mike9903

I now have anough starts as a Cat 5 to cat up to a 4, but I am not sure if I should. There are some strong Cat 4's on my team that I know that I cannot hang with so I am thinking to stay in the Cat 5's for the remainder of the season and gain expierence.

Curious as to what everyone else did when they came to this situation and why. Do you regret your decision?

ElJamoquio

A lot of people claim the crashes are less frequent in CAT 4.

My experience is contrary to this, YMMV.

branman1986

I didn't notice that much difference between 5's and 4's other than the fact that there are probably 5-10 really strong 4's that should probably be 3's that usually clean up. The pack fodder is pretty similar, but have better handling skills.

cat4ever

14 races, 10 top tens as a 5. I did back to back stage races right before upgrading (well, one was a cat 4/5 SR). My goal was to win the cat 5 only stage race then upgrade. My plans were derailed by my team when they consistently chased me down. Finished 4th overall and upgraded anyway.


Cat 4 was MUCH harder for me due to the the field's completely different racing style. In the cat 5 road race, the field would break up within 5-10 miles. Then it was just down to a dozen or so guys fighting it out. Cat 4's would do a 40 mile recovery ride with a sprint. Every attack I made (or one of the few other racers) was covered, then sat on.

Cat 3? Well I just plain suck.

TheKillerPenguin

Are you kidding? Upgrade to cat4 asap!

Lithuania

upgrade right away. you wont have to deal with as many people entering their first race and you will be going against some stronger smarter riders that will force you to get better.

Snuffleupagus

Hmm...so to piggy back, what do you guys think about upgrading via 25 races to CAT3?

I've got 7 top tens, 5 points and 27 races as a 4. I'm really on the fence about this one, as I'd kind of like to upgrade via results, but OTOH - I end up racing against the 3s a lot of the time, and I think upgrading soon might help my form. Dunno...hopefully I can squeeze out some good results in the next few weeks and not even worry about it.

DrPete 

What riskus said.

'nother

Upgrade. Getting extra experience in Cat 5 is like getting extra experience in preschool. Go for the kindergarten/Cat 4 experience instead

-- a fellow kindergartener

Cypress

I don't have an option....I upgraded after two races.

Upgrade asap.

MDcatV

Just my opinion, but I dont like the 25 race pack finish upgrade, aka, the lifetime achievement award. I think it was approved because there are so many Cat 4s and it makes getting into races a challenge.

Ask yourself, if you cant get the necessary results as a 4, what would leave you to believe that you'll be more successful as a 3, where the fields are faster, deeper, more tactical, team oriented, etc.? 10 top 10s, you can make a good argument for upgrading then as often the difference between top 6 (USCF points places) and places 7 through 10 is often negligible, but if you've only accumulated 5 points as a 4 in 27 races, you would probably be best served to stay a 4 until you learn how to get yourself on the podium with some regularity, or get a win. Again, just my opinion.

waterrockets 

To Mike: upgrade today. You'll rise to the occasion. Cat 4s aren't like Euro pros or anything.

To Snuff: I upgraded to cat 3 on points, and two of my teammates upgraded the same week on experience. They had a horrible time in the 3s and ended up giving up the sport the next season. Too much ego to downgrade back to 4s, plus the morale hit of never being able to finish with the pack. Your results are better than theirs, but I think you'd do better to upgrade on points.

Just get out there and pwn that 4s field.

SirScott

If you have to ask, you're not ready IMO.

WCroadie

My experience with cat 4 racing is the packs are much larger and the majority of it stays together. There are a lot more stronger riders in the 4's and there has been at least 1 crash in every 4 race I did this year so the whole less crashes theory is out. I am racing with 80 -125 people so if you are comfortable riding in large packs go for it. Racing against stronger people will only make you stronger, however if you are going to get dropped on the first lap(not saying YOU are) you would be better staying in the 5's and training harder.

Vinokurtov

OP: Upgrade. You aren't going to learn anything in the 5's you can't learn in the 4's.

Snuffle:

I hit both my 25/10/10 and 20 points in the same race early last year and immediately upgraded. If you're one of the strongest guys in most races, I'd do the same. If you're hanging on by your teeth at times, toss a coin. In the 3's you'll get guys who are super strong and don't know how to race a bike, but you'll avoid the perpetual 4's who should have upgraded while Carter was president.

I've done better as a 3, and here's why: For all the reasons above.

In most of the Cat4 races I was chased down within seconds of trying to do anything. In the climbing races I'd end up off solo getting chased down by the pack, in the crits I usually had to contest the field sprint. And if I wasn't making the race hard a lot of the time no one else would. In the upper cats there's a lot more activity, the race is harder and faster, which suits me just fine.

Bobby Lex

What I did: 11 Cat. 5 races, with various finishes from DNF's to 11th, 10th, and 6th). Also did 10 training crits (mixed fields of 5's to pro/1/2's).

Why: I upgraded when I felt I had the fitness to at least be able to hang with the 4's, and because I concluded I had nothing else to learn or gain by staying a 5. (Funny thing was, it took me 8 races before my [best] 6th place finish in the 5's. But I got an 11th place finish in only my 2nd Cat. 4 race, in a field of 65.)

You'll "know" when you are ready to upgrade. With some guys, they're ready after 1 race, and with some guys they're ready after 20 races. The 10-race rule is pretty arbitrary and does not necessarily apply to everyone.

Bob

HillMut

From my experience, there isn't a whole lot of difference from cat 5 races to 4's. You do eliminate riding with people who are in their 1st or 2nd race which is good. I would upgrade, the races are slightly more team oriented and there is more to learn, I think 'nother said it best.

UmneyDurak

I am making that decision right now. Will let you know after this Sunday. On a side note, my worst crash was in Cat4/5 field.

chipcom 

I only Cat I remember upgrading to was a D7

MDcatV

WR - that's like saying "I never get flat tires" right before you go out on a ride with no stuff to change a flat. You're tempting fate!

waterrockets 

Good point. Post deleted

Why are you making up quotes for me???

Stallion

never did a cat 5 race ever. used collegiate experience to upgrade to 3sss

zimbo

I upgraded after 8 Cat5 starts. With a couple of wins, a top 5, and a couple of top 10s, I felt like I was strong enough and race savvy enough to request an upgrade but the Cat4 fields around here can be pretty darn big. If I hadn't been able to consistently place in the Top 10 as a Cat5 I would not have felt any desire to upgrade.

As I've said before, nobody likes a sandbagger but the downside to the upgrade rules is that people tend to rise to the level of their incompetence. I'd hate to upgrade to a Cat3 sometime down the road and then go entire seasons without a Top 10 finish.

--Steve

wfrogge

upgrade

cmh

I'd upgrade to 4's as soon as you have 10 races. Upgrading from thier up to 3s and above, I would try to do on upgrade points. That is unless you are placing consistently in the top 5 or 6, but only racing occasionally and therefore can't build up the points. The reasons are covered in above posts.