Built for the long haul and perfected on the cobbles of the northern Classics, Synapse won Bicycling magazine’s 2010 “Best Plush Bike” award and Top Velo’s “Cyclosportif Bike of the Year".  Alloy frame, Shimano 105 Groupset, Carbon fork and seat stays.  For more info, click here. 

Receive a $30-$60 discount when you trade in your old pedals for a pair of LOOK Keo or Blades.  Over 50% of 2011 Tour de France teams use LOOK pedals.  Let us show you why.  We have test pedals available.

The Grand Prix 4000 S can do more than just look good. With the new
Black Chili Compound rolling resistance is reduced by 26%, grip is increased
by 30% and mileage is increased by 5%.

Craig Mackie - Fusion Sales Manager, is currently riding this bike and here is what he says.....

"This bike is super lively, definitely a racing bike, not for the faint hearted.  The Orca Gold is so responsive that it takes a bit of learning to figure out how to handle it, but once figured, I have full confidence going into corners with this bike.  The power transfer is awesome and immediate yet I can still ride this bike comfortably for 6 hours. 

With Sram Red, Zipp 101s on a 57cm frame, the Orca bike weighs in at 6.7kg!  Orbea have designed a really unique, edgy frame but its not just to look pretty, every part of the frame is designed with function in mind.    I'm loving it!"   For more info click here.

Orbea Orca pictured above with Campagnolo Record Groupset and Campagnolo Bora wheels: RRP $13,999.

Fusion Cycles is now a LOOK bike dealer.  We have a LOOK 695 Road bike (see image above) and LOOK 586 Frameset instore with more coming over the next month.  Watch this space for LOOK VIP product night soon.

Course Content:

1. How to change a flat tyre and tips to do it fast

2. What to do to maintain your bike after riding in the wet

3. General maintenance to prolong the life of your bike parts

4. Bike servicing – how often, what your bike will need

Bike Maintenance course is FREE and will be held at Fusion Cycles 68 Commercial Rd, Newstead. This course is a demonstration workshop, no bike needed. Click here to register by email.

Shane Bedford - Fusion Race Team rider has offered Fusion customers a 'how to hop logs' skills session on Saturday 21 May 2-4pm Gap Creek Reserve Carpark, Gap Creek Road, Kenmore Hills.  If you would like to come to this session, please click here to register by email.

Age: 27
Occupation: Engineer

How did you get into cycling?  I have always been an outdoors, active person and into bikes, from crashing my plastic trike off the side of the mountaintop driveway into the rainforest and reappearing 3 hrs later at age 3. My hometown, Cairns, is a mountain bike mecca.  I started racing Mtbs when I was 10 and got onto the road at 15, as crosstraining for Mtbs. i haven't looked back!

I love getting out on the bike. Rain, Hail or Shine (well maybe not always rain) I love getting out and riding. Its an escape from the rabble of every day and the speed is something that beats the pants off running. You get to meet some pretty cool people and the coffee is always good afterwards. I have always been super-competitive so I love racing! I also love pushing myself to places I didn't know I could go. It makes all the hours left out on the training roads and cold mornings worthwhile.

As much as cycling is an individual sport, unlike Eddy Merckx, you can't be good at every discipline. I love the strategy of racing as part of a team where you can use your strengths where they are best suited to help the end result. It is pretty kewl when all the pieces of the puzzle come together and you are a part of it!

How did you get involved in Team Fusion?  I was racing in the SEQ scene and a Fusion customer when Craig Mackie retired from the FusionCycles/Teschner Team a couple of seasons ago. I was asked if I wanted to be part of the team then, and jumped on board.  It was a good fit for me. Its a good group of guys that are as dedicated to winning, going hard and having fun as I am. It is not only based on results, the team is also about promoting cycling in SEQ, trying new products and promoting Fusion, all of which are important to me.

What do you ride now and how often?  I am riding a Cervelo S3 this season! I have ridden a number of amazing bikes over the years, including an Orbea, Bianchi and Cannondale. All have been great bikes but all ride slightly differently! Of every bike I have ridden, the S3 is the first bike I have jumped on and just felt at home on it instantly. The cockpit geometry (saddle to handlebars) makes riding hard all day a breeze but it is super stiff and light so you are rewarded for the power you put into it, you can feel the bike accelerating under each pedalstroke. Whether you throw it through corners or point it in a straight line, the bike just wants to fly!  I currently ride 5/6 days a week (450-600 km).

What are your cycling goals? Ride and race hard and have fun! Represent the team well! Look for me in the road races with punchy climbs in them. I really want to target some of the day races this year. Fusion Games might also be a race I want to be going well for... Possibly help Mackie do something special in this one! and try to help improve the image of cycling to the general public in SEQ...

As a coach, the secret to getting the best out of my riders is to understand what they are training for or what their “Goals” are. I expect you have heard about goal setting and I will show you how it will determine how you train. We need to set S.M.A.R.T Goals. Is your goal Specific? Measurable? Achievable? Realistic? Timely? Here is an example of a goal that most riders in Brisbane can relate to.

GOAL: In 8 weeks I want to ride up the backside of Mt Cootha (2.3km) in a time under 10mins. Lets break the goal down.

