Road Bike Racing - Question about supporting a road race

I've volunteered to help support a local road race in a few weeks and one of my jobs is to use my truck as a wheel truck. I'm really looking forward to taking part in a road race, at least doing a little bit to help support it, but I'm not sure exactly what to do. What are the do's and don'ts of driving a wheel truck? The race rules say that the wheel support is neutral -- what does that mean, exactly?

Neutral means that you offer support to any rider, regardeless of what team they are part of.

that's good.. good luck..

Well, I, well actually the company I run, was actually asked 2 days ago to sponsor a Bike Race.. All they wanted was funding..

The sponsorship they were asking for was not team specific, but for the race event. In return, they will post the company name on the start/finish banner and the posters..

Do you think I should do it?

Originally posted by dexmax

Do you think I should do it?

If you have the funds I say go for it. A little advertising never hurts ;)

Originally posted by dexmax
that's good.. good luck..

Well, I, well actually the company I run, was actually asked 2 days ago to sponsor a Bike Race.. All they wanted was funding..

The sponsorship they were asking for was not team specific, but for the race event. In return, they will post the company name on the start/finish banner and the posters..

Do you think I should do it?

Do you want to support bicycle racing for the sake of racing itself, are you trying to generate revenues through the sponsorship, or are you trying to extract some good will advertising from your sponsorship?

If the former, then yes, I think you should do it.

If the second, then you need to evaluate the value you will get from your "investment" in advertising. Any return will be "soft" in that it will be difficult to guage, unless you are able to do something like hand out coupons or find some other way to get direct feedback(sales) on your sponsorship.

If you are attempting to build goodwill by associating your company with a healthy, youth-oriented sport, then perhaps direct feedback(sales) is less important. In that case, the general attitudes of the market you are in and the exposure you will get will be more reflective of the goodwill you will generate.

The following questions apply to both the second and third points. How many people have attended the race in the past? How much advertising are the organizers doing? How many people do they project will be at the race this year? Will there be additional media coverage of the event? Can you generate any additional media coverage? Can you be involved in the media coverage? Will you be allowed to hand out promotional items at the race?(logo'd water bottles, logo'd musettes, t-shirts, etc...)

Originally posted by Grendel
What are the do's and don'ts of driving a wheel truck?

Are yo going to be doing mechanical work? Changing wheels? If so, you need to get a drill down on what to do during a wheel change so it goes as quickly as possible. You may need a bike specific tool box.

Well,, I guess that's another question I have -- do the riders expect you to change the wheel or just hand them one? Should I just expect that most will be self-sufficient and a few might need help and I should be prepared to lend a hand if needed?

Riders will typically hold the bike up while you yank the old one off and replace it. You've probably seen it many times on the tele.

In a race like this, it could be a little confusing because I doubt if any set procedure will be announced to the riders and they may want do it themselves but I would be prepared to do it if I were you.

The wheels should all be marked and stood up in pairs if possible in the truck so, in a best case scenario, while the rider with the flat removes his bad wheel, you look for his replacement wheel, then when you bring it to his bike you can slam it in While the rider holds the bike.

The skewers should all be correctly set ahead of time by the individual riders on their replacement wheels so you don't have to tighten/turn the nuts. All you should have to do is tighten the lever.

They should shift onto the smallest cog b4 they remove their flat wheel. That way, when you install the new wheel, you put the chain on the small cog, pull it into the dropouts, tighten the Q/R, spin the pedals to seat the chain, then get them on the bike and give them a push off.

Sounds simple, eh? Right!:D

You may want to do a chinese fire drill on this to get it smooth.

Well,

I haven't watched a lot of organized racing, hence the questions. I'm curious about something -- since wheel support is neutral, where do the wheels come from? Do all the riders bring spares and add them to the collection, and it's only by chance that they get their own back while on the road if there's more than one wheel truck?

I'm going to make some assumptions here based on the normal US bike race. Riders bring their own wheels. They should be well marked so you can quickly ID them and use their own wheels. If they don't have a wheel, then to bad. The race organisers may make some accomodations(spare wheels) for riders w/o spares but that is not the norm.

You are neutral in that you will help any driver who needs help, not just members of one specific team.

If it were me, I'd have someone else driving the support vehicle so I could concentrate on getting the correct wheel, and the wheel change process. Driving the support truck is a glamorous job anyway so you shouldn't have any problem getting someone to do it.:D

There is no way I'd ever do wheel support. I get frazzled really easily and just know that I'd blow it for some poor rider.

If you want to make your job a little easier, go out early the day of the race with a push broom and sweep the course, examining the road for glass, etc.... Take a can of florescent spray paint and spray big, bold circles around all the pot holes. This will allow riders to naturally spread out around the holes. These two things will help reduce flats from punctures and from impact. Sweep all the corners while your at it.

Grendel, I'd recommend you ask these same questions of the race organizers. If they can't help you out, they should hook you up with some USCF people or other organizers. In some races, riders are not guaranteed to get *their own* wheels, but they (and you) should made aware of this beforehand. You also need to talk to them about who/where to follow. I'd assume a safe distance behind the last main group (if more than one). There should be at least two in the vehicle... one to drive, another to jump out and change wheels. In my opinion, at least one of these should have neutral support experience.

Keep in mind that giving someone a wheel that is the incorrect indexing/spacing (campy/shimano/7/8/9/10spds) can really screw things up.