Operation Ötztaler Cycle Marathon - Part 6, Tapering & Pacing
You've been training hard for months, you're in shape, the weather is right, you're at the start line with an almost unmanageable number of like-minded people - so it's not surprising when your enthusiasm gets the better of you. "In the past, I've let myself get carried away and ridden in groups that were too fast," admits Joe Ramming, our candidate for the Ötztal Cycle Marathon.
"I had to pay for that later, but that wasn't a big problem with an event lasting four or five hours," recalls Joe. However, he has more respect for the legendary climbing epic over Kühtai and Co. and rightly so. Because where other marathons come to an end, the Timmelsjoch, the link between Italy and Austria, rears up with 1,800 metres of altitude. This does not forgive any major mistakes.
That's why Joe has to pace himself right from the start, which is easy to do thanks to the power meter on his bike, which displays his current performance in watts. "With specific figures as a target, I have no problem orientating myself to them in a competition," says Joe optimistically, not allowing himself to get too carried away by the rush of the race after the start.
At a mountain camp on Lake Garda, he tested his limits and explored what it feels like to really push himself for an hour after five and a half hours of cycling uphill and ride at "threshold" speed, i.e. the fastest possible pace. Along the way, the "Monte Velo" unit was created, named after the climb of the same name near Arco - 900 metres in altitude in one go, which Joe conquered three times in training (the climb was also part of the Giro d'Italia this year).
For Joe, the Timmelsjoch then mentally shrinks to two Monte Velos: he was able to pedal 225 watts on the Monte Velo after extensive pre-stressing in training; on the Timmelsjoch we plan with 170 to 180 watts.
But even if Joe organises his strength well: Overall, the 50-year-old has to reckon with dwindling performance over the course of the marathon; nobody can escape fatigue over this long period of time. But we want to make sure that his performance curve is as flat as possible so that he feels strong right to the end and can tackle the short, nasty counter-climb to the toll station on the descent to Sölden with grace and fun.
Before that, Joe will get a taste of competition at the Granfondo Stelvio Santini and the Rosenheim Cycling Marathon; at both events, he wants to practise power distribution and pacing, as well as test his nutrition in competition and refine his riding technique in alpine terrain, including downhill; the originally planned participation in the Nove Colli Cycling Marathon had to be cancelled, the event was postponed due to bad weather. We were able to check Joe's current performance level with INSCYD diagnostics (a software-based analysis based on power meter data).
The test, consisting of four short time trial units, was ridden by our Ötztaler aspirant on the roads of his home turf. The diagnosis shows that he was able to improve significantly in all areas. There are just under two months to go until the competition, and a certain amount of further development in form can still be expected as a result of the final training programme. Our tips on pacing and specific competition tapering are summarised on the following pages.
Ötztaler Cycle Marathon - The performance development of Joe Ramming
Cycling marathon checklist
Material
Bike, race clothing, refreshments, starting documents, floor pump, spare tyre, lubricant for chain and trousers
Race clothing
shorts, jersey, vest, gloves, waistcoat, helmet, goggles, racing shoes
Depending on the weather
In the rucksack or distributed on the bike/in jersey pockets: Rain jacket, buff/helmet cap, short rain trousers, overshoes, knee warmers, additional insulation layer for the upper body, long gloves, mobile phone/money. If a carer is available: light, warm jacket for waiting in the starting block, which you can hand in shortly before the start.
On the wheel
Spare inner tube, repair kit, pump or two CO2 cartridges, two tyre levers, chain lock, mini tool, on-board computer, two 0.75-litre water bottles, route map on stem
Operation Ötztaler Cycle Marathon - Tapering
Tapering is the planned intensification of form for a competition. The strategy consists of reducing training shortly before the race so that the athlete arrives fresh for the competition. "Form" is the combination of a lot of accumulated training load paired with some recovery before the race. But how much recovery is right? It is common to reduce the volume by around 50 per cent compared to extensive weeks.
