How to start racing.

A light bike doesn't replace good fitness.

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drjones96
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by drjones96

stumpytrunks wrote: ...including one for a nice set of stripey collar and cuffs...


What do you mean? Aussie Nat Champ or something?

by Weenie


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Skillgannon
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Location: A bigger rock in the Pacific (AUS)

by Skillgannon

One thing that I've found that really helped my confidence in bunches, especially on fast, technical courses (and helped me get my first podium place) was bump training. Basically, it was me and a coach riding slowly through an empty sporting ground and going through the carparks, and leaning into each other, first just bumping handlebars, then leaning shoulders. Eventually rode for about about a km pushing shoulders, round corners, uphill and downhill. BUT DONT DO THIS UNLESS YOU ARE CONFIDENT YOU CAN DO IT AND DONT DO IT WITH SOMEONE WHO ISNT VERY, VERY EXPERIENCED

stumpytrunks
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Location: Tas, Aus

by stumpytrunks

drjones96 wrote: What do you mean? Aussie Nat Champ or something?


Yep. Sorry, I was pretty tired last night, don't normally drop stuff like that.

big steve
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Location: Stirling, Scotland

by big steve

just found this forum and thought it was awesome, lots of good tips. i myself am wanting to get into road racing, currently racing in mountain bikes. probably start next season after upgrading to a slightly more suitable race bike as i only have a 4 year old trek 1000 for training on. i train locally with my club (some ex national champs etc) and find the group riding really good practice before my first RR.

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drjones96
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by drjones96

Skillgannon wrote:One thing that I've found that really helped my confidence in bunches, especially on fast, technical courses (and helped me get my first podium place) was bump training. Basically, it was me and a coach riding slowly through an empty sporting ground and going through the carparks, and leaning into each other, first just bumping handlebars, then leaning shoulders. Eventually rode for about about a km pushing shoulders, round corners, uphill and downhill. BUT DONT DO THIS UNLESS YOU ARE CONFIDENT YOU CAN DO IT AND DONT DO IT WITH SOMEONE WHO ISNT VERY, VERY EXPERIENCED


LOL...I can visualize the conversation with my wife.

Scene: ER
drjones96 - "So we were bump training"

wife - "WTF is that?!?"

drjones96 - "It's when you bump into each other on bikes and try not to lose control."

wife - "WTF were you thinking?"

drjones96 - "Uh well uh this guy on WW said this is what I should do."

Yeah good tip I think. Learn to make contact without panicing.

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theremery
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Location: New Zealand

by theremery

bump training (hook training) is invaluable. My training buddy and I had "beater" bikes for riding to school on. We'd cut each other off, ride each other into gutters shoulder charge each other elbow flick...blah blah...and generally behave like mobile road hazards. The first serious track sprint I had against a nationally ranked sprinter (he was 2 or 3 years older than me and a lot bigger), he tried to intimidate me....I damn near put him over the fence! He never tried it again. The first tour I did, a wiley Aussie pro tried something similar....It was a learning experience for the poor old bugger...I never even deviated 1mm...he simply "bounced". It really is all about developing the right balance of relaxation and return force and it becomes second nature. Though it sounds horribly dangerous, you will actually be a LOT safer in bunch riding as you won't over react when someone leans on you a bit. The benefits when fighting to gain/retain a wheel in the lead-up to a sprint are huge. I must admit tho, that as I have aged, my appreciation of how much a really good face-plant hurts (and scars) has tamed my brat-like behaviour very significantly :)
Updated: Racing again! Thought this was unlikely! Eventually, I may even have a decent race!
Edit: 2015: darn near won the best South Island series (got second in age
-group)..woo hoo Racy Theremery is back!!

Skillgannon
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by Skillgannon

lol

drJones - yeah, I probably didnt attach enough of a CAUTION sticker to that one :? - but your post was pretty damn funny, until I read that it was set in the ER (as opposed to my flu ridden head thinking that you werent sure about where it was going to be set :oops: ). Then just damn hilarious. Though took a bit to work out if you were being sarcastic at the end or not :?

Theremey has it exactly, it'll become like second nature and the only thing you'll need to worry about is the other person being less experienced, panicking and hooking your bike with your bars - its something you've always got to pay attention while doing, nothing worse than face planting (from experience as well) or hitting the pavement in general.

