Entrenamiento y Reconocimiento GFNY Ecuador

Acompáñanos al entrenamiento y reconocimiento oficial de la ruta de GFNY ECUADOR 2020.

Para hacerlo debes inscribirte en link.

Puedes participar en cualquiera de las dos rutas del GFNY ECUADOR, ambas salen y llegan a la Plaza Cívica de la Ciudad de manta (ubicada sobre la Av. Malecón de Manta a la altura de Tarqui).

La ruta larga, más apta para ciclistas con buena resistencia y condición física, tiene 173 kms de extensión y 1905 de elevación. Saldremos de Manta hacia Montecristi, subiremos por la vía a la refinería hasta el Aromo, luego hasta Puerto Cayo y de vuelta a la Ciudad de Manta pasando por San Mateo.

La ruta media, perfecta para todo tipo de ciclista, sale de Manta hacia Montecristi, sube hacia el Aromo por la vía a la refinería y retorna a Manta pasando por San Mateo hasta llegar nuevamente a la Plaza Cívica. Esta ruta tiene 75km y 778 de elevación. La puedes realizar en bicicleta de ruta o montaña.

Tendremos acompañamiento policial y abastos para complementar tu hidratación y alimentación.

Es obligatorio el uso de bicicleta en buen estado y casco.

Para el mayor disfrute de este día, es indispensable que lleves los artículos de mecánica básica (tubos, parches, bomba y/o CO2), alimentación, hidratación, bloqueador solar y un celular para comunicarte en caso de emergencia.

Este entrenamiento iniciará a las 7 a.m. en punto, por lo que se requiere tu presencia desde las 6:30 a.m. para asegurar tu participación.

Regístrate a continuación.

 

Be a Pro For a Day – GFNY Ecuador

 

 

Écrit par Bram de Vrind, @defietsjournalist

Avec un parcours passant par le Col de la Croix-de-Fer (2068 m) et le Col du Glandon (1924 m), le GFNY Alpes Vaujany apporte aux cyclistes la sensation d’être un pro d’un jour dans les Alpes françaises. J’ai vécu une journée épique au Gran Fondo, qui a été dominée par des conditions climatiques difficiles.

Les motos d’escorte s’alignent devant le peloton. L’arche de départ verte et des ponchos pour coureurs donnent de la couleur sur la place grise du village de Vaujany. En arrière-plan, la cascade de la Fare rugit à 200 mètres de hauteur. Une musique excitante résonne. “Allons-y, vous êtes en feu”, crie l’orateur avec un fort accent français.

GFNY Alpes Vaujany

Nous sommes le 30 août. La pluie tombe du ciel alors que je suis avec 150 autres coureurs dans les SAS de départ du GFNY Alpes Vaujany. C’est mon premier gran fondo de l’année : J’ai hâte de pouvoir enfin courir à nouveau ! Cependant, l’organisation et les participants ont probablement imaginé la première édition de cet événement différemment. Au programme, un parcours de 118 kilomètres pour se régaler : avec les géants alpins que sont le Col de la Croix-de-Fer (25 km/5%) et le Col du Glandon (20 km/7,2%), suivi de l’inconnue mais difficile montée pour le final à Vaujany (4,6 km/8,6%).

Le temps avait été ensoleillé ces dernières semaines mais a changé pendant le week-end de course. Il a plu presque continuellement ces derniers jours et les températures n’ont pas dépassé 14 degrés dans la vallée. Résultat : de la neige au sommet des montagnes et du gravier emporté sur les routes de montagne. Sur les 400 coureurs inscrits, beaucoup n’ont pas pu se rendre à la course en raison des restrictions de voyage de Covid.

Parcours raccourci

Hier est arrivé le message inévitable : le parcours sera raccourci à 60 kilomètres. Nous ne ferons que monter à la Croix-de-Fer, puis nous redescendrons par le même chemin dans la vallée pour remonter à Vaujany. La descente de la Croix-de-Fer au pied du Glandon est trop dangereuse en raison d’un glissement de terrain, selon le fondateur du GFNY, Uli Fluhme : “Nous voulons garder les participants sur un côté de la montagne pour des raisons de sécurité. C’est une déception pour les participants, mais surtout pour l’organisation qui a fait un effort supplémentaire pour rendre l’événement résistant à la corona. “Mais oui, nous ne pouvons maîtriser les montagnes imprévisibles”, soupire Uli.

Série mondiale du GFNY

Le GFNY Alpes Vaujany est le 22e événement du calendrier des GFNY World Series. uiiioCyclistes fanatiques, Uli et sa femme Lidia Fluhme ont fondé le GFNY (Gran Fondo New York) il y a dix ans pour apporter un granfondo dans leur ville natale. Depuis 2011, l’événement se déroule sur un circuit fermé de 160 kilomètres, de Big Apple à Bear Mountain et retour. C’est un succès : avec quelque 5000 participants par an, il est devenu le plus grand granfondo des Amériques.

