training advice appreciated

[robbo mcs]

Have you ridden the first climb out of bullocks flat? Looking at sections of it on strava, some of it looks pretty steep.

Yes there are a couple of little steep bits, but overall it is not too bad. From memory it is only around 100m vertical total climb, but I haven't actually ridden that one for a while. It does have the advantage that you can pretty much see it all laid out in front of you, so you can see the top and know what you have to do. Some of the other climbs are more hidden, which is harder mentally if you don't know what happens around the next corner Speaking of which, when you are dying a death on Beloka, just remember that it gets much easier at the 3rd right hand corner

As some of the others said if it is wet, then it is going to be cold and nasty. If it gets wet in these parts it is usually very windy as well. Hopefully no rain.

[ironhanglider]

It doesn't rain in the Snowy Mountains. If it does - wear everything!

I agree with the previous comments, wet is at least 5 probably 10 degrees less than actual temperature in the dry. Cold and dry is bearable for an hour or two, cold and wet heads towards hypothermia pretty quickly.

Hoping for good weather.

Cheers,

Cameron

[newierider]

hi guys.

just over 5 days to go! :/

so the weeks training went well, i did the same interval session as last week and i reckon its just right for my level, i pushed pretty hard was felt pretty done by the end of it.

fridays bunch ride was great as always, it has actually felt easier and easier every week, im starting to relax on it a bit more now. the ride is actually a recovery ride for the a, b and c graders at the local race club so i try to squeeze as many tips out of them every ride. im actually keen to maybe move into racing after christmas, i wont have as much time on my hands to train as my wife has been EXTREMELY understanding with me going out for so long on sundays for thr last few months. we have a 20 month old baby plus we are expecting another in just under 9 months! :/

and so that brings me to sundays ride.... so, the dam weather said rain rain / thunder for most of sunday morning, i got up early and it did look pretty ominous so i thought it best to do a big zwift session instead. and of course.. it never did rain.. i think i made the right choice though as if i was 50k out and had to ride wet roads 6 days before the event.. probably wasnt worth the risk.

the last big zwift ride i did a few weeks back was 101k with 1520m climbing, i managed to do 103k and upped the climbing to 1915m, its surprisingly realistic, i was doing the same wattage on the hills as i do on the road rides so thats good. other positives are that the duration of the 1915m ride was only 6 minutes longer than the 1520m ride.. and i got 49PR's!! faster up all the hills, again, without trying.

my ass was pretty done by 100k due to being seated for so long and i didnt want to do any damage so i stopped there. that being said, i felt pretty good getting off the bike.

so thats the last big ride ticked off!

the race is this saturday, i drive down to thredbo tomorrow which will take a while as the little one's coming too so im not sure if i can squeeze a ride in. so whats in store for this last 5 days? im probably going to stick to trainer rides (im taking the trainer).

cheers guys!

[g-boaf]

Good work, just some easy rides this week I think - nothing strenuous or long. Your aim is to keep the legs turning, but to let the recovery happen. Plenty of sleep too.

Good luck for the event - I think you are going to go very well. You are progressing well, I like that you are getting PRs without it feeling too hard.

Great that you are getting involved with club A and B graders, those guys can give you some good tips.

[Derny Driver]

Yep, fantastic work newie, wow look how far you have come, its amazing. You are being very smart about your training and improvising when you need to which is great.
Okay so Tuesday will be driving all day and no riding. Thats fine. I think you actually need to do a road ride on either Wednesday or Thursday for somewhere between an hour to 2 hours. Get the feel of the roads and open your lungs up. Easy riding. On the other day (Wed or Thurs) have a hit out on the trainer but not too hard. Just turn the legs over for 30 minutes nice and easy
Friday you can either rest the legs, or just have a 20 minute light spin on the trainer ..very easy, or a nice 30 minute roll around town on the road.
Dont do nothing all week, keep the legs ticking over, but reduce the time and the effort so that you freshen up.

[newierider]

Nice one derny & g-boaf sounds good. Shall i do the usual recovery ride tonight or rest the legs?

[g-boaf]

Yeah, I'd do a recovery ride tonight, that will help recovery. 95rpm cadence or better, very low power and small chain ring only.It should feel really easy. This helps a lot.

On the day of the event, you should feel really strong. Again, great work - you are doing really well.

[Derny Driver]

Yep what G said

[madmacca]

Nice one derny & g-boaf sounds good. Shall i do the usual recovery ride tonight or rest the legs?

