first race tips

[huwsparky]

Tip 1: warm up properly, it will feel fast from the start.

2: At all costs get to the front row on the start.

3: Don't use your best bike if you have a choice.

4: not a tip as such but don't start if your not prepared to fall at speed!

 

[S-Express]

4: not a tip as such but don't start if your not prepared to fall at speed!

Nobody ever is

 

[mjr]

Not a speed merchant now for sure and I think I predated the helmet rule by some years, but I still like to watch the pros and sometimes local cat 3s.

If someone's going to race properly, on a closed course, instead of buggering about on open roads pretending to race and being a danger to everyone nearby, good luck to them!

 

[Justinslow]

Not speed merchant now for sure and I think I predated the helmet rule by some years, but I still like to watch the pros and sometimes local cat 3s.

If someone's going to race properly, on a closed course, instead of buggering about on open roads pretending to race and being a danger to everyone nearby, good luck to them!

Absolutely!

 

[MickeyBlueEyes]

I looked at my power data on a rather hard road race this year and coming out of a corner in the middle of the race I hit 1400 watts

That's some wattage fella, nice work!

 

[Shaun]

As a never-raced (and-never-going-to-race) cyclist, why are the corners important / faster?

 

[S-Express]

As a never-raced (and-never-going-to-race) cyclist, why are the corners important / faster?

Corners can cause a 'concertina' effect, meaning if you are at the back you could be just going into the corner when the front of the group is already through the corner, out the other side, back up to speed and half way to the next corner - meaning you (and others) will have to put down a lot of power in order to stay with the race. If the circuit has a lot of corners, it's not a good place to be.

 

[jamma]

Food wise should i just go with 1 bar before hand and a bottle for during the race due to it being 35mins

 

[S-Express]

If the race is only 35 minutes, then I would leave the bottle, tbh. Don't eat anything too heavy in the couple of hours beforehand. Eating a snack bar or whatever before the race is not going to do anything one way or the other.

 

[paraffinlamps]

Yeah that will be plenty , you may find you dont even get ( or need ) a chance to get a drink . Dont be tempted to throw your bottle in the last laps like you see the pros do . If seen you will get a DQ . Listen carefully to what the commissaire says at the pre race briefing as well . Lots of riders round here dont seem to bother with the pre race briefing and then wonder why they get a fine/DQ for crossing the white line .

 

[screenman]

You will not need a drink for a 35 minute race, unless you are dehydrated before you start. In a crit you will not get a chance to reach down for a drink unless you are out the back on your own.

 

[Buddfox]

What the others have said, but I would say in a Cat 4 race, it is highly unlikely that anyone who tries to make a break will stay away, so really don't be tempted to chase. For your first race, just aim to stay with the bunch and see what happens.

The pace will probably be pretty constant for all but the last three laps, when it will pick up quite noticeably. And if you are in the mix at the end, don't be anywhere worse than about fifth wheel. And don't be the first to go for the sprint because you likely won't have the legs to make it all the way to the line in first. Wait for as long as you can, and when someone else goes that's your moment.

Good luck, enjoy it, I still remember my first race and it's a special moment once you are called to order on the start. You're no longer just a cyclist, you're a racer.

 

[MickeyBlueEyes]

I can't race without a drink. Different strokes and all that.

 

[screenman]

I can't race without a drink. Different strokes and all that.

Not even a 35 minute one, must admit I ever crit I did was so fast that I could not even come up off the drops. I would expect to see a 35minute one run off at about 27 or 28 mph, with certainly faster bits in there somewhere.

 

[S-Express]

I can't race without a drink. Different strokes and all that.

Not ridden cyclocross?