Be a pro for a day

Le GFNY a établi un calendrier international avec des World Series depuis 2014. Le slogan de ces événements est ” BE A PRO FOR A DAY”. Toutes les courses du GFNY ont un départ en groupe, un chronométrage sur puce du début à la fin, des classements, des prix et podium par catégorie. La circulation est réglementée et l’organisation distribue des bouteilles d’eau pour que les participants les plus rapides n’aient pas à s’arrêter. Les participants sont aussi bien des professionnels qui vivent pour la course que des cyclistes amateurs qui se joignent à la course pour la camaraderie et le défi de parcourir un parcours difficile. Tous les participants reçoivent un maillot de course pour souligner leur égalité et leur amour commun pour la course. Avec un droit d’inscription de 52 euros (Pour une inscription au plus tôt), le GFNY Vaujany se situe dans la moyenne malgré le haut niveau de service.

En tant que cyclo fanatique, il n’y a rien que j’aime plus que de rouler en compétition sur les plus beaux parcours. J’ai de bons souvenirs du GFNY. En 2017, j’ai participé au GFNY NYC. Le départ avec 5000 participants sur le pont George Washington, fermé à la circulation, dans Big Apple était magique. Cette année-là, pour la première fois, je m’étais entraîné spécifiquement pour un événement qui a porté ses fruits avec une fière 28e place au classement général. Un an plus tard, à ma propre surprise, j’étais dans le groupe de tête du GFNY Deutschland. La 8e place obtenue lors de cet événement est un autre point fort personnel.

Allez !!!

Les ponchos se détachent, l’annonceur fait un compte à rebours jusqu’à zéro : c’est parti ! La descente de Vaujany est neutralisée, nous parcourons les cinq premiers kilomètres derrière la voiture du directeur de course. Cela entraîne des querelles : de nombreux coureurs veulent s’élancer en tête de la montée de la Croix-de-Fer.

“Allez !” Au pied du col, le directeur de course Cédric Haas soulève la neutralisation de la lucarne de la voiture. En raison d’une grave blessure, un classement de haut niveau n’est pas en place pour moi aujourd’hui. Le peloton se déplace et je sens immédiatement que je ne peux pas suivre les plus rapides.
Le peloton serpente dans la montagne comme un ruban allongé. À partir de là, c’est chacun pour soi. 25 longs kilomètres pour atteindre la croix de fer à 2067 mètres d’altitude d’où le col tire son nom. Un coureur dans un poncho battant du GFNY passe par là. La pluie éclabousse l’asphalte et crée des courants d’eau sur la route. Les sommets environnants sont poudrés de neige. J’essaie de me mettre à mon rythme et de gaspiller le moins d’énergie possible.

De bonnes jambes

Mon rythme cardiaque est assez élevé, mais je décide de continuer à pousser parce que nous ne devons “que” courir pendant 2,5 à 3 heures. Quand la montée s’aplatit dans le village du fleuve d’Allemont, je me fais petit pour être en position de “contre-la-montre”. Lors d’une courte descente, je dépasse à nouveau le gars au poncho à claquettes. Celui qui n’est pas fort doit être intelligent.

A 15 kilomètres avant le sommet, je ralentis un peu. Mon cœur est au seuil depuis plus d’une demi-heure et je veux éviter de tomber à court dans la montée finale. Je roule avec mon collègue allemand Sebastian, journaliste au magazine Roadbike. Il conduit un Specialized noir avec des autocollants verts et du ruban adhésif pour guidon dont la couleur correspond parfaitement au maillot vert du GFNY. Il pourrait remporter le prix de beauté du plus beau pilote aujourd’hui.

Une deuxième phase de plat suit avec une vue sur le Lac de Grand’Maison bleu opale. Au loin, on peut voir la route qui serpente sans fin jusqu’au sommet qui est caché dans les nuages. J’ai de bonnes jambes.

Histoire du cyclisme

Cinq kilomètres avant le sommet, nous nous retrouvons dans un paysage sauvage avec des rochers et des prairies. Je commence à sentir l’air raréfié. BARDET” “BARDET” est peint avec des lettres majuscules sur la chaussée comme encouragement pour le public français.

L’histoire du cyclisme est écrite sur ce col. Depuis 1947, la Croix-de-Fer a été incluse dix-huit fois dans le Tour de France. Lors du dernier passage en 2018, Steven Kruijswijk a joué un rôle de premier plan. Mon compatriote néerlandais a commencé une longue course en solitaire à 19 kilomètres du sommet. Il a atteint le col avec une avance de 3 minutes. Malheureusement, cela s’est avéré trop peu pour la victoire d’étape : dans la montée finale de l’Alpe d’Huez, Kruijswijk a été rattrapé.

