100% effort, 100% back?

Are you getting 100% back from the 100% effort you put into your cycling?

None of us want only 80-90% back for the 100% effort we put into our cycling, cycling is hard enough without missing out on that extra 10-20%, but for most of you out there thats all you'll be getting back from your training and racing(or less the longer you leave it!) With what i know now there was plenty of times i didn't take care of my rest and recovery enough, as this is where that extra 10-20% would have come from, not from me pressing on the pedals more.

The more i see and speak to riders, last night being the case which is one of the reasons for writing this, someone told me their pre race meal at the weekend was a bowl of Frosty's! the more i realise their nutrition is letting them down and it doesn't matter what training i give them they just won't get the best out of them selves. People have to understand (and people still don't!)that you don't get fitter by just climbing on your bike, but by recovering harder and one of the biggest parts of recovery is your nutrition, having enough energy in the tank for training/racing and be more efficient at using it.

The next problem I see is poor bike position (in some cases very poor) how some people have managed I don't know, saddles too low by up to 2-3cm, even upto 2 cm to high, loosing them up to 20watts in power, this is not just novices, but elite cyclists as well. Also how a bike handles is not just down to the bike but how it is set up.

If you don't sort out the above you will always be behind what you are truely capable of on the bike.

Instead of spending money the newest, whitest pair of shoes, think about getting the above sorted, you will get far more out of it.

Race radios

Can't say what it's like to race with race radio's as I've never used them, as most of us haven't, but everyone needs to learn to race without them, which every pro has, they learn how to read a race, most wouldn't be pro's if they couldn't, the break will nearly always get caught with or without race radios, the best riders will always be there when it matters, with or without their director in their ear . One of the arguments is about race safety, someone said on facebook there was no problems before race radios!? (sorry this is what started me off) take a look at this http://www.flickr.com/photos/schueyjr/1625179050/ liege Bastonge liege 1988, a ditch was dug a cross the road the day before the race, i ended up in the field, a good part of the bunch came down, Davis Phinney ended up going through the back of car due to crash, could this have been avoided with race radios, hindsight is a great thing?
I have experienced team cars going passed to talk riders in the bunch or going to talk to there riders in the break with 2 wheels on the road and 2 wheels on the grass verge or pavement, 200 riders, 20 odd team cars, DS's that think they are rally drivers, narrowly avoiding riders and spectators (or not as the case may be)
Am I for them or against them, I'm for safe racing, where this comes from I don't know thats for the people on the shop floor to decide not people in armchairs. Am i for exciting racing, yes, did i see it before radios, yes, have i seen some since race radios came in, YES