newbie road racer

godihatehills

so I just finished the etape caledonia in 4.11, 42 minutes (ish?)behind the winner..... average 19.6 over 81 miles with next to nothing in terms of traiing as I stopped my commute to work back in april ..... am I fit enough to race....if so - at what level and what would people recommend in beds/ bucks area?

Pross

Fit enough? Yes, definately. Assuming you'll be racing in British Cycling events then you will have to start out as a 4th cat so you may get a choice of a 4th only race, 3/4 race or even a race open to all categories. Are you ready to race is another question though as there's more to it than just out and out fitness. The most important one is have you had much experience of group riding? As I always say on these threads, just get out and give it a go and most importantly enjoy yourself. I think Bronzie is your best bet for recommending races in that area :?

amaferanga

That's a good time, but were you riding solo or in a group? Makes a big difference to average speed.

godihatehills

well I was with mates until the climb- they then cramped up - although we were leapfrogging from group to group we did more than our fair share on the front (av hr 178 max 198- I was working!)
- I was quite surprised at the lack of through and off and lack of awareness.
as for my experience i did london to paris last year and have raced mtbs since I was 16 trained on the road for that so Im used to riding in small packs, certainly a lot more than some I saw at the weekend

Bronzie

godihatehills wrote:

what would people recommend in beds/ bucks area?

The only regular races in the area without travelling miles are the Thurs evening circuit races at Milton Keynes Bowl.

Every Thursday 7pm start - 1 hour + 5 laps. £10 entry or so. Run as a mixed 3/4 cat and separate E/1/2.

Usually they stay inside the Bowl (on the access road around the concert area) for half an hour before heading out into the carparks which is when the fun starts as there are some tight corners. Lots of hard accelerations and braking, so if your bike handling isn't great, you'll struggle to hang on.

Make sure you are confident riding at close corners otherwise you'll get dropped quickly or worse, possibly cause a crash. Try a local club chaingang beforehand if possible - my club (CC Luton) do a Tues night chaingang starting near Streatley (north of Luton) which you are welcome to come out and try - PM me for more details.