Glitch for Pete with Hitch defeat..

Chain Gang 26/10/11

It was inevitable, Dave Hitch returned from his snowy mountain hideaway, where he has been training in Rocky 4 style to take the sprint and stop Pete’s reign for one week at least. A cold but clear night and again a great turnout with 25+ riders on the circuit. The main group had 10 riders for the majority of the session, splintering with a few laps to go but still holding 8 right to the end. An early attempt to reach the line by Pete was pegged back by Dave Lovatt and suddenly I found myself on his wheel.. this cold be the night I made my comeback.. a perfect lead out!!

With 40m to go I stood up and gave it all I had, accelerating with the apparent velocity of continental drift.. the entire group came past with Hitch darting clear down the outside.. In a moment which resembled an Olympic champion qualifying for the 100m final, he gave a quick glance 0f acknowledgement and was gone.. into the darkness to make his way home, brushing aside clambering tv reporters of various nationalities.

We completed a half lap cool down and discussed where it all went wrong, Rich and Robbo agreed that a lead out train was necessary to claim a win. We analysed the final 400m, the mistakes we had made, then went home for tea.. already dreaming about next Wednesday when we can return to the Pimbo Chain Gang.

Bare foot running.. the basics explained..

Bare foot running is a real trend at the moment, but what exactly does it represent and why are some shoes considered bare foot and others aren’t?

The structure of your running shoes can offer some added benefits, to keep it simple, we’ll focus on 3 main functions:

1. Support – the shoe may be designed to stop your foot rolling inwards excessively (pronation shoes) or they may not have this function (neutral shoes).

2. Cushioning – some shoes have a great deal more cushioning in the heel and forefoot to absorb impact, this tends to be more the case for road running shoes.

3. Drop – refers the difference in height between your heel and forefoot. If you look at your shoes from a ‘side on’ view, there tends to be a thicker wedge of cushioning under the heel than under the forefoot. This means that when you stand in those shoes, your heels are a little higher / further from the ground than your toes (termed a planter flexed ankle position).

For the time being, lets not worry about the support and cushioning as these are the 2 most commonly discussed functions. If we are focusing on barefoot style, it’s the ‘drop’ which is most significant.

What’s the most economical way to run?

Running economy is a simple measurement of ‘miles per gallon’ for athletes and is defined simply as how much oxygen you require to run at a given speed. Generally as fitness improves, your economy improves and all speeds just get easier.

Which tissues do we use for running?

There are 2 main things which we use to propel ourselves forwards, the first is muscular contraction (which requires oxygen) and the second is elasticity in tendons which to some extent act like coiled springs, store energy upon impact and then propel us forwards.

Tendon elasticity

It is thought that both tendon stiffness and elasticity are largely responsible for our running economy. If our tendons act like coiled springs, store energy upon foot strike then ‘recoil’ to propel us forwards, we don’t need to use the muscles as much. Muscles use oxygen and tendons don’t.. so economy improves. In simple terms, if we bounce, we don’t need to use muscles to ‘mechanically run’.

Where does barefoot come into it?

To generate this ‘coiled spring bounce’ elite runners are more likely to land on their forefoot and as they do so, the heel will be slightly ‘off the ground’. At this point the heel will drop, stretching the achilles, which then acts like a coiled spring storing energy. As the achilles then ‘recoils’ the runner is propelled forwards.. this type of elastic action is sometimes termed ‘plyometric’.

Shoes classed as ‘barefoot’ style have less ‘drop’, meaning that your heel and forefoot are the same height from the ground. Consider the description of running above, if at the point when your forefoot hits the ground, there is a large wedge underneath your heel, this makes it impossible for the heel to drop, the achilles to stretch and the runner to generate ‘energy return’ for propulsion. This is what tends to happen if your shoes have significant drop (heel higher than forefoot). The heel has nowhere to go, it can’t drop and stretch the achilles and it has a 3 inch foam wedge underneath.

What does it mean for me?

It is fair to presume that shoes which have a greater drop (thicker heel cushioning) are more likely to promote heel striking, which eliminates any elastic energy from the achilles or knee mechnism. This will not always be the case and running style, in particular stride length and cadence will have an impact upon your foot strike. Whether you forefoot or heel strike will also impact upon whether you pronate and ‘how you pronate’, which adds more complication to the whole story..

