- Conquering a climb is great,
but after you've done it once, if you're anything
like us, you'll probably wanna go up it again, but faster.
So, how do you go about improving your time?
- Well, a lot of it's gonna come down
to plain old fitness and power, but there are a few tricks
that you can use.
So, coming up, are GCN's tips on how
to set a PB up a climb.
- It's gonna hurt, isn't it, mate?
- Yeah.
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- First up, you need to work out how long
the climb is gonna take you,
'cause that is gonna have the biggest effect
on just how you tackle it.
- That's right, so for long'ish climbs,
anything that's around about five minutes or more,
pacing is going to be vital.
Go in to the red at the start,
and you're likely to lose any time gained in the first half,
over the second half.
In this situation, a steady power throughout
is normally ideal.
- Unless there's a variable gradient.
Say for example, your climb starts and finishes
with a steeper section, then actually, the fastest
way to go up it, is to go into the red a little bit,
at the beginning; not too much, but just enough
so that you can keep your speed up,
before backing off ever so slightly
on the flatter middle section, but keeping just enough
in the tank so that you can get out of the saddle
and sprint up that final steep bit.
I said get out of the saddle and sprint
up the final steep bit.
Well done mate, good effort.
How was that?
- Oh, that is brutal, that climb.
- Yeah.
- I went into the red at the start, a bit.
- Good lad, yeah.
- And then, then I slackened off
on the flatter section. - Perfect.
- And then I had nothing left at the end, at the top.
- I hate to break it to you,
but the top's actually just up there.
- I'm not doing that again.
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- For short climbs, on the other hand,
so ones of about three minutes or so,
you can afford to start hard,
and then just try and hold the power as best you can.
Now, a really important point to consider
is your momentum.
So, not just on the climb itself,
but actually the speed that you carry into the climb
will have a huge impact on your time up it,
even with the same overall power.
- To prove this, we are going to do an experiment.
The climb we we're on is around about 40 seconds in duration
and we're gonna do two runs each, at the same power.
Simon, with his almost super-human power,
although not quite as good as the pros,
and then me, as more of a real-world example.
The first time up, we're going to start
from around 10kph, completely fresh.
And then the second time, we are going to carry
as much speed into the climb as possible,
and then compare the two times, at the top.
(upbeat pop music)
Results are in: the second run,
I actually did seven watts less, so 580 versus 587,
but with my momentum, I took four seconds off the time.
So, 42 the first time, 38 seconds the second time.
- Coincidentally, I was also four seconds faster
with momentum.
- What time did you do?
- 37 seconds. - Aah!
- Sorry, mate. - Yeah.
Alright, well that does go to show
that it's quite a significant advantage,
because, well that doesn't sound like much, four seconds,
that is 10% of that time, on that climb.
- Yeah, and even if the climb was longer,
you've still already saved four seconds,
for no extra effort, in the initial part of the climb.
- How much difference, then, does wind make?
Well, really more than you think.
It's very easy to assume that gravity is your only enemy,
when it comes to climbing.
Well actually, that's not the case.
- Now, here is an example, in fact, that we've come up with,
using an online bike calculator.
So, a 70KG rider, riding at 250 watts,
on a four-kilometer long steady climb of six percent,
will take 15 minutes and 30 seconds, with no wind.
So that's an average speed of just under 17kph.
If there is then a headwind of just 10kph,
that time increased to 17 minutes and eight seconds;
more than a minute and a half's difference.
On the other hand, with a 20kph tailwind,
which, we would all love to have, I'm sure,
the same rider, on the same climb, would post a time
of 14 minutes and 15 seconds,
which is a full minute and 15 seconds faster
than even the still day.
So, as if you didn't need telling,
wind makes a big, big difference,
so if you wanna get to that PB,
make sure you check the weather forecast,
and time your attempt right.
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- With that in mind then, it almost goes
without saying, that you should also think about
your position on the bike, when it comes to climbing.
So if we go back into our online bike calculator,
with that same example rider, riding at 260 watts,
on that same four-kilometer climb,
he will apparently save 20 seconds
by riding downhill on the drops,
versus uphill on the tops.
And that differential will increase significantly
if you're dealing with a headwind.
Now there are, of course, comfort and breathing issues
that you can throw into the equation here.
But, if you are comfortable getting aero on a climb,
it will be faster, for the same power.
Make sure you attempt your PB at the right time of day,
because, a team of scientists from Birmingham University
in the UK, actually showed that performance in athletes
could vary by as much as 26%, depending on the time of day.
Yeah, that's 26%.
What is the right time of day though?
Well, it depends on your own body clock.
So if you naturally ride early, and then are early to bed,
you'd be as well to attempt your PB at around mid-day,
whereas night owls peak at around 8:00pm.
How much difference, then, does it make
to be behind another rider, on a climb?
I mean, we see the professionals doing this
at the Tour de France, for example, all the time.
But, does it make a difference for us mere mortals,
and the slower speeds that we are doing?
I think it's time, Si,
for another experiment. - Another one?
- Another experiment. - Two experiments
in one video, whoa.
Okay, this time, we're gonna ride up the beautiful climb
of Cheddar Gorge, three times.
The first one, Dan and I are gonna be side-by-side.
Then the second one, I'm gonna ride on the front,
but at the same power that we've just done,
with Dan on my wheel.
Then the final time, Dan and I will swap 'round,
and then we'll be able to compare the results.
Just how much energy will we have saved
by slip-streaming on a climb?
Should we do it? - Yeah.
- Three times.
- Right, three, two-- - Three, two, one--
- Go. - Go.
(upbeat electronic music)
- And three, two, one, boom. - Whoo!
(upbeat electronic music)
- Okay, you ready? - Oh yeah.
- I did 304 watts, when I was next to you,
the first time up, then when I sat behind you,
I did 286,
for a total saving of 18 watts.
- Yeah, okay, so I did 311 on the front,
and then I did 295, on your wheel.
So that's actually a saving of 16 watts.
- A bit less. - Little bit less;
I think 'cause you're skinnier than me,
so I didn't get much shelter.
- We should also point out, that we did have
a slight tailwind, up the climb,
for all of our efforts today, so presumably,
if we had no wind, or a headwind,
that difference would be even greater.
Right then, so if you want to set a new PB on a climb,
you could get fitter-- - Yeah.
- Or lose weight. - Yeah.
- Or you could cheat, as we have proved today.
So think about pacing; do it when you've got a tailwind.
Do it in the evening; make sure you get aero on the bike,
and perhaps, do it behind somebody else, as well.
- That's right.
We expect you all to be smashing PBs
out of the park now. - Yeah, combine all them.
- That's right.
Do make sure you subscribe to GCN, as well.
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And if you want more content now,
then why not click just up there,
for tips on how to get more aero.
- Or, in the other corner, you could find out
how much difference it makes
to lose some body weight, when you're climbing.