6 Useful Tips for Riding Your Long Distance Ride

Are you ready for your long distance? How can you get ahead of the pack, and stay ahead when it’s the final push and you’re not sure you can go on? No lie- it’s going to be intense! But with these tips, the reward will be even bigger than the pain. If this is your first race or your N-th, you want to position yourself to win. That means having the kind of unforgettable ride you can be proud of for the rest of your life. This ride will be a test of your endurance and your spirit. Prepare to give it your all! Here’s how:

1. Train With HIT

High intensity training is the best thing you can do to increase the power of your ride! This method is simple but powerful: start with 10 seconds of giving it your all and then relax for a minute. Gradually build up to longer stretches of high intensity. As game day approaches, you should be riding hard for about four minutes at a time.

2. Eat & Drink Enough

Eating about 200 calories of carbs every hour will give you the best energy to continue. When you are exerting yourself this much, your body needs some extra encouragement just as much as you do. Simple rule of thumb of hour body: drink when you’re thirsty. If you drink too much water your blood sodium level could become fatally low, so balance your water intake with the occasional salty snack or sports drink.

3. Lighten Up

Your bike accessories may be weighing you down. Getting rid of bulky accessories like a large saddle bag or bulky phone case could shave crucial minutes off your ride. But make sure to keep essential repair tools on hand, such as; spare tubes, a multi-tool with Allen keys, a chain link extractor, etc.

4. Familiar the Road

Do a test ride on the same road before the event. It can benefit to you on preparation to ride uphill, downhill and stay constant spinning. Wind direction could be your friend and enemy, make sure your control the bike well at certain high cross wind area.

5. Rule of third

Divide the ride into 3 segments. The first segment would be very easy and relax which is just spinning. The second segment could make you start feel pain and start giving up. Hence, please don’t count remaining distance, just ride at your own pace.

6. Got 1 Minute? Stretch and Bike Quick Check

When you are at a rest stop, make the most of your precious free time to stretch your body as well as quick check your bike. During your training before the race, you have even more time to stretch, so don’t make any excuses not to. Your body will thank you on race day and your performance will be optimized.

Bonus:

• Keep the bike, cycling apparels, shoes, helmet clean
• Full charge your electronic gear device
• Full charge front and rear lighting (nigh ride)
• Keep your riding area wide
• Don’t snap photo during the ride
• Change handling position on handlebar