Mark Beaumont: Adventure cycling, that means different things to different people.
This, for example, I think definitely counts, but whether you're heading out, aiming for your
first sportif ride, maybe a weekend bike packing. Whether it's drop handlebars,
flat bars, I don't care. Adventure, what is that? Here is my top tips for getting out there
for some big two-wheeled adventures. [music]
Mindset is obviously massively important when you're out on adventure rides and a lot can be
said about being tough and grit when you're riding, but I say the most important part of
mindset is the doorstep mile that's committing to getting out there even when the conditions
are against you. Whether it's a bit cold outside, maybe a bit dark. The trick to the doorstep mile,
which is turning the idea into the ride is to say it out loud. Tell your partner.
Tell a friend. Make it something you're doing, and not just thinking about.
In our busy lives, it's so easy to put things off, but once you've said it out loud,
you're out the door and you never regret it once you're out in the elements.
Now, being fit enough is probably what most people stress about most when it comes to any adventures,
any rides. The great thing about adventure cycling is however you define that young,
old, male, female, we can all adventure ride. We can all endure. We can all push our abilities.
A good way of thinking about training when adventure cycling is over the winter, over your
off months, if you like, you can be pushing lots of intervals, training really hard,
making it much harder than it'll ever be actually during the event, whatever you're training for.
Then what they call reverse periodization, which means as you get closer to the big event,
the big adventure, you're actually going easier on the bike, but you're going longer.
You're building that conditioning, that time on the bike getting used to longer hours and you've
got that confidence in the bank from the winter months that you can actually push it much harder.
Now, you just need to go for longer and, remember, when you are riding on any adventure rides, if you
do have a psychological bunk, you start to feel a bit rubbish, it's normally tied to a nutritional
bunk. When you're training, keep fueling, keep focused and just consistency pays off.
I was going to say my next top tip was about the setup. It's super important you get a good
bike setup, you get a good connection so that when you end up in the tough stuff-- Oh, here we go--
you know your bike incredibly well. If you get any niggles when you're riding, always have a
think. Has something changed? You might get a sore knee, but you actually need to check your cleats
or you end up with sore shoulders and neck, but you actually need to drop your elbows.
When you're riding, make sure you got a good setup with your bike,
but always think if you get niggle, what's the cause of that? Don't just treat what is sore.
Right, back to the adventure. [music]
As your rides get a bit more adventurous,
communication and safety become all the more important. First of all, if things do go south,
can people identify you? Have you got an ID on you? Secondly, do people know where you are?
Clearly telling people, especially if you're riding alone, where you're planning to go
ties quite nicely in with my first point, the doorstep mile. You tell people where
you're going, it commits you to doing it, it keeps you safe when you're out there.
It is worth knowing when you're going to run out of phone coverage and maybe having a GPS
tracker. They're not expensive. It means that you can call an emergency if things go wrong.
What to pack? What to take when you're heading out for an adventure ride is always
a good topic of conversation and it takes confidence. I think that's at the heart of it,
especially if you're heading out in tough winter conditions like this. If you're going on a bigger
trip and you're bike packing, I could take a bike just like this and still go ultralight,
but taking the minimalist kit takes experience. You need to have what it takes when the conditions
change, but you want as little as possible so you can make your ride as efficiently as possible.
How to pack is something you want to test out. How the bike handles once it's got
some bags and kits on it is also something that takes a bit of practice. At the heart of this
conversation is confidence. How do you have the confidence to get out there and take on
bigger and better adventure rides? I hope some of these top tips were useful to get started.
Now, wherever your adventure rides take you, good luck and stay safe.
If you want some inspiration for your rides, then head over to GCN+ and check out some of the
adventures, some of the big documentaries we've been making, including cycling around the world,
the length of Africa, cycling down volcanoes, and trying to recreate
the first stage of the Tour de France back in 1903. Just some of many. If you've enjoyed this
video, some top tips for adventure, then leave your comments below, share your ideas and good
comments as well, but also give us a thumbs up. [00:06:30] [END OF AUDIO]