"The 33"-Road Bike Racing - how to ride my fastest metric century

I'm in a metric century next weekend on a flat course in Florida. My usual weekend rides this summer have been 40 to 60 miles, plus a 20 mile ride during the week, on rolling hills. My cycling anaerobic threshold measured 165, max hr about 185. I can pedal hard for 3+ hours, at average heart rate of about 160. During accelerations when heart rate hits 180+ I know I won't last more than a mile, or about 2 minutes. When I then sit on a wheel for 10 minutes, heart rate drops back in the 140's-150's and I'm ready to sprint up the next hill.

Strategy for metric century PR: Temp - expect 58F at start, 68F at finish. Nutrition - powerbar and water an hour before, gel 10 minutes before, carry 2 large water bottles (probably only need 1.5), second gel at 1.5 hours. Pace - this is the big question. I can TT 62 miles at 20+ mph, or sub 3 hour ride (depending on head wind). To do so I would target my heart rate in the mid-150's the first hour, low-160's the second hour, upper 160's the third hour, and all I have left the last 5 miles.

Of course it's not a TT, so I'll take whatever the peloton offers. The event is not a race, but a charity fund raiser. I expect there will be a couple of "fast" groups, followed by a trail of the full range of pace. Not knowing the crowd, how do I play it? Go out with the big dogs and hang as long as I can? If this requires my heart rate in the 160's just to hang on, should I go ahead and drop? Conventional wisdom says you can only finish with the lead pack, if you stay with them -- unlikely to find a group who were pacing themselves for the first hour and are ready to go with you to bridge up. More likely a bunch of Fred's who went out too fast and are fading in the second and third hours. Do you agree or disagree?

What's wrong with this strategy?: If the lead pack is "fast", hang as long as possible with a sub 165 average heart rate (could be 23-25mph, if I stay on someone's wheel), but drop after 20 minutes if it requires more hr.

If the lead pack is "slow" and I'm rotating through and pulling and still in my mid-150's, then organize a break to up the pace in the second hour.

What else?

Bill

depends on the size of the ride. if it's small there may be only a couple of serious pacelines. if ther are thousands or riders there may be a number of pelotons and lots of paceline to ride in.

most centuries i've been to riders can't ride a paceline for crap. riders don't know how to pull smoothly, pull for too long and try to be heroes, don't know how to rotate a paceline or worse you will have 15 riders all around you but all racing each other individually passing and repassing each other and then dying and then attacking again instead of riding together

you're way over thinking this, you have to play it as it comes think defense, not offense. you have to be able to read what's happening on the road as groups come by you. if you want to go fast jump on every paceline that passes you, if you get dropped no big deal, since it's not a race, just slow up recover a bit and jump in the next paceline that comes by.

there won't be and 'bridging up' to pacelines, if you can't stay with a group in the draft, your surely not going to cacth them without one, if you do it will because that paceline is too slow for you

if you're in a group that's too slow, don't break it apart by pulling too hard or accellerating at the front too quickly, just take a few longer pulls and pull away from the group if they stop or at a turn or a hill

how to ride my fastest metric century?

get a license and find a race that's 100km long.

I'm in a metric century next weekend on a flat course in Florida. My usual weekend rides this summer have been 40 to 60 miles, plus a 20 mile ride during the week, on rolling hills. My cycling anaerobic threshold measured 165, max hr about 185. I can pedal hard for 3+ hours, at average heart rate of about 160. During accelerations when heart rate hits 180+ I know I won't last more than a mile, or about 2 minutes. When I then sit on a wheel for 10 minutes, heart rate drops back in the 140's-150's and I'm ready to sprint up the next hill.

Strategy for metric century PR: Temp - expect 58F at start, 68F at finish. Nutrition - powerbar and water an hour before, gel 10 minutes before, carry 2 large water bottles (probably only need 1.5), second gel at 1.5 hours. Pace - this is the big question. I can TT 62 miles at 20+ mph, or sub 3 hour ride (depending on head wind). To do so I would target my heart rate in the mid-150's the first hour, low-160's the second hour, upper 160's the third hour, and all I have left the last 5 miles.

Of course it's not a TT, so I'll take whatever the peloton offers. The event is not a race, but a charity fund raiser. I expect there will be a couple of "fast" groups, followed by a trail of the full range of pace. Not knowing the crowd, how do I play it? Go out with the big dogs and hang as long as I can? If this requires my heart rate in the 160's just to hang on, should I go ahead and drop? Conventional wisdom says you can only finish with the lead pack, if you stay with them -- unlikely to find a group who were pacing themselves for the first hour and are ready to go with you to bridge up. More likely a bunch of Fred's who went out too fast and are fading in the second and third hours. Do you agree or disagree?

