It’s cold here in Central Virginia. Now I know those of you living up north may scoff at our idea of cold, but it was 20 degrees last Saturday morning when we headed out for our ride. Yes, you read that right, I actually got myself out for a ride well below my usual cutoff of 32 degrees and dry. And yes, I did come back with all my digits and other body parts neither frozen nor frostbitten (though it was touch and go for a bit there with the toes and nose). In all seriousness,though, I was quite comfortable, especially by the end of the ride when it warmed to a balmy 25, mainly because the ride was mostly on gravel roads.
I love riding on gravel roads for several reasons — lack of traffic, often spectacular scenery?, but most importantly is that you can get a great workout at slower speeds (and therefore less windchill) than on a road bike. Take today’s 2.5 hour ride — we only averaged 13.3 mph, but the norm power needed to maintain that nearly pedestrian pace was 204 watts, which for me is a strong endurance/ tempo effort. At the end of the day, I had racked up something like 175 tss and yet I rarely broke 20 mph.
In places the gravel itself contributes to the mismatch between speed and effort. Especially on a newly graveled section, the rocks can be so deep that it takes added effort just to keep the bike moving forward in a (relatively) straight line. Going downhill on a newly graveled road can be something of an adventure. I’ve never actually crashed on a gravel descent, but I have gotten both wheels sliding through corners a number of times. I think of these moments as an added bonus, sharpening up those handling skills. Do enough gravel descents at speed and those technical corners in next summer’s crits will seem easy by comparison.
Of course, before you can enjoy that wild downhill ride, you need to go up, and here again gravel roads present a great training opportunity. The hills themselves are often steeper than you find on a paved road, and the loose surface adds an extra element by forcing you often to climb seated on grades you would normally be standing. These efforts, along with the overall higher effort required to ride on gravel even on the flats , really help make a gravel ride an excellent workout.
You can tackle the gravel roads in central VA on a road bike, and I have done some rides on mine, especially when I have on some extra-wide, winter tires such as the Vittoria Open Pro Paves, but I prefer a cross bike for these days, usually with ?a semi-slick fat “city” tire on the back and a cross clincher on the front. The fatter tires and easier gearing of the cross bike make it ideal for these rides, and the fact that mine is an older, aluminum Redline helps with my peace of mind– I’m not nearly as worried about rocks flying up and pinging the cross bike as I would be on my carbon road machine.
Beyond the appropriate bike and tires, the only other change I would make from a regular road ride is to pack more food and drink. Some of these roads are pretty isolated. — you’re not going to come across a convenience store on most of these rides. But aside from the refueling issue, gravel roads can be a cyclist’s best friend, especially at this time of year when you need to be getting those long, base building rides in? and the weather makes four hours on a road bike a freezing proposition.
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