I have read various things about the importance of especially the yellow bar during a mountain climb but to be honest I never really fully understood it. So just once again for me
- Should you try and NOT empty the yellow bar whilst climbing or does this not matter?
- When the yellow bar is empty how does this effect the climbing speed?
tsj wrote:
I have read various things about the importance of especially the yellow bar during a mountain climb but to be honest I never really fully understood it. So just once again for me
- Should you try and NOT empty the yellow bar whilst climbing or does this not matter?
- When the yellow bar is empty how does this effect the climbing speed?
Thanks
tsj
Green is the overall energy of the rider. Yellow is for extended efforts (e.g. going up mountains at a good pace, relaying hard etc). Red is for really intense efforts like attacks and sprints.
If the yellow bar empties then your rider won't be able to ride up mountains very fast, so always try to keep some yellow.
tsj wrote:
I have read various things about the importance of especially the yellow bar during a mountain climb but to be honest I never really fully understood it. So just once again for me
- Should you try and NOT empty the yellow bar whilst climbing or does this not matter?
- When the yellow bar is empty how does this effect the climbing speed?
Thanks
tsj
Green is the overall energy of the rider. Yellow is for extended efforts (e.g. going up mountains at a good pace, relaying hard etc). Red is for really intense efforts like attacks and sprints.
If the yellow bar empties then your rider won't be able to ride up mountains very fast, so always try to keep some yellow.
tsj wrote:
I have read various things about the importance of especially the yellow bar during a mountain climb but to be honest I never really fully understood it. So just once again for me
- Should you try and NOT empty the yellow bar whilst climbing or does this not matter?
- When the yellow bar is empty how does this effect the climbing speed?
Thanks
tsj
Green is the overall energy of the rider. Yellow is for extended efforts (e.g. going up mountains at a good pace, relaying hard etc). Red is for really intense efforts like attacks and sprints.
If the yellow bar empties then your rider won't be able to ride up mountains very fast, so always try to keep some yellow.
So would you do as it's stated in the newbie guide:
"Instead, 15-20kmkm from the top set free effort to a level that puts your heart rate somewhere between 166 and 173. Basically, you want to climb as quickly as you can without cracking and while saving energy for the finishing straight/downhill/sprint. You will catch most other riders, sometimes all of them, without attacking."
and like this try and keep the yellow bar from emptying?
I'm getting killed on the mountain stages at the moment
tsj wrote:
I'm getting killed on the mountain stages at the moment
Well, it depends on what riders you have. It is normal for a 70MO riders to have big problems againt riders with 80Mo for example. Try and always protect your leader with your second best climber. On the early slopes you can put your leader on dot at a slow effort and let him sit down the bunch. When the pace is increased bring him to the front so he can respond fast if a favourite attacks.
I'm getting killed on the mountain stages at the moment[/quote]
It also depends on what condition your riders are in. If they aren't race fit, then they will suffer.
As shi0da_13 says, always protect your climbers. I normally protect my three best climbers with lesser riders. Then when the lesser riders tire, I ask the the third best climber to protect the leader, then when he tires, the second best takes over. This way you can keep your leader as fresh as possible.
There are three heart rate colors, white, yellow, and red.
when a rider is on dot, 1-55% effort will keep his heart rate in the white zone (<167 hbps*), which saves the yellow bar. Effort between 56 and 85% will start chewing up the yellow bar, and producing a heart rate of 167-186(correct me if I'm wrong regarding the upper value). If you're riding, for example, at 85 effort, your red bar will be dropping slightly quicker than the yellow one. you need the red bar in order to maintain a good, high pace. If your red bar is empty, you can still maintain your heart rate in the yellow zone, but it will be like your rider is put on 60 (or so) effort, although you're riding at 85%. So yellow without red allows you to dig a little deeper, but as lennybernstein said, red is for really intense efforts.
Riding over 85% in the mountain is something you should almost never do, heart rate is over 188 and both the red and yellow bar will empty in less than a kilometer.
So to answer your question, you should definitely try and maintain your yellow bar full as long as you possibly can, without it, the maximum effort your rider can produce is the same as putting him on dot with 55 effort.
And a couple of quick tips for the mountain stages:
Always try and position your riders as far in front as possible, without taking part in the pace-making (if your team is not hunting the breakaway, of course). This is done by putting your riders on relay, and setting their effort to 20-30%, which makes them stand behind the relay riders without them actually jumping in to do the work. When they are positioned, put them on hold position, and adjust their effort to 55%. This allows you to do the following - if you notice that your leader's (definitely protect him as best as you can+) heart rate is going up into yellow, press the dot, and see how much faster the group is going while you are cruising on the limit of yellow. If you are slower, raise your effort accordingly, until you reach the 85%. If by then you're still going slower, it is just not your day. Always set the effort so you maintain the same speed as the group, and wait for your chance. If the pace slows down, go back to the front of the group and press the relay button, again at a lower percentage so as not to take part in the work, just stay in the line. Being in front is essential in pcm, as attacking on steep climbs chews up your effort bars like a hungry wolf.
If there is a chance for the win, you have your rider there in good form and with full bars, then go, make a gap, and set him on dot, effort is up to you. Making a gap will make it harder for chasers to catch you by relaying alone.
A little bit of pausing the game and patiently assessing the situation is essential.
* - heartbeats per second
I'm in a good mood tonight, cheers!
If offense is the best defence, does it mean that defence is the worst defence?
If I should die before I wake, I pray the Lord will delete my browser history.
Just a quick addendum - put your leader in the front before the climb. If he is far back, when you hit the relay button on the climb, and the pace is high, his effort will be automatically set by the game to 100% until he reaches his place in front. This will totally suck the life out of your rider. Never do that.
If offense is the best defence, does it mean that defence is the worst defence?
If I should die before I wake, I pray the Lord will delete my browser history.
