Training with the Pros, it sounds like fun but it can’t be. Pros are genetic freaks; they put more kilometers on their bikes than any of us civilians do on our cars each year, they ride around whole countries at an average speed greater than 40km/hour and they can dish out such Rule V style day-after-day-after-day. We all dream about it but we don’t have it.
In an earlier life I came close to landing my dream job in Monaco with the IAEA. Serious people counseled me not to take the job, they said it was a bad career move. How could I explain to them I didn’t give a shiet if it was a bad career move, the chance to live, and more importantly to be a cyclist near San Remo and La Madone was all I cared about? Yet I knew if I even saw Tom Boonen or one of the many Aussies who call Monaco their home out on a training ride, I would only be seeing their lycra-clad asses disappearing up the road. Could I at least catch up to Stuart O’Grady to chat him up for a minute before my inability to talk and breathe would force me to lie and say I was turning right HERE? Maybe I could drink beers with the Aussies, I could keep that professional pace, actually no, I would get dropped there too.
Oh that job fell through and my dreams of commuting into work on Merlin on the Cote d’Azure disappeared like those watery mirages on a hot highway, but I digress. I have some good and funny direct video evidence why training with the Pros would be a cruel lesson in our mortal failings. One such Pro is Ted King, an American racer living the dream; he is based in Lucca, riding for Liquigas, riding in support of Ivan Basso and Peter Sagan. He is tough, he has finished every Giro d’Italia he has started. He broke his collarbone this summer racing in Philadelphia when his front wheel dropped into an inexcusably lame drain grate (thank you very much, oh third-world infrastructure that defines the USA).
To bring his training back up to speed he did the 200 on 100 with fellow Pro Tim Johnson and amateur racer Ryan Kelly. The 200 on 100 means 200 miles on Route 100, riding North to South from the top to the bottom of the state of Vermont, the Green Mountain State. Unless you are Marcus, 333 km seems like an impossibly long ride to do at once, I would be in broom wagon long before the end of such madness.
And by madness I refer to the 338 km at 34.1 km/hr average speed with 3,197 meters of climbing thrown in for good measure.
Video credit to Chandler Delinks
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@frank
Elite's Varion rollers have variable resistance, although no resistance is plenty for me at the moment. Just broke the milestone of riding them no-hands which is testament to the rollers having improved my stroke. One pedal is tough but I think it may get you the result you want.
I think the only way to compare would be to use Watts to calculate and average and total output.
But that would not address the mental effort.
Hi everyone, as the man behind the camera and wheel of the truck, I have to thank all of you for sharing this video again. Look out for a feature on it in an upcoming edition of Bicycling Magazine.
A few things I noticed on that day:
1. Tim Johnson did a proper CX remount at mile 206.
2. Ryan Kelly said many more odd things in his delusion that couldn't make the "cut"
3. These guys rolled in a paceline the ENTIRE day, trading pulls every few minutes. On the flats they were going anywhere between 25-30mph and didn't slow down much below 20 on the hills...
4. Ben and Jerry's ice cream at 9am is still delicious
5. Ted King's face was a little round because he was just coming off a broken collarbone, so he wasn't quite "race weight."
and finally...
I see some of you discussing doing this ride. We have been discussing the same, and we have been discussing involving other groups, so maybe we can all do something together. cdelinks at gmail dot com
Thanks again for all the shares and comments, it was a blast to do this project and we can't wait to do it again.
@cycloWHAT?
Thanks for making it. Was fun to watch.
@cycloWHAT?
What's your going rate for a support vehicle? :) jk.
Oh yeah, next 12, 13 or 14th of June, 2012, is the date that I think it will take place. We're going mid-week as it works for most of us better than the weekend and will avoid weekend traffic as well. Just a bit of traffic at 8-9 am and 4-6 pm.
Also thinking that it will take me and possibly the others around here, SIGNIFICANTLY longer than it took those boys. More like 12 to 15 hours. And we will most likely not have a support vehicle on the route so will need to be stopping for food and water refills.
I grew up in VT and raced USCF all over New England in the late 80's and early '90's and know those roads a bit. It will be an EPIC day to say the least.
By the way, great video, mate!
@cycloWHAT?
Nicely done man! It's a "dump truck of AWESOME"!
This looks absolutely AWESOME!
I now have all the motivation I could possibly need this winter. Just threw away half my breakfast since I seriously need to HTFU as I'm more like 6 months from peaking right now. Gonna be a brutal winter on the trainer!
@MJMoquin
Amen, Brother! LOVE it. Can we count you in for the June, V-sponsored Dumptruck of Awesomeness?
@mblume
I'll try to do both in the next few years and let you know! :)
Nice work, cyclo!
I was in VT this summer & now this has me eager to do some cycling there. Another wedding probably coming up there this summer, maybe it'll overlap with the V-ride.
Ah, Mr. King was coming off a broken bone. Makes sense he wasn't at race weight. I wasn't trying to be critical, more just surprise since most PROs look gaunt. Thanks for the explanation.
As for Tim riding his cx bike on this...the more I ride my own cx bike, the more I think I might use it over my road bikes for over 300km in the rain. It's just a little bit more comfortable & relaxed, even with road wheels on it.