General Questions

What modifications do you have on your Coker? (Extension, hub, frame?)

      Aaron:      brake, extension, hub, bearings

       Andy:      Fully custom

       Chris:   The Works

Christian:      everything

      Elijah:   I have a seat extension, original hub and frame

      Javier:      seat extension

       John:   As shipped, but with 125 mm cranks and just the extension (no brake)

       Scot:      O’sells frame; suzue hub; ext w/brake

   Tammy:      Extension, brake, pedals and  Miyata seat

     Tanya:      Extension, brake, cranks, pedals, better bearings.

 

Crank length:

      Aaron:   125 mm

       Andy:   125 mm

       Chris:   125 mm

Christian:   125 mm

      Elijah:   140 mm

      Javier:   125 mm (I will keep trying different sizes as soon as I get my cycle computer)

       John:   125 mm

       Scot:   140 mm

   Tammy:   140  mm

     Tanya:   125 mm

How often do you use your brake? Do you like it?

      Aaron:   On every hill. The psychological help is immense.

       Andy:   I use my brake going down steeper hills. As time goes on, I use my brake less and less. I like the brake as it helps me go down steeper hills without damaging my knees.

       Chris:   I use it on hills, and I like it.

Christian:      Yea, it's great. I used it quite often in the beginning, but now only going down really steep hills or when I have to stop as quick as possible because of traffic lights switching right in front of me e.g.

      Elijah:   I don't have a break yet, although I plan on getting one Thursday. I have never felt a need for it but don't want to develop knee problem I will regret later.

      Javier:   I don't have one. Seems to be a risk to have one. In most of the hills, getting some speed can be refreshing.

       John:   NA

       Scot:      Used for parking mostly. It is Ok.

   Tammy:   on steep hills - yes, it helps

     Tanya:   Not much, but I do find it helpful on the steeper downhills.

What equipment are you planning to change on your Coker?

      Aaron:      Seat post

       Andy:   Add some more bags to carry stuff.

       Chris:      None

Christian:   I would like to try out shorter cranks, but I'm a little bit too afraid

      Elijah:      Just adding the break

      Javier:      Hopefully none ($$$)

       John:   I might dispense with the extension, but I will bring it to Europe one way or another.

       Scot:      Seat Cover

   Tammy:   put gel in my seat

     Tanya:      Nothing (maybe change something to combat slipping bearing problems)

What is your average speed (kph) in training?

      Aaron:   18 to 19 kph

       Andy:   17 kph

       Chris:   20 kph

Christian:   21+ kph

      Elijah:   17 kph Sometimes as low as 16 on a very hilly ride when I'm tired, and up to 18 if the trail is nice or if I'm in a hurry.

      Javier:   17 kph

       John:   20 kph

       Scot:   19 to 20 kph

   Tammy:   16 to 18, usually 17s

     Tanya:   No answer

Training

How many km of training have you done since April 1?

      Aaron:   321 km

       Andy:      1500 km

       Chris:      About 500 km

Christian:      1695 km

      Elijah:   935 km

      Javier:      Between 750 and 1000kms (not sure, I am not using a cycle computer)

       John:      1984 km

       Scot:      About 1600 km

   Tammy:      1000+

     Tanya:   420 km (or so)

What was your longest training ride since April 1?

      Aaron:   53 km

       Andy:   106 km

       Chris:      About 55 km

Christian:   73 km

      Elijah:   66 km

      Javier:   96 km

       John:   104 km

       Scot:   89 km

   Tammy:   58 km

     Tanya:      51.5 km

If you had two consecutive training days, what was your maximum combined training distance (in km)?

      Aaron:   80 km

       Andy:   120 km

       Chris:      About 90km

Christian:      About 110 km

      Elijah:   82k (40+40 and 66 + 16)

      Javier:   70 km

       John:   113 km

       Scot:   134 km

   Tammy:   80 km

     Tanya:   67 km

Have you been trying to follow the EUT Training Guidelines?

      Aaron:   For a while.

       Andy:   Yes (I figure if I wrote them, I should try to follow them)

       Chris:   Not really

Christian:      Only partly, since some of them are included in my daily rides (city riding, hill riding[not too steep, but there are a couple]), some are up to the weather (rain rides, I have done more than what is written in the guidelines) and others are hard to follow because of school. Then, I also used guidelines of my uncle.

