Road Bike Racing - grab that wheel!

late in a race yesterday, someone from behind yelled at me to "grab that wheel" i think that's what he said. i was at the front, and there was a 1 or 2 bike lengths gap to the front 2. i knew what he meant, but exactly why?

he wanted you to reach out and injure your fingers.

he wanted you to reach out and injure your fingers.

do you mean this finger?


http://www.blog.thesietch.org/wp-content/thumb-bush_finger_flip.jpg


;)

late in a race yesterday, someone from behind yelled at me to "grab that wheel" i think that's what he said. i was at the front, and there was a 1 or 2 bike lengths gap to the front 2. i knew what he meant, but exactly why?

You were closer and he couldnt. Gaps are bad.

Leaving gaps cause surges and surges are what hurt the most. If you were to pop off of 3rd wheel and left a gap, that would cause him to have to close 2 or more bike lengths gaps, which would have probably really hurt him at a good pace. It's basically just race bullying/bickering. Just ignore it unless it's your teammate but for your own good, try not to leave big gaps open. If those first two guys would have drilled it, you would have been behind the 8 ball and trying hard to catch up.

I hate when people command me to close gaps. I let gaps open for a reason: Because I know I can close them. If someone is b!tching at you about not closing a gap, it just means they're too lazy or weak to do the work for themselves. I say let them do a little work. Let it open up a little more and close it when sprinting out of a corner. a couple laps of that and you might find that things go silent behind you pretty quickly.
If I'm the one behind the guy getting gapped, I just go around them. What's so hard about that?

road guys are a funny bunch. there's so much chitter-chatter in the pack- from the guy that wants to talk about the yankee game, the nazi ss guys who are always yelling out orders, to the guys that are always *****ing and moaning about something. i'm still getting used to the chatter in the pack. i knew what the guy meant, but if that was me, i'd move over, accelerate, and close that gap myself. i understand that late in the race, you don't want to give anyone any advantages, but i'd take matters into my own hands if i saw a gap i didn't like.

thanks-

I guess the idea is to stay about 6" or 1' from the wheel in front of you. But, in that race, it was useless to go with the little attacks because it was just a waste of energy to go really hard for 15-30 seconds and stay on a wheel, only to be coasting/light braking after the break inevitably died out.
I think some people get a little too eager and like to start tossing around lingo and do things that aren't particularly necessary in those races.

I hate when people command me to close gaps. I let gaps open for a reason: Because I know I can close them. If someone is b!tching at you about not closing a gap, it just means they're too lazy or weak to do the work for themselves. I say let them do a little work. Let it open up a little more and close it when sprinting out of a corner. a couple laps of that and you might find that things go silent behind you pretty quickly.
If I'm the one behind the guy getting gapped, I just go around them. What's so hard about that?
your races must be slow.

ben- i believe that it was you and someone else in front of me whose wheel i was commanded to grab! what happened to you at the finish? i thought you were in that sprint at the finish, but i didn't see your name in the results.

your races must be slow.

You must be one of the people crying about gaps opening.

I. If someone is b!tching at you about not closing a gap, it just means they're too lazy or weak to do the work for themselves.

Or smart enough to cajole others in to doing their bidding. Why work if I can talk you into working.

Or smart enough to cajole others in to doing their bidding. Why work if I can talk you into working.

Typically, the ones doing all the talking and yelling during the race are the ones making excuses and blaming other riders at the end of the day.
'If so and so wouldn't have let that gap open, I would have gotten a top ten.' I hear it all the time.
Seriously, if you're in a position where a gap can hurt you, who's fault is that?

You must be one of the people crying about gaps opening.

ahhh... the life of a socal cat 4. enjoy. :beer:

ahhh... the life of a socal cat 4. enjoy. :beer:

The more you type, the dumber you sound:thumb:

You must be one of the people crying about gaps opening.

My teammates and I did a whole lot of crying yesterday when we won another state Pro/1/2 crit championship.

Seemed to work out fairly well.

My teammates and I did a whole lot of crying yesterday when we won another state Pro/1/2 crit championship.

Seemed to work out fairly well.

