Speedskaters make really good cyclists

Andrew Love over at Zen and the Art of Speedskating had an interesting post about why speedskaters that cross over to cycling either for off season training or for good tend to make excellent cyclists, but the converse of that scenario is often not the case. Some of the many reasons he lists are that speedskaters develop lots of “raw anaerobic power,” better balance, needing perfect form(for ice speedskating), and much stronger proprioceptive ability.

Andrew is coming from an ice speedskater point-of-view and I come from the inline speedskater world; however, I have done short track ice before and most of his points are valid and true for inline speedskating as well.  I’ve often thought about this subject myself as I am one of those speedskaters that is now a cyclist, so I would like add my own 2 cents worth of baloney to this sandwich.  Many of my friends from speedskating are now Pro, Cat1/2 level cyclists that made it there pretty quickly.

Some of the many reasons he lists are that speedskaters develop lots of “raw anaerobic power,” better balance, needing perfect form(for ice speedskating), and much stronger proprioceptive ability.

I would also like to add one more statement; which will probably have all the ice speedskaters in an uproar: Inline speedskaters make much better cyclists than ice speedskaters.

A little bit of background. I am a former national champion inline speedskater that has transferred over to cycling. A group of speedskater friends of mine and I decided to transfer over to cycling in the 2007 season, so we’ve been cycling for several years, but most of these incites were already formed a few months into my first cycling season and have since held true for the most part. So, for most of my statements assume a beginner cyclists with only 3 months on the bike.

Why speedskaters make good cyclists

1. Raw anaerobic and explosive power: For any given speed it takes a lot more power for a speedskater to go the same speed as a cyclist. Speedskaters are inherently less aerodynamic than cyclists. Due to the very motion of skating you are going from side to side as well as forward and back all at the same time and sometimes swinging your arms all over the place. Due to the motion of pedaling you can only “spin up” to speed one way, in a circle. Skaters have to learn how to go 0-100% in many different ways; therefore, training your legs and body for a stronger explosive power. Skaters do what we call dry-lands. These have lots of nicknames such as off skate drills, iso/plyometrics, OTCs, but they are basically different types of exercises you do off your skates to build muscle. If you called them OTCs you have been a speedskater for over 15 years. All this attributes combined lead to naturally higher power-to-weight ratio. I wish they made power meters for speedskaters.
2. Mental toughness: I’m not saying cyclists aren’t mentally tough. What I’m saying is that top skaters are instilled(or already have) a skate till you puke complex. It’s only natural that this stays with them in any athletic endeavor they pursue. With that being said, when on skates you can’t always go that point because its dangerous. Once you get too tired you will lose form and be a danger to yourself and teammates by causing a fall. Cycling lets us speedskating psychos go till you drop. You can just load the bike on the trainer and go till “can go no mo.” Just make sure you have the puke bucket an the couch nearby. Because of this speedskaters have a small extra gear for training. Neither me no my friends had been skating or training for over 3 years. We were all finishing with the A group on most rides 3 months into starting cycling.
3. Recovery: You cannot particularly recover in speedskating. In most skating races, once you are dropped, you are dropped because your legs are locked up and that’s it. The race is over. You can’t go to the back of the pack and rest. If your legs are locked, you over cooked it and you’re done. In cycling, you can go the back of the peloton and chill where you’re using 30% less power. A prime example: Even though I had only been on a bike for 3 months. I could usually complete a with the A group of  a lot of the local rides in the Atlanta area. I can do the entire ride with the help of drafting off at least one person if not a large group. I went to a 400m track with some national caliber speedskater friends of mine for some skating and they blew me away after only 8 laps! I only led 2 laps and could not recover sitting at the back of the pack.
4. Foot speed: I was not what you would call an all out sprinter. I was more of a middle distance skater. I was too small to be able to put the raw power needed to put down sub 9 second 100m laps for 500 meters or maintain a high speed for 5000m. But, I am extremely quick. I’m only 5’5″ and 127lbs. I can stick just about any sprinter off the start and have always had one of the quickest get-up-and-go abilities in the corner of any other speedskater.  When combined with a speedskater’s higher power-to-weight ratio this yields a better than normal genre for each type of cyclist you will find. On several occasions I have had other cyclists(several times) comment on how fast I could spin up to catch a passing breakaway, especially for someone my size. For a speedskater that transfers over to cycling: As a sprinter you will already have increased foot speed and power. You will also have a quicker recovery time and longer time to failure for both aerobic and anaerobic thresholds compared to similarly trained cyclist. As a middle distance(me) you will have a faster sprint and a quicker recovery time and longer time to failure for both aerobic and anaerobic thresholds compared to similarly trained cyclist. As a climber you will have a higher power-weight-ratio and you will have a faster spring and a quicker recovery time and longer time to failure for both aerobic and anaerobic thresholds compared to similarly trained cyclist.
5. Strategy: After skating for years you’ll pick up a lot of strategy, especially compared to a newb cat 5 rider. During my first Cat 5 crit I was extremely surprised to see how disorganized it was and the lack of understanding of “how to ride a bike.” Nobody knew how to ride through a corner and carry their speed through the apex. Every time we hit a corer(4 per lap) the entire peloton slammed on the brakes turned(not even close to the apex), and sprinted out of the corner. I could move from the back of the peloton to the front at will at a corner just by not braking and apexing the corner. I wasn’t even shutting the door on anyone when I did this! I wasn’t expecting team tactics or anything, but a little more understanding..yes. After thinking about it though, I guess you could compare Cat 5 to the Junior Olympic(beginners with less than 3 years experience) dvision in skating. There are fast skaters in the JO division, but they are dangerous skate just like the Cat 5 riders ride. But, this is why speedskaters make good cyclists. We already have the experience and strategic knowledge that takes years to learn.
6. Now we have gears! When a speedskater gets on a bike and their body learns that they put out(imaginary numbers for illustrative purposes) half the power and go twice as fast for twice the difference because of the gears its like a whole new world. Training becomes fun again. Going up hills on skates is not fun. If you get tired you cannot gear down and crawl up the hill. Once you’re cooked going up a hill on skates you will be crawling… literally.
7. Better proprioception: That is a fancy way to say coordination. In order to be a successful speedskater you have to be extremely coordinated. In order to be fast on a bike, well you just need to know how to ride a bike. I will admit I tipped over quite a few times when I first started with the clipless pedals; which everyone has done too, so that doesn’t count.
8. 8. Form/technique: We already have the muscles built up to stay in an aero/tuck position longer than cyclists of the same experience. As skaters we naturally stay in a tuck position when skating, so we have already have the lower lumbar muscles and hamstring muscles necessary to stay in a more aero position on the bike. I personally actually prefer to stay in a lower position. My arms are the limiting factor in that equation. My back and legs do not get tired and in fact are more efficient in that position.

Why inline speedskaters make better cyclists than ice speedskaters

1. Chad Hederick… nuff said
2. For any given speed an inline speedskater has to put out more power than an ice speedskater. Inline speedskating is inherently inefficient. We have to overcome wind resistance AND lots of rolling resistance from the road and bearings. Ice speedskaters for all intents and purposes only have to overcome wind resistance. Also, when on inlines a significant portion of your power is lost due to the fact that the wheels are always sliding across the ground; whereas on ice pretty much 100% of you power goes to the ice through the blade.
3. A majority of the US world cup and Olympic ice speedskating team members are former inline speedskaters, it might even be as high as 80%.
4. Ice speedskater sdo too many off skate activities. If you want to be a top athlete in any sport you have to do that sport mainly. Cross training is important, but when as much emphasis is put on off skate activities as I’ve seen in ice, it’s not going to work.

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