      Elijah:      Yes, although not very well.

      Javier:   In theory . . . yes.

       John:   I've been exceeding them by at least double (in terms of distance).

       Scot:   Yes

   Tammy:   yes, for the most part

     Tanya:   Not really (sorry!!)

Do the training guidelines help?

      Aaron:   ... Me feel guilty and un-prepared? Yes

       Andy:      Yes, they give me short and long term goals

       Chris:      Probably would if I used them

Christian:      Yep. For example, they kind of force you to ride in the rain.

      Elijah:      They are a great help and give me short-term goals.

      Javier:      Yes, remind me that I need to practice.

       John:      Yes, but I am unable to achieve the suggested distances for staying on without breaks or dismounts.

       Scot:   Yes

   Tammy:   yes, they help me set goals and give me a reason to do specific rides of a certain length, it builds confidence knowing I can meet the suggested guidelines.

     Tanya:   It's nice to have an idea of what to shoot for, different things like hills and rain and city riding are a nice idea too.

Injuries (besides saddle soreness)

What injuries have you had during training?  Knee, Achilles, sore muscle in front/top of foot, severe muscle soreness, wipe outs, severe crotch soreness (lost skin)

      Aaron:      Soreness in the knees, the morning after and during the first part of the  next ride. It was localized to the left knee but now both equally hurt. I would like to attribute that to more uniform riding technique. (lost skin):      oh heck yes

       Andy:   I did have some knee problems in the beginning but now I don’t have any problems.

       Chris:      Scraped hands from falling, and numbness in my right big toe from riding a long time

Christian:      Problems I had so far was a pain on the outer side of the sole of my right foot and a muscle pain on the sides of my upper legs, which goes away after stretching.

      Elijah:      None.

      Javier:      Patellar tendonitis

       John:      Initial knee soreness (both), that hurt when climbing stairs; this has subsided.

       Scot:      Some knee and hip soreness. Heat rash and layers of skin.

   Tammy:      biggest problem is w/ knees, first the right and then left, but as I build up my muscles slowly, it's getting better. Also had some saddle soreness and one serious wipeout running into a fence - I sprained my wrist and got a black eye.

     Tanya:   No serious problems.

Do you use knee or ankle braces?

      Aaron:   No

       Andy:   No

       Chris:   No

Christian:   No

      Elijah:   No

      Javier:      Yes, for some time

       John:   No

       Scot:   Yes

   Tammy:   I did when my knees hurt but now I don’t

     Tanya:   No

Do they help?

      Aaron:   NA

       Andy:   NA

       Chris:   NA

Christian:      Probably, at least I heard that from Sven, who was the only one using them at Unicycle Across Greece and he was also the only one without any knee problems at all.

      Elijah:   NA

      Javier:      YES

       John:   NA

       Scot:   Yes

   Tammy:      somewhat

     Tanya:   NA

Crotch Help

What modifications have you made to your seat?

      Aaron:   Gel inserts and air-tube.

       Andy:      Carbon Fiber with Neoprene

       Chris:      None

Christian:      Neoprene Miyata seat with kind of a channel in the middle. Well, you know it!

      Elijah:   12" tube (Air seat)

      Javier:      None yet. Hope to get a "roach" seat, and maybe reinforce it with a carbon fiber frame.

       John:   I use a Semcycle air seat

       Scot:      Added gel inserts and mole skin

   Tammy:      none yet, its just a standard Miyata seat

     Tanya:   I made it a gel seat.

What do you wear for shorts? Padded bike spandex, Runners spandex (no padding), boxers, other.

      Aaron:   I have tried bike shorts and dislike their friendliness after a distance. I am experimenting with super-suede inserts. They seem nice so-far.

       Andy:      Runner’s spandex or boxers.

       Chris:      Cycling Shorts (Padded bike spandex)

Christian:      Usually spandex with shorts, but sometimes only spandex and for shorter rides sometimes only boxers (of course with shorts).

      Elijah:      Padded bike spandex.

      Javier:   I normally use thin nylon sweatpants. They feel OK.

       John:   I wear padded cycle spandex

       Scot:      Usually 2 layers of padded bike shorts

   Tammy:      padded spandex usually

     Tanya:      Padded shorts

Breaks

How often do you take breaks?

      Aaron:      Every 10k or so

       Andy:      About every 20 km I get off the uni.