Victoire finale

Le leader de la course arrive en volant avec dans son sillage la voiture klaxonnée du directeur de course. “On peut oublier la victoire finale”, plaisante Sébastien. Après la jonction avec le col du Glandon, nous abordons les 2,5 km finaux jusqu’à la croix de fer du col.
Une fois au sommet, on met des gants, on se gèle et on part. Sur la roue de Sébastien, qui s’avère être une bonne roue pour la descente, je plonge sous la pluie battante. Nous essayons de descendre aussi fort que possible pour gagner du temps, sans prendre de risques irresponsables.
Nous avons fait la descente en toute sécurité. L’organisation a fait un excellent travail en enlevant tout le gravier de la descente les deux jours précédents et à nouveau tôt le matin le jour de la course. Cependant, je suis anxieux lorsque la pluie se transforme en grêle qui me pique le visage. Nous ne devrions pas avoir à faire face à cela à des vitesses allant jusqu’à 70 kilomètres à l’heure ! Heureusement, la grêle a disparu rapidement.

Montée vers Vaujany

Une fois au pied de la dernière montée (4,6 km, 8,6 %), je sais quoi faire : essorer tout ce qui reste en moi. Sébastien me laisse bientôt partir. La montée est raide avec des pics allant jusqu’à 12 %. Je suis fatigué de la douleur car mon rythme cardiaque dépasse de loin le point de basculement. Un panneau le long de la route dit : “Ce n’est qu’une colline. Passez par-dessus !”
Pendant ce temps, la route reste vide devant moi. J’avais espéré rattraper les autres participants, mais à part un coureur garé au bord de la route en désespoir de cause, il n’y a personne à voir. Puis la petite église de Vaujany apparaît, avec au loin la cascade rugissante. J’encourage quelques spectateurs perdus à me soutenir. “Trente-septième place, Bram de Vrind !”, crie l’annonceur alors que je roule sous l’arche. 37e au classement général, pas mal ! Mais surtout, je suis heureux que, malgré les conditions climatiques difficiles et le raccourcissement du parcours, j’ai pu retrouver le sentiment d’être un pro d’un jour.

Un avenir ensoleillé

Conclusion ? Le temps, surtout en montagne, n’est pas entre vos mains en tant qu’organisation. De temps en temps, votre événement peut tomber à l’eau. Malheureusement, ce fut le cas cette année au GFNY Alpes Vaujany. Le choix de raccourcir le parcours pour des raisons de sécurité a été douloureux pour l’organisation et les participants, mais c’était la bonne décision. Le fait que l’organisation ait personnellement enlevé tout le gravier des descentes montre une fois de plus qu’elle a à cœur le parcours et les participants. Le niveau de service était, comme j’en ai l’habitude de la part du GFNY, élevé. Il y a très peu d’événements où vous courez sur des routes fermées et recevez des bouteilles d’eau de l’organisation. Avec un parcours de 120 kilomètres sur la Croix-de-Fer et le Glandon, le GFNY a trouvé un parcours légendaire comme base. En bref : cet événement mérite un avenir radieux.

GFNY Alpes Vaujany: Les montées

Col de la Croix-de-Fer
25 km
+1261m
5% en moyenne
19% max

Col du Glandon
20 km
+1430 m
7.2% en moyenne
17% max

Vaujany
4.6 km
+405m
8.6% en moyenne
15% max

GFNY Alpes Vaujany Parcours + Profil

 
by GFNY’s resident pro, Matthias Van Aken

You’ve trained, you’ve planned the trip, and you are ready to head to GFNY Florida for a one-of-a-kind GFNY racing experience. You’ve set goals and put the work in. So don’t let a mechanical issue ruin your race! For all the hours you have put in training, a couple more hours and a trip to the bike mechanic will put you in control of being able to reap the rewards of your training on race day. 

Training, tactics, nutrition, hydration, these are so important. But, just as important is making sure your bike is prepared for the race too. In this article, we will help you understand the most important things to check and to change/fix, if necessary.

Tires

Stopping to change a flat during a race is frustrating. You lose the group you were with and dozens of cyclists are passing you & progressing with their race while you stand on the side of the road wrestling with your wheel. 

It’s discouraging to continue with the race when your pace group is long gone. It even feels unfair that after you spent all the time training and preparing for a good race that your equipment is failing you.

Luckily, 95% of flats can be prevented by putting on new tires 5-10 days before you travel. If you are unsure of what tires to choose, Continental GP 5000 is a tough and durable tire with a lot of puncture protection and won’t slow you down. Remember, tires don’t slow you down, flat tires slow you down.

