Southern California - Advice for strategy in my first century?

Folks -- I signed up for the Tour de Foothills metric century (ok, ok, I know it's not a "real" century) and was wondering a bit about advice on how best to survive a crush of people (aka the "peleton"). I've never ridden with more than 6 people, and that was for the first time last weekend so I could learn to draft a bit.

I'm going to try to keep going with a few folks for 40,50,60 miles over the next few weekends again but I think I'm plenty strong enough to ride the distance. It's the people I'm worried about.

I was thinking I'd try to get out as fast as possible to get in front of the biggest crowds, tag onto some group with a decent pace, and ride out from there. But even that I'm not sure about how to actually do. ARe the starts staggered? Is it just a mass of folks behind one big line? Is it better to hold back a bit, then try to work my way from small group to small group later on? Is there any "cyclist" protocol when you tag up with a small group that's breaking away? I mean, should I could cycle up and offer to take a "pull" for a bit?

thanks

Well, since I just completed my first century, I must be an expert by internet standards :D

The first mass group ride I did was Bike the Bay in San Diego. It was only 25 miles, they started in waves of about 300 every 5 minutes. I was at the back of the 1st wave. It was crazy. There were a lot of very slow riders that couldn't hold a straight line. Once we got out a couple miles, it thinned out then it was fine. But I thought I was going to go down a few times, around some of the first few corners.

For the Poway Century, I lined up on the "front row". I know I can hold a straight line, and figured the people that would catch me, I trusted them to get around me more than if I started in the back and had to get around a bunch of people. I just stayed to the right, and rode straight and smooth.

Once a few miles into both rides, I feel like I "knew what to do". There were times when I was just lucky to hang on the back of a group. Then, I don't even think the group knew I was there.

Other times, I was in a group and I could feel I was getting "rested" and was able to move up towards the front as we rode along. I then took a turn at the front. I just tried to pay attention to how fast the group was going, and maintain that speed when I was at the front, no faster, no slower.

If the first couple miles is straight, it probably doesn't matter as much. If there are turns right away, I would try and start near the front. Good luck, have fun :thumb:

It's the people I'm worried about. Is it just a mass of folks behind one big line? Is it better to hold back a bit, then try to work my way from small group to small group later on? Is there any "cyclist" protocol when you tag up with a small group that's breaking away? I mean, should I could cycle up and offer to take a "pull" for a bit?


Worry no, but you need to be highly aware during these types of rides. No one wants to crash, much less cause anyone else to crash, however it happens because you have a large number of riders of differing abilities but more importantly little, to no familiarity with each other. You have no idea if the person in front of you in a paceline is going to call out the rock/rut/glass/etc for you. Chances are they are not and with that you need to be aware of. When you see a paceline, it usually occurs because there are a couple of riders in the group who are familiar while the rest are just hanging on. And, at least from what I notice, it's usually just that familiar group that rotates thru the rest just hang behind. By all means, get in line on a paceline, and if they all start rotating thru do your turn when it comes to it. Just make sure you know what your doing.

Ian in SD

Best advice I ever heard was: hold your line.

Be smooth and predictable. Always look around you to see where others are before making any moves. Ride at your own pace. No need to hurry.

On these big rides, I will only paceline people who are steady and smooth, and slow enough to keep up with. That "slow enough" part isn't Ian, btw... ;)

Best advice I ever heard was: hold your line.

Hear, hear! Thanks to some guy who jerkily dodged a cone at the last instant, I ended up feeding a chunk of my knee to the asphaltosaurus-wrecks on Sunday at 20+ mph.
And the best way to hold your line, IMO, is to ride relaxed and loose. When you tighten up, you tend to make sudden direction changes, (which can frequently result in sudden mood changes in surrounding riders.) Resist the urge to clench up, and remain relaxed and fluid.

Avoid overlapping your front wheel with someone's rear wheel. Either ride behind someone or right next to someone but not in between the two positions.

How the Foothills century starts I have no idea. There are unlimited options to the ride organizers. The advice following is based on the assumption that this is a mass-start (everybody starts at the same time, like you would see in a race). A mass-start is the most chaotic and best chance for problems to arise at the start. So best to be prepared for the worst-case scenario. If it's a staggered start, still listen to the following, but it will be easier than a mass-start.

What safety comes down to is this: it's all about your skills and how you ride. Yes, there can be numb-skulls who may plow into you. But, if you're expecting that, there are some things you can do to avoid or mitigate that threat.

