grolby

+ 1. The post about how using attacks to make a selection in the field is silly and useless was cringe-worthy. Actually, for a strong rider on the right course, attacking to thin the field can be a very effective strategy.

I just want to add that you don't need to be an aerobic monster to make a break work. You may need some help rather than going solo, but you need to be able to put in your dig at the front, rotate back and reserve. That was an important realization for me, because I'm definitely not an aerobic monster. And I'm not going to win a pack sprint, either. But I can make it into breaks if I try. Just about any type of rider can have breaks as a major element of race strategy. After all, recognizing when to attack or which attacks to follow is much more about race craft than raw power.

As for when to attack, the answer is pretty much any time you want. It depends upon why you're attacking (forcing a selection? Going for a prime? Trying to make the winning break happen?), the mood of the field, your own abilities. Attacking during a lull when everyone is fresh is a bad idea... except when no one feels like lifting the pace to chase you because they figure it's too early and they'll bring you back in good time. Attacking from the very front of the field is a bad idea... unless you punch it through a chicane or corner exit and get a gap as the field can't react until they're through. Attacking on a descent is a bad idea... except that it can be very effective if you're a powerful rider, because chasing on a descent, or with a tailwind for that matter, requires big watts just to hold a wheel when it's hardest to put those watts down.

Just as a quick example, it seemed like most of the attacks in the 3/4 race at Bethel would go on the hill at the finish. Attacking on a hill seems obvious, but the reason those attacks could be effective wasn't the hill per se, it was the long sweeping slight downhill onto the backstretch from the top of the hill. Get on the wheel on the hill, you're fine. Stuck with a gap going around turn one, you're going to be working very hard to close it. On the flip side, get a gap on the hill and hold it around the first corner, you're going to be hurting people. Run out of steam at the top, you've just burned a match for nothing. "Attack over the top of the hill" is pretty common advice to newer racers, but I see a lot of people not internalizing it very well.