Originally Posted by Voodoo76
Appreciate the respect, and agree that position is a very dynamic thing. But my take on this is very different. I had a coach once who had an annoying habit of asking me simple but tough questions. His response to the above would be "why did you let yourself get boxed in?". This simple question is very empowering. The point is it's your choice how long you stay in one place, it's your choice who's wheel you are on, ect. You can not make progress as long as you simply respond to what the pack gives you, as you are not learning to make the correct decisions (or even realizing what decisions you made). Take control mentally & make others respond. Sometime you put yourself in the right position, sometimes you don't, but at least you begin to understand the process.
Excellent Post!
Staying near the front takes a lot of work and attention, and sometimes you have to have your nose in the wind more than might think you should. A lot of new racers who try and stay near the front, expect to do it without doing any work, and that's tough to do without teamates. Put taking a few pull is always easier than having to sprint from 18 to 29 4 times a lap, especially if you time your pulls correctly.
The following assumes a left hand corner....
If you find yourself going from the very front, to the very back after your pull, pull off the front about 50 meters from the next corner, on the inside of the pack. Keep your speed up so that no more than a few guys get past. Then just dive into the corner with them. The guy to your right and in front of you cant see you, so make sure he doesnt chop you, the guy to your right and behind you sees you the whole time and will have to make a choice, between continuing to overlap his front wheel with your rear, and also run the risk of getting pushed wide into the curb on the exit. Or...... sliding in behind you.
The reason you don't want too many guys to get past you before you do this is two fold.
1. It keeps YOU closer to the front.
2. The guy you are forcing to follow you is only ok with it if he feels he is near the front too. Too far back, and the guy thinks of you who as somone ahead of him who needs to be passed, becaues he wants to get up front too. But near the front, everyone is gratefull for a wheel to follow, it means longer till they have to pull. Teamates are invaluable here, as they can open a slot for you in an instant.
note: on the last lap, people may not be so co operative, your results may vary.