# Help a mountain biker build power cross training on road bike?



## gregg (Oct 30, 2000)

Hey Lee, I'll ask a question that will help me personally.

I am primarily a mountain biker, but hit the road bike about 20% of the time. Can I use the road bike to help me build power for the short/steep climbs I encounter during mountain biking? These climbs are anywhere from 20 yards to 50 yards long, but very steep. Not sure if I'm using the term correctly, but I need to build my power (quads) for these, yes?

Would it be mostly intervals or sprints on the road bike to help build the strength I need for these short, steep climbs on the dirt (barring other variables like traction, front and rear balance, etc...)? Or is there something else I can do?

Also, I don't own a trainer, just rollers (Kreitlers...the best!) without resistance, is there a way to do the same thing? 

Thanks,

-gregg


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## Sub (Feb 13, 2004)

Hey Gregg

Do you do any mountain bike racing or are you just looking to improve your general riding?

You want to duplicate the effort your looking to improve, so you would want to spend time on some short climbs in the 300-500 yard range and 8-10% grade if you can find one. What you need to start working on is hill sprints since that seems like the type of effort you speaking of on the mountain bike.

Roll into the hill in a pretty big gear (53x21 or there abouts) and start by sprinting from the bottom. Try not to shift during the interval. The gear should get harder to turn as you continue up the hill, from feeling spun out at the bottom to hardly being able to turn it at the top. Make sure you pedal over the top of the hill, then take a 10 minute recovery and repeat. If you do them right you will have the energy to do 3-5 sprints.

Of couse, you want to make sure you have spent some time building up a good aerobic base before doing these intervals and make sure you warm up for 20-30 minutes before starting them.

Hope this helps.


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## gregg (Oct 30, 2000)

Hey Lee, thanks for the response.

I used to race quite a bit, but nowadays, just looking to improve my general riding (and to keep up with my buddies!)

Yeah, I've always found that light stretching and a good warm-up are key.

300-500 yards sounds long to me, but then again, the hills are where I really suffer.

Thanks again,

-g


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## Sub (Feb 13, 2004)

Look at the amount of time your spending putting out the efforts on the mountain bike, if they are significantly shorter than the workout I described then you can try and find a little slightly shorter hill. You have to look at the amount of time your putting out the effort, rather than the distance...and you can cover more distance on a road bike in the same amount of time. You want your buddies trying to keep up with you afterall, not the other way around.


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