What's wrong with this strategy?: If the lead pack is "fast", hang as long as possible with a sub 165 average heart rate (could be 23-25mph, if I stay on someone's wheel), but drop after 20 minutes if it requires more hr.

If the lead pack is "slow" and I'm rotating through and pulling and still in my mid-150's, then organize a break to up the pace in the second hour.

What else?

Bill

This is where you lost my attention. No idea what you said after that.

Attack at the rest stops, and throw your hands in the air at the finish line.

Go get 'em Fred! :D

Stay near the front, don't go with anything smaller than 5 people if it splits. Also, it is a charity thing...There should not exactly be a lot of attacking. Lastly, I am having trouble with the idea of a max HR at 185 but you being able to hold 180 for 2 minutes. One of these numbers is off. But that of course has nothing to do with your ride.

Often you'll find a local team that targets such rides due to sponsorship commitments (i.e. shop that sponsors team does sag wagon for ride), no races, excuse for a group ride, etc. See if you can't meet up with one of these groups - they'll go as fast as their slowest rider (probably a Cat 4 or 5) and it'll stay together until the last 10 or so miles. Since they're trying to keep a reasonable group together you'll have a better chance of hanging on.

Leave or lead the group you're in only if you can make a huge difference. If it's windy you might think it's easy when you're sitting in but if you pull, you may increase speed only 1-2 mph and totally explode 10 miles down the road.

Try ignoring your heart rate now and then. It really opens doors when you realize after that you've maintained a HR 5 or 10 beats above what you considered to be "your threshold". Riding in a group or a race does that for me.

If you find yourself on your own, go easier on the hills and work hard on the downhills and flats. If you're going under 40 mph then maintaining your efforts on downhills (instead of coasting) can get you a lot of relatively free speed.

Also, if you aren't totally antisocial or work only 3rd shift or whatever, then joining such a group in general might be a good way of gaining a lot of experience very quickly. It's motivating, you see a lot of different riding styles, your riding is exposed to a lot of different riders, and depending on the group, there's usually a rapid increase in riding ability (strength and skill) in the first three or four years. Years, not months. A good group will teach you more about riding in a month than you can learn in years (conversely a bad group will teach you nothing).

good luck on the ride,
cdr

Thanks! Yeah, I agree. I failed to mention I've done a couple of century rides, and as you said, most do not know how to ride a paceline. My upcoming ride is not a huge event (not thousands, but a few hundred). I agree in a huge ride, there's always another bus coming along.

In this smaller event, I'm hoping I can ride the course as fast as the lead riders, so I'm trying to think of how to do it, without making the mistake of either dropping off the lead pack too soon, or going out too fast and blowing up. My concern is, if I drop, there won't be another group for a while.

I've had some success with coaching, scolding, cajoling a group of strangers to fall in line and rotate 2 minute pulls. Yes, as you mentioned sometimes they fracture into 8 individuals racing each other.

I guess this is the difference between time trialing and road racing and century riding. I think can time trial 62 miles in under 3 hours (with no headwind). With any paceline, even a little, I should finish faster than doing it solo. Unless I go out too fast and blow up. I'm no racer, but my I've heard some road races ride the first third to half at a moderate pace, until someone launches a serious attack. At my event I think it's more likely a bunch will over estimate themselves, go out too fast, then wilt. I suppose there's no way to know in advance, unless you know most of the strong riders who are going to be there.

So I'm back to: go out with the leaders, refuse to pull, stay within the front 20 or so to spot a break. If they're slow, patiently suck wheel, until such point that I know I can solo it faster the whole rest of the way. If they're fast, hang on as long as possible.

Yes, I'm over thinking it. I was just hoping to prompt the forum for some bit of wisdom.

So I'm back to: go out with the leaders, stop and take a picture of the nice view, refuse to pull, no one notices, stay within the front 20 or so to spot a toilet break. If they're slow eat my sandwiches, patiently suck wheel, until such point that I know the rest of the way home. If they're fast, hang on as long as possible and then ride with people at my own pace.



^^ Fixed. Good luck hope you have a fun day.

1. Not enough water, you should be using three large bottles.
2. Powerbar is not nutrition, eat a full breakfast with complex carbs.