To conclude, depending upon your running style, barefoot shoes may be better for you and lead to enhanced economy. Be wary of potential dangers – this extra strain placed on your achilles, calf and lower leg muscles can lead to problems if you do not give yourself the opportunity to adapt progressively. Seek advice!

Regards
The Endurance Store
Appley Bridge
Wigan
WN6 9AE

Influence of the muscle–tendon unit’s mechanical and morphological properties on running economy. The Journal of Experimental Biology 209, 3345-3357

Changes in tendon stiffness and running economy in highly trained distance runners. Eur J Appl Physiol (2010) 110:1037–1046

Winter Cycle TT Series 1.. A windy day on Parbold..

Event 1 of the winter cycle TT series took place this morning over 2 laps of a wet and windy Parbold Course, thankfully yhe tail wind was pushing riders up the hill rather than working against!! There were 9 riders in total and perhaps having seen the forecast, and the fact that there was an important rugby game on TV,  there was never going to be a huge turnout for the first event of the series!!

It turned into a 3 club affair with Max Gear, The Endurance Store and Southport CC (including one tandem team). Mike Ashurst was comfortably the strongest rider of the day clocking an impressive 31:27 and now leads the series..

The next event is Sunday 14th December, 13.8 miles, 2 laps of the Cobbs Brow Course from Newburgh. Registration will once again be at the shop 8:00-9:00am followed by a ride over to the start line.

Mike Ashurst	Max Gear	00:31:27
Wayne Greenhalgh	Max Gear	00:32:59
Marc Laithwaite	TES	00:34:25
Paul Mason	TES	00:35:55
Nick Bennett	TES	00:38:01
Matthew Burdekin	Southport CC	00:39:35
Alfie Shaw	Southport CC	00:42:40
Richard and Sue Cary	Southport CC	00:44:30
Daniel Burdekin	Southport CC	DNF

See you out there on the road..

Regards
The Endurance Store
Appley Bridge
Wigan
WN6 9AE

We’re in our new location..

We’ve found our new home in Appley Bridge which is a great location. Most of the stock has now arrived aside from a few remaining parcels.. Myself, Angela and Paul are happy as it’s close to home and we know all the running routes! Going forwards our plans are to build the store to include more stock, more services and a high quality coffee machine.. not necessarily in that order!

Morning and lunchtime runs over Parbold or Ashurst are now part of our weekly meeting strategy and Joss the shop dog has been checking out the muddiest tracks and testing her 4 paw drive to the fullest..

Our triathlon training group has really taken off, the Tuesday evening swim session is filling and the Sunday bike ride is also growing in popularity. Details of all the sessions can be found on the home page of our website www.theendurancestore.com, follow the link to triathlon club & training.

We have a wide range of running shoes for men and women and there’s free in house gait analysis if you would like us to check out your feet first! We also have a great set of local contacts for physio and sports massage who we can refer to if necessary!

Call in and see us soon and we’ll hopefully catch you out there on the roads and trails..

The Endurance Store, Winter Cycle Time Trial Series 2011/12

New for 2011/12 is the winter cycle time trial series. The series consists of 4 different time trial courses on 4 separate dates throughout the winter and is open to all cyclists and triathlon competitors who are looking for a winter challenge to motivate themselves through the cold months!

The dates and courses are as follows (click each to see course):

Sunday 23rd October, Parbold Loop 1 (11.2 miles / 2 loops 5.6)

Sunday 4th December, Cobbs Brow (13.8 miles / 2 loops 6.9)

Sunday 8th January, Parbold Loop 2 (8.4 miles / 1 loop)

Sunday 12th Feb, Parbold Loop 3 (12 miles / 2 loops x 6)

These informal and friendly events are organised by The Endurance Store Triathlon Club and are training sessions only, but we will award prizes for the series winners who complete all 4 events.

Entry is £2 (payable on the day) which is your ‘day membership’ to the club, thereby providing insurance for the ride. Registration for each event will be 8:00-9:00am at The Endurance Store, Appley Bridge, WN6 9AE and each event will start at approximately 9:30am. The start for each event is 10 mins at most from the shop location and riders will start at 30 second intervals (start time allocated on teh morning).

There will be free refreshments after each ride at the shop location.

Numbers are limited for these events so you must pre-register and indicate which events you intend to ride, this will help us to cater for the correct number of riders. To register for each of the events PLEASE GO HERE and register for free. This register will be used as the sign on sheet for the day so no register.. no ride.

Please direct all queries to sales@theendurancestore.com / 01257 251215 or call in and see us during opening hours.