"The 33"-Road Bike Racing - What kinds of races do you do?

I was just wondering if the racers on here mostly concentrate on a certain kind of race, Road, Crit, or TT? Do you exclusively do one kind, or mix leaning towards a certain kind, or is it a balanced mix?

For me, it's about whatever is closest, or that I can take public transit to, or that's not more expensive than normal. If all of the above are equal, then whichever looks the most fun.

So, to answer your question: no. However, I'm a broke college student with no car, so my viewpoint is skewed.

Road, crit, circuit or cross.

Basically any race I can ride to.

Anything

Anything but road races with downhill finishes.

I'll race anything, RR, TT, or crit, but I feel most competent and most comfortable in a crit; I am not a natural climber.

Anything but road races with downhill finishes.

That sounds kinda sketchy for the 4/5's.

road races with very steep, very short hills are what I'm best at, with TT's next and then flat, technical crits where breakaways have a chance.
Give me a short wall to climb, and I can power up it smoother and faster than most and gain some distance and then my next strength comes in. Solo.

Road - Time trials, hill climbs, select road races and stage races.
Track - Pursuit, points, scratch, matched sprint or anything I think might be fun.

I like doing crits the most since thats what I have experience with.

As my fitness is improving, I'm looking to start racing road races as well.

I've never raced mtb, cross, or track.

I'd really like to try cross and track racing. I think I might be decent on the track.

I do just crits or circuit races without a big hill in it (a hill that truly requires shifting into the small ring during a race). I do track too, since there aren't any small chainring hills on a track.

Last road race I finished in contention was in 1984, and that was because top 6 was "contention" and the 4 or 5 rider group I was in was fighting for 6th. I think there were 12-15 starters. Last road race I started, 1997 I think, got dropped on first small hill (feed zone at Fitchburg).

Not keen on mtb - bugs and stuff. I last raced mtb '97.

'cross - too much fitness required. Never done it.

cdr

Crits, TT's, Road Races, and Cross.

I dont have a TT bike so I shy away from those. Of course if it is part of a larger weekend then I will do them. Besides that...anything I can drive too.

crits & track. just happens to be the most common type and I live within 8 miles of the only velodrome in the state. =)

So far just road races and crits.

A few guys on my team are trying to convince me to try cross this season. I'm really considering it.

Thanks. The reason I am asking is that I have been road racing and doing TTs for several years, and just started doing crits this year. What I have discovered is that I am not very good at all at crits. Im more of a distance, endurance type. It seems like all the other guys at races are always talking about doing this crit, then this RR, then this Cross race, then a TT, all on consecutive weekends, and I always kind of thought most folks stuck to one type of racing. Guess I was wrong.

Road races, crits and cross. This is my 2nd year racing and I'm still finding my way and determining if I'm good at anything. I really liked the 3 cross races last year and will begin preparing for them later this summer. I did two 10 mile TT's which were on hilly course last year and may attempt a couple more traditional TT's this year. I forgot what head to head competition felt like and the more races I do the more I want/need.

So far just road races and crits.

A few guys on my team are trying to convince me to try cross this season. I'm really considering it.

^^^^ This.

I don't own a TT bike, and I don't think I'd be very good at one anyway. Time will tell.

And I'm told I have to try cross this season. Sounds like fun.

i love crits. i hate any RR with a hill, but I'll be doing more of them (it's good for you). 'cross is fun in the fall although I've only done a couple of races I'll be doing more. Never done track, and I only do TTs if I have to. I raced a couple of collegiate mtb races last fall. it was fun, but that's not why I own a mtn bike

I seem to do pretty well in crits, not so much on the hilly RR's.

I also want to start racing cross in the fall and potentially track. I have a good 1' and 5' power, but my 5" and FTP needs work (and that's what I'm training atm).

Mountain bike racing also looks fun....

Maybe bmx too...

Typically try to race when no one else knows its a race, they are a lot easier to win that way.......

So far just road races and crits.

A few guys on my team are trying to convince me to try cross this season. I'm really considering it.

Do it, it's a blast.

Do it, it's a blast.

In kinda the same way its fun to get a root canal.

I do mostly crits, because that's what's close. I'd like to do more road races, but don't have the opportunity to burn that type of time. I also ride cross. For me, cross races are basically 40-50 minute time trials. They're very tough. That's not a bad thing. I enjoy them, but there's no 'sitting in' and catching a breather. It's pedal 'til you drop, make no mistake. There is a bike handling aspect that's cool. You don't get that at most road/crit races.

I'd like to do some long distance MTB stuff. If anything, just to add to the list of 'did that'.

Just started cross last year

Mostly road races in the spring, crits in the summer and weeknight circuit races through both.

Mostly crits. A few RR's, the flatter the better, please. A TT or two.

I mostly do long road races with a lot of climbing. That's what I like now.

OP, don't decide that you're no good at crits until you have done a bunch. I sucked at them and hated them initially but started doing a weekly twilght series (the Fremont twilights for those who remember that far back). Eventually I learned enough that they became kind of fun and I sucked less. At least for me, the way the race unfolds seems completely different to a road race and was much harder for me to figure out. When I finally started to understand a little bit they became a lot more fun.

RR and crits...gonna do my first TT tomorrow night...thinking about getting certified for the track...were it not for a worn out hip, I'd be doing cyclocross...

TT's for me, whenever they're local.

Crits, road races or circuit races, I do them all, but none of them well. Well, okay, I've done reasonably well on circuit races in the past, and even crits. Hard to say, though; my fitness has been pretty bad this season.

In the future, I should probably give 'cross and MTB racing (I know, the horrors!) a shot; I seem predisposed toward putting out lots of power for 1-2 hours, then hitting a massive wall. I would very much like to get better at road races though, my build is good for climbing. Not sure if my energy systems are, though; more experimentation needed.

Started out racing BMX when I was a lot younger. Did MTB racing off and on for a few years. Now it's (in order of frequency) crits, road races, MTB, cyclocross. Not coincidentally, that's the same order I'd put them in if asked to rank them in ascending order of suffering.

I think that years of riding the MTB was good prep for the anaerobic effort/recover/repeat cycle often experienced in crits. Nothing prepares you for the hell that is 'cross, on the other hand :)

I really love the excitement of crits, but I think I just need to train with them as a focus for a while, and do a lot more of them. I have been doing endurance stuff for so long, and never have really done short distance anything ever so it is a huge change.

I do all of them but specialize in crits and RRs without big climbs. I hate TTs and only do them for stage races