RAGBRAI Training: Preparing for the Long Ride

It’s April and the weather is getting better, and you should be outside now putting in progressively longer rides. To help you prepare for these longer rides I’ve put together a number of tips to make your long rides both manageable and tolerable, if not downright enjoyable! So hop on and let’s go.

Comfort – One of the most important things to make long rides tolerable is to make sure you are comfortable on your bike. This involves a number of factors so let’s look at each one.

Bike fit – First comes the bike. You need to have a bike that fits you and is set up so you are comfortable on it. This is affected by seat height, seat fore-aft position, handlebars fore-aft position and handlebar height. If you don’t know how to adjust these or don’t even know if they are adjusted correctly, search out a bike shop or bike fitter who can help you. The investment in a bike fit can be a very worthwhile investment if it allows you to ride pain-free. Also, consider using a more cushioned handlebar tape and padded gloves. The type of bicycle seat can make a huge difference, so if that is a sore point (literally), go shopping and try out some other models to keep your tush happy.

Clothing – Having the proper and proper fitting cycling clothing is another key to comfortable riding. Starting with the most important piece, the shorts, or bibs if you prefer those. Make sure yours are fit correctly, not too tight or too big. Too tight won’t feel good and too big may move around and cause chafing. Also find ones with the size of chamois liner that suits you. Some are thicker than others, and thick isn’t always good. And of course there’s the issue of underwear. No, you do not wear underwear under your bike shorts, that defeats the purpose of having a nice soft, seam-free chamois against your skin. The worst thing you can do is wear underwear and a regular pair of shorts. They are non-absorbent, and the seams will kill you. For the top, wear a lightweight (e.g. dry-fit) shirt or jersey rather than a t-shirt, which tends to get sweaty and clings to your skin and doesn’t cool very well.

Food – On shorter rides, less than 2 hours, you probably don’t need to worry too much about eating while riding assuming you’ve eaten decently prior to your ride. But on rides longer than 2 hours, you will want to replenish your energy on the ride. One approach is to use an energy drink or add an energy drink power to your water bottles on long rides. These will provide a kick of energy and some electrolytes as well. Be sure to bring some extra power mix with you so you can mix up some additional bottles at water stops. You can also bring food or energy bars to munch on during your ride. I actually prefer real food over energy bars, such as a banana or fig bars. You don’t want to eat a lot at one time, but eat a small amount throughout the ride, for example a couple of fig bars every half hour. You will be surprised how a small amount can really pick you up when you are fading. Avoid stopping and eating big meals during a ride, that’s better left til after the ride.

Hydration – Very often fatigue gets confused with dehydration. Stay hydrated on long hot rides. On hot days aim for drinking one large bottle (24 oz.) every 45 minutes or so. Get in the habit of sipping regularly rather than guzzling the whole thing at once. Your stomach is undergoing enough stress on long hot rides, so don’t overwork it.

Cadence – Cadence means how fast you are spinning your legs, how many revolutions per minute your feet are going around in circles. You should aim for 75 RPM or more. Elite cyclists spin at 90 RPM.  By pedaling more quickly, your muscles don’t have to put out as much force as when you are asking them to push hard on a bigger gear more slowly. You can get away with low cadence for a short ride, but not on a multi-hour ride. Your legs will stay fresh if you spin more quickly. Work on it in training and get used to the feeling of a faster cadence.

Pace – Similar to cadence, you need to manage your pace, or speed, as well. On long training rides, the benefit comes from the time you are riding, more so than the distance.  A three hour ride at 15 MPH is better for endurance than a two hour ride at 16 MPH.  So go the pace you need to so that you can go the distance. You are training for a tour, not a race, so train accordingly. Go long but you don’t have to go fast. Going too fast, especially at the start, will make the last part of the ride miserable.

Breaks – Because RAGBRAI is a tour and not a race, it’s okay to stop and take breaks. You will be doing that frequently on RAGBRAI so it’s okay to do that in training as well. Get used to what it feels like to take a 5 or 10 minute break. Then compare that to how your legs feel if you take a 20 minute break (hint – they won’t feel as good). So learn to take short breaks but not so long that your legs get stiff. On really long rides, its okay to stop every hour or so, or even more frequently than that if needed.  An additional benefit, when you stop it’s a great time to take a bite to eat and grab a drink.

And speaking of hills…I’ve written quite a bit about training for hills in my previous blogs, but wanted to share a personal experience. I am planning to do a couple of mountainous rides in Colorado in July so I’ve also been walking my talk and training for hills. I am consciously seeking out routes with hills. And when it’s windy, instead of complaining, I view it as an opportunity to grind away with increased resistance as if I was climbing. I’ve been thinking about you as I’ve been doing these rides and hope you are out there doing the same. To get some extra bang for your buck, add hills to your long rides to simulate riding hills when you are tired.

Long live long rides!

Coach David Ertl

David Ertl is a USA Cycling Level 1 Coach. He coaches the Des Moines Cycle Club Race Team and individual cyclists through the Peaks Coaching Group. He also provides cycling training plans and ebooks at his website: http://www.CyclesportCoaching.com . He can be contacted cyclecoach@hotmail.com.

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