Road Bike Racing - What Catagory Racer are you?

I am just curious as to how many higher catagory riders compared to to newbies there are here.
I just started racing and am a Cat 5, but plan to be a Cat 4 by then end of January, and hopefully Cat 3 by the summer.

I'm a CAT5 racer also and need 3 more upgrade points. There are a few Masters races (Berkeley Hills RR to name one) around here that are only open to CAT4 and above.

I shall be getting my license this year

I dont race but would guess somewhere between cat 6 and 7.

I'm a CAT5 racer also and need 3 more upgrade points. There are a few Masters races (Berkeley Hills RR to name one) around here that are only open to CAT4 and above.

You don't need points to upgrade from a Cat5 to a Cat4...



I dont race but would guess somewhere between cat 6 and 7.

Your joking right?

That cat-1 guy must be laughing his @ss off! :)

That cat-1 guy must be laughing his @ss off! :)

fo sho, although it's possible.

I'm a Cat 3 though.

I was a II when I raced. But you reach a point where you have to ask yourself if you want to continue training for hours a day to stay there and move up again, or have an income that is above the poverty line.

Warblade - By points, I meant 10 mass start races and clinics that contribute to that number. I'm sure you knew that, though. I'm off the the Early Bird crit and mentoring session this morning. See you guys this afternoon.

Cat II.
When faced with a choice between racing with 45+ and racing with Cat IIs, I usually pick the IIs.

When faced with a choice between racing with 45+ and racing with Cat IIs, I usually pick the IIs.Why is that?

Because it's faster and longer, and usually safer.

I'd rather be in the middle of the pack in a Pro-1-2 for 2 hours than on the front of the pack in a 45+ race for "30 minutes +3 laps".

i did my first race today (early bird crit) it was cat 5, under 35 and not as easy as i thought it would be as i am only 15. It was a good experience though, im joining a team at the end of the month

I was a II when I raced. But you reach a point where you have to ask yourself if you want to continue training for hours a day to stay there and move up again, or have an income that is above the poverty line.

Similar to my situation. I was doing OK financially so the decision was more Little time left to train, and no desire to race with poor form. I would add to this the reponsibilities and other things in life that require time/resources. I do miss the competition.

Would love to come flyin out the last turn of a crit, in the top 5 and ready to go, one more time.

Cat 5. Hope to be up to Cat 4 by mid-summer.

Cat 5. Hope to be up to Cat 4 by mid-summer.

All you have to do is 10 mass start races and then ask for your upgrade. You could do that in the first month or two of the season.

I am a cat 4 wmns racer, but plan to cat up to 3 before nationals.

All you have to do is 10 mass start races and then ask for your upgrade. You could do that in the first month or two of the season.

Has anyone who's 35 and a Cat 5 done two races in a day to move up faster? Is that reasonable?

Has anyone who's 35 and a Cat 5 done two races in a day to move up faster? Is that reasonable?

Very reasonable, and desirable to get as much racing exposure as possible. Used to regularly do 2 a day, Masters and 2's, 4 a weekend. Given the length of most Masters races it's very easy if you have any kind of fitness level. Makes for a fun day as well. The one thing you need to sort out for yourself is how to handle the time between. There is a timeframe where it's better to just stay warm (ride) vs. resting and warming up again.

Because it's faster and longer, and usually safer.

I'd rather be in the middle of the pack in a Pro-1-2 for 2 hours than on the front of the pack in a 45+ race for "30 minutes +3 laps".

Wow your 45+ races are pretty easy compared to what we get. Generally the 45 masters class races the same length as the 3's and 4's. Many of our 45 masters guys are ex 1-2's and really put on the pain. Coming from SoCal to central Texas I will say one thing about these boys...they are some fast MF's.

Has anyone who's 35 and a Cat 5 done two races in a day to move up faster? Is that reasonable?

Yes it's reasonable. If I go to the Cal Aggie crit in Sac in a couple weeks I plan to race both the 35+ race and the Elite 4/5 race, which will get me my Cat 4 upgrade :D .

