2022 Virgin Active Ride Joburg

[eala]

1 hour ago, edgarblount said:

I am a firm believer in the Afrikaans saying, 'Dit wat jou nie dood maak nie, maak jy net sterker".

This is truly a race of two halves or should I say Race of False Hope. I felt like Wout or Ganna in that first half. Looked down at the Garmin and couldn't believe my time at the halfway mark. Started calculating finishing times already. I know, I know, it aint over till the fat lady sings. Oh boy, and did she sing. Came crashing down like a ton of bricks.

I knew that second half would be brutal but not that brutal. I never knew I could ache and pain in so many places at once.

Like Frosty said, you have to train for those hills. Atleast I now know what to expect and can train accordingly.

It was an enjoyable day out and I am coming back sterker.

The vet tannies on their e-bikes annoyed the hell out of me. Poor me bleeding through my eyes on the hills and they come flying past all smiles.

My time was 2h50minutes at the 30km sign .My final time 3h45 .Almost an hour to ride the last 30km .Last year i still had Epic legs from October and weighed 6 kg lighter , my time was 3h14 .According to the knowledgeable folks ,this current reverse route is about 10 min slower and that fits in perfectly with my previous times of about 3h5-10 . Only once did i manage under 3hours with a few seconds .Now for my first CTCT in Cape Town  .I will be watching out for seeding races in the new year

[Spinnekop]

1 minute ago, silkman said:

I am a pretty weak rider and all I can say is the climbs are DAMN HARD!

I walked up a few. I just couldn't manage. I had a great day out -but I suffered

Are there any exercises that I can do to aid my hill climbing?

Go to Sabie.  Go do 3000m+ climbing in one day.
Then repeat it the next day.

You'll hate me on the weekend and thank you later.

[BrettS]

This was my first 947 and first road race - nervous as all heck especially starting in a strong batch but it was fantastic - I managed to get involved with a great group all the way through to Kyalami - an awesome guy $ - 52 (you are a legend) helping us all out, letting us all take his wheel and giving us encouragement.

Snapped my chain up the main road climb to Lonehill and luckily got it fixed at the Monte waterpoint mechanics. Climbed back on and managed to get to the finish.

It was an awesome ride, the vibe on the road was great. The climbs all the way to the bridge destroyed the legs but it was incredible to be able to ride these often unridable roads.

[silkman]

5 minutes ago, Spinnekop said:

Go to Sabie.  Go do 3000m+ climbing in one day.
Then repeat it the next day.

You'll hate me on the weekend and thank you later.

eish

[The Ouzo]

11 minutes ago, silkman said:

eish

but he is not entirely wrong. climb, climb and climb somemore

[Frosty]

15 minutes ago, silkman said:

eish

If Sabie is too far, there are easier, and more practical, ways to train.

[silkman]

I usually ride on a trainer. Will this help? Or do I need  to go outdoors more often

[eala]

8 minutes ago, silkman said:

I usually ride on a trainer. Will this help? Or do I need  to go outdoors more often

Trainers help ,but your body works harder on a bike to keep balance and climb 

[Frosty]

7 minutes ago, silkman said:

I usually ride on a trainer. Will this help? Or do I need  to go outdoors more often

It depends; the answer can be yes and no.

As most people are aware, the climbing comes after an hour plus of riding, so your training needs to be similar.

A long (outdoor) ride of two halves… say 90-mins of endurance, then 4-5 hill repeats that would be similar to the race (5 sets of 6-8 minute repeats).

Indoors you can work on doing the intervals only, so you improve the power you can hold for 6-8 minutes. 

All other rides are easy (Z2 in a 5 zone model), and also long. This build your aerobic engine to become more efficient.

Send me a PM if you want more of the finer details. 

[NotSoBigBen]

I know the 'Zwifters' and other hamsters will disagree with me but I've said it before ...

 

Trainers make fit not strong riders with little to no 'race craft'

 

Gets hat and coat 😜

[Dexter-morgan]

1 hour ago, silkman said:

I am a pretty weak rider and all I can say is the climbs are DAMN HARD!

I walked up a few. I just couldn't manage. I had a great day out -but I suffered

Are there any exercises that I can do to aid my hill climbing?

Indoor smart trainer with power will help, My wife did only 3 sessions indoor per week since Mid August with some pretty nice workouts and a 2 -3 hour outside on weekends and improved a lot, make sure you do a FTP test before you start and build-up your workouts but make sure to finish all of your workouts - Just my 2 cents.

[silkman]

Thanks guys PM sent @Frosty

[MudLark]

4 hours ago, Frosty said:

Best way to endure the hills is to train for them, or at least the duration of the hill at a pace you want to "climb" at. Example, most of the climbs from Lonehill to Jan Smuts (zoo) take about the same time/effort to complete, with a recovery in between that is almost the same time. This means you can do 4-5 intervals (say 8 minutes). Each week ride a bit harder, and you'll you'll see how "easier" it becomes.

As die karre jou nie donders platry nie. I ride JHB roads a lot... as do many others... Jan Smuts isn't a great choice on a bike if you can avoid it. Too narrow on the edges in places, too many taxis, too fast. Better to go do a few circuits of the Cradle maybe. Dunno. YMMV.

Edited November 21, 2022 by MudLark

[MudLark]

44 minutes ago, silkman said:

I usually ride on a trainer. Will this help? Or do I need  to go outdoors more often

Which area do you live in?

[silkman]

Mayfair

[Frosty]

12 minutes ago, MudLark said:

As die karre jou nie donders platry nie. I ride JHB roads a lot... as do many others... Jan Smuts isn't a great choice on a bike if you can avoid it. Too narrow on the edges in places, too many taxis, too fast. Better to go do a few circuits of the Cradle maybe. Dunno. YMMV.

I ride Jan Smuts, Homestead, R55 and Main once or twice per year; no need to train the route but rather the gradients.

I don’t have a problem on the hills because I know that for x-watts for y-minutes, it will be tolerable. Here in the south, we have Glenvista, Mulbarton and Suikerbosrand Nature Reserve, but Zwift/Rouvy can do the same (simulate the effort required).

Training doesn’t have to be on the exact route, but rather on similar terrain and duration. One needs to learn to feel how hard it needs to be, and a little bit more.