Greg LeMond told me I should ride Powercranks. His words “if I had used these when I was racing I would have won a lot more time trials in my career” caught me by surprise but certainly made me listen. I think that was December of 1999 and it would be almost another year before I actually tried them, starting what has been a love/hate relationship ever since.

Frank Day (owner/inventor of Powercranks) can give you the supposed science behind their effectiveness. I will tell you what matters most: THEY WORK.

As the reigning Norba National Mountain Bike Champion in 2001 I had an obligation to try and perform my best as a cyclist, but a new desire to compete in triathlon was brewing inside me and so I decided to give Powercranks a shot. In hope that I could begin to train my running muscles without killing my good bike form I began to use Powercranks in the fall of 2000. It took me a week to be able to ride an hour on them. It took two weeks before I could stand up while climbing a hill, but I was committed and began to see improvement. Over the course of that winter I did all of my bike training on Powercranks. A hundred mile ride through the mountains on Powercranks was as physically and mentally demanding as the hardest races I have done. It was worth the effort as some of my best runs (and results) as a triathlete came during my first year in the sport. Training as a cyclist, with a secret weapon called
Powercranks, I won Ironman Lake Placid and Vineman while averaging about 6-10 miles
of running per week, and ran my two best run splits ever.

Not adhering to the adage “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” I began to train like a triathlete after my early success and my results were never consistently as good. There were times I used Powercranks intermittently, but never as consistently as that first season. Coincidence?

This past season I had a desire to try and once again earn a spot at the Ironman World Championships in Kona. As a father of five kids with full time work and parenting responsibilities I knew I had to make the most of what training time I had. From the beginning I entrusted my wicked old friend Powercrank and I managed some decent results, culminating in a third place finish at Vineman 70.3 behind two current world champions Alexander and Bozzone last July.

Not having learned my lesson from 2001, I stopped training with the Powercranks in the months prior to Kona this past fall as I reverted to training like a triathlete and was underwhelmed by my result. Remember, “Do as I say, not as I do”, as one thing I am certain of is this; if you changed nothing in your training from this season to next, but rode Powercranks for all of your bike training rides I am confident that at some point next season you will enjoy one of your best ever results. I don’t believe that you need to race on them, but train on them whenever you can.

Embrace the challenge that is Powercranks and you will move closer to realizing your potential as a cyclist and triathlete.

Who can benefit?
Triathletes of all abilities, although the coordination and fitness required may be a reach for absolute beginners.

How will you benefit?
One of the most challenging training tools that I have ever used. Success is measured by your ability to complete your scheduled workouts using only Powercranks. Powercranks force you to utilize equal power throughout the entire pedal stroke. They will eliminate any muscle imbalances due to bad pedaling habits and build hip flexor strength that will improve your run performance as well.

Should you race on them?
No, in my opinion Powercranks are the perfect training aid, but I believe you will perform better on race day with lighter cranks. The psychological benefits of preparing on Powercranks and racing on normal cranks is huge.

Should I buy the model with “lockout”?
I think to truly benefit from Powercranks you need to utilize them as intended as much as possible. Knowing how demanding they can be, I think the “lockout” could quickly become permanent for most athletes. Although it is a great option, I think most athletes will benefit more from the traditional “no lockout” version. Be patient and you will make big gains.