Has anyone who's 35 and a Cat 5 done two races in a day to move up faster? Is that reasonable?

Next month the first "big" race of the year will have 3 cat 5 races. Road racing in central Texas is huge, we get massive fields at just about every race. The great thing here, as opposed to Southern Cal, is that we have more RR than crits. Most weekends we have RR's on both Sat and Sun that are close enough in distance to eachother that you can easily make both races. It would be no problem to get your 10 race upgrade in 6weeks here or less.

Let me clarify my thought: I prefer 1-2 races because they're faster FOR longer.

Masters races are really fast when they're fast, but they do have more slow parts.
Whereas, a cat 1-2 race is usually on the rivet from beginning to end.

Was licenced as a 4 before all the crap happened. I might go back to racing someday, and I will end up a 4 again when I come back... on the other side of the fence!

Mandy

Cat 4 women's, so that might qualify as "other". I haven't determined yet whether my goal will be to upgrade (not even sure if it's possible here in Ohio to get enough turnout to earn points) or if I'll just enter a few races here and a few whereever we move to, or maybe I'll just drop the racing thing and bike for fun.

Wow your 45+ races are pretty easy compared to what we get. Generally the 45 masters class races the same length as the 3's and 4's. Many of our 45 masters guys are ex 1-2's and really put on the pain. Coming from SoCal to central Texas I will say one thing about these boys...they are some fast MF's.

You would have to go to Nats to get the intensity and duration in a 45+ race that you could get in a decent 1-2 field.

You would have to go to Nats to get the intensity and duration in a 45+ race that you could get in a decent 1-2 field.

Agreed but our 45+ races are not 30min long like he was stating. A 45masters or 35masters for that matter are not equal to a 1*2 field but they are much harder than a cat 5 race, at least in my neck of the woods.

I am a 41 year old cat 1.

Please do not even try to compare masters racing with P12's.
A 35+ race is nothing more than a decent 3's race.
A 45+ is probably nothing more than an average 3's race.

Any decent cat2 rider who starts a masters race will show well. That same rider may only be pack fodder in the P12.

I am a 41 year old cat 1.

Please do not even try to compare masters racing with P12's.
A 35+ race is nothing more than a decent 3's race.
A 45+ is probably nothing more than an average 3's race.

Any decent cat2 rider who starts a masters race will show well. That same rider may only be pack fodder in the P12.

I don't believe anyone was trying to say a C1/2 race and a Master 35+ race were equal. I know I've seen some top 10 cat 1/2's enter 35+ races and completely descemate the field. As I mentioned earlier our 35 and 45 masters races are much more than a cat 5 30min crit, which was what they were compared to earlier in this thread. We race at the very least the same distance as the 4's and in many racs the 3's.

I am a 41 year old cat 1.

Please do not even try to compare masters racing with P12's.
A 35+ race is nothing more than a decent 3's race.
A 45+ is probably nothing more than an average 3's race.

Any decent cat2 rider who starts a masters race will show well. That same rider may only be pack fodder in the P12.Are you speaking about Florida in particular or the country as a whole? Doesn't it depend, to some extent, the quality of the competition?

Are you speaking about Florida in particular or the country as a whole? Doesn't it depend, to some extent, the quality of the competition?

The country as a whole. I have done masters races in many states and find that, yes there are a number of quality cat1-2's, with loads of experience in the race, but in general, most 35/45 races are way below the level of any normal P12.

The fields will still be made up of mostly 3's, 4's, and avg 2's. Throwing in a dozen good cat1-2 riders does not make the race on par with a P12, it just makes it a tougher masters event for the guys behind.

Now take those dozen riders into a 80 man field of P12's and they are just a dozen good riders in a race with dozen"s" of other fantastic riders.

That doesn't mean a 35/45 rider can't win P12's, but it will be triple the challenge.

Agree, while there are usually a handfull of good riders driving the pace in a Masters event, there are 3 to 4 times that in a decent 1/2 field. Speeds can be similar and the Masters racing can be fun, but the intensity is nowhere near the same. It's not unusual in a P/1/2 crit to find yourself fighting to close a 1 weel gap, riding single file for long periods of time. Masters is go fast, drop a few, rest, repeat go fast.

