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11:40

DMRegister - David will be here at noon. Please feel free to leave some questions in advance.

11:47

DMRegister - You can check out David's RAGBRAI training columns here:

http://www.ragbrai.org/ragbrai-training.html

12:07

[Comment From Guest]
What is a good way to incorporate cycling intervals into my long training rides?

12:10

[Comment From Coach David]
Incorporating intervals into longer endurance rides is a great idea. It breaks up longer rides and helps you to be able to ride at a faster pace than your normal endurance pace. Here's a couple thoughts on how to do it. When out on a long ride (1.5 hours or more), accelerate for 1 min and then resume your regular pace. Do these every 5 or 10 minutes during the ride. Alternately, you can let the terrain dictate your intervals and every time you get to a hill, stand up and ride up the hill at a moderately hard pace.

12:10

[Comment From jack]
what is the best way to get more power out of training

12:12

Coach David - Jack, power is a combination of pushing a harder gear and/or spinning faster. To increase your power you should consider riding hills seated on your saddle, where you are forced to use more leg strength. Also, to increase your cadence, do some intervals where you keep it in the same gear but accelerate your leg speed - do some one minute intervals with a recovery period between these intervals.

12:12

[Comment From Bob]
How many training miles should I have before RAGBRAI?

12:14

Coach David - Bob - good question and one I get a lot. You should be able to ride at least 70 miles in one day. Of course with RAGBRAI you have to do it day after day, so as you approach RAGBRAI, try to get in a weekend with back to back days of 50-70 miles each day. You should try to have at least 1000 miles of riding in before RAGBRAI as a minimu. More is better of course.

12:14

[Comment From dave]
What weight lifting exercises will most benefit my cycling?

12:17

Coach David - Dave - Obviously leg exercises are important as they are your powerhouse for cycling. I recommend squats, leg presses and lunges. Just be sure you are using good technique when you do these, you don't want your training to injure you and cause you to miss the ride! Also,, don't forget the upper body. It has to lean and pull on your handlebars all day so incorporate a variety of push/pull exercises such as chest presses, overhead presses, lat pulldowns, rowing. And, do core workouts including abs and back.

12:17

[Comment From mark]
i do a lot of group rides in a flat area. what can i do in a group to get stronger and faster?

12:19

Coach David - Mark - You can use a group to your advantage. If a group has stronger riders than you, it will force you out of your comfort zone and make you work harder than you typically do alone. When riding in a group, practice riding in a paceline where you rotate who is in the lead pushing into the wind. The person at the front does about 30% more work than those drafting behind. Take a 30 second 'pull' at the front and then pull out to the side and drift back and recovery as you come back through the paceline. When you get to the front pull hard again. These are like intervals but done in a group. Make sure the group agrees on what they are doing. You can also play some games where someone takes off from the group. You give that person a minute leadtime, then you all chase.

12:20

[Comment From Steve]
What are some other Iowa cycling events that might be good training rides to get ready for RAGBRAI?

12:21

Coach David - Steve - There is a new 2 day ride that the Des Moines Cycle Club is putting on this summer which is a ride to Jefferson and back. This will give you 2 days of 50+ miles. Of course TOMROV is a classic 2 day ride with lots of hills which will be great preparation.

12:22

[Comment From Dean]
What's the best way to prep for those days of hills (esp days 2 and 3) when I live in the flatlands of central IA?

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