Here's some ideas:

Hold your line
When passing others (somebody may be following you), or especially when being passed. Being predictable means you're at your safest.
Keep your front wheel away from others
You may need to ride with a bit of a gap between you and other riders. This may mean not just in a forward/backward direction, but also left/right. Like when passing other riders, expect that they will swerve out into your line and take you down. Give them a wide berth while still being safe yourself (i.e.: don't cross the double yellow line).
Relax
Even if somebody bumps into you, you don't have to go down! It's not inevitable! Crashes usually happen because somebody stresses out, tightens up, and over-reacts. If you are relaxed and absorb the bump, you stand a better chance of staying on two wheels.
On this particular ride, do not start off like a bat-outta-h*ll
I'm sure, in the end, you'll have no problem with the distance. But, you did make mention of the distance (which you only think you'll have no problem with) which leads me to believe that you've never done it before. Therefore, it's prudent to assume that if you burn all your matches in the first 5-10 miles, you won't have the endurance to recover for the final 50. Start off easy. Riding longer distances--especially when you've never done it before--is all about pacing for the long haul. After you've done it, and you know what your body can handle, then push the pace and test yourself.
Start a bit farther back
Since this is not a race, and safety is a concern, this will give you more room around your front wheel and more space to react to anybody who does swerve around--especially at the start! Chances are better that crashes will happen at the start.

thanks for the tips all. you're right, i've never done 60+ miles before, so I do need to pace myself.

Mkadam had some great tips. For more information on paceline riding go here. (http://www.nscyc.org/paceline-riding) You can practice in your next couple group rides.

From looking at the website, it looks like the Tour de foothills has a mass start at 7 am. Have fun! :thumb:

just get some good short and keep pedaling till your bum hurts. Usually that determines how far you really want to ride, your legs and lungs are like machines, they just keep going when fueled right.

One other thing: when you're going to make a change in the routine (stopping instead of continuing on, turning instead of going straight, slowing instead of maintaining speed, etc...), make sure you let others around you know, loud & clear. Yes, it is annoying when I hear a bunch of people around me yell, "Right turn!" ad nauseum. But, better safe than sorry.

(My 13yr old son & I were out riding just this morning. We know eachother's riding styles very well. I said we'll be making a right turn just after the light. Then, as we approached, I signalled with my arm for a right-turn. As I dove into the turn, he went straight. He thought I meant right turn further down the road, and didn't see my hand-signal. My back wheel cut off his front. He went down, some minor road-rash, but cracked his helmet good. After talking w/doctor, he's apparently fine: we'll see over the next day. Just another example of not being cautious enough, I guess.)

All the centuries I have done in NorCal, and the KOM series in SoCal, have had time windows for the start. Usually a couple hours. So there are no big packs at the start. Which is good because a huge group with many riders who are not used to pack riding would be a nightmare. There would be many crashes.

Groups will form on the road however. It's faster to ride with a group but it is also easy to get sucked into riding harder than you should. And there are still likely to be inexperienced or dangerous riders in the group. If you don't like the riders in a group, just drop off. It's not a race and you are riding to finish, not for time, so you don't need to take risks in order to save a few minutes.

A big pack of century riders "racing" is not the best place to learn pack riding. You'll probably do it anyhow like a lot of us did, and hopefully it'll work out ok. But realize that it's a lot less nerve wracking if you're with people who know what they are doing.

If there is a mass start, then start at the back and go slow for a while. If you pace yourself you'll be catching riders later on rather than being passed.

I've done lots of centuries, but I don't think I've ever gotten it together enough to start when they open the course. If starting time is 7:00 a.m. I'm usually on the road by 7:15 - 7:30 at the latest. There are plenty of other people like me so I'm not alone, but I'm also not in the middle of a mass of riders like a peloton.

Throughout the day I'll go from being by myself, to part of a pack of 10-20 who ride about the same speed, to being passed by a paceline going about twice as fast as me, to being passed by a paceline marginally faster than me which I can hook onto.

In all situations, I'm a big fan of my mirror. I can see the passers approaching. They don't always say, "On your left." Sometimes they swoop by within inches. During my last century (metric) I was starting from a red light, having a bit of trouble clipping in, and was passed by two riders on my right. I didn't like this, partly because I was about to pull to the right to get out of the way, and partly because I don't have a mirror on my right.

Here are my rules, based only upon my experience and opinions.

Always pass on the left - never on the right (see above.)
When passing someone always say, "On your left," as you're approaching. It's common courtesy.
Don't draft someone for more than a few minutes without asking. I often get passed by someone, only to pass them soon, then they pass me again, etc. I think it's because we ride about the same speed, but there's some variance. As I approach them from behind I'll sometimes pull into their slipstream for a few minutes before passing, but not for long, unless I ask if they mind. I don't want them to think I'm rude for making them do all the work.
If anyone is ever drafting you, always point out obstacles and obstructions, like potholes, big rocks, glass, tree branches, etc. Just point down at the ground on the proper side a couple of seconds before the obstruction. People who draft should know this signal.
Say hi to people, either when they pass you or when you pass them. A century should be a friendly occassion.
If someone seems especially friendly or fun, squeak your squeaky horn at them. (Don't have one? Hmm. Mine's a blue whale.)
Don't stop in the bike lane. Find a place where you can pull all the way off. During the last century there were people stopping in the bike lane to take off their jackets. I thought this was inconsiderate.
Stay in the bike lane if there is one. If not, ride single file when traffic is passing. Don't become an obstacle (or road kill.) Why make drivers mad at bicyclists unnecessarily?

Now that everyone has given you some great hints, don't forget the final one:

GO HAVE FUN!

now that everyone has given you some great hints, don't forget the final one:

Go have fun!

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