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Archives for May 2023

SmO2 and Base

The Moxy’s SmO2 Sensor Helps Make Base Training Even More Effective

SmO2 and Base Richard Wharton Online Bike Coach Garmin Connect Image 1
Saturated Muscle Oxygen can make Base Training even more effective. Look for a rise in SmO2 at a known low intensity. Then, gently raise the intensity to find that SmO2 ‘sweet spot’ of aerobic training.

 
 

This week on my VQ Velocity Virtual Studio, we are focusing on a week of Periodization and Taper. We are not performing hard intervals, but instead, we are focusing on easier rides. I wear my Moxy for all my rides, but most of the time, I focus on Desaturation and Resaturation. This blog post is about SmO2 and Base training. We can use the Garmin Connect Ecosystem to highlight the PHYSIOLOGICAL BENEFITS of low-intensity rides.

SmO2 and Base Oxygen Saturation Levels

SmO2 and Base Richard Wharton Online Bike Coach Garmin Connect ThB Image 2
When you first start a ride, the body just isn’t ready for the strain. With proper warmup and vasodilation, SmO2 rises, ThB declines, and you’re achieving the benefits of ‘Base’!

SmO2 (Saturated Muscle Oxygen) readings show cyclists just how much Oxygen Supply is in the muscles. When a cyclist is riding for BASE, there should be plenty of oxygen available. As a ride progresses, the body warms up, and the blood vessels dilate. This offers the muscles more available oxygen. Think of SmO2 as ‘Volts’ in a car battery. When there’s a heavy draw on the engine (Demand), the volts may drop, like when the ignition is engaged. On electric vehicles, computers monitor watts (torque), volts, and Amps. I compare Amps with Total Hemoglobin, which I’ll discuss later in this post.

SmO2 and Base Richard Wharton Online Bike Coach Garmin Connect ThB Image 4
Patented Warmup. Create just a wee bit of strain, then recover, and watch your SmO2 and ThB values climb over 20-27 minutes (~200-300 Calories).

Since 2012, when I first started using SmO2 monitors from Moxy, I’ve discovered that SmO2 reveals great information about Base Training. When you first place a Moxy monitor on the left Lateralis, you usually get a reading of about 30-60% SmO2. I call this ‘Active Resting SmO2’. As you warm up, SmO2 will definitely drop a bit. If a cyclist or runner does NOT perform my trademarked Warmup Protocol, SmO2 dilation does NOT reach its’ full potential, and in my opinion, restricts some of the benefits of visualizing this feature. But IF the cyclist DOES perform my Warmup Protocol, then SmO2 can become a highly effective, visual method of visualizing just what Base provides.

Base Training Is an Energy-Positive Ride

Watch this 30-second advertisement for Del Monte Green Beans. Specifically, watch what happens when this young lady goes on a bike ride. This is EXACTLY what a ‘Base’ Ride should provide a cyclist or a runner. It should be ‘Energy Positive’ for mental wellness and spiritual fulfillment. It’s literally the way most of our bike rides should occur. The time you spend out there performing this may depend on goals, etc., but SmO2 can provide a window into exactly what is happening when a ride like this occurs.

SmO2 and Base Lead to Greater ‘Volts’ of Available Power, While Drawing Less ‘Amps’ (ThB) for the Same Amount of Physical Output

In this graph, you can see how my post-warmup Base ride begins with roughly 52% SmO2. While power output changes very little, vasodilation occurs, and available SmO2 rises at roughly the 45:00 mark, with a small dip in power output. The Smo2 continues to rise after that, until I perform a single 1-minute standing effort to change my saddle position.

***Standing Power is INCREDIBLY INEFFICIENT.

If you watch old videos of Alberto Contador, there are times before he had a serious crash, when he would climb seated, and honestly, he was a GC or stage threat. After his crash and long recovery, his body was never the same, and he climbed standing for even longer periods of time. It was very powerful, but very costly. 

However, after that single effort, SmO2 rose further, with little change in power.

