Speed Basics
Speed basics
by Kevin Hansen
Speed is what racing is all about. Because the racing chair is a human powered vehicle, it can only go as fast as the person propelling it. There are however, two other factors besides the physical condition of the athlete, that greatly affect speed: Rolling resistance and wind resistance. Rolling resistance becomes less critical the faster you go. However, up to about 12 mph it really matters. So if you are in a race with many corners or steep hills, or playing a court sport, rolling resistance is more important than aerodynamics. Wind resistance increases as the square of the velocity, so the faster you are going the more important it becomes.
Because the goal of any racer is to go as fast as possible, it makes sense to eliminate as many of both kinds of resistance as possible. Here are some ways we can improve any chair's speed.
Improved aerodynamics
Whenever people engage in athletic competition, a conflict arises between those who make the contest rules and those who want to gain an advantage by interpreting them. Our racing rules currently allow only so much aerodynamic advantage. Here are some methods of decreasing wind resistance available to wheelchair racers at this time.
a) Decrease the aerodynamic drag of the human form by decreasing the front area exposed to wind. Get your body into an egg shaped position with your back as flat as possible, without impaing your ability to breathe. The kneeling position used by many of the top racers is very aerodynamic.
b) Studies done by Kyle and Burke for the U. S. Cycling team show that wearing a streamlined helmet will reduce aerodynamic drag by 7 percent. The worst possible tactic is to go without a helmet! A full length Lycra Spandex suit with aero hood, long sleeves, etc., can decrease overall wind drag by 11 percent.
c) Streamline the chair by eliminating exposed sharp corners or protrusions and smooth the roughness of components. The T - frame design of today's racing chairs has much less area exposed to wind than the older V shaped frames. Disk wheels, fewer spokes, aero rims and spokes all produce lower drag. Kyle and Burke found that an inefficiently shaped water bottle can add 0.2 pounds of drag. Sheathed brake cable exposed to wind adds .03 pound per foot of drag. That would make a difference of about three tenths of a second in a 4000 meter race.
D) Drafting another racer can reduce wind drag by 40 percent. However, the overall drag and required power out put is only lowered by 30 percent, because rolling friction does not decrease.
Reduction of rolling resistance
Larger diameter wheels, higher tire pressures, smoother and thinner tread, narrow tires and tread patterns, less weight on the tires, and proper choice of wall and tread material can all be used in one form or another to lower rolling resistance.
a) Improper tire pressure is one of the most common mistakes racers make. Too little air increases rolling resistance. Too much air increases your chance of flatting. Always keep your tires at the recommended psi while in use.
b) Toe-in & toe-out: Too much of either causes scrubbing and slows you way down. To check this measure up x inches on the back of your left wheel and mark the spot then measure up the same distance on the other wheel. Then measure the distance across from the inside of one wheel rim to the other. Then follow the same procedure on the front of the wheels. The distance across should be the same front and rear. If the front measures more you've got toe-out, less is toe-in. They both rob you of speed.
c) Bearings - Factory direct sealed bearings can be made faster. Most bearings are packed with thick grease. They are designed for tremendous abuse without any maintenance. Wheelchair racers, on the other hand, care more about speed than maintenance so we want to make them roll as fast and long as possible.
d) Clinchers roll faster than improperly mounted tubulars. Badly seated tires deform excessively, causing an effective braking force due to scrubbing against the road surface. The lightest clinchers are also less prone to flats than a 150 gram tubular, especially in the rain. If you flat you lose.
THE RACE PLAN
The first thing every athlete should do to prepare for a race is to set specific goals. They should be realistic and attainable. Planning on winning the Boston Marathon when you've only been racing 3 years is unrealistic. But planning on going under 2 hours might be attainable. Another goal might be to get some good drafting experience or to plan on being with a certain group of racers at Heartbreak Hill, knowing you are a better hill climber and will then be able to dust them. Winning a particular race may not be a realistic goal for you. But by meeting YOUR individual goals you gain a personal victory which will improve your confidence and enable you to step up to the next level of performance. After you've decided what your specific goals for a given race are -you can develop a plan which will enable you to meet them.
