You like riding ? What about ridinf in a cyclosportive race !

Here is a list of cyclosportive races in the following months.

Here are some videos of group riding tips

For more advises on group riding, please read our article on the art of group riding >

Here is the list of the 5 advises

1. Pedal Smotthly
2. Get close and be predictable
3. Know when to pull off
4. Double up
5. Look ahead

Read the all post >

Here is a little video of advises on :
« How to steer and corner on a bike »

given by Kevin Livingston (former pro cyclist)

And now,  get the « live » version with video inside a race !

Cyclists Cornering At Over 35mph !

Other tips with another pro

You want some more ? Here we go !

Need a check list ?

Well, this winter we had put online the check list you need about cornering by bike.

Here is a small check list: Read the article for the full advises.

1. Mind the terrain
2. Apply pressure
3. Lean the marchine
4. Aim for the inside
5. Keep looking…
6. Make your exit
7. Mind the rain

Here is the last part of the article :

Day 21

Remove the pedals ( Remember to turn the wrench clockwise on the left pedal _-the opposite of usual)) . Clean them – and if your pedal has a visible spring, lube it. Apply a coat of grease to the pedal threas before resinstalling so they’ll budge the next time you remove them.

Day 22

Tune up your bike computer; remove it from the mount and clean the contacts on the mount and computer heand with a pencil eraser. Cut the zip-ties hodling the sensor on the fork, strip off the electrical tape or pad, the clean off the gritt lines. Replace the batteries to avoid a blackout halfway through next season; Use fingernail clippers to trim the zip-ties for a smooth edge.

Day 23

Measure the distance from the nose of your saddle to the center of your stem. Then loosen the seat clamp, pull the saddle off the post ans clean the rails with degreaser. Add a light layer of lube to the rails, then wipe them dry. Clean the clamp parts as well, then apply a dry lube to the grip surfaces and wipe clean. Reassemble everything, matching the saddle-to-stern dimension. You’ve just ensured yourself a season free of saddle squeaks.

Day 24

Your new cables should have streched by now. To fix clattering shifting : if the chain is having trouble jumping from big cots to small, turn the barrel adjuster on the rear derailleur half a turn clockwise. If the chain hesitates from smal to big; go half a turn counterclockwise. Shift again and repeat. For the front derailleur : with the derailleur in its lowest position over the small ring, loosen the pinch bolt and pull the cable to remove slack, then retighten the bolt – don’t make the cable so taut it twangs. For mushy brakes: Pinch the arms in with your fingers until the pads just contact the rims, loosen the pinch bolt and pull through the slack. Or you can dial out the cable adjuster; which is easier now but limits the amount of adjustment you’ll have later

Day 25

Flip open your quick-release levers, unscrew them and pull them out of the axle (yes, you can do this with the wheel still in the frame, if you’re careful). Screw the cap all the way off, remove the two springs, then clean the rod with degreaser, wipe it dry with a rag, apply a light layer of grease, then rebuild and reinstall the whole thing. (Remember to orient the springs with the tiny side facing inward.) When was the last time you took care of your bike down to that level of detail?

Day 26

26. Today you will get cranky: Slip the chain off the little ring and loop it over the bottom bracket. Spray degreaser on the rings. Then prepare to drive yourself mental. With a rag, clean the space between each tooth on the big and little rings. Spray on more degreaser. Then, using a fresh rag, floss all those hard-to-reach spots between the rings (like where they meet at the arms of the crank). Spray on more degreaser, then clean the faces, and the inside, of both rings. Painstaking–and satisfying, because you have just completed a task only about 2 percent of all cyclists ever do.

Day 27

If you don’t own a torque wrench, borrow or buy one and check crank bolts, chainring bolts, stem clamp bolts, stem faceplate bolts and the seatpost binder bolt for proper tightness. You can find torque recommendations for every component on the manufacturers’ websites.

 Day 28

Washing Day: Fill one bucket with clean water, and one bucket with water plus dish soap or degreaser. With one of your new sponges, soak your bike with plain water. Then soap up the second sponge and scrub the frame first, then wheels (don’t forget the spokes), then drivetrain. Soap the brush, then scrub the cassette, chainrings and rims. Soak the clean sponge and use it to sluice the soap off the bike. Soak it again, wring it dry, and go over the whole bike again, drying it. Finish drying with clean rags, using the last two or three to swipe the nooks and crannies dry. The entire wash takes 15 to 20 minutes.

