16 Week Face of America Training Plan & Guide | Page 20
sprinting, it’s a powerfully strong position. So, in
the drops can be a very effective position if you’re
attacking in a race situation or going for your club
ride KOM points! For longer out of the saddle
periods, for most, the optimal position is by
placing the “notch” between your thumb and
index finger around the break hoods, with the
index finger on the shifter/brake lever if suddenly
needed. Not dissimilar to in the saddle, engage the
core, relax the upper body with a nice bend in the
elbows, and unless it’s a severely steep climb – try
not to place too much weight forward on the
front end of the bike (which also places excess
strain on the patellar tendon), but rather try to
position your center of gravity (weight) as close to
over the cranks as possible. By doing so, you’ll
take advantage of your weight in helping produce
more effective power on the downstroke and
forward momentum. You can also maintain better
forward momentum by limiting excessive
“rocking the bike back and forth side to side;”
however, rocking is often difficult to eliminate on
extremely steep grades that require all of your
lower and upper body strength to ascend.
Gran Fondo Racing Tactics
Like all disciplines of racing, understanding and
incorporating race tactics in a gran fondo can increase
a rider’s success. Here are a few gran fondo race
tactics offered by GFNCS’s national race director,
Reuben Kline.
Be sure to understand how placement is awarded.
Not all gran fondos follow the same format. The
following tactics are focused on in all Gran Fondo
National Championship Series (GFNCS) events.
All GFNCS events follow the same format overall time is not calculated and does not count
towards placement; rather, the focus is on the
highlighted time-segments throughout the course.
The Gran Route (100ish miles) has four timesegments; the Medio Route (60ish miles) has two
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time-segments; the Piccolo Route (30ish miles)
has one time section. These time-segments are
added together and determine the rider’s
placement. It is only the rider’s times through
each of the time-segments that is calculated.
Focus on the time-segments. These segment are
anywhere between 2 to 10 miles in length. Look at
the maps for your event and see where the time
sections are located. Only go hard in these timesegments. When you are not in a time-segment
take it easy to conserve energy, stop and refuel at
aid stations, and work with others to share the
workload. The first rider back does not win, in
fact, it is possible that the last rider to finish could
win. You are only racing when you pass through
the time sections. Got it?
Realize that you are not only racing the people
you can see around you, keeping in mind that
other riders can be posting faster times and be
nowhere around you.
If you are drafting or working in a group, do not
hold back. There might be a rider or group 10
minutes behind you who is completing the time
section faster than the group or person you are
drafting with.
If two or more riders are working together in a
timed section, it is to everyone’s benefit to give it
their best effort. Do not “use the other rider(s),”
but rather, work efficiently together.
Teams can work great together. Treat each timed
section like a team time trial, with a group of
riders working together to fully benefit the group.
Awards are by age group; so working with a
person who is in a different age group can have
great benefits.
When you approach the start line of a timed
section, be sure to cross it at speed. If you cross
the line going slow you will have to build speed,
which takes time. Build your speed before the
start line of the section and enter it at the speed
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