thinking about racing
 

How does one start racing? Do you just register for a cat 4/5 race? Do you have to join a team?

What is the avg speed for a cat 4/5 criterium?

What kind of goals as far as wattage should I aim for (when I get a power meter).

Sorry for the super n00b questions, just can't seem to find a good beginners guide anywhere.

No, you don't have to join a team. Many races do offer open Cat5s where you don't need a UACF (or something like that) license. You just pay a little extra for a 1 day license.

Average speed: Depending on length and field, can be between 20 and 30 mph. I know one of the first crits I raced was 12 miles and we averaged something like 26 mph.

Also, be aware that CAT5s are often called Crash5s. There is a reason behind that.

Check out the sticky in the Road Bike Racing section:
http://www.bikeforums.net/forumdisplay.php?f=33

cdr

CDR gives a good pointer, lots of good information there, maybe even more so on his own blog:
http://sprinterdellacasa.blogspot.com/
Caution, you'll probably run out of time reading everything in there before your race. But recommended none the less, it was a huge help to me before my first race.

see Botto's sticky in the Racing forum

I thought that's what CDR posted, but here's the link:
http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php?t=380788

Stop thinking, start racing :)

I disagree, for Cat5 races the OP should read some of the post to have an idea of what to expect. Also there are lots of good tips on how to prepare for the race, before and the day of.

I didn't say stop reading.

fwiw, you can learn all you'll need to know in 5 mins.
Stay out of the wind, inside pedal up in a corner, weight on the outside pedal, don't hit anyone.

If you're used to fast group rides, then I agree.
If you haven't raced or done fast group rides...... well, than you should probably do some group rides and get used to riding 4-5 wide at 30mph. And be prepared to have others riding into you and the sound of bikes going down around you.

It can be fun though..... and a lesson in humiliation.

I hadn't done any group rides before I started racing, it was mostly common sense and some tips I picked up here.

As for crashes, they happen in every category.

+1 about the humiliation aspect, it's a rite of passage.

I haven't done group rides except pickups in the local park here. I can easily keep up at 22/23mph. we have a 2 mile track that rounds the park with a nice smooth road. I've been pedaling on that lately just timing what I can do in an hour. I'm not even close to 30mph, I just did 20mph (20 in an hour) this afternoon. the last mile I sprinted and kept up past 22mph so I thought that was good but I was mashing on the big ring. I plan on trying that twice a week with long rides on the weekends. see how it goes. I don't have money for "real" training, I need to save it for a TCR :) but it doesn't sound liek anyone gets real training until they're in the big leagues.

If anyone else is reading this here are some links I found. I haven't read all of them yet tho.

http://suitcaseofcourage.typepad.com...eporthart.html
http://suitcaseofcourage.typepad.com...acing_101.html
http://suitcaseofcourage.typepad.com...acing_101.html
http://www.the-spokesmen.com/wordpress/
http://suitcaseofcourage.typepad.com...ke_racing_101/
http://www.squidoo.com/bikerace101
http://www.vic.cycling.org.au/default.asp?id=14917
http://www.bicyclefrenzy.com/category/beginner-tips/
http://www.newsobserver.com/105/story/578140.html

and this explains categories and "leveling"
http://www.usacycling.org/news/user/story.php?id=2622

this all reminds me of world of warcraft. I start at a low level, race and gain experience, then level. if only some sort of loot dropped like new wheels, saddles, components.

I dont have tips. but you should def start racing.

22/23mph is pretty much cruising speed for a cat 5 race, you need to be able to cover surges up to 27-30 mph and be able to recover fast enough to cover the next one.
The good news is it's much easier to hold those speeds in a pack if you race smart and stay out of the wind.
If the pack is going 22/23 it means everyone is taking a breather.

Average speed and solo speed over a long distance are not going to help you much if the pack takes off at a higher pace than you can sustain for say, 1 min.
Then you're off the back, in the wind and your race is over.

Forget long steady rides, work on short, high intensity workouts.
1 min sprinting as hard as you can sustain, then 2 min rest, repeat until you puke.

poor advice. long steady (emphasis on steady, not slow, not easy, but steady) are the backbone / foundation / pillar, whatever you want to call it of any effective training program, be it periodization based, power based, whatever. on that foundation, you "build" your fitness throughout the training season with group rides, races, intervals (tapping into threshold, VO2Max, AWC, and neuromuscular power "energy systems"). OP, if you want to race, I'm sure one of the others posters have referred you to the road bike racing forum sticky that has a "tip or two".

I agree with the MD's response to this (see post above), and add this: type of workout will depend somewhat on type of race. Training for short intense surges is very useful for crits, but if your goal is longer road races you will need to work on different aptitudes.

You may be in for a serious suprise if you think 22-23 mph is fast. I have been in Cat 4/5 races that AVERAGE 24 mph, for a 40 min crit. This was on a hilly course with 20-25 mph winds.

Some of the attacks topped out at 32-33 mph too, during this race. I finished in the sprint at 36 mph, and this was INTO the headwind. I think I ended up placing 5th, I started my sprint late and had bad position coming into the last corner.

So, to actually win a competitive 4/5 race you have to be fairly strong. The race will be much faster than you anticipate. I actually got dropped from the pack during my first one - bad warmup + poor breakfast = getting dropped.

As for training, keep up your base miles but incorporate plenty of sprints, 2 min intervals, and similar. These are efforts that mimic race efforts. I don't care if you can motor at 23 mph all day, but if you can't sprint, attack and bridge gaps, you won't be a good road racer.

Oh, try and stay near the front of the pack. The back 50% is where the vast majority of crashes occur....

Another important factor is being able to recover at speed, ie being able to attack to 30+ mph, and then recover from the effort while riding at 23-24 mph. Very important.

For a lot of new racers, this is the case. It's typically a combination of strategy, tactics and fitness and optimizing them in the race. A lot of people don't have the fitness to pull off the stuff they're trying, or more commonly, they don't yet have the experience and skill to develop the strategy that'll make the most of their particular fitness.

As for training, it's not so simple as GO-GO-GO. Periodization is a must to improve overall fitness as quickly as possible (who wants to spend 10-years doing something that can take only 1?). But that requires a well documented regimen that's laid out at least a year in advance. You can break the year up into phases with 2-3 macro-cycles each which can be broken down into 3-4 micro-cycles each and broken down into weekly and daily workouts. There's a time and place for LongSteadyDistance and there's a time and place for intensity. Problems comes in when people do one or the other exclusively.

