I haven't. And I wouldn't. Two reasons, really. First, I felt it was very important to put in very long rides during base training -- 6+ hours duration. You need enough base to put it on auto pilot for hours at a good strong power level. If I tried to do a 6+ hour trainer ride, I would go stark raving insane. Second, a big part of the DK200 is mental. For that, I have to train for mental toughness. So outdoor, dark, cold, windy, rainy, hot, WINDY, inclement, VERY WINDY long rides are pretty important. You can't become a "hard man" without a few "rides for the hard men" under your belt.

Probably not helpful. But I felt compelled to post.

I'm not really planning, at this point, on something of that distance but have done a 100 mile gravel bike race and have a 2 day 75 mile gravel stage race coming up in the fall.

http://blog.trainerroad.com/...ain-for-dirty-kanza/

I'm going to have to see if the TR guys talk about it in a podcast. In their training recommendations for DK200 their longest rides are like 2 hours each saturday and sunday. They of course do say you should get outside to ride to get used to riding on gravel and such but they're not really referencing fitness. I like TR but I still substitute outdoor rides on some weekends.

"most" would be a stretch. But I did do a significant amount of my training on Zwift (shocker there...).

I did 3x a week on Zwift, which was very focused, very high intensity. Then I did three outside rides. Of those outside rides, only the long ride was one that I *needed* to do outside. I could easily have done five out of the six sessions I did on Zwift (taking 90min or less ea) and then just the one long ride outside. And that would have been fine. As it was, it was only the long ride that I did on my gravel bike. Two of my three outside rides were just base, and if I had needed to, I could have and would have just done those on Zwift riding the "terrain" (as opposed to doing the structured workouts I did for workouts 1-3).

One long ride outside is all I think you need. But I do think that one long ride - which should be on terrain similar to what you'll be racing (eg. trails) - is absolutely essential for the big gravel rides.

---

"Non est ad astra mollis e terris via." - Seneca | rappstar.com | FB - Rappstar Racing | IG - @jordanrapp

I do trainerroad pretty religiously and only get outside sometimes, and I'm planning on doing a granfondo in Europe next month with 15000 ft of climbing and then possibly the 150 mile gravel worlds, so I'll let you know! I have done some 65 mile rides outside (a road race and a good paced group ride), that took about 3.5 hrs, and while that isn't a huge leap from 2hrs on the trainer (especially with intervals like 4x20 sweet spot like I did today), I find I'm easily in shape to do that. I think the trainerroad guys argue that you don't really need to train the distance, after all, if we're training 10hrs a week we're in pretty darn good shape. With stuff that's really long, I think it's just a matter of doing the right intensity and of course fueling appropriately. I think there's some physical conditioning that comes with being outdoors vs indoors, but I would agree that you can get most of the way there just being indoors.

Thanks. I tend to do trainer rides during the week. Will try to get outside for a longer ride on Saturday and Sunday just depends on weather and my mood. Riding indoors is so efficient. I definitely like to get outside to ride gravel and there are a fair amount of gravel races around me with variable distances to choose from.

Really love what you’re doing with Zwift

I find myself riding outside less and less. I enjoy gravel riding particularly but during the week I definitely enjoy how efficient indoor workouts are.

I do, though this will depend on the time of year. I race mainly 5-15h events, to give some context, I usually make the podium in my age group and top 10% over all. So the training seems to work because I do not believe that I'm genetically blessed.

My two main components: consistency and high volume (18-23h weeks). With a full time job and three kids HV only works with riding a lot indoors. I often do two or three sessions a day. For about two years I've been incorporating "train low" strategies to make endurance rides more time efficient ("where the magic happens" will happen earlier). Especially with two-a-days this strategy is helpful.

However, if I don't get out I will do indoor endurance rides up to 5 hours. Some structure will help. I don't use Zwift or Trainerroad. Just a Kickr and computer in front of me.

18-23 hour weeks? Holy crap! Definitely not for me but good for you. I’m near or on the podium for local sprint/Olympic triathlon but longer I’m usually just about MOP. I’m okay with that as I’m balancing my goals and life. And definitely won’t sacrifice 23 hour weeks consistently over life (ie drinking at the pub ;) ) but the idea of DK or similar event is attractive. But I definitely like indoor bike training for how efficient it is

I think you're underestimating how hard it can be to ride a lot on the trainer, and to do very long rides on the trainer. It definitely is a mental exercise.

With that said, gravel rides can also be pretty technical. Not sure about DK, but the local Gainesville, FL rides have long sections of deep sand that suck if you aren't technical, and you sure won't learn that on the trainer.

I am going to find out at my next IM in 3 wks. I haven't ridden outside since Apr 8. I train w Rouvy on hilly routes that I cannot do in Florida without a lot of admin time driving there and back. Biggest bike block so far was 6hr ride on Sat followed by 5 hrs Sun .... plus running. BTW, I am 3hrs 10 mins into a ride right now... another hr to go. Shorter ride today due to 2.4 mi OWS race this morning. I will ride outdoors maybe 3 times in the 2 wks before the race.

But part of trainer work is its way more efficient as there are no people, stop signs, coasting, to interfere with your workout. With that being said, even the TR guys talking about gravel events say you need to get outside to test your equipment and see how it all feels. Obviously if you don’t have handling skills then a trainer won’t help that.