spring training - I Love Bicycling

Early season riding conditions can be challenging. During the winter, a ton of grit and salt gets dumped on roads to keep them grippy and snow-free, and, come spring time, all of that stuff ends up in one place – the shoulder where you want to ride. Spring is also pothole season, as water seeps into cracks in the road and freezes overnight, opening up holes the size of the Grand Canyon on your favorite roads. There are a few simple bike handling tips to keep your skin off the road and your bike in one piece.

Take It Slow

This seems obvious, but it is easy to forget in the middle of one of your favorite descents. Slower speeds mean more time to react to what is in front of you. Slow down well in advance of corners so you aren’t braking hard while turning – doing so increases the chance of losing traction.

Move Into the Lane

Most of the road grit accumulates on the shoulder of the road, and you can avoid this by moving out into the travel lanes. Be VERY careful when doing this – think ahead, and don’t try to move out in front of a line of cars just before your corner. Wait for a large gap in traffic, and move out well into the lane, so cars aren’t tempted to try and squeeze by you. On long, switchbacking descents, I will usually just stay in the travel lanes to avoid having to move back and forth.

Relax

Hitting a small patch of gravel or wet spot won’t necessarily cause you to crash. Overcorrecting for a small skid of your back tire will. Staying relaxed and confident will help you ride through small skids instead of tensing up and turning the small skid into a huge wipe-out. You can build this confidence through other types of cycling – mountain and cyclocross riding will both give you the experience of feeling your bike sliding through turns, which will help you become a more confident road rider.

Avoid Obstacles

Be it potholes, glass, or ice, there is a lot of stuff on the roads that you and your bike would rather avoid. Your first key to avoiding this nasty stuff is to look ahead – the earlier you see something, the easier it will be to avoid. When you know what you want to avoid, doing so requires a bit of practice. Anyone who has managed to hit the only pothole on a clear stretch of road knows what I am talking about – your bike will tend to go where you are looking. If you are looking at that one pothole, there is a good chance you are going to hit it. Instead, work on keeping your eyes focused on the clear path you want to take, and your bike will follow.

Master the Bunny-hop

Sometimes, despite your proactive road reading and all of your best obstacle avoidance techniques, you just can’t ride around something. Often this has something to do with the 2 ton hunks of metal passing by on your left. This is when the bunny-hop comes in handy. Bunny-hopping is like jumping on your bike – both wheels lift off the ground for a split second. If you have never done this before, practice at slow speeds first. Clipless pedals make it much much easier and safer as well. When you do encounter something you can’t ride around, don’t try to jump too high – for potholes, your wheels barely need to leave the ground.

Keep these tips in mind when you head out on your next ride, and you will be well equipped to deal with whatever the spring roads will throw at you!

Cycling season can seem a long way off when you’re in the depths of winter, making it easy to postpone those goals. If you’re not emerging from winter in as good of shape as you may of hoped, don’t let it discourage you. What you do or don’t do at the beginning of the season will set the tone for the rest of the year. Here are some of the best ways to boost your spring training.

Stay Healthy

The last thing you want is to come down with a cold just as the sun is emerging and the roads are clearing. However, as frustrating as it is, the end of winter is quite often when people get colds or coughs. Take preventative measures by washing your hands frequently, and giving your diet an extra boost of nutrients. Don’t go too hard too soon, as you’ll deplete your immune system and make yourself vulnerable to whatever illness is going around the office.

You also want to avoid injury in the beginning of the season, as it can really set you back in your training. This means avoding overuse injuries, as well as watching for rough spring road conditions.

Clean up your diet

The days of Netflix and comfort food are coming to an end, so it’s time to clean up your diet. Over the winter it’s easy to fall into some bad habits, but now is the time to break them. Trade in the sugary carbohydrate dense foods for fresh fruit and vegetables. Simply cutting out as much of the processed food from your diet as you can will go a long way. Give meal prepping a try, or stock your kitchen with some energizing foods.

Get your bike ready

No judgements here, we know it’s tough to be diligent to clean your bike after winter rides. It’s cold, wet, and all out you want is a warm bath. Even if you didn’t ride over the winter, your bike will still need a little TLC. If you trust your abilities, carefully examine your bike and fix any issues well ahead of your first ride. Check your chain, cassette, cables or any other areas that might need attention. You don’t want to be doing a rushed job before meeting your cycling buddies. Better yet, take it to your local bike shop and have a mechanic do a tune up to ensure you’re ready for the season.

Get your body ready

Once you’re finally back on your bike, it can be easy to overdo it. You want to be fit right away, or start off right where you left off in the fall, but you have to ease your body into it. Take some time to build up your base before pushing yourself too hard. If you start to get nagging frontal knee pain, it’s almost always caused be too much too soon. Take time to rest up and do plenty of stretching and walking before heading out on the bike again.

Start Stretching

Hopping on the bike after a long winter feels great, but it can also come as a shock to your body. Your muscles and joints aren’t used to the cycling position anymore, and things may have tightened up over the past months. Taking just 10 minutes a day to do some targeted stretched will have you feeling more comfortable and stronger on your bike in no time. Here are 10 of the best stretches for cyclists to get you started.

Set Some Goals

When it comes to cycling, what do you want from yourself this year? Make a list of things, both large and small, that you want to achieve. Then go through and get specific. If you want to ride more, great, now define what that looks like. Be realistic and honest with yourself, and only plan for what you know you can logistically fit into your life and schedule. Sign up for your first race, or join a cycling group, whatever you need to do to break out of your comfort zone and challenge yourself!