Vladimir Rajapov: beginner's mistakes in cycling and how to avoid them

Guest

Useful from the issue

1. Bike fit before buying a bike

   Before buying your first bike, consult with a biker at least on the size of the frame and take-out. Improper landing leads to injury or to the fact that you no longer like to ride.

2. No need to kill yourself every workout

   Volume training without severe fatigue is part of the plan, not a waste of time. It is better to leave training after spending about half of your strength in order to recover quickly.

3. Most of the work is individual

   Group training is designed for the average in the group. The skill of riding in a pack is needed, but growth gives a plan written for your FTP, well-being and calendar.

4. Start with a simple FTP test

   Laboratory test is not necessary: it's enough to estimate your level on the trainer and set three goals for the season — minimum, average, and maximum.

5. Sleep and nutrition are half the result

   Vladimir's first results appeared together with sleep, water, a normal diet and minus 15 kg. Nutrition during the race and preparation for the start are just as important as legs.

6. Bicycle — 10-15% success rate

   Vladimir overtook amateurs on top-end bicycles with electronics. The legs, psychological readiness and the plan for the race decide.

7. Don't skimp on security

   Tires and brakes should be good — this, in his opinion, is more important than the groupset level. Second-hand equipment can be taken, but it should be possible to entrust life to it.

8. You need to work with fear after a fall

   After the blockage on the track, Vladimir did not miss the next start, but went to the discipline without a pack and won. If you doubt yourself on the descent or in the mountains, it's better to be safe.

From motocross to cycling

Vladimir has never considered himself a sports person, but he has always been fond of extreme sports: snowboarding, wake, many years of motorcycles, from 2019 to 2023 — active motocross. At the race in Tuchkov in the rain, he landed unsuccessfully from the springboard and broke his shoulder and collarbone, plus a tendon tear. Recovery took about a year.

He was planning to return to motocross: he even bought a new motorcycle. But rehabilitation involved cycling — first following the example of a fellow motocross rider who uses it for training, then climbs in Krasnaya Polyana, and the first training camp in Volgograd. After that, he realized that motocross no longer appealed to him, sold both motorcycles, and bought a road Canyon bike with the money. At first, he rode the road bike with gravel shoes and gravel pedals, and it didn't bother him at all.

Mistake number one — planting and spikes with your own hands

Vladimir considers the first mistake of a beginner to be an attempt to set the landing and spikes himself. Even before buying your first bike, you should consult with one of the cyclists, or better yet, with a biker, in order to at least guess with the size of the frame and the outrigger. His first frame turned out to be small, and he suffered for a long time, considering this to be the norm: in motocross, it is customary to think that uncomfortable means right.

Mistakes in setting up a bike for yourself, according to him, sooner or later end either with an injury or with the fact that riding simply ceases to be pleasant. An illustrative episode: when he came to an experienced fitter with a bike that a track trainer had set up for him, he almost didn't change anything.

How to look for a coach and why the group does not give growth

Vladimir went through several teams. The first group training session in Krylatskoye seemed empty to him: we rode for two hours, with almost no feedback. Now he understands that it was a planned amount of work, and the mistake of a beginner is to think that you need to crawl away from every workout. It is correct to leave, having used up about half of the battery, in order to recover quickly for the next one.

Then there was the Magadan team with coach Galina Streltsova, who supplied him with basic equipment, then Volga Union and coach Evgenia Mudraya, now Rebellion. The main conclusion: group training is designed for the average person in a group and does not give explosive growth. You need to work in a bundle, but he advises you to do most of the emphasis on an individual plan for your FTP, well-being and calendar.

Separately, Vladimir talks about the jealousy of coaches in Krylatskoye: when he wanted to take several individual trainings from another specialist, conflicts began. His position is that an amateur pays himself and has the right to choose who to study with. The breakthrough happened when he himself wrote to the St. Petersburg coach Dmitry Merzlikin: he offered to try working for free first, and the first victories went with him.

What is the result of the race

In addition to FTP, Vladimir names a few more fingers of one fist: technical readiness of the bike, psychological readiness (he drained the first races, burning out before the start), sleep, nutrition before and during the race, proper eyeliner — and good luck. You make a mistake in one thing — and the blow comes out with a protruding finger.

Since May, he has lost more than 15 kg, adjusted his sleep and drinking, began to monitor his recovery using Whoop and Garmin trackers and read books about training and nutrition. FTP for the season has grown from about 220 to 300 watts, which is about 4 watts /kg, although now the growth has slowed down. Among the results — the third place in the absolute of cluster C in Ruza, the fifth in the absolute in Serpukhov, victories and prizes on the track, including bronze in the pair sprint.

On the track, his competitive experience began with a fall: at the second race, his tyre exploded, he fell and brought down two others. To not give up, he and his coach decided to work through the fear and in the next race, he rode a sprint discipline without a pack — he won it. From the next season, Vladimir wants to switch to road cycling in cluster B: in C, the finish sprint decides everything, but he's interested in learning team tactics and breakaways.

Cycling, family, work and money

Vladimir has a teenage son, a second wife, retired parents, and a grandmother for whom he is responsible. Therefore, everything is based on time management: in the summer, training from seven to nine in the morning and work from ten, in winter, the track two evenings a week and on Saturday morning, on other days, the trainer at half past six in the morning. He goes to bed at ten and gets up at five — his relatives are irritated by this, he admits.

He has several IT projects, but he doesn't consider himself rich: he saves up for something, gives up something else. The advice is simple — buy equipment according to your means, don't go into debt for it, and agree within the family. Used items can then be sold with little loss, but you can't skimp on what you trust your life to: he recalls a descent in Tula where a pack was flying at 80 km/h.

Vladimir also says that early training gives him energy for work, and he transfers lessons from racing to business and relationships with employees. Cycling for him is also a way to turn off his head: after the divorce, it was the sport that pulled him out of depression in a pandemic.

Cycling culture and plans

Comparing it to motocross, Vladimir notes that there's less mutual assistance on the road: in motocross, everyone will stop, in a road race, a fallen rider will be overtaken, relying on the support vehicle. In gravel, as he heard, the atmosphere is friendlier. Ilya and the guest agree that mass amateur cycling in Russia is just forming, and the culture of teams is still taking shape.

The plans include an amateur UCI race with an attempt to qualify for the World Championships, training camps in Dubai with the team, the mountains of the North Caucasus, the KMS category on the track and the first gravel: Vladimir publicly promises to take a slot for Ilya's race and come there with his son and a tent.

Timestamps

1. 00:00Acquaintance with Vladimir
2. 02:46From motocross to bicycle
3. 05:20Beginner mistakes: Landing and Bike fit
4. 10:45Skating in Tashkent and safety
5. 13:26Finding a coach and changing teams
6. 16:49Individual training versus group
7. 21:18What constitutes success in the race
8. 28:00Results on road and track
9. 29:02Goals for the season: compete with yourself
10. 31:32Balance sports, family and work
11. 34:32Money in cycling
12. 38:11Cycling rules and culture
13. 42:54Goals and dreams
14. 47:35Tips for beginners and mountains
15. 51:31Sport as a motivation in life

Mentioned in this episode

Volga Union · Rebellion · Krylatskoe · Pinarello Dogma F12 · Campagnolo Ghibli · Satellite Track · Gravelcyclist · N8N