Road Bike Racing - This year is a lost cause

Ive decided that at this point im not in good enough shape to be competative at any level this year, so im going to focus on next year, If you were tryin to train for racing next year, what type of training would you do? Keep in mind that i can ride throughout the year as it never drops much below 30 degrees here in South Carolina.
Should I focus on building a realy strong base this summer and then add intensity over the winter and next spring? Or should I do both types of training all year? I know i also need race experiance, so i plan on racing a non sanctioned training crit weekly all summer. What do you think? What about weight training, i could do with some muscle mass, (Im 6 foot 1 inch, 146 pounds). Please give me your expert (or not)opinions...Thanks!

The best way to prep for racing next year is to race this year.

I totally know what you're going through. With the weather here, I haven't been able to put in a good ride in weeks. Just ride when you can, race when you can.

If you're going to race a non-sanctioned training crit every week, why not just do the real thing?

I mean...you might as well get some race starts towards your 5 to 4 upgrade, pick up some real experience, and maybe learn a thing or two.

yea the main problem with that is that the training crit = 5 miles from my house real races = 150 miles from my house. I dont have a drivers liscense, and would hate to get my parents to drive me up to greenville to get my ass handed to me. Im not saying that if i get a chance to go to a race im not going to, im saying that im not going to focus on racing this summer.

by "my ass handed to me" i mean "Dropped off the field and lapped"

yea the main problem with that is that the training crit = 5 miles from my house real races = 150 miles from my house. I dont have a drivers liscense, and would hate to get my parents to drive me up to greenville to get my ass handed to me. Im not saying that if i get a chance to go to a race im not going to, im saying that im not going to focus on racing this summer.
Fair enough.

Training crits + group rides. Find someone who is a good deal stronger than you and ride with em as much as possible.

yea the main problem with that is that the training crit = 5 miles from my house real races = 150 miles from my house. I dont have a drivers liscense, and would hate to get my parents to drive me up to greenville to get my ass handed to me. Im not saying that if i get a chance to go to a race im not going to, im saying that im not going to focus on racing this summer.

What about trying a combination of training crits and real ones? Maybe for every 2-3 training crits you do, try 1 real one or something like that. Is there a club or team you could join where you could carpool with other people? If you have a weekend job, maybe offer to your parents to help pay for the gas...

I'm hoping to get at least one race in this year. I can take you with me if you'd like. My goals this year are to get ready for next year. You missed my first flat at the training crit earlier also.

haha, nice

did you change it? no you didnt have a tube did you? sucks man

i realy apreciate the advice. I need to find a fast group to ride with



and cypress, i have seen your legs, you do NOT know what i am going through

As others have said, try to get racing and group riding in. Alternatively, you could also work on starting to build an aerobic base, and get in some steady endurance and tempo rides.

In lotsa areas there's usually a '2nd season', by that I mean a flurry of race activity from Mid Aug thru Md Oct. (depending on climate). If like the others have noted, you work the local training events whenever you can, you'll have some 'peaking' in time for these.
Check out the schedules now and you might find a good 'series' of events later on that you can 'train' towards.
If you're not in a local racing club, join one now. Most clubs/riders will make extra efforts to help their younger (and not always younger) 'non-driving' members get to races. The stability and growth of cycle racing can be clearly credited to the dedication of racing clubs and their members many decades ago. Join an active local racing club, you won't regret it.
Anyway, don;t give up just yet. The weather will change. There'll be plenty of season.

Fair enough.

Training crits + group rides. Find someone who is a good deal stronger than you and ride with em as much as possible.

I agree that it's good to ride with stronger riders, but I don't think more than one common group ride each week is an efficient way to train (training races are an obvious exception). If you can get your groups to do focused intensity drills, then that's a great benefit to having faster riders around. If you're just going to do road rides with traditional sprint zones, the benefits will be limited.

I think you should get on a sprint and interval program, do a training race whenever possible, but I'd only do at most one random group ride each week (not both Sat and Sun, or evening shop rides). Even if the group ride has some really fast riders -- you'd be better off recovering for, or doing some intervals.

