You’ll improve power at VO2 max, but more important for Gran Fondo performance, you’ll gain the ability to surge on a climb or bridge across a gap and then recover quickly enough to hold your position. Try a workout like 10 x 2 minute Power Intervals (10 on a 1-10 scale, as high a power as you can hold for two minutes) with 2 minutes easy spinning recovery between them. Here it is: If you develop the power to surge way above your lactate threshold for a short effort, you’re also developing the fitness to recover quickly from those surges. High-intensity intervals are often thought of in terms of the ability generate huge power numbers and non-competitive athletes sometimes fail to see a good rationale for that. While longer climbing intervals are great for building the power to climb like a steady diesel engine, you also need to be able to accelerate. The goal is to accumulate time-at-intensity, so only make the intervals longer if you can maintain the power output! Recovery between intervals should be half the duration of the interval (5 minutes recovery between 10 minutes intervals, etc.) Don’t Forget Short Intervals In training, focus on repeated climbing intervals of 10-20 minutes each at your lactate threshold or maximum sustainable power output. You’ll be stuck in a slower group leading to the next climb, which makes it difficult to catch up, and you’ll continue to lose time from there. If you can’t climb you’ll be left behind, and once the fast guys are gone, they’re gone.
Climb and Climb AgainĬlimbing power is key to riding in a fast group during a Gran Fondo. But now there’s a timing chip, hill segments, and an overall placing on the line, so you’re going to need some speed to go along with that endurance. You’ve most likely done century rides before and given enough time, food, and water, you could pedal your way to the finish line. Training TipsĮndurance isn’t usually the limiting factor for athletes signing up for their first Gran Fondo. Why? Because 7,000 or more feet of climbing in a timed 100-mile ride is a step up from your local run-of-the-mill century, and that’s what a Gran Fondo is supposed to be.
For the sake of this article we will set the minimum for a Gran Fondo at 100 miles and 7,000 feet of climbing. These event include anywhere from a few hundred feet of climbing to more than 10,000 feet of elevation gain. These days the term Gran Fondo is, at least in the U.S., being applied very liberally to events ranging from 40 to 130 miles. If a Gran Fondo is in your future, here are some tips to make sure you’re ready for it! The Difference Between a Gran Fondo and a Group Ride that featured world-class food and wine from celebrity chef Michael Chiarello and fellow local restaurateurs. More recently, some Gran Fondos have even incorporated interesting off-the-bike experiences, like the Bottega Gran Fondo in Napa Valley, Ca. Some events allow you to set times for particular segments of the ride, giving you another way to compete or compare this year’s performance to your previous times. However, unlike a typical century ride, if you have a competitive streak you can race a Gran Fondo for overall standings or age group results. If you’re just looking for a huge day on the bike, you you’ll get one.
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