Race Pacing
Train your execution.
Do not just train the route. Train how to manage it.
Ride the course. Control the effort. Finish strong. Race Pacing turns a route into sectors with a target range and a power cap for each, guides you through them while you ride, and tells you afterwards how well you managed the day.
How it works
- Step 1
Choose your event
Gran Fondo, three triathlon distances, a climb challenge, an endurance ride or your own custom event.
- Step 2
Choose a route
A built-in training route, one of yours, a public route or a Discover route.
- Step 3
Enter your data
FTP, weight, target time, experience, heart rate, fuelling rhythm and, for triathlon, your run pace.
- Step 4
Get your strategy
The route cut into sectors, each with a target range, a power cap, a cadence and a coaching note.
- Step 5
Ride with live guidance
The current and next sector, your watts against the range, time above cap, reminders — and few words.
- Step 6
Review your execution
Your primary score, what cost you, the risk it points to and the next thing to improve.
Seven kinds of event
Each judged on what decides it: Finish Strong for a Gran Fondo, Run Readiness for a triathlon.
Long days with climbs. Save matches early, finish strong.
Finish Strong Score
About 40 km on the bike. Fast, but the run comes next.
Run Readiness Score
About 90 km. Steady power, fueling discipline, fresh legs to run.
Run Readiness Score
About 180 km. Patience, nutrition and a bike leg that leaves a marathon in you.
Run Readiness Score
Long climbs and steep ramps. Pace the mountain, not the first kilometre.
Climb Control Score
A long steady ride. Less variability, controlled fatigue.
Effort Control Score
Set the distance, duration, terrain and intensity of your own event.
A pacing strategy
The planner’s own output for a made-up rider (FTP 250 W, 72 kg) on a built-in Gran Fondo route. With Pro it is built for you, on the route you choose.
Rolling Gran Fondo Builder
Finish strong, not just survive the final kilometres.
- Start control
- Rolling
- Climb
- Descent · recover
- Flat
- Fuel check
- Fatigue zone
- Final push
- Controlled startkm 0–9.5 · 9.5 km · +100 m · ~19 min
Stay controlled. Do not burn matches early.
160–175 W 65-70% FTPcap 195 W · 85-95 rpm - Rollers 1km 9.5–22.1 · 12.6 km · +118 m · ~23 min
Carry speed over the tops; don't sprint the rollers. Never over 215 W on a kicker.
175–190 W 70-76% FTPcap 215 W · 85-95 rpm - Climb 1 · Cat 3km 22.1–25.1 · 3.1 km · +5.2% · +163 m · ~12 min
Push a little, never over 230 W. Recover over the top.
190–205 W 77-82% FTPcap 230 W · 80-90 rpm - Descent 1km 25.1–28.3 · 3.2 km · -5.2% · ~3 min
Recover: keep the legs turning lightly, drink, and eat if it's safe.
100–150 W 40-60% FTPcap 180 W · light spin - Flatkm 28.3–30.8 · 2.5 km · ~4 min
Settle into your target: smooth, steady pressure. Save energy where you can.
175–185 W 70-75% FTPcap 205 W · 85-95 rpm - Fuel check 1km 30.8–32.8 · 2 km · +24 m · ~4 min
Calm stretch: eat and drink now, while the road lets you.
165–175 W 66-71% FTPcap 195 W · 85-95 rpm - Rollers 2km 32.8–48 · 15.2 km · +142 m · ~28 min
Carry speed over the tops; don't sprint the rollers. Never over 215 W on a kicker.
175–190 W 70-76% FTPcap 215 W · 85-95 rpm - Climb 2 · Cat 3km 48–50.7 · 2.7 km · +5.5% · +149 m · ~11 min
Push a little, never over 230 W. Recover over the top.
190–205 W 77-82% FTPcap 230 W · 80-90 rpm - Descent 2km 50.7–53.3 · 2.6 km · -5.6% · ~3 min
Recover: keep the legs turning lightly, drink, and eat if it's safe.
100–150 W 40-60% FTPcap 180 W · light spin - Fatigue zone 1km 53.3–60.6 · 7.3 km · +86 m · ~14 min
Fatigue builds here. Hold the target, don't chase anyone.
175–185 W 70-74% FTPcap 200 W · 85-95 rpm - Fuel check 2km 60.6–62.6 · 2 km · ~3 min
Calm stretch: eat and drink now, while the road lets you.