Why Did SmO2 Start to Decline at the 1-hour mark?

mO2 and Base Richard Wharton Online Bike Coach Garmin Connect ThB Image 3
This is where I wish I had some coding knowledge. I would build a Garmin app that would run a 1-minute graph of SmO2 and ThB, along with recent Ceilings and Floors, so I could better visualize each parameter and make a more informed choice about intensity and nutrition or hydration.

Right around the 1:05 timeline, SmO2 began to decline. When we use Garmin Connect to zoom in, we can see that it began with a slight rise in power output. This was further exacerbated by another minute of standing and pedaling. SmO2 dropped further. Once I sat down, SmO2 Resaturated, but then continued its’ decline back to around 50%.

Why did this happen? Well, let’s look at the OTHER data point that we get when we ride with a Moxy; ThB.

What is ThB?

ThB stands for ‘Total Hemoglobin’, and it’s based on Millimols per Deciliter of volume. It’s the total count of red blood cells in your overall system. Hemoglobin is a protein that carries Oxygen to the Muscles. It’s another window into the ‘SUPPLY and DEMAND’ side of the SmO2 Equation. The more ThB we have, the more ‘AMPS’ we have available to help provide fresh oxygen to the muscles, to help keep SmO2 high.

Right around the 1:05 mark, when my SmO2 began to decline, Total Hemoglobin, which was declining from minute 33:00 to that point, began to rise. After the final standing moment, it rose further, and rose until I quit the ride at the 1:15 mark. So, SmO2 declines and ThB rises, for the same amount of power.

Now, this is CONJECTURE, because I AM NOT A SCIENTIST. But my own speculation is that I was getting short on blood sugar. I always ride these easier rides in a fasted state. It’s a way to train my body to burn more fat over time, as long as I don’t push too hard. But there are only between 800 and 1200 calories of carbohydrate in the circulatory system at any time, and in the 30 years that I’ve been cycling, my body tends to change at roughly 1200 calories, WITH CARB SUPPLEMENTATION. Without Carb supplementation, I think it’s very feasible to ‘see’ the body switching energy systems or becoming less efficient. At this point, I had burned roughly 800 calories, and had consumed nothing more than water (and probably not enough of that). Hence, ThB rose, SmO2 declined, while power and basic heart rate remained neutral.

Use Your Moxy SmO2 And Keep It HIGH!

SmO2 and Base Richard Wharton Online Bike Coach Garmin Connect ThB Image 5
For roughly the same amount of power, my body responded with less stress. Once I used up my blood sugar (I was in a fasted state), the body began looking elsewhere for energy, and my SmO2 and ThB both changed to become less efficient, while power stayed the same.

My personal SmO2 Floors and Ceilings are as such, but your own zones may vary.

  • My Max Recovery Saturation is at 80%. I rarely get there on an active bike ride, so 70% means my Muscles are being resupplied with fresh Oxygen and are ready for another effort.
  • My Active Base Saturation is between 40 and 70%. When I ride at those SmO2 intensities (remember, harder is lower, easier is higher), my body is using energy to make energy in my  mind, and these are fruitful, fun, functional rides.
  • An SmO2 below 20%, and usually below 17% puts me on ‘BORROWED TIME’, and is my Vo2Max range of intensity. It’s also unustainable for long periods.
  • An SmO2 between 20 and 25% is a great Threshold Intensity for me, regardless of the old-school heart rate and wattage values that have traditionally yielded these zones.

If you really want to get a window into your body, SmO2 (and ThB) provide real-time value to help you optimize your ride. Once you know your numbers, you can always try to track gains in power or loss in weight over time. You can also watch ThB to see if you’re perhaps in need of some carbs, or may even be approaching a bonk.

I’m going to continue to share my observations. If you own a Moxy, let me know if you see similar phenomena. I’d love to learn more.

Thanks for reading, and ENJOY THE RIDE!

Using SmO2 for Threshold Intervals

SmO2 Provides Real-Time Physiological Info

Textbook SmO2 desaturation and Vo2 tipping point
Moxy SmO2 values give you an instant, physiological value for what is, and what isn’t, sustainable. It’s a noninvasive way to get accurate, autonomic data about aerobic and anaerobic tipping points.

