Customer Reviews

Global Ride: Speed & Power in Italy Virtual Cycling DVD

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I bought Speed and Power in Italy from the manufacturer. It came with a coupon that said that I could get a free DVD if I wrote a positive review on Amazon. Keep that in mind when you read the other reviews here. If I did like it I would have no problem giving it a good review, but I would also feel obligated to say that I was being compensated.

First, they get the basics down pretty good. There is some beautiful scenery here, and the rides that they chose are excellent. Every ride starts out with a Google map and a description of the ride. In those regards they did a good job here. Unfortunately they did not do as well with the execution.

I would have preferred if they chose better weather to film. Some of the time the riders are in arm and leg warmers, and the weather looks dreary. If I am going to ride vicariously I want perfect weather conditions!

Another problem is with the pacing. They seem to be driving the car at a constant speed. It would be more realistic if they went slower up the climbs and faster down the descents. They way they filmed it, the descents are painfully slow. Some of them look pretty steep, and there is no sense of exhilaration as the car rolls down at a slow pace. The camera work itself is generally good, except there are more than a few times that you can see reflections out of the side windows. Roll the windows down next time!

They have a good premise for these films, and I would be a repeat buyer if they were executed well, however if this DVD is like the others they are not worth the price.

I'm an avid cyclist fortunate enough to be living in Sonoma County California which has some of the best rides to be found anywhere literally just outside my door. However when it rains and I cannot go out for a ride I find myself on my indoor trainer watching a cycling DVD. Recently my daughter for my birthday gave me the cycling video "Speed and Power in Italy" produced by Global Rides. This video is the next best thing to actually being in Italy and cruising their country roads which I think is every roadies dream. Beautiful scenery, scenic mountain passes, mild grades, straights, rollers, sleepy little towns and at the end a killer climb and backed by awesome music which seems to get you into the mood. This video is the perfect tool to help with your training on the dreary rainy days when you wish you were out riding. Give it a try. I highly recommend this video as an addition to your cycling DVD library.

I just got my first DVD of the Global Ride Italy series ("Speed & Power"), and I have to say it's really nice. The DVD is in two major parts.

The first part is an hour long tour of Italy from a biker's perspective (and speed). There 3 or 4 distinct stages covering different parts of the Italian countryside, along the flats and in the hills. The idea is that you're on an indoor training bike (wind trainer, rollers, spinning bike, or in a studio), and pacing your workout based on what's happening on the screen. Going up hills, blasting through tunnels, and coasting downhill. I find the scenery fun to watch even when not on a bike.

There are four audio coaching tracks. Three individual coaches from different countries, and one "group session" that was recorded live. You can get that "surrounded by people" feeling without actually having to leave home. If you don't want a coach, you can play just the music.

The coaching voices are on the left channel, and the music on the right, so you can dial in your mix of voice and beat. That gives you five end-to-end playthroughs before repeating. The American coach gives you a pretty tough goal to shoot for during the last stage, so it won't get boring anytime soon.

What's pretty neat about the Global Ride DVDs is the second part - they have an additional section after the cycling: this DVD has a thirty minute or so Pilates workout. Previous Global Ride DVDs have also had Yoga and hand weights. If you've never done Pilates you can see what's involved before you go to a club. It's kinda cool that they acknowledge there's more to bicycle performance than just time on the bike.

The quality of the music, video, and coaching is very high. It's obvious a lot of time and attention went into the details.

I have purchased many "virtual cycling" and training DVDs from several different vendors. The Global Ride: Speed & Power in Italy DVD is far ahead of its competitors by several kilometers. When it comes to virtual cycling DVDs, Global Ride is at the front of the peleton.

Perhaps most importantly, the training content is superior. You will ride over an interesting and visually compelling course with varying terrain and varying degrees of difficulty accompanied by a few other riders and a professional coach who will instruct and motivate you to optimize your effort and the benefits of the session. Alternatively, you can seek group support and ride the course with other cyclists in a "live' training class, again, led by a professional coach. Either way, the instructor and training content are inspiring and motivating.

Training content is not the only thing that sets Global Ride apart and ahead of its competitors. The video of the course and the picturesque scenes and landscapes of Italy is absolutely beautiful. Global Ride also did a great job integrating some of the Italian culture and local people throughout the video. They made it "real".

Finally, if music motivates you, Global Ride has assembled a group of very talented artists. You'll want to play the DVD just to hear the music. Unlike its competitors, there are no "off the shelf" elevator songs on this DVD.

If you are looking for content, motivation and entertainment, this is the DVD for you.

