5 EASY Tips To Ride Long Climbs Faster

Welcome to Alpe d'Huez. In my mind, the most iconic climb in cycling history. Is this a climb that you want to conquer or you've got one similar in length that you want to challenge yourself on? Then listen close because these are my top tricks in slaying these monsters. Now, a lot of long climbs like this one can start off quite gentle, but what you will have is plenty of energy at the bottom of the climb, the excitement of it all. Now, you can get carried away and try and hold a nice big pace. Now, when you've got that energy, that might feel easy at the time, but as the percentage rises, as you get tired, this is going to be a lot more difficult to sustain and your energy levels will start to drop off. Now, the key here is to stay strong and consistent. Make a consistent effort the whole way up the climb. Now, you can measure this on a power meter, on a heart rate monitor. Now, the idea here is to ride within yourself. Don't go hunting for the effort, let the effort come to you. Now, if you don't have access to a power meter or a heart rate monitor, all you have to do is keep an eye on your breath. If you've still got enough breath to be able to talk, this means you're riding within yourself. Now, if you're struggling to talk and you're breathing heavily, this means that you might be going into the red and you might be going off too hard and you need to rein it back in because after all, these climbs, they're long. These long climbs can be hour, two hours long. The idea here is to stay comfy. Now, a lot of people, they tense up, they pull back on the bars, which is fine on the steep sections, but on the long climbs, you're going to want to relax. Relax the shoulders, relax the arms, and then change your hand position as you go up the climb to ease your hands, to not get too stiff and sore, and then try and get out the saddle every now and again to relieve your backside a little bit. You don't want to stay in the same position for too long because that's just going to make you stiff and it's going to make you sore. Then, enjoy the climb. In the words of Gloria Estefan, the rhythm is going to get you, and where it's going to get you is to the top of the climb. It's all about rhythm. Now, what can really help you in this is a cadence center. If you find yourself being bogged down in a heavy gear, you're going to want to change to an easier gear. Spin your way up the climb and you'll ease off the pressure on your muscles. Now, it's fine to grind up those steep and heavy pitches, but as soon as the gradient eases off, this is where you want to find a nice, easy gear, find a nice rhythm, and think of Gloria. These long climbs are not only hard on your body, but also on your mind. The key here is to break it down. Now, a lot of riders like to take it kilometer by kilometer, ticking them off as they go. The beauty of climbing Alpe d'Huez is they've actually named every single corner. The 21 hairpins of Alpe d'Huez, starting on number 21 and going all the way up to corner zero. That way, you can actually tick off the corners as you make your way up the climb. Others like Eilidh Gardner or Andrew Feather, they like to use the summit free ride feature on their Wahoo. They know exactly where they are on the climb and what's coming up, so they can pace their ride to perfection. You'll soon start to find a rhythm on these long climbs. There's going to be really hard points where the percentages are going to kick up to 10%, 14%, 20%, maybe even 18%. Now, this is where it can get really tough and you're just going to have to struggle over them, grind over them. There's also going to be sections in the climb where it could level off a bit, where the gradient could get that bit easier. Now, if you're struggling, you're going to want to capitalize on this. Maybe ease off a bit, take a breath, and have a bit of micro-recovery. On the flip side, if you're feeling good, well, this is the point to kick up the gears. Get up the saddle and then engage the momentum so you can kick on to the harder sections. Make the most of bits like the hairpins and the easier gradient sections. Trust me, that's key to these long climbs. There are my top tricks that I've learned over the years of climbing these absolute epics. I've got to say, they're a challenge for any road cyclist and you've got to test yourself on them because it is an incredible sense of achievement when you get to the top and you get to enjoy these beautiful views. If these tricks and tips have helped you, then let me know in the comment section below. If you enjoyed this video, then you know what to do. Hit that thumbs up button, but let me know in that comment section below what climb you want to conquer because I think that everyone should have these climbs in their bucket list.