I've yet to cry over a bike race. In fact, I tend to not b!tch or whine much about anything during races. Maybe I will when I have teammates to b!tch and whine with.

I've yet to cry over a bike race. In fact, I tend to not b!tch or whine much about anything during races. Maybe I will when I have teammates to b!tch and whine with.

http://forums.roadbikereview.com/images/smilies/17.gif

I will accept those as non responses.

(That's what I thought)

If I'm the one behind the guy getting gapped, I just go around them. What's so hard about that?

Nothing. Good luck at the Tour this weekend.

I've yet to cry over a bike race. In fact, I tend to not b!tch or whine much about anything during races. Maybe I will when I have teammates to b!tch and whine with.

You see, I was responding to your quote about crying when people let gaps open.

My point was that effective communication between willing teammates will help you do well in racing. Maybe even in life.

And we don't whine. If we don't like a situation, we do something about it.

My teammates and I did a whole lot of crying yesterday when we won another state Pro/1/2 crit championship.

Seemed to work out fairly well.

Yeah it did. I was amazed at the size of gap your man made in the last lap. Wow. :eek::beer:

Congrats!

Typically, the ones doing all the talking and yelling during the race are the ones making excuses and blaming other riders at the end of the day.
'If so and so wouldn't have let that gap open, I would have gotten a top ten.' I hear it all the time.
Seriously, if you're in a position where a gap can hurt you, who's fault is that?

There is a guy around here called "Superdave Osborne" who whips everyone like a rented mule. And he has the legs to back it up. It's actually hysterical.

I've been in plenty of races where everyone is on the rivit, and if a gap opens you get screwed. Sure, I can go around him sometimes, but not without burning a match at best. If I can influence him or inspire him to close the gap, where's the harm?

I know what you are getting at, the "b!tchers" in the bunch, but I don't think the situation the OP was referring is the same.

i didn't mean to start a flame war here. imho, both points of view are valid. in certain situations, one might be boxed in and can't close the gap them self, so you might have to do some yelling to get people to wake up and close it so you don't force others to use up energy. in other situations, the bit@hers and moaners should just stfu and close the gap themselves.

in my situation, i think the guy doing the yelling was boxed in and didn't want to lose touch if the 2 in front decided to make a break. it's only my 5th race so i'm still getting use to race (as the big fellow pictured with the finger further up this thread would say) strategery.


:thumb:

i didn't mean to start a flame war here.

Good luck with that.

i didn't mean to start a flame war here.
:thumb:
All that requires here is having a working ENTER key.

ahhh... the life of a socal cat 4. enjoy. :beer:

Actually he's a 3 now. And congrats Jason on second yesterday.

I would've just said, "close that gap yourself idiot", and pulled off. Then get back on a couple spots later and watch him suffer, heh, heh...

Shoot, I let other people close gaps as much as possible. I also pull as little as possible, unless I have an awfully good reason to get out front. I'll yell occasionally if I think it'll coax someone else into doing some work for me. How else am I going to have any chance in the sprint?

ben- i believe that it was you and someone else in front of me whose wheel i was commanded to grab! what happened to you at the finish? i thought you were in that sprint at the finish, but i didn't see your name in the results.

I was teamed up with someone and did a lead out, but to no avail. I should have contested the sprint but I wanted to try something different.

``Close the gap'' is like having someone tailgate you in your car, hit the brakes enough times and they'll stop doing it.

And congrats Jason on second yesterday.

Thanks, man. I appreciate that. Ask Chester if he heard what I said right before the eventual race winner drove it into the last corner:lol:


Shoot, I let other people close gaps as much as possible. I also pull as little as possible, unless I have an awfully good reason to get out front. I'll yell occasionally if I think it'll coax someone else into doing some work for me. How else am I going to have any chance in the sprint?

I spend the first half of most races yo-yo'ing off the back and I typically do pretty well in sprints. The only reason I didn't spend any time in the back yesterday was because it was a 120 rider field. Heck, even at mid-pack it looked hopeless when I was coming into the corners and seeing the front of the pack already streaming down the road 100 yards ahead of us.

OH, and any gaps that were left open by other riders, I happily closed.