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drjones96
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by drjones96

Oh yes I just mean't to make a funny. I completely agree that this is a valuable skill to learn.

Ypsylon
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by Ypsylon

Jees, drjones, your wife starts evey single sentence cursing!

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BHobson
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Location: Valencia, CA

by BHobson

Bump training is essential. We did this in BMX as well. We called it "foot down." A couple guys would ride around each other and try to get the other person to fall or put their foot down. It seriously helps with balance and confidence with bumping others. Believe me, going into a berm(angled curved turn for those who dont know the term) at full on sprint speed with 8 other riders all bumping elbows and jumping together on a dirt track no more than 20' wide is no easy task. The road crowds are easy compared to fighting for position in a berm with a 200 pound muscle man!!! Well, at least for me. You just have to be more cautious of other peoples lines and be confident with your bike handling skills. I definitely recommend this training for anyone looking to improve balance/confidence.

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drjones96
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by drjones96

Ypsylon wrote:Jees, drjones, your wife starts evey single sentence cursing!


That's my honey! :D

tete de la course
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by tete de la course

drjones96 wrote:
peterpen wrote: @drjones - I'd recommend a road race for your first ever race - they're generally less sketchy, and if the parcours is at all selective (eg, hills) things get strung out quickly.


man I have been training like a crazy lately butfor nothing. All I have to look forward to is a local tour. Tour De Palm Springs. How do I get involved in road races? Finding them etc.? Crits sound a little crazy for my blood also I tend to like the longer rides. I guess I'm like the other guy, powermeter, nice bike etc.. buut really no purpose. I really want to get invloved in some competition. it'll give me somethign to strive for. maybe evevn get a rivalry going with someone, other than my bank account.

chow ,
Tete

KH
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Joined: Fri Feb 27, 2004 3:56 pm

by KH

The tip about following a favourite really does work surprisingly well.

In what was one of the biggest races for me last season I decided to follow the rider I thought would win. So for the first half of the race when he went to the back of the bunch to eat an energy bar, I did. When he went to the front I was glued to his wheel. Ended up following him into the break and stayed with him until the last 1km of the finish climb. He won, I was 6th which I was quite happy with in a quality field like that. I think he was vaguely annoyed/surprised to see me glued to his wheel in the bunch but as I never missed a turn in the break he had no complaints!!! He also justified my faith by recently becoming UK hill climb champ.

I don't know why I haven't done that more often since. I did try it once with a well known ex pro but he seemed to find gaps in the bunch that just weren't there, it was quite amazing. I spoke to this guy about when he rode Het Volk back in about 1991 and he said he was the fittest he'd ever been and grovelling holding a wheel in the gutter when some Belgian came past with his hand soff the bars putting a gilet on. He said it cracked him mentally!!!! :lol:

Bump training sounds good, never tried it but key seems to be staying relaxed when someone leans on you in a race, I've never gone down like that anyway! Roller riding in winter is probably a good help.

Try and incorporate different types of intervals into your training and don't train hard when you are exhausted it won't help but it will make you ill!

wogamax
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Location: MA

by wogamax

I hope to crit in March '07, for the first time. I've bumped, hooked, been taken down half-wheelin' and been in some close quarters with large groups. I definitely have to practice not being squimish when w/in a foot of others bars on the left and right at speed, where you can't get out of the saddle or even rock the bike w/o hazard.

As to 4.7 watts/kg, I should think simply time trialing ahead would score a win at cat 5, no? I'm a tick below 4 w/kg (including bike) and feel pretty comfy diving into a sub-25mph group. Still, my hope is for safety and I am thinking of just coming around them for short, short, pulls and then, more importantly, gaining confidence as I drift to the back, however tight things are. I expect the culture will be entirely different.

There are plenty of reasons to have a power meter if you aren't going to race. They're really important to the non-racer, IMO. Time trialing and triathlons are becoming a science with them.

by Weenie


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drjones96
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by drjones96

@Racers

Do you guys train just for general riding or do you do specific training based on what type of racing you're doing? Say if you know that you're going to do crits most of the time and maybe hit a road race here and there. In that case would you do a lot of short & fast training rides and maybe mix in an extended slower paced ride?

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