Time to get training for Innisfree Wheelers Spring Classic
THE Innisfree Wheelers Spring Classic Cycle Sportive is in three weeks’ time on Sunday 6th of May which is the May Bank Holiday weekend. The event starts from The Clayton Hotel with the 120km away at 9am and the 60km start at 10am. Entries are still open online and you will find a link on Wheelers website at www.innisfreewheelers.com.
Whether you will be cycling in the 60km or the 120km event, it is important to be well prepared.
Cycle training requires plenty of dedication so Innisfree Wheelers have provided week 3 of a sample-training plan below, but other factors, which can affect your performance and safety, include how you ride in a group either on a club spin or in a sportive event. A group ride is not a race. In a group club ride, you are not to attack off the front or try to show everyone how strong you are. That’s what races are for.
1.Bar-to-Bar; This is probably the most important rule. Whenever riding in a group you should be riding side by side (with only a few centimetres between you, you should not be able to fit a bus between you and rider beside you) and be perfectly handlebar to handlebar. Do not at any time sprint ahead and disrupt the flow. Even if there is a corner coming up, stay side by side and go through the corner like a well-oiled machine. Riding with your bars ahead of the rider beside you is called “half-wheeling” and is a major faux pas. The riders behind you should ride with their front wheels either side of your rear wheel. It’s not acceptable to sit directly behind the rider ahead of you and leave a gap to your side. If everyone is riding bar to bar as they should be, you are guaranteed the space of a handlebar’s width within which to move, which should be ample. So even if the two riders ahead of you knock into each other, you should have plenty of space. This is a pretty safe place to be.
2.PullingThrough; When the two riders ahead of you peel off, it is your job to come through to the front and pull the group along. If you do not want to ride at the front because you are tired or less fit than the rest of the group, it’s too late to avoid it now. Once you are in second wheel, you MUST come through to the front. Do not speed up, and do not get out of the bar-to-bar formation. Maintaining a steady speed, squeeze through the gap and go to the front. When the two riders ahead of you peel off, don’t slow down and look around as if you don’t know why on earth they would be pulling off to the sides of the group. Maintain your speed and go straight through without hesitation.
3. Too tired to go to the front; If you do not want to go to the front, sit at the back and let the riders coming back from the front of the group slot in ahead of you. It is not acceptable to work your way up to the front of the group and then look around acting lost and confused, slowing down because you don’t feel strong enough to be at the front. If for whatever reason you do find yourself at the front, go through and take what is known as a “token pull”. You go to the front for a couple seconds, agree with the rider beside you that you are both peeling off, and go to the back.
4. Gaps; There should be NO gaps in a group ride. As soon as you see a gap, fill it by riding into the space in a steady and controlled manner. There is no need to sprint into the space and then slam on the brakes, just gradually fill in any gaps as soon as you see them.
5. Moving about in a group; If you need to go to the back of the group, or need to move out away from the side of road because the road is damaged (for example), just steadily move in whatever direction you want to go in. The key to all group riding is to do things gradually and steadily. Even if there is a rider right next to you as you pull out to the side of the road, if you do it gradually, the other rider will naturally have time to move over with you. If you do anything sudden you will likely cause a crash. This is also very important when peeling off and filling a gap.
6. Obstacles and Hand Signals; It has become fashionable recently that people in group rides have gotten into the habit of yelling. When you see a hole in the road, it is absolutely NOT acceptable to yell “HOLE” at the top of your voice, and then weave around it at the last minute. It is also unacceptable to yell “SLOWING” when you slow down. All obstacles should be warned of by a simple hand signal. This does not mean pointing at something for 5 minutes after you have passed it. When you see an obstacle in the road ahead of you, put your hand down and give a signal that lets the riders behind you know if which direction they should go to avoid it. Traditionally a quick wave of the hand will suffice. If you only see the obstacle at the last minute, ride through it! Better to get a flat than to take down the whole group. On the subject of obstacles, please only point out those that are worth pointing out. 7. Slowing and adjusting speed; This is probably the biggest crash causer on group rides. For some reason, when someone slows down ahead of them, a lot of riders jump for their brakes and yank the heck out of them, almost skidding and taking everyone down with them. You should be riding ever so slightly to the side of the rider in front of you; so when they slow down, you either stop pedalling and start to slightly overlap your front wheel with their rear wheel, or you touch the brakes gradually, once again using the “wheel overlap” as a buffer zone so as not to slow down too suddenly for the riders behind you.
Innisfree Wheelers Autumn Cycle Sportive Training program Week 3 60KM Sportive 100KM Sportive
Beginner Intermediate
Rest Rest
60 Mins (18km) 120mins (40km)
Rest Rest
90 mins (25km) 120mins (40km)
60 mins (hills) 60mins - hill repeats
Rest Rest
150 mins (50km) 180mins (70km)
Group spin Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday