Team BKool CycleChat

[Marino.g]

Since the last Bkool update I've really struggled going uphill and most people seem to whizz past me.
Last night was the first time ever on Bkool I had to climb getting out of the saddle.
(Summer Cup Milan San remo)
The problem is that once I'm out of the saddle the wheel slips and and my speed decreases even more loosing me more time.

Question: Does anyone else climb in virtual Bkool world out of the saddle and do you get the same effect as myself.
I remember Bridgy saying he was climbing this way on a recent post.




I

 

[berty bassett]

Since the last Bkool update I've really struggled going uphill and most people seem to whizz past me.
Last night was the first time ever on Bkool I had to climb getting out of the saddle.
(Summer Cup Milan San remo)
The problem is that once I'm out of the saddle the wheel slips and and my speed decreases even more loosing me more time.

Question: Does anyone else climb in virtual Bkool world out of the saddle and do you get the same effect as myself.
I remember Bridgy saying he was climbing this way on a recent post.




I

have you tried repeatedly turning it off for 30 seconds then back on ?i hear that helps

 

[berty bassett]

if you are a bit lighter than some on here the wheel does slip when the hills start - i tried adding some books under front wheel and also i had a bungey on the back wheel trying to pull it onto the roller
didnt work completely but helped , also standing right back helped but best to try and make sure pedal stroke is an even pressure rather than stamping on pedals

 

[rob01792]

@Marino.g yes i climb out of the saddle for bout 20 30 secounds at time no slipping im 83kg but i use a cyclops wheel block that bridgy recommend also make sure the arms of the turbo r free so if u take ur bike out they fall down on they own

 

[Daddy Pig]

I cant and I'm a hefty !
Far too much slippage for my liking!

 

[Bored Man]

Same problems with going up hill - it's almost real world for me now. As I mentioned earlier, much less wattage now.

I use a sticky tyre - Vitoria Rubino Pro.. no slippage when out of the saddle.

 

[rob01792]

Same problems with going up hill - it's almost real world for me now. As I mentioned earlier, much less wattage now.

I use a sticky tyre - Vitoria Rubino Pro.. no slippage when out of the saddle.

that's the same tyre ive been using the past few weeks its good
watts r down for everyone but theboxers done a test with power meter and it very close to his reading so I'm happy with that its always nice to see high watts tho but at the moment I'm happy to 230 avg compared to some of my rides b4 update 270

 

[CXRAndy]

We all knew 'bkool watts' were 15-20% uplifted also speed was aswell. Has the speed dropped with a more realistic power figure?

 

[Marino.g]

The hills definitely mirrors real life riding for me now as I'm 95kg which is not ideal for the mountains but the speed seems about right.
I now loose shed loads of time going up compared to others but now I'm unable to gain any time going down and there seems no advantage there for me.
Not good for morale.

 

[bridgy]

Since the last Bkool update I've really struggled going uphill and most people seem to whizz past me.
Last night was the first time ever on Bkool I had to climb getting out of the saddle.
(Summer Cup Milan San remo)
The problem is that once I'm out of the saddle the wheel slips and and my speed decreases even more loosing me more time.

Question: Does anyone else climb in virtual Bkool world out of the saddle and do you get the same effect as myself.
I remember Bridgy saying he was climbing this way on a recent post.

I'm finding the same struggle with climbs recently to be honest - I seem much slower than I used to be. For example, I did SC stage 7 last night with AAAC's ghost and I was 10 seconds behind him at the start of the climb and lost 4 to him minutes on it - and it's not that big a climb. Don't get me wrong, AAAC's always been quicker than me uphill in particular, but the difference definitely didn't used to be that extreme. Doesn't really bother me - for all I know, this is normal and Bkool was previously being too generous with me, who knows?!

As for getting out of the saddle to climb - yes I do sometimes for short bursts, but not too much. Back wheel can slip a bit if it's steep and I push too hard in too high a gear but I've got better at managing this. It works best if you're carrying a bit of wheel speed into a short climb, rather than jumping out of the saddle in a big gear when you've slowed right down already - that's a definite recipe for bad wheel slippage.

 

[bridgy]

We all knew 'bkool watts' were 15-20% uplifted also speed was aswell. Has the speed dropped with a more realistic power figure?

"Bkool watts" are determined by the speed rather than the other way round. The reason the speed is too high is the resistance being applied is not high enough - which means you can go faster than you should, and which in turn makes Bkool think you're doing higher watts than you are. You may actually be turning the rear wheel at the speed being shown on the screen, and in theory it should take the amount of watts being shown on the screen for a rider of your weight to achieve that speed. However, because the resistance isn't as high as it should be, the speed you're able to actually achieve is too high, and as a result the watts are as well by default.

So in short answer to your question, yes the watts show as lower too - because it seems to be applying more resistance on some uphill gradients than before which = slower speed , and therefore = lower watts. (Hope that all makes sense!)

When I tried Zwift the first thing I noticed was the resistance applied for even the flat was higher, and the speed slower as a result - which for the same reason as above, meant the calculated watts were lower - and almost certainly more realistic.

 

[theboxers]

We all knew 'bkool watts' were 15-20% uplifted also speed was aswell. Has the speed dropped with a more realistic power figure?

Yes, unfortunately. I initially thought it was down to simulated road surfaces (there seems to be a number of new surfaces being used and most are slower than the normal road one), however I am now of the view that it is displaying more realistic speeds for me

 

[theboxers]

An easy question, with a complicated yet simple, answer.

What is the winning time going to be on today's irl Vuelta TT stage? No prizes, Just kudos for getting it right or being nearest.

I'll start.

Winners time will be 52m 37s. No idea who'll win though.

 

[Bored Man]

I'll go for 50m 30s

 

[Marino.g]

I'm finding the same struggle with climbs recently to be honest - I seem much slower than I used to be. For example, I did SC stage 7 last night with AAAC's ghost and I was 10 seconds behind him at the start of the climb and lost 4 to him minutes on it - and it's not that big a climb. Don't get me wrong, AAAC's always been quicker than me uphill in particular, but the difference definitely didn't used to be that extreme. Doesn't really bother me - for all I know, this is normal and Bkool was previously being too generous with me, who knows?!

As for getting out of the saddle to climb - yes I do sometimes for short bursts, but not too much. Back wheel can slip a bit if it's steep and I push too hard in too high a gear but I've got better at managing this. It works best if you're carrying a bit of wheel speed into a short climb, rather than jumping out of the saddle in a big gear when you've slowed right down already - that's a definite recipe for bad wheel slippage.

As a matter of interest is there any weight difference between the two of you.
In theory power/weight ratio should work both ways on hills but I'm not finding it the case going down, no advantage at all.