A few reasons why I do it. My legs, in general, are rarely cold. I’m the weirdo wearing shorts with a sweatshirt. My arms just always feel colder. I literally sleep with a blanket over my arms but my legs exposed. Plus my legs are working and generating heat, whereas my arms aren’t doing anything. And then there’s just practicality (or laziness). I may start with arm warmers but take them off mid ride. Arm warmers take 5 seconds to pull off and stuff in my pocket. Leg warmers on the other hand can be a right hassle to get off without stopping, which I will do everything in my power not to stop. On most days if I’m wearing both, I usually find my legs heating up too much and I want to pull them off. Let’s just say I don’t think I’ve ever gone out and thought, “I wish I had knee warmers.” But I’ve definitely turned around to get arm warmers.
To me, I think riding with knee warmers and short sleeves is just weird.
Wasn’t intended to be funny but make the point, in response to your anecdote. You used taking out the trash, to illustrate the risk of a slip and resulting fatal head injury. Yet, at the same time, you don’t see that as a reason for wearing a helmet taking the trash out. It would therefore be ludicrous to try to use that as a reason to wear a helmet when cycling.
You’re missing the point. Do you wear a seat belt when driving? Do we have to buckle up in an airplane? There are safety precautions we take regardless. Putting a bike helmet on is the proper thing to do. Don’t do it and some young kid wants to be like you with no helmet. Stupid stuff happens as I illustrated. It doesnt mean to wear a helmet to do an everyday task,. It highlights there is risk and that is definitely greater on the bike. You should be wearing a helmet for those around you.
Regularly doing Zwift races (<30 km) is a good substitute for high intensity (threshold/VO2max) workouts.
Edit: At least this is what I tell myself, after I’ve skipped yet another workout because doing a race is so much more fun and “hey there’s one starting in 10 min!”
It’s just my sceptical opinion. I have done a couple of UK “Glorious Gravel” events and it seems that 95% of people have gravel bikes. The second that the road gets slightly more “off” than a pure gravel fireroad they seem to be bouncing around all over the place and struggling to keep pointing the right direction. It looks like CycloCross. If we are all honest with ourselves: Cross looks silly.
I don’t understand how people enjoy Zwift racing once they realize that every setup is different and a lot of people are intentionally cheating. I find doing a workout where I’m competing against a known entity (me and my setup) far more satisfying.
It depends on what you want to do with the bike and what you prioritize. For me, personally, just knowing I would be stuck with my hands in one position for 3+ hours and that it’s harder to keep up with my fast friends when we hit the pavement or hardpack is enough to convince me the gravel bike is better for gravel rides. There are pros and cons to both approaches though and there is no “right” answer.
To each their own. I didn’t start because I was interested in racing. I was just bored with doing a hard workout on my own, so I joined my very first Zwift race… with the intention of just doing an approximate of my “planned” workout/intervals in the race event to see what it was like. I found that I really enjoyed the race dynamics, strategy and the general atmosphere. I could care less whether there are cheaters (of course there are), since I really don’t care at all about the race outcomes. I just enjoy going hard, learning how to strategize, learning about the game dynamics, and getting a good workout at the same time.
