4th cat chipper wannabe needs advice

Ste_S

This year, all going to plan, will be my first year of racing. I know what events I'd like to try (Track League, Closed Circuit, Short RR, 10mile TT's) and I've identified some specific races to enter. I even have a cobbled together training plan to try to build up to my first race in May.

For anyone who's been in my position, what advice would you give ? Is there anything you would of done differently in your first year looking back ?

Mike Willcox

Ste_S wrote:

This year, all going to plan, will be my first year of racing. I know what events I'd like to try (Track League, Closed Circuit, Short RR, 10mile TT's) and I've identified some specific races to enter. I even have a cobbled together training plan to try to build up to my first race in May.

For anyone who's been in my position, what advice would you give ? Is there anything you would of done differently in your first year looking back ?

The mistake I made in my first year was treating each ride like it was my last; hammering away like hell and only feeling like it did me good if I ended up knackered. Think recovery equals improvement and train for endurance and speed seperately.

Toks

Ste_S wrote:

This year, all going to plan, will be my first year of racing. I know what events I'd like to try (Track League, Closed Circuit, Short RR, 10mile TT's) and I've identified some specific races to enter. I even have a cobbled together training plan to try to build up to my first race in May.

For anyone who's been in my position, what advice would you give ? Is there anything you would of done differently in your first year looking back ?

Yeah I would've got out and done more fast group rides - chain gangs etc

dennisn

Horsepower to weight ratio is the key to acceleration and acceleration is the key to winning,
or at least staying up with the peloton, in shorter races. I'm not talking about the
weight of your spoke nipples, frame, seatpost, and shift levers. I'm talking about your weight. Accelerations are lots harder if you're lugging around 15 or 20 extra pounds.
My advice - get lean - get strong, it will do you worlds of good in racing.

Dennis Noward

SteveR_100Milers

dennisn wrote:

Horsepower to weight ratio is the key to acceleration and acceleration is the key to winning,
or at least staying up with the peloton, in shorter races. I'm not talking about the
weight of your spoke nipples, frame, seatpost, and shift levers. I'm talking about your weight. Accelerations are lots harder if you're lugging around 15 or 20 extra pounds.
My advice - get lean - get strong, it will do you worlds of good in racing.

Dennis Noward

<pedant on>Actually its the ratio of force in Newtons to weight (F=m * a). Similarly to an engine, the force in pedalling would normally be measured as torque (pedalling force * crank length). Power would be the result of torque x cadence, which is what you ned to overcome resistance (think speed through the air, or climbing speed etc). So, the harder you can mash the pedals the faster you will accelerate. The hard part is to keep accelerating to a speed faster than anyone else.

The debate about cadence always fascinates me, as there is no right or worng cadence, its about what suits you. Some of us diesel engines, i.e. lots of low down torque buit no top end, and at the other extreme there are the spinners at 150+ rpm. Two different ways to make the same power output, and therefore the same velocity against a given resistance. I actually think that its not long for a newbie cyclist to find his/her ideal cadence range for optimum speed and acceleration.

Sorry to be such a pedantic smart arse....

Klassiker

You are doing two things right by trying a wide variety of races, and by asking for advice.
Whenyou start racing, the most important thing is to not give up. I don't just mean out on the road, although quitting races can become a bad habit. I mean never get disheartened. Set yourself goals which you can realistically achieve. If necessary, reassess your training and expectations. Road races and crits (getting dropped, lapped and pulled out) can be the most demoralising experiences for riders just starting out, but we've all been there. You learn something and improve your fitness with every race, so commit yourself now to riding afull season, at least one race a week, and see it through no matter what.

Good luck!

J2R2

Mike Willcox wrote:

The mistake I made in my first year was treating each ride like it was my last; hammering away like hell and only feeling like it did me good if I ended up knackered. Think recovery equals improvement and train for endurance and speed seperately.

I think that's spot on. Too many people starting out (like me in my first year) ride fairly hard all the time - enough to get tired but not enough to deliver real performance improvements.

In January through to March I mix really, really hard stuff, like midweek turbo sessions that leave me retching and make the whites of my eyes go pink, with good steady social riding at weekends.

I would advise trying different types of event, e.g. track, road, TT, cyclocross etc so that you find what suits you. My original plan was to try road racing but I was crap - 4th cat, zero points. But I got the TT bug. This year (my second year) I got a 21 minute ten and got under the hour for a 25.

Also, be prepared for a few setbacks. Don't expect too much too soon. It takes time to build up your legs and lungs and, unless you're talented, you need to play the long game. There may be times when you feel like you're getting nowhere, but you get out what you put in.

Ste_S

Thanks for all the advice.

I'm under no illusions about going out the back on most (all?) of the races this year, the only real objective I have is to enjoy myself and to carry on through doing 1 or 2 races a month from May to September.

I think my (de)training plan is varied enough (mixture of track sessions with the club coaches, home roller sessions and group rides on a weekend) and I'm looking forward to trying different types of racing. Although Track is edging it at the moment, whizzing around a track is too much fun

Alex_Simmons/RST

Ste_S wrote:

This year, all going to plan, will be my first year of racing. I know what events I'd like to try (Track League, Closed Circuit, Short RR, 10mile TT's) and I've identified some specific races to enter. I even have a cobbled together training plan to try to build up to my first race in May.

For anyone who's been in my position, what advice would you give ? Is there anything you would of done differently in your first year looking back ?

I probably did too many hard races in my first year of racing (20 road opens) and not enough training prep. Ended up burning out.

My advice: race lots of different events, learn about them and yourself and work out what you really enjoy. Racing is fun. After a season you'll have a pretty good idea of what you need to work on to continue the the enjoyment (skills, tactics, fitness, equipment ~wise).

BeaconRuth

The mistake I made in my first years of racing was to think that those who were giving me a good kicking were somehow more talented than me and somehow through natural ability could sustain speeds 3 or 4 mph faster than me. In the main they weren't more talented - they'd just trained a darn site harder than me.

Ruth

oldwelshman

J2R2 wrote:

Mike Willcox wrote:

The mistake I made in my first year was treating each ride like it was my last; hammering away like hell and only feeling like it did me good if I ended up knackered. Think recovery equals improvement and train for endurance and speed seperately.

I think that's spot on. Too many people starting out (like me in my first year) ride fairly hard all the time - enough to get tired but not enough to deliver real performance improvements.

In January through to March I mix really, really hard stuff, like midweek turbo sessions that leave me retching and make the whites of my eyes go pink, with good steady social riding at weekends.

I would advise trying different types of event, e.g. track, road, TT, cyclocross etc so that you find what suits you. My original plan was to try road racing but I was crap - 4th cat, zero points. But I got the TT bug. This year (my second year) I got a 21 minute ten and got under the hour for a 25.

Also, be prepared for a few setbacks. Don't expect too much too soon. It takes time to build up your legs and lungs and, unless you're talented, you need to play the long game. There may be times when you feel like you're getting nowhere, but you get out what you put in.

If you can do a 21 min 10tt you should be able to ride off in the distance in a 4th cat race