I am an amateur triathlete who performs cycling events in the middle of my age/gender division. I ride indoors winter 2-3X week on my tri bike using a fluid resistance trainer. I typically use Coach Troy's Spinervals workouts and bought the Speed & Power in Italy DVD to have some variety in coaching and scenery. I rate the workout effort as a 7 on a scale with max 10.

Speed & Power in Italy offers three coaching soundtracks. I recommend following the German coach; she gives more details about effort and gear. For the first 12 min or so this is primarily a big gear, top of Zone 2 (Heart rate) 90-95 rpm ride. I break a sweat entering the brief second phase and thereafter stay in the big gear at 85 to 90 rpm, achieving low to mid Zone 3. The last 2-3 min consists of a climb, and I drop down to 60-65 rpm and get out of the seat. In sum, the ride is a continuous slightly progressive effort for about 50 min and your heart rate only gets to Zone 4 once briefly at the end. The work out does not consist of programmatic effort/rest cycles like you get with Coach Troy or Mindy Mylrea training DVDs; use it for variety and to simulate a short country ride.

The scenery and routes are very nice but the ride was shot on a grey day. I use training DVDs indoors on grey rainy days, so I would have preferred some sunshine. The DVD is shot from a car and its pace is often at odds with the elevation changes, road resistance, banking, and pace of accompanying cyclists. The producers needed to run these routes several times to achieve more realism.

If you can, buy the DVD using a reduced price option.

I love this DVD. I read a bunch of internet reviews on various DVD's and this one came highly recommended. It's got the capability of turning the music (which is great) on or off as well as the coach (which you can choose which coach you want!) I thought the bonus pilates for cyclists was really well done since I do pilates regularly and was most impressed by the customer service I received from the owner. The owner contacted me after my DVD arrived to make sure there was no skipping or any other issues. This is truly great service and very hard to come by these days. I would highly recommend this DVD to anyone who wants a great workout while BLASTING THROUGH BRACCO!!! Well done.

I recently ordered and received Global Ride's Strendurance in Hawaii and loved it. I was so excited when I found out they were going to do an Italy Series. I ordered it as soon as I saw it's release. I received it quicker than I was expecting and was not disappointed. The scenery is absolutely breathtaking and the music is motivating. I love the fact that you can turn off the voice coaching and/or music if you choose. Sometimes after I've heard the coaching once or twice, I prefer to just hear the music. Other times I like to listen to my own music as a change of pace. I am eagerly awaiting more DVDs in the series, but in the meantime, these 2 will be getting a lot of use, especially in the summertime in South Florida when it's 100 degrees+ outside! Just crank down the A/C and go riding in the mountains of Italy!

I own cycling DVDs from other coaches and was curious to check this one out -- I was not disappointed.

Since most of the positive comments are already included in the other reviews, I will not repeat them. I will say, though, that I am seriously considering ordering more of Global Ride's DVDs to excite my indoor training, especially during the snowy winter.

First, thanks for a 60 minute ride that includes both warm up and cool down. Most dvds or cds for spinning classes aren't 60 minutes in totality. The countdown clock on the screen is very helpful and motivating when the class is beginning to fatigue. Everyone enjoys the music as it goes along with the virtual ride. I have used both the coaching and noncoaching available on the dvd. My other experiences with coaching on the dvd is that there is too much of it. This dvd has just the right amount of coaching, not constant talking that can take away from the ride. The maps at the beginning of each ride segment are a great visual for what is coming up. Thanks also for the Pilates section at the end of the ride. This adds a new dimension to the class that students really like. Taking a virtual ride in Italy is a wonderful change from the riding I do in my home state of Arizona. Thanks for a great ride!

I just finished working out with Global Ride: Speed & Power in Italy. What a great ride!

First I'll say that I'm not an expert cyclist, but I felt like I was there with those athletes, who were challenging and encouraging me through this impressive ride. The narration was helpful.

You can choose music or no music.
You can choose coaching or no coaching.
If you choose coaching, you have several to choose from.

I chose to ride with music and an American coach. He gave good instruction if you were going strong on this ride and said if this was a Recovery Day for you, enjoy the scenery, which by the way was unbeatable. We warmed up as we went through Italian towns, got to wave at a wedding party, saw a few other people here and there in the different roads and towns before moving on to some tough, twisting mountain roads. The coach gave calm encouragement as he encouraged you to your best. I was able to adjust the ride to my own level so that I stayed challenged without hurting myself.

I so wish I had bought the whole Boxed Set of Italy. This one is definitely one that will help me grow stronger. I hope to get the others someday.

EDITED to say that I did get the whole Boxed set of Italy. I just had another invigorating workout. These are great. I have recommended them to everyone I know.