Treefox

I had some juniors jump on my wheel at a Tradezone as I passed them (trying to bridge from a chase group to the peloton after getting caught behind a crash - I wasn't up to anything impressive). They hopped on my wheel, I thought they were people who'd followed me off the chase group, they got yelled at as we passed the line.

Now with all these really really short laps here in DC crits, it's not unlikely to imagine a really good break lapping the field - at which point people from the peloton would likely hop on their wheels, not knowing what was up... And what if the officials didn't recognize what happened? I've wondered about this... not that I'm likely to be the one lapping the field.

umd

You can work with riders from the same race that are not on the same lap. It's ok to jump on guys that are lapping the field...

TheJackMove

True, but it is NOT okay to work with riders who have been lapped, though, right? Or else you could have 5 guys on your team essentially sit out the first 4 laps and then have them fresh for the last lap.

aicabsolut

That makes no sense. You're saying the lapped riders can work with the lapping but not vice versa. How else could you rejoin the field? Otherwise, you'd need to try to break away again.

gwchem

These rules don't apply for crits, where (generally) only one field is on the course. Most crits should allow for lapped/lapping riders to work together, provided the rider being lapped didnt drop back from the field just to help the lapping rider.

TheJackMove

Yeah, it makes sense. If you are in a break and lap the field, you win when the field crosses the line on the last lap even if you are not the first person in the pack to cross. On the other hand, if you get dropped and lapped, you should have been pulled, and if you have not been, you can't just rejoin the field and start helping your teammates. And yes, if a break laps the field, technically to "catch" them, the rest of the field would have to break away for them and lap them.

umd

Lapped riders are usually cut. If the whole field is lapped by a few riders the field is not cut. The lapping riders usually just integrate into the pack. Everybody finishes on the lap of the lead riders, so the leaders will be sprinting in the midst of the rest of the field.

umd

If a lapped rider is not cut I do not believe (but could be wrong) that there is a rule against them rejoining the field and simply being a lap down. I seem to recall that there may be a rule against dropping back to help pull a break up to the back of the field.

zzzwillzzz

from the rule book (for crits):

3D3. The following are alternative methods for handling lapped riders in criteriums (i.e. riders who have been caught by the lead rider(s) in the race). The method chosen by the organizer with the Chief Referee must be clearly explained to the riders prior to the start of the race.
(a) A rider who falls so far behind as to be considered out of contention may be removed from the race by the Chief Referee.
(b) Alternatively, lapped riders may be permitted to remain in the race and all will finish on the same lap as the leaders. At the finish, these riders will be placed according to the
number of the laps they are down and then their position in the finish.
3D4. Riders on different laps may work with each other except that no rider may drop back to assist a rider who has broken away from the field [disqualification for accepting such assistance].