How long should you rest between sportives?

Mendip rouleur

It's a long story, but I am signed up to do 5 sportives between now and the end of June, including the Tour of Wessex. I harbour no great ambition, other than to enjoy myself and maybe, just maybe, go faster in the ToW and Dartmoor classic than I did last year (and I was pretty slow in both).

So the question, have I bitten off more than I should chew?

rjh299

There's only 6 weekends between now and end of June, busy schedule. Depends on your level of fitness I'd guess. You'll have a weeks rest in between events so should be ok.
Are you counting Wessex as 3 or 1 event aswell?

redrobbo

A fit cyclist could do a sportive every day if they paced themselves right. Weather permitting..

amaferanga

One each weekend doesn't seem like much if you're comfortable with the distance. There's nothing that says you have to ride them all balls out anyway - if you are tired after a few of them then just ride one at a steady, comfortable pace.

mrushton

They are sportives not full on racing. Some of the audax community are knocking 200km rides out most weekends with 300/400/600km in there as well, esp. in a PBP year

jhop

In 2009 I entered all 3 days of the TOW and felt quite tired after riding the first two stages (6hour times)so did not ride the 3rd day. On the Sunday stage most other guys in my group also felt the same so not sure that I and/or quite a few others could ride a sportive every day and enjoy ourselves!

However I have found myself riding a bit quicker when I have left only one week beween events. For me it is a difficult matter of getting the balance right between putting myself under enough pressure/stress to improve and allowing time for rest and recovery so that I don't over train and become tired and run down.

Other issues concerning lifestyle and cost etc also influence me to normally leave a two week gap between events. This allows time for club rides and cuts down on travel and family disruption so suits me best. It also keeps riding an event that little bit special.

With events filling up so quickly nowadays unless entries are put in fairly early then often chances of riding are slim. Entering events months in advance can allow riders to include contingency plans which enables them to factor in alternatives in case of accidents, illness and other unexpected events. Rather costly though!

nickwill

It depends what you want to get out of them. If you take them steady you could do one every day for a week. I rode the Raid Pyrenean a few years back and in distance and climbing that is 4 and a bit sportives back to back. The thing is I took my time each day and rode within myself. I will ride the Raid Alpine in July and that's the equivalent of 6 sportives back to back.
On the other hand when I ride a sportive I tend to bury myself to get the best time I'm capable of. I'm riding the Keswick sportive on Saturday, then Le Terrier 2 weeks after that. I expect to be really knackered after Saturday's ride and will take a week to get back to normal. I will definitely knock back the miles and speed in between so that i'm in the best condition possible for the second one.
So the answer is that it depends what you want from your sportives. Ride hard and you need to factor in recovery time. Ride it like a steady Audax and you will be fresh as a daisy after a couple of days.

jhop

I do agree aims, objectives and general expectations for doing the event are probably the key factor influencing frequency. Also multi day / stage events need to be viewed / ridden accordingly. As Nickwill quite rightly notes when you take on something like the Raid Pyrenean you try to match your efforts to enable you best to achieve your goal which may range from survival to the fastest time you can manage.

skinsey

OPer did the RP last year no problem (I know, I was there too) so I would say he just needs to MTFU.

Herbsman

Rest was once considered a sign of weakness. An entire week should be more than enough providing you eat well and drink enough, stay off the booze, fags and crack cocaine, and get enough sleep.

JamesB

++1 as above comments; depends on how hard you push yourself, as Nickwill above I`ve ridden now 2 x across Pyrenees on 5 / 6 day trips with equiv sportive distance and height gain each day, and also LEJOG on a 15 day continuous trip on a `long `route. Although all were very tiring it`s a case of riding steadily knowing you`ll be out again teh next day; so if you take the approach of a steady sportive ride each time I`d have thought you should be OK; push too hard though and it will be harder on teh next one maybe

toontra

I did 2 150k's back to back over a weekend 2 years ago. I held back slightly on the first and my time was down by a few minutes on the second (compared to previous years) having tried to go all-out. I wanted to test my recovery time and how I'd react to multiple days of hard riding (in preparation for an endurance event later in the year).

If you're after your fastest possible time on a particular event then leaving a few days in-between is sensible!

nochekmate

Judging by the ever increasing cost of them - rest until the next pay day!

Most of them are not worth the cash, but then that is another thread.

Mendip rouleur

OPer did the RP last year no problem (I know, I was there too) so I would say he just needs to MTFU.

From a man who needs walking poles to walk along a footpath that is some advice!