However, the training intensity is only slightly reduced. Intervals are therefore still on the programme to keep the legs going. It would be a mistake to undertake any kind of violent action in the week before the competition. It's too late for hard training so close to the competition. Our tapering strategy for Joe starts ten days before the event and is typical for big marathons. On the weekend before the competition, he trains for two and three hours, with climbing intervals up to the development zone.
A short interval training session is also scheduled for the Wednesday before the competition, which keeps the legs going but doesn't have a major energising effect. In this way, Joe keeps his body energised and still maintains a positive training stress balance. A carbohydrate-rich diet fills the energy stores to the brim. So Joe will be ready for the big day on the dot. With tens of thousands of metres of altitude in his legs, he has the certainty that he can tackle the mountains of the Ötztaler.
Operation Ötztaler Cycle Marathon - Pacing
Pacing is the art of adapting your speed (actually your pedalling power) to the route and form so that you are flat just after the finish line and ideally achieve an optimum time. The longer the distance, the more important energy management becomes. The body's own carbohydrate stores are limited, as is the amount of energy that can be supplied en route. Only the body's own fat reserves are available in virtually unlimited quantities, but these in turn can only provide part of the total energy required.
How the energy balance develops depends on the selected pedalling power. At the threshold, i.e. in the area of the highest possible "continuous performance" (over one to one and a half hours), fat burning drops to zero and carbohydrate stores are quickly depleted - the pace is therefore too high for a long marathon. If you ride purely by feel, you run the risk of getting caught up in the general euphoria of the competition and riding up the first climb far too quickly, because the feeling of exertion only signals with a significant delay: slow down!
By then, however, valuable energy has already been irrevocably wasted. Toxic speed peaks (full throttle for a few minutes) are also diabolical: they deplete the energy stores even more rapidly than driving on the threshold.
How do you find the right pacing? From experience with long training rides, hard intervals after pre-loading and by comparing the ride data with performance diagnostics and extrapolating the distance. A simple and rather conservative strategy: limit the pedalling power to 80 percent of the threshold power. This ensures that the long-distance goal is achievable. Depending on your level of training, ambitions and distance, you may be able to do more. If you still have plenty of energy left after two-thirds of the distance, you can crank it up further. However, it is normal for performance to decline over time.
Basic rules for pacing in cycling marathons
- Start behaviour, use heart rate monitor or power meter as a pacemaker, don't be tempted to race
- Never drive in the red zone (e.g. full throttle for a few minutes, maximum heart rate)
- Eat and drink right from the start
- Always invest a little more power going uphill than on the flat
- Recover downhill as much as possible, don't pedal flat out, gain momentum, go small
- Slipstreaming only in groups with a suitable pace; the relevant times are made uphill
Pacing plan for the Ötztaler Cycle Marathon
The extremely challenging mountain marathon is divided into four ascents. It starts with the Kühtai, followed by the flatter Brenner, the Jaufenpass and finally the mighty Timmelsjoch.
Our Pacing strategy for Joe is based on the INSCYD performance diagnostics, which tell us at what speed Joe can conserve his carbohydrate reserves. At 186 watts, he can just about compensate for the carbohydrate turnover by consuming 90 grams of carbohydrates per hour, so he doesn't have to draw on his reserves.
Start Downhill slipstream, but without exhausting yourself
Kühtai 190 watts (1:40 h), which will feel relatively easy at first, given the current threshold of 242 watts.
Burner 160-170 watts on average (1:49 hours), slipstreaming if you find a suitable group. Aim: to cover the 50 kilometres to the top of the pass with as little energy as possible
Jaufen Pass 180 watts (1:35 hours), conservative pace; the aim is to start the Timmelsjoch as fresh as possible
Timmelsjoch 180 watts in the first section, 170 watts in the second (2:31 hrs)
Calculated journey time without breaks 10:25 hours, average power: 155 watts