Thanks! Yeah, I agree. I failed to mention I've done a couple of century rides, and as you said, most do not know how to ride a paceline. My upcoming ride is not a huge event (not thousands, but a few hundred). I agree in a huge ride, there's always another bus coming along.

In this smaller event, I'm hoping I can ride the course as fast as the lead riders, so I'm trying to think of how to do it, without making the mistake of either dropping off the lead pack too soon, or going out too fast and blowing up. My concern is, if I drop, there won't be another group for a while.

I've had some success with coaching, scolding, cajoling a group of strangers to fall in line and rotate 2 minute pulls. Yes, as you mentioned sometimes they fracture into 8 individuals racing each other.

I guess this is the difference between time trialing and road racing and century riding. I think can time trial 62 miles in under 3 hours (with no headwind). With any paceline, even a little, I should finish faster than doing it solo. Unless I go out too fast and blow up. I'm no racer, but my I've heard some road races ride the first third to half at a moderate pace, until someone launches a serious attack. At my event I think it's more likely a bunch will over estimate themselves, go out too fast, then wilt. I suppose there's no way to know in advance, unless you know most of the strong riders who are going to be there.

So I'm back to: go out with the leaders, refuse to pull, stay within the front 20 or so to spot a break. If they're slow, patiently suck wheel, until such point that I know I can solo it faster the whole rest of the way. If they're fast, hang on as long as possible.

Yes, I'm over thinking it. I was just hoping to prompt the forum for some bit of wisdom.

This is sad, really. You desperately want to be a bike racer, and want to race other people at a CHARITY ride. You want to organize a break...at a CHARITY RIDE. There is no prize list, no upgrade points, no officials, no time keepers, no red kite hanging above the course at 1k to go, just like most CHARITY RIDES.

So, why is this in the road racing forum?

http://itsthedoc.net/stuff/thread-is-gay.jpg

get a license and find a race that's 100km long.


http://www.cyclingnews.com/road/?id=2006/sep06/atlanta06



I found one for you. 100k in 2 hours 19 minutes.

should be moved to road forum....................................

2. Powerbar is not nutrition, eat a full breakfast with complex carbs.

Lies! It's just like a healthy breakfast, distilled into bar form. Or maybe it's essentially the same as a snickers bar with a dusting of whey protein...can't be sure...

Lies! It's just like a healthy breakfast, distilled into bar form. Or maybe it's essentially the same as a snickers bar with a dusting of whey protein...can't be sure...

we left one out[of the wrapper] at the shop for 3 months and it didn't change at all, but I like the way the PB @ choc tastes.

we left one out[of the wrapper] at the shop for 3 months and it didn't change at all, but I like the way the PB @ choc tastes.

gross. cookies and cream protein plus ftw.

should be moved to road forum....................................

correct.

we left one out[of the wrapper] at the shop for 3 months and it didn't change at all, but I like the way the PB @ choc tastes.

They're sorta like cockroaches, in that they're one of the few things that's going to survive the nuclear holocaust unscathed.

mmmm...delicious...

They're sorta like cockroaches, in that they're one of the few things that's going to survive the nuclear holocaust unscathed.

mmmm...delicious...


**** it, I'm going to be eating twinkies on my ride from now on, sugar rush FTW.

This is sad, really. You desperately want to be a bike racer, and want to race other people at a CHARITY ride. You want to organize a break...at a CHARITY RIDE. There is no prize list, no upgrade points, no officials, no time keepers, no red kite hanging above the course at 1k to go, just like most CHARITY RIDES.

So, why is this in the road racing forum?


+1. You can't win if it is not even a race.

Are you just trolling the racing forum looking for a reaction?

Chill out and have fun riding your bike with others while doing a good deed and raising $$ for a charity. Going into a ride such as this thinking about it as a race makes YOU a danger to others. Typical charity rides have folks who have never riden their bike before, families on hybrid bikes with tagalongs, etc. Some fred coming along hammering in his drops and yelling to the other riders to get out of the way, weaving through charity ride participants, etc. is a hazard and detracts from enjoyment of those who are out riding their bike and trying to raise some $$ for what is probably a very worthy cause.

Also - refusing to pull ... on a charity ride!?!?!? Again, I hope you're just trolling in the racing forum for reaction.

If you want to race, then get a license and register for a race.

I tend to agree with the previous posters. It's a charity ride, enjoy chatting with other people, meet new people...etc. On the other hand, I've done a couple "event" rides to test my time over 100k. In that case, I ride alone so I don't interfer with other riders. However, If I'm out enjoying a nice afternoon in a charity ride with another rider who's convinced he/she is in a race (i.e., attacking, refusing to pull...etc.), I'd quickly find another group. I'd also avoid this person.

