The benefits of working with a coach
Expertise, time-saving, personalisation, race-smarts…
Coaches are experts in their field, and have the qualifications and “palmarès” to prove it. Their advice saves you the huge amount of time you would otherwise need to invest in developing your own training programme and in separating out what actually works from all the pseudo-science and inappropriate or conflicting advice that is published every year.
It is very easy to get advice on how to improve your cycling performance. You only have to pick up a magazine, do a quick internet search, purchase a couple of books and ask your training buddies or club coach and you will very quickly gather a mass of information. The problem is that very little of this information will take into account your specific needs.
Performance during a race or a GranFondo depends essentially on two factors:
- How well you prepare
- The way you ride the event itself
The first depends on the quality of your training plan and how well you follow it. For a training plan to be effective, it must take into account a host of personal, individual factors such as:
– Your history as a cyclist
– Your technical ability
– Your current level of fitness
– Your personal constraints
– Your personal objectives
The plan needs frequent adjustments as the weeks go by, as your strengths and weaknesses are revealed and your rate of progress becomes clear, and as unforeseen circumstances force changes in the plan.
Doing this well requires time and expertise: hence the first part of a coach’s value to you.
The second part of performance is how well you ride the event. Thousands of bike races have been won by riders that were not the strongest, but made the most of their abilities and the race conditions to beat faster riders. Our coaches at Alpine Cols are experienced competitors that understand this and will give you invaluable advice to help you pace better, place yourself better and judge the right moments to make your moves.
Pacing is particularly important in ultra-distance events like the Tour du Mont Blanc, which takes most people 14 to 18 hours, or in seven day events like the Haute Route It is no use being in the top 50 on Stage 1 of the Haute Route if you then drop to the 200th place on Stage 3!
Learning “race-smarts” from your coach could help you finish much higher up the order: this is the second part of the coach’s value to you.
What your cycling coach will do for you.
- Save you time. For busy people, time is the most valuable commodity. Your cycling coach saves you time by designing a training programme to suit your personal objectives and available training times. You don’t need to think about it: just get changed into your cycling gear and follow the plan!
- Provide goals and structure. Your coach will help you define your training goals very specifically, and will then structure a state-of-the-art training plan with you. This will take into account your availability and your constraints, to give you the best chance of achieving your goals.
- Hold you accountable. Your coach is the objective outsider who will act as your conscience: did you do the training or not? Your coach’s role is to hold you accountable for your commitments, and make sure you put in those hard miles and do the tough intervals needed to reach your summer objectives.
- Provide expert advice. Your coach has a deep knowledge and experience of cycling and is able to advise you on any aspect of your sport, from the right line to take while cornering during a race to pre-event nutritional strategies and much more.
- Inspire you. Your coach will motivate you to reach your potential as a cyclist, whether you aspire to win races or just to finish a sportive comfortably in the middle.
The bottom line:
If you engage a coach, you are likely not only to improve faster but also to reach a higher level than would otherwise be the case. Only you can judge how much this is worth to you!
Interested in an Alpine Cols cycling coach?
Click on the coach’s pictures below
Read more about the contractual arrangements
My wife Emmanuelle and I moved to the mountains with our family in 2003. Since then I have cycled tens of thousands of kilometres in the Alps, thoroughly neglecting the house and garden… Surrounded by so many beautiful mountains, who can resist the challenge of cycling up them?
Creating Alpine Cols was a natural choice to share my love of France and the famous Alpine climbs with other cyclists. I’m a (somewhat lapsed) engineer by trade, which comes in handy for fixing bicycles and mastering the intricacies of power meters. I am qualified as a British Cycling Level 3 coach.
Competitive by nature, I have cycled in dozens of Alpine sportives, including 11 Haute Routes. Changing age category in 2019 gave me the chance to stand on the podium for a few times, before time marched on again!
When not busy with Alpine Cols, I coach senior management on effective leadership behaviours. Together with my partners in the Enablers Network I lead motivational workshops, team-building and employee engagement seminars.
Climbing or descending? It is hard to choose!
As a teenager in France I swam at national level and still enjoy swimming. I did try to get Marvin to join me doing laps in the pool but he was never very keen. I, on the other hand, have now joined him on the bike. Just as well… I would not see much of him otherwise!
Road cycling makes me feel young again as each climb is a fresh challenge. I love cycling up the long climbs: get in a rhythm, start day dreaming and above all savor this time away from daily constraints. Descending is all about technique: mastering a high-speed descent is a great feeling!