Chain + shifter cable

Most mechanics agree that you should replace your chain about every 2,000 to 3,000 miles, depending on your riding style. The easiest way to determine if you need a new chain is to use a chain-checker, which measures how badly your current chain has stretched. To keep a chain in optimal shape, you need to clean it often. If your chain needs to be changed, make sure you do this 5-10 days before you travel so you can check everything during the days before your trip. 

If your gears are not shifting well, e.g., if they are skipping or not dropping into place properly, think about changing your shifter cables as well. If you use electronic shifting, always make sure the battery is fully charged before traveling or at least bring your charger and even spare batteries with you. It’s a tough day in the saddle limping home in a gear that’s no good for the terrain because of an uncharged battery. 

Not sure? Check with your local bike shop at least 2-3 weeks before your travel date.

Brake pads

If you use rim brakes, check your brake pads to make sure they still have grooves in them. If you don’t see the grooves or if you think that your brake pads need to be changed, change them before you travel. It never hurts to have a spare set in your travel kit. The rolling hills of GFNY Florida Sebring will provide plenty of work for those brake pads so make sure they are in good condition. The same goes for disc brake pads, if you can pull the lever almost against the handlebar you will need to check the brake pads. If there is only 1 mm of compound left, then it’s time to replace them. 

Not sure? Check with your local bike shop 2-4 weeks before your travel date.

Complete tune up

Winter, rain and changes of season are hard on a bike. If you are coming out of winter or a rain season, make time about 1 month out from your race to get a complete tune up at your bike shop. Carve out this bike maintenance time while still in the peak of your training to give yourself that new-bike feeling and also give the new equipment time to settle in, and give yourself time to adjust gearing or work through any issues.

We are all busy, time is limited, we are juggling family, work and our sport. It’s easy to ignore the tune up when the bike is working “fine” and go for a ride instead. But it can be a make-or-break decision to ignore the tune up. Going on that ride maybe helps you ride 1 minute faster on race day, but not getting the tune up can mean 20 minutes lost on the race course dealing with a mechanical.

Don’t put off the bike maintenance until the last moment. You should not be arriving to a race and expecting the onsite bike shop to perform a complete tune up when there are hundreds of bikes to work on, limited time, limited staff and maybe also limited parts.

Flying with your bike

For more on what to pack in your bike case and luggage for a successful race – gfny.com/travel-checklist/

If you need help with packing your bike into a bike case or assembly onsite, contact your local shop and the on-site race shop in advance to book this service with them and ask about all the details for when / where / how / how much.

For more on traveling with your own bike – gfny.com/biketravel.pdf

IN SEBRING

Legacy Bicycle, Sebring’s centrally-located bike shop

Sebring’s centrally-located bike shop, Legacy Bicycle, is ready to assist all GFNY Florida Sebring riders with their bike, services, sports nutrition and accessories needs during race week. They can also provide bike assembly, bike packing, and bike rentals. It’s great to have a mechanic shop like Legacy Bicycle available to you during race week, but the best preparation will happen before you travel. 

www.legacybicycle.com

 

Bike Assembly and Bike Packing

Legacy Bicycle will assemble and adjust your bike for $60. The shop team will keep your bike box in storage at their warehouse while you are in Sebring. Legacy Bicycle also offers packing service for your bike prior to your departure $60.

Because of race-week demands, pre-booking these services is mandatory. You can make an appointment by sending an email to Dan or by calling +1 863-471-2453.

Bike rental

Can’t bring the bike? Legacy Bicycle has you covered. , You can rent a bike from Legacy for $30 dollars per day.  There are also high-end bike rentals available. For more information about the high-end rental bikes and to book a bike in your size, please send an email to Dan or call +1 863-471-2453. Due to limited availability, pre-booking is required for all bike rentals.

Race Day Support – GFNY Florida

GFNY Florida Sebring, as with all GFNY races, has mechanics available to assist you at the aid stations and rolling mechanical assistance and broom wagons if you cannot continue. You will receive a wristband with a Raceday Hotline # to call for assistance as needed.

 

GFNY Alpes Vaujany was one of those races you will tell your grandchildren about. Watch the race video.

 

 

In today’s show:

Welcome to GFNY GRUPPO, a channel made to bring to you all the news about the GFNY world.

  • Our next GFNY of this year.
  • Tips for making your GFNY a complete great experience.
  • Winner for the GFNY Alpes Vaujany entry

 

 

Bienvenidos a GFNY GRUPPO, un canal para mostrarles todo el mundo de GFNY.

  • Nuestro próximo GFNY de este año.
  • Consejos para hacer de tu GFNY una gran experiencia completa.
  • Ganador de la entrada GFNY Alpes Vaujany.