Here is yet another example of the utility of an Smo2 sensor. This workout was performed by a client as well as myself last week. The goal of the intervals was to improve fitness at Lactate Threshold.

I may be a bit old-school, but I’ve essentially distilled cycling workouts to three simple levels of intensity; Breathing, Heaving, and Gasping.

  • Breathing workouts are easier, they’re aerobic, and they’re meant to improve Economy and Stamina. They burn mostly fat, but they’re on the easier side.
  • Heaving Workouts are harder, but they’re sustainable for up to 60 minutes. These would be ‘Speed’ or ‘Threshold’ type workouts.
  • Gasping workouts are super-hard, with high heart rates and respiratory rates, and they can’t be sustained for more than 6 or 8 minutes.

SmO2 works better than heart rate in all three of these types of efforts.

SmO2 – Saturated Muscle Oxygen

Moxy’s SmO2 sensors measure the amount of oxygen in your muscle. I tend to use it on my left quad, and sometimes on my left deltoid. When either my clients or myself uses it on the left quad, we get a great range of saturation, from 2-80%. With proper placement and use over time, we can get a really solid and consistent value for finding the highest sustainable power output, aka, “THRESHOLD”. When SmO2 drops BELOW that value, well, you’re on “Borrowed Time”.

Get SmO2 too low, and you're on Borrowed Time
Get SmO2 too low, and you’re on Borrowed Time.

Here are several GREAT examples!

THRESHOLD INTERVALS ARE ABOUT SUSTAINABILITY

Everyone knows about Heart Rate Zones. We’ve been using them, plus Wattage Zones now, for Decades. But the Heart tends to drift. Our bodies tend to act like bad oil filters; we work harder internally for the same external output over time. However, when we employ SmO2 sensors, and we know right where we are in terms of what the balance of Oxygen Supply and Demand is, well, we can get more work done. We can sustain this intensity more acutely. When we finally ‘Tip Over’ the Threshold, well, SmO2 shows that we’re on ‘Borrowed Time’.

Let’s Zoom In on these Intervals. We’ll start with an 8-Minute effort. This set of intervals was a ‘Reverse-Fibonacci’, and it was a set of 8-minute, 5-Minute, then 3-minute, 2-minute, and finally 1-minute intervals, with equal recoveries. It’s modeled after a Ronneveld Study, but I’ve been using regular Fibonacci efforts (1,1,2,3,5,8 sequence) for decades on the advice of Dr. Conrad Earnest, my mentor.

SmO2 captures Tipping Point Between Threshold and Vo2.
I included the ThB (Total Hemoglobin) on this image because it shows how the heart and lungs continued to work, harder and harder, to get oxygen to the muscles, even while the muscles were becoming less and less efficient. Craig’s ‘Tipping Point’ or ‘Threshold’ for Oxygen Supply and Demand is right at 17%. For the first half of the effort, he was riding with sustainable power. However, once he got to 17%, it dropped sharply, and he ‘Tipped’ into Vo2max territory, which is ‘BORROWED TIME’.

 

Next, let’s look at the 5-minute Interval.

5 Minute Interval at Threshold Using Moxy SMO2
Here it is again – wattage is fairly uniform, but ThB continues to rise, showing the strain, and right about the middle of the interval, just above the 17% Value, Smo2 starts to drop in to ‘Borrowed Time’.

 

Here’s the SmO2 Value for the 3-minute Effort.

3-Minute SmO2 and Thb Value Tipping Point.
For the 3-minute effort, You can see how SmO2 dives down to 16-17% early, then he literally holds it right there for the duration of the time period, until the LAST 30 SECONDS. The difference in wattage begins at the first red arrow. He shifted and pumped out more watts to finish. This led to a lowered SmO2 and near-exhaustion.
***also note: ThB for the middle part of the effort plateau’d. We don’t use THB as much as we should, but it’s another great indicator that a physiological intensity is sustainable – or not.