I agree that it's good to ride with stronger riders, but I don't think more than one common group ride each week is an efficient way to train (training races are an obvious exception).

[SNIP]




Doing some group rides is one way to push yourself a little bit and more particularly to deal with
speed surges. The pace isn't always going to be exactly what you want it to be. If it's a fast group,
you'll have to learn how to deal with surges and be efficient in order to avoid getting dropped. (that is
if the other riders are stronger).

I agree with waterrockets that you wouldn't want to do this all the time. You should be doing a fair amount of work at your own level whatever it is. Many race teams or clubs will have people who can give you some guidance on training programs. Or get Joe Friel's book the cyclist's training bible and get some ideas from that. People here could probably give you some advice on where to start. However, a knowledgable coach (or fellow race team member) may be better able to help you if they are local and can see you ride. That way they'd have a better idea what your strengths and weaknesses are.

My school has a cycling team/club with a very knowlegable coach, the problem is that last summer i dropped off of the team due to the fact that all of their rides were done in the middle of the afternoon (In Columbia SC 98 degrees 95%+ humidity and no wind is the norm for the summer months) on fort jackson which sports wide clearcut shoulders meaning NO shade on the roads, the ridew were just misearble so i stopped going, however i kept the bike he lent me for 3 weeks or so without riding much at all, that didnt make him happy. Hes not still mad at me, but im hesitant to join the team because i wouldnt want to ride when they do this summer, I wish i could convince him to A. do early morning rides more or B. just give me a training schedule.

I think you either should suck it up and ride in the heat, or offer to organize a morning ride for those riders it works out better for. Or both.

I do hill repeats here in Austin when it's 105. It sucks, but it's just good training, and lunchtime is just better for me.

Ive decided that at this point im not in good enough shape to be competative at any level this year, so im going to focus on next year


last summer i dropped off of the team due to the fact that all of their rides were done in the middle of the afternoon (In Columbia SC 98 degrees 95%+ humidity and no wind is the norm for the summer months) on fort jackson which sports wide clearcut shoulders meaning NO shade on the roads, the ridew were just misearble so i stopped going


real races = 150 miles from my house.

Excuses are the one thing absolutely guaranteed NOT to help you win any races.

thanks, i didnt realize that thats basicly what ive been doing, but it is.

thanks, i didnt realize that thats basicly what ive been doing, but it is.

I hope I didn't sound mean, but the year is only a lost cause if you choose to declare it a lost cause. Ride and race as much as you can this year. Waiting until next year isn't going to make you any better.

Go race. Others have given good advice.

In lotsa areas there's usually a '2nd season', by that I mean a flurry of race activity from Mid Aug thru Md Oct. (depending on climate). If like the others have noted, you work the local training events whenever you can, you'll have some 'peaking' in time for these.
Check out the schedules now and you might find a good 'series' of events later on that you can 'train' towards.
If you're not in a local racing club, join one now. Most clubs/riders will make extra efforts to help their younger (and not always younger) 'non-driving' members get to races. The stability and growth of cycle racing can be clearly credited to the dedication of racing clubs and their members many decades ago. Join an active local racing club, you won't regret it.
Anyway, don;t give up just yet. The weather will change. There'll be plenty of season.


Agree

There is always a flurry of strong racers between now and June... The guys and girls that train really hard all winter. Since I have issues getting good base miles and training hard in the cold I really dont peak till June anyways. By this time most of the early strong riders are burning out.


Just remember the best training for a racer is racing. After each race you will get stronger trust me.

I agree that it's good to ride with stronger riders, but I don't think more than one common group ride each week is an efficient way to train (training races are an obvious exception). If you can get your groups to do focused intensity drills, then that's a great benefit to having faster riders around. If you're just going to do road rides with traditional sprint zones, the benefits will be limited.

