Hey all,
I am relatively light, but strong rider: 62kg, 301w ftp.
I would like to ride with the local hard group ride (40 kph avg), but they surge after every corner and where I live, it is all flat.
I get dropped after the second or third corner all the time.
Does anyone have similar experiences or tips?
Greetings,
Lukas
IMO/E it’s not being lightweight FTP that’s getting you dropped.
What kind of power out of these corners is getting you dropped?
Are they super slow corners? Is there a better way to maintain speed through them?
Just based on 62kg and 301FTP, you should have no problem in any race or hard group ride. But if your max 5-30s power is under like 500W then that’s your issue.
We might need more facts but this doesn’t sound like a repeatability or aerobic fitness issue. It is most likely an issue with:
I’m a slightly lighter rider with a lesser FTP, whilst I think I’d almost certainly be dropped now on 40kph (25mph rides) but on our fast flat group ride (circa 36kph, 22-23mph), apart from one strong rider, I’ll normally be doing the dropping. I’ll let the ones that I’ll drop surge through and blow up (get dropped), whilst I try to more smoothly go through. It would be more comfortable for me too if I did a bit less time on the front. When I’ve joined really fast groups I’ve had to be more savvy there to survive. I also tend to use other that I know will blow up first be a motivation to hang on.
I weigh 55kg with FTP270 and have no problems riding on flat roads in groups, races etc…my only issue is not being able to out sprint the bigger guys.
Secret is use your size, stay out the wind, anticipate accelerations, position near front on corners etc…just a question of practising
I also second the suggestion to train for those types of efforts, O/U, 30/30 etc
Sounds like an issue w repeated VO2 efforts. If you agree from knowing your 1 min and 5 min power compared to your FTP, maybe just work on repeated VO2 stuff like 30/30’s to make those surges easier. And like the others have said, positioning is huge.
On a flat stretch of road doing 40kph+ your CdA (aerodynamics) will matter much more than weight.
If you’re quite tall and/or have a very poor CdA on the bike, that might be the reason you are struggling.
You say that you get dropped after corners, so it might also be down to technical ability, positioning in the bunch and high-end power.
If I don’t corner as well as the group, then I have to surge to keep up and it could feel like they surged out of the corner.
Years ago I looked more closely at a couple of older riders in the group with impressive domestic palmares before and during sharper corners. Their hands were in the drops, not even close to the brakes. They seemingly surged out of the corner without even pedalling. Ultimately, they had learned how to carry their speed through and I took notice.
If you’re doing the same route each time, just keep taking mental notes of pre corner speeds, braking, body position, how ‘relaxed’ (not stiff) you are, where your weight is focused, if you’re mentally present enough to adjust, etc.
Congrats on the W/kg, that represents a lot of hard work. Riders with lesser w/kg and raw FTP aren’t getting dropped. Getting past this will set you up to utilise your hard earned power later.
All aply to me: tall, technique and high-end power