 

At 2 Minutes, and over 600 KiloJoules of Work Performed Thus Far, It’s Hard To Get Below Threshold

 

2 Minute Interval at Threshold Using Moxy SMO2
If this workout had been 3,2, and 1-minute intervals, we would have worked hard to get SmO2 Below that 17% value early, and to try and hold it there as long as possible. But after numerous high-quality efforts, SmO2 won’t dip, and this becomes, once again, a THRESHOLD EFFORT. Which was the goal.
The RISE in SmO2 at the vertical line occurs because he Stood, off the saddle. This changes muscle dynamics and force. He dropped from 100 to 60 rpm, and while power went up, he once again, WAS ON ‘BORROWED TIME’!

 

The Grand Finale; a 60-Second Effort!

1 Minute Interval at Threshold Using Moxy SMO2
For a 1-minute effort, we’re almost completely past the tipping point. I placed the vertical marker at 16% and you’ll see that the value stays BELOW that number EVEN AFTER THE EFFORT ENDS. The entire effort was performed well north of 300 watts, and this yielded a LARGE metabolic penalty. ThB continued to rise and while we can’t add another metric to the chart, Heart Rate was well above 95% of HRR.

Moxy and SmO2 are POWERFUL Tools

You all know – I have promoted wattage and power and kilojoules since FOREVER. But going forward, I’m going to be more nuanced. The body is a machine, but it’s a machine with huge variations in recovery, genetic ability, and psychological, almost psychotic abilities to suffer. Using a Moxy and SmO2 to determine the ‘Goldilocks’ intensity for Threshold Intervals gives us an ideal intensity FOR THAT DAY, FOR THAT MOMENT, FOR THAT DURATION. If you’re a Moxy owner, try to find your ‘Tipping Point‘ of desaturation, and then back off JUST ENOUGH to give it a sustainable, but powerful effort. Try it on a hill. After all – we don’t live on a Space Station.

I just did that this weekend, when I rode a couple of hills on a route that was unfamiliar. I used another feature on the Garmin, the ‘ClimbPro’ option (I’ll have to talk about that in another post), but here’s how it worked.

Richard Wharton Using Moxy when Climbing a Hill
This was a 6-minute hill, give or take, on an unfamiliar route. Average gradient was about 7%. I followed the ClimbPro until I knew that I was maybe 700 Meters from the end of the effort. Looking at the SmO2 data, I kept the Saturated Oxygen above 25%, and when I knew where the finish was, I increased the power EVER SO SLIGHTLY until it dipped down to about 20%. In this graph, you can also see the deflection point of ThB, and then the continued rise once I pushed it past the Tipping Point.
I was on Borrowed Time, but I knew where time could stop.

 

Get a Moxy and Use SmO2 For Accurate Training and Sustained Efforts At Power.

I know this is HIGH NERD STUFF. But it’s fascinating, and it’s useful. If you own a Moxy Monitor, use the Steve Neal Field and the lap function, and watch for your ‘Tipping Point’, indoors or out. You don’t want to be on ‘Borrowed Time’ for those longer intervals or hills!!!

Thanks for reading, and ENJOY THE RIDE!

If you like what you’ve just read, then

Rotor Optimal Chainring Position (OCP) – Flatter Terrain

The Rotor Optimal Chainring Position (OCP) – Use the Mechanical Advantage

Lake Pueblo State Park Singletrack
Lake Pueblo State Park has miles of open, flowy singletrack that is accessible almost year round. It is not heavily trafficked, and often, I was the only cyclist out there.

I’ve been a big fan of the Rotor Optimal Chainring Position App ever since it came out in, what, 2012? One of the FIRST people affiliated with the original ROTOR bike and crank system was named Andre, and he lived in Dallas. We rode past his house literally hundreds of times.

Later, one of the last great brand representatives, a guy named Howie, introduced me to the founder of Rotor Components, and we were able to discuss their product and goals in broken Spanish via WhatsApp. Later, Howie sold his practice to Kervin Quinones, and Rotor has a separate office in Salt Lake City, Utah.

