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Out with the old, in with the new

Road cycling

by Andy Nicolson - BBC Sport (U6807082) 02 May 2008

BBC Sport's Andy Nicolson and Paul Redgrove, and IT colleague Jon Cook, are attempting to get fit enough to ride l’Etape du Tour - an amateur mountain stage of the Tour de France in the Pyrenees this summer.

After their previous attempts to find anything resembling a mountain, Andy discovers how the old maxim, “You get what you pay for” holds true in cycling, and just how sore 100 miles can be.

Every dog has its day, so I hear, and, at the risk of mixing animal analogies, so it is with my old steed, whose day was at least two decades ago when Channel Four were still showing the Tour de France and the likes of Level 42 were topping the charts.

Yes, my old Raleigh 531 is destined for cycling’s glue factory, otherwise known as the daily commute, after a pair of opinions on its suitability for l’Etape convinced me to upgrade.

First came Phil Magnus, the Muswell Hill backstreet bike mechanic and audax rider, who did his best to remain polite when I happened to mention the Pyrenean plans.

But more damning was the verdict of a certain Chris Boardman OBE after hearing of our escapade: “I think you are mad!”

On the basis that a former World Champion, Tour de France yellow jersey holder and designer of British Cycling’s track bikes might know a thing or two about suitable mounts for l’Etape, Paul and I are now proud owners of Boardman Pros.

As a colleague pointed out: “Would I trust a bike designed by Chris Boardman? Would I trust Michaelangelo to paint my ceiling?”

(Whereas I have been riding a museum piece, Paul recently lost the use of his Condor after a motorist temporarily lost use of his vision/brakes/mind* (*delete where appropriate).)

So, what of the actual cycling?

On 18 May we’re riding the Etape Caledonia in Perthshire, the only closed-road event in the UK; at 81 miles with 1,949m total ascent it ought to be a good yardstick for France.

With that in mind, I decided to put the Boardman through its paces and myself through the 80-mile barrier.

The weather, after the rain had finally stopped, was perfect and the bike handled like a dream; it’s amazing what a difference it made to my ride – in comparison the Raleigh feels ponderous and unwieldy. Poor old thing.

And aside from the balance and the sense of agility the Boardman gives, having three fewer teeth on the small chain-ring makes climbing so much easier – almost enjoyable!

I remain to be convinced that the 39-tooth ring will be right for the Tourmalet and Hautacam, but it’s ideal for Hertfordshire and Cambridgeshire.

Anyway, despite having brought my route planning into the 21st century with a Garmin Edge 705, I found myself, after four score and ten, still 20 miles from home with no food or drink left and my outer calves and crotch screaming for mercy.

Riding 80 miles (eventually 100) on a new bike’s first outing, with new shoes and pedals is not a mistake I’ll be making again…

You can see the results in Super Cyclo-Vision on funktastic YouTube, and if numbers are your bag, the ride data on the Garmin Connect site (though for some reason the charts don’t work).

Are you riding the Caledonia? Which bike has really made a difference to your cycling? Have you got any recommendations for John-Wayne-crotch?

And will Paul ever stop faffing about around Gatwick Airport?

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comment by Alex Murray - BBC Radio 5 live (U516526)

posted May 6, 2008

As for gearing, I'd say Jon is on the right track with a compact. I've done the last two Etapes, one with a triple and one with a compact. As those who've ridden with me will testify I am definitely not a climber.

My experience is that anything lower than the equivalent to 34/27 is not worth having as you're just going to want to get off and walk at that point (and you'd probably be going just as quick). 30/27 works out at around 0.7km/h slower down at 40 RPM according to Sheldon Brown's calculator but it's a key difference in speed between getting round and not on a ten hour ride.

A compact 50/34 covers pretty much all your needs and is probably the best modification for sportif riding that you can make.

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comment by steve_araf (U11579677)

posted May 6, 2008

I took part in the Forest of Dean Classic at the weekend and I can recommend a 30x28 for that sort of torture. I rode past people walking who only had compact doubles, I was definitely going faster than them
It takes a bit of patience and spinning but is worth it to get to the top without walking.
The Kidderminster Killer audax has a climb of Asterton Bank which is 1 in 4 for a very long and unpleasant way, I have used 22x28 to get up that and rode past people pushing, plus managed to get some photos of their red puffing faces as I did so.
I did a low gear TT tonight 19.5 miles on 66 inch gear [fixed] just under 55 minutes,,,, the guy who won.... 50 minutes, now that is spinning ......

