As Lance Armstrong said a long time back, 'It's not about the bike'.
I suspect that most Sportive.com readers will know the story of Lance's fall from grace, so we won't go into that. Think about it for a moment though, and you will realise that Lance was actually correct. It is, indeed, not about the bike; but, instead it's about getting further up those pesky Strava segment leaderboards!
Why not answer these seven simple questions to find out the truth you already know?
Q1: After a long ride, sportive, commute, trip to Tesco or just a quick evening blast, what is the first thing you do?
A. Save your ride and upload your statistics to Strava
B. As above - but your statistics upload automatically because you've set up your cycle computer to synch with your phone
C. Put bike in shed / garage / front room / team bus?
Q2: Having reunited yourself with the sofa and cursed about the rubbishness of Bluetooth connectivity between your cycle computer and your smartphone, do you then...
A. Log in to Strava to check for kudos, even though the activity is still called 'Morning Ride', 'Afternoon Ride' or 'Evening Ride'
B. As above - but you fill in the descriptions, add pictures and give the ride a 'proper' name long before the kudos arrive
C. Quaff a half-litre recovery shake?
Q3: While you wait for the kudos to roll in, do you...
A. Start to click on the gazillion Strava segments that you rode through, especially those with hill category designations
B. As above - but only after you've checked the segments with the seductive PB badge
C. Tell your wife / husband / kids / pets / TV / plants / yourself / anyone who happens to be in your house that you have a new PB?
Q4: As family connections are now re-established, you could go and clean your bike or at least lube the chain. But do you actually...
A. Check your latest segment statistics against the people you follow on Strava
B. Wish you had paid for Strava Summit so you can do A
C. Clean the bike and oil the chain?
Q5. Safe in the knowledge that your latest deposit of digital litter is now safely stored with no environmental consequence because it's in the cloud somewhere*, do you...
A. Tweet, Share, Like, Post, Email, WhatsApp, or Message your Strava brilliance because you're now 1532nd /4567 on the Cote-du-Pointless-50m-bump rather than 1533rd /4566
B. As above - but also compliment yourself on your genius idea of taking your slower mate on the ride, knowing he (or she) has never ridden the Cote-du-Pointless-50m-bump
C. Stretch out those aching muscles?
*Did you know that the Information and Communications Technology (ICT) industry emits more CO2 than the aviation business globally, and has done since 2013?
Q6: Someone asks you if you're going to sit around in your lycra for the rest of the day. Do you...
A. Quickly check your Distance, Longest Ride and Climbing statistics in the Club Leaderboard
B. As above - but you compare your Last Week statistics, as well as those from This Week, then update your personal spreadsheet because Strava clubs only have two weeks' of Leaderboard information
C. Ditch the lycra?
Q7: The doorbell rings and your partner asks you to answer the door. Do you...
A. Pretend you didn't hear, because you're busy creating a new Strava segment
B. As above - but you genuinely didn't hear the doorbell because you're watching a YouTube video on how to create a new segment
C. Jump in the shower?
Conclusions
Mostly A: You are a Strava segment junkie
Mostly B: Strava has taken over your life
Mostly C: Unless you are Geraint Thomas, take the quiz again and answer it honestly this time!
Medication for Strava Segment Junkies
There's no point in denying that leaping up leaderboards, being the king of kudos and pummelling your personal bests has become very important to all of us that use Strava. So, how can you surprise your followers and show real improvements? Here are a few suggestions...
1) Buy an e-Bike
2) Spend lots of money on a new bike and hope it has a magical effect
3) Contact Sportive Cycle Coaching for a personalised training plan
About Sportive Cycle Coaching
Sportive Cycle Coaching specialises in helping cyclists improve their 3 Fs - Fitter, Further, Faster - it's a simple as that! And they are giving away a FREE 3 month training plan to the first 5 readers from Sportive.com to get in touch.
Additionally, all Sportive.com readers who make contact will be eligible for a 10% discount on any service. All you need to do is email Andy at the address [email protected] stating that you read this article on Sportive.com.
In case you are wondering, Andy Tomkins is a Level 3 Cycle Coach under the Association of British Cycle Coaches and is also trained as a bike fitter, using the BikeFit systems and approach.
See you in Strava!
0 Comments