If you want to WIN a major event you have to plan to win. Rarely is a race won because of dumb luck, yet many well known wheelchair racers enter competitions without effective planning. How many times do you hear "Oh I would've won if my buddy had been there to block" or "I would've won if so & so had taken a pull"! In racing should've & would've DON'T COUNT!!! The racer who wins consistently has conceived, commited to, and executed a race plan. And that plan probably took into account several different contingencies. Weeks before a race try to picture yourself racing and put all the other people from the race in your mind. Picture every possible situation that you might find yourself in...behind someone, boxed in, being bumped from behind or the side, different positions, laps or meters to go, and of course the final stretch. Imagine what YOU can do to counter any situation. Write all the possibilities down. Then as the race date gets closer visualize all the possible situations - but ALWAYS picture yourself winning the race - no matter what! If you accidentally picture yourself losing, ERASE that picture out of your mind and picture yourself winning. This practice should alleviate some pre-race nervousness and it WILL give you confidence.
RACE DAY ROUTINE
Champions leave nothing to chance. Draw up a chronological chart which indicates exactly what will ideally happen, including your thoughts & feelings, on the day of competition.
Here is an example:
TIME ACTION THOUGHTS FEELINGS BEHAVIOR
6AM Waking up "I'm ready!" excited easy stretching
6:15 eating breakfast "Jet fuel for my engine!" calm relaxed chewing
6:45 loading equipment "tools of my trade" disciplined methodical
7AM driving to race go over race plan resolved relaxed
8:30 physical warm-up "My arms are atomic!" confident measured strokes"
8:50 staying warm "I've trained well" very calm keeping loose
8:55 take off jacket go over 2 race goals building energy shake out hands
8:59+listening for gun "I'm confident I'm ready" powerful deep breaths
9AM The START "steady power" calm & confident perfect technique
Training Principles
There are certain physiological "rules" which are essential components of any succesful training program. Some of the components, or training principles, which I incorporate into every training program are listed below.
Goal Setting
Setting challenging yet realistic goals is of critical importance in wheelchair racing or any other athletic endeavour. If you have only been racing 2 years and are not a very good hill climber a goal of winning this year's Boston Marathon is unrealistic. If you have clocked 4 minutes for the mile then a goal of a 3:56 by the end of track season is probably not challenging enough.
Moderation is a very important component of any athletes training program. If you go hard all the time you will fall apart. If you try to do too much too soon your condition will deteriorate instead of improving. Hard/Easy is a philosophy everyone should incorporate into their program. If you have a hard workout at 90% effort on Monday you should do an easy workout at no more than 60% effort on Tuesday. A week of very intense competitions should be followed by a week of recuperation. Rest is as important as work.
Progression is essential for improvement. If you do the same workout at the same pace all the time your metabolism will adjust and you will not get any faster. Workouts must get gradually harder with time. The pace you do your tempo runs at in January should be slower than the pace of your tempo runs in April. The interval sessions you do in May will be slower than the intervals you run in June. If you try to go too fast too soon you run the risk of peaking too early. Furthermore, as your career progresses your workouts will have to get longer and harder on a yearly basis if you want to stay competitive.
Adaptability is critical to racing success because no two races are the same. We must learn to adjust to changing needs and conditions. If you live in an area that gets a lot of snow in winter you will need to adapt by doing your workouts on a roller or an ergometer. When it snows or is raining hard, some racers will do speed workouts in a parking garage under a hotel. Other days they will do workouts on a hand crank ergometer. I know of racers in mild climates who have prepared for the heat and humidity of the Peachtree Race, in Atlanta on July 4 by putting their rollers in a laundry room with a humidifier on high. Racers in flat areas of California prepare for the hills of Boston by driving 45 minutes to a mile long hill. Adaptability is making do with what you have.
The Callousing Effect is about getting yourself tough enough for competition. You have to push yourself hard enough in practice so that you can deal with the stress of racing. This means doing your workouts in a variety of weather because races are rarely called off because of weather. If you have been doing your workouts in the rain and your opponents haven't, you've gained an advantage.
You need to plan your training to simulate any race conditions you may encounter. This might mean doing your workouts at the same time of day as the race is scheduled. Or doing several time trials of different distances all on the same day to simulate the qualifying heats you may encounter at National Championships. Pushing yourself just a little bit harder at the end of a workout will help you find the strength to come back and pass your opponent at the end of a difficult race.
Variation keeps you from getting stale. You can achieve variety in your training by following the hard/easy principle; by cross training with a hand cycle, ergometer, kayak, swimming, etc.; by changing your training routes, locations and partners; and most importantly by cycling your training with periodization, including an off - time each year.
Last updated on 20 Oct 2009 at 8:36 pm by Eli
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