 

 

 

Written by Bram de Vrind, @defietsjournalist

With a course over the Col de la Croix-de-Fer (2068 m) and Col du Glandon (1924 m), GFNY Alpes Vaujany brings the be-a-pro-for-a-day feeling for cyclists to the French Alps. I experienced an epic day during the gran fondo, which was dominated by harsh weather conditions.

Throbbing escort bikes line up in front of the peloton. The green start arch and ponchos of the riders give color to the grey village square of Vaujany. In the background, the Cascade de la Fare waterfall roars 200 meters high. Exciting music resounds. “Let’s go, you are on fire,” shouts the speaker with a heavy French accent.

GFNY Alpes Vaujany

It is the 30th of August. The rain is falling from the sky while I’m standing together with 150 other riders in the starting corrals for GFNY Alpes Vaujany. It’s my first gran fondo of the year: I’m looking forward to finally racing again! However, the organization and the participants probably imagined the first edition of this event differently. On the program was a 118 kilometer course to feast on: with the alpine giants Col de la Croix-de-Fer (25 km/5%) and Col du Glandon (20 km/7.2%), followed by the unknown but tough climb back to Vaujany (4.6 km/8.6%).

The weather had been sunny for the past few weeks but changed during the race weekend. It has rained almost continuously for the past few days and with temperatures not exceeding 14 degrees in the valley. The result: snow at the top of the mountains and gravel washed onto the mountain roads. Of the 400 registered riders, many were not able to get to the race due to Covid travel restrictions.

Course shortened

Yesterday came the inevitable message: the course will be shortened to 60 kilometers. We’ll only climb the Croix-de-Fer and then descend the same way to the valley to climb back to Vaujany. The descent from the Croix-de-Fer to the foot of the Glandon is too dangerous due to a landslide, according to GFNY founder Uli Fluhme: “We want to keep the participants on one side of the mountain for safety’s sake. This is a disappointment for the participants, but especially for the organization that has made an extra effort to make the event corona-proof. “But yes, we’rein the unpredicatble mountains,” Uli sighed.

GFNY World Series

GFNY Alpes Vaujany is the 22nd event on the GFNY World Series calendar. As fanatical cyclists, Uli and his wife Lidia Fluhme founded GFNY (Gran Fondo New York) ten years ago to bring a granfondo to their hometown. Since 2011, the event has taken place on a 160 kilometer closed circuit from the Big Apple to Bear Mountain and back. It is a success: with some 5000 participants annually, it has become the largest granfondo in the Americas.

Be a pro for a day

GFNY has been building an international calendar with the World Series since 2014. The slogan of the events is ‘Be a Pro for a Day’. All GFNY races have a group start, chip timing from start to finish, rankings and podium prizes by category. Traffic is regulated and the organization hands water bottles so the fastest participants don’t have to stop. The field of participants ranges from professionals who live for the race to recreational cyclists who join for the camaraderie and challenge of riding a tough course. All participants get a racing jersey from the event to underline their equality and shared love for the race. With a 52 euro (early bird) entry fee, GFNY Vaujany is at an average entry rate despite the high level of service.

As a cyclo fanatic, there’s nothing I like better than riding in competition over the most beautiful courses. I have good memories of GFNY. In 2017, I took part in GFNY NYC. The start with 5000 participants on the closed to traffic George Washington Bridge in the Big Apple was magical. That year, for the first time, I had trained specifically for an event that paid off with a proud 28th place overall. A year later, to my own surprise, I was in the leading group of GFNY Deutschland. The 8th place at that event is another personal highlight.

Go!!! 

The ponchos come off, the announcer is counting down to zero: it’s on! The descent from Vaujany is neutralized, we ride the first five kilometers behind the race director car. That leads to squabbling: many riders want to start at the front of the climb of the Croix-de-Fer.

“Go!” At the foot of the col, race director Cedric Haas lifts the neutralization from the car’s skylight. Due to a severe injury, a top classification is not in place for me today. The peloton is moving and I immediately feel that I can’t follow the fastest.
The peloton snakes up the mountain like an elongated ribbon. From here on it’s every man for himself. 25 long kilometers to get to the iron cross at 2067 meters altitude from which the pass takes its name. A rider in a flapping GFNY poncho passes by. The rain splashes on the asphalt and creates water currents on the road. The surrounding peaks are powdered with snow. I try to get into my rhythm and waste as little energy as possible.

Good legs

My heart rate is quite high, but I decide to keep pushing because we ‘only’ have to race for 2.5 to 3 hours. When the climb flattens out in the village of Le River d’Allemont, I make myself small to be in ‘time trial’ position. During a short descent I overtake the guy with the flapping poncho again. He who is not strong has to be smart.

