Alexander Zolotykh: how a lawyer from Krasnodar became a skating coach

Guest

Useful from the issue

1. You can learn the technique, rather than just pick it up

   It is not necessary for a beginner on the highway or gravel to learn to take turns in a pack for years. Clear instructions from the trainer on the technique gives the result faster: Alexander himself, after training, had much fewer falls on flat turns.

2. Experienced people also have a lot to learn

   Even after five to ten seasons, incorrect movements that seem to be working are often fixed. The analysis with the coach shows that it is possible to go faster and safer.

3. Cyclocross improves control

   Racing on mud and frozen ground forces you to control the clutch at every turn. You can go without a cross—country bike - on a gravel or MTB.

4. A short race dilutes the winter

   Winter cyclocross reminds of explosive work, while the main preparation is hours—long volumes on the machine.

5. You can't learn the technique remotely

   Remotely, Alexander is ready to write plans with basic periodization for the season or race, but he believes it's pointless to work on technique online.

6. The camp needs a rest day

   Even with a drop on the lift, not everyone can stand six or seven days of skiing in a row. The organizer of the fees should immediately lay a fasting day.

7. Do not sit in the tail of the pack

   In a road race, you have to get out of the tail after every turn and climb, and the forces go to waste. Alexander so exhausted himself and fell out of the pack.

From lawyers to a bicycle

Alexander fell in love with cycling at the age of four after seeing a road race on the street of his hometown. But he bought his first normal mountain bike only at the age of 21 — to quit smoking: by that time he was suffocating, climbing to the fourth floor. I didn't like running, but I hooked the bike so much that already in the first season he went from Krasnodar to the Azov and Black Sea.

He is a lawyer by education and has been working in his specialty for four years. In parallel, in the evenings I repaired rental bicycles in the garage and got much more pleasure from it. After the very first successful race, he retired from law and worked for several years in the Krasnodar network "Baikcenter" — an SMM specialist, an advertiser and a senior mechanic.

Sobera School and moving to Moscow

Alexander learned to ride technically himself on the trails of the mountain near Krasnodar — from videos and magazines. At first, the tactics were simple: drive until you fall, and so on for several laps until you learn the track. Gradually, he reached the red enduro tracks on the hardtail and even started in the enduro race among rivals in full faces.

When people in Krasnodar had no time for a bicycle and the company where he worked was closed, Alexander moved to Moscow. At first he worked as a salesman and SMM specialist in a bike shop, then he got into the Serpentine club - first to run social networks, and since April as a coach. For him, it was the fulfillment of an old dream.

A broken collarbone and work for yourself

The first months of coaching were hard, but working in social networks began to bring clients, and by August he had four to five workouts a day. At the end of August, he broke his collarbone, caught on a tram and flew into a pit that was not visible. He continued to work, holding the steering wheel with one hand, and then, due to financial disagreements, he broke up with the club.

He did not look for a new place: he decided to rely on the customer base from social networks. The main channel is Instagram, a little YouTube, and Telegram doesn't add up yet. In winter, he trains students on the indoor BMX track of the Butyrsky velodrome, writes plans and admits that it's scary to leave hiring: renting an apartment in Moscow costs money, and in winter there is almost no earnings. But, according to him, there is no perfect moment to start.

Why do motorists need a technical coach

Alexander explains what niche he occupied. According to his observation, road coaches pay little attention to technique: racers learn to ride in a pack and go through turns due to a huge number of repetitions. Experienced MTB instructors work with those who already know how to do something. And a newcomer who bought a gravel or a highway last year remains without a base — and does not know how to go to the curb or go through a turn without falling.

The training system was given to him by the association of instructors "Gradient", where he passed certification. This, he says, saved him from the impostor syndrome, because he had never been a professional racer. Separately, he recalls how he drove the Russian amateur highway Championship in Krylatskoye: the rider in front of him fell at the turn, and Alexander deliberately lagged behind the pack.

Cyclocross, turns and haight in the comments

Cyclocross in Moscow, according to the guest, is being developed by enthusiasts, and it is worth participating even on gravel or MTB. Short races on mud and frozen ground make you survive in every turn, improve bike control and dilute winter multi-hour sessions on the machine.

With Ilya, they had an argument about cornering after his video. Alexander recognizes the disadvantage of short videos: in order for the video to fly apart, the meaning has to be simplified and then retold. He takes harsh comments calmly — a long line of answers only helps the algorithms to promote the video.

Fees in Italy and at the Sobero

An unexpected turn of the season was a trip to Italy: a Russian businessman from Lake Como saw his videos on technology and called to prepare him for a multi-day MTB race. This was Alexander's first trip abroad. But snow fell, the mountain trails were closed, and for the highway the place seemed to him a paradise: good narrow roads and very careful drivers.

In the fall, he spent a camp meeting with three students and concluded: people need to be given a rest day, not everyone is ready to ride for six or seven days in a row, even with a drop-up by car. He advises driving the highway in the south only out of season, when there is no dust and summer traffic.

Timestamps

1. 00:00Without preparation
2. 00:48How Alexander came to cycling
3. 03:13From lawyers to bike shop
4. 04:51Sober trails and enduro on a hardtail
5. 06:29Moscow and the Serpentine Club
6. 10:29Fracture of the collarbone and leaving the club
7. 12:57Social networks and customer search
8. 18:31Niche of a technique coach
9. 24:11Where does the nickname napsterclash come from
10. 27:32Cyclocross in Moscow
11. 29:58Remote training and turns
12. 34:48Life is based only on coaching
13. 40:34A dispute about turns and haight
14. 44:36Fees in Italy
15. 47:48Camp on Sobera

Mentioned in this episode

Serpentine · Bike Center · Gradient · Butyrsky Velodrome · Krylatskoye · Tsar Grader · Sober · Instagram