165–175 W 66-71% FTPcap 195 W · 85-95 rpm - Fatigue zone 2km 62.6–71 · 8.4 km · +69 m · ~15 min
Fatigue builds here. Hold the target, don't chase anyone.
175–185 W 70-74% FTPcap 200 W · 85-95 rpm - Climb 3 · Cat 3km 71–74.6 · 3.6 km · +4.8% · +174 m · ~13 min
Push a little, never over 230 W. Recover over the top.
190–205 W 77-82% FTPcap 230 W · 80-90 rpm - Descent 3km 74.6–78.2 · 3.6 km · -4.9% · ~4 min
Recover: keep the legs turning lightly, drink, and eat if it's safe.
100–150 W 40-60% FTPcap 180 W · light spin - Fatigue zone 3km 78.2–80.7 · 2.5 km · +24 m · ~5 min
Fatigue builds here. Hold the target, don't chase anyone.
175–185 W 70-74% FTPcap 200 W · 85-95 rpm - Final pushkm 80.7–94.9 · 14.2 km · +129 m · ~25 min
Now spend what you saved. Build to the finish.
185–200 W 75-81% FTPcap 225 W · 88-98 rpm
Eat every 30 min (6×) — eat ~40 g of carbs each time. Drink every 15 min (6× more).
In the ride, each reminder waits for your Done — that is what the Fueling Consistency Score reads.
- Going too hard in the first 10 km — the most common way to fade later.
- Arriving at Climb 3 · Cat 3 with nothing left: the climb then decides your finish.
- Heart-rate drift over 5 % means the effort is costing more than the watts say: ease a little and drink.
- An early climb (Climb 1 · Cat 3, km 22.1): easy does it — stay under 230 W. This is where the day is lost.
- The hardest part comes late: Climb 3 · Cat 3 at km 71. Save your matches for it.
24 built-in training routes
No GPX needed: purpose-built routes for every kind of event, each designed to train one thing. This is a purpose-built synthetic training route designed for indoor training. It is not an official race course and does not represent a real-world event route.
Gran Fondo / Sportive
Train steady pacing over repeated rolling terrain.
Train climb pacing, descent recovery and final-third fatigue resistance.
Train sustained tempo without wasting energy on power spikes.
Train energy conservation before a demanding final climb.
Triathlon - Olympic Distance
Train controlled high-tempo pacing.
Train power control over short climbs and rollers.
Train pacing discipline across repeated rhythm changes.
Train a controlled bike leg with a strong final 10 km while preserving run readiness.
Triathlon - Middle Distance
Train steady aero pacing.
Train controlled pacing across repeated rollers.
Train power caps on longer climbs while preserving run readiness.
Train the final third of the bike leg when pacing mistakes usually appear.
Triathlon - Full Distance
Train long steady pacing, nutrition discipline and mental patience.
Train long-distance pacing across repeated elevation changes.
Train climb caps, descent recovery and long-course fatigue resistance.
Train the hardest part of a full-distance bike leg: staying disciplined late.
Climb Challenge
Train pacing a 20 km climb from the bottom: the first kilometres decide the last.
Train power caps where the road kicks to 12 %: the lowest gear, not the biggest effort.
Train the second climb of the day: pace the first so the second is still ridden.
Train arriving at a summit finish with something left for the final ramps.
Endurance Ride
Train a steady effort for hours: the same watts at kilometre 90 as at kilometre 10.
Train steady power over rollers without chasing every rise.
Train long gentle climbs at endurance power: no surges, no fade.
Train endurance power on repeated hills: climb steadily, recover on the way down.
An execution report
A made-up middle-distance triathlete: steady endurance, too long over the caps on the climbs. The bike leg is judged for the run that follows it.
Your endurance was solid, but you accumulated too much time above your bike power cap.
- Risk
- Starting the run with excessive fatigue.
- Next improvement
- Reduce climb spikes and keep the final 31 km smoother.
- Climb 1 · Cat 4: 7 min 26 s above your 220 W cap (peak 245 W).
- 11 power spikes — each one is a match you may need later.
- A controlled start: you rode the first third on target.
- You held your power in the final third.
- Controlled start175 W · 2⚡
- Rollers 1189 W · 2⚡
- Climb 1 · Cat 4237 W
- Descent 1125 W
- Fuel check 1175 W
- Rollers 2189 W · 2⚡
- Fatigue zone 1186 W · 1⚡
- Fuel check 2181 W · 1⚡
- Climb 2 · Cat 4238 W
- Descent 2125 W
- Fatigue zone 2187 W · 2⚡
- Final hold187 W · 1⚡
- Run prep167 W
Grey band: target range. Red line: cap. Marker: your average.
