Choosing a tour is not easy. Choosing optimally is even more difficult. That’s why we help!
The general experience is that we choose the tour based on the photos and our desires. But reality is sometimes much harder than our desires. There are those who don’t think about the difficulties, but the question come for many people: “Can I do this?”
There are those who specifically look for the more difficult, the challenge, he is the exception. He is usually aware of what he can do, how far he can go. However, according to experience, the average person is likes to stay in his comfort zone, so he has to find the optimal tour.
However, for this you need to know two things: your own abilities and the difficulty of the tour.
Based on many years of experience, we can safely say (we’re talking about average riders, not professionals, semi-professionals or roadbikers who ride a lot) that the average people always overestimates itself, but the tour underestimates. This is what causes disasters.
Get to know your skills!
The easiest way to categorize people is based on their performance. Of course, in order to categorize yourself, you need to know yourself. To do this, you need to be aware of your abilities! The average person thinks that “50-60 km is not much, and it’s not even a slog”! And that’s mostly true. But if there’s a stronger level or a stronger pace next to it, it’s already far beyond your abilities.
In cycling they say that everything is decided on the climb, and that’s exactly the case.
Based on my experience, I can safely say that on flat Even the average unprepared person (who may have barely exercised) can cover 50-60 km at his own pace, sometimes more. However, when the climb or the pace comes, or if he can’t stop at every tree, the wheel and science come to a halt.
The biggest problem is always the level, the climb, which no one likes to ride, not even the pros.
However, what distinguishes those at different levels of fitness is exactly who can handle the elevations (and the pace, but more on that later). The more fit people don’t even notice a 1-2% incline, while the less fit can go almost anywhere at a slower pace of 6-7%.
But for those who are not used the climb or are not in good shape, even the minimal climb may seem significant. Especially if it lasts for kilometers.
Be able to interpret the data!
However, it doesn’t matter how much you know your own body and abilities, if you are not aware, you don’t understand or can’t interpret the data for a given hike.
The difficulty levels (1-5) give you a good starting point, but beyond that you need to know what is it an elevation or the % value of a climb means. You need to know what that certain % is so you can prepare, not only physically, but also mentally.
You need to know exactly what 60-80-100 km with 5-800 m or even 1200 m elevation gain means. This requires experience, and you can achieve it with practice. Because it’s useless to interpret the data if you don’t have lived experience.
In this article we have summarized the knowledge about the difficulty of the tours, please read it, have written important things.
Get ready!
Okay, that’s clear, but how can I prepare for all this? Because the
Preparation, cycling experience on a tour means a lot. Almost everything.
Anyone who has cycled longer distances and higher elevations (you don’t have to immediately think of 100-120 km and 2-3000 m elevation, just 60-80 km and 6-800 m elevation) knows exactly what they are capable of.
And if you do this several times, you will also know what you know in a series.
Because the biggest difficulty of the one-week tours is not the fulfillment of the given daily schedule, but the serial load. Few people are used to 80 km and 1,000 m altitude for 7-8 days, but 50-60 km a day with 600 m altitude for 5-7 days is a challenge for most average cyclists.
But then how do you prepare?
I’m not a coach and I don’t want to put faulty methods, but if I write that you should cycling as much as possible, I won’t be wrong. If you are preparing for a more serious challenge, this will not be enough, it is more complex than this. In this case (if you have time and money) find a coach! But for the average it is a perfect solution.
Cycling is one of the most basic endurance sports, and it’s true that if you do it, you’ll do better, if you don’t, you won’t.
Of course, everything is much more complicated today, you can train for heart rate, watts, you can do intervals, it doesn’t matter when or with what heart rate you work, but the point is that if you cycling a lot, you really can’t make a mistake.
Riding 50-80 km 2-3 times a week or taking your bike to work every day is more than enough for the average tour. If you live in a place where there is a level, include it as well. In the hilly regions of Hungary, the average level is 100 km / 1000 m, which is more than enough for most training. And if you live near mountains, you can bravely climb! You will see your performance increase exponentially.
