Last Updated on 26 August 2026:
Gravel Cycling Coaching
Zack Simons, 45, came into coaching with plenty of off-road experience and a background in masters mountain biking and gravel. His goals included continuing to progress across both disciplines and preparing for Rebecca’s Private Idaho, a 120-mile event with around 8,000 feet of climbing. That made gravel cycling coaching a natural fit.
The challenge was making that level of training work around two small children and running a business. Zack needed enough consistency to improve, but the plan also had to remain realistic when family, work or recovery changed what was possible.
That meant focusing on purposeful sessions rather than simply adding more volume. The structure gave each workout a clear role, while still allowing the wider plan to move when life demanded it. The goal was to build fitness that could transfer across long gravel events, mountain biking and stage racing without making training another source of pressure.
The progress came quickly. In around five months, Zack increased his FTP/LT2 by roughly 10% and his LT1 by around 15%. He also successfully completed an Andorra MTB stage race, showing that the improvements weren’t limited to testing numbers but carried over into demanding real-world riding.
For Zack, gravel cycling coaching was about becoming a stronger and more durable off-road cyclist while still balancing the responsibilities of being a business owner and parent. The aim was not to find more hours in the week, but to make the available training more effective.
Preparing for a gravel event, MTB stage race or another demanding off-road goal while juggling work and family? I can help you build a personalised training plan around the demands of the event and the time you realistically have available.
