Victory Cycle Works

10/19/2017

Group Ride this Saturday Oct 21st at 9:30am.

Bozenkill - Scotch Ridge Loop: 33.1 miles, 1711 TGIF, Max Grade = 8.4%. We'll start from Victory Cycle Works in Guilderland Center. Meet bike shop owner Nick Engelson and tour the new shop. The shop will open before our ride for any quick adjustments or expert advice. Shop also offers a restroom to make a pit stop. Faster riders are always welcome. This is a "No Drop" ride.

33.1 mi, +1711 ft. Starts in Albany County, NY

09/27/2017

Please join in the MHCC ride at the shop this Saturday. Ride starts at 10:30am at the shop located in Guilerland Center near Guilderland High School. The shop will be open for water, nutrition, and free adjustments. Reddy's deli is in the plaza for short order breakfast/lunch take out or sit in and coffee. No shop better in the region for the start and finish to a group ride.

Easy pace, 1100ft elevation. Rain at start of ride cancels the ride. Cross fingers for no rain!

Directions to the shop - https://www.google.com/maps/place/457+NY-146,+Guilderland+Center,+NY+12085/@42.7027452,-73.9653151,17z/data=!4m2!3m1!1s0x89de76f22011a967:0xbce08ea01a2689a6
Turn north at the light, park near the end of the parking lot. The shop is near the far end of the plaza.

Here is a link to the route-
https://ridewithg
ps.com/routes/24702323

32.5 mi, +1107 ft. Starts in Albany County, NY

07/22/2017

We are opening in our new location at 457 State Route 146 in Guilderland Center this Monday July 24th! Check out our website www.victorycycleworks.com for hours and more details. Thanks to all of you who have been patiently awaiting the opening of our new store.

05/23/2016

Now that most of you are riding hard and fast outside don't forget what your winter training did for you. In order to keep the fitness level rising you have to make sure your getting the same quality of workouts outside as you were indoors on your trainer.

Here is another good article to keep in mind when you make the transition to outside versus inside riding. Quick summary, don't stop riding inside during the summer months. Intervals are truly hard to do outside with any reasonable accuracy or quality. So, plan in one or two rides a week on your trainer and do only high quality intervals. Trading off a two hour group ride, even it is a fast ride, for a one hour interval ride inside will help keep you sharp or the fitness level rising all the way through the summer.

My studio is open all year around for mostly evening rides. If you can get another rider or two to join you, come in and get those high quality rides here.

Having spent 7 of the last 8 winters on indoor trainers along with a large number of coaching clients, I’d face the same dilemma every year when the weather improved – do I shift my training outdoors or do I maintain my indoor consistency and regimen? And while it’s been said that he who has…

05/19/2016

Deep into the week before the Battenkill many of you are getting in your last rides before the big day. How many of you are preparing properly for the race? If this weekend is an "A" race for you this year then you should be in some level of taper. As CTS discusses in the following article, many of you are likely getting this last week wrong.

I like to call the week before an "A" race a Peak Week instead of a taper. Sure, we all have build cycles and work hard to improve our fitness at some cost to freshness, but in this last week before the race you will not gain any more fitness. 7-10 days before a race is the measure of the level of fitness you will have for the race. The key is how to keep that fitness while regaining your freshness. I believe the key is in maintaining a level of high intensity but cutting back dramatically on volume as CTS discusses in the article. In order to perform at a peak level you must be fresh.

If you use Training Peaks, as I do, for those I help train, then you may be familiar with your TSB or Training Stress Balance. This is a measure of your freshness and needs to be at least -10 or better in order to give you a chance at a peak performance come race day. Ideally, above +5 is the best. If you have been pouring it on these last weeks to get ready for the race, then you are likely in the hole deep as far as your TSB is concerned. Managing this metric is critical to allowing you to perform at your fitness level or better on race day. If you are in deep still this close to the race then it might be best to literally stay off the bike before the race or very light short efforts.

Many factors are at play other than your fitness and freshness. Sleep, nutrition, hydration, and mental preparation can have a make or break effect on race day. So, take care of yourself this week and good luck.

Nick at Victory

What you need to know about the final week of tapering before a race or event. Includes tips and sample training schedules.

05/19/2016

Another word on indoor training, which I specialize in my CompuTrainer Studio. Trainer rides on a course of your choosing or interval training can happen all year around with two or more riders up to five at a time. I offer Functional Threshold Testing and coaching services as well. Take your training or performance to the next level, locally!

Training indoors on your bicycle might just improve your cycling more than any other part of your training regimen.