New to road racing... bit of help?

ttf

Hi there, just looking for a bit of advice regarding racing.
I am a 17 year old lad and have come from a xc mtb racing background but recently got onto a road bike and havent ridden the mtb since!

I went to a closed circuit road race the other night - my first one and thought it was good fun... few worrying bits though! In the 1st 3 laps there was a big crash which i JUST avoided and then i just felt that i was in the wrong place all of the time... no matter where i was, i just wanted to be somewhere else. I kept getting stuck in the middle of a bunch behind some bigger chaps going at, what i felt, was too slow a pace - however, i just felt like i couldnt get to the outside to overtake.
In the end i finished around 15th out of about 40+ riders but went to early for the sprint and felt i could have done better.

Now fitness-wise i felt comfortable... it was a cat 4-3 race so pace was fairly slow i guess (averaged 26 mph) but just a bit frustrating as i felt i could do much better had i got out nearer the front and had room to move without worrying about crashing!

However, next day a guy i'm mates with (he used to work at the same shop as me) asked me if i wanted to race for their team (DHC) which was awesome! I'm going to be racing at thruxton on sunday - another closed loop circuit so really i'm just looking for loads of advice please!
i guess it's just practice and confidence but any tips would be great!

many thanks in advance!

Bronzie

ttf wrote:

i just felt like i couldnt get to the outside to overtake.

Just very gradually move over from the middle of the bunch towards the outside - look over your shoulder briefly in the direction you are planning to move and if necessary indicate with your hand to the rider behind or outside of you that you are moving over, but do it very gradually so that you just drift across. Keep it smooth, keep it safe.

You'll probably find that the reason you were finding the pace easy was because you were stuck behind some huge windblock and as soon as you reach the outside, you wish you were back in the middle again

John C.

You are 17, your first race, the average speed was 26mph and it was too slow. Can you sign my top for me now, it could be worth a few quid in a couple of years Stick with it and learn how the bunch works, once you're in the middle you're stuck there, but it's easier work, just make sure you cover your brakes at all times. good luck enjoy. Just had my first race at Croft, (with Chris Newton) and 26mph seemed fast, totally knackered at the end, ached like never before and really enjoyed myself, life begins at 50

brownbosh

That crash was caused by a moron, luckily i managed to bunny hop the first guy he brought down and went cross country. My team had it well sown up so maybe you couldn't get past because we were all blocking !!!!!!!! Dave HARDING from DHC is a good guy and you could learn a lot. 26 mpg is not slow but it feels it at the back if the group. Start on the front and dictated that pace you will feel it, especially on the windy back straight. Also there were 5 or 6 neutralized laps after the crash which made it easy and it was short too owing to a puncture prior to the start. Did you race this wednesday too? Our guys had another good day. Top team in the south in a fortnight i reckon!!!!!!

a_n_t

brownbosh wrote:

26 mpg is not slow

diesel or unleaded?

LJAR

a_n_t wrote:

brownbosh wrote:

26 mpg is not slow

diesel or unleaded?

London pride I reckon...

brownbosh

:oops:

shockedsoshocked

If it's your first race and you're joining a team, just try and take as much advice as possible. Become comfortable riding in a bunch, and learn how to ride in the wind and hold a wheel and you'll have a much easier time. Lower category racing (sometimes) is quite negative, but once you get in with the higher cats knowing how to do those things is vital.