At 15 kilometers before the top I slow down a bit. My heartrate has been around threshold for more than half an hour and I want to avoid falling short on the final climb. I ride together with German fellow journalist Sebastian of Roadbike Magazine. He rides a black Specialized with green decals and handlebar tape that color matches the green GFNY jersey perfectly. He could win the beauty award for best-looking rider today.

A second flat phase follows with a view on the opal blue Lac de Grand’Maison. In the distance we can see the road winding endlessly to the top which is hidden in the clouds. I have good legs.

Cycling history

Five kilometers before the summit we end up in a wild landscape with rocks and meadows. I start feeling the thin air. BARDET’ ‘BARDET’ is painted with block letters on the road surface as an encouragement to the French audience.

Cycling history is written on this col. Since 1947, the Croix-de-Fer has been included in the Tour de France eighteen times. During the last passage in 2018 Steven Kruijswijk played a starring role. My fellow Dutch started a long solo at 19 kilometers from the top. He reached the col with a 3 minute lead. Unfortunately it would turn out to be too little for the stage win: on the final climb to Alpe d’Huez, Kruijswijk was caught.

Final victory

The leader of the race comes flying down with the honking car of the race director in his wake. “We can forget about the final victory,” I joke to Sebastian. After the junction with the Col du Glandon, we tackle the final 2.5km to the iron cross on the col.
Once we get to the top, it’s gloves on, gel in, and off we go. On Sebastian’s wheel, which turns out to be a good one for the descent, I dive down in the whining rain. We try to descend as hard as we can to save time, without taking irresponsible risks.
We made the descent safe. The organization did a great job by removing all the gravel from the descent in the previous two days and again early morning of race day. However, I do get anxious when the rain turns into hail that stings in my face. We shouldn’t have to deal with that at speeds of up to 70 kilometers per hour! Fortunately, the hail disappeared quickly.

Climb to Vaujany

Once at the foot of the last climb (4.6 km, 8.6%), I know what to do: wring out everything left in me. Sebastian soon lets me go. The climb is steep with peaks of up to 12%. I am tired of the pain as my heartbeat rises far above the tipping point. A sign along the road says: “It’s only a hill. Get over it!”
Meanwhile, the road remains empty ahead of me. I had hoped to catch up to other participants, but apart from a rider parked aside the road in despair, there is no one to be seen. Then the little church of Vaujany comes into view, with the roaring waterfall in the distance. I encourage a few lost spectators to support me. “Trento-septième place, Bram de Vrind!”, the announcer calls out as I roll under the arch. 37th overall, not bad! But above all, I’m glad that – despite the harsh weather conditions and the shortened course – I was able to experience the be-a-pro-for-a-day feeling again.

Sunny future

Conclusion? The weather, especially in the mountains, is not in your hands as an organization. Once in a while, your event can fall into the water. Unfortunately, that was the case this year at GFNY Alpes Vaujany. The choice to shorten the course for safety reasons was painful for both organization and participants, but it was the right call. The fact that the organization has personally removed all gravel on the descents shows once again that they have a heart for the course and the participants. The service level was, as I am used to from GFNY, high. There are very few events where you race on closed roads and receive water bottles from the organization. With a route of 120 kilometers on the Croix-de-Fer and Glandon, GFNY has found a legendary course as a base. In short: this event deserves a bright future.

GFNY Alpes Vaujany: The climbs

Col de la Croix-de-Fer
25 km
+1261m
5% average
19% max

Col du Glandon
20 km
+1430 m
7.2% on average
17% max

Vaujany
4.6 km
+405m
8.6% on average
15% max

GFNY Alpes Vaujany Route + Profile

Cadence Training to Master Any Terrain

Most of your training as a cyclist is designed to make you more powerful: intervals to build high-end power, endurance rides to develop your ability to ride fast over many hours, sprints to polish your finishing kick.

However, one thing that’s often overlooked is training to be able to apply that power in any situation. If you train in the hills, you may find your power output on climbs eclipses your power output on the flat. If you train in the flats, on hilly courses you may find yourself more fatigued than normal late in the race, from the different forces that climbing applies to your legs. And if you don’t have access to fast group rides, long periods in a fast-moving bunch may fatigue your legs in places you aren’t used to.

So how do you solve this? One answer would be to move to your favorite cycling paradise with climbs, flats, fast group rides, and perfect weather. Since that’s not in the cards for most of us, we’ll focus on a more practical way: altering your cadence in training to target specific events.