 Day 29

Break out the bar tape. Methods for taping are numerous and sometimes ridiculously complex, but don’t be intimidated. All you need to know are the basics: Roll back the brake/shift hoods and stick the two tiny pieces of tape across the shifter clamp. Now take one of the big rolls and start at the bar end. Wrap toward the frame (counterclockwise for the right half; clockwise for left). On the first wrap, let half the width of the tape hang over the end of the bar, so you can stuff it in at the end to hold the plug tight. Wrap in spirals, overlapping half the width or less, and slightly stretch the tape as you pull it around. Make a figure eight around the lever–it’s more intuitive than it sounds, but you’ll probably have to make two or three passes to get the tape right. Stop wrapping a little less than a hand’s width from the stem. Cut off excess tape. Then cut a lengthwise slant in the tape so that the final wrap aligns directly against the edge of the previous wrap–don’t worry, that’ll make sense when you see it. Secure the last wrap with one or two layers of black electrical tape, half on the tape and half on the bar. Shove in the plug; you’re done. For a visual, go to bicycling.com/videotape.

 Day 30

Top off the month by polishing your gem to a sheen with the frame wax. Pretty, isn’t it?

Days 21 > 30

Source : www.bicycling.com

This a the second part of the article giving advices to a get a beautiful bike in 30 days.

Click here to read the first part with the first ten days

Day 11

When the shop calls, tell the respectful young man with the pleasant phone manners that you know your cables and housings need to be replaced but you’re going to do it yourself later beacause you’re spending a whole month pampering your bike. Pretend the sound you hear is coughng, not laughing.

Day 12

Organize and clean your tool beach or tool hest, if you don’t have either, go buy something, even if it’s just a generic tool box. Get two buckets while you’re at it, plus two sponges, a bag of rags and a car-washing brush. Store the sponges, rags and brush in the nested buckets.

Day 13

Buy a case od Dale’s Pale Ale -the world’s best canned beer- for your mechanic. Its artisanal blue-collar vibe will make him swoom.

Day 14

Pick up our bike today and drop off the case. Have one with the shop personnel – yes, they’ll ask, and it’s your duty. If you’re a guy, set yourself apart from the pack by refrainning from flirtation with the foxy female mechanic while stille aknowledging her. Women: Drop one double entendre about bottom-bracket stiffness and make a clean, classy exit.

Day 15

Detail-clean your derailleurs with degreaser.  Saw the rag back and forth through open areas in the deraileur’s structure, or use cotton swabs. Dry with a clean rag, the apply one drop of light oil to each speing or pivot.

Day 16

Clean the rims with a slightly abrasive pad, or just scrub hard with a ag soaked in dish soap – then rinse and dry.  Over time, road spray and gunk from the brake pads coat the rim, which interferes with the stopping power.

Day 17

It’s Chain Day : First, check chain wear. Place the edge of a 12-inch ruler over the pin of one link. (It’s easiest on top of the chain, above the chainstay). The 12-inch ruler over mark soulf it over another pin.  If it doesn’t, the chain is worn, which reduces shifting efficiency and causes excess wear ont the rings and cassette; replace it. If the chain is fine, clean it: With your bike in  a workstand, grasp the chain with a cleanrag soaked in degraser as you backpedal. Then apply a drop of lube to each link as you slowly backpedal. Wipe off excess lube so you don’t attract more dirt to your chain.

Day 18

De-grime the crankset. Use a thooth-brush and degreaser to clean the rings, then wipe with a drag rag. Clean between each tooth; if there’s dirt in there, it wears the chain.

Day 19

Clean the cassette. Remove the rear wheel and hold it vertically but slightly slanted so the cassette angles toward the ground; this will prevent degreaser from dripping into the freehub. Spray the cassette with degreaser and  use a shoe brush or and old toothbrush to scrub grit from between the teeth. It’s messy. Then use a screwdriver or awl to pick out weeds, string or anything else entwined around the cassette body. (Check the hollowed-out back of the body, too). Hold or set the wheel horizontally the cogs, the over the face of the cogs, for a sparkly finish.

Day 20

Cable and housing replacement appears labrinthian, but can be groof-proof simplified if you’re willing to work slow and deliberate (thing of sloth). Loosen the pinch bolt on one brake, clip the cap off the table, then push it through the housing until the other end pops out of the lever. Pull the cable out.  Note the position of the housing (which will still be in place), then remove one piece at a time and, measuring against the new housings. Tun the end through the pinch bolt and hex it tight. For brakes, hold the arms so the pads are against the rims as you tighten the pich bolt. There’s usually enough residual slack along the cable to create clearance between the pads and rims when you let go.

Source: The big Book of cycling

We know how it is _ work, family, happy hour … all conspire to make it impossible to set aside even a measly hour to concentrate on bike maintenance. But if you devote a little time to bike care every day for a month, you can accomplish mch more than you would by squeezing in a spare hour here and there on weekends. This simple, 30-day plan assumes you want to keep riding your bike. Aside from a scheduled three-day stint at the bike shop to take care of the major stuff, ther’s no forced downtime. Happy wrecnching.

Day 1

Start Off the month by giving your bike a light cleanup. This isn’t the full-on  Silkwood shower _ we’ll go to that. Fo now, use a damp cloth to remove the first layer or grime from the frame, rims, derailleurs cankarms, brakes, stem and handleblar. Wipe with a dry rag. Noàw you can touch your bike without getting filthy.

Day 2

Check the frame fro cracks. This is satisfying to do for two reasons : First, you probably won’t find any. Second: if you do so, you just saved your life, or at least one of your collarbones. Cracks usually occur nera welded areas, ot where the frame is butted. Probably the most common spot is the undersid of the down tube, just below the head tube. On carbon frames, it can be difficult to tell if you’re looking at a scratch in the clear coat or a crack in the frame. General rul : if your fingernail can catch on the blemish, it might be a crack. If you have your suspicions, go to the bike shop tomorrow for a learned opinion.

Day 3

Even if your frame checked out,  head over to the bike shop today and get everything you might need for the month :

• 2 tires
• 3 tubes,
• 2 sets of brake pads
• a set of cables
• housings for shifters and brakes
• handlebar tape
• degreaser
• Frame wax

You might no use all this, but at least you’ll have spares.

Day 4

All seatposts can bond to the frame  – take 5 minutes and avoid this disaster. Mark the hight of your seatpost with tape or a pencil, then remove it, wipe it clean and; if it’s steel or aluminium, smear a light layer od grease over the section that inside the frame. For carbon, apply a layer of carbon-prep paste, which, like regular grease, prevents the post from bonding to the frame but is gritty enough to sop the common problem of slippage.

Day 5

Inspect each tire. Deflate the tube to about half its pressure, so the tire is still shaped but pliable. Rotating the whell in the frame, manipulate the tire with your hands to expose cuts in the sidewalls or tread. If you find any that go either entirely through the tire, or are deep enough to make you anxious, replace the tire. Rule of thumb for mountain bikes tires : if 5 or more threads are ripped away, the tire is ready to fail systemically and should be replaced if you want to avoid lost of flats.

Day 6

Look at the underside of your down tube: All those disgusting black warts are road tar that was thrown up onto your bike at some point and dried there. At first pass of the rag, removing them will seem impossible. Keep soaking them with diluted degreaser or a solution of equal parts dish soap and water, and scrub hard. That’s a noble 20 minutes you just spent doing something no none but you will ever appriciate.

Day 7

It’s obvious Day : Spin the whels ans see if they’re running crooked. Hold your bike off the ground and frop it ontop its tire, listening for rattles and clinks, the pinpoint them. Thnik back to all those clunks you’ve heard on your recent rides and catalog them. Think about how your bike has felt : Sticky steering ? Loose feeling from the rear on descents ? Write everything down, the callthe bike shop and make an appointment to bring your bike in midweek to checkon those things (weekends are rush tile)

Day 8

Remove each wheel from the frame. Hold the wheel between your hands and slowly turn the axle.  If the motion feels rough or the axle seems to catch, try slightly loosening the cones inside the hub to reduce pressure on the bearings. If the axle spins smoothly, check it for looseness : Using your index finger and thumb, wiggle the axxle round; if it moves enough to cause a knocking feeling, tighten the hub or add it to your shop list.

Day 9

Scuff up your shoes today. Glazed brake shoes cause weak braking and impolite squeal. Une sandpaper, a file or an emery board to buff off the glaze and roughen up the pads.  Also pick out dirt,  grit or pieces of metal that have become embedded in the pad. If the pad has hardened so much that you can’t scratch it with your fingernail or if it’s word pas the indicator line, replace it.

Day 10

Take your bike to the shop for its appointment. While you’re there, buy 2 new matching water bootles. Never buy just one.

Any guess on what wez are going to do during the next 20 days,  Please let us knw your guess by using the comment area below.

Days 10 to 20 >

Days 21 > 30

Purists preach that to properly prepare for the cycling season, you need to roll out six weeks ahead and do nothing but low-heart-rate, low-intensity rides before you throw the hammer down and go out and play, especially if your idea of fun is a frisky group ride. It’s no problem if you’re a professional rider with nothing but time and salary to ride, but for the rest of us, it’s precious pedal time we simply don’t have. Thankfully, it’s also unnecessary.
« For pro who can ride 20 to 30 hours a week, a long base period is appropriate », says expert coah Jeb Stewart. « Byt if you struggle to squeeze in half that amount, it’s almost counterproductive because you aren’t clocking enough saddle time to elicit a training stress. » Stress is key. If you don’t have hours to slowly tax your system, you need to do shorter rides with focused efforts to stimulate fitness adaptations , says Stewart, « You can get the same amount of training stress in a 90-minute tempo interval workout as you can in a three-hour endurance ride ».