Lastly, I am having trouble with the idea of a max HR at 185 but you being able to hold 180 for 2 minutes. One of these numbers is off. But that of course has nothing to do with your ride.

It may not be off. My max HR is 196 with tons of data and lab measurements to back that up. I did a horribly awful TT in the spring (threw up on the bike, etc) where my average heart rate for the last 20 minutes was 189.

--Steve

It may not be off. My max HR is 196 with tons of data and lab measurements to back that up. I did a horribly awful TT in the spring (threw up on the bike, etc) where my average heart rate for the last 20 minutes was 189.

--Steve

Show us the file.

Show us the file.

It's not that hard to believe. It depends on LT. If LT is a high proportion of max heart rate, it makes sense he could hold 189 for 20mins with a max of 196. I hold 168 for a 20min interval and my max is 178. On the other hand, holding your max heart rate for 20mins would be near impossible. I can hold 178 for 1 to 2 mins depending on my level of fatigue.

It's not that hard to believe. It depends on LT. If LT is a high proportion of max heart rate, it makes sense he could hold 189 for 20mins with a max of 196. I hold 168 for a 20min interval and my max is 178. On the other hand, holding your max heart rate for 20mins would be near impossible. I can hold 178 for 1 to 2 mins depending on my level of fatigue.

Incorrect. It is very hard to believe. I am not saying it isn't true. I am just saying I would love to actually see the file! I can hold 180bpm for quite some time but my max is out over 200. It would be quite cool to see a file of someone who can hold 189bpm for 20 mins with a max below 200!!

Um, ok, here's a snapshot of the file...

http://i87.photobucket.com/albums/k137/audioenvy/20MinutesOfPain.jpg

Ignore the meager power numbers. I was clearly not feeling well.

--Steve

Incorrect. It is very hard to believe. I am not saying it isn't true. I am just saying I would love to actually see the file! I can hold 180bpm for quite some time but my max is out over 200. It would be quite cool to see a file of someone who can hold 189bpm for 20 mins with a max below 200!!

I have to believe him because I can do it too. Send me a powertap and I'll send you the file. :)

I'm a mutant / hummingbird. My max HR is 204 and my HR at LT is 186 (based on 4.0mm of lactic acid in my blood). I also barely produce lactic acid; even while maintaining an HR of over 200 while trying to make myself puke I was only spitting out 7.3 mm of lactic acid.

While 189 for 20 minutes wouldn't be a lot of fun, I can (and have) done it.

7.3 mm of lactic acid

7.3 milimeters? That's sorta like saying I rode 12 liters today :D

I've also had such an experience [while running a 5k]. Averaged 190 bpm over the course of 20 minutes or so, hitting 201 at one point.

If I ran a 5k today, however, there's no way my heart rates would be so high. I was in a relatively detrained state, and max heart rate typically goes down slightly with intense training.

-bullseye

Um, ok, here's a snapshot of the file...

http://i87.photobucket.com/albums/k137/audioenvy/20MinutesOfPain.jpg

Ignore the meager power numbers. I was clearly not feeling well.

--Steve

Wow. That really is bizarre to me. Can you zoom (fit selection) from 24:00 through to about 26:00 please?

Wow. That really is bizarre to me. Can you zoom (fit selection) from 24:00 through to about 26:00 please?

Um, OK, sure. Allow me to describe what you're seeing below. The 24:15 mark (11 minutes into the TT) is approximately where I barfed on myself. Over the next minute or so, I did some soft pedaling while I tried to regain my composure and decide if I was really going to keep going or not. That's why you see the sporadic power and that's why my heart rate drops from 189 at the 24:22 mark to 183 at the 25:20 mark. From about the 26:00 mark until about the 31:00 mark, my HR steadily increases and eventually hits 190. For the last 4.5 minutes my average HR was 191.

http://i87.photobucket.com/albums/k137/audioenvy/20MinWithZoom.jpg


It's theoretically possible that my MaxHR is higher than 196 but during lab testing, VO2Max intervals, and several races last season where I took off on a solo flyer and had every incentive to go as hard has I possibly could to hold off a charging field, I have only briefly touched 196 a few times at the total exhaustion point. Here's another example from one of those races. BTW, the lower power in the middle of the graph is where I was caught by two guys. You can see my HR drop slightly as we played a bit of cat and mouse. After that it's a steady increase in power and HR until the sprint finish.

http://i87.photobucket.com/albums/k137/audioenvy/RaceMaxHR.jpg

Hope that helps ;)

--Steve

This thread should be shellaced (sp?) to a fine block of oak and mounted to the wall as an example of the perfect BF thread. It starts with a simple question of how best to turn a charity ride into a race and within 30 posts or so there are accusations of lies followed by the ultimate proof - a power file! Fred's of the world unite!

within 30 posts or so there are accusations of lies followed by the ultimate proof - a power file! Fred's of the world unite!