Low Cadence Training

Low-cadence training is a type of interval training long practiced by elite cyclists. The concept is that you drop your cadence much lower than normal, often to around 60-65 rpm. Then you do intervals at a moderate power output. Although the power output may be only moderate, the force on your muscles is similar to that of a much higher power output at a normal cadence. This allows the athlete to train force development without generating as much fatigue, meaning they can do more or longer intervals than they could at a higher intensity.

This kind of training is great for all cyclists, but it’s especially good for cyclists who are preparing for climbs but don’t have long climbs that are easy to access. Because most cyclists pedal a slightly lower cadence than they do on the flat, and because long climbs provide a constant resistance, this type of grinding interval is great to prepare for tough, hilly races.

Another strategy is to train at a higher power output, with cadence only slightly lowered. For example, if on the flat you prefer to ride in the 95-100 rpm range, you probably will climb in the 85-90 rpm range. So it can be very helpful to drop your cadence to around 85 rpm for your high-intensity interval training.

If you’re training on flat terrain and targeting a hilly event, these sessions are fantastic. Make them even more productive by using a position similar to your climbing position: sitting up on the tops of the bars or the brake hoods. This will more closely mimic the muscle recruitment during climbing.

High Cadence Training

The primary benefit of high-cadence training is to improve your ability to produce high power outputs at high speed. Tailwind sections, slight downhills, or any race where you’re in a fast-moving peloton require you to be comfortable putting in hard efforts at a high cadence. The perfect candidate for this type of training is a rider who usually does all their training on hilly routes, but is training for a flat event.

Incorporating high-cadence work is simple: during your high-intensity workouts, do your efforts with a high cadence, preferably 100-105 rpm. Do these intervals on flat terrain. As we mentioned above, match your position to the effort: since you’re training for high-speeds, use an aerodynamic position and stay in the saddle at all times.

If you don’t have any fast, flat sections where you live, these efforts are perfect to do on the trainer. If you’re training with a power meter, you may notice power isn’t as high as when you do your intervals on climbs. That’s fine, and in time, you’ll notice this gap closes.

Wrapping Up

To sum things up, altering cadence during your training can be a powerful way to improve your abilities as a cyclist. This is especially true for targeting specific types of terrain: using low-cadence efforts for climbing, and high-cadence efforts for flatter, faster races.

Not all of us have the perfect terrain for training right on our doorstep, but with simple adaptations to our training we can be ready for anything.

The Basics of Strength Training for Cyclists

Strength training for cyclists used to be a controversial subject, but a recent boom in scientific research into the subject has begun to turn that tide. Study after study is showing that cyclists can benefit from incorporating strength training into their schedule, especially if it’s at the right time of the season.

Not only that, but strength training is a great tool for general health. It’s key to fight low bone-density that plague cyclists, and to maintain muscle mass in older athletes.

Lower-Body Strength Training

Cycling is a lower-body dominant sport, and strength training should be focused largely on this area. The best exercises for cyclists are free-weight exercises like squats, lunges, and variations thereof. If an athlete prefers machine exercises they should focus on multi-joint exercises using as much of the lower body as possible. Examples include the leg press or machine-guided squats. Finally, isolation exercises like hamstring curls or calf raises can be used to build up a weak muscle.

Repetitions should generally be in the range of 5-8, with challenging but controllable weights. Repetitions can be slightly higher for isolation exercises. 3-5 sets per exercise and a few exercises per workout is perfect. We suggest two days a week in the gym in the off-season. During the season maintenance sessions one or two days a week can be done, or we can maintain strength through on-the-bike work, depending on the athlete.

Core Training

Training the muscles in your abdomen and lower back (typically what we mean when we refer to the core) may not directly impact your power output the way training your legs does, but it can make you more stable on the bike, help you avoid lower back problems, and provide more efficient power transfer. All this can make you more powerful and more comfortable on the bike.

Core training should be designed to target all 360 degrees of the core, hitting the abdominals, obliques and muscles of the lower back. Exercises in the 10-20 repetition range, as well as static exercises like planks are ideal.

Upper Body Training

One look at the upper body of most champion cyclists should tell you that upper body strength isn’t an important factor in cycling performance. However, having some upper body strength can be important for general health and fitness. For that reason, as a coach, I leave upper-body work up to the individual. Pure and focused racers may avoid it. Those who want to balance their fitness and not solely focus on the bike should include it.

If you choose to do upper body work, choose a couple of ‘pushing’ exercises (bench press, shoulder press, push-ups) and a few ‘pulling’ exercises (pull-ups, lat pull-downs, bent-over rows). Similar to what we suggested for leg exercises, the 5-8 rep range is perfect, with a few sets per exercise. Make sure to balance your pushing and pulling exercises.

Timing

Gym work is best started in the off-season, or very far out from your goal events. When you first start in the gym you’ll be sore and the quality of training on the bike will be reduced. So, if you start too close to your goal races, you can actually hurt performance instead of helping. For a race like GFNY NYC, we suggest starting the previous fall and training hard in the gym until around January or February.