I am still racing cat 4 road. I just started racing A's in cyclocross. Around here you upgrade in cyclocross based on the social pressure of being labeled a sandbagger. There seems to be no real criteria for upgrade unless you win 3 races in your category then you are bumped. The A field includes national/international level riders on down to strong cat 3's typically.

On the road lately I am doing well to come in the top ten but I still have not figured out how to win. If I start winning then I will upgrade otherwise I will stay in 4's. The only reason why I would like to upgrade honestly is because the races start to get longer and seem more challenging. The cat 4 races are short and kind of boring as no one seems to want to do anything but wait around till the last KM.

btw what is P12? does that basically mean Pro/Cat 1/Cat 2?

If so what is the 'Pro' cat?

This is probably a stupid question but those of you that know what your power to weight ratios are could you post them along with what cat you are? I'm just kind of curious what they are for people in different categories.

By the way, I know that power to weight is not a determining factor, experience is.

Cat 6

P12 = Professionals, cat1's and cat2's all in the same race.

Power to weight ratio? Not sure. I'm a cat1 @ 6'1" and 83kilos (182lbs) on average. I'd imagine my power to weight sucks, but then I am winning races :)

After the results of my first race, the closest category for me would be Cat 8.
Whenever they invent that group, I'll be pre-qualified.
I finished the same day as the peloton, but that's about it.

This is probably a stupid question but those of you that know what your power to weight ratios are could you post them along with what cat you are? I'm just kind of curious what they are for people in different categories.

By the way, I know that power to weight is not a determining factor, experience is.

I'm a Cat 5 and had a MSS (maximum steady state) test done in a lab a couple months ago. My power to weight ratio is 285W/63KG = 4.5

According to the guy who tested me, this figure is average for a Cat 2 racer, which is probably why I have not had much difficulty winning my first 3 races as a Cat 5. I don't think there's much I can do about the denominator in that equation, so hopefully I can increase my power as I move up since I would like to try to be a Cat 1 someday.

I have a chart at home that shows the average power to weigh ratios for each Catagory. I'll post it later unless someone beats me to it.

I'm a Cat 5 and had a MSS (maximum steady state) test done in a lab a couple months ago. My power to weight ratio is 285W/63KG = 4.5

According to the guy who tested me, this figure is average for a Cat 2 racer, which is probably why I have not had much difficulty winning my first 3 races as a Cat 5. I don't think there's much I can do about the denominator in that equation, so hopefully I can increase my power as I move up since I would like to try to be a Cat 1 someday.

Wow, that is very impressive. It's pretty easy to see why you aren't having much problem winning some races. I had mine tested this past weekend when I was at a training camp. My power to weight ratio is 285w/80.3kg = 3.55:1. I'm hoping that by race season I can get closer to 4:1 ratio. I am planning on losing 12 pounds so even if I don't gain any more power (which I should) that will have me at 3.8:1.


I have a chart at home that shows the average power to weigh ratios for each Catagory. I'll post it later unless someone beats me to it.

I would appreciate it, thank you.

This is probably a stupid question but those of you that know what your power to weight ratios are could you post them along with what cat you are? I'm just kind of curious what they are for people in different categories.

How is this calculated? I too would be interested in your charts, Pizza Man.

I just know that my coach had my bike on a computrainer this past weekend and told me to ride and how to ride. I did a few tests then did some time trials. They took my average wattage from a couple of time trials that I did then divided that by my weight in kilograms. As for all of the specifics I have no idea. I just know that it was pretty cool to see the wattage I was putting out. It was cool enough that it helped convince me to finally order a powertap Monday. :)

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Here's an example. A big rider (let's say 85 kg or 187 lbs.) and can produce 425 Watts for 20 minutes (a standard test interval) and thus has a power-to-weight ratio of 5.0 Watts per kg. (Top climbers have a ratio of 6-7 Watts-per-kilo.) For comparison, a lighter rider, let's say 60-kg climber (or 132 lbs.) need only produce 360 Watts to achieve 6 Watts per kilo. In this scenario, the lighter rider will overcome the effects of gravity more easily (remember that it is the power per kg that is important in overcoming the resistance of gravity), but the bigger rider will do better on the flats where the wind resistance is relatively weight independent and thus equal for the light and heavier rider - thus the lighter rider is 65 Watts behind and will lose the sprint.

