Jun 11
4
10 Mile Time Trial Pacing
Pacing a 10 mile time trial is easy, just go as hard as you can until you pass the finish line, right? WRONG! You can actually complete the same course with the same average power, under exactly the same conditions, and finish faster, simply by pacing yourself more effectively.
Go Hard Up Hill, Recover Down Hill
You may have heard of ‘variable pacing’ before, if not I will explain it here. When you get to a climb or long drag, increase your effort, and when you get to a downhill section of the course, reduce your effort and recover slightly. Doing this alone can shave a lot of seconds off your time!
Go Hard into a Headwind, recover with a tailwind
The same strategy applies to the wind, if you are cycling into the wind, increase your effort, and when the wind is behind you, take the opportunity to recover.
Why not go hard down hills, and easier up hills?
I have done the maths, and there is a lot more time to be saved by going harder up hill than down hill. If you increase your effort by 5% along a 1 mile long, 5% hill, you will save 12 seconds. To save 12 seconds going down that same hill, you would have to increase your effort by… over 230% ! You don’t have to take my word for it, just try it and see what happens to your times!
How much harder should you go up hill or into the wind?
You will have to be the judge of how much to increase or decrease your effort by. If you will be cycling into a 30mph head wind for 5 miles, don’t go all out, you need to pace each individual climb and section of road separately. This is why pre-riding a course is a very good idea! As you do more time trials, you will get a better idea of how much you can push yourself.
So that is how you can save more time during a time trial, you may not think it works, but it really does, providing you don’t go too hard too soon!
