Thanks to the givers!

I'm always amazed by the generosity in our community, the following people/business have contributed to this amazing Goldsprint experience:

Laughing Dog Brewing has been generous enough to throw in growlers to the top men's and women's times from each night.  They also allow us to take over the brewery and set up bikes, electronics and a projector...feels much like home.

Surly Bikes this week shipped me a big box full of swag.  We gave out some great gear last Tuesday and have lots more for the races to come.  In case you were wondering, those are Surly bikes we hammer on each week.

John Hatcher from EzyDog also threw in tees and throw toys.  John has been putting down some impressive times himself and is getting faster.  Keep an eye on him.

And of course, all the details associated with the Goldsprints are made possible by Greasy Fingers Bikes N Repair and our loyal customers.

Winter Goldsprints #2

Reminder that race #2 in the Winter Goldsprint series is this Tuesday (Jan 24th), 6pm at Laughing Dog Brewing.

$5 to race in the tournament for the night...if we have less than 20 people we'll do double elimination.  If we have more than 20, we'll probably do single elimination due to time.  Top 2 women and men will get an invitation to the championships on Mar 13th.

Don't feel like racing the tournament?  Single grudge matches are only $1.  Or just come out, cheer and watch the fun!

1st race night recap

We met last night and got our first races in the books.  First, let me say thanks to all for their patience as we started off with a couple of small technical issues.  Once we got our sensors aligned and swapped computer, the races when off without a glitch.  This is a learning process for all, and we will all get better as the weeks go on...or so I hope.

Anyway, we had 15 racers with some really, really close finishes.  Dan ruled the men's division with a best time of 17.805 and Al came in 2nd with a best time of 18.576.  The ladies division was small...where are all our strong ladies?  Leah took 1st and had a best time of 24.348 and our very own Jane came in 2nd and had a best time of 25.108.  

men's final...Dan vs. Al

women's final...Leah vs. Jane

Dan and Leah both earned a filled Laughing Dog growler and title of Mr. and Ms. Goldsprints for the night.  Our top 4 finishers: Dan, Al, Leah and Jane all earned an automatic invitation to the championships on 3/13.  Great job by all!!  

Here are more PICS of the evening.

Below are last nights brackets with times.

Dan rounded out the night with the award for best dressed and got some sweet gloves.

Thanks to Laughing Dog Brewing and their crew for taking care of and allowing us into their kennel.  See you next race night, Jan 24th at 6pm.  

Race series starts Tuesday

OK, so it's time to get down to business. The Winter Goldsprint Series starts this Tuesday, 6pm at Laughing Dog Brewing.

I've been tweaking the race software and think I have the mph bug fixed. Minor detail that did not affect race outcomes but still a fun fact to watch during the races.

Growler to tournament winners. And "special" prize to best/most creatively dressed!

How fast are riders going?

So, last time we got together for Goldsprints, our race software claimed Dan "The Man" broke 100mph during one of the heats. No doubt Dan is a stud and his cadence is something you gotta see. But did he really break the century mark? Let's do a little "sports science."

WARNING: the following contains math and bike geekiness

I made some calls to the "so called experts" of Goldsprints at Opensprints and they have actually addressed this same issue. But of course, bikers are competitive.

So, first let's go over some particulars for our Goldsprint system (as they are not all the same). We are running a 56t:13t gear ratio. We are using a 700x23c wheel/tire which has a circumference of 2.096 meters. With these numbers we can calculate how far our bike would travel with 1 crank rotation. Math: (56t/13t) x 2.096M = 9.01 meters. This means that if our Goldsprints bike was not attached to the rollers, we could travel 9.01 meters for every crank rotation. Now that is some travel.

Another useful detail to know is how many crank rotations are then needed to complete our 500 meter races. Now that we know how far we travel for every crank rotation that is easy to determine. Math: 500M/9.01M = 55.49...let's say approx 55 crank rotations. That doesn't sound to difficult huh? Especially when the bike is on rollers which provide little to no resistance. That means when you are Goldsprinting you are racing in an almost ideal riding world.

Why race? Well, Goldsprints determine the last factor: time. How fast can you turn the cranks the needed 55 times compared to the guy riding next to you...all in this almost perfect riding situation.

These stats are all fun but let's get back to Dan and his race. He completed 500M in 17.75 secs and the race software claimed he peaked at 101 mph. Math 500M/17.75sec = 28.16 meters/sec. Meters/sec mean nothing to me. Math: 28.16m/s x 2.24 (1meters/sec = 2.24miles/sec) = 63.07mph. Now this would be Dan's average speed and do doubt he had some spikes. But he probably did not reach 100mph. Sorry Dan...but Fred says you can still keep the Free Beer for a Month prize!

I say Dan probably did not reach 101mph, but check out this video of a guy who set the world record on rollers at 126mph http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q77GMkXzOVE

I just love that chainring.

I contacted the Goldsprints software developer and there appears to be a bug when riders reach unusually high speeds/cadences. It does not happen very often. And in the end, the max mph reading does not mean anything to the race, the winner or the results. The peak mph is merely a stat that we can all brag about and rub in our buddy's face.

I will keep every up to speed on the progress of the "fix." Until then, keep training and we'll see you at the races Jan 10th.

The greatest Goldsprinter ever?

Talk about a stud, Manfred has held seven Guinness world records for roller racing related cycling. He has won over 80 roller races most of these between 1983 and 1990, in June1984 he won six events (and six bikes) in one month!

Manfred Nuescheler beats Olympic Champion Pascal Richard in a 500m roller race.

Manfred’s Amazing Records:

1. Sustained power of 1020 watts average over one minute to power 100 electric razors (13 May 1991)
2. Maximum peak power 2378 watts for 3 seconds to power 200 energy saving light bulbs (22 March 1995)
3. 14.36 seconds for 500 metres, average speed 126kph / 78mph, maximum speed 133 kmh /83mph
4. on the CYCLUS 2 Recordtrainer Gear ratio 54×12 / 121.5″ (15 August 1997)
5. 32.48 seconds for 1000m average speed 111kph / 69mph, maximum speed 119 kmh /74mph
6. on the CYCLUS 2 Recordtrainer Gear ratio 54×12 / 121.5″ (8 August 1997)
7. Cadence record 271 RPM on 170mm cranks (9 March 1990)
8. Absolute speed record on a standard bike164.1 kmh / 102 mph 54 x 11 gear (16 September 2000)
9. Acceleration 0-100kmh in 1.7 seconds 52 x 13 gear (28 March 1990)

Courtesy of goldsprint.com

Demo Night Recap

So, we had our first demo night and it went off without a hitch...well unless you call one rider bowing out cause he was about to hurl. 12 people raced, many watched and many, many people were curious as to what these Goldsprints were all about.

We held a mini tournament and Dan crushed us all! We had a couple races that were riders finishing times were with 1/1,000 of a sec...amazing. While the guys were hashing out speeds (if you like math read my next post on speeds reached) and brackets, Jane and Lindsey represented the ladies in an all or nothing heat.

Even I got out from behind the computer to join in the fun...

It was a fun night of biking and brews at Laughing Dog and I can't wait until the series kicks off on Jan 10th. Race 1 night or all 5 or just come watch the fun!