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comment by CicloBoy (U6752345)

posted May 7, 2008

The problem with gears is that once you start the event you are stuck with what you have got, I would much prefer to have it too easy than too hard.

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comment by Andy Nicolson - BBC Sport (U6807082)

posted May 9, 2008

Some useful chat there regarding compact chainsets.

Next weekend's Etape Caledonia (http://www.etapecaledonia.co.uk/) should prove an interesting yardstick on the 52/39 - I'll let you know.

Are any of you riding the Cally? Look out for us if you are - it would be great to put faces to names (and maybe even get some faces on video!).

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comment by up-a-hill (U11915226)

posted May 10, 2008

I did the Etape Caledonia last year and will be there again this year.

Two best bits of advice I can offer are:

1) Jump on the back of any faster groups passing you. This makes a huge difference (if you can stay with them without coughing up blood !).

2) Chat with others as you go along (although not too much ... can be annoying and creepy)

Good luck.

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comment by RomneyRoadRouleur (U11089256)

posted May 10, 2008

I once did Etape du Dales on 52/39 x25 . I knocked 20 mins. off that time the following year when I used a 50/36 x27. so get spinning boys !

All the best on the day .

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comment by druss_the_legend (U10529922)

posted May 11, 2008

the three most important things at this stage are to

1) lose weight, far an above the most vital thing - it's amazing the difference half a stone makes. Can't be stressed enough, look at some of the 1500 calorie diets rich in nutrients there's plenty out there
2) no last minute changing of equipment - guaranteed to cause some sort of problem
3) find out your sustainable wattage

climbing a col means a extended effort, what people associate with a comfortable climbing "tempo" might not (will not) be suitable for an extended climb lasting hours, once the anaerobic threshold is reached efficiency is reduced and you will start to suffer.

Regardless of anecdotal stories about people "making it round ok blah blah" you need to get a feel for the kind of wattage your body can consistenly maintain for hours on end. Having done l'etape doesn't make you an expert, even top pros make mistakes year after year. That's why they have coaches and why good coaches make so much money - they cut through the tremendous amount of bull**** surrounding every sport out there from so called experts.

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comment by Alex Murray - BBC Radio 5 live (U516526)

posted May 12, 2008

"1) Jump on the back of any faster groups passing you. This makes a huge difference (if you can stay with them without coughing up blood !)."

I've been trying to persuade Andy of the value of this. Especially useful in the first couple of hours on the flatter sections where a lot of people tootle along at around 30km/h.

The bigger the group the less work you'll have to do. I found myself sitting in the back of groups doing 35-45 between the climbs last year and it certainly helped in that I was halfway done on target for an 8 hour time allowing me more leeway in the second half where it really started to hurt and where I needed the time in hand.

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comment by red rat (U11940977)

posted May 12, 2008

2 things i'd do to make life easier:

1. Try and up your cadence, rather like the way long distances runners run with small steps, having a higher cadence reduces stress on the legs by about 15%, which will really help on the long hills. Aim for an average cadence of over 80 (preferably over 90!)

2. Train by heart rate, use your Garmin to display your heart rate while riding. This means with a bit of planning you can use a lactate/heart rate graph (should be able to find one on internet) you can work out where your heart rate indicates your riding anaerobically and therefore unsubstainably. Using your heart rate also means you can train more efficently, rather than just rolling along and not improving.

All the best and good luck!!

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comment by ScottishCyclist (U4592936)

posted May 13, 2008

Hi Andy, I'm doing the Etape Caledonia this coming weekend. I'm looking forward to it but although I'm reasonably fast I entered very late and have over 1900 starters in front of me. It'll be a case of weaving through the tail enders but I don't think I'll have a chance to get into a group.

If you have time there's fantastic other routes in the area. eg. Glen Lyon (West from Fortingall) and then over Ben Lawyers or the waterboard road further on to Loch Tay; Glen Quaich (SE from Kenmore). Anyone with the time or energy should try Killin->Ben Lawers->Glen Lyon->Fearnan->Kenmore->Glen Quaich->Amulree->Aberfeldy->Kenmore->South of Loch Tay back to Killin. Fanstastic!

All the best for the L'Etape duTour.

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