I am a 4th cat....................

amaferanga

If you learn how to use your strengths and how to race (and avoid hilly races ) you could be a 2nd Cat by the end of the season....

springtide9

okgo wrote:

They're big numbers for a 4th cat I think!
You should easily be able to break away in the late stages and hold it!!
What about 15 sec?

Filling in the gaps:

Best 10 sec power: 913 watts
Best 15 sec power: 892 watts
Best 20 sec power: 868 watts

There is always the possibility that the PT isn't reading accurate mind you!

amaferanga wrote:

If you learn how to use your strengths and how to race (and avoid hilly races ) you could be a 2nd Cat by the end of the season....

Yes I am very aware that my weight is a drawback with racing - specifically on hilly routes It is a shame as (like most people) would love to have a go at a road race event. Dropping weight (and maintaining) is one of my goals for the start of next session/year. I know it's a lifestyle change that I need rather than a diet.

I'd be very happy with making it to Cat 3 this session as I'm not going to get many chances to race.
I am convinced that it really is down to my lack of experience in racing (and even riding in groups), so will keep plugging away at it and I'm sure eventually it will 'click' when to go. It is obviously good to have someone confirm this as there is always a doubt in the back of your mind that you just are not fit enough.
I must admit I find racing with power really useful in terms of being able to pace myself, but I can see you can become too reliant on it. My third race was without the PT - and I felt very nervous about going to early.

Thanks again and happy racing!

okgo

OK, so you're not a sprinter type by the looks of things. So really you want to be going for a slightly longer one I think.

Your figures (on a flat course) are better than the majority of cat 3 riders I would imagine, let alone cat 4. So pick your circuits, and use the figures above to help you get the results. No point going for a bunch sprint each week if you don't have a sprint.

Good luck

jibberjim

springtide9 wrote:

I must admit I find racing with power really useful in terms of being able to pace myself, but I can see you can become too reliant on it. My third race was without the PT - and I felt very nervous about going to early.

I wouldn't try road racing with power targets too much, when breaking away getting as far away as you can as soon as possible is generally preferable to getting away slower but at a more sustainable power. You're not going to just ride away from the bunch, you need the bunch to decide not to chase you until too late - getting out of sight helps with that.

I'd find a fast group ride if you can, experience of just riding at the same speed (or higher) than races really helps you understand surviving, and then you can use the power when you want to rather than when you need to.

amaferanga

I've been racing with a power meter for some time now and have to say I've never actually used it during a race for pacing. I'll have a quick glance down at my Garmin a couple of times in a race just to see what the average power or NP is (I usually have a pretty good idea of the number I'll see anyway just from how hard the race has felt), but other than that the usefulness and interest come at looking at the numbers post-race. I can see it being useful in a solo break once you get a decent gap or if there's a particularly long climb (not many of those in the UK though), but to use it to somehow control your effort throughout a race would seem to me to be a mistake. After all you're presumably putting in efforts that are well below your bests for any duration, but doing it repeatedly so unless you're always looking at your Garmin (inadvisable in a bunch) then I'm not sure how you'd use power.

What happens if you look down and see that your average power for the last 30min is better than you've ever done before? Would you sit up and rest and give yourself a pat on the back? I don't for a minute think that you would, but how exactly do you use that power data during a race?

springtide9

Hi.. sorry for the late reply

The majority of the time the power value hasn't been much use during the race, apart from an indication of effort. In the three races I have done, the average power for the race has been reasonably low.. so your mind starts to wonder the what if ...

Only know the actual power for the first two (as my PT rim has gone out of true again), but the average power for the race(s) has been 235 & 250 watts - so have used this as an indication of what's left in the bottle (not that it has worked obviously!)

The only time that I used the power for pacing (remembering I have only raced twice with the PT!) was in my first race; as we lapped and I was looking at our average power I was trying to figure out how much effort you would need to make a break - get away from the pack and stay there, not that I (at the time) had any intention of doing it. On the last lap in attempting to get near the front of the bunch, I ended up at the front, the pack seemed to stall (even when I slowed) - and thought I have nothing to loose and it would be a learning experience even if it didn't work. So I decided to go for it; I sprinted to initially give myself some distance from the pack, before settling into a pace I knew I could (hopefully) hold for the duration of the race. Laps were 7 mins so was aiming for around the 350-400 watts mark.
As it happens, it seemed to work initially and I got at one stage about 100 metres on the pack, but I turned a corner and battled with a 15mph head wind (which seemed to push me backwards).. and about 3/4 of the way down the straight the inevitable happened.. the bunch past me.
I initially assumed that I must have dropped pace, but my average power for my last lap was 367 watts (compared to around 250 watts for a similar lap time). The entire lap I stayed tucked in the drops.. although it has also got me thinking about my position on the bike in terms of being 'aero'. I still wonder if this might have actually worked if it wasn't so windy?

Now you obviously have to remember that I'm in IT (so very figures driven) and this was my first race (as well as only owning the PT for less than a month).. so I have no doubt that I was probably over analysing my tactics, but it seemed like a good idea at the time and probably a good learning experience if nothing else :roll:

amaferanga

NP is usually a more significant number in a bunch race than average power.