One other option for the next few days if you have a willing driver to ferry you around to do a couple of the trickier descents - get some reconnaissance in, without adding anything to your training stress.

[Derny Driver]

One other option for the next few days if you have a willing driver to ferry you around to do a couple of the trickier descents - get some reconnaissance in, without adding anything to your training stress.

Thats always a good idea too macca.
When I take teams overseas we always recon the course in a car in the days before or ride the stages/sections of the stages on the bikes, noting how long the hilltop finish climbs are and the gradients and everything else. It makes a huge difference if you know where you are going and what is in front of you.
Not much point in driving the 160km but it would be good to have a look at some of the hilly bits and as you said, maybe even ride the descents.

[robbo mcs]

If you are going to consider driving around any of the course to have a look I would do the two climbs.

Beloka is diabolical, but seeing it gives you some idea of what you are up against.

Driving up from jindy to perisher will give you some idea of that climb. There are also 3 reasonable descents on that road, down to thredbo river, from rennix gap to Sponars / Diggers creek, and from Dainers gap to Wragge's creek. Seeing it and looking out for some landmarks may help you mentally on the day. You will be tired by that stage, and just knowing a few landmarks and how you are making progress may help

Some people have spotted Chris Froome in town, so must be getting close

[ironhanglider]

I'm going to post in here because I have referred to it before but for the TLDR crowd this is an abbreviated ride report from the Giro della Donna.

The day started with an alarm at stupid o'clock, having not got to bed before midnight. Note to self: not enough sleep is a bad idea.
I had spent the day before gardening in order to try and justify the leave pass for the big day. This meant scratches on my arms and a sore back because a large chunk was pulling out grass that had grown from underneath ornamental bushes. Further note: find a better way to earn brownie points. After that I turned my attention to the bike. I had swapped the stem for a shorter/higher stem during the week, and although I had been riding on the cassette I was going to use (11-28 although I would have preferred a 12 or even 13-28), I needed to transfer that onto my Fondo wheels.

On the day my wheels were just about perfect, old school low-profile tubulars with 22mm Continental Sprinters at 90/100 psi. (tubulars feel like clinchers with 10psi less IME). The bike was properly adjusted and just purred along. I did have some advice from last weekend to save some in reserve for the last climb, and I tried to adhere to this and suppress my 'boy-racer' tendencies.

I was a little nervous about the distance. In April I did an 80km ride, but after that I had only done the one 100km ride, which was completely flat. The official ride distance was about 107km, however there is an extra 17km to get back to the start which brings it up to 124km.

The start was to be self-divided into waves, fast-medium-social. I eventually started at the back end of the fast group. I made up a bit of ground as people dropped off through the rollers before the Reefton Spur leg started. There was a timed section from 20-40km up the Reefton Spur with momentos going to the fastest 100. I had figured that I was no chance of getting the momento, so I just settled in to climb at my own pace. The traffic thinned out pretty quickly so it was only individuals an small groups from here on in. I did lose a couple of minutes when I stopped for a bloke with a blown out tyre, he refused an offer of a tubular on the basis that he had a friend coming with a spare tyre. In the end I was fairly happy to complete the segment in less than an hour.

I lost time at the Marysville 'Aid Station' where I stopped for a pee and to take on a banana, and some Energy bars and Energy chews and fill my bottles, however I don't think that any of that time was wasted.

After Marysville we worked our way to the Acheron Way, and with the advice to keep some in reserve I dawdled along looking at the impressive scenery for quite a while. When it got to the gravel section I was feeling quite strong, and I started to concentrate on riding again. I passed quite a few people on the gravel section, and even more on the climb up Donna. By the time I reached the top I felt that I could still keep going for quite a way.

I received a bit of a setback when I became aware of a slow puncture with about 4km to the summit. I kept riding until the 3km to go point which features a chain-fitting bay. However I wrestled the tyre off with the help of a lever (when I glue a tyre on it stays on) and fitted the replacement, and finished the ride with Mike. I had been riding within a minute or two of Mike for the whole way and I was pleased to catch him with about 500m to go.

As for clothing (YMMV), the forecast was for 12-21 degrees in Warburton, but the top of the Mountain is typically 10-12 degrees colder. I started with just my bib/nicks, a 'thermal' T shirt, and jersey with my shell jacket in may pocket. I was cooler than ideal for the first hour, and as we climbed the Reefton Spur, we just climbed into the cloud. Fortunately the cloud dispersed as we approached the top of the climb so it was actually quite pleasant, in the end what I had (in conjunction with the jacket that had been couriered to to top) was just about perfect, apart from carting a shell jacket around all day 'just in case'. The shell jacket would have made the flat part at the start more comfortable, but taking it off for the climb would be awkward.