Cyclosportives are even more fun as they give the opportunity to meet other cyclists – from all over the world at the Haute Route or the Etape du Tour. Winning my category at the Haute Route and taking only 5h15 minutes to do the 180 kms around Lake Geneva have been great highs.
When not with Alpine Cols guests, I am either pelting round the velodrome in Geneva or at the Hotel School of Lausanne, where I teach how to manage legal risk in the hospitality industry.
Outstanding competitor and renowned coach
After a university degree in the sciences I decided to follow my heart and not my head. For the past 20 years I have made my living in cycling by coaching and writing articles for the press. I have covered over 150,000 km as a coach to groups of cyclists. All this experience helps me to identify the needs of cyclists of all levels very quickly and to coach them accordingly.
My passion for the mountains means I’ve been riding in cyclosportives for the past 25 years. I usually participate in between 5 and 15 per year. My favourite is the Marmotte, probably the toughest with its 5000 m climb in 175 km. I have been in the first 20 seven times in 12 attempts.
My greatest joy is sharing my passion with like-minded people, helping them progress and appreciate our wonderful sport. I like nothing better than taking people behind the scenes at the Tour de France to share in the magic of this extraordinary race, which gives so much pleasure to so many millions around the world every summer.
Palmarès:
- Winner Tour de l’Ain 2009
- Winner Cyclo Cathare 2011
- Winner Conquérante 2012
- Winner Route des Helviens 2014
- 2nd Ardéchoise 2009
- 3rd Route des Helviens 2013
- 5th Tour de l’Ain 2012
- 10th Marmotte 2010
- 18th Etape du Tour II 2011
My professional coaching certificate
International triathlete and exceptional coach
I have always had a huge passion for all endurance sports, starting with swimming as a kid. I then progressed to triathlon, eventually competing for New Zealand 1998, before discovering the world of bike racing and the fun of competing in one day events and stage races.
I graduated with a degree in Sports Science in 2000 and began work as a full time coach. Over the last 20 years I have been fortunate to coach many Elite and Age Group national champions and both professional as well as amateur athletes.
I now live in the French Alps close to Annecy, one of the best places in the world for cycling in the mountains. From here I keep in extremely close contact with all my athletes. I design totally customised training plans for each person, taking into consideration every aspect of preparing physically and mentally for events.
My ultimate goal is to help each athlete achieve amazing, life changing experiences in their chosen endurance events!
Palmarès
- 14th l’Etape du Tour 2012
- 47th Marmotte Cyclosportive 2013
- 75th l’Etape du Tour (the day after the Marmotte) 2013
- 2nd New Zealand Road Championships 2012
- 5th UCI Tour of Wellington 2001
- 23rd Tour du Mont Blanc 330km and 8000+ ascended meters 2014
- 23rd Triathlon World Championships 1998
- Half Ironman (70.3) PB 4:09
- Standard distance (Olympic) triathlon PB 1:52
The mountains are my life!
Born in Albertville in the heart of the Alps, I found it hard to focus on my school work and spent my days dreaming about skiing and cycling in the mountains. It was no surprise then when I passed my professional qualifications as a ski instructor and a cycling coach. I must have cycled multiple times up every possible climb in the Northern Alps, including many that don’t figure in the guidebooks!
Apart from six years spent in the paddock on the Formula One circuit with Toyota, I have stayed in the mountains ever since. During the winter I teach private clients on the ski-slopes in Courchevel, and in the summer I cycle. It is a great life, living out my two passions and sharing them with like-minded people: I like nothing better than to pass on my experience.
I compete in many of the Alpine cyclosportives, such as the Time Megève Mont Blanc the Marmotte and of course the Haute Route!
Cycling is in my blood.
I go everywhere with my bike, it keeps me calm and helps me face the world. This is more than my sport, it is my life.
I am passionate about the Tour de France. To go higher, faster, further, break through the barriers, do as the champions. This is the force that leads me again and again to the most beautiful roads in the world, the roads of the Tour de France, the force that makes me climb the greatest mountains, the force that has taken me to the highest levels of amateur cycling.
Another passion: meeting new people. Experiencing unforgettable moments, using my experience to help others to reach their dreams. Sharing stories and knowledge of the world, trading expertise, fellowship on the same road. This is my métier and my dream, and why I qualified as a cycling coach.
Palmarès:
- 2nd La Limousine 2012
- 2nd La Casartelli 2010
- 3rd La Lapébie 2011
- 7th La Pyrénéenne 2011
- 9th l’Ariégeoise 2011
- 30th Etape du Tour 2012
Testimonials