But it’s the Concept of Optimal Chainring Position (OCP) that I’ve studied, and then applied, to all of my bikes since 2003. I even wrote a chapter about Moment and Crank Torque in my now completely outdated book (which is still available on Amazon).

The TL:DR? It works. It’s not a gimmick. The gains are small, but they do add up. The more pronounced the slope, the more the Optimal Chainring Position (OCP) works. But you have to know what you’re doing, and it’s definitely terrain-specific.

Optimal Chainring Position (OCP) in the Sierras vs. Optimal Chainring Position (OCP) in the High Prairie

When I was riding my mountain bike in the Sierras in Reno, I used the Rotor App to determine OCP, and it DEFINITELY made a difference. I liken riding with an ovalized chainring to ‘hacksawing’ up the hill. You can ‘feel’ the power jump with each pedal stroke, and then feel it sort of ‘hang’ in the area where the ring radius is lowest. This is intentional. The gains are measured in millimeters per revolution, and it adds up to MAYBE 3 links of a chain over the course of a complete chain revolution. But those millimeters, those centimeters, add up. And again, the steeper the terrain, the more you feel that lever-action working. After several rides over the years in Reno and on Peavine Mountain, I ended up riding in Position 1, to tackle the steep terrain.

It’s COMPLETELY DIFFERENT on flat terrain!

Riding in Pueblo was a different experience. the ‘climbs’ were maybe 1-2 minutes. They were POWER climbs. Trails were flowy and there were times there when I was working on smooth power output while letting the suspension soak up the smaller bumps and terrain. There were areas where power was necessary, however, in 2-5 second spurts. This became the norm, and I used Garmin’s Strava Segment Chaser to gauge myself against previous, faster cyclists. While I never caught the leaders, I definitely was able to use the ShockWiz technology to optimize my suspension setup, and use the Rotor Optimal Chainring Position in a different setting, to get just a wee bit more power out of every turn. It was a VERY anaerobic demand. Getting a few extra watts and a few extra centimeters out of every 30 meter section of twisty singletrack, made a difference.

Rotor Torque 360 App OCP Position 4 torque curve
This is a screen capture of the Rotor Torque 360 Visual Overview. Depending on what model of Rotor Power Meter you purchase, you can see Left/Right balance, Instant Power, Instant Cadence, Heart Rate if you choose (this could be useful when looking at Optimal Chainring Position on longer climbs), ‘OCA’ – Optimal Chainring ANGLE in instant values, and the all-important ‘OCP’, which shows you which chainring position might be optimal both instantly and over time. Finally, you get a BEAUTIFUL torque curve. The larger loop is the power curve part of the crank revolution. The smaller loop is the ‘drag’ from the trailing leg. Finally, the Green Arrow is a visual image of the ‘OCA’. In this case, it’s JUST BELOW 90 degrees.

 

Now, you can refer to my book or maybe you can still find a long-lost blog post about it in the internet archives, but the gist of the discussion goes like this:

Archimedes And His Simple Machines Work Better With Optimal Chainring Position (OCP)!

A crank is nothing more than a simple lever.

A crowbar is a crank and a crank is nothing more than a lever.
Repeat this 180 times per minute, and you might actually get somewhere….

It uses MOMENT at the 3 o’clock position to ‘pull’ on the chain, which touches the chainring at the 12 o’clock position. Think of it like a crowbar. You can make the lever action easier if you lengthen the crank (not recommended), or you can increase the radius from the center of the bottom bracket, to the area where the chain touches the chainring. It gets a little more complicated when you add inertia. Legs show the most power between 2 and 5 o’clock. When you’re not thinking about it, peak power usually occurs at the 4 o’clock position.

Hence, look at the arrow three images above. The arrow is at 98 degrees, or just past 3 o’clock. If a crank were, say 170 mm, at that exact position, it’s only 155mm. The MOMENT has shrunk, but the POWER and INERTIA have both grown. Place the Rotor Oval Chainring Optimal Chainring Position at ‘4’, and VOILA! A 6-9% boost in power AT THAT ‘MOMENT’ in each revolution!

