The final sprint!

Elushion

Hi, I have been cycling for 2years. My strong zone is in climbs and i can beat nearly anyone on them. I have started racing recently and find i can stick with the group and scratch the whole way. However, when it comes to the bunch sprint, I seem to just move backwards and dont have the top end speed. How can I improve on this?

ride_whenever

practice it more...

also remember to go to a slightly harder gear as you move out the saddle.

chriskempton

As well as technique (you get this by practising sprints) you need to increase power so that you can get some explosive acceleration in bigger gears. You can work on this through the winter by doing sessions with short intervals at maximum/near max effort. A turbo trainer is helpful as it will allow you to concentrate fully on the effort instead of worrying about crashing, and will also let you train in all weathers. You can combine these solo sessions with longer rides in groups if possible to work on your skills and being confident.

ride_whenever

interval training is also good

andrewgturnbull

Hi there.

To win a sprint you need 3 things:

- Get to the finish in better shape than the others
- Practice, practice, practice. 5-20 second all out sprints
- You need to want it more than the others

Cheers, Andy

ps ride_whenever - what do you mean by interval training? That covers a whole lot of different things...

Alex_Simmons/RST

We can all improve our sprint by including sprint workouts in our training.

Apart from the physiological, there are also tactical, techical and skill elements to consider when trying to imporve sprints.

The other option of course is to force a break so that a sprint is not necessary, or so you only have to sprint against a few riders instead of a bunch.