Road Bike Racing - How do I get into road racing?

I am 35, live in Nashville, TN (USA) and last year got into doing triathlons as motivation to get in good shape and stay in good shape.

I have discoverd that my best sport is cycling. I can do a 16 mile course in 45 minutes (45:11) to be exact, and that's on a cold, very windy day. Not bad, I hope, for someone who has only been doing this for about 1.5 years.

My question is, how does a 35 (soon to be 36) year old male with a wife and 2 children (boys, 7 and 3.5) get more involved in cycling and road racing? Do I need to join a team? Can I enter road races solo? Where do I look for these races? Are there road cycling races that are kind of like triathlons where they have "age grouper" races?

I can do running races just about anywhere, any time, and my local YMCA has a masters swim class. But what about road racing?

Any information on this subject would be really helpful!

Thanks!

Glad you're interested in cycling. If you go to some websites, they have a listing of races w/information in your area. Two to try out would be: www.truesport.com and www.racelistings.com .

You can enter races solo, but some races require an extra fee for riders not on a team (unattached fee). Teams are good to join, depending on what your goals are. The riders can help you improve, and learn.

As far as categories go, some races have age groups, and some go by categories (not sure if you have this in triathlons?). All male racers start out of category 5, and then with results and experience, you go to category 4 and so on.

I would definitely try those websites out, and see if there are any local races. Then, go ahead and try one out! Good-luck.

velo

Aerow,
your on the right track, but for you to really be competitive you have to practice really hard, and possible give up a lot of things like you have to stop smoking, if your smoking, and blah, blah, I am 53 and my time on 15 K trial is 32 minutes so you have to really be very serious in saying that you want to join races, your a young man and have lots of potentials

I posted a similar question and one answer I got back was try a local Criterium. You get familiar with the course pretty quick and all you have to do is not get dropped off the very back. Sounds interested. I'm going to try one at the end of the summer to see how I measure up. You can always do a charity ride and turn it into a race. Lots of people caught in between do that. Plus it's tax deductible and raises money for a good cause. We have tons of these in Colorado.

Cannondale

Ask at a local bike shop. I am certain there are plenty of racing opportunities in your area. Check these websites which turned up on a search.

www.harpethbikeclub.com
www.tbra.org

You would really be doing yourself a favor to get into local training rides with the racing clubs and hopefuls like yourself before you try to race. Bicycle racing is not like a running race. In a bike race you are in very close quarters with a bunch of people going very fast. If you don't learn to handle yourself in that situation you risk injury to yourself and others. By all means go for it, just do a little homework.
Raymond

My two cents . . . I would highly recommend that you try a Cat 5 Men's race for your first race, rather than a Masters 35+. I just started racing this year, and in our local training series the women (that's me!) were grouped with the 40+ men. Those guys typically averaged 3 to 4 mph faster than even the Cat 4 group. (The course is windy and has one climb, and the 40+ guys would sometimes average about 27mph for 45 minutes.)

Also, I second Rainman's suggestion about doing some training rides. If you're already used to pacelines and riding someone's wheel very closely, that will help . . . but there's nothing quite like pack riding. I was amazed at just how much focus it takes . . . how mentally exhausting it can be . . . and what a blast it is!:D Do your homework, as Rainman suggests, and then go for it! I have over 10 years on you, and I just tried racing this year after only a few years riding . . . and I'm loving it! Good luck, and keep us posted.

Thanks bikebrat! That's encouraging. I think I'm going to try a race in August. I have two triathlons between now and then that will help me get ready for that race.

:beer:

I'm alittle surprised that nobody has mentioned to go to the USCF (United States Cycling Federation) site: http://www.adventuresports.com/asap/uscf/uscf.htm.

This is the sactioning body for just about every major road race you will enter.

From there you can also get to your district (the USCF divides the country into districts) website where you will find a list of local races. My district (D20) has a comprehensive website along with a newsletter that every USCF member registered in the district receives.

If you contact the USCF directly, they will also be able to hook you up with contact information for someone locally who can point you in the right direction.

BTW, at 35 years ago you will have the option of competing in the aged-based category (Master 30+) or the fitness/ability-based category (5 being the entry level).

Good luck and have fun.

Do you need to have a USCF license to race in USCF races?

Originally posted by Aerow
Do you need to have a USCF license to race in USCF races?

Yes, you will need to purchase one. Some events allow non-licensed riders to buy a one-day pass, but if you're going to race more than once, purchase the license. See usacycling.org (http://www.usacycling.org) for more information