Optimal Chainring Position (OCP) – SLOPE vs FLAT

On Peavine Mountain, with regular climbs in the 8-15% range for minutes on end, The Rotor Optimal Chainring Position (OCP) continuously recommended OCP 1. However, at Pueblo State Park, with all the punchy terrain and twisty singletrack, it frequently recommended OCP 4. Here’s a summary view of a short segment.

Rotor Torque 360 App OCP Position 4
I took this screenshot about 25seconds into a 20 minute effort on singletrack.

Notice that The Rotor Optimal Chainring Position (OCP) shows “Position 4”, while the Optimal Crank Angle shows ’95 Degrees’.

CONCLUSION

I performed this test about 3 times, before I made the change. The values for The Rotor Optimal Chainring Position (OCP) were consistent between Positions 3 and 4. Now, on my road bike, which is now 10 years old, the sprints and power climbs in the big ring kept me in Position 4. It feels comfortable on the road bike, so I pulled the ring, and placed it in Position 4 for the mountain bike.

I can’t say that this one change made all the difference, but I can say that it didn’t hurt. Look at the October 8, 2022 result, and look at the next several dates after that.

Strava Segment Pueblo State Park Northbound
Increased Power, Decreased Time. I’ve used Rotor products since about 2000, and I still think that they offer concrete marginal gains. You just have to know how to apply the information it provides!

Familiarity, plus power and fitness, plus perpetual tweaking of the Suspension system via the ShockWiz, made me faster. And Fast, is FUN!

Now that I live in Sacramento (long story for another time), I’ll probably go through the exact same thing, over 20 rides or so, and see where the Rotor Optimal Chainring Position (OCP) recommends I place my chainring. I don’t know if I’ll ever race again, but I’m having a blast learning and sharing the benefits I can witness myself in these technologies.

Thanks for reading, don’t forget to comment, and as always…

ENJOY THE RIDE!

 

 

ShockWiz And Segments At Lake Pueblo State Park

ShockWiz Suspension Tuning at a New Venue!

(*****NOTE: This post was originally created in October of 2022, but was never published. I still believe, however, that there’s a lot of relevant information we can glean from the ShockWiz Suspension Tuning System, and I’m going to continue this thread while I wait for the trails to dry out in Northern California.). 

Richard and Tracy Wharton at Lake Pueblo State Park
This image was taken at the end of the “Outer Loop NB” segment at Lake Pueblo State Park. I’m using the ShockWiz Suspension Tuning System to optimize my suspension for this series of flat, shale, twisty trails.

Since moving to Pueblo, CO at the end of September, I have been studying the ShockWiz Suspension results on rides at Lake Pueblo State Park. The Park is located about 4 miles from the home where we are staying, and the trip is no more than ten minutes. Pueblo State Park has over 80 miles of accessible singletrack and paved trails. The trails are maintained by the Southern Colorado Trail Builders, and they’re a good mix of flow, climbing in and out of drainages, and some great, twisty singletrack. While the area is vertically challenged, it makes up for this with banked berms, narrow trail, and beautiful views. The trail is almost exclusively broken shale over dirt, so it’s fast in some places, and loose scree in others, especially in the hairpins. The area is exposed, so bring sunscreen and plenty of water!

 

Different Geography, Different Results

Lake Pueblo State Park Trails
Lake Pueblo State Park is just 5 miles from the house where we are temporarily staying. There’s a great network of trails there, with plenty of challenges.

In a previous post, I wrote about tuning the suspension on my Intense Sniper T Pro while riding the same trails from my home on Peavine Mountain, in Northern Nevada. I’m doing the same thing here; I am completely focused on my suspension results of one particular segment of Lake Pueblo State Park – the “Outer Loop NB (Northbound)”.  I have ridden this segment six times so far, and I’ve used the data from the ShockWiz App on this timed segment to make adjustments to both the front and rear suspension.