You’ll still need to build in saddle time to condition your body to sit on a bike for longer rides, but Stewart’s focused four-week plan will lay own a solid fitness foundation for the season ahead. To stave off early-season aches and pains, warm up and cool down before after each work out, and recover for five minutes between intervals.

Heart Rate Zones and Threshold Power.

Threshold Hear Rate (T HR): Average HR power or power for a 20-minute time trial or 1-hour hard group ride.

Threshold power (T power); Average power for a 20-minute time trial minus 5% of this number.

Threshold (T) pace : 95-105% of T HR / 91-105% of T power

Active Recovery pace : <68% of  HR /<55% of T power

Endurance pace : 69-83% of T HR / 56-75% pf T ower.

Tempo pace : 84-94% of T HR / 76-90% of T power

Week 1

Monday : Off

Tuesday : 1 hour w/5 sets of 5*15-second Fast pedaling intervals

Wednesday: 1 hr. in the Active Recovery zone

Thursday 1 hr. w/3*10-min . Big Gear Tempo intervals at 50-70 rpm

Friday : 1hr in the Active Recovery zone

Saturday : 2-3 hrs in the Endurance zone

Sunday: 1hr. in the Active Recovery zone

Week 2

Monday : Off

Tuesday : 1.5 hrs. w/4 sets of 5*30-second Fast pedaling intervals

Wednesday: 1 hr. in the Active Recovery zone

Thursday 1.5 hrs. w/3*15-min . Big Gear Tempo intervals at 60-80 rpm

Friday : 1hr in the Active Recovery zone

Saturday : 3.4 hrs. Hills

Sunday: 1.5-2 hrs.  in the Active Recovery zone

Week 3

Monday : Off

Tuesday : 2 hrs. w/3 sets of 5*1min Fast pedaling intervals

Wednesday: 1 hr. in the Active Recovery zone

Thursday 2 hrs. w/2*20-min .Tempo intervals

Friday : 1hr in the Active Recovery zone

Saturday : 4.5 hrs. Hills

Sunday: 1.5-2 hrs.  in the Active Recovery zone

Week 4

Monday : Off

Tuesday : 1 hr. of easy pedaling

Wednesday: 1.5 hrs. w/5*30-sec. Fast Pedalling intervals and 1*10 -min. Tempo interval

Thursday 1hr in the Active Recovery zone

Friday : Off

Saturday : Group ride, century or hammerfest

Sunday: 1 hr.  in the Active Recovery zone

Source : www.bicycling.com

Have fun, see you soon cycling in the Pyrenees !

Riding as part of a pack is the utopian ideal of cycling : You go faster and farther with less effort, and colorful commentary from your riding buddies on monster hills or nasty roadkill or too-tight cycling shorts always make the harder sections seem less grueling.

But initiation into a cycling group doesn’t always come easy. There are hand signals, code words and seemingly bizarre rules that were largely created for safety reasons. New riders usually pick up pack skills on the fly, through observing, trying, getting cussed at and eventually catching on.

The best way to become more confortable ridinf in group is ( not surprisingly) riding in a group. That said, there are nimber of skills and tricks you can practise to speed the process along – and ensure that you dont’ end up with a nickname like « Swerve »

Join the pack safely

Alex Stieda shares five key skills to master before jumping into a group.

Pedal smoothly. First, you need to learn to ride steady on your own. Many beginners use too low cadence, which make the bike surge forwrd with every pedal stroke – annoying and even danferous in a group. Keeping you cadence hight will also allow you to adjust to speed changes in small increments, rather than braking or all-out acceleration. To keep your pace, cahnge gears frequently to match the terrain and wind conditions. Remember: don’t look dow at your bike’s drivetrain as you shift. Practisse solo until you can do it by feel.

Get close and be predictable. Packs are most often formed of one or two lines od riderrs to maximize the wind-breaking benefits. To feel the draft, go with on or two other riders to a quiet, flat road and practise riding single file. Gently move laterally a foot or so to find the space where there is the least wind resistance. That’s the saeet spot. This position will vary depending on where you are relative to the wind, much like sailing.