Specific – Yes, we have listed where we want to ride and how far Eg 2.3km up the backside of Mt Cootha.
Measureable – Yes, we have distance and time to measure Eg 2.3km in under 10mins.
Achievable – Yes, we know that the quicker riders can break 7mins. Eg if we said our goal time is 3mins then we may say it is not achievable.
Realistic – Yes, as an example, if my personal best up Mt Cootha currently is 11mins 30sec, a 1min 30sec improvement is realistic. If my personal best time was 16mins then we may have to adjust our target time to 13mins to make our Goal realistic.
Timely – Yes, I am aiming for my goal time in 8 weeks. That gives me plenty of time to train.

Now that we have our SMART Goal we can set our training. I have 8 weeks to improve my time over 2.3km by 1min 30sec. This is how you break it down to plan your sessions.

· Component One - I will need to ensure that I can comfortably ride the 2.3km at a steady pace so I will incorporate a session once per week to build endurance. As an example 3 to 5 repeats of Mt Cootha @ 75% effort in an easy gear getting out of the saddle for 15sec every 2mins.

· Component Two – I will need to build some strength on the climb as I will need to apply more power to the pedal to go quicker. I will have 1 session per week (in first 3 weeks of training) to complete some low cadence work. Example 250m on climb @ 80% effort with cadence at 50RPM with 250m recovery in easy gear. Repeat efforts until top of climb and complete 2 to 4 climbs.

· Component Three – I will need to improve my aerobic system as I will be riding quicker for a longer period of time than I normally do. I will incorporate 1 session per week ( in weeks 4 to 6 of training) working on my threshold zone. Example 500m @ 10min pace in an easy gear working both in and out of saddle with 250m recovery. Repeat until top of climb and complete 2 to 4 climbs. Each week I will increase the distance I travel @ 10min pace.

· Last component – speed. Now we are only 2 weeks from our goal we will be looking at building some top end speed. It will be similar to weeks 4 through to 6. The difference is now we will be working in our anaerobic system. Example 250m @ 9min pace with 500m recovery and repeat until 1km mark. Repeat 4 to 6 climbs to 1km mark.

There you have it. To improve, you need to have a goal to aim at. This same process applies to a simple climb to a road race and even a touring event such as visiting the Tour De France.

Good Luck
Gilly

Cycling Tips courtesy of Adam Gill - Cycling Science

Sat 7 May Nissan/BRW Corporate Triathlon, Southport. Sprint distance.  Click here for more info. 

Sat 7 May Byron Bay Triathlon, Byron Bay.  Olympic distance. Click here for more info.

Sun 8 May MTB Chase Ride, Karingal, Brisbane.  Social group ride.  Click here for more info.

Sat 14 - Sun 15 May Foodworks Teams Road Series Rnd 3, Miles.  Criterium and Road Race.  Click here for more info.

Sat 14 - Sun 15 May Merida 24hr MTB Super Series Race 3, Grandchester.  Click here for more info.

Sat 28 - Sun 29 May Metropolitan Road Championships, Murrarie and Boonah.  Criterium and Road Race.  Click here for more info.

Sun 29 May Gold Coast Biathlon Super Series Round 1, Southport.  Click here for more info. 

Sun 29 May Mountain Bike Orienteering, Woodford.  Click here for more info. 

Sun 29 May KWT Maxxis Sunshine Series MTB XC Race, Adare, Gatton.  Click here for more info. 

Recently the world experts in sports nutrition gathered in Lausanne, Switzerland, the home of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), to come up with a new IOC consensus statement on sports nutrition.

Key Change 1-  Energy Availability.  There is a critical threshold on the amount of energy required and the recommendation suggests you stay above this critical threshold (~30Kcal/kg/day) to ensure optimum functioning of all the bodies systems.

Key Change 2 – The introduction of appropriate carbohydrate availability.  Previously the message was about consuming carbohydrate before, during and after exercise in reasonably large amounts. The new statement now refers to appropriate carbohydrate availability.  They have acknowledged that some athletes may actually only require very small amounts of carbohydrate to optimise performance and that some sessions are more effective if completed with low carbohydrate availability.  

Key Change 3 – Protein after all sessions and throughout the day.  Protein intake has previously been viewed as insignificant because the vast majority of people consume sufficient total protein in a day to meet the bodies requirements. This statement now clarifies this but identifies that it is the timing of 'when' the protein is consumed that is important.  The main overview is that athletes should consume 15-25g of high biological value protein after ALL (resistance and aerobic) training sessions to maximise muscle tissue repair, growth and adaptation.

Key Change 4 – Dehydration should be of concern in hot environments and at altitude.  Previously it was thought that any dehydration would affect performance and athletes should do all they could to avoid dehydration. You have all seen the statistic -2% dehydration effects performance. This statistic was based on laboratory findings and in the real world is not the same. Dehydrations effects on performance is influenced by a number of other factors (eg. Ambient temperature, radiant temperature, wind speed, sweat rates etc.). These factors impact the consequences of dehydration and athletes should consider the environment and type of sport they are undertaking when formulating fluid replacement plans.

Key change 5 – Supplements may benefit performance. The statement suggests that certain dietary supplements may enhance the performance of an athlete who has a good baseline diet. They point out particular nutrients (Vitamin D, Iron, Calcium) which may require supplementing in particular athletes due to poor energy intakes and training environment. They also acknowledge that there are a very small number of chemicals that are found naturally in the diet that when supplemented in concentrated sources can have a significant impact on performance (eg. creatine, caffeine). They point out however that the actual number of these supplements are very small and are mainly beneficial only in athletes who have an appropriately balanced performance meal plan.

These key changes will have a significant impact on the way sports nutrition is practiced and interpreted.

Greg Shaw
Dietician
Australian Institute of Sport