With the Peavine trails, it took about 20-23 rides to get the ShockWiz suspension values to consistently read in the 90’s. I also paid to get the rear suspension tuned by Mike Davis at MAD Suspension. I’m now on Ride #8 down here, and I just earned two 96 Point Results on the Suspension! Furthermore, I earned FOUR Segment PR’s, including Outer Loop NB!

First Ride – Establishing a Baseline With Shockwiz

Given the terrain, it’s not easy to get a 99-100% Confidence Interval. 
ShockWiz Ride 1 Rear Results
You can never expect ride results from two completely different geographic areas to be the same. ShockWiz is telling me that Tuning and Optimization are trail-specific, geology-specific, maybe even ride intensity and goal specific.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

First off, a couple of notes.

  • I’m not fit. I was getting fit earlier in the Fall, and I’ll write another blog post updating my study of Garmin’s EPOC and Aerobic Training Effect system, as well as the DFAA-1 heart rate system. Then we packed to move to Pueblo, and I lost a good chunk of that fitness. I HAVE been getting fit again since I arrived in Pueblo, however, and all of it has been based on Mountain Biking.
  • Mountain Biking here is… different. It’s non vertical. It’s not as twisty as the singletrack I rode in Texas, but it’s more twisty than the riding out in Northern Nevada. It’s much more a full-body workout.
  • I’m STILL getting numb hands. I recently but my bars down to 740mm and it helped, but it’s now an inconsistent numbness. I’m experimenting with my shifters and brakes at different positions and angles, and I hope that will help.
  • There’s less need for rear suspension on these trails, so I MAY alter the compression dial from ‘Open’ to ‘Semi-Open’.
  • I cannot alter the shock and suspension with revalving or different oils. I’m just not going to do that.

But let’s stick to the theme of learning. Here are the suggestions from the ShockWiz App, post-ride.

ShockWiz Post-Ride Analysis

Let’s start with the Rear Suspension first, since I’m basing that on my work with Mike from MAD over the years. He always argued that the Rear should be tuned first. So, let’s go.

Shockwiz Rear Recommendations Pueblo State Park
The results of this ride resulted in a Shockwiz Score of 84 points, with 100% confidence.
Shockwiz Rear Suspension Recommendations Pueblo State Park Ride 1.
Rear Rebound and Compression were in need of tuning the most. I think I can alter the Compression for better comfort and control on this chippy rock.
Shockwiz Post Ride Rear Suspension Recommendations Pueblo Colorado State Park.
Everything looks good here…..
Shockwiz Rear Suspension Dynamic Sag Detection Pueblo State Park.
I’m ALWAYS trying to get Dynamic Sag to about 25%, and the ONLY way to do that is with more air. More air, however, mucks with compression and rebound ratios. I’m not sure what I’ll do here.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And let’s see what the Fox Front Looks like.

Shockwiz Pueblo Front Post Ride Analysis Overview Pueblo State Park.
The ShockWiz wanted me to head out and get some more data, but I was running out of time. I got an 82 out of 100. Let’s see what the recommendations are…
Shockwiz Front Fork Suggestions Page 1 Pueblo State Park.
OUCH. Less air, more spacers, softer compression. Honestly, I think I’m going to get a few more rides in before changing this too much.
Shockwiz Front Fork recommendations Ride 1 Pueblo State Park.
I think this shows that despite the previous screen, where the recommendations were all over the place, by and large, the settings I have on the fork DO work. Same with the rear information above.
Shockwiz Front Fork Statistics page highlighting dynamic sag.
OKay, just a reminder. I am NOT a hotdog. I don’t get ‘Big Air’, and I’m not ‘Sending it’ off a cliff or anything. If it happens, it happens, but I’m more interested in dynamic sag. In this case, I’m actually okay with 10% sag.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

CONCLUSION – Shockwiz Probably Needs More Data

Okay – I think the first thing I need is MORE DATA. I want to figure out the TREND. The suspension is working, but there are definitely ways I could be tweaking the dials and valves to get more.

I’ll write up another post later, once I have more data from the dirt.

Thanks for reading, and ENJOY THE RIDE!