A4 racing mileage per week

billyhead

Folks just wondering to be competitive at A4 racing how much mileage would on avearage you need to cover per week including commuting mileage. Plan to start racing for the 1st time next year and would just like an idea now as to what sort of weekly mileage I should be doing to build a base and carry it on throughout the winter period.

Morrisseeee

I reckon to get you going and up to speed in A4 a good target would be 200km pw. This would include everything, ie. your own training, spins, sportives, club spins, club racing etc.

Obviously then as you become competitive & start dreaming of (the suffering in) A3, then your training would become more focused, ie. not just about doing x km's pw.

billyhead

Morrisseeee wrote: »

I reckon to get you going and up to speed in A4 a good target would be 200km pw. This would include everything, ie. your own training, spins, sportives, club spins, club racing etc.

Obviously then as you become competitive & start dreaming of (the suffering in) A3, then your training would become more focused, ie. not just about doing x km's pw.

Morrisseeee,

Also what sort of average speed would you need to be doing when covering the mileage on the bike?

Morrisseeee

billyhead wrote: »

Morrisseeee,

Also what sort of average speed would you need to be doing when covering the mileage on the bike?

/faints
:pac:

Seriously tho, as this Q has been asked so many times, and the answer is : there is no answer, why, because there are too many variables, distance, route profile, climbs, bike used, wind, etc.

To answer your inquiry a different way, just try and do as many km's as you can at a decent pace, do a few hills, use the Garmin site or strava to compare your performance to others, and then when you have all the kilometerage done, try a race. Then you'll see straight away where you're at

RJM85

No right answer depends on each person.

My winter mileage going into this year was about 1000k per month from October on to build a base and then started increasing intensity in February to start racing March. Got upgraded from A4 fairly quick and I'm a middle of the road A3 now. Last year I got dropped most times I raced on anything other than flat roads in A4.

Redmond101

just join a club, will provide all the answers

DirkVoodoo

The simple answer is that anyone should be able to ride A4 without too much difficulty. 8 hours per week without anything structured by HR or power should be plenty. Obviously if you want to win you might want to get a coach, but all this talk of pace/distance, etc. is completely meaningless.

Sign-up, race, adapt accordingly. You will either win, finish or get dropped. It's not rocket science. If you win, you go up. If either of the other two, you train a bit harder.

So what if you get dropped? Just go out and race and see how you get on, asking on boards is pointless, just get a license and get out!

ninoon

To give some basic answers to your questions, early season A4 races on flatish courses average 37, 38 kph over say 60 km.

On your own,
50 km spins at average of 32 kph would be a good yardstick.

DirkVoodoo

ninoon wrote: »

On your own,
50 km spins at average of 32 kph would be a good yardstick.

Flat or hilly? Tailwind or no tailwind?

That sounds like rubbish to me. I'd probably average 27 km/hr around Enniskerry/Roundwood if I was going (very) well. And if I was going well I wouldn't have too much trouble surviving in A4.

Most of the A2 guys I see in Strava would average 29/30 km/hr on hillier routes, but again this will depend on weather, what sort of training they are out doing.

You can't just tell someone to go out and ride 50 km at 32 km/hr and say he is ready for A4. The only way is to go out and race and see how you get on. Some very strong cyclists just prefer riding on their own and hate the stress of riding in a bunch. There are too many factors to break it down as you have done.

Bahra12

billyhead wrote: »

Morrisseeee,

Also what sort of average speed would you need to be doing when covering the mileage on the bike?

Average speed in training is not a good indicator. The main thing with A4 I found starting off was handling the top end surge speeds and accelerating out of corners. As a beginner, it was this that decided whether I got dropped or stayed with the bunch. Coming out of corners (especially toward the back of the pack) requires a big acceleration to possibly your top speed.

You can train for this of course, with sprint intervals (15sec) and longer power intervals 2mins on and 2-5 mins recovery (1 hour session) at a very high intensity for the surges. Make sure you fully recover after these sessions. You should also do 1 or 2 longer aerobic sessions (2-4 hours) per week at a lower intensity to improve your endurance. I found Heart Rate Monitor good to control the lower intensity stuff and stop myself going to hard. As the racing season is near reduce the low intensity base training sessions and do more intervals.

Learning to deal with the surges and being comfortable in the bunch can only be done by racing IMHO. I would recommend you do some club racing first to give you a taste of the intensity. This definitely prepared me when I took the plunge.

