cbip

Realizing that come this Saturday's race,(my first) I am going to get dropped like a bar of soap in prison, I am trying to plan my exit strategy. I figure that with my weight of 225 pounds and my FTP of 130, I might just nail it from the gun and breakaway in the first 2 miles. I figure I can hold them off for 15 min that way. Or should I just start in the back of the pack, roll out alone for a few miles and then claim a mechanical problem. Discuss!

wfrogge

I would do a combo of both..... Drop the hammer from the gun then claim a mechanical about a mile down the road.

Treefox

If you go, people will follow. Especially in lower cats.

However, if there's a photographer in the first three kilometres, this remains a very good idea.

StephenH

Hint: If you were the only one that knew where the tacks were on the road, you could swing wide and avoid them.

substructure

+1. Very rarely will a break stick in a lower cat. I've seen it happen, but hardly ever. I big gent soloed in a cat5 race I was in. No one thought he could stay away and so ... we were the dummies.

dysFTP

Surely though jests. My wife's pet kitty has a higher FTP than that.

substructure

Let's keep this clean - for the kids.

urbanknight

Hammer off the front for a lap or two (people rarely take 1st lap breaks seriously, especially if they're an all out sprint) and just when you're out of their sight, hide behind a bush. Take a nap until 5 laps to go, then roll out and act tired like you're out of gas. Watch everyone hammer because they're happy to finally have caught you. Roll across the line behind the pack to avoid any protests from riders who realize what happened and have fun with the stupid ones.
"Wow, you held us off for almost the whole race!"
"Yeah, that cramp was untimely. Next time"

Fat Boy

And if there's only 1 tack on the road, you can swing wide and hit it.

wanders

Coming from someone who was you a year ago, a couple things:

You're going to be nailing it from the gun regardless.
If you do get out in front, you'll be lucky to hold them off for more than 1 minute.
You will do a lot better than you think, and if there aren't many hills, you may not get dropped.

Have fun.

tbrown524

Go right off the front. There's a guy in SoCal thats 200lbs+ that brokeaway from the pack and finished second. Only after a guy manged to bridge in the last three laps.

Good luck attempting it twice. Everyone in attendance will remember you.

dgearhart

Cbip, I hate to disagree with the others giving advice, but I think that the decision really comes down to a few things. First, are you sure that your FTP is 130? I bet it is higher than that. However, if it is actually 130, then I'd suggest against trying to fly off the front at the start. If that is your true FTP, I think you'll make it about 100 yards before even Cat 5's pass you. I don't mean to be rude, but I raced the beginning of last year as a Cat 5 with an FTP of 300 watts and a weight of 185lbs. Your FTP is lower than most Cat 5 recovery power. However, all is not lost. Just sit in the very back of the pack and draft out of the wind. I find that if I tuck in tight and draft the whole way, then I find my average power to be around 180 - 230 watts early in the race until the pack cranks it up at the end. You could hang for a few laps in the back in my opinion vs. blowing it out and getting dropped in the first block the other way mentioned....

Treefox

I definitely think you need to find out if a photographer will be there and where he will be - and just sprint off the front (or at least get on the front) for that one moment on the first lap.

If necessary, set your girlfriend up with camera somewhere early to document your short-lived triumph.

Better yet, just plan to stay tucked in mid-pack and see if you can actually hang. My best ever road race result was at a race where I expected to get dropped (day after a major time trial), so I didn't try anything - my plan was just to hold on as long as I could and not be the least bit aggressive. Finished in the top third.

bdcheung

Sitting at the back is not recommended, as the accordion effect will surely shell him in no time.

dysFTP

Got any bungee cords laying around the garage?

Creakyknees

if you're talking about Copperas Cove, you might get lucky with a fast start (they are 5's after all) then settle down to a steady / slow rollout till the hills begin.

merlinextraligh

at the risk of killing the thread with a serious note, try to hang just one more minute.

Cat 5 race is likely to take off fast, and you may be in serious hurt quickly. The mistake is to think I can't keep doing this, and give up.

The reality is all the other guys can't (or won't) keep doing it either, and things will slow down, and you can recover. If you can just hang past the first surge, you may suprise yourself.

So don't think about how much farther or longer you have to go. Just keep hanging in, and telling yourself, I can do this for another minute, then another minute, etc.

ljrichar

+1. If you have the power to stay OTF for 15min. then you should also be able to hide and finish in the pack.

cbip

After consulting with my idol "El Diablo Rojo", I have determined that wheel sucking is indeed my only option. Now the question is do I hide behind one of those "150 pound little men" who seem to stay ahead of me on rides or look for the wheel wagon and hope to get sucked along for awhile?

El Diablo Rojo

As Cbips newly acquired mentor, I've advised him to roll out 30 min before his race starts, this way by the time they catch him the race will be half over. At this point he can then hang on to the back till the finsh.

wanders

Find the tallest guy out there. Short, small guys give little draft.

tall > wide.

tbrown524

As a fellow 220lbs (wannabe) racer, my advice is to stay as sheltered as possible even behind up to ten 150lbs riders. Avoid guys larger than yourself. Fat guys are slow.

grolby

Depends. Those 6' 2" 145 lb guys aren't much good for drafting - a bit of girth helps. But yes, taller is generally better. People hate drafting me. I'm short AND skinny.

cbip

There are no guys larger than me. At least not riding near me anywhere. The only time I get to ride with others is into a 30mph headwind, and those guys are always yelling from behind me to go faster!

Keith99

That's a great thought. He should be like Lance and scout the route, but not for terain, for photographers. Then choose your break and get a good photo!