In the last article “What goes into developing a training plan” I outlined what all competitive athletes need to be thinking about, planning for and preparing for to have a great season on the bike. I listed several bullets of what needs to be done to prepare for planning. I am going to extend each bullet addin a summary of actions and links to articles and forms with examples you can use to plan for your best season.

• Seasonal Summary
  • The Seasonal Summary is a series of 5 questions meant to help an athlete understand how well they did or didn’t do and see if they might understand how to improve their outcomes for the next season. Download the free Seasonal Summary Form Here
• Goals and Objectives
  • I wrote in an article, Creating SMARTER Goals for cyclists, where I discussed the difference between Out Come vs. Performance Based goals and how to gauge if you had created good goals by using the SMARTER acronym as a guide. I also explained the difference between Training Objectives and Performance Goals. I have created a form with an example of how to craft your Performance based goals, recognize your Outcome based goals and apply training objectives to help you meet your goals. Download the free Goals and Objectives Form Here
• Support Plans
  • In the article, Become a supported cyclist, I wrote about recognizing that you have a support team.
• Mechanical Needs
  • Every season you need to plan for maintenance especially if you are competitive. Things like chains, bar tape, tires, tubes, cables, brakes, tune ups, and lubricants all need to be factored into your annual racing and or event riding budget. Don’t forget to add the prices up for upgrades that you might like to make to your bike. The biggest one most racers make is a new wheel set, bike computer and or power meter. Check out the
• Competition Plans
  • What races are you going to participate in? You need to write down the Name of the event, what discipline it is (Road,CX, Tri, Run, TT,Crit..), How long the race will take to complete, The date it will be held, and what priority you are going to put on the race or event. An “A” priority is your top priority and usually riders/racers will only have 1-3 of these in a season. A “B” priority event is one where you want to do really well for but its not your top concern. Finally the “C” priority events will be your back up race or the new race or event you might want to try out but have no goals or objectives for this race or event. Where are these races being held and have you ever ridden the course or one like it. Read the article series Recon missions for competitive cyclists to get a better idea of how to get ready for a priority event or race.
• Financial Plans
  • The other item that I think new cyclists don’t really look at is the total cost of competing and or participating in organized cycling events. The average cost for a local sanction USA Cycling race is approximate $30.00. This is just the entry fee if you register on time. Don’t forget about travel costs, food and gas. So that local race that only cost 30.00 to enter may now actually be a 100.00 race! When you start racing regionally you are traveling across 3 or more states and staying in a hotel for 2 or more days. So your price just quadrupled if your lucky. To learn more about saving money on racing or event riding check out Get sponsored or go for broke and the The Cost of Road Racing.
• Training Plans
  • I saved the best for last, Training plans. Why last? Well because this is where everyone wants to start but I want to point out something very important. All of the above equates to an investment in time, energy, emotion, finances, hopes and dreams. If you are a new cyclist who wants to race for the first time by all means just go do it. You won’t be sorry. If you are new to racing and event riding and just getting started or have a couple of years under your belt you may have noticed there is more than just showing up and giving it your all. If you want your hard earned investment it maybe time for some help and that’s where we come in.

I hope you found the above useful is setting up this years preparation and training for your next season of racing and event riding. If you would like to learn even more about what goes into structure training you can check out the article series I wrote on training factor and training periodization for the Ryding2Helath Magazine below. If you feel its time to hire us as your coaching service check out our coaching services page and check our home page from time to time for great deals on coaching services and pre-built training plans.

Have a great time planning but don’t forget to ride!

Coach Rob