A co-worker informed me he started racing last year as a cat 5. Taking his usual beatings as he really doesn't know what he is doing.
I told him I could give him some helpful hints to get him all squared away so he could upgrade with some panache in 2013.
So...I figured I would put it to the group. What helpful hints would you give a cat 5?
Since I started the thread...
Got this one from Greg Lemonds Complete Book of Cycling.
"Your longest training ride doesn't need to be longer (in terms of time) than the longest race you have on your calendar for the year."
Look for the good, experienced riders. Follow them/stay close to them. Many of those riders have a "sense" on where to be to 1) stay out of crashes and 2) go with the right breaks (and be in front of splits).
Ben
Warm-up properly.
Most newbies don't realize the importance of a good warm-up. 10 minutes ain't a warm-up, especially for a short Cat 5 crit.
A good crit warm-up should be at least 30 minutes, if not longer, and include some hard jumps and intervals to "open things up."
Once I figured that out, I was able to hang with no problems.
My biggest leap forward came when I realized the benefits of living and thinking like a bike racer. Your body is your main tool and it's got to be focused, trained, and ready. It's an arms race of training and preparation. The typical guy starting out will likely benefit from training more instead of less and incorporating the bike into his daily routine.
Your bike is your other main tool. Get one for training and one for racing. That mostly eliminates raceday breakdowns and gives you options in the case of unforseen mishaps or mechanicals as the season goes on.
I'd second Chinook's. I also find that night before prep and other "get all details" out of the way helps eliminate race day issues.
A few other things:
1) After you get a good base, train for the specific elements you need for your sport. In a crit, he'll need some good at speed cornering as well as the ability to jump multiple times in a short period, so short duration, intense intervals
2) Prep his group handling by doing club rides and perhaps some practice crit / whatever sessions his club has
3) Pick more than a few races, use the first few to learn / gauge the effort. In other words, every race isn't the be all and end all but an opportunity to learn and grow. Sooner you are in a few races, the sooner he'll learn what he needs and that his body will have the violent acceleration practice to kick start him to being competent.
j
Do as much riding as possible with experienced racers. Learn to ride a straight line. Plus -- rest is part of training too -- for me it was the hardest part.
1. Know who's who in a race
2. The most finely tuned training plan ever devised is meaningless if you're a tactical dope. Lots of super strong guys that never get results.
3. You don't have to chase/react to everything, particular early in a race.
4. There are no trophies for the guy that does the most work. Post race congrats for a monster pull may be nice for the ego but are meaningless if they aren't helping you or your team get results.
5. Disabuse yourself of the notion that you'll go to the front and ride people off. You need to achieve separation from the field which means a jump and settling down into a hard but manageable pace until the gap is established.
6. You don't need to train a ton particularly in the lower categories. Don't get spooked thinking you need to train 15 hours per week.
7. While it sounds terrible, not everyone in a race matters. Some guys will always be pack fodder as they'll never really figure out racing. These are the guys that as they move through categories are always in 10th to 16th place it seems. As 3s they'll be fit enough to ride in 1/2/3 events but just lack the saavy to close the deal and get a result.
For a Cat 5? It's going to cost around $275 to upgrade - 10x $25 entry fee and 10x $2.50 BikeReg fee.
The most specific training you could possibly get for Cat 5 and 4 races is to ride at moderate tempo with occasional surges for one hour, and then do 3 minutes at threshold, 2 minutes as hard as you can go for 1 minute (he's a newbie, he'll learn you can always go harder), and then sprint.
Ride lots and race lots. You don't get better at racing by not racing.
Zipp tubulars
11 Speed Super Record EPS
C-59 or M-10 Colnago, perhaps a Dogma
Sidi's
CycleOps Powertap
Rapha kit... Cat 5? He could get by with Assos
... what have I overlooked?
;^)
Rollers where he'll learn a smooth pedal stroke
A handful of guys to ride with practicing drafting/ pace-line work
What vt guy said. (Well said!)
and
Get a good bike fitting.