Two times a week in the off-season is ideal. This can be reduced in late winter or early spring. After reducing gym work, you can use a few strategies for maintenance. One option is to keep doing two sessions per week, but very short, at-home sessions. Another is to continue with one day a week in the gym. Finally, you can stop lower-body strength work all together and use the bike to maintain your strength. If you chose this final option, it’s important to keep a few days of core work in your program.

On-the-Bike Nutrition Guide

On-the-bike nutrition is one of the keys to performance during long events like GFNY races. Developing a nutrition strategy takes knowledge of best practices followed by planning, practice, and training. In this guide, we’re going to give you practical advice on how to best create your nutrition plan for race day.

What do I need?

By far the most important macronutrient during endurance exercise is carbohydrate. This should be no surprise, but what is a surprise to many athletes is how much carbohydrate they should be taking in.

Leading sports nutritionists suggest that for events longer than 2.5 hours, cyclists should be shooting for at least 60 grams of carbs per hour, with up to 90 or even 100 being ideal in many cases.

This is a large range. Athletes who burn more (either larger or stronger athletes) should aim for the top of this range. Smaller or less powerful athletes can aim for more in the 60-70 grams of carbohydrate per hour range.

It’s important to remember that carbohydrate absorption rates are higher when mixing carbohydrate sources (glucose/fructose, for example). All athletes should consider mixing carbohydrate sources, but it’s absolutely necessary for athletes shooting to take in 80+ grams of CHO per hour.

The other macronutrient that you may need during exercise is protein. Protein intake is significantly less important than carbohydrate intake, but it may increase endurance in some cases, and it definitely reduces muscle damage and can speed the recovery process. However, some riders have trouble stomaching much protein during high-intensity efforts. We suggest trying it. A good top-end goal for protein intake is .25 grams/kg of body weight/hour.

That’s a lot of Carbs. How do I take them?

Firstly, it’s absolutely key to start with a good sports drink. A good sports drink hydrates you better than water, replenishing key electrolytes, while simultaneously providing carbohydrate.

Many drinks now are based around two or even three carbohydrate sources. As we mentioned before, this is key to raising absorption. By starting with a high-carbohydrate drink mix based on multiple sources of carbohydrate, you will go a long way towards ingesting enough carbohydrate while simultaneously hydrating yourself.

In the case that you want to try to incorporate protein, as well, many drink mixes and bars have an appropriate amount of protein, but it’s less common in gels. Again, please try this in training, as it upsets the stomach of some athletes.

Your nutrition plan should use a mix of at least a couple of the following: gels, bars, and solid foods like fruits. It’s key to test this in training, and find out what works for you, as we’ll discuss soon.

Training and Practicing Your Nutrition

Good nutrition doesn’t just happen by accident, or come from last-minute planning the week of the race. It must be planned, practiced, and trained in the process of training for your event.

The first step is to do some math and see how many carbohydrates you’re taking in during events or long training rides. Don’t be surprised if you’re far below the quantities we’re recommended.

Then, begin to practice your race-day nutrition on occasion. The best time to do this is during long, hard training rides that most closely mimic the event.

This is the time to gradually increase your carbohydrate intake week after week until you get to your goal. At the same time try different nutrition products to find what works for you. It’s key to find products that let you get in enough carbohydrate and don’t cause any GI distress.

Repetition is Key

Once you’ve found a strategy that works for you, practice it. Just like training, repetition is a key to success. You want to be sure you have a nutritional strategy you’ll stick to come race day: even with adrenaline coursing through your veins, even if the weather is bad and your food is buried beneath jackets, even as you’re watching the moves of your competitors. Many racers who create a great nutrition plan but never reinforce those habits in training find they arrive at the end of the race with pockets full of uneaten food.

Remember, the right nutrition plan is the easiest way there is to get faster. It doesn’t require more hours on the bike or more intervals, and the financial investment required is tiny compared to buying faster equipment. So plan, practice, and execute on race day, and you’ll perform at your best.

In today’s show:

Welcome to GFNY GRUPPO, a channel made to bring to you all the news about the GFNY world.

  • Security measures to be taken for covid-19 at GFNY Cozumel.
  • Winner of GFNY France 202 giveaway.
  • Giveaway GFNY Cozumel 2020.

 

 

 

Bienvenidos a GFNY GRUPPO, un canal para mostrarles todo el mundo de GFNY.

  • Medidas de seguridad que se van a tomar por el covid-19 en el GFNY Cozumel.
  • Ganador cortesía GFNY France 202.
  • Giveaway GFNY Cozumel 2020.

 

 

 

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