If you truly want to understand and improve your performance on a road bike, the ramp test is a performance diagnostic tool that provides deeper insights than many traditional performance tests. In this article, we explain in detail how a ramp test works, what it measures, what benefits it offers, and how you can use the results to specifically target your training.

After the ride, a number appears: 142 TSS. Is that a lot? Too much? Can you go full throttle again tomorrow – or do you need a rest day first? Anyone who trains without being able to answer these questions is flying blind. The Training Stress Score (TSS) is an attempt to condense training load into a single number – and it succeeds surprisingly well.

Drinking sounds simple – yet most road cyclists systematically make mistakes when it comes to it. Too little, too infrequently, the wrong things. Even moderate dehydration of 2% of body weight can noticeably reduce endurance performance. For a 75 kg ^cyclist , that equates to just 1.5 liters – an amount that can be reached faster than you might think on a high-intensity summer ride.

VO2max – maximum oxygen uptake – is the metric used by sports physicians, performance diagnosticians, and now most sports smartwatches to quantify aerobic fitness with a single number. And indeed, it is one of the best predictors of endurance performance: those who can process more oxygen per minute and kilogram of body weight are, in principle, more enduring.

4,800 kilometers. No peloton, no rest stops, no fixed sleep schedule. The Race Across America – RAAM for short – is not a cycling race like any other. It's a battle against time, sleep deprivation, climate zones, and one's own limits of endurance. Those who make it all the way to Annapolis, Maryland, have crossed more than a continent – they have redefined themselves.

To ride fast, you don't just need to pedal hard – you also need to be able to control the bike precisely . This is where so-called bike handling skills come into play. They are one of the key coordinative abilities in cycling and often determine how safe, efficient, and confident a rider is.

The Tour de France is not just a cycling race. It's a legend. Every July, it draws millions of spectators to the roads of France, captivates television viewers worldwide, and makes cycling fans dream. But what makes the Tour so unique is not just the distance covered, but the symbols that have become established over more than 120 years – from legendary jerseys and iconic mountains to distinctive rituals.

Many believe that riding fast on a road bike is primarily a matter of fitness or wattage. But in reality, technique often plays a bigger role than pure muscle power. Efficient pedaling, aerodynamics, and a clean line not only allow you to ride faster, but also longer with less energy expenditure. In this article, you'll learn how targeted technique training can sustainably improve your speed on a road bike.

Choosing the right groupset is one of the most important decisions when buying a road bike or gravel bike. Along with the frame, wheels, and tires, it significantly influences the riding experience, performance, and maintenance effort. But what's better: the classic mechanical shifting system or the modern electronic variant?