Would you pay for a good beginners sportive training guide?

3stripe

I have a hunch there aren'y many good ones out there for beginners....

Pross

I wouldn't pay for any generic training plans. To make anything worth paying for it needs to be tailored to an individual based on their available time and aims. If a beginner is just looking to complete a 100km sportive then all they need to do is get out on their bikes and ride a bit in the run up to it, if they are aiming to get a silver time standard then they will need a much more rigorous plan.

dw300

A couple of thoughts .. you are basically asking internet savvy people if they can find stuff on the internet .. that's going to skew your results towards the 'No I can find it myself' end of things.

You are also going to get people saying no because they are beyond that level already. I'd consider myself in that category but have not voted.

There are probably free guides out there provided by clubs, coaches or sportive organisers in order to attract people to their paid for products and services.

I think what you really need to do is make a marketing survey online and get a lot of people to answer a lot more questions .. that way you can filter the info to only get results from the type of beginner cyclist you are actually aiming at.

You may even be able to get your hands on research that's already been done and use that.

ShutUpLegs

Do you actually need to train for a sportive :?:

rozzer32

Pross wrote:

I wouldn't pay for any generic training plans. To make anything worth paying for it needs to be tailored to an individual based on their available time and aims. If a beginner is just looking to complete a 100km sportive then all they need to do is get out on their bikes and ride a bit in the run up to it, if they are aiming to get a silver time standard then they will need a much more rigorous plan.

This!!

One of the best things I love about having a coach is that if I'm struggling with something, or feel something isn't right then I can talk to my coach about it and discuss it and he will change my plan accordingly if it needs changing. I know my plan is tailored to my needs, abilities and goals.

bigdaveskinnytyre

There are plenty of general cycling training books out there that would more than cover the needs of any prospective Sportive-ist. Methinks someone want to re-hash the books and guides that are already out there and market it to the newly enthusiastic, desperate for any information MAMIL (this from a 20+ year enthusiastic youth now rapidly approaching MAMIL ).

In short, no, completely unnecessary.

For me coaches are for if you're going to race (I had one when I was racing regularly), you don't need a coach to get you through a glorified training ride (exceptions may include proper Gran-Fondo type events that involve multiple mountain passes).

Herbsman

Time standards for sportives are bolleques... If you enter with enough mates you can form a rotating paceline for the whole thing and 'win'. Whereas a lone rider could be a faster rider but take much longer because he's got nobody to share the work with....

ShutUpLegs wrote:

Do you actually need to train for a sportive :?:

This.

bompington

Here it is:

- RIDE YOUR BIKE

Please PM me £20 if you have read this post.

3stripe

dw300 wrote:

A couple of thoughts .. you are basically asking internet savvy people if they can find stuff on the internet .. that's going to skew your results towards the 'No I can find it myself' end of things.

You are also going to get people saying no because they are beyond that level already. I'd consider myself in that category but have not voted.

I think what you really need to do is make a marketing survey online and get a lot of people to answer a lot more questions .. that way you can filter the info to only get results from the type of beginner cyclist you are actually aiming at.

D'oh, yes this is obvious now I re-read this. But thanks for your constructive criticism

I'm asking the question because I did my first sportive last year (Etape Caledonia), and whilst yes, I didn't need any kind of professional training, it wasn't as easy as I'd imagined to find decent information on training etc.

I didn't want to buy a physical book or magazine from a shop, I wanted a one-click download with everything I need to know (as a complete beginner) in a well-designed format.

People invest a lot of money in their bikes/travel/accommodation so I'd expect that to filter through to their preparation too.

Alex_Simmons/RST

3stripe wrote:

I didn't want to buy a physical book or magazine from a shop, I wanted a one-click download with everything I need to know (as a complete beginner) in a well-designed format.

"Everything" is a very broad assignment that encompasses far more than just what training one should do. I would be surprised if there was a one click "beginner's guide to the universe" so to speak. People needs vary considerably, and what is a beginner? e.g. a there is a big difference between one who hasn't ridden to someone that's been pottering on a bike for a year, yet in context of many events they are both beginners. Things like road nouse, riding with others in a group etc. Some things are not best learned by click and read.

If you mean more narrowly what training you should do, well that depends very much on your goals and where you are currently in your fitness. For some it's just enough to ride regularly, but others will need some more tailored assistance in how much of what sort of riding and when they should do it.

For that purpose, we have Sportive and other training plans available that are tailored to the individual and are provided in an online format with log in with daily training provided and access to a coach for the occasional question.

Beyond that of course we also coach people, and while the majority are racing, there are some who are targeting the harder/more competitive fondo events.