Fall as a Roadie
So,
My fall race got axed for job/moving/spousal issues so I don't have a race to prep for. I have been working on Run durability all year to get back from a hamstring strain. I moved to a place with both hills and a very active road bike scene and have gotten more involved in trying to ride with some of the roadie groups rather than being the lone wolf that I have been up to this point. It might be helpful to share that although I did some road biking in the 80's on my steel-frame Miyata, all of my recent biking has been done on a tri bike and with only a few exceptions, done solo.
I did a nice 250 mile group ride this July and learned a great deal about the etiquette of a roadie ride and the pace line. I have been working my way through the local groups in an attempt to find a group that pushed me to be faster rather than letting me sit out front and pull. In riding with these groups, I have noticed several things and I would like some input from members who are more experienced with the road bike world.
1. Rather than exert a fixed effort, they tend to go for a fixed speed, therefore, they coast a lot more on the downhills and blister it up the hills. I can see that this is much more like an interval workout than a regular triathlon ride. About half way through the ride, I start moving back through the pack on the hills and catching back up on the downhills. This usually is the step right before I get dropped. I am assuming that working harder on the hills will make me better at this. Correct?
2. It has been politely pointed out to me several times that a tri bike is not the best for these rides and, since all that I have is a converted road bike, I am putting road bars and brakes back on it. I am thinking that I will need to get re-fit for it as a road configuration. Correct?
3. Most of these guys will only take 1 or 2 bottles on a 45 mile ride, I usually take 4. I have had issues tolerating nutrition in my long races and feel that I need to continue to work on this by maintaining 2 bottles per hour of intake (my calculated hourly nutrition). Thoughts?
4. I have a pretty nice climb that is about 1700 feet up in 2 miles and I have been either riding there and climbing it (60 miles round trip with the climb in the middle) or just riding 40 miles locally with a group and driving over to the climb afterwards to finish up. Any thoughts on whether the timing of that climb would be better at the beginning of the workout versus the end to get the max benefit?
I have been very impressed with how much trying not to get dropped can motivate me from an output standpoint. First group ride that I succeeded in not getting dropped was IF 0.98 over a 2 hour ride. Seems like it should yield some FTP benefits at the next test.
R2
Comments
1. Road group rides have much more rhythm than going out and staring at a PM trying to stay steady for 4-5 hours. Realize that it will flow as you speak and guys will shred you going up hills and hide in the paceline going on flats, just the way it is. Roadie riding is all about saving energy and the better guys know how to hide real well and the unload their W/kg going up the hills and dust everyone.
2. Tri anything on a roadie ride much like unshaved legs is a huge no no. It is not safe and the angles on a true or even converted road to tri bike are all wrong. Yes to converting handlebars and seat tube back to standard road bike angles and then get a re-fit.
3. Nutrition is personal so do what you need to do but you will not see a big emphasis on nutrition and timing etc. in road circles. As you have seen your effort is much much higher as a % of FTP so you can't process as much nutrition as going for 6 hours at .72 so that's part of the reason you don't see as much eating.
4. No timing it just keep riding the hell out of it. If you use strava I would create a segment for it and start tracking your efforts up the climb to see how you are progressing.
I do a bunch of road races in the early season and it's always humbling how strong the single sport roadies are at any age.
Good luck and most of all just have fun.
Road Rides and Roadies:
IOW, through your actions and body language you identify yourself as being aware that this is a group ride and are performing actions (ride steady, offering a wheel, helping to close gaps, and simply glancing behind you now and then) that help the group. Strong riders don't really appreciate an unknown strong rider showing up and riding outside of the rhythm of the group. If that's your bag...they would rather you just not ride with them. They are happy to watch you ride away on your solo breakaway. Likewise, anyone who shows up without "The Look," (well maintain bike setup properly, shaved legs -- yes, this makes a big difference -- and other non-Fred cues) and skills will be treated as a hazard until proven otherwise
Like Rich said, don't be 'That Guy'. Their turf, play by their rules.
Also, those longer group rides are fun. Sometimes, they're balls-to-the-wall all out from the start. Sometimes, they are smooth like clockwork. Usually, the latter, in my experience. It's the shorter 1.5-2 hr group rides that you better ride smart and have your 'This is gonna hurt' mentality in order. (at least, that's the case around here)
Love group riding. TONS of fun. Be safe. Never overlap those wheels. And, if the guys at the front are going too slow for your liking, be patient and wait your turn. There's prob a reason they're conserving at that point, prob some kind of sprint not too far ahead. If your ride is the kind where a second paceline might form and start 'passing' everyone, be very careful trying to hop from line to line. Not recommended. It all depends on the personality of your group.