Enticement

Is that the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth?

AOG = acts of God. Regarding your 99% - we bow to your superior knowledge but you can still perform at your personal best.

You're missing something - I can provide you with an individualized/customized Epic Battle Plan that works. If you stick to it - results guaranteed for as much as us mortals can control our destiny. If you don't, no guarantee. Interesting research indicated that 2% of mishaps are the result of AOG, more-or-less 8% mishaps result from conditions but 90% are the result of not doing what you're suppose to do.

I can guide your preparation but performance is in your hands. If you're a "jersey cow" you will never beat a race horse, but you can be the best "jersey cow" around of you follow a plan that works.

HaHa, presumptuous. Rest assured, I'm definitely not "battling"! My athletes' honestly perform well and I'm on capacity! Question remains: How many Epic riders participate with the "hope" but not the "assurance", and that is quite a risky way to invest all the time and money.

Why do you want to test VO2Max? There are 3 components to physical conditioning: 1) Cardio-vascular conditioning; 2) Neuro-muscular conditioning; and 3) Mind conditioning. VO2Max is only one component that only tells you how many tools you have available in one aspect, and not how much you use of it. The biggest chunk that determines performance belongs to the 3rd component, which can currently not be measured. Rather manage outputs than inputs ...

I'm glad you are not part of my R&D department!

Replies on topics are mos faceless and onanymoes, giving everyone the freedom of speech, or so it is perceived. Hence the manner of some responses - all in the spirit of communal discussion, with no reference to culture, religion, race, sex or origin. May common sense prevail ...

That is determined by your genetics and current level of conditioning. It is not a 1-size-fits-all. Changes should start happening within 3 months if you do the right things in the right sequence.

You'll be amazed at what physiological changes occur in your body when you start using it ...

Come on guys, what transports your oxygen & nutrients in your bod - your blood! We call this STAMINA training!

It is enough, provided you have a PLAN that WORKS!

You think Oscar Pistorius's technical team had a problem determining the right blades for him - that is kindergarden stuff if we start talking about bike design! Which one fits your riding style?

ANY training plan should be divided into an off-peak, pre-peak and peak period, and the respective conditioning elements on which you focus should be addressed according to that specific period within which you find yourself. Example: in the off-peak period you will give much more attention to establishing a well orchestrated logistical transport system within your body than what you would focus on development of speed. What period are you training in now with your Epic prep?

Your brain, your ultimate anticipatory regulator, reserves a number of muscle cells for emergency purposes. The more you are conditioned the more cells your brain allow to be used for non-emergencies - that is called "pacing strategy". The target time as you mention is dependent on too many variables like topography, weather conditions, stored and available energy and others. So, on the day, don't even think of performing better than what you have trained for. If you do - expect cramping! The process of conditioning is aimed at exposing your body and mind to your level of performance you expect from it. So, if you have trained for 20 ave, you will perform at 20 ave! That is why athletes do interval training - but there are 4 types and each type has different levels of intensity. And these must preferably be dealt with in a sequential manner.

Each muscle fiber has a nerve ending running to it and in a well conditioned muscle these nerve endings fire simultaneously. When you stop training, your initial "loss" pertains to losing sync between these nerve ending. Catching up again is relatively quick - just restore sync. Losing real conditioning is when your logistical transport system goes for a ball of chalk - after about 3 months your capillaries really start to deteriorate. The biggest problem of resuming training again is that your mind tells you that you can start where you have stopped, and then your mind starts with that process of cognitive dissonance.

We have been approached and we're considering it, However, we're cautious not to be linked to a certain brand and offer advice without brand prejudice.

1000% agreed! You can train a jersey cow as much as you like but she'll never win the July. But no race horse can give milk like she can ... its horses for courses. That is why we encourage riders to not only get stuck with XCM (marathon riding) but also try XCO (cross country). Crux is, if you can realize your potential, it is extremely rewarding when you perform according to that - if that implies a podium, great! If it implies coming in at number 100, also great!

More is not better - its about focused conditioning. That 10,000 hours thing is a fallacy and scientifically proven crap! The sequence is determine your goal; determine your current status with respect to your goal; and design a project plan to get you there We call that an individualized focused conditioning gap analysis. If someone has the luxury of time to do it differently, go for it, but it is not in line with top sport performance! Not referring to anyone mentioned on this topic, its just the principal.