Just curious what notch (angle) you guys set your blocks. Lets assume there are 4 notches. (Offhand anyone know the exact angles these notches are?)
According to numerous block calculators my block pedals are supposed to be 60 degrees for the first pedal and 72 degrees for the back.
The only way i feel i can apply pressure to the back block is if its on the top notch (maybee the one next to the top) and the front block i like to be also one from the top. Anyone know what angle these notches are. BTW i got the Rocket blocks with the orange pedals. I think the notches are the same as the standard UCS blocks.
I have the green pedaled blocks and the are 4 notches. My back pedal is the 3rd notch from the top and my front pedal is the 2nd notch from the top. I don’t feel comfortable with the back block all the way upI justp ut my foot on the entire pedal and I feel I get a much needed “power boost” by that.
i use these ones and use 2 front and 3 settings…i was having trouble with applying pressure too both feet and feeling stable so i move my rear blocks forward and feel a whole lot better
The curling I think is to get a better grip, at least that’s the conclusion I’ve come from based on personal experience. If you place your feet completely on the blocks you’ll probably rip them out of the ground on a strong start (except maybe in Mondo in good conditions where the blocks might have a very good grip).
This might be true on a dirt track- but only because you can’t generate as much force, I suspect. I’ve always found it best to have your feet on the block pedal unless the block faces are too vertical and can’t be adjusted. Even on a dirt track, the pins holding the blocks should be much farther into the surface than the spikes you’re wearing.
yes yes…but i downloaded this of a website that sells them…so these aint mine… but i might edit and put in my settings…would make the thread interesting if we all cud do that
Wouldn’t having both blocks at the highest vertical setting be better for an elite athlete? The reason being is that both blocks would be the same angle which would lead the feet pushing off the blocks and a second reason would be that the higher the angle the more you can pushoff forward instead of upward and this forces you to make that first step quicker?
Then again I guess since the back leg leaves first and this helps with the Neuromuscular Coordination? It also puts most of the weight on the forward leg faster and so after the back foot takes off and this would lead to a quicker pushoff from the front foot and reach that angle of takeoff (from the front foot) faster and thus a faster first step!!
Ah Fuck It, the real reason I believe is that you hit triple extension at the perfect angle for takeoff and this leads to a perfect first step; otherwise, you would either stumble out of the blocks (like the chick in the GPP DVD) or if the blocks were more horizontal you would end up doing more of a vertical jump.
As one leg is ahead of the other in set, the shin angles are different, so the foot angles must reflect this in finding the ideal position. It is reasonable to assume that a stronger athlete will have a more vertical block angle, but never so high that the elastic response from the ankle is lost.
Yes, I suspect I’ve reached these (erroneous?) conclusions based on the (poor) equipment and facilities in hand. Where I train we have a cinder track and unadjustable wooden blocks and in the National HPC there are real blocks but the mondo track is so worn the blocks can’t be fixed into the ground and slip if you don’t have someone holding them for you … so steps need to be taken to make sure you get out of the blocks without incidents.
