How to be more aggressive?

TakeTurns

Strange question, I know.

But, recently I've realised that I'm not aggressive enough in competition. Perhaps that's why I prefer TT like efforts.

I see people in races, pics of people attacking or sprinting for the line. They all look like someone just swore about their mother and they're about to rip that person's head off. Then me, I'm more like a jolly chap who's at a tea party. I don't mean I'm as soft as city cruiser, I have delved into the pain cave, but I'm sure there's more to it. It's made me think, if I could be more aggressive, I could find a good few hundred watts on a maximal effort.

How do you guys do it? Is it trainable?

maryka

It's all about mental commitment. Many people attack without really meaning it, when you attack off the front you should be doing it with the same focus, desperation and intensity you would have if you'd been accidentally gapped off the back and need to fight for your life to get back on the bunch. Unless you're just messing about, it's pointless to waste energy on a half-committed attack. Practice sprinting hard for 10-15 secs, going into Vo2max territory for 3-4 min then into threshold for 10 min, then rest and repeat. Yes, it should hurt a lot.

Riding with mates and sprinting for signs is a good fun way to sharpen up your mental skills and also your tactics for sprints and positioning, without feeling like you're "wasting" your "only chance" in a race. Many people race like every race is their one big chance to win, so they are afraid to try stuff and make mistakes. This is good in a lot of ways as every race needs its pack fodder, but from the point of view of aggressive riding, it's pretty boring to be afraid to try anything.

Tom Dean

A few hundred watts?!

Do you think you are being too timid in your decision making or strategy during races, or do you just think you could dig deeper in the sprint?

TakeTurns

Good points made maryka. It's a valuable skill to be able to get into that mindset of putting everything on the line and giving it your absolute best. Mini sprints with mates is a good one. It would help stimulate a similar situation and sharpen things up.

Yes, Tom, I say a few hundred and by that I mean 200-300. It feels like I could dig deeper in a sprint. I've noticed it more when out training. Halfway through a 15sec sprint, I consciously say to myself this doesn't feel that hard, what am I doing wrong here...I could go a lot deeper

Could it be because I'm more conditioned to riding sustained efforts? I should maybe point out that sprinting is my weakness, having said that my watts aren't that bad and I'd like to improve on it.

alihisgreat

TakeTurns wrote:

Good points made maryka. It's a valuable skill to be able to get into that mindset of putting everything on the line and giving it your absolute best. Mini sprints with mates is a good one. It would help stimulate a similar situation and sharpen things up.

Yes, Tom, I say a few hundred and by that I mean 200-300. It feels like I could dig deeper in a sprint. I've noticed it more when out training. Halfway through a 15sec sprint, I consciously say to myself this doesn't feel that hard, what am I doing wrong here...I could go a lot deeper

Could it be because I'm more conditioned to riding sustained efforts? I should maybe point out that sprinting is my weakness, having said that my watts aren't that bad and I'd like to improve on it.

For sprinting the key is the adrenaline rush which gives you those extra watts - I like to start from as close to the front of the bunch as possible so I'm forced to leave everything on the road if I want to get a placing.. no wheelsucking for me!

Don't get trapped into thinking "this guy looks strong, I'll take his wheel" or "I won't be fast enough" because then you set yourself up in a situation where you're not fully committed.

When I won my first race earlier this year I hit 36mph going up hill - which is faster than I'd ever sprinted on the flat before.. simply because I went to the race fully believing that I would win (it was a 4ths only!), I saw I was the strongest during the race, didn't mess around looking for the prime, and I took the initiative to put myself at the front and go early in the sprint.


Then I guess after that you'll become better at getting in the right frame of mind with more experience?

kajjal

The advice above about trying different things and making mistakes is very useful. It adds to experience and lets you know your options when racing. You just need to practice sprinting more to gain the technique and experience. Then try it in races to get a idea when you can go for it. Much like hill climbing or descending you will get to know you limits better, when to push and when not to push.

displacedaussie

Bravery, brains and brawn.

You need to be strong enough, smart enough and crazy enough to give it all at the right time. You don't need to use elbows. You don't need to be "aggressive". You don't need to be the strongest or the smartest or the bravest either.

Train right.

Think about it. Plan out races in your head. Work out what you'd do under as many different circumstances as possible. What are you good at? What are you not good at? Factor that in. Watch everyone. Be aware of yourself.

And then when that moment happens you have to forget everything and just do it.

If you succeed, great. If you fail, even better. Go back and do it again. And again. It's all about preparing yourself - mentally, physically and emotionally so that when you need to do it - when you need that "aggression" and "fire" and "desire" - everything else can just disappear, allowing you to give it all to get yourself across that line before everyone else.

DavidJB

Also don't worry about people shitting themselves in lower cats and shouting at you when you make a perfectly valid move. They don't like it when you find small gaps and move in because they don't have the skills to deal with it. It's a race not a Sunday club run with a cake stop. BUT knowing the difference between riding aggressively and riding dangerously is a fine line, there's also ZERO need to ride super aggressively up the outside (full sprint when then bunch is meandering) or taking stupid gaps in the middle of a race just to move about the bunch and not even attack which some seem to do.

