Namely :ġ) In addition to my day job, I also coach a running club and so squeezing in rides everyday became a challenge.Ģ) I went on vacation round about the 20th pro stage so I ended up completing just 18 'stages'.ģ) A couple of rides had to be done indoors on a Cybex ergometer.Ĥ) I took one rest day more than necessary. Now, I faced a few challenges which I need to declare before we get started. The rides were supported by nutrition from Secret Training U.A.E.įig 1 : Too poor to be a pro and ride a Grand Tour? The Poor Man's challenge is an answer! I even created a little flyer for it and shared it on Twitter with the likes of sports analytics guru Alan Couzens and exercise scientist Stephen Seiler.Īll rides were attempted in the searing heat of Abu Dhabi. The challenge was called 'Poor Man's Giro'.

If the ride called for a flat stage, I'd go out on a 40km ride and end with a 'solo sprint'.

If there was a mountain stage, then I'd go out and do some hill repeats (we do not have mountain passes in Abu Dhabi ! ). Each ride tried to capture the intent and spirit of the pro rides.įor example, if one day was the ITT, I'd go out and smash a little ITT of my own. I set out to ride roughly 1/8th the daily distances in the 2019 Giro d'Italia. I'd read about the physical demands of grand tour racing in research papers and wondered what that would translate to for an amateur rider who works 5 days a week in a day job. Early in May, I set out to do something in the name of science.

Trimps challenges