- When Dan, unforgettably, took off his socks
a few months back, and donned full GTN kit,
we learned five things that road cyclists
could learn from triathletes.
And I must admit, it was pretty enlightening.
- Well, I think now it's time that we return the favour,
plus one.
So we've got six things that we think triathletes
can learn from cyclists.
- But today Heather, we are certainly
keeping our socks on.
- We are.
(energetic digital sounds)
(dynamic electric guitar)
(twangy rock harmonica)
♪ Over the trails, mobile force ♪
♪ Get your shoes you can get there oh ♪
♪ Just gonna love ya ♪
♪ And I'm gonna love ya ♪
(electronic whooshing)
- Just because racing a triathlon
is a very individual effort
doesn't mean you can't benefit from occasionally
running in a larger group.
There are so many benefits from riding in a group
of more riders,
whether it be a sportive, a gran fondo, or simply
just riding along with your mates.
- And then there's the social side.
Generally speaking, it's more fun riding with other people.
The miles tick by that much quicker,
you might get a little bit of banter, you never know.
You might make some friends.
As well as, potentially getting some tips and advice
along the way.
- Riding in a group
with a few riders that are stronger than you,
is a really good way
to push you that little bit further and harder.
There's nothing quite like sitting on the wheel
of a rider that's quicker than you and stronger than you,
on a climb or on the flat as it pushes you in a way
you can't just do on your own.
- Riding in close proximity is essential for bike-handling
and road craft skills which are important
if you're planning on doing any draught legal races.
It'll mean you're more comfortable on the bike
and you can focus on the job at hand.
- [Matt] In fact, adding to your bike skills can help you
in non-draft legal events too.
Especially things like cornering, descending,
and riding in the wet.
Riding with others is how the vast majority of road riders
build skill and confidence,
and there's no reason why triathletes can't do it too.
- As triathletes, it's easy to fall into a trap
of getting stuck in the rut when it comes to your training.
By that I mean, riding all of your rides at one intensity,
so doing your kilometres somewhere
in the middle of easy and hard.
However, becoming a well-rounded cyclist,
you need to make sure you've got a variety
of intensities in your training.
- [Matt] In fact, it won't just make you
a more versatile cyclist,
it'll make you a stronger and more resilient one too.
So try and combine your longer steady days
with a few high intensity days during the week.
An idea would be to add a couple of four to five minute
high intensity interval sessions indoors
into your schedule.
This type of training also has the bonus of being
extremely time efficient,
important when you have three different sports to train for.
- Alternatively, you can mix up your longer rides.
You could add in some sprints, some threshold effort,
or even try some spicing up with some hills.
And just because your upcoming race doesn't have hills in it
doesn't mean you can't use them to help you.
- Yeah, mixing up your training will also help
break the monotony of those long steady miles in the saddle,
as well as adding that extra level of quality.
We really think that you can benefit from it.
Really, triathletes that do draught legal races
can learn a lot from cyclists, tactically.
Whether that's simply navigating the way through the group,
attacking and staying clear on the cycle section,
or simply getting through that section
while saving as much energy as possible for the run.
- Well, British Triathlon actually realised this,
and they sent their youth tour athletes out to Belgium
to race the kermesse to learn some race tactics.
That's something you can learn from,
if you find a local race you can enter,
you can learn race tactics firsthand.
And at worst, you can at least come away with some good tips
that you'll find useful.
- As well as potentially doing a few bike races yourself,
it's really worth watching a few bike races on T.V.
just to see how the pros deploy their tactics.
Whether it's how they move up the bunch for saving energy,
how they position themselves in the wind,
or simply how they duck and dive and miss turns.
There's certainly something that triathletes
can learn from pro cyclists.
Hoo Ee!
One of the most enjoyable aspects of being a road rider,
for me at least, is the social side.
And by that, I mean going for a gentle spin,
either post race as part of recovery ride,
or a spin before a big event as part of a taper,
or simply going a longer cafe ride where you stop
for a cup of tea or coffee and a bit of cake.
A ride with no pressure at all
aside from simply enjoying it.
- In fact, it was a highlight of Matt's week
just getting a chance to come out and enjoy riding the bike.
And having a bit of a chat with friends.
A complete opposite, an antidote, to the hard training,
that filled most of Matt's week.
- Given the sheer volume of training needed
to be a triathlete, rides like this can give you
a well-needed physical and mental brake.
And let's face it, who doesn't like a cup of tea
and a bit of cake?
A little treat never hurt anybody,
and can certainly make all that hard training
even more worthwhile.
- To be fair to Dan, he was actually quite complimentary
of the top tube bag that most of us triathletes use.
Both for it's aero qualities
and it's ease of access functionality.
But for a look that roadies might consider slightly cleaner,
or cooler, you might want to try these couple of options.
- Yeah, first up is this, the humble saddle bag.
It fits nice and neatly, and snugly under your saddle.
Therefore it's pretty areodynamic,
and contains all the spares you'll need for a training ride.
So there's room in there for a multi tool,
a couple of tyre levers and a couple of inner tubes as well.
Or, viola.
Super old school.
Simply a cut-off pylon with all your spares wrapped up
in a nice bit of plastic to keep them waterproof
thus leaving room in your back pocket for food
and a rain cape.
Then you can just pop it on the back of there.
Look at that, job's a good one.
- Well, now we share tips across our channels,
from GTN to GCN and vise versa.
- But, as ever, we'd like to know what your thoughts are
and if you've got any tips that you think
that we could all learn from.
So from triathlon to road,
or from road, back to triathlon.
- Well, do leave your suggestions
in the comment section below,
and if you haven't done so already,
you can watch Dan's video
on what cyclists can learn from triathletes.
And you can subscribe to GTN by just clicking on the globe.
- Can we go indoors now?
- Yes please.
- Oooh.