All in all, without the physical preparation that newierider has had, my mechanicals and logistics worked a treat and I had as good a result as can be expected. I wasn't competing for overall honours and there were a great many people behind me, so pacing wasn't essential.

Things I learned (or had reinforced) from the day:
- Put your hay fever tablets somewhere where they cannot be missed
- It is really nice riding a clean and perfectly functioning bike
- Save something for the end. I passed a lot of people who had hit the wall and stopped in the last 5-10km. When I finished I felt that I could have gone on for quite a bit longer.
- have some means of contacting people when you finish. (My phone battery died with about 4km to go to the summit plus another 17km of descent)
- riding with other people is good, especially if you can talk to them. 'Nice Bike, where did you get it' is a good conversation starter.

Cheers,

Cameron.

[newierider]

Cheers cameron reaĺy interesting stuff. Thanks v much for that report ive read it a couple of times now.

So im in thredbo! As i entered jindy last night at about 7pm it hailstoned down hard! Thought the windscreen was gonna blow! As i drove through to thredbo is suddenly all felt very real and will admit.. intimidating! :/

So so glad we got here in advance though, 3 days here now to relax, drive around parts of the course and make sure the bike is 100%.

I brought everything i could possibly need and also a lot of what i wont need! Im not one for taking chances.

Its my birthday today the wifes gone out with the baby to get me coffee and im lying in bed reading the final letape guide that just came through. Jindabyne looked great as i entered, loads of bicycles randomly placed and painted yellow just like tdf. Really got me excited seeing it all and being part of it.

I got a sinking feeling yesterday that i have completely underestimated the final climb... will check it out hopefully this afternoon to put my mind at ease.

So beloka is diabolical... haha that made me smile. I have heard so many "horriffic' terms regarding that climb. am i right in saying its the first 500m thats the worst?

[Derny Driver]

I got a sinking feeling yesterday that i have completely underestimated the final climb... will check it out hopefully this afternoon to put my mind at ease.

Just stick it in the granny gear and creep up it mate. You'll be fine. Just pace yourself sensibly.
Happy birthday

[newierider]

Cheers derny

[g-boaf]

I got a sinking feeling yesterday that i have completely underestimated the final climb... will check it out hopefully this afternoon to put my mind at ease.

Just stick it in the granny gear and creep up it mate. You'll be fine. Just pace yourself sensibly.
Happy birthday

Absolutely agree with Derny Driver. Happy Birthday and enjoy the atmosphere down there.

I think you've got enough fitness to get through the whole thing.

[robbo mcs]

So beloka is diabolical... haha that made me smile. I have heard so many "horriffic' terms regarding that climb. am i right in saying its the first 500m thats the worst?

Yes, the first 500m is by far the worst. Much steeper and harder than any of the gradient maps suggest. After that it flattens out in the mid section and actually gets a little easy for a while. It then gradually steepens up again for the run to the top of the hill. However, it is really the first 500m that you have to worry about. You will be in your lowest gear and struggling

Honestly the final climb is not that bad, just long. Just pace yourself, keep the pedals spinning and the km will gradually disappear without too much pain.

Anyhow, too late to change the training regime or plan now. Just go out and you will surprise yourself, you have done all the hard work

[ironhanglider]

Don't doubt yourself Newie. You've done the work and you are physically ready.

I am sure that you will find yourself leaving quite a few people behind on the first climb and they will not catch you again. You will have no problem with the sag wagon so forget about that. The others who have not done your level of preparation can worry. Tape over or remove your computer too if you haven't done so already, this is not an event to worry about numbers. Look around and enjoy the ride, talk to others etc. Just ride within yourself and you will do well.

Robbo describes the Beloka climb as diabolical and the final climb as not that bad. That is probably fair. Of course that means that once you have beaten Beloka, you have proved yourself capable and will have no problem at the end, just relax and ride at an easy pace after that. There will be many who will get the final climb with nothing left and you will be passing them at will. Just be warned that whistling or singing as you go past shattered riders on the final climb is probably poor form, a simple 'keep going, you'll make it' will suffice.

There will probably be someone with a camera at the finish, so make sure you are in the big ring for the picture. That way you can tell stories afterwards of having used it all the way up and have a photo to 'prove' it.

Cheers,

Cameron

[kb]

Just be warned that whistling or singing as you go past shattered riders on the final climb is probably poor form, a simple 'keep going, you'll make it' will suffice.

