So its raining and 7 degrees ….. Just like the top of Tourmalet on the 2001 Etape! No it’s worse than that: 2 degrees and hail! The exact same weather as Ventoux in 2000! How lucky you are to have such conditions to practice in! Seriously though…..

It’s a long time till July, but it is probably still worth getting the bike out – even if you only do a slow 12.5 miles, as I did in the first week of January last year!

It is also worth thinking how to fit your Etape trip in with the rest of your life. You may need to do some bargaining with your family! Perhaps they would like to go walking in the Pyrenees, or laze on the beach in fashionable Biarritz? Maybe they would enjoy a holiday in Isle de Rey near La Rochelle, with a trip to the Pyrenees thrown in? Or perhaps a cruise to Santander then a drive to the Pyrenees would appeal to them?

For many people fitting in cycle training with the rest of their lives strongly influences their training program. I recently asked competitors who had completed Etapes at high speeds to describe their training programs. There are almost as many training plans as there are people!

Two of the riders who replied said that they had mainly trained while commuting. It may be a coincidence, but both of them commuted 11.5 miles each way! One of them supplemented this with evening sessions down the gym using rowing machines etc, while the other simply did a 3 to 5 hour ride once a fortnight.

Another rider had rather more spare time, and completed a time trial, did a social ride and then raced each week!

A fourth rider complained that he would loose fitness if he did not ride each day, and completes 250 to 350 miles at moderate speed each week right through the year! Despite being 60 years old, he completed the Etape in a speed that would make many people half his age jealous!

I hope to outline a training program over the next few months aimed at people who are not new to cycling, but are not yet catagory 1 racers.

A good target for the end of January is to be able to ride 30 or 40 miles. If you are not already at that level, I would suggest weekly rides as follows:

Week 1: 10 to 15 miles, week 2: 15 to 20 miles, week 3: 20 to 25 miles, week 4: 25 to 30 miles. Obviously you will need to tailor this to suit yourself.

You will then be in reasonable shape to start serious training! Of course many of you will already be fitter than that ….. !

If your objective is to complete the Etape with time to spare, these are reasonable objectives. For example, you may decide to build your speed up to this level by early April, and do a 100 mile ride in early May. If you have the chance, you may even want to find some mountains to practice on in the spring.

You may want to train with other Etape riders. I have compiled a list of suitable rides on this website, and intend to extend it as time goes by so would welcome any new ideas.

There is also a list of contacts covering most of Britain. You may like to email them asking if they have any training rides in mind later in the year.

There are also numerous other events such as Audaxes taking place all over Britain and elsewhere. As this year Etape is a long one (125 miles) you may want to enter a couple of Audaxes, maybe a 100km on early in the season and a 200km one nearer the date of the Etape.

Most cycle shops unfortunately do not carry a very good range of winter wear, though you may have more luck with some of the companies who advertise in Cycling Weekly and elsewhwere.

Arm warmers and leg warmers may be useful.

Less obvious is the hazard of climbing hills rapidly in low temperatures. The fast breathing necessary causes a large intake of cold air, and may cause a severe drop in your core temperature. This may lead to hypothermia, and make you more vulnerable to flu etc.

It is therefore a good idea to warm up before tackling severe climbs, and to avoid getting too out of breath when the temperatures are low.