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DON'T BUY THIS BOOK this page last updated: 02/01/2015 10:39:11 PM
Need I remind you that you are a total idiot and easy to beat? This book might change that, and I would hate to see that happen.
This morning I was working on the training log for the 23+ Widder's Hump when Mary came in carrying the book and said, "This winter in Florida, you asked me to buy this book on watt meter training. Here it is." I gave it a quick look, saw what was contained in it, and decided my time today (making the Widder more competitive) would be best served writing a review to stop people from buying this book. Just to make sure you know what book I'm talking about, here is my bibliography entry for it:
One of the main reasons I hope you will not buy this book is because a quick skimming (such as Cranky would call "reading") reveals numerous instances where standard cycling nonsense is debunked and/or explained more lucidly than I have ever seen before. For example, this section beginning on page 43:
The book then goes on to provide a quick encapsulation of the various concept flavors of threshold training and puts them all in an easily understood nutshell. This certainly cannot be good for me. If people learn the basic concept behind threshold training, how can I ever expect to impress them with my genius grasp of arcane knowledge? Don't buy this book. In other places in the book, explanations are given in the form of simplified mathematical formulas, but then they have the temerity to place (right there in the same discussion) a clear statement of what it all means. For instance, as early as page 47 there is a sidebar defining P, CP, and AWC. Use is made of these two formulas:
and
Then right there in the very same sidebar the authors screw up and state: "Conceptually, CP is a power that can be sustained 'for a very long time without fatigue,' and is 'an inherent characteristic of the aerobic energy supply system.'" How dare they? You know, most of what we have been working on with the 23+ Widder's Hump training has been based on a simplified yet thorough understanding of a number of basic performance concepts such as this. In this book these concepts are described in a way to fast track people understanding them. If these ideas are made accessible to a large audience, how the fuck am I supposed to kick people's asses using them? You should especially not buy this book if you do not have a power meter (four types are described), because the concepts explained are easily applied to heart rate monitoring, trip computer speedometers, stopwatches, or even a wrist watch. There's no need for you to go overboard and start paying attention to your performance. That can't help me at all. Also, there are really nice "words" given to concepts that I have been using in Mary's training which I haven't even seen mentioned anywhere else. In fact, I came up with the ideas on my own, mostly by looking at physical reality and figuring out how to deal with it. If somebody starts assigning words to these things, then almost anybody else is going to be able to figure it out. That really pisses me off. Maybe the worst part of it all is that Mary bought the book directly from the website of one of the authors (apparently); so it came with a business card, some promotional brochure type stuff, and to top it off the book was signed! Shit. That means not only are the authors themselves likely to make some money on the sale, even idiots like you (who couldn't hope to understand even this highly consolidated human readable version of state-of-the-art training) will be able to get in touch with these people for more instruction. Not to mention, the hand written signature on the title page of the book means I now have to deal with taking care of a signed edition collector's item. The motherfuckers. Here's a photo of the business card that came in the book. Maybe if I post it here, your curiosity will be satisfied, and you won't bother buying this book. Really... please, don't. It's got all kinds of stuff in it that I don't want you to know.
I almost forgot, there was also this on the back of the business card.
Assholes. Fuck 'em. I'm going out for a ride and a cry.
this page last updated:
02/01/2015 10:39:11 PM |