I got that from here. http://www.cptips.com/climb.htm

As for all of the specifics I have no idea.

OK. I mean, there's a hugemongous range of power outputs from diddling along to a max effort sprint. I was wondering what power measurement, exactly, was used. But I did a little search and found somewhere that it's the max sustainable that's used.

I think my DH's PowerTap software keeps track of this and other interesting stats over the course of many rides. So finding it out for him would be straightforward, and I think it'd be interesting to compare it with typical riders in his and higher Cats! I don't use the PowerTap regularly, though he's invited me to borrow it if I want. If I could get a good measurement from a single ride to figure out my own power to weight ratio that'd be cool too.

How is this calculated? I too would be interested in your charts, Pizza Man.

Here's the chart I promised:

Power to weight ratios by racing category in watts/kg:

Cat 5 Cat 4 Cat 3 Cat 2 Cat 1 Pro-National Level Pro-World Class
M 3.0-3.4 3.5-3.8 3.9-4.3 4.4-4.8 4.9-5.3 5.3-5.8 5.9-7.0
W 2.6-2.9 3.0-3.3 3.4-3.7 3.8-4.1 4.2-4.5 4.6-5.3 5.4-6.2

The power can be calculated in various ways, but it is supposed to be the maximum sustainable power you can maintain for 30 minutes (Maximum Steady State, of MSS). The way I was tested was with my bike on a trainer hooked up to a power meter. The resistance (power) was increased every 2 minutes, then every 3 minutes until I got to a point that I could not maintain. Based on my HR at each level and where I ended up my MSS was determined.

The country as a whole. I have done masters races in many states and find that, yes there are a number of quality cat1-2's, with loads of experience in the race, but in general, most 35/45 races are way below the level of any normal P12.

The fields will still be made up of mostly 3's, 4's, and avg 2's. Throwing in a dozen good cat1-2 riders does not make the race on par with a P12, it just makes it a tougher masters event for the guys behind.

Now take those dozen riders into a 80 man field of P12's and they are just a dozen good riders in a race with dozen"s" of other fantastic riders.

That doesn't mean a 35/45 rider can't win P12's, but it will be triple the challenge.

Recently, as in last year, the Master "A" division was hauling ass in most of the races. Their speed surprisingly was deffinately right around that of the Pro 1/2's, but then again thats because they are all (well most of them) former Pro 1/2's. The 35+ division was definately not equal but pretty darn close.

I am a 32 year old Category 1 racer. I do mostly local and regional races but last year did some national level races and this year will be doing more. I have a real job and am still able to get results, partly because I have a lot of race experience and am pretty knowledgeable about tactics. It also takes a lot of training but knowing how to train and manage your time helps a lot. It also helps to have a very supportive wife.

Last year the only masters races I did were nationals, where I was top ten in both the criterium and the road race. Local masters races are fast, not as fast as Pro 1/2 races but pretty close. However, they are usually only 1/2 or 2/3 the distance. I personally don't do as well in local masters races as I do in the Pro 1/2 races. Most of the masters races end in bunch sprints and I'm better off in a break. Believe me though there are some fast masters racers in SoCal. I'll list a few:
Thurlow Rogers-1984 Olympian, ex La Vie Claire, Levi's, Subaru-Montgomery, Mercury
Steve Hegg- 1984 & 1996 Olympian, ex Subaru-Montgomery, LA Sheriffs, Saturn
Chris Walker-2004 Elite national Champion, multi-time masters national champ
Harm Jansen- ex Saturn, co DS for new United Pro cycling team.
Some of these guys will do 1 or 2 masters races and then the Pro 1/2 race, placing in two or three races in a day.