Bike The Lies Training Plan & Preparation
The Bike The Lies Rennstrecke is a short, relentlessly undulating road race over 21.8 kilometres that finishes net uphill. Only one notable ramp at kilometre 7.8 breaks the constant up-and-down. What decides your day here is how well you hold position in the bunch, not any single climb.
Course & Elevation
Bike The Lies is an individual time trial on the Haager Lies, a former railway line in Upper Austria's Hausruckviertel that has been converted into a cycle path. The race course measures 21.8 kilometres point to point from Neukirchen bei Lambach to Haag am Hausruck, with the awards ceremony held at the Union Weibern sports centre.
The profile is pure railway engineering: not a single steep ramp, but long stretches of false flat instead. A good half of the distance climbs gently, 240 metres of gain accumulate in total, and the finish sits roughly 120 metres above the start. The only section that actually registers as a climb begins at kilometre 7.8 and gains about 3 percent over a little more than a kilometre. Beyond that, the race comes down to one question: who holds their speed best on a steadily rising line.
Riders set off individually against the clock and are scored in age and gender categories, in three-rider teams and in a dedicated vintage class. The event is part of the ZeitFahr-Cup series, and athletes who also take on the Haager Lies half marathon can claim the combined Haager Lies Champion title.
Pacing Strategy
Just over half the distance tilts upward (50.6%), with only 27% genuinely flat – a rolling profile that never really lets you recover. The one categorised rise sits at kilometre 7.8: roughly a kilometre averaging 3.2%, touching 5.2%. It won't decide the race, but a hard attack there burns matches you'll want later.
Because the course runs point-to-point and nets 118 metres of climbing, the finish sits higher than the start, so the closing kilometres drag even without a steep final wall. Ride the short ramp controlled inside the group, keep steady pressure on the pedals through the rollers, and save something for the gently rising finale.
The main trap is reading the course as flat and following early attacks.
12-Week Preparation
The race course demands one even effort of roughly 30 to 40 minutes, a little longer depending on your level. Physiologically this is a pure threshold event: there are no steep ramps and no long descents where the legs could recover, so almost everything hinges on the power you can sustain for the full duration.
The catch is hidden in the profile. Because more than half the route climbs as barely visible false flat and the finish lies about 120 metres above the start, the same effort feels harder in the second half and your speed reads lower than your perception suggests. Riders who pace by speedometer instead of power or feel almost always start too fast. The short rise at kilometre 7.8 is the only place where a deliberately measured surplus of effort pays off.
Training should be built on threshold intervals, classically two times 20 minutes or three times 12 to 15 minutes with short recoveries, ridden at target race intensity and as much as possible in the position you will race in. Sessions on gently rising roads are a useful complement for rehearsing steady pacing on climbing terrain and settling on the right gearing. And since the old railway line has hardly any technical features, aerodynamic discipline is the second big lever: holding a stable, low position for the entire distance is worth more here than any brief burst of speed.
Course Map
Profile Parameters
Slope Distribution
Climbs on Route
| Start (km) | Length | Ø Gradient | Max Gradient | Elev Gain | Category |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| KM 7.8 | 1.1 km | 3.2% | 5.2% | +33m | — |
Climb categories follow the road-cycling convention and rate the terrain itself — length and gradient — regardless of sport: Cat. 4 marks the easiest rated climbs, Cat. 1 the hardest, and HC (hors catégorie, “beyond categorization”) is reserved for the most brutal ascents. Short climbs below the Cat. 4 threshold stay unrated.
Adaptive race preparation
Let YOUB adapt your plan for Bike The Lies dynamically
Ben connects your goal, the course, current load, recovery, and calendar. Your plan stays pointed at race day even when real life is not perfectly plannable.
Frequently asked questions
How should I prepare for Bike The Lies?
Preparation for Bike The Lies should account for 21.80 km, +240m of elevation gain, current training load, and available training time. An adaptive plan helps place key sessions without ignoring recovery and real life.
What pacing strategy works for Bike The Lies?
The pacing strategy for Bike The Lies should reflect 21.80 km, +240m of elevation gain, and your current fitness. Start controlled and keep margin for sections where the profile or fatigue makes target pace harder.
How long is Bike The Lies?
Bike The Lies is 21.80 km long. That distance shapes how much aerobic endurance, pace durability, and race-specific work belong in the training plan.
How much elevation gain does Bike The Lies have?
Bike The Lies has around +240m of elevation gain over 21.80 km. That affects pacing, muscular load, and preparation for late-race sections.
When does Bike The Lies 2026 take place?
Bike The Lies 2026 takes place on May 17, 2026.
Where does Bike The Lies 2026 take place?
Bike The Lies 2026 takes place in Neukirchen bei Lambach, Austria.