       Chris:      About every 10 km

Christian:   Not too often. I try to take dismount brakes every 20k to stretch, but sometimes I make 30 and sometimes I only ride 15.

      Elijah:   I don't except for stand-up breaks, since most of my rides do not exceed 40k. Usually though, I have a destination which I stop at half way through my ride.

      Javier:   I try to be spontaneous about breaks. I take one every time I need one and make sure I drink water at least every 15 minutes. I also avoid riding for more than 2 hours in a row.

       John:   It depends. But generally one dismount for about 5 minutes every 40 minutes.

       Scot:   11 to 17 km

   Tammy:   with city riding I never take intentional breaks, I just use the built-in breaks at stop signs and stoplights as breaks. on long rides, I can go about 15 to 20 k without a break. my longest stretch w/no breaks is 25 k.

     Tanya:   I try to go for 20 k without breaks, especially at the beginning of rides. Longer rides get more frequent breaks at the end.

What kind of breaks? Stand-up riding, leaning while on uni, walking, sit-down?

      Aaron:      UIDM breaks. Un- Intentional Dismount Breaks- fall off run out, adjust  nether region if necessary, get uni lined up again and go.

       Andy:      Stand up riding breaks are mostly what I do but for longer rides or when I need to recharge I will go for a sit-down.

       Chris:      Leaning a while on uni

Christian:   I do stand-up brakes every now and then, take breaks holding onto something at some of the traffic lights (especially when they switch in front of me, so I can only pull in the break and grab the light). And the once mentioned above.

      Elijah:      Stand-up riding, leaning while on uni (at stoplights).

      Javier:      walking

       John:      Walking or sitting, stretching if desired

       Scot:      Walk or sit down. Usually the break is needed to relieve saddle soreness.

   Tammy:   all. more stand up and still stand breaks than walking or stopping

     Tanya:      Stand-ups occasionally, a few walking, some sit-down and eat and stretch.

Safety

What safety gear do you use? Helmet, gloves, knee pads, wrist guards

      Aaron:      Wrist guards

       Andy:      Gloves

       Chris:      None

Christian:   sun glasses. For me they are safety gear, because there are about 1 to 3 bugs every ride when I don't wear any.

      Elijah:      Helmet and gloves.

      Javier:   I wear regular gloves, a helmet and long sweatpants (to protect my knees). So far they have worked well.

       John:      Helmet

       Scot:      Gloves, wrist guards and shin guards

   Tammy:      gloves

     Tanya:      Gloves

Do they help?

      Aaron:   Yes with confidence and authenticity of appearance.

       Andy:      Yes, both on the extension and for falls.

       Chris:   NA

Christian:   Yes

      Elijah:      Hemet helps to push low branches out of the way gloves keep my hands from getting blisters from the extension. I have never fallen on them so I don't know what that will be like.

      Javier:   So far they have worked well.

       John:      Yes, I have hit my head/helmet on several hard things that I didn't see coming, and was very thankful for the helmet. Also, I sometimes hit speeds of 30+kph, and would never do that without the helmet.

       Scot:   yes

   Tammy:   yes, big help if I fall

     Tanya:      Well ... only one wipeout to report, and the hands are looking good!

Other

What time of day do you normally ride? Morning, mid-day, afternoon, evening

      Aaron:      Whenever I get to. Mostly mid-day or mid afternoon

       Andy:      Early morning or afternoon-evening

       Chris:      Morning & night

Christian:      Usually afternoon/evening because of school, but that will change in about a week.

      Elijah:      Evening, mostly. (6-8pm).

      Javier:      evening

       John:      Depends; mostly afternoons and evening, but I am trying to switch over to morning/afternoons

       Scot:      Afternoon

   Tammy:   all, I’ve done early morning, in the heat of the day, aft., and evening and a bit at night.

     Tanya:      Generally morning.

Has your weight changed during training?

      Aaron:   No

       Andy:   No

       Chris:   No

Christian:   No

      Elijah:   No, it has stayed at 133lbs. (I can't lose any!). One thing interesting is my resting pulse. It was at 55 before training and now it is at 46! And before I rode the 100k Iron man two years ago my pulse was 65! 

      Javier:   No

       John:   I don't think so.

       Scot:      Lost 8 lbs

   Tammy:   I think I’ve lost about 5 lbs

     Tanya:   No, not noticeably.