A friend recently asked my advice for how to prepare for the longest ride he’d ever done. My approach is somewhat unorthodox when it comes to this sort of thing; I like to train to ride a lot farther than the event itself, and whenever possible, throw in a handful of sessions with my old friend, The Man with the Hammer. I suggested he do the same, just to make sure he understands the alchemy of combining total exhaustion with the reality of still having a long way to ride. Based on his response suggesting the idea somehow contained a bad taste, I assume he didn’t take my advice.
I didn’t invent this technique. De Vlaeminck was known for his marathon training sessions involving a diabolical mixture of V:00 am starts and distances of 400km in preparation for his favorite race, Paris-Roubaix. Fignon was known to head out for day-long rides with little or no food in his pockets with the express intent of meeting the Man with the Hammer.
The Man with the Hammer holds a special place in the mythology of Cycling; ruthless and unpredictable, he lurks about in the shadows, ready to strike at any time. Most fear him, but I have been bopped on the head by him so many times, I start to feel lonely for his visits after a few months. I sense him in the nape of my neck long before he draws his hammer down with his judgement. On long solo rides, when the mind retreats into The Tunnel, I often find myself carrying silent conversations. Perhaps it is he to whom I speak in those dark hours.
His presence as a constant companion may not be as insane as it sounds. Explorers have often spoken of feeling that another presence was traveling with them; the early teams who attempted to scale Mount Everest had difficulty reconciling the numbers in their party due to the convincing sensation that another had been with them. All three men in Shackleton’s party who crossed the island of South Georgia independently confided in their captain that they believed a fourth to be traveling with them. This, I am certain, is the great spirit of the Man with the Hammer. We must not fear him; though he may be ready to strike, he is a benevolent spirit.
There is something purifying in being completely depleted and still having to carry on; it flushes your transgressions from you in a cleansing flood. Don’t avoid this; seek it out; every rider should endeavor to experience his visits at least a few times per year. They remind you that you can push beyond your limits, that the only thing bridging the chasm to a goal is having the will to act.
Whenever I find myself weighed down and questioning myself, I head out on my bicycle with no food in the pockets and with the express intent of meeting my old friend, the Man with the Hammer.
I know as well as any of you that I've been checked out lately, kind…
Peter Sagan has undergone quite the transformation over the years; starting as a brash and…
The Women's road race has to be my favorite one-day road race after Paris-Roubaix and…
Holy fuckballs. I've never been this late ever on a VSP. I mean, I've missed…
This week we are currently in is the most boring week of the year. After…
I have memories of my life before Cycling, but as the years wear slowly on…
View Comments
@halfwheel
Perfect.
@The Oracle
Good to see you again mate.
@frank There are many things that will keep me from reaching my potential. I'm not afraid of meeting him, it's more case of meetings with him not fitting into the wider scheme of things. If I have work or social responsibilities after a ride, which is 90% of the time, then I don't want to be feeling the after effects of a kicking. If I've got a day to myself with nothing more than a beer and the sofa lined up after the ride then I'll take myself much deeper.
Also, as @Marcus says, you can do yourself some damage on the trainer/rollers over an hour. There are some dark places to be found on that route.
@frank
'lube, dude.
I used to do long distance running. In running a marathon the body takes a pounding over time. In training for a marathon it's a good idea to focus more on the amount of time that you run rather than speed and distance. For example, if your goal is to run a 3.5 hour marathon (5 mins per km), then your training should progress to running 32 kms at a rate of speed that would keep you on your feet for 3.5 hours or more - 6.5 mins per km. You would do speed work on shorter runs to ensure that you're capable of running at the speed you will need to run at on race day.
I don't think we can apply exactly the same idea to cycling at 3/4 speed is way easier than running at 3/4 speed. I think Frank's idea of training to further distances at slower speeds has merit. Or possibly something more like 90% of the distance at 90% of the pace may also make sense.
For shorter distances in running certainly the idea is to do a lot of longer distance running. If your race was the 10k you'd spend a lot of time running distances longer than that so that it would feel effortless on race day. A marathon is different though because it is such a herculean effort - I for one don't think that a century comes close to being equivalent. Maybe 250km?
@Mikael Liddy
job done, found the man lurking about 70k in when I turned on to a road I'd never travelled before. 3 corners later I was faced with a 1k straight wall that exceeded 20% in parts...the remaining 20 odd km's involved significant mental effort to ensure the pedals kept turning.
@Marcus
That'd make it like riding next to a mirror then?
@kixsand
For the ultracycling world, a general rule to follow for training is to make your longest training ride 75% of the distance/time of the race two to three weeks before the race. For a 325km race, do a 250km ride. For a 24-hour race, do an 18-hour ride. I also like to try and get in a week where I do at least as much riding as the event a few weeks before.
For people that ask me how to ride an English century (162km), I'll tell them to build up to a 120km and then they'll finish the full century without a problem. 120km is enough distance to start learning how to keep yourself riding for an extended period of time. What you can get away with for two or three hours, you probably can't get away with for five or six or more.
@frank
Terrible. Beautiful. Awesome.
"[T]he only thing bridging the chasm to a goal is having the will to act." Brilliant.
A story concerning the environment plus a tale in regards to
the Oscars can both become newsworthy for different reasons.
You could subscribe with a number of different news services and also have them give back breaking stories in regards to
the company, CEO, affiliated companies and anything
else you ultimately choose. The media plays an important
role in reporting and collecting all sorts of news from various sources.