12hr training tips

chrisw12

I think someone on here needs to share their training tips for this events.

280 miles and a win by 23 miles suggests that some serious training has been done, so what's the secret?

Well done by the way, but why didn't you enter the best 12 hour yesterday aka The welsh 12 hr?

A link for those not in the know http://www.timetriallingforum.co.uk/ind ... opic=47774

What I find amazing is that both 12's yesterday were won by a seemingly big margin but when you work it out it's like 1 or 2 mph more, such a small number but wow so difficult to get. So Jeff how's it done?

and any sportive riders chancing on this thread, if you want a proper bike challenge, forget about climbing up and down hills and have a go at a proper event/race, a 12hr is so rewarding and is a great experience.

sub55

its easy chris, keep it steady and never over do it.
never stop , keep it steady, find a riding position thats comfortable and aero and stay in it.
maintain the same power output on the climbs as well as the descent and stay in the aero position even on the climbs. keep it steady.. eat and drink and keep it steady.

Jeff Jones

Firstly, well done Chrisw12 for your 239.537 miles yesterday!

A BikeRadar blog on yesterday's Icknield 12 is forthcoming. I've never had legs this sore but surprisingly the rest of me is OK. I'm absolutely chuffed with the ride, it's a huge achievement just to finish a 12 and to go above 280 miles on a hellishly windy day was beyond what I thought was possible.

Training was just my usual stuff, which is aimed at improving FTP, plus a 50 and a 100 as lead up races. I think I did three long rides on the TT bike, 4, 5 and 6 hrs. I did 130 miles in the 6hr one with no aero kit on (and was bolloxed) so I knew what sort of power I could sustain for long rides.

Fuelling was critical. I had a couple of helpers and I got regular bottles of carb drink and the odd gel/muesli bar/sandwich, plus what I carried in a bag attached to the top tube. I ran low a couple of times but came good once I got my next bottle. After 3hrs, it was easy to drink and eat the recommended 60-70g of carbs/hour. Before then it would have been too much to stomach.

Pacing: as sub55 says, keep it even and make sure you're comfy. Don't go over your FTP on hills if you can avoid it. Because of the wind yesterday, I did go harder into the headwind and recovered in the tailwind sections. That way I didn't lose as much time as I would have with even pacing.

I thought the Icknield 12 might be a bit quicker than the Welsh one. So I've now got a nice set of BAR times/distance but I think I can improve on the shorter distances (50 and 100). It seems like all my BAR races have been a) windy and b) wind against on the uphills.

The 12 is an awesome race. I've got immense respect now for anyone who completes one.

SteveR_100Milers

Well done guys! Seen your smiling face Chris on Les Thomas's photos on facebook. I started the 12 in 2008 and packed after 80 odd miles as I wasn't well, but an awesome achievement to just finish.

Bhima

Jeff Jones wrote:

I knew what sort of power I could sustain for long rides.

What sort of power numbers are you targetting for such an event? I can't even imagine how hard the pacing must be as i've never done anything above 8 hours. :shock:

chrisw12

Well my ftp is (poorly) estimated at 270 (haven't done a test for a while). I targeted 200w av. I ended up with 181av but a norm power of 197.

Av power was low because of the stops I made to get drinks. I'll have more confidence next year to have drinks handed up to me rather than me stopping and waiting and arguing with the loved ones.

Thanks Steve, yes I did enjoy it and thanks Paul your enthusiasm and shouts were motivational.

Tanks for the reply Jeff, interesting advice.

Jeff Jones

Chris, your avg power / FTP ratio was about the same as mine. Although I'm guessing had I done an FTP test on Sunday it would have been lower than my best. I was 30W down on normal when I did a sweet spot session last Thursday. Partly from jetlag and a day off the bike.

Bhima, there's not much difference between 8 and 12 hours in terms of pacing I actually ended up pacing it more off heart rate (~75% of max) rather than power as it was much easier to keep an eye on.

Interestingly my power/heart rate ratio fluctuated quite a bit during the day, depending on my current state of hydration, fuelling and how warm it was. At the end it was quite high, almost the same as the start.

Jeff Jones

Blog as promised http://www.bikeradar.com/blogs/article/ ... test-26910

SBezza

Cracking distance Jeff, well done.

Thick Tester

Jeff Jones wrote:

The 12 is an awesome race. I've got immense respect now for anyone who completes one.

Well done - I look forwards to your tales of emerging from bed the following morning creaking and groaning at levels higher than the combined decibel output of your two local nursing homes.

For anyone thinking of attempting one - visualise and merge these two images :

Jeff Jones

Thick Tester wrote:

Jeff Jones wrote:

The 12 is an awesome race. I've got immense respect now for anyone who completes one.

Well done - I look forwards to your tales of emerging from bed the following morning creaking and groaning at levels higher than the combined decibel output of your two local nursing homes.

Thank you.

The next day was tough on the knees/legs but by the end of Tuesday they were OK. I was too tired to groan.

The extreme tiredness is still with me on day 4. Being sleep deprived in the days leading up to it didn't help.

Thick Tester

Jeff Jones wrote:

Thick Tester wrote:

Jeff Jones wrote:

The 12 is an awesome race. I've got immense respect now for anyone who completes one.

Well done - I look forwards to your tales of emerging from bed the following morning creaking and groaning at levels higher than the combined decibel output of your two local nursing homes.

Thank you.

The next day was tough on the knees/legs but by the end of Tuesday they were OK. I was too tired to groan.

The extreme tiredness is still with me on day 4. Being sleep deprived in the days leading up to it didn't help.

See you at the Nationals then

Jeff Jones

Thick Tester wrote:

See you at the Nationals then

Not likely I'm taking the soft option and doing a 100 that day.