By Coach Adam Walker, The Cycling Co
April is here, and the BC Bike Race is coming up fast. This is a critical month in your training. What you do right now is going to directly impact not just your performance—but how much fun you have during race week.
Let’s break down exactly what you should be focusing on.
The Big 3 Focus Areas for April
If you do nothing else this month, dial in these three things:
• Course Familiarization
• Back-to-Back Rides
• Local Racing
Nail these, and you’ll show up confident, prepared, and ready to enjoy the experience.
1. Course Familiarization: Remove the Unknowns
One of the biggest mistakes riders make is showing up to BC Bike Race without knowing what they’re getting into. Don’t do that.
Why This Matters:
• Builds confidence
• Reduces race-day anxiety
• Helps you plan pacing and fueling
• Prepares you mentally for each stage
How to Do It:
Use all the resources available to you:
• Check course info on the official BC Bike Race website
• Explore routes on Trailforks
• Review elevation profiles and distances
• Watch trail videos and past race footage
If you can, try to:
• Mimic elevation gain on your local climbs
• Ride for similar durations as expected stages
• Understand the technical demands of the trails
👉 The more familiar the course feels now, the more confident you’ll be during race week.
2. Back-to-Back Rides: Build Durability
BC Bike Race isn’t just one hard day—it’s multiple days of riding, back-to-back.
You need to train for that. The Goal is to get your body used to riding under fatigue.
How to Structure It
Start simple:
• Ride Saturday + Sunday
• Progress to Friday + Saturday + Sunday if possible
• Use long weekends (like Easter) for mini training blocks
Important Notes:
• Not every ride needs to destroy you
• Mix disciplines:
◦ Mountain bike
◦ Road
◦ Gravel
What This Builds
• Endurance
• Fatigue resistance
• Recovery between days
• Fueling strategy practice
👉 This is one of the biggest performance boosters you can implement right now.
3. Local Races: Practice the Real Thing
If you have access to local races—use them. They’re one of the most valuable tools you have.
Why Racing Helps
Local races allow you to:
• Practice pacing under pressure
• Test your fueling strategy
• Dial in your equipment setup
• Get comfortable in a race environment
• Adapt to race intensity
Especially if you’re new to racing, this is huge. You don’t want BC Bike Race to be your first time experiencing race intensity.
Timing Matters: Your Training Deadline
Here’s something most athletes overlook: Your body takes 10–14 days to adapt to training.
What That Means for You:
• Your hardest, most important training needs to be done by:
◦ End of April / early May
• The final 2 weeks before the race are for:
◦ Tapering
◦ Recovering
◦ Sharpening
👉 The work you do right now is what shows up on race week.
April = Your Make-or-Break Month
This is it. The window between now and the end of April is where:
• Fitness is built
• Confidence is earned
• Race readiness is created
Focus on:
• Learning the courses
• Riding back-to-back
• Getting race experience
Do that—and you’ll set yourself up for an incredible week on the bike.
Final Thoughts
Have a great month of training. Stay consistent. Be intentional. And most importantly—enjoy the process. Keep the rubber side down, and I’ll see you in May for an unforgettable BC Bike Race.
Want Help Putting This Into Action?
If you want guidance on exactly how to structure your training, dial in your fueling, and show up fully prepared for BC Bike Race…
Club Shred is where we do it.
Inside, you’ll get:
• Weekly coaching calls
• Proven MTB training systems
• A community of riders pushing toward the same goal
• On-demand call replays of all previous team coaching calls
👉 Join us and take the guesswork out of your training. For more information, hit Adam up on Instagram @coachadamwalker or email adam@thecyclingco.com. Check out Club Shred.
Coach Adam Walker is a certified professional mountain bike coach and has coached athletes to World Cup and World Championship wins. A masters athlete himself, he is passionate about helping all riders achieve their biggest goals, like completing BC Bike Race.