Copy professional riders (except for the pharmacology). I'd say that the single most important insight I had, the one thing that in addition to meager talent allowed me to climb into the professional ranks, was the value of shameless mimicry. At the time I did this, very little of my idealized imagery came from actual live racing (a handful of spectator occasions in my area) or even filmed footage (Tom Simpson or the Milk Race or whatever). The brunt was still photos in magazines and newspapers, from which I would sort of extrapolate a full range of probable motion: you could not be in position 'Z' unless you had, milliseconds before, been in position 'Y', and before that 'X', so on.
I was very aware when I entered my first races as a 13-year-old that, even though I was complete crap, I alone among my fellow competitors looked correct. As I got faster and stronger, there was very little need to undo bad habits — for example, a bad set of angles in my action, or a bad posture in or out of the saddle. Even moving in and around other riders in the peloton was like second nature, right from the start, because those dynamics and etiquette could be fairly accurately interpreted from stills. Nowadays, with YouTube and DVDs and such, the process would be far, far simpler.
I work with a number of juniors now (as well as grown-ups), and no matter how loudly they bark I don't let out the lead until they look right to me. Mind you, 'looking right' has to encompass a range of skeletal awkwardnesses and muscular limitations, but for any given anatomy, there's economic and graceful version of that anatomy. Finding it early on permits, eventually, a complete expression of the native ability.
practice taking corners without touching your brakes.
PlanB -
Great post. With junior sailors, even going up through and past college age, I can tell immediately how good a certain sailor is simply by the way he sits in the boat. It's stunning how accurate this is. A sailor who sits in the boat with his feet apart, and his shoulders inboard of his hips, is not a good sailor.
There's really nothing in this thread so far that I could disagree with. Except the Zipps. CAT5s crash a lot. Enve are a little stronger. VN tested that. (kidding)
Cat 5 = 85% of the racers are down-right scary to be around in a mass start event. So bike handling in tight quarters is key. I'd also suggest learning to 'take your space' and hold it are equally important, at least for crits. Circuit races are perhaps a better launching pad. If not available then find the most low-key starter, including the tue/wed evening practice. Those may actuall be better as many of the riders are Cat 2/3 and some of them may be so kind as to offer some tips and guidance to the newbie.
Super secret tip = Don't talk! Line up at the start, do be courteous to others around you, say hello and/or very limited polite small talk at the start. Then once the field gets rolling shut up! Only speak with a direct team mate and then only if you already met up before the event and talked strategy. Otherwise just ride the event, keep focused on the front ten, let any wanna-be stud go off the front, let someone else battle for the primes (if any in Cat 5) but do watch them develop so you can see who is aggressive, squirely, or a rocketship kick, and wait until the last three laps to even start to think about where in the world you are in relation to the top ten.
Then move up.
When the event is over you can start talking again.
One think you will likely note, the majority of the yackers finished behind you!
Don't wear a yellow bracelet.
Ride at the front. That's all.
Ride rollers (straight line practice). When in a race, stay in the "second row", kind of on the left. If in doubt (these are cat-5's) do not cross wheels.
And practicing corners without brakes is a really good idea. I've always, always sucked at that.
Be dignified.
Train with heavy equipment.
Never let your foot touch the ground until after you've stopped rolling.
Never do a track stand in view of the public.
Never use the word "howdy."
Stay upright.
Stay off the ST forum.
Have CK send him some videos.
Don't be a gear head / you can't buy speed.
However you want to say it, this is the #1 newbie pitfall. Just get out and learn to ride your damn bike. If you engage in carbon vs aluminum discussions or have a high zoot bike whilst racing Cat 5... OUCH.
If you know Polish personally, do not, under any circumstances, admit it.
Must be hard enough for his relatives, nobody should have to go through that!
More advice, this time philosophical:
Try not to be/become a hater or a snob. There's too much of that in road cycling already.
i've raced exactly 1 cat 5 race so my experience is limited. plus i said 'howdy' when i rolled up to the line. i went with the break at the very beginning because i figured they were the strongest and most experienced and were probably going to stay away until the finish. that plan worked great for about 5 minutes until after my pull at the front when i was completely spent. after that it was just a bike ride for me. i still think it was a good plan but i'm no racer and i train like it.
Beware of sand-baggers.
Don't be THAT guy who rides out in the road to piss off motorists on training rides.
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