On a positive note, you would be amazed at how fast your form can come on once you start racing assuming you have done the preparation. I was dropped the first A4 race I did and questioned whether I would ever be able to finish with the bunch. The 2nd race I finished in the sprint for the line after 70km. Fully expected to get dropped.

foxer3640

ninoon wrote: »

To give some basic answers to your questions, early season A4 races on flatish courses average 37, 38 kph over say 60 km.

On your own,
50 km spins at average of 32 kph would be a good yardstick.

This is a pretty good yardstick to go by on a flattish course. I was capable of that kind of average when I started in a4 this year. Got a 4th in my first race in Meath early in the season. Did a couple of club leagues and did well. Got the upgrade from a stage win in the tour of Omagh a few weeks ago so A3 now. Obviously if your on hilly roads that average could go down as far as the mid 20s. As for a4 being easy its not. Theres some pretty strong riders in the category that for one reason or another haven't managed to go up but would be of a3 ability. The only way ypur going to find out is to find a club league in your area and enter as a novice and give it a go. Racing is very addictive good luck!

petethedrummer

Just do some varied training and enter a race any race. Flog yourself a bit, get dropped or not. Have recovery spin on the tuesday or wednesday and try again the next week. And repeat till you start winning or give up.

Briando

In my first A4 circuit race I wasnt sure what to do, so I just put my head down and went hard at the first hill and took a massive lead and went past the lead car, after about 40km I caught the peloton again just before the finish and went for the sprint and took it by a wheel. Turns out it was the A1 peloton I had caught and so when I got up on the podium to take the prize a couple of guys were up to no good and started making trouble in my neighborhood, I got in one little fight and mom got scared, and she said "You're moving with your aunty and uncle in Bel Air". True Story.

Harrybelafonte

petethedrummer wrote: »

Just do some varied training and enter a race any race. Flog yourself a bit, get dropped or not. Have recovery spin on the tuesday or wednesday and try again the next week. And repeat till you start winning or give up.

+1 on this.

All the speeds people mention above mean very little. I can go 80km at an avg of 30 something, flat obviously and do x speed for x distance but I only finished my first A4 race with the bunch on Sunday (13th race in my first year). Basically cos I'm a bit thick and never position myself well, but also because that 30km/h for x miles matters not in the end, it's the surges on corners and on hills that really tire people. Do what Pete mentioned above and also consider joining a club or getting a few pointers about race positioning, but most importantly just go and do it.

Colonialboy

billyhead wrote: »

Folks just wondering to be competitive at A4 racing how much mileage would on avearage you need to cover per week including commuting mileage. Plan to start racing for the 1st time next year and would just like an idea now as to what sort of weekly mileage I should be doing to build a base and carry it on throughout the winter period.

Its A4 its suppossed to be fun.
Cover as much mileage as you can that fits into your schedule.
You will be able to feel yourself if you are going well or over training.
And I dont see how you will keep up the mileage thru the winter, what with the weather etc. (yes i know readers there are exceptions).
You would be better off to get a gym programme and work on core strength during the winter and then tackle the mileage in your pre-season.

You could consider a 2 year or even 18month long term plan and not a quickfix 6 month program to get where you want to be in A4. Short term, medium term and long term goals are all worth having.

Inquitus

I think to have a good A4 season you need to have a good winter. I was snowed under at work from Oct-Mar and didn't get back on the bike til early April, 10kg heavier than I'd want to be and not in the best shape. After putting in the work Apr to date I am in good shape and back down to a good weight and competitive in the A4 bunch, looking forward to the hillier offerings coming up. Personally I feel I need to have a solid winter on the bike to reallly move things on to the next level. If I could hit March not too far off the form i have now, then I could really push things on a great deal throughout the season.

Personally I find the best thing for bringing you on is being stretched to the limit, be it in Club Handicap races where you get caught by A1/2/3 and have to hang on for grim death, or in an A4 race where the pace is at or beyond your limit. To my mind if you hang on until you are wrecked you have had a great workout even if you are dropped. Obviously on top of this you still need to put in the miles on your own between races.

slayer91

Hi,
very interested in this subject as well.

The 2 main things I picked up from this and other similar threads are
1. Join a club, cycle more, particular with stronger riders than yourself.
2. Get a 'good' winter base done.

Its point 2, that I am wondering about.
Would plans from here do?

http://www.trainerroad.com/cycling/plans

or

Is it all low instensity base miles. and what exactly is that??

Is the main aim to increase your FTP (Functional Threshold Power).

