How do pros pace themselves, how do they brave extreme heat, and what are the benefits of riding in fast groups? The lessons from the stars for your next ride.
Anyone watching the pros at Grand Tours like the Vuelta a España or preparing for the World Championships sees elite sport at its best. But behind the impressive wattage figures lies one thing above all: smart tactics, precise pacing, and an extremely professional handling of external conditions. These strategies are not rocket science. You can easily use them for your own rides and training to be more efficient and resilient on the road.
At the Vuelta a España, Team Movistar, built around overall leader Enric Mas, shows how perfect team tactics work. According to reports by Cyclingnews, Movistar repeatedly succeeds in placing helpers in breakaway groups. When it gets steep in the finale, these riders drop back to provide drafting for their captain on flatter terrain and support him. Competitors like Felix Gall (Decathlon CMA CGM), on the other hand, were often left isolated because their teams lacked the necessary helpers at the crucial moments.
For your own rides, this means: Use the group. Drafting saves up to 30 per cent energy. When you ride with friends, take turns at the front and plan your efforts together. Anyone struggling on a climb should be able to recover in the slipstream of the stronger riders instead of blowing up in the wind.
Heat is a constant topic in modern cycling. During the Vuelta stage to Córdoba in Andalusien, average temperatures reached 41 degrees, peaking at up to 44 degrees, according to Radsport-News. The organisers even shortened the stage from 190 to 110 kilometres as a result. Nevertheless, riders like Georg Steinhauser reported that pros were riding in zig-zags on the first climb. In such situations, pros use cooling vests before the start and try to keep their core body temperature as low as possible.
If you train in midsummer, you should also adapt your training. In extreme heat, it is advisable to significantly reduce the intensity or shorten the route. Pay meticulous attention to your fluid and electrolyte intake. As soon as you notice that your circulation is overwhelmed or you feel unwell, you should take a break in the shade or abort the ride. Health always comes first.
How do you get the finishing touches for an important seasonal goal? The top Belgian rider Lotte Kopecky chooses an unusual path for this. As reported by Velo by Outside, she specifically competes in races against junior men to prepare for the World Championships. The reason for this is the extremely high intensity. According to Belgian training coordinator Jan Vancompernolle, the juniors ride extremely aggressively and accelerate much harder out of corners than is usual in pure women's races. These hard changes of pace give Kopecky the necessary stimuli for her form.
You can translate this approach for your training: If you want to improve, step out of your comfort zone. For some rides, look for training partners who are a touch faster than you, or join a faster group. The short, intense phases where you have to grit your teeth set new stimuli and improve your speed endurance and recovery capacity.
The Belgian national team also shows how important clear agreements are. At the World Championships in Montréal, Remco Evenepoel and Wout van Aert start as co-leaders. Since racing at the World Championships is done without race radios, national coach Serge Pauwels emphasises how crucial a crystal-clear agreement before the race is, so that the two captains do not neutralise each other but benefit from one another.
Whether you are competing in an amateur race or riding a long RTF: clarify beforehand who takes on which role, how the pace is set, and where the meeting points are if the group splits up. A well-agreed plan saves stress on the road and ensures that everyone reaches the finish safely and with fun.
Your takeaway: Use drafting in the group strategically, adapt your pace immediately in the heat, and set targeted stimuli for your form by riding with faster partners.
This article was generated automatically with AI from the sources listed above and has not been editorially reviewed.