Yes when you're in a breakaway or attack really give it everything, annoys the hell out of me people that attack and then sit up or just sit on your wheel fk off back to the bunch! If you're attacking that should be your race move and if it fails you lose the race a lot of lower cat riders are scared of hurting and just want an easy bunch ride to the finish.

cycleclinic

winning is as much in the head as in the legs. The two work together to make a winner. One without the other well that is a shame.

ju5t1n

thecycleclinic wrote:

winning is as much in the head as in the legs. The two work together to make a winner. One without the other well that is a shame.

100% true

majormantra

DavidJB wrote:

Yes when you're in a breakaway or attack really give it everything, annoys the hell out of me people that attack and then sit up or just sit on your wheel fk off back to the bunch!

The winner is the one who crosses the line first, not the person who works the hardest. If you don't like that maybe consider triathlon?

ju5t1n

MajorMantra wrote:

DavidJB wrote:

Yes when you're in a breakaway or attack really give it everything, annoys the hell out of me people that attack and then sit up or just sit on your wheel fk off back to the bunch!

The winner is the one who crosses the line first, not the person who works the hardest. If you don't like that maybe consider triathlon?

Again, 100% true

DeVlaeminck

I think like someone mentioned above, getting it all out in a sprint is about practice. If you never give it 100% on the road during training you wont be able to when you are aiming at the finish line.

Being aggressive in the sense of making attacks etc is really about mentality - not being afraid to have a go and fail. I'd disagree that all attacks have to be eyeballs out - sometimes the bunch will let you get away if you go at 90% and then you actually have a chance of maintaining.

As far as being aggressive in a bunch goes - well what might be ok in a Premier calendar isn't in a 3/4 race - use your elbows a it to defend your line etc but if you lean on the wrong person they are likely to panic and bring both of you down. If people shout at you for a move then at least think whether you were at fault - if you get shouted at often then you probably are.

cycleclinic

Ride asserticely rather than aggressively. No one likes aggressive and aggressive the way I think of it creates problems. Assertive riding means holding your line and not letting someone just push in and taking advantage of those gaps. It is a race after all you are there to win or at the very least do better than you did last time. I have not raced road properly yet but I do a fair bit of MTB racing and while I do not win I do give it 100% every time. If at the end I do not ache and I do not collapse on the floor I have not tried hard enough for long enough.

Monty Dog

One of the main reasons I stick to vets racing is that most riders are experienced enough to understand the difference between between being aggressive and assertive, unlike some 3/4 cats. If you have greater confidence in your abilities, know your limits and attack hard enough it will probably stick - half-hearted attempts rarely work.

ozzzyosborn206

i think i get where you are coming from as i kind of feel the same. I find i struggle to really empty myself in a sprint, at the end of a sprint i don't think i could have sprinted faster so to speak but i am a lot less f****ed than if for instance i hit out early with a k or two to go. Sometimes in interviews with Cav after big races he says is he has to 'double kick' it takes soo much out of him he struggles to race the next day but when i sprint I don't feel like I an dig anywhere near that deep.

I think that is what you meant by being more aggressive rather than just attacking more often?

TakeTurns

ozzzyosborn206 wrote:

i think i get where you are coming from as i kind of feel the same. I find i struggle to really empty myself in a sprint, at the end of a sprint i don't think i could have sprinted faster so to speak but i am a lot less f****ed than if for instance i hit out early with a k or two to go. Sometimes in interviews with Cav after big races he says is he has to 'double kick' it takes soo much out of him he struggles to race the next day but when i sprint I don't feel like I an dig anywhere near that deep.

I think that is what you meant by being more aggressive rather than just attacking more often?

Yes, precisely.

Poor wording on my part. Although some good advice given so far.

DavidJB

MajorMantra wrote:

DavidJB wrote:

Yes when you're in a breakaway or attack really give it everything, annoys the hell out of me people that attack and then sit up or just sit on your wheel fk off back to the bunch!

The winner is the one who crosses the line first, not the person who works the hardest. If you don't like that maybe consider triathlon?

I'm convinced you're actually trolling or you haven't read what I've written or you're one of those riders that expects a nice free ride to the end.

Giving it everything doesn't mean you're smashing it out at 190 BPM it means a hard effort for the time you'll be out in the break...a hard for an hour != to hard effort for 20 seconds.

Also it's impossible for me to be a tri-athlete as I can ride a bike for more than 34 seconds before falling off because there was a corner.

kingstonian

When i was racing in France our coach told us to be assertive in the peloton and aggressive in a sprint. Subtle but important difference between the two.

racingcondor

I'm with the guys suggesting don't be more aggressive, be more committed.

From what you've said though your training may focus on riding distances at medium/high effort and you could probably benefit from doing a few relatively easy rides with hard uphill sprints thrown in. It's hard mentally to push yourself to what is really a maximal effort and I think that's what's holding you back.

TakeTurns

racingcondor wrote:

I'm with the guys suggesting don't be more aggressive, be more committed.

From what you've said though your training may focus on riding distances at medium/high effort and you could probably benefit from doing a few relatively easy rides with hard uphill sprints thrown in. It's hard mentally to push yourself to what is really a maximal effort and I think that's what's holding you back.

I agree. This is very good advice and I've slowly begun implementing it.