Recommended power level

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Jnow

Regular
Location
Ontario Canada
I will be touring with friends, and we have all pledged to “get in shape” before starting. At the moment, we’re all “average” road cyclists in “average” shape, but I’m not sure what average “tour-ready” shape is. I know that when I broach the issue with them, they try to be gracious because they know, as I do, that I am certain to be less fit than them. Obviously there is an almost infinite degree of subjectivity to the following question, but none the less, I hope someone can help me quantify a “reasonable” training target by answering this question:
Assuming we train such that we can plan to ride zone 2 power (watts) for endurance distances, what is a reasonable FPT target that will not be embarrassing or inadequate? For example, if you had to guess, based on your own touring experiences and your familiarity with the “touring breed”, do most of the smiling middle-aged folks I see in this forum have FPT in mid-200 watt range? More? Less?
Thanks
 

newfhouse

Resolutely on topic
Assuming we train such that we can plan to ride zone 2 power (watts) for endurance distances, what is a reasonable FPT target that will not be embarrassing or inadequate? For example, if you had to guess, based on your own touring experiences and your familiarity with the “touring breed”, do most of the smiling middle-aged folks I see in this forum have FPT in mid-200 watt range? More? Less?
Thanks
I have no idea about watts and FPT but I’m sure someone will be along soon to answer that. How far are you expecting to ride each day, and in how many active hours?

Can you ride that distance now for a couple of consecutive days without a problem? You’ll be fine.

I have found that my commuting fitness followed by a touring-loaded shakedown ride is all I need by way of preparation. In good weather I generally aim for about six active hours of pedalling per day (120 km or so) which leaves plenty of time off the bike for exploring, eating and relaxing. I lose about 5kg in weight on a two week ride, so the tour itself is the training.
 

mjr

Comfy armchair to one person & a plank to the next
I've no idea of my FPT (do you mean FTP Functional Threshold Power?) and I doubt most of us have. I feel it doesn't matter exactly what my power output is anyway - it's whether you can do the planned distances in the planned time - and I suspect my power output varies depressingly wildly with my health. The planned distances and times will vary with each group and a power meter won't be as good an assessment as picking a three/four-day weekend and trying to do similarish loops from home with a touring load on consecutive days.

Not everyone can afford the time to do those test rides, so you do what you can. If I was setting training targets, I think I could do an unloaded one-day ride 50% further 2mph average faster than our touring plan before my first tour. That said, the one day on my first tour where we rode that distance (due to last-minute route changes) at the planned speed, I was just about ready to do a bike toss if we hadn't seen our hostel's flag when we turned the last corner, but that was probably as much to do with a near-T-bone with a dozy driver that afternoon and the last three streets being farking cobbles!

I think that, in practice, most relaxed touring groups will sort themselves out, adapting their speed/routes/departure times and/or letting members who are having (a) day(s) "without feeling it" ride in the middle of the bunch to slipstream more. Recently I've planned on 45-50miles at 10mph because it is always easier to make a ride longer if everyone is feeling good or go on an evening excursion than it is to shorten a group ride.

Hope that helps.
 
It is really hard to tour at someone elses power level. You absolutely cannot just increase your power on the day so the strongest riders have to slow dowm.
Once you are touring fit you reach a plateaux of sustainable power output. Training hard adds a little and riding for many months can add some.Riding harder than your sustsainable power for a day requires recovery.
Personally I have no idea of my wattage or even my speed but I can ride by time fairly accurately. Time takes into account stops for navigation, and anything else.
 
You could get a rough idea of power from Strava - assuming you know some people on there. (I mean local riders - not Pros!)

It's one thing to be able to ride all day for 7 days (which as others have posted, is all you need for a week's tour); but if you want to ride at a pace your friends can put up with, you need to compare with their ability.
 
Location
España
what is a reasonable FPT target that will not be embarrassing or inadequate?
I have no idea what an FPT target is.
However, if I was travelling with a group and words like "embarassing" or "inadequate" were likely to be cropping up I'd look for some other people to travel with.

