BikeMax

THATS UNBELIEVABLE!!!! I'm yet to see the 1000 mark...even if its for a second. Then you are not trying hard enough - I am 70kgs and not a true sprinter but I can hit 1300w on a good day.

I agree with that - I know it can be demoralising (I sure did not expect to get dropped at 300w for the climb on Sunday) but then you just got to find a way to train smarter and climb faster

At 71kg and 300w Turk should be ok to get up with the second bunch and then it will all come back together. Not tying to cheer you up or anything but the climb on Sunday last looked like this... First 4 mins 345w Total climb 301w I was dropped after 4 mins @ just under 5w/kg

That would work just fine - the main thing is to get the right intensity for the 20 mins. You can rest for 5-10 mins in between with no problem. Maybe you could incorporate on of the intervals into the pass ? Ride back at tempo pace for the 90 mins - say ~75-80% Any gear you like as long as the intensity is right - what gear you choose should be the one that you find it easiest to get the intensity right in. BikeMax' date=' so your tempo pace is about ~75-80% heart rate? [/quote'] Tempo ranges form moderate at ~75% to hard @ ~80-85% - just a guide. It should require full concentration and is not conversational pace..

Of course you can do that - just give it time and train at the right levels - and make very ride count. Plenty of 2 x 20 at 95-100% FTP or 3 x 15 etc.. Just keep steady and consistent and keep pushing and the break throughs will come

That's pretty serious - have a crack at a 5 min climb and let me know how you do.. Once you hit 7w/kg for 5 mins then give up your day job...although over 5.9w/kg for 5 mins is Cat 1 std and will see you doing plenty of damage

I'd give my left you no what for that kinda power ratio !! Do tell... what was your p/w ? I'll bet you are close to 5w/kg when in form (Robby was at 350w and 70kg last year at the tours) I WISH!!!!!!! not even close 5Watts /kg from Robbie is very impressive!!!!! I've only just started working with a powermeter so I'm learning every day. I started using after a 3 week rest ' date=' so My whole December was slow Base training. I had Bruce test me one afternoon. But I was stupid ....as I'd done a 4.5 hour ride that morning , so wasn't feeling all that sharp. I also battled to get used to putting my bike on a stationary trainer for the test....so it didn't feel normal to me , but i'll get use to it. That day I rode a 20min TT but only managed around 4.1W/kg I'm keen to do another test in about 2 weeks time after a couple of interval sessions and a race or two! [/quote'] A period of slow base will certainly have seen a drop off in FTP but I would also say that as somebody who does not ride trainer all that much, you can expect to lose up to 10% as a result of testing indoors. I would find a gradual climb of 20 mins or better still, go out and ride your 60 min TT route as hard as you can on the road bike - that will give you a real figure. There is no way that even now, you are at 4.1w/kg for 20 mins - no need to get fit for the test but make sure you do it on the road - that is where you do most of your training and as such that is where you need to key your zones from.

That's a tough one - when Cashandra was down recently she was climbing at ~310w but I am not sure how much she weighs .. One of the local girls who is not far off this standard is around 4 w/kg at threshold - so maybe ~4.5w/kg ?

Your best bet might be to borrow a PT and do the test on the road - power to weight is really only of use to you as a key to estimate training zones if using power (otherwise it is just a comparator) You could always ask Bruce or 101% to ride up a 20 min climb at theshold and see if you can stay with them

I'd give my left you no what for that kinda power ratio !! Do tell... what was your p/w ? I'll bet you are close to 5w/kg when in form (Robby was at 350w and 70kg last year at the tours)

In my experience, the strongest vet riders are putting out around 5 w/kg at threshold.

I am redundant Bruce has it right IMO - for Epic you need to focus on endurance for obvious reasons but I would say as importantly, the ability to ride faster for long periods whci is determined by power at threshold - trained as Bruce says.

Overtraining is a bit of an over used phrase IMO - I have only ever seen a handful off riders that were truly over trained. Over reaching is more often the case - bottom line is that if you cannot achieve the normal performance level for a particular workout then you need a rest. With a power meter this is very easy to monitor as you can either get in the zone or not but using HR it is a little easier to over reach because as you fatigue and the exercising HR becomes supressed then it is possible to keep pushing in trying to achieve your normal HR for that session - this can lead to a state of fatigue that is called over reaching. A few days off will normally see you right (a week at most should be sufficient) As has also been mentioned; Lack of motivation General irritability

http://www.allenacrossamerica.com/real_rehab.htm

I really think that a long duration event like this is going to be all about aerobic capacity. The higher aerobic capacity you have, the more headroom you have and the more you are going to recover from any higher intensity efforts that are unavildable on those steeper climbs. I can see why a longer training session would certainly be of benefit in terms of specific training but also in terms of pacing (which I am convinced is a key part of the strategy) I would think a combination of training designed to stimulate FTP as well as endurance would be the way to go. This might involve some V02 Max work to raise the ceiling before the FTP focus (as Bruce has alluded to in earlier posts) Given the long prep period you have now I would think that some long stuff as early as possible and also a carefully planned ramp in terms of weekly training load would be a good idea. This is an ideal application for the Performance Manager Chart that we are now using - to plan weekly load and manage Chronic load (fitness)