
you are supposed to give yourself a transition period of 6-8 weeks on normal
cranks before resuming racing, as you will probably have a somewhat slower
cadence on them, and you will ned to work on bringing it back up. I found it
was hard to sustain a cadence of 85 or more on the PC's.
I used thm a little bit at the begining of this year's training season, but
mostly just to "re-enforce" what I learned last year. It was much easier to
ride on them this year, so they did their job in retraining my pedal stroke.
My husband tried sprinting in them one time, and broke them, as well as
crashing
himself. DO NOT try this at home! They are not intended for sprinting,
especially if you weigh almost 200 pounds!
BTW, it didn't really take as long as they say to install as the instructions
said it would.
Hope this helps!
Suz
Quoting "Schreck, George" <george.-@pacificorp.com>:
My understanding is that you are expected to use them in TT's. I agree
that for road racing, it might be a different story.
________________________________
From: Jerry.-@comcast.net [mailto:Jerry.-@comcast.net]
Sent: Tuesday, May 03, 2005 1:35 PM
To: er-@bikemecca.com; matthew.-@gmail.com
Cc: bikemecca.com; ob-@topica.com
Subject: RE: [OBRA Chat] power cranks
1. The PowerCranks I owned (before they blew up) were perfectly
compatible with my Campy chainrings ... no problem.
2. Comparing PCs to bio-pace is tricky. Bio-pace were intended to
eliminate deadspots ... and permanently replace your day to day cranks.
PCs are a training device intended to improve your pedalling efficiency,
but most folks wouldn't race them. They now make a slightly lighter
version, but racing them would still seem challenging.
For review info you could check out www.pezcyclingnews.com.
Jerry
To respond to the whole group send to ob-@topica.com.
To respond to the list manager send to cmur-@obra.org
To unsubscribe send to obra-uns-@topica.com
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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It is intended solely for the addressee. Access to this email by
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addressee, is unauthorized.
If you are not the intended recipient, any disclosure, copying,
distribution or any action omitted or taken in reliance on it, is
prohibited and may be unlawful. If you believe that you have received
this email in error, please contact the sender, delete this e-mail
and destroy all copies.
==============================================================================
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My understanding is that you are expected to use them in TT's. I agree
that for road racing, it might be a different story.
________________________________
From: Jerry.-@comcast.net [mailto:Jerry.-@comcast.net]
Sent: Tuesday, May 03, 2005 1:35 PM
To: er-@bikemecca.com; matthew.-@gmail.com
Cc: bikemecca.com; ob-@topica.com
Subject: RE: [OBRA Chat] power cranks
1. The PowerCranks I owned (before they blew up) were perfectly
compatible with my Campy chainrings ... no problem.
2. Comparing PCs to bio-pace is tricky. Bio-pace were intended to
eliminate deadspots ... and permanently replace your day to day cranks.
PCs are a training device intended to improve your pedalling efficiency,
but most folks wouldn't race them. They now make a slightly lighter
version, but racing them would still seem challenging.
For review info you could check out www.pezcyclingnews.com.
Jerry
To respond to the whole group send to ob-@topica.com.
To respond to the list manager send to cmur-@obra.org
To unsubscribe send to obra-uns-@topica.com
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
This email is confidential and may be legally privileged.
It is intended solely for the addressee. Access to this email by anyone else, unless expressly approved by the sender or an authorized addressee, is unauthorized.
If you are not the intended recipient, any disclosure, copying, distribution or any action omitted or taken in reliance on it, is prohibited and may be unlawful. If you believe that you have received this email in error, please contact the sender, delete this e-mail and destroy all copies.
==============================================================================
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<DIV dir=ltr align=left><SPAN class=195135020-03052005><FONT face=Arial
color=#0000ff size=2>My understanding is that you are expected to use them in
TT's. I agree that for road racing, it might be a different
story.</FONT></SPAN></DIV><BR>
<DIV class=OutlookMessageHeader lang=en-us dir=ltr align=left>
<HR tabIndex=-1>
<FONT face=Tahoma size=2><B>From:</B> Jerry.-@comcast.net
[mailto:Jerry.-@comcast.net] <BR><B>Sent:</B> Tuesday, May 03, 2005 1:35
PM<BR><B>To:</B> er-@bikemecca.com; matthew.-@gmail.com<BR><B>Cc:</B>
bikemecca.com; ob-@topica.com<BR><B>Subject:</B> RE: [OBRA Chat] power
cranks<BR></FONT><BR></DIV>
<DIV></DIV>
<DIV>1. The PowerCranks I owned (before they blew up) were perfectly compatible
with my Campy chainrings ... no problem.</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>2. Comparing PCs to bio-pace is tricky. Bio-pace were intended to
eliminate deadspots ... and permanently replace your day to day cranks.