Know when to pull off. In genera, the higher the wind resistance, the shorter you time leading the pack should be. In stiff head-winds you may see the front for only a second or two. On a gradual downhill, you may spend 2 minuts leadinf before you pull off. The length of a pull also depends on the ability of the rider; if you find yourself struggling to maintain the group’s speed, it’s time to drop to the back. If you’re feeling strong, you can stay up front longer – just save something for the trip home. When you’re ready to pull offre the front, le the rider behind know with a hand or a voice signal, check over your shoulder for cars, gradually pull out of line and the ease uo just enough to drift slowly to the back of the group.

Double up. Next, ride two by two, trying to get within an arm’s reach of the shoulder next to you. You should be riding near enough to carry on a conversation without those behind you hearing what you are saying – really, that close. Build to a group of 4 to 6 riders before you join a larger pack.

Look ahead. No matter where you are in the pack, ti is essential that you watch the road surface in front of the group. Those at the front should be pointing out dangerous objects coming up – holes, rocks, dogs and the like – but everyone is responsible for sharing this awareness. Gaining confidence in lifting you gaze from the wheel in front of you takes tile, but you can jump-start it by going to a grass field with a friend and riding single file to pratcise. You’ll find it’s not hard if you both ride steadily and predictabky.

Turning a bicyle can be scary – especially if you’re trying to maximise speed at the same time. But with proper technique, you can go faster and tilt your bike farther than you think is possible. Alex Stieda, the first North american to wear the yellow jersey, claims he once leaned so far his glove got a burn mark from rubbing against the top of someone’s rear wheel.  Here’s what he has to say about changing directions :
« As a pro cylclist, i worked to improve my cornering skills. During a stage of the Tour of Britain, i remmebered threre was a turn 400 meters before the line. I attacked early, railed the corner and opened a gap. I raise my arms in vitctory at the finish, only to be told that this gesture was against the rules. I was relegated at last in the break, but relished the fact that my strategy had worked.
Once you feel the power and control of a properly carved trun, there is nothing better. It takes practise, so be patient.  Find an empty parking lot and mark off a corner with water bottles or cones. Here are some techniques that helped me. »

1 Mind the terrain

Look for and avoid sand, rocks or cracks that could cause you to slip. After you know what the riding conditions are in a particular corner, you can slowly increase you speed each time.

2 . Apply pressure

Do all your braking before the trun. Weight distribution is critical ; To keep from sliding out, weight the front wheel by putting your hands in the drops of the handlebar with your elbows bent. Next, exert pressure with your outside hand and foot, creating angulation like you would in a ski turn. Don’t try to pedal in a corner.

3. Lean the marchine

Release thebrakes and start the turn by leaning the bike – not your body- into the turn. This can be accomplished by pushing lightly with you inside hand; some call this counter-steering. If the turn is tight of your speed increases, lean the bike farther in, and vice versa;

4. Aim for the inside

Carve a sooth arc through the apex of the turn : start at teh outside corner, near the center line. Aim toward the inside of the turn, then exit as far to the outide as possible. Do not cross the double yellow line.

5. Keep looking…

in the direction you want to go. This will help you maitain a smooth line.

6. Make your exit

As you come out of the turn, gradually straighten the bike until it’s upright, the start to pedal again.

7. Mind the rain

Painted linele covers and oily pavement become slippery in wet conditions. Wet roads exaggerate everything you do : braking while the bike is leaning will cause you to skid more easil, and sudden turning can make your wheels slip. So slow down.

Start with a neutral position ; hands in the arc of the drops (not on the flat ends) with index and middle fingers on the brake levers, and butt slightly reaward on the saddle

To go faster

Dro your head lower and farther forward, and draw your knees and elbows in.

To increase stability

Shift your weight back, raise your chest, and pedal or, if coasting, bring your tighs in against the top tube.

Tuck and coast chen pedaling no longer benefits you

According to Bicycling’s calculations, that’s about 25mph on 5 % grade, or 40mph on a 10% grade, for a 155 pound

To slow down

Shift your weight rearward as you apply noth brakes, gradually squeezing the left lever harder to engage more front brake, which supplies most of our stopping power.

It’s fine to sit while descending, but if you hit a rought strecht of pavement or a patch of gravel

Lift your butt off the saddle. « If your’re sitting, you’re reacting to what happens – you’re on defense » says 2001 world mountain bike champion Alison Dunlap. « But you want to be on offense ».

To go dangerously fast

Pros used to drop their butts so far off the back that tehir chests lay atop the saddle. Now the technique is to move so fa forward taht your chest rests atop the handlebar, and your head acts as a wedge to part the air. Keeping your hands in the drops give you a slight chance of being able to brake, but to do the full tuck, put your hands atop the flats, under your chest. This is ridiculously unstable, ill-advised – and fast.