Speed is our friend on the flat!
This is also true the other way around. If there are no mountains or hills nearby, you can still get a good workout, because besides the mountain and the level, pace is our other best “friend” (or “enemy”, depending on who and where you look at it).
They also say in cycling that it’s not the distance kills, but the pace, and it’s true. Running at a tempo is tiring and requires preparation, stamina, and training, so if you sometimes include faster (higher heart rate) parts (this is called interval training or partial distance training), your stamina will also increase dramatically (of course, at a higher level, it requires a coach or some knowledge).
On the other hand, it is certain that you can achieve fast progress on the flat with the pace. Always pay attention: tempo requires a good foundation, which is based on stable circulation. So you also need to base it!
In any case it is certain that you can get stronger with speed on the flat, with the many climb on the mountain, and if you combine the two (climb with speed), you will definitely be strong. Of course this will be the result of a successful preparation and you can only do it after a lot of cycling, but if you develop the distance, then “practice” this and increase the pace and so on, you will achieve guaranteed progress.
You also have to be mentally strong
Tours with a large elevation gains require special preparation. These are typically mountain passes. When you cycle 15-30 km with an average of 7-8% for 5-7 days. At such times many things will come to your mind, but most of all, do I really want this? 🙂
You have to prepare properly for these tours. This requires not only strength, but also experience. Not because 6-8% would be so difficult (of course this is relative, but around 3-5000 km a year it is no difficult), but because these climbs take a long time. You need to know exactly wha a 25 km ride with an average of 8% means. Or even if you don’t know, because you haven’t experienced it yet, but you have to be able to interpret it and answer the question, can you do it? Or rather: Do you want to do it?
Pass climbing is the most beautiful part of a riding, but you have to prepare for it not only physically, but also mentally and spiritually. Monotonous, sometimes boring and hard, every minute is a challenge, but the view is worth it! When you reach 2,500 meters, you feel unearthly joy and satisfaction.
That freaking comfort zone!
One of the most important questions is, do you want to it? Are you able to step out of your everyday comfort zone? The experience of the past years (based on hundreds of bikers) is that some of them (fortunately the smaller ones) do not want to leave it. I’ve had many passengers who thought the bike tour “seemed like a good idea,” but then the climb came, which wasn’t necessarily the biggest, and then it didn’t seem like such a good idea. They either weighed it or just didn’t pay attention to the details. And the worst part: I’ve met many passengers who could have done the tour but didn’t want to.
They didn’t want to push themselves and step out of their comfort zone.
“I didn’t come here to break up,” they say.
But you do! Unfortunately cycling is like that. The bike won’t go uphill on its own with your weight, and there are hills everywhere (it’s a different matter that we’re not used to them in Mo).
A sacrifice must be made for it. Those who do not push themselves beyond this, remain in their own comfort zone. Or rent an ebike 🙂
The ebike is a great invention, it gives people who due to their health or age, can no longer ride a normal bike, but I see a lot of people riding it who could otherwise ride it, but don’t want to.
So it’s good to be prepared for anything, even for an easier hike.
I often experience that someone is not there in their head, they are somewhere else. These people won’t even enjoy the ride.
Summary: Stay grounded in reality, but trust yourself!
I recommend that you prepare in every way, if you are interested, look up the data, interpret it, face yourself and choose a tour that way! Stay in reality, but trust yourself!
I encourage everyone to take on whatever they set out to do, because in cycling, challenge is the ultimate goal and something that is always worth keeping in mind, but I never force it. We are adults, autonomous people, everyone can decide why they come with us.
Everyone can decide why they come with us.
Don’t forget: people can improve almost without limits, physically we can endure much more than we think about ourselves, but for this you also need to want to, especially mentally. So the point is: don’t give up on your dreams!
Ride on!
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