Fall Riding at the Peak Centre!

On Saturday, I participated in my first Peak Centre Stage of the 2012-2013 Winter Racing Series!  (And boy did I forget how tough these races were...)

For those of you who have problems with motivation and training at this time of year, you'll be pleased to know that the Peak Centre for Human Performance (and various participating locations across North America) is hosting an indoor Computrainer-based racing series.   Having tried and compared different alternatives (Tacx VR races, spinerval workouts, sufferfest workouts, etc.), I can firmly say that nothing comes close to riding on the limit in a Computrainer race for 40-45 minutes against 120+ riders from across the continent.

While 2012 marks the start of the 9th edition of the Winter Racing Series, the list of participating locations has increased exponentially over the last 2 years.  With riders lining up across Canada and the USA, the level of competition keeps getting higher every year.

The concept is really simple; you register ahead of time through your club, prepare your bike and gear appropriately, carb load the night before (optional but recommended!) and get yourself ready to redefine what you thought was possible to achieve on a trainer.

What to expect:

(Shiny computrainers, sitting in a row, waiting for YOU to come and ride them!)

You will most likely be racing in a heat of 6-8 riders - the overall results from all the clubs are tabulated at the end of the week.  Once your bike has been set up on the computrainer and you have changed into your kit, one of the staff will get you to weigh in.  (One of the really cool parts of the series, is that riders will be presented with various stages and course profiles.  On flat/downhill courses, riders with possibly higher weight but bigger power outputs will shine.  On the flip side, lighter riders will excel on climbing courses).

Following the weigh in, you'll get a nice 15 minute warmup and a machine calibration to make sure everyone is on an equal playing field.  The rest.. goes by in a nice blur of pain!  

Throughout the ride (and after the race - on the Peak Centre Website) you will be provided with all relevant data.  (ie: power, max power, average power, watts/kilo, speed, average speed, etc.)  While the display is not the most beautiful, it's important to remember that Computrainer is renowned for it's accuracy (and not necessarily the eye-candy graphics).  

(Standard display for a Computrainer race.  Displayed data can be changed according to preference.  You can also track your position across the profile throughout the ride.)

At the end of the week, all the results are put together and stage/GC/KOM/Sprint results are posted online.  With 25 stages up for grabs, the battles for the different virtual jerseys are often hot!

If you're tired of riding by yourself in the basement or you're looking for some fun offseason challenges, come give one of these rides a try! I guarantee you'll "enjoy" it!

Alex