Haha. Reminds me of the odd looks I get climbing Baw Baw in company. Honestly, I just like chatting, it doesn't mean it doesn't hurt!

[newierider]

Just be warned that whistling or singing as you go past shattered riders on the final climb is probably poor form, a simple 'keep going, you'll make it' will suffice.

There will probably be someone with a camera at the finish, so make sure you are in the big ring for the picture. That way you can tell stories afterwards of having used it all the way up and have a photo to 'prove' it.

hahaha, nice one

[g-boaf]

Just be warned that whistling or singing as you go past shattered riders on the final climb is probably poor form, a simple 'keep going, you'll make it' will suffice.

There will probably be someone with a camera at the finish, so make sure you are in the big ring for the picture. That way you can tell stories afterwards of having used it all the way up and have a photo to 'prove' it.

hahaha, nice one

Talking casually as you go past people is also pretty nasty too.

[Duck!]

You've done all the prep work, all I can add is the signature I use on other forums - just ride the bloody thing and enjoy yourself!.

[Xplora]

Let's draw a line under this. What happened.

[robbo mcs]

Yes, keen to find out. Hopefully everything went ok. However, mid morning onwards it got very windy, and the second half of the course was very tough. Hopefully newierider made it

[newierider]

hi guys.

first off, i didnt make the full length of "the 157k race"... at 85k i had a minor mechanical on a small remote but very windy hill. i checked around me, got off my bike right on the edge of the road, saw that all was safe and proceeded to slip the chain back on , i had my hand between the chain and the crank and then "SLAM" some fool was riding with his head facing the floor and never looked up til he hit me. he kept apologising i said it was fine and he went on his way.. 10 seconds later the pain set in, i looked at my hand and i was bleeding pretty heavily, i had a deep slash to my finger and the whole of my fingernail had rotated about 20 degrees, i walked to a marshall a couple of metres down the road, no medical facilities, a car pulled up, also not a medic and gave me some cloth to help stop the bleeding, then nausea kicked in with all the adrenalin and the thought of not completing, a while later the bleeding slowed right down and i was told there was a medic in 7k at the next feed station. i got back on the bike, got the the feed station.. no medic til the next one at the top of "beloka" the big steep hill of the race. only 3k but will take a while to get up it. the hill got to 19% in sections, probably at least 80% of the riders here walked up it, i rode up the whole thing, agony but very proud of doing that, it was a surreal moment though, all you can hear was the groans of pain that everyone was in until they hopped off their bike. there was a medic at the next stop but all they could do was clean up the wound and give me a proper bandage.

at around 124k i got to the fork in the road where you turn for either the ride or the race, i knew i had lost a lot of time from the accident but decided to turnoff for the final big hill. i got 5.5k in and realised i was never going to get up there with the time i had left, plus with the state my hand was in, i wasnt braking safely and gear changing was tricky. i decided to turn back, that was a pretty emotional time for me, glad no-one was around to see the tears

so i headed back another 6 or 7k to the finish of "the ride" and was really happy to get the medal for it. then it was straight to the medical centre, they didnt have to take the nail off, they just said it should be ok to just grow off. then i had sutres on the gash.

all up, im extremely proud of what i achieved on the ride.

"the ride" was 126k 1850m, the race was 2750m 157k, i clocked up 137k and 2065m.

there were so many parts of the ride where i was seriously welling up, overwhelemed over how exciting it was, i found myself in situations i had never dreamed of, riding 38-42kph on flat within a peloton of around 80ppl and keeping up with them was something i will never forget. strava gave me a suffer score of 226 which is almost double the score i got on the last 120k ride i did, my average speed was pretty close to my flat ride speeds, average heart rate was 150, max at 173.

it was a gruelling ride in sections, really tough headwinds and hot, strava says 38 degrees and it started off at 10! i had a really light windjacket on for about 30 minutes then it was stashed away for the rest of the ride, i did get cold early on from the sweat but i warmed up pretty quickly.

i think it would have taken me some time to get up that final 23k climb, i was fairly fatigued due to pushing myself pretty hard.

to be completely honest, i dont feel down about not completing it, looking at all the positive data afterwards and the amazing experience i had and how far i had come in just over three months with derny and g-boaf nurturing me though everything, i feel more than fine

plus the bonus of still getting a medal for completing "the ride" made everything so much better.

when i have healed up derny & g-boaf i will give you guys a nudge for that coffee!

thanks again to everyone involved in this thread, feel free to post any questions you might have about the event / experience, im happy to help.