If I'm recalling correctly, you're doing a (first) tour across Canada with a group of cyclists and your wife, while camping. Group dynamics are most likely going to be far, far more important than power outputs. When and where to stop to eat? Stop for photos? Mechanicals? Rest days? Accommodation standards? Food cooking duties? And many more.

I'm a firm believer that what's between your ears and beating in your chest is the most important thing on a tour.

On tour, I'm rarely moving for more than 5 hours in a day. That leaves 19 other hours for ...... whatever I want to be doing. In a group it's important that everyone is singing from the same, or at least similar, hymnsheets.

The only measurement I pay attention to on tour is to exceed 13 kph so that I'm charging a powerbank.

Good luck!
 
OP
OP
J

Jnow

Regular
Location
Ontario Canada
Thank you. I realize that my question looks at a less important (almost irrelevant?) aspect of touring but I am trying to ready myself for day one of my first tour, and it’s a doozy. After that first couple of days, I’m sure our group will grow, adapt etc. Power measures (average, or threshhold) reflect a specific capability (analogous to a golfer’s handicap). I don’t want to train to ride all day at some level x while my riding companions are training to ride at y. I also don’t want to wildly overshoot the mark because that training effort exacts a toll on time, efforts, finances etc that could otherwise be dedicated to domestic/romantic obligations.

(do you mean FTP Functional Threshold Power?)
Yes 🙂

Group dynamics are most likely going to be far, far more important than power outputs
. Agreed, and understood, and although I’d be happy to ask the forum to help me manage those variables too, I realize that, at least, would be one question too many.
Thank you everybody, and be well.
 
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I like Skol

A Minging Manc...
I am going to be riding a group tour type ride later this year, 11 days with a typical 90 miles a day. This will be my first tour and I'm riding with 3 other middle aged+ riders of mixed backgrounds.
We have ridden together a few times now and we push ourselves pretty hard for a 50-60 mile ride and it is usually a different person each time who is flagging towards the end. I am a regular commuter 2-3 days a week, 10 miles each way and then try to do longer rides a couple of times a month. The others are more weekend warriors who just get out once or twice a week and clock up longer rides (40+) but usually ride less frequently than me. One is maybe winding down toward retirement so gets out a bit more than the rest, but he is a little over 60.
TBH, our comparative fitness isn't important. It won't be a race, we intend to enjoy it and will aim to ride within the comfort zone of the weakest rider each day, whoever it might be that day. I say the weakest rider but that isn't actually what I mean and sounds a bit critical. I actually mean that whoever is having a good day and feels 'in the zone' needs to remember it is a group effort and we want to stick together. We have already agreed that nobody gets abandoned to finish a days ride alone if they are having a bad day.

I suppose the group dynamics may be driven by the group size? It might be more difficult to stick to the 'ride together' rule in a bigger group?
 
Good afternoon,

If you look at

https://www.cyclinganalytics.com/blog/2018/06/how-does-your-cycling-power-output-compare

and scroll down a page or so you will see that FTPs for the people who uploaded power data.

Given that people lie, make things up etc. there must be some question marks over the absolute accuracy but there is a strong group in the sub 200 watts range.

This is not too surprising as depending upon your shape, position and if you have an "aero" bike, 200watts is around the 20mph mark.

If by mid 200s you mean 250 then you can see that you would be solidly in the middle of the people who collect power data.

Bye

Ian
 
Location
España
. Agreed, and understood, and although I’d be happy to ask the forum to help me manage those variables too, I realize that, at least, would be one question too many.
Thank you everybody, and be well.
At the risk of repeating myself the people you should be asking any questions of are the people you will be travelling with, not random people on the Internet.

Far, far better to have have lots of discussions now then on the road when people are tired, sore, hungry, thirsty, possibly frustrated, under pressure and even broken up into cliques.

I imagine the weather is not conducive to cycling and camping in your part of the world at the moment, but I'd strongly reccommend that the group try a few 1 or 2 night shakedown rides in advance of departure.

Good luck!
 
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