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This year is a lost cause

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This year is a lost cause

Old 04-10-07, 10:20 PM
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This year is a lost cause

Ive decided that at this point im not in good enough shape to be competative at any level this year, so im going to focus on next year, If you were tryin to train for racing next year, what type of training would you do? Keep in mind that i can ride throughout the year as it never drops much below 30 degrees here in South Carolina.
Should I focus on building a realy strong base this summer and then add intensity over the winter and next spring? Or should I do both types of training all year? I know i also need race experiance, so i plan on racing a non sanctioned training crit weekly all summer. What do you think? What about weight training, i could do with some muscle mass, (Im 6 foot 1 inch, 146 pounds). Please give me your expert (or not)opinions...Thanks!
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Old 04-10-07, 10:21 PM
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The best way to prep for racing next year is to race this year.
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Old 04-10-07, 10:23 PM
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I totally know what you're going through. With the weather here, I haven't been able to put in a good ride in weeks. Just ride when you can, race when you can.
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Old 04-10-07, 10:25 PM
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If you're going to race a non-sanctioned training crit every week, why not just do the real thing?

I mean...you might as well get some race starts towards your 5 to 4 upgrade, pick up some real experience, and maybe learn a thing or two.
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Old 04-10-07, 10:28 PM
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yea the main problem with that is that the training crit = 5 miles from my house real races = 150 miles from my house. I dont have a drivers liscense, and would hate to get my parents to drive me up to greenville to get my ass handed to me. Im not saying that if i get a chance to go to a race im not going to, im saying that im not going to focus on racing this summer.
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Old 04-10-07, 10:31 PM
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by "my ass handed to me" i mean "Dropped off the field and lapped"
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Old 04-10-07, 10:35 PM
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Originally Posted by ivegotabike
yea the main problem with that is that the training crit = 5 miles from my house real races = 150 miles from my house. I dont have a drivers liscense, and would hate to get my parents to drive me up to greenville to get my ass handed to me. Im not saying that if i get a chance to go to a race im not going to, im saying that im not going to focus on racing this summer.
Fair enough.

Training crits + group rides. Find someone who is a good deal stronger than you and ride with em as much as possible.
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Old 04-10-07, 10:35 PM
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Originally Posted by ivegotabike
yea the main problem with that is that the training crit = 5 miles from my house real races = 150 miles from my house. I dont have a drivers liscense, and would hate to get my parents to drive me up to greenville to get my ass handed to me. Im not saying that if i get a chance to go to a race im not going to, im saying that im not going to focus on racing this summer.
What about trying a combination of training crits and real ones? Maybe for every 2-3 training crits you do, try 1 real one or something like that. Is there a club or team you could join where you could carpool with other people? If you have a weekend job, maybe offer to your parents to help pay for the gas...
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Old 04-10-07, 10:36 PM
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I'm hoping to get at least one race in this year. I can take you with me if you'd like. My goals this year are to get ready for next year. You missed my first flat at the training crit earlier also.
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Old 04-10-07, 10:41 PM
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haha, nice

did you change it? no you didnt have a tube did you? sucks man

i realy apreciate the advice. I need to find a fast group to ride with



and cypress, i have seen your legs, you do NOT know what i am going through
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Old 04-10-07, 10:42 PM
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As others have said, try to get racing and group riding in. Alternatively, you could also work on starting to build an aerobic base, and get in some steady endurance and tempo rides.
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Old 04-10-07, 11:11 PM
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In lotsa areas there's usually a '2nd season', by that I mean a flurry of race activity from Mid Aug thru Md Oct. (depending on climate). If like the others have noted, you work the local training events whenever you can, you'll have some 'peaking' in time for these.
Check out the schedules now and you might find a good 'series' of events later on that you can 'train' towards.
If you're not in a local racing club, join one now. Most clubs/riders will make extra efforts to help their younger (and not always younger) 'non-driving' members get to races. The stability and growth of cycle racing can be clearly credited to the dedication of racing clubs and their members many decades ago. Join an active local racing club, you won't regret it.
Anyway, don;t give up just yet. The weather will change. There'll be plenty of season.
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Old 04-11-07, 12:02 AM
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Originally Posted by TheKillerPenguin
Fair enough.

Training crits + group rides. Find someone who is a good deal stronger than you and ride with em as much as possible.
I agree that it's good to ride with stronger riders, but I don't think more than one common group ride each week is an efficient way to train (training races are an obvious exception). If you can get your groups to do focused intensity drills, then that's a great benefit to having faster riders around. If you're just going to do road rides with traditional sprint zones, the benefits will be limited.

I think you should get on a sprint and interval program, do a training race whenever possible, but I'd only do at most one random group ride each week (not both Sat and Sun, or evening shop rides). Even if the group ride has some really fast riders -- you'd be better off recovering for, or doing some intervals.
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Old 04-11-07, 12:22 AM
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Originally Posted by waterrockets
I agree that it's good to ride with stronger riders, but I don't think more than one common group ride each week is an efficient way to train (training races are an obvious exception).

[SNIP]

Doing some group rides is one way to push yourself a little bit and more particularly to deal with
speed surges. The pace isn't always going to be exactly what you want it to be. If it's a fast group,
you'll have to learn how to deal with surges and be efficient in order to avoid getting dropped. (that is
if the other riders are stronger).