PCs are a training device intended to improve your pedalling efficiency,
but most folks wouldn't race them. They now make a slightly lighter
version, but racing them would still seem challenging.</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>For review info you could check out <A
href="http://www.pezcyclingnews.com">www.pezcyclingnews.com</A>.</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>Jerry</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV><PRE>To respond to the whole group send to ob-@topica.com.
To respond to the list manager send to cmur-@obra.org
To unsubscribe send to obra-uns-@topica.com</PRE></BODY></HTML>
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<br>
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1. The PowerCranks I owned (before they blew up) were perfectly compatible with my Campy chainrings ... no problem.
2. Comparing PCs to bio-pace is tricky. Bio-pace were intended to eliminate deadspots ... and permanently replace your day to day cranks. PCs are a training device intended to improve your pedalling efficiency, but most folks wouldn't race them. They now make a slightly lighter version, but racing them would still seem challenging.
For review info you could check out www.pezcyclingnews.com.
Jerry
-------------- Original message --------------
Power Cranks have been popular among triathletes.....especialliy those
who don't know how to "pedal circles". it's kind of the modern-day
bio-pace...meant to elminate the dead spot in your pedal stroke.
like any product...there is a long list of people with good results
using this product.
having said that....I heard that a guy on maybe Broadmark Capital? had
a set blow up on him during a major time trial....the company replaced
them, but he was dead in the water in the TT...
they are pretty darn heavy...so your'e not saving any weight...they
take a specific chainring because the bolt pattern is way different to
accomodate the cam mechanism...
there is a surprising amount of friction built into the system because
of all the moving parts....it feels pretty stiff out of the box. I
imagine that would improve as the system breaks in.
the thing that made me sell a pair on ebay without even installing
them....the instructions say a qualified mechanic should be able to
install them in about 2 1/2 hours or something to that effect....and
the BB "cups" are held in by loctite.
yikes.
but...if you go to their website....like a said...a bunch of athletes
with assorted top finishes to their credit...I'm sure it helps a lot of
people.
eric
----------------
bikemecca.com
To respond to the whole group send to ob-@topica.com.
To respond to the list manager send to cmur-@obra.org
To unsubscribe send to obra-uns-@topica.com
--NextPart_Webmail_9m3u9jl4l_21588_1115152500_0
Content-Type: text/html
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit
<html><body>
<DIV>1. The PowerCranks I owned (before they blew up) were perfectly compatible with my Campy chainrings ... no problem.</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>2. Comparing PCs to bio-pace is tricky. Bio-pace were intended to eliminate deadspots ... and permanently replace your day to day cranks. PCs are a training device intended to improve your pedalling efficiency, but most folks wouldn't race them. They now make a slightly lighter version, but racing them would still seem challenging.</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>For review info you could check out <A href="http://www.pezcyclingnews.com">www.pezcyclingnews.com</A>.</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>Jerry</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
--NextPart_Webmail_9m3u9jl4l_21588_1115152500_0--
Power Cranks have been popular among triathletes.....especialliy those
who don't know how to "pedal circles". it's kind of the modern-day
bio-pace...meant to elminate the dead spot in your pedal stroke.
like any product...there is a long list of people with good results
using this product.
having said that....I heard that a guy on maybe Broadmark Capital? had
a set blow up on him during a major time trial....the company replaced
them, but he was dead in the water in the TT...
they are pretty darn heavy...so your'e not saving any weight...they
take a specific chainring because the bolt pattern is way different to
accomodate the cam mechanism...
there is a surprising amount of friction built into the system because
of all the moving parts....it feels pretty stiff out of the box. I
imagine that would improve as the system breaks in.
the thing that made me sell a pair on ebay without even installing
them....the instructions say a qualified mechanic should be able to
install them in about 2 1/2 hours or something to that effect....and
the BB "cups" are held in by loctite.
yikes.
but...if you go to their website....like a said...a bunch of athletes
with assorted top finishes to their credit...I'm sure it helps a lot of
people.
eric
----------------
bikemecca.com
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