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Alec Gates is a well known and much respected fella here in Taipei, and owner of the fantastic bike shop Taipei Bike Works, situated in Taipei city. He’s also my coaching client!
We met when a friend suggested to me that his bike shop would be great to feature on my Youtube Channel, so I headed down there to say hello about a year ago and really liked the whole ethos of the business, which you can see more about on my video here:
A few months later Alec asked me about coaching and soon joined the CPCS roster. The main issue was a familiar one: a stubborn refusal by his legs to put out more watts and a general plateauing of form. So, we got to work!
Here’s his testimonial:
By Alec Gates:
I’ve been into bicycles my whole life. I started with BMX in middle school and moved onto mountain bikes in college. I didn’t get into road biking until I got to Taiwan. I always thought it was boring. But after seeing the roads here, I knew it would be just as fun and exciting. I started to focus on descents.
I was fast, taking KOMs on the downhills left and right. But I was seriously struggling on the climbs. I could not keep up with even the most basic weekend warriors. At this time I just quit smoking and wanted to become healthier. I got obsessed with cycling and knew it would be a good outlet for my well being if I kept with it. I was on and off the bike for about 2 years when I got a hold of Lee.
At the time my fitness was all over the place and I had no idea what I was doing. I should mention I also run a bike shop full time, tutor English in the mornings and have a 2 year old daughter. With Lee’s help I was able to focus and manage myself in a way to raise my FTP from 190 to 260 in less than a year. I was not only fast downhill but I could hold my own going up the hills as well.
With Lee, he was understanding of my crazy schedule and made plans around it. If I asked him why I needed to ride this way or how a certain task should be completed, he didn’t hesitate to explain with enthusiasm. He is very passionate about cycling and really goes the extra mile to get you to your goals. Highly recommended!
And some photos of Taipei Bike Works:
Alec was in a serious cycling accident yesterday. He is in the ICU with two broken legs and a shattered hip.