Ride the course. Control the effort. Finish strong.
Generating your own strategy, riding it with live guidance and the full execution report are part of Cycloscape Pro.
Race Pacing, explained
What is Race Pacing?
Race Pacing is the half of Cycloscape Workouts that trains execution rather than fitness: it teaches you how to ride a course, not just how to get fitter. You pick a route and an event (a Gran Fondo, an Olympic-, middle- or full-distance triathlon bike leg, a climb challenge or a long ride) and it turns the route into a pacing strategy: sectors with a target power range and a cap for each, set from your FTP and the terrain, fuel and drink reminders on your own rhythm, and a finish that fits the event. You ride the plan on your smart trainer with live guidance, and afterwards an execution report scores how well you managed the day: pacing, power discipline, fuelling, fatigue and the score that matters for your event, such as Finish Strong or Run Readiness.
How is it different from a structured workout?
A structured workout is driven by time and power blocks and answers "what intensity should I train today?"; your trainer holds the watts in ERG. Race Pacing is driven by the route and its terrain and answers "how should I manage this course so I finish strong?". The trainer stays in simulation mode, the gradient sets the resistance, and you manage the watts against the plan, as you will on race day.
Which events can I plan for?
Seven: Gran Fondo or sportive, Olympic-distance triathlon (about 40 km on the bike), middle-distance triathlon (about 90 km), full-distance triathlon (about 180 km), a climb challenge, a long endurance ride, and a custom event where you set the distance, duration, terrain and whether a run follows. Each one is judged on what matters for it: Finish Strong for a Gran Fondo, Run Readiness for triathlon, Climb Control for a climb, Effort Control for an endurance ride.
How hard does the plan ask me to ride?
As hard as the duration allows, then a little less if a run follows. For an experienced rider the plan's normalized power lands at about 83-85% of FTP for an Olympic-distance bike leg of just over an hour, 72-74% for a middle-distance leg, 63-65% for a full-distance leg and 68-74% for a Gran Fondo of three to five hours. A first timer is planned about 5% lower and a competitive rider about 3% higher. Climbs get a higher target and a cap, so they are paced instead of attacked.
What do the sectors mean?
The route is split by terrain and by the shape of the event: start control (hold back while it feels easy), flat, rolling, climb, descent and recovery, technical stretches, fuel checks, the fatigue zone of the last third, and a final push, or a final hold and run preparation before a transition. Each sector has its own target range, cap, cadence and a one-line coaching note.
Which routes can I use?
A GPX you uploaded and saved, a public route, one of the Discover rides, or one of 24 purpose-built synthetic training routes: flat and fast, rolling, long climbs, steep ramps and technical stretches, from 28 to 180 km and from 180 to 2,600 m of climbing. The built-in routes are designed for indoor training; they are not official race courses and do not represent real-world event routes.
What does the live guidance show while I ride?
One compact card at the side of the screen: the current sector and the kilometres left in it, your power on a bar against the target range and the cap, the sector's coaching note, what comes next, and fuel and drink reminders that wait until you tap Done (or press F). Alerts are few and spaced out: riding above target too early, going over the cap on a climb, a power spike (your 3-second power more than 15% over the cap for a second), falling well under target, or a drifting heart rate. Nothing appears in the centre of the screen.
What is in the execution report?
Scores from 0 to 100 for pacing, power discipline, fuelling consistency and fatigue resistance, plus the event's own score: Finish Strong, Run Readiness, Climb Control or Effort Control. Behind them are the numbers: normalized power and intensity factor against the plan, time above your caps, power spikes, how much your power dropped in the final third, heart-rate drift, the fuel and drink reminders you acted on in time, and every sector's average power against its target and cap. It ends with a summary, the main risk, what cost you, what went well and the one thing to improve next time.
Is Race Pacing free?
Exploring it is free: anyone can read how it works, see a real example strategy and report, and browse the built-in training routes. Building a plan and riding it with live guidance is part of Pro Rider, along with structured workouts and the Performance Lab.
Cycloscape training routes and simulations are not official event courses unless explicitly stated. Race names and distances are used descriptively. Cycloscape is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by any race organizer.