6 Months to get in shape for this..

[okgo]

http://www.verentidragonride.com/enter.php

My mate wants us to enter this, I am not unfit, and easily did 50 miles the other day, although there were not many hills.

so in 6 months is itpossible to get fit enough for this?

What would ou reccomend I do to get the best training..

[anonymous-user]

which route? the 26/82/117 miler? will assume its the 117!...

time in the saddle is the obvious answer, a turbo trainer is a worthwhile investment, for those occasions when you just dont want to get out on the bike, stay in but still build up fitness. they are also useful developing your pedalling technique which can help reduce wasted effort. working on your pedalling technique will allow you to get the most from every pedal stroke and should make pedalling smoother and more effcient. try some one leg pedalling as that helps.

i go to a spinning class once a week just to beast myself properly, they are only 45 minutes but the i make it really hard for myself, if they turn it up one, i go for two and maintain the same cadence....leg presses in the gym is also a good training. remember to spend a good half hour every now and then stretching, it always seems like "wasted training" but aids recovery and prevents injury.

find a good cicrular route which can provide you with a few hills. i use www.bikehike.com as it has an elevation map tool. find quiet country roads (if there are any near you) and just focus on time rather than all out speed. get used to drinking and eating on the bike, find things that work for you be it bananas, energy bars etc etc. on a sportive, you are eating more and drinking more than you would on a normal ride (obvious really) so you need to get used to taking on that much solid food on the go. dont underestimate how much you will need, to do this you have to either ride on nothing until you bonk and work it back from there or just keep eating and drinking so you never suffer.

you should be fine, you will find the support from the rest of the peloton and the crowds will see you by and its awesome scenary so it makes it all much easier on the legs.

[okgo]

Good info, yes would be the longest route.

I will have a look into turbo trainers, I don't have a garage here you see...

[AndrewM]

I did the London to Bournemouth ride last July which was 112 miles. I started training in April having done pretty much no training for the previous year! If you can do 50 miles now, you'll have plenty of time to get ready for the Dragon.

I'm planning on doing the ride again this year but will also do a 100 mile charity ride the week before. My plan is a load of mtb off roading while the weather is poor and the commute to work when things perk up a bit. Probably important to do a couple of 60+ mile rides before the main one then taper for a few days before.

[welshnobby]

I did this 2yrs ago and plan on doing it again this year. The scenery is truly stunning. A word of warning, having 117miles in your legs is one thing but add into the equation the climbs (circa 3000metres of vertical gain) and it becomes a whole different kettle of fish. Some winter training is essential and a turbo trainer or something like the tacx imagic is great (the real life video of mont ventoux is a killer), i use one and it takes the tedium out of indoor training. Come the spring you need to get a few 100milers under your belt and also spend some time on long drag hills. The climbs on the dragon are not particularly steep, but long medium incline drags. The ride itself is well organised with decent support. Also you need to think a little about feeding before and during on the longer rides to keep energy levels up. Here is a link to the 2009 route, it is worth checking out the profile of the ride to help get an idea of the climbs. The toughest and longest climb is at the end when you will be tired. If you haven't used this site before it is great for maping your own routes to see how they compare in terms of vertical gain.
http://www.mapmyride.com/ride/united-kingdom/penco...

Good luck! See you there.

Edited by welshnobby on Thursday 24th December 00:04

[okgo]

Thanks, well I think I need to get serious then..

If i am using a turbo trainer during the week and a long ride at the weekends, what kind of distances should I be aiming at?

I am assuming the tubo trainer cannot replicate hills that well?

[Marcellus]

Turbo is the answer!!

I know of some good Turbo training programmes out there (High Wycombe Cycle Club) which they use to keep at good amateur level during the winter.

yes they will get you ready for the hills..