Racing for first time this weekend, yikes!

[Irishrich]

I think I've come a long way in a few months of cycling but I don't think I ever expected to be racing so soon. I joined a local cc and have been enjoying Saturday and Sunday rides with them. It was mentioned that there would be an in-club race amongst our own members with different groups based on ability and experience. Full of confidence after a quick Sunday ride I said I would take part this coming Sunday 6th October. I'm now realising that I know nothing about racing so I need to brush up on the basics so that I don't make a fool out of myself. Can anyone give me a quick crash course (wrong turn of phrase for a race I know) on what I should do in the race apart from pedal fast lol.

 

[HLaB]

Good Luck!

 

[Irishrich]

Thanks, I guess there aren't many racers here but I'll soon learn what do to even if it's the hard way.

 

[T.M.H.N.E.T]

Just sit in and enjoy the ride. No point trying to be a hero in your first outing.

Good luck

 

[lejogger]

What sort of distance is it over? Road race or time trial? Is it on roads or a closed track? Marshalled?

 

[Irishrich]

What sort of distance is it over? Road race or time trial? Is it on roads or a closed track? Marshalled?

It's 4 laps of a 5 mile road circuit (road race). The roads are open to traffic but will be marshalled and I hear they have a lead car. There are 3 groups based on handicap with group 1 being new or recent racers (which I'm in), followed by 2 more experienced groups. Should be about 8 people in each group.

Just sit in and enjoy the ride. No point trying to be a hero in your first outing.

Cheers, will do.

 

[HLaB]

Thanks, I guess there aren't many racers here but I'll soon learn what do to even if it's the hard way.

My experience is limited to TTs and Cafe Racing I can only think you need to get the correct balance between sitting in (Drafting) and doing the work One thing I've found of me (and I don know how global this is) but in a chaingang dont rush through just cruise through at a consistent pace regardless of what the bloke in front does. How that works in a race

 

[Dusty Bin]

If you're in the first group, you've got two choices (well three, actually, but we'll come to option three later).

1. Work together as a group to keep the pace as high as possible. chaingang/paceline is the usual method of doing this. Depending on the quality of the group and how well you work, you will have more of a chance of one of you taking the win, or a place, if you can stay away to the end.
2. Just ride about and wait for the next group to catch you, and then try to hitch a free ride with them and hope you can stay on. This is not actually as silly as it sounds, as although the next group will probably be faster, the numbers will be higher and you may find it easier to sit in.

Option 3 is to ride off the front on your own and go solo - worth considering if your group isn't pulling it's weight and you feel good. If you haven't got the legs to stay away, then who cares - at least you showed a bit of aggression and made an effort. I personally would rather attack, get dropped and finish last than sit in the bunch for a 15th place finish. And every time you do that, you will get stronger.

 

[VamP]

Unless you've ridden with the people in your group before, then I'd bet money that Option 1 won't happen. I agree that Option 3 has the potential for the most fun for you, if you can muster the guts to go for it. 99% of beginner racers in a handicap race will end up in Option 2.

Whatever happens enjoy.

 

[Dusty Bin]

Worth mentioning that Sean Kelly's first race (and first race win) was via option 3. I think he finished the race with the same time advantage on the scratch group that he started with.

 

[zizou]

If you are in the first group then your best chance of winning / placing is putting the effort in and getting everyone working together - however the early groups in APRs usually do not do this as you'll only get some riders willing to do the work while the others will just sit in to save their legs and then try and make the jump on when the next group arrives.

A more general tip is have a recce of the course before the race, get to know what the finish is like or if there are any tricky corners and not only what the hills are like but where they are. If you are a poor climber then you want to get to the front of your group before the hill starts so you have an extra few metres before getting dropped. A few metres doesnt sound like much but it can make a big difference.

 

[Irishrich]

I like the options and think this is great advice but I won't know which option to choose until the race gets going. From the little I know about the clubs riders and who will be racing on Sunday, I believe group 1 will be a mix of young guys with little race experience who have come up from juniors but have fitness and good road cycling experience added to a few new members ranging from 30-45 in age with no race experience and varying levels of fitness. Option 1 could be a problem as I can see there being a wide range of capable speeds in this group and I know I am quicker than most in this group.

I like the sound of option 3 but it doesn't sound very sporting as the club have said 3 groups will go off at different times so I assume they mean you go in your group and try to work together to not get caught too soon. If the weather conditions aren't great then solo riding could be much harder than being in a group even if they are a bit slower than what I could cope with.

I suppose that leaves option 2 as the most viable one as group 1 are likely to be caught by the more experienced and faster group 2, then group 3 so I could try to stay in the faster group and see where it takes me. It's something different from what I'm used to so it'll be exciting whatever happens.

 

[Dusty Bin]

I like the sound of option 3 but it doesn't sound very sporting as the club have said 3 groups will go off at different times so I assume they mean you go in your group and try to work together to not get caught too soon.

It's a race isn't it? If so, then the objective is to win. There is absolutely nothing 'unsporting' about a solo effort. The reason why the three different groups all start at different times in a handicap race is because if they didn't, it wouldn't be much of a handicap.

 

[Rob3rt]

I like the sound of option 3 but it doesn't sound very sporting as the club have said 3 groups will go off at different times so I assume they mean you go in your group and try to work together to not get caught too soon.

In which case how does someone win if you just ride around in 3 chaingangs? If it is a race, then there is no reason whatsoever that you should not try to shed any boat anchors early on (i.e. force an early selection to get rid of the weaker riders or those who won't pull their weight) or go solo.

 

[oldroadman]

So, what happened. Do tell, and no stories now.
That's the job of retired old has-beens - the older we get, the better we were (or the harder it was!).
Shades of an old Monty Python "Four Yorkshiremen" sketch, adapted, "When I was a lad in me first season, we dreamed of having chainsets, we had to drag the chain through our teeth to get going...etc..etc...