Tuesday, October 15, 2019

I'm A Fan




It does not take long when training inside to find out how much heat can impact training intensity. I remember when getting into cycling and starting to take training more seriously with use of a power meter how much I would fade once my core temperature would start to rise. The more tuned into to those sub-maximal threshold efforts and higher intensities the faster the rise in body heat. A few years ago I was struggling with the heat in this room that I tried using an ice vest. That was a flop. As soon as my body temperature was up it quickly melted the ice packs and the vest trapped the heat in making it worse. I was amazed how quickly my body heat would thaw those frozen ice pack. 

Looking at a thread on the Timetrialing Forum regarding fans it reminded me that I wanted to add one more fan that is very focused and high velocity to my current mix of fans. In the two pictures I have been using a high velocity floor fan from Patton and a small oscillating fan aimed at my upper body and head. The floor fan has a very high CFM and covers most of my legs, torso and head. There is a wall air conditioner vent directly behind the Wahoo Kickr. This weekend I purchased a Lasko Pro Performance blower type fan that has that focused high velocity flow that I can direct right at my torso and because it is so direct and close to the trainer it does not cover else. There is also a ceiling fan that is in the middle of the room. So in all there are four fans and an air conditioning vent. 

Next up is adding some wireless plug-in outlets as suggested by a Timetrialing forum member. Big kudos to the members at that forum and on Slowtwitch where I find a lot of good tips and training advice.

Patton 18" High Velocity Fan - Amazon Newer Version
Lasko Pro Performance Utility Fan - Amazon

I am not sure of the CFM of the Patton on the highest setting, but it is certainly a high velocity than the Lasko and the air flow is wide spread. The Lasko is providing a very focused stream of air that I am able to pin point the location of the flow. Using it yesterday in a longer interval while using the aerobars, I was able to put that focused air right on my neck and head while the Patton was hitting most of my body. This really helped me from overheating as my core temperature was rising through the minutes. The Patton is also substantially louder and there is no way I can hear the TV sound across the room, but with ear buds the music overcomes the fan sounds. I also have a set of bluetooth ear buds that are paired with the Amazon Fire TV box so if I wanted to watch something I can hear it clearly while the fans are running. 

The picture below is how hot this room can get in the summer months. It is a little better now that we have replaced and upgraded our home's air conditioning system. 95 degrees (F) outside and 85 degrees (F) inside as a starting temperature. From there my body temperature would rise quickly once I was warmed up and into the first intervals.

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