I think you should get on a sprint and interval program, do a training race whenever possible, but I'd only do at most one random group ride each week (not both Sat and Sun, or evening shop rides). Even if the group ride has some really fast riders -- you'd be better off recovering for, or doing some intervals.
My modus operandi last year was as follows:


Mon- recovery/ or 40-50 miles solo
Tues - practice race with guys stronger than me
Wed - recovery
Thurs- LSD with a guy stronger than me
Fri- recovery/race prep
Sat- race prep/ or race
Sun- recovery/ or race

So I'd have 3 ridiculously hard days and the rest was mostly recovery. All my intensity days were either races or competetive group rides. Helped me immensely

Thurs- LSD with a guy stronger than me

You shouldn't be encouraging kids to engage in that kind of activity. :D

It made the ride a lot more interesting :D

"And on Thursdays I would fly my dragon over the golden gate bridge and watch the music come out of my fingers."

Dragon flying is great for raising your LT

Dragon flying is great for raising your LT

Well, sure, but the scales are a b!tch on the taint.

--Steve

The LSD makes em feel like rainbows.

and cypress, i have seen your legs, you do NOT know what i am going through

See, now you're just encouraging him. ;)

Well, sure, but the scales are a b!tch on the taint.

--Steve



That's what saddles are for. They use them on horses all the time. Now, I don't know who
carries saddles for dragons but hey it's SF! You can find just about anything there...

I did some LSD at one point in my running career. I actually thought it was boring.

All my intensity days were either races or competetive group rides. Helped me immensely

Yeah, that just wouldn't work for me. I'm too much of a sprinter. If the pace gets hot in a pack I'll tend to conserve and wheelsuck in case something goes down -- gotta preserve the legs. I just don't get as good of a workout in a pack like that. Even last week's Tuesday Nighter with the As who are much stronger than me -- I got back to the car fairly fresh after a 27mph race with hills, wind, and elite riders.

I have to get out for drills or I'll take it too easy on someone's wheel. I think it's just part of my DNA to sit in. I'll work a paceline with the best of them, but in a general pack I sit. If I go out for intervals or sprints, I can get into a zone and systematically pick myself apart until I have to limp home.

I am trying to work on it in the groups though. Last night I bridged a break and worked with them for about 6 minutes before we were swallowed up --- but then I sat in for the sprint :rolleyes:

I guess this just proves that different personalities require different beatdowns :D

My friend, don't pack it in before you've even begun! It is true that you can't lose if you don't try; but you can also never win if you don't try. As others have said -- and it is a consistent theme -- riding with those stronger than you is the best training possible. Almost without exception, the local guys who are the strongest were the guys who, when they began, were the most stubborn: they kept coming out even though they were getting dropped. It's rare for a guy to just jump in and roll with the strongest. You get dropped; you come back next week and try again.

Eventually you'll find that group rides aren't the best training because you've progressed to a point where you're the strongest, or one of the strongest around. Then you really do need some specific training.

Anyway, don't be discouraged, you're just starting out. Get out there, have some fun, and mix it up!

I take it you are fairly young since you are being driven to races. That being said I assume you would be a junior or cat 5. Unless you are a ciggarette smoking coach potatoe you alredy have all the cardio base you need to race short events. Get off your butt and go race. You need to race , and race, and race. Getting your ass handed to you once an a while is great motivational device. I always say it is easier to have someone else kick your ass than to do it yourself.

Lost cause in April? Man, get on your bike. You'll be flying by July if you work hard.

I started mid April several years back and won my first race in July. I showed up at the club rides in april of that year and was getting dropped. By June I was riding at the front with the strongest guys. I just think you are wrong about this year being a lost cause. Pick some races to target in the 2nd half of the year. I'm sure there are some good races on your regional calender for July, Aug, Sept. and Oct.

Ha, i just came to the realization that ill be a junior, i guess that means i need to change my gearing... wtf, more money... that proabably means im gonna have to buy a new rear wheel (the one im using was made by a french company, mallard, in the 1980's using a proprietary design, so just getting a junior casette is out of the question, so my choices are finding a smaller big chainring for my 1980's Campy Crankset (im sure some other random brand fits, but the campy ones are so pretty), or get a new rear wheel and respace my frame, or block out my smallest cogs right. Having only seven cogs, there isnt much room for blocking out, before i know it ill have 4 speeds.

well ive been wanting to upgrade my drivetrain for a while...