I did pretty well with a pack finish in my first race but have gotten dropped on my last three crits. I think a big reason why i get dropped is the constant sprinting out of corners. I noticed in this last race that i had to brake before almost every corner to avoid hitting the persons wheel in front of me. This would always cause me a loss of momentum and an inevitable sprint to catch back up. Questions:

1.) How can i avoid losing momentum without crashing or overlapping wheels? Whenever i tried to let a gap form before the corner so i could coast and not brake, people would fill the gap causing me to lose places. Also, whenver i tried to go by the person in front of me instead of braking, i would overlap wheels and almost crash a couple of times. How can i not brake and not crash?

2.) How normal/frequently should braking happen? Is it normal to brake on almost every 90 degree turn?

3.) A little off topic but curious: should i be out of the saddle after the corners when the speed surges or is it better to stay seated. I tried to stay seated but felt like i couldn't put the power down.


Thank you!