The dude asked for a power file so I provided one. What should I have done differently? ;)

--Steve

7.3 milimeters? That's sorta like saying I rode 12 liters today :D

Millimoles.. Sorry, it's just what the report says.

And that was one painful experience.

The dude asked for a power file so I provided one. What should I have done differently? ;)

--Steve

Absolutely nothing! This thread is perfect the way it is.:)

Are you just trolling the racing forum looking for a reaction?

Chill out and have fun riding your bike with others while doing a good deed and raising $$ for a charity. Going into a ride such as this thinking about it as a race makes YOU a danger to others. Typical charity rides have folks who have never riden their bike before, families on hybrid bikes with tagalongs, etc. Some fred coming along hammering in his drops and yelling to the other riders to get out of the way, weaving through charity ride participants, etc. is a hazard and detracts from enjoyment of those who are out riding their bike and trying to raise some $$ for what is probably a very worthy cause.

Also - refusing to pull ... on a charity ride!?!?!? Again, I hope you're just trolling in the racing forum for reaction.

If you want to race, then get a license and register for a race.

Aw c'mon. You're no fun! The best races are the ones where the guys we beat don't even know they're in a race.

Can't wait for the OP's Race.....errrr...."Charity Ride" Report. Especially the part where he mentions giving the white-haired lady on a hybrid "The LOOK".

Bob

barf... lol.

I guess I don't ride hard enough - I back off before I barf.

non-vomitus,
cdr

Incorrect. It is very hard to believe. I am not saying it isn't true. I am just saying I would love to actually see the file! I can hold 180bpm for quite some time but my max is out over 200. It would be quite cool to see a file of someone who can hold 189bpm for 20 mins with a max below 200!!

I have a max of 204 and held a HR of 190 (and higher for a few minutes) for 20 mins this past Saturday. Will post a screenshot of my data when I get home.

It's theoretically possible that my MaxHR is higher than 196 but during lab testing, VO2Max intervals, and several races last season where I took off on a solo flyer and had every incentive to go as hard has I possibly could to hold off a charging field, I have only briefly touched 196 a few times at the total exhaustion point.

What lab test?

Yes this definitely helps Steve. I concur that you you can hold 190bpm but your max is NOT 196 IMO.

However holding 275w at 189bpm is just plain embaressing...:p (clearly you had a s$%thouse day at the office)

I have a max of 204 and held a HR of 190 (and higher for a few minutes) for 20 mins this past Saturday. Will post a screenshot of my data when I get home.

Dont bother. Nothing special there. Your max estimate is likely to fall in a range 205-210 in which case holding 190 is in a normal range.

Holding 190 with a max estimated down around 195 is quite another thing IMO. It's something I haven't come across much before and is quite interesting to look at. Particularly his rate of recovery when power falls away. He seems to rev higher but take longer to pull his HR back than other athletes I have seen.

What lab test? Yes this definitely helps Steve. I concur that you can hold 190bpm but your max is NOT 196 IMO.

Human Performance Laboratory at Meredith College in Raleigh, NC. Full VO2Max test hooked up to a trainer with a tube over my nose and mouth, blood drawn at intervals from my left ear, wattage increased by 30 watts every 3 minutes until I crapped out, two different HR monitors (theirs and mine) to confirm the result. That was in June of 2006 and I was extremely motivated during the test. The highest HR I had ever seen before that day was 193. Since then I've tried ridiculously hard on several occasions to exceed 196 but have never done so and, as I said, have only hit 196 a few times in the last year and a half.

So, basically, you can think whatever the hell you want, dude. My max HR is 196. You're right about the 275watts at 190 bpm being suck city, though. In addition to the fact that it was my first time on the TT bike in several months, I was clearly not feeling well that day which would potentially account for the unusually high heart rate as well as poor recovery. As a point of comparison, my on-the-road 20-minute tests typically average only 180-185 bpm at around 330-340 watts.

--Steve