first race.....hill climb

[matt22]

I am a long time recreational mountain biker and purchased a road bike this year. I am going to be entering some hill climbing road races this summer and fall. My typical week involves a mt.bike climb of 10 miles and about 2000 vertical feet of climbing and another 12 miles of about 3000ft climb. I have been incorportating two road rides as well with one day being a 1200ft. 9 mile climb and another 3500ft 17 mile climb. I tend to push myself to the max and although I feel strong I worry that I may be pushing too hard.

The races I am doing are a 3500ft 16 mile ride and and 4500 ft. 17 mile ride. I've never raced before or formally followed any kind of training regime. I do wear a HR monitor and believe my max HR to be about 182-186. My average HR for these climbs is in the 160-165 range.

I'd be interested the opinions of anyone (especially those who specializes in hill climbs) on the best way to prepare my first races.

 

[Sidmyre]

Originally posted by matt22
I am a long time recreational mountain biker and purchased a road bike this year. I am going to be entering some hill climbing road races this summer and fall. My typical week involves a mt.bike climb of 10 miles and about 2000 vertical feet of climbing and another 12 miles of about 3000ft climb. I have been incorportating two road rides as well with one day being a 1200ft. 9 mile climb and another 3500ft 17 mile climb. I tend to push myself to the max and although I feel strong I worry that I may be pushing too hard.

The races I am doing are a 3500ft 16 mile ride and and 4500 ft. 17 mile ride. I've never raced before or formally followed any kind of training regime. I do wear a HR monitor and believe my max HR to be about 182-186. My average HR for these climbs is in the 160-165 range.

I'd be interested the opinions of anyone (especially those who specializes in hill climbs) on the best way to prepare my first races.

Only thing I can think of atm is.....Ride the hill that you're going to be racing on, and KEEP riding it and give it all you got while training for that Climb and keep pushing yourself to the limits, and eventually you'll become better and better, and my number 1 advice for climing hills is....Dont blow your steam at the bottom of the hill trying to get the "head start" just kinda gradually start out then keep picking up the pace as you go farther up

 

[Daremo]

Is it a true race, or is it one of those sponsored recreational rides?

If it is a "race" it will more than likely be a TT, and that seems like an awful long hill TT .............

The only hill TT I did was the ROC hill climb in Raonoke, Virginia, and that was only just over 2 miles. It was part of a weekend of racing with a criterium downtown the next day. It was a national level race with the Saturn pro team there both days (pro team in the mid '90's). It was really fun, and really hard.

The key is to just pace yourself. Don't go out of the gate really hard and then reach your anaerobic threshold before you even go a mile. Try to stay in the saddle and keep a decent cadence going (about 70 or so climbing). Keep your upper body loose and relaxed, you don't want a white knuckle death grip on the bars as it will tire you out faster. When you want some variety, stand up for a while, but remember to shift up one cog harder when you stand (i.e. - go from a 39 X 19 to the 39 X 17), then shift back up to the easier cog when you sit down. This way you keep your cadence the same, and it makes for a much smoother transition.

I'm not a big believer in the whole HRM and Wattage camp. Yeah, if you are at the elite level, it can make the difference between winning and coming in third, but at the beginning level it is more important to work on form and technique, and learning how your body responds to changes. If you "listen" to your body, it will tell you what you are doing and can't do. Plus, climbing is as much of a mental game as it is physical. I always hated climbing when I ran, but I loved climbing on the bike. Now that I am back into cycling after a 6 year layoff, I am forcing myself to enjoy climbs, because I know I will get back to the climbing ability I was before if I think the right way.

Good luck!!

 

[matt22]

The race is a mass start of about 250 riders. I don't think it is broken down into categories. I believe the average grade is 5% over 16 miles. There are some short sections to recover, but overall just a grinder. Last years winner was about 54 minutes. The best I've done it in so far in training runs is 1:15.

Thanks for the advise

 

[keydates]

I've heard conflicting advice on shifting while climbing. Some places say yes, you should shift if you have to, while others say no, make your decision before climbing the hill, as shifting puts stress on the drivetrain etc. Sooo which is "correct?"

 

[Daremo]

Just like shifting in a sprint, but with less load on the drivetrain on the hills.

Of course you should shift! If you start in a 39 x 19 and realize the grade warrants a little harder gear, shift up. Just like any other situation, you relax your pedaling a bit and shift, it doesn't disrupt the pedaling that much. That is one of the techniques you learn over time. If you lighten your pedal stroke for two seconds while you shift, you will put less stress on the drivetrain. It's very easy to master once you've tried it.

Especially on a hill that goes on for 15 miles or more. You cannot ride it in one gear or you will just be hurting your chances for climbing consistently and quickly. There are bound to be places where you will need other gearing, and as I said before, when you stand, you need to shift up to keep the cadence similar.

 

[100%]

If it climbs right from the start, make sure your HR is up when you get to the start line i.e warm up well, right up to the moment you go to the line. Start the race with a bead of sweat on your 'brow!