From: Carmichael Training Systems <newsletter@trainright.com>
Date: Wed, Jul 7, 2010 at 4:11 PM
Subject: CTS Tour de France Newsletter :: Stage 4
To: msachs@temple.edu
PezCyclingnews
Winning Legs Start With a Winning Mind
By Chris Carmichael
Six years ago, Alessandro Petacchi won 15 Grand Tour stages in one year, taking sprint wins in the Tour of Italy, Tour de France, and Tour of Spain. He was crowned the new King of the Sprinters, the heir to Mario Cipollini’s throne. And then his career took a turn for the worse with a suspension and a series of illnesses, and it appeared his days of sprinting glory were gone. He’s now in his late 30s and up against younger speedsters like Mark Cavendish and Tyler Farrar. But following a stage win at the Tour de Suisse a few weeks before the Tour de France, and now two stage wins in the first week of the Tour, it’s fair to say he’s back among the elite sprinters in the peloton.
The sprint victory today was even greater confirmation of Petacchi’s fitness because there were no crashes in the final kilometer. His two most recent wins came in sprints where other key rivals went down before the final surge to the line, but today he came from four wheels back and blew past Cavendish and Thor Hushovd with an amazing acceleration. Perhaps more than just fitness, Petacchi’s return to prominence may be the result of renewed confidence.
The mental side of cycling performance is undoubtedly a huge factor in a rider’s success, but it is still a subject that isn’t all that well understood. There is little concrete data one can measure and evaluate to determine if a rider is in the optimal frame of mind. It’s not like there’s a device similar to a power meter or heart rate monitor that can display a number or value that indicates you’re ready for a great performance.
But the optimal frame of mind doesn’t just happen by magic, either. As a coach, I’ve always believed the confidence to perform at your best comes from a series of successful experiences. That’s why with young riders, I plan a schedule of events that provide progressively harder challenges. You put the rider in a situation where they can win a sprint in a smaller race, which tells them they have the skill and strength to win. They can then take that confidence to the next level in a more challenging event, and so on. In contrast, throwing a rider into the deep end and asking him or her to win at the highest level of the sport right away doesn’t work. The rider gets overwhelmed by the pressure, and not only fails, but fails to even learn any valuable lessons along the way.
Success from one rider on a team also has a huge impact on the rest of his teammates. When Mark Cavendish seemed unbeatable in a bunch sprint (and similarly, when Cipollini was the dominant sprinter), other teams had trouble challenging his team for the leadout. It’s not that the other teams gave up, but more that Cavendish’s team gained confidence in their leader and elevated their performance. This year, Cavendish doesn’t appear to have the explosive acceleration he had last year, and stage wins from Thor Hushovd and Petacchi have elevated the confidence level of their teammates. This enables teammates to dig a tiny bit deeper into their reserves of power, courage, and determination.
Success breeds success, and it’s important for teams to recognize this dynamic and keep the momentum going. It’s equally important for teams that suffer setbacks to take steps to turn the momentum back in their direction. Garmin-Transitions has done this beautifully. They lost their primary yellow jersey contender when Christian Vande Velde broke his ribs in Stage 2. Their best sprinter, Tyler Farrar, was also injured on that stage. But during Stage 3, Ryder Hesjedal was magnificent and arrested the potential downward spiral of the team’s confidence. And today Julian Dean sprinted to second place, followed closely by Robbie Hunter in fifth.
The lesson for everyone here is that cyclists are not machines, and performance on race day does not only come down to power output, aerodynamic drag, and power-to-weight ratio. It is because athletes are human that no man is unbeatable and that great performances can come from anyone at any time. And in the end, that is why we remain riveted by the sport of cycling – and for that matter, all sports.
Comentários
Por
Eduardo Rodrigues Martins da Costa
em 8 de Julho de 2010 às 00:54.
alguém arrisca alguns nomes para o podium final do tour? temos muitas opções: geral, pontos, escalador...
se toparem, postarei meus palpites.
abraços
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