DISCLAIMER: Details for these sessions may change without prior warning. The following is aimed at giving you an idea of what type of cycle session to expect, when and why. Thankyou!
We currently run 3 cycle sessions per week as part of our weekly squad program designed at addressing all aspects of your cycle performance from building endurance, developing skill and handling, improving cycle-specific strength to really boosting your functional threshold - the key component of how well you will ride in a given event.
This session is held either at our notorious "Sweat Shack" in Mount Hawthorn or out at one of the various hills around the Western Suburbs, depending on both ambient air temperature and stage in the triathlon program. Expect this session to be tough, focusing on developing your aerobic capacity through shorter maximal intervals of between 3 and 8 minutes in duration. 16 to 20 people normally attend. We normally cover ~ 30km in this session.
This session meets at the Bouchard Cafe on Mount Street in Perth at 5.50am and the group rides together down to Shelley (~25 minutes at ~28km/h). Once down at Shelley we split up so that everyone is both riding at their own intensity and also not drafting. The session will focus on developing your Maximal Lactate Steady State ability with longer intervals in the 75 to 80% intensity range and as such is a key session for developing your cycling ability. It is very important that you do not push harder into your "red zone" on this session as we are trying to tap into a very specific aspect of your physiology. 16 to 20 people normally attend. We normally cover ~ 55km in this session.
This session is our typical "long ride" but we usually form it as part of a brick session and feature some longer steady-state intervals at your prescribed L2 to L3 intensity so as to not simply end up with loads of really long, really slow miles, as this will NOT aid your performance. 16 to 20 people normally attend. We normally cover ~ 90km in this session.
People MUST have their bike checked out for road-worthiness prior to and during the course of the program. This is your priority and responsibility. You should address: cable tension (brake and gear); brake operation; tightness of all nuts and bolts, e.g. seat pin, handlebars, stem, tri-bars, bottle cage mounts, pedals; check all quick-release spindles for wheel security especially if you regularly remove them. Don’t put this off thinking that its “all good” when you are not totally sure – this is your perogative.
All bikes MUST have a spare-tube / puncture repair kit in a small saddle-bag in case of the inevitable – a puncture. You must also be carrying an air pump. Don’t rely upon someone else to provide this for you. Get a friend to show you how to change a tire efficiently if you don’t know already.
Everyone should start each ride with AT LEAST two bidons of fluid (enough to supply at least 750ml of fluid per hour) and enough food to get them through the ride. Roughly speaking you need 1g of carbohydrate (CHO) per kilo of body weight per hour to satisfy energy requirements during exercise. As an example for myself at about 65kgs that would mean 65g of CHO per hour which is 2 carbo-shotz, or two jam sandwiches, or two bananas if I was just drinking plain water, or a Gatorade and a small muesli-bar if I was using an Energy drink. Your nutrition plan will be essential for a good race, so lets get into some good habits straight away. I would request you to keep me posted with your nutrition strategy, especially as I have had personally had some pretty bad experiences on the day of a big race when I’ve got it wrong – and wouldn’t wish them on anyone! We'll be employing the services of Nic Holmes from the group to guide us through a nutritional talk in the next few weeks - watch this space!
Riders in groups will normally ride two-abreast in the group when out on the open road, unless informed otherwise (i.e. along the bike path when we'll have a very strict single line in operation). If you are new to riding in a group, then please try to observe and learn from others around you. You will notice that good riders will be riding side-by-side with shoulders approximately 50cm to 1m apart. The front ‘edge’ of their front wheels will be in-line with each other – they will not ‘half-wheel’ each other, which essentially means that one of them would be slightly in front of the other making the other want to continuously try to catch up. This forces continual surges in the pace, and before you know it you’re up to 45km/h and everyone is hanging on for grim death! Make sure you work ‘with’ your partner, not against him or her – it is a combined effort when you are riding on the front into the wind and you should try to ride at the pace of the slower rider.
Also, make sure you point out any obvious obstructions in the path / road in front so that those behind you have a chance to avoid hitting the pothole / sign / rock etc. Give verbal warning when you are slowing down unexpectedly or turning into a new road. Try to avoid slamming on your brakes in the event of some obstruction up in front as this will cause you to skid and also the rider behind you to ride ‘up your tail’. When slowing apply pressure to your rear brake a split second before the front (left first and then right on most bikes). Clear, concise, prior verbal warning to any obstruction is much better than nothing at all, even if you feel like a bit of a twit in the process!
Passing it down the line - pass messages along the line...this way we can quickly work out if anyone has been dropped and as such slow the pace until they are back on. Particularly important at the start of our Wednesday morning ride.
During the first block of the program I would normally say that riding in a group is OK, i.e. drafting off the person in front of you. However, when you move into the second block (from week 8 onwards), I encourage a much stricter “no drafting” policy for some, or all, of your rides. You can still ride as a ‘group’, but each rider should be at least 7m behind the other and thus negating the drafting effect. If you don’t get used to riding like this before the race, what hope have you of riding a 90 or 180km flat / undulating course solo with any degree of proficiency? Remember specificity is the key!
