The Tri Town Times: 5/11/20

The Tri Town Times: 5/11/20

Local athlete Ricardo Valverde completes Everesting challenge; The Placebo Effect and cycling.

Weekend Race Report:
"Everesting" by definition is fiendishly simple: Pick any hill, anywhere in the world and complete repeats of it in a single activity in a single day until you climb 8,848m – the equivalent height of Mt Everest. That, and more, is exactly what Tri Town Coach Ricardo Valverde did last week on the slopes of Bogus Basin. Ricardo share's his story here in rich detail.
 
 
Training Thoughts and Updates:
The Placebo Effect is well documented. Mountaineers feel better when given a tank they believe to be oxygen, but is really just plain air. Cyclist perform 3% better in a time trial when they take a pill they believe is caffeine, but in actuality is only sugar. When we believe we have an advantage, we have an advantage. Whether or not it is real, does not seem to matter.
 
Unfortunately, the opposite of this may also be true. The crew at Marginal Gains recently touched on a concept called "nocebo", which in athletic terms means an athlete believes some aspect of their performance (or equipment) is putting them at a competitive disadvantage, but in reality there is little or no effect. What are some nocebo factors in cycling? Weight and stiffness come to mind. Elite triathlete and Tri Town employee, Travis Wood, will help us test this soon: he's building a super light bike (under 13 lbs) to compare against his heavier, albeit more aerodynamic bikes on climbs around Boise. Look for that blog to come out soon.
 
Until then, and interesting tool is the sliding weight scale from Best Bike Split (go to the "Time Analysis" tab). You can compare how much weight, aerodynamics, rolling resistance, and other factors effect your split times over a variety of courses.
 
 
Shop Ops:
  • We are slowly reintroducing our free group workouts starting Monday, May 18th. Please read the workout details on our Workout and Race Schedule page. Please note the new, safer, and hillier course for the Tuesday Threshold Ride.
 
  • We continue to be open during normal business hours, albeit with a reduced staff. Our hours are:
10am - 6pm Monday - Friday
10am - 4pm Saturday
Closed Sunday
 
  • Our free mobile pickup/delivery service continues to be available on Monday mornings and Thursday evenings. Thank you to everyone who has taken advantage of this service, and we are committed to making mobile pickup/delivery an ongoing component of our business. You can schedule an appointment for pickup or delivery here.
 
Quote that Struck a Chord:
With Mount Everest in mind, here are two insights from Sir Edmund Hillary:
 
"It is not the mountain we conquer, but ourselves."
 
and...
 
"You don't have to be a fantastic hero to do certain things- to compete. You can be just an ordinary chap, sufficiently motivated to reach challenging goals."
 
 
Have a great week!
 
Antonio Gonzalez
Tri Town

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