I would really like to give racing a go next year and am very interested in finding out how a typicially A4 rider spends his winter (no smart answers pls!!!)

Regs

couerdelion

slayer91 wrote: »

Hi,
very interested in this subject as well.

The 2 main things I picked up from this and other similar threads are
1. Join a club, cycle more, particular with stronger riders than yourself.
2. Get a 'good' winter base done.

Its point 2, that I am wondering about.
Would plans from here do?

http://www.trainerroad.com/cycling/plans

or

Is it all low instensity base miles. and what exactly is that??

Is the main aim to increase your FTP (Functional Threshold Power).

I would really like to give racing a go next year and am very interested in finding out how a typicially A4 rider spends his winter (no smart answers pls!!!)

Regs

You need to work on your base first so choose one of the intermediate base plans. The ones on trainer road also allow you to focus on form and try to correct things - like concentrating on making sure your knees are tracking reasonably straight.

Think of your race fitness as a pyramid. Base is exactly as it sounds - it's the foundation to build upon. You wouldn't want to be going out tomorrow and starting intense sessions or you'll struggle with recovery and not be able to complete each one to your best ability. You then build upwards aiming to peak at race time.

I'd work back from when you are wanting to start racing and add in a couple of builds plans back from there (perhaps and intermediate first then an advanced) the rest of the time from now till then would be all about base and repeating the plans and tests up till then. If you can do a long ride with a club rather than a turbo session then I would try to. You'll get a lot better idea of where you are when you are cycling with others than doing a turbo alone in your kitchen - you'll also quickly identify riders around your level and be able to judge yourself and your progress against them.

High Nellie

Cycling, like everything else, is like a series of ladders - you get to the top of one and you find yourself at the bottom of another. So, you will start at the bottom of the A4 ladder and be prepared to get your ass kicked. If you are not prepared to have a go
And accept that, you won't progress

wexandproud

best advice here was the bit about accelerations out of corners and changes in pace. while they can be a good guideline dont get to hung up on chasing other peoples times or you could be flying during december and knackered when season starts. nice steady miles over the winter little bit more intense stuff from end january and you will be surprised what you will do.try a local league or club race first to get a feel for it,

Welshkev

slayer91 wrote: »

Hi,
very interested in this subject as well.

Would plans from here do?

http://www.trainerroad.com/cycling/plans

Regs

Has anyone used this TrainerRoad website? Looks good!

jinkypolly

Kevinleeowen wrote: »

Has anyone used this TrainerRoad website? Looks good!

I started using it last winter, found it excellent. Started with one of the Base plans and increased my FTP by 18 watts after 6 weeks. Without a doubt using the site contributed greatly to my form this year on the roads. It's also convenient that you can unsubscribe at any time and rejoin later with all your data still in your account, that's what I done when the weather got better.

smurphy29

Inquitus wrote: »

I think to have a good A4 season you need to have a good winter. I was snowed under at work from Oct-Mar and didn't get back on the bike til early April, 10kg heavier than I'd want to be and not in the best shape. After putting in the work Apr to date I am in good shape and back down to a good weight and competitive in the A4 bunch, looking forward to the hillier offerings coming up. Personally I feel I need to have a solid winter on the bike to reallly move things on to the next level. If I could hit March not too far off the form i have now, then I could really push things on a great deal throughout the season.

Personally I find the best thing for bringing you on is being stretched to the limit, be it in Club Handicap races where you get caught by A1/2/3 and have to hang on for grim death, or in an A4 race where the pace is at or beyond your limit. To my mind if you hang on until you are wrecked you have had a great workout even if you are dropped. Obviously on top of this you still need to put in the miles on your own between races.

So much good advice in here it's hard to know what to pick out.

Personally, I've found that the season sort of takes place in the reverse of how I'd like it to, by necessity. I've found that our club races and the Mark Mullen league in Donore, as well as racing the Mondello circuit have knocked me into shape. Looking back at earlier season races, I realise I wasn't really strong enough, or clued in enough, although I got around most of them ok. I'd give my right arm to have the Des Hanlon tomorrow. Like you, Iniquitus, I just hope I can hit next march with the form I have now.

In a handicap race there's a requirement to race hard because you nede to either stay away from a group behind you, or catch one in front of you, so the racing is miles harder than a normal A4 race. Plus, the groups are usually much smaller. So even if you're struggling early in the season, there is real scope to improve as it goes on. As everyone else says, you just have to join a club, train, and go for it. It's seriously addictive.