Push off wobbles

alan111bikes

I have beenTT for two years now and have made stead progress.However ,over my last four or five rides I have developed an inabiility to stay steady at the push off.It seems something like the yips in golf or dartiist,
The harder I try the worse it seems to get,to the extent that on my last two rides I had to put my foot down,
Has any one else experienced this problem or am I the only person to have the wobbles.
It is really bugging me,I wonder if I have developed some strange posture which makes balance difficult.
I am sure the problem is psychological,but any suggestions would be most wellcome.I have nearly reached the point of giving TT up because of this,something i do not want to do as I really enjoy it,
again thoughts or comments would be most wellcome

chrisw12

I have the solution and it's brilliant, it will help you cure your problem and will also help your club out. A double whammy!


Offer to be the pusher off at your next club tt. You will learn so much!


But in the meantime.

I've had a few goes at pushing off and have had only one nearly down. No 119 and me tangoed across the road, I was tired and she was nervous, not a great combination.

So


1) Make sure you're in a suitably LOW gear. So many people are in too high a gear and end up stalling. Powerfull guys can get away with it, but some can't.

2) Make sure the pusher has you straight, so many riders allow themselves to be angled and are too afraid to tell the pusher, communication is the key.

3) Have a look at what the pusher is doing before the start. Some push, some just leave you start, some will shout out if there's traffic around. Familiarisation is a good thing here.

and with these new fangled clipless pedal things why do we bother with a push start? Like it makes a huge difference in something like a 12hr. :roll:

dennisn

I don't think you're supposed to push the riders. I know this doesn't
help your wobble or maybe it does. Tell them to just let go. No push.


Dennis Noward

Alex_Simmons/RST

You've identified a weakness, good!

So get a mate and go practice starts. Ten starts once a week. You'll soon get the hang of it.

If you were practicing for track TTs, then that's much more technical and would need a coach expert in starting technique.

SteveR_100Milers

Chris is right - you have to tell the pusher if they are (usually) holding you towards them at an angle.

blackhands

dennisn wrote:

I don't think you're supposed to push the riders. I know this doesn't
help your wobble or maybe it does. Tell them to just let go. No push.


Dennis Noward

So the hundreds (maybe thousands) of pushers off I've had in 50 years of time trialling have got it wrong then? UCI rules may well be different (as may be BC ones).

thetrotter

chrisw12 wrote:

I have the solution and it's brilliant, it will help you cure your problem and will also help your club out. A double whammy!


Offer to be the pusher off at your next club tt. You will learn so much!


But in the meantime.

I've had a few goes at pushing off and have had only one nearly down. No 119 and me tangoed across the road, I was tired and she was nervous, not a great combination.

So


1) Make sure you're in a suitably LOW gear. So many people are in too high a gear and end up stalling. Powerfull guys can get away with it, but some can't.

2) Make sure the pusher has you straight, so many riders allow themselves to be angled and are too afraid to tell the pusher, communication is the key.

3) Have a look at what the pusher is doing before the start. Some push, some just leave you start, some will shout out if there's traffic around. Familiarisation is a good thing here.

and with these new fangled clipless pedal things why do we bother with a push start? Like it makes a huge difference in something like a 12hr. :roll:

All good advice. Pushing off in a TT is a much underestimated - and undervalued - skill which you don't appreciate until you've done it yourself. I always watch what the pusher is doing and tell them if I want something different since I prefer to be let go rather than pushed and I hate being rocked backwards and forwards. You also need to tell the pusher if you are being held at an angle - remember than he (or, less likely, she) may have pushed off scores of riders already that day and may actually be getting a little tired themselves. And remember always to say thank you!

J2R2

After two years of TT'ing I still feel a little bit nervous when getting pushed off.

I suppose if it is a real problem for you, you don't have to be pushed off. I imagine you could self-start?

BeaconRuth

I've been very nearly dropped by pusher-offers 4 times in the last 2 years. I don't think it's ever been my fault, as I've been time-trialling for 9 years now, I'm light and I reckon my balance is usually pretty good. Most pusher-offers are excellent, but maybe I've just been unlucky.

There's nothing to say anyone HAS to have a push off. Former World Masters TT Champ Roger Iddles is known in our district for always refusing a push off and starting on his own. And my recent dodgy moments led me to refuse a push-off at the start of the National 100 this year - I reckoned a push off versus clipping in myself wouldn't make a whole lot of difference to the outcome of a 100 mile race.

