10 Things You Didn't Know About Pro Cycling

I've been a fan of pro cycling since the late eighties, and I've always loved learning as much "inside information" as possible. There were even times when I'd wonder what the asphalt was like on famous climbs like Alpe d'Huez, because from the magazine photos, I could swear that European asphalt looked smoother than ours in the U.S. My interest hasn't waned through the years, and in that spirit, I present ten things that I've found curious about being around European pros here in Mallorca, Spain at the Team Sky winter training camp.

1. The riders eat meals at separate tables from the team staff. This allows the riders to decompress a bit in a "pressure-free" environment and give them some space from the ever watchful coaches and directors.
2. Riding bikes is hard work and some things are just taken care of for you, like laundry. Riders put their clothes in a mesh bag and leave it in front of their hotel door, to be picked up in the evening after the team takes care of the washing and drying.
3. Bike mechanics wash and prep bikes every day, and spend much of the day during training camps building other bikes for use later in the season. Imagine keeping track of every rider's unique position, while they are constantly experimenting with new equipment and such. It takes a LOT of effort to keep everything sorted.
4. Each rider has 3-6 bikes. They use 1-2 for training, 1-2 for time-trials, and 1-2 for road racing. Did you catch that? They ride a different bike for racing than for training.
5. During a training ride, they will often stop at the top or bottom of a big climb to change clothes when it is cold or wet. They might put on a dry jersey, or put on an additional thermal jacket for a long descent.  
6. A team "director" is the racing manager, a "coach" is the training manager. Responsibility for the riders' welfare and condition changes hands during the season between these two.
7. Follow vehicles are used for every training ride, even on easy recovery days. One, for protection and supplies, and two, so riders literally know where to go. European roads can be confusing! Also, if a rider flats during a ride, the group doesn't stop, the wheel is replaced and the rider is motorpaced back up to the group.
8. During a ride, the riders have a choice of drinking either water, or "mix" (Gatorade), typically designated on the bottle by an "x". Team Sky has special bottles with different color nipples: blue for water and orange for Gatorade.
9. During training rides, each rider will maintain their own effort when doing climbs, to maximize individual performance. This also takes into account the different racing schedules of the various riders.
10. Riders are commonly put in two groups, "classics" and "stage" riders - namely, those that excel at the super hard one-day classics races, and those that excel at either winning or supporting the team leader during the long 7-21 day stage racing season (Tour de France, Giro d'Italia and Vuelta a Espana).

There are many more fascinating aspects of pro cycling, but they are mostly top-secret, except for this one: these guys are actually people, just like you and me! They worry about what they eat, how they train, and what their equipment is like.  They don't have it "figured out" as if there is some perfect way to train and prepare for racing. However, they are blessed with some amazing physiology, motivation and commitment, which are the qualities that make them seem superhuman on the bike. Combined with the uncanny ability to put their bodies through sheer pain and suffering, they are nice guys that love the beauty, challenge and lore of bike racing just like you and me.

TrainingPeaks co-founders Gear Fisher and Dirk Friel will be wrapping up Team Sky training camp in Mallorca, then heading to Italy to work with Team Saxo Bank before hopping a plane to Manchester to meet with British Cycling. Don't forget to subscribe to our blog, "Like" our Facebook page, or follow us on Twitter to keep getting their "on the ground" reports on working with some of the world's very best cycling teams. For more of Gear's photos from Mallorca, check out our Facebook album.

Comments

[Ilaria]

Honestly I knew them all but 1, 3 and 4 are probably the most curious or ignored :) When you are at an open training day or at races it is always very interesting to watch that routine and you can apreciate all the hard job of mechanics and staff.
www.allezandy.blogspot.com

[nora]

What a great report! I really liked it and thanks for those little secrets of professional cycling! I particularly admire the riders for the effort and passion that give cyclists both in their training and their balanced diet and suffer then in racing they ride their bikes up and overcome the pain after a fall -I honestly appreciate much to JUAN ANTONIO FLECHA, am its super fan
- a big kiss from ARGENTINA

[lenght]

"Each rider has 3-6 bikes. They use 1-2 for training, 1-2 for time-trials, and 1-2 for road racing. Did you catch that? They ride a different bike for racing than for training."

Why would it be surprising that pros ride different bikes for training and for racing? I'd be shocked if I found out that they used the same bike! I only began racing last year and use a different (heavier, less valuable) bike for training, like every other amateur racer that I know. It makes sense to keep the racing bike in excellent condition while the training bike takes a battering. I think it's more cost effective in the long run, too.

[trainingpeaks]

lenght : I find it interesting that they use different bikes because unlike regular people, these guys get top of the line equipment anytime they want. They are not limited to using "training wheels" because they don't want to ruin their race wheels. I also found it curious that logistically they would have different bikes. If you are comfortable and trust the setup on one bike, you might have doubts about a "new" or different bike when it comes race time. Anyway... interesting nonetheless. Thanks for reading!

[Bart]

Their mix they use is Gatorade? With all the cycling specific mixes I am surprised

[Bennett]

I feel compelled to put in another word for the mechanics. They really do work almost 24x7 during a tour and deal with hypersensitive riders and remarkable mechanical detail / nuances (i.e., plenty of pressure and stress). Like many other members of the support team, they are an absolutely key member of the "talent pool" and obviously somewhat overshadowed. Here's to them!