Subject: RE: IM Lou bike course vs. Augusta bike course I did Louisville in 08 and Augusta this year. Neither have anything you have not seen living in northern Georgia.
Louisville: From about mile 12 to around mile 90, the hills are rolling and constant. There is very little flat road in this portion of the course. When you get to the top of one you see the next one and, unfortunately, it is just far enough away that the speed you get going down does not carry you far into the next one. Miles 1-12 and 100-112 are beside the river and almost completly flat. Mile 90-100 is a negative grade almost the entire way, so you do get some time to recover before T2. Many of the hills are long, slow burners, particularly early in the out portion before the loops. You will not spend much time between mile 12 and 90 on your aerobars except on the downhills.
Augusta: I was really surprised about how little climbing their was on this course, particularly given how much was made about it beforehand. There are a couple of very short, somewhat steep hills and a couple of long burners, but the majority of this course is flat. I felt like there was more downhill than uphill. The wind coming back in to T2 along the four lane highway was the worst part of this course. All in all, the course is not much different than what you probably do on your everyday training rides if you live anywhere but Florida or along the coast.
All in all, Lousiville is significantly more challenging than Augusta. The hills are nothing special - you do not need to go ride the gaps or anything even close to get ready for this. However, they are constant and that can wear on you physically and mentally after a while, particularly if its hot. |