Ruth

peanut

its your choice not the pushers. They are not there to give you a shove off... they are there to make sure you don't jump the clock like the people who hold the racing skiffs. You don't see them trying to shove a racing skiff and 4 rowers off do you !

You tell them what you want. If you find that their shove unbalances you, tell them not to shove you. Take responsibility for yourself.Or ...you could just let each pusher do exactly what they want for the next 50 years without ever questioning it. :roll:

chrisw12

BeaconRuth wrote:

I've been very nearly dropped by pusher-offers 4 times in the last 2 years. I don't think it's ever been my fault, as I've been time-trialling for 9 years now, I'm light and I reckon my balance is usually pretty good. Most pusher-offers are excellent, but maybe I've just been unlucky.

There's nothing to say anyone HAS to have a push off. Former World Masters TT Champ Roger Iddles is known in our district for always refusing a push off and starting on his own. And my recent dodgy moments led me to refuse a push-off at the start of the National 100 this year - I reckoned a push off versus clipping in myself wouldn't make a whole lot of difference to the outcome of a 100 mile race.

Ruth

Ruth, being a gentleman, I find it a bit awkward pushing off a lady. First off all the smaller ladies, sometimes don't have enough seat post to hold and it can be a little confusing where to put your hands and head. :oops:

dennisn

blackhands wrote:

dennisn wrote:

I don't think you're supposed to push the riders. I know this doesn't
help your wobble or maybe it does. Tell them to just let go. No push.


Dennis Noward

So the hundreds (maybe thousands) of pushers off I've had in 50 years of time trialling have got it wrong then? UCI rules may well be different (as may be BC ones).

I believe that they are called holders, not pushers.

Dennis Noward

BeaconRuth

chrisw12 wrote:

Ruth, being a gentleman, I find it a bit awkward pushing off a lady. First off all the smaller ladies, sometimes don't have enough seat post to hold and it can be a little confusing where to put your hands and head. :oops:

Are you suggesting that the 4 chaps on the 4 occasions were all confused about what to do with themselves whilst holding me up?! I'd love to think I send men into states of confusion when faced with the task of holding up a 55kg girl but I really doubt it very much. Gosh you fellas are funny sometimes!

Ruth

blackhands

dennisn wrote:

blackhands wrote:

dennisn wrote:

I don't think you're supposed to push the riders. I know this doesn't
help your wobble or maybe it does. Tell them to just let go. No push.


Dennis Noward

So the hundreds (maybe thousands) of pushers off I've had in 50 years of time trialling have got it wrong then? UCI rules may well be different (as may be BC ones).

I believe that they are called holders, not pushers.

Dennis Noward

I don't care what they are called. What I asked is if they had got it wrong by pushing me off - if they have, please point me to the rule which says they shouldn't. Having coached and 'held up' riders in pursuits on the track I know its a no no to give them a push.

Alex_Simmons/RST

blackhands wrote:

I don't care what they are called. What I asked is if they had got it wrong by pushing me off - if they have, please point me to the rule which says they shouldn't. Having coached and 'held up' riders in pursuits on the track I know its a no no to give them a push.

Certainly on the track that is the case and a Commissaire will enforce it, even DQ a rider for persistent infringements. The only exceptions are:

- Match sprinting, where the rider may receive a push after the starter's whistle is blown
- Track Handicaps/wheelraces, where there is a holder who is allowed to push start (typically a one step push but local rules apply).

TTs in most countries are run by TT organisations not affiliated with the UCI, hence UCI rules don't apply. You would need to refer to local TT regs.

In UCI and affiliate organisation TTs, there is no pushing. Rule 2.4.011 applies:

The rider shall start from a stationary position. He shall be held and then released, without being
pushed, by a holder. The same holder shall perform the task for each rider.
If the start time is recorded using an electronic strip, the distance between the
point of contact of the front tyre with the ground and the electronic strip must
be 10 cm.
(N) The start shall be taken from a starting ramp.
(text modified on 1.09.00; 1.01.04).

blackhands

Yep, I know that as I'm a national level comissaire and have coached pursuiters up to international and Olympic lmedal evel standard.

Local (England and Wales) CTT rules specifically prohibit a push in hill climbs but whist they say that in other TTs a rider may be held they do not specifically mention prohibiting a push - in fact the notes for organisers specifically refer to a "pusher off". It has always been a custom (not always follwed I admit) that riders are rocked back and forward for the final 5 sec countdown and given a shove on "GO".