RECREATIONAL CYCLISTS generally believe that the more miles they ride, the better they will race, regardless of what they do with those miles. To some extent they are right, as there does seem to be a minimum of miles or hours that a given athlete must ride in order to boost fitness to a sufficient level to race well. Above that threshold, however, adding more miles has less benefit than increasing the intensity. It’s not how many miles you ride but what you do with the miles that counts most