I agree with waterrockets that you wouldn't want to do this all the time. You should be doing a fair amount of work at your own level whatever it is. Many race teams or clubs will have people who can give you some guidance on training programs. Or get Joe Friel's book the cyclist's training bible and get some ideas from that. People here could probably give you some advice on where to start. However, a knowledgable coach (or fellow race team member) may be better able to help you if they are local and can see you ride. That way they'd have a better idea what your strengths and weaknesses are.
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Old 04-11-07, 12:31 AM
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My school has a cycling team/club with a very knowlegable coach, the problem is that last summer i dropped off of the team due to the fact that all of their rides were done in the middle of the afternoon (In Columbia SC 98 degrees 95%+ humidity and no wind is the norm for the summer months) on fort jackson which sports wide clearcut shoulders meaning NO shade on the roads, the ridew were just misearble so i stopped going, however i kept the bike he lent me for 3 weeks or so without riding much at all, that didnt make him happy. Hes not still mad at me, but im hesitant to join the team because i wouldnt want to ride when they do this summer, I wish i could convince him to A. do early morning rides more or B. just give me a training schedule.
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Old 04-11-07, 06:34 AM
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I think you either should suck it up and ride in the heat, or offer to organize a morning ride for those riders it works out better for. Or both.

I do hill repeats here in Austin when it's 105. It sucks, but it's just good training, and lunchtime is just better for me.
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Old 04-11-07, 06:38 AM
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Originally Posted by ivegotabike
Ive decided that at this point im not in good enough shape to be competative at any level this year, so im going to focus on next year
Originally Posted by ivegotabike
last summer i dropped off of the team due to the fact that all of their rides were done in the middle of the afternoon (In Columbia SC 98 degrees 95%+ humidity and no wind is the norm for the summer months) on fort jackson which sports wide clearcut shoulders meaning NO shade on the roads, the ridew were just misearble so i stopped going
Originally Posted by ivegotabike
real races = 150 miles from my house.
Excuses are the one thing absolutely guaranteed NOT to help you win any races.
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Last edited by DrPete; 04-11-07 at 06:43 AM.
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Old 04-11-07, 07:12 AM
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thanks, i didnt realize that thats basicly what ive been doing, but it is.
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Old 04-11-07, 07:14 AM
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Originally Posted by ivegotabike
thanks, i didnt realize that thats basicly what ive been doing, but it is.
I hope I didn't sound mean, but the year is only a lost cause if you choose to declare it a lost cause. Ride and race as much as you can this year. Waiting until next year isn't going to make you any better.
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Old 04-11-07, 07:59 AM
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Go race. Others have given good advice.
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Old 04-11-07, 08:17 AM
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Originally Posted by cyclezen
In lotsa areas there's usually a '2nd season', by that I mean a flurry of race activity from Mid Aug thru Md Oct. (depending on climate). If like the others have noted, you work the local training events whenever you can, you'll have some 'peaking' in time for these.
Check out the schedules now and you might find a good 'series' of events later on that you can 'train' towards.
If you're not in a local racing club, join one now. Most clubs/riders will make extra efforts to help their younger (and not always younger) 'non-driving' members get to races. The stability and growth of cycle racing can be clearly credited to the dedication of racing clubs and their members many decades ago. Join an active local racing club, you won't regret it.
Anyway, don;t give up just yet. The weather will change. There'll be plenty of season.

Agree

There is always a flurry of strong racers between now and June... The guys and girls that train really hard all winter. Since I have issues getting good base miles and training hard in the cold I really dont peak till June anyways. By this time most of the early strong riders are burning out.


Just remember the best training for a racer is racing. After each race you will get stronger trust me.
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Old 04-11-07, 08:41 AM
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Originally Posted by waterrockets
I agree that it's good to ride with stronger riders, but I don't think more than one common group ride each week is an efficient way to train (training races are an obvious exception). If you can get your groups to do focused intensity drills, then that's a great benefit to having faster riders around. If you're just going to do road rides with traditional sprint zones, the benefits will be limited.

I think you should get on a sprint and interval program, do a training race whenever possible, but I'd only do at most one random group ride each week (not both Sat and Sun, or evening shop rides). Even if the group ride has some really fast riders -- you'd be better off recovering for, or doing some intervals.
My modus operandi last year was as follows:


Mon- recovery/ or 40-50 miles solo
Tues - practice race with guys stronger than me
Wed - recovery
Thurs- LSD with a guy stronger than me
Fri- recovery/race prep
Sat- race prep/ or race
Sun- recovery/ or race

So I'd have 3 ridiculously hard days and the rest was mostly recovery. All my intensity days were either races or competetive group rides. Helped me immensely
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Old 04-11-07, 10:05 AM
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Originally Posted by TheKillerPenguin
Thurs- LSD with a guy stronger than me
You shouldn't be encouraging kids to engage in that kind of activity.
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Old 04-11-07, 10:08 AM
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It made the ride a lot more interesting
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Old 04-11-07, 10:09 AM
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"And on Thursdays I would fly my dragon over the golden gate bridge and watch the music come out of my fingers."
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