Positioning tips

MrJim007

Hi all,
Had my first ever race last night. Entered the 3rd/4th cat mixed race at Portsmouth Mountbatten track. My goal was to finish with the bunch but after a few goes at going off the front I ended up drifting back thru the bunch and getting blown out the back,albeit with only 5mins remaining.
I am after any tips regarding bunch positioning. I found rolling round in the bunch ok but often found myself on the very inside or outside without a wheel to follow and wearing myself out slamming into the wind. I also found that I would be up in the front 5-10 riders and then a stream of riders would come round the outside leaving me with nowhere to go and I would end up at the back and clinging on!!
I know its not good to jump about in the bunch but should I be a bit more aggressive in defending my position or is it a case of once at the back busting my balls to come back round the outside?

P_Tucker

1. If you are not moving forwards, you are moving backwards. You should be trying to move forwards ALL THE TIME.
2. Use other riders as they move up; jump on their wheel and get a free tow nearer the front
3. Work out which way the wind is blowing, and use this knowledge to position yourself e.g. if one one section theres a right to left crosswind, ensure you find yourself on the left of the bunch. Even if you've not got a wheel directly in front of you, you'll still be getting plenty of shelter.

ozzzyosborn206

3. Work out which way the wind is blowing, and use this knowledge to position yourself e.g. if one one section theres a right to left crosswind, ensure you find yourself on the left of the bunch. Even if you've not got a wheel directly in front of you, you'll still be getting plenty of shelter.

if it is very strong and echelons are forming make sure you are working on the front otherwise you will start to drift back and before you know it will be off the back and dropped

Herbsman

I can never tell which side the wind's coming from, unless it's a blatant 45+ degree side wind I can never feel the benefit of being in an echelon. I'm thinking of attaching a little wind flag onto my bars

P_Tucker

ozzzyosborn206 wrote:

3. Work out which way the wind is blowing, and use this knowledge to position yourself e.g. if one one section theres a right to left crosswind, ensure you find yourself on the left of the bunch. Even if you've not got a wheel directly in front of you, you'll still be getting plenty of shelter.

if it is very strong and echelons are forming make sure you are working on the front otherwise you will start to drift back and before you know it will be off the back and dropped

echelons? In a 3/4 race? Are you MENTAL?

sheffsimon

MrJim007 wrote:

Hi all,
Had my first ever race last night. Entered the 3rd/4th cat mixed race at Portsmouth Mountbatten track. My goal was to finish with the bunch but after a few goes at going off the front I ended up drifting back thru the bunch and getting blown out the back,albeit with only 5mins remaining.
I am after any tips regarding bunch positioning. I found rolling round in the bunch ok but often found myself on the very inside or outside without a wheel to follow and wearing myself out slamming into the wind. I also found that I would be up in the front 5-10 riders and then a stream of riders would come round the outside leaving me with nowhere to go and I would end up at the back and clinging on!!
I know its not good to jump about in the bunch but should I be a bit more aggressive in defending my position or is it a case of once at the back busting my balls to come back round the outside?

This.

kieranb

One problem you will come across in some races on the road is the stupid risks some riders take to move up on the outisde, i.e. in the lane for oncoming traffic. If you don't do the same it can be hard to keep your position and remember moving up on the inside is also dangerous as this is usually where the road conditions are worse. So if you don't want to take these risks you will need to be a bit more agresswive in the bunch and will need to be regularly working forward through the riders who have moved upon the outside using the lane for oncoming traffic.

Slack

A combination of everything!

- Just make sure you're not intimidated or shouldered out of the way.
- Even though echelons don't form that often in lower cat races, just make sure you're not on the wrong side relative to the wind
- Try and stay in the top 12, but don't feel the need to jump on a wheel everytime someone tries to make a break, that's just a waste of energy.

When racing think about using your energy as efficiently as possible - it's not the fittest riders who win, it's the ones who use their head the most (I don't mean Renshaw headbutting).

gandhi

Mountbatten bunch positioning is pretty easy once you're comfortable riding close to people. Maybe next time hang around to watch some of the E12 race. Pick someone good to watch and look at how they move around the group.

dawebbo

Don't know this specific circuit, but in general it's hard work staying near the front. You'll find it a lot easier when you're fitter.
Other than that, as the other posters suggest - remember where the wind is and keep an eye out for gaps you can fill and wheels coming past that you can get on (safely!)

Monty Dog

Field of sixty, and everybody wants to be 10th or so - go figure? Smarter riders have greater confidence in their abilities and know where to take shelter and who the protagonists are in a race and therefore which wheels to follow.

MrJim007

Cheers for the replies, all good stuff!!
Given me a few things to think about. Not sure its really a fitness issue as such as my mate was riding as well and we are of a very similar level, he just stuck in the bunch a bit more rather than waste himself at the front!!
Will certainly be bearing in mind P_Tuckers comment 'if your not moving forwards, you are moving backwards'!!

Monty Dog

Your mate's got the right idea - if you want to be in contention, you need to conserve energy, watching the ebb and flow of the race - move up when the pace eases off rather than hammer yourself and then find it all slows down again. Ride you first few races just to get a feel for it - generally the smarter riders are the ones that get results.

overgeared

in any bunch riders will tend to move up on the outside, which means the guys in the middle of the road will tend to drift back, the effect is that you have to be thinking about moving up all the time to maintain a good position.

there are a few elements to staying at the front, one is having the fitness to move up, one is to have the power:weight ratio not to drift back on the hills, one is identifying the good wheels to follow and sticking with them, and one is looking well ahead to anticipate and accelerate into any surges.

try focussing on the helicopter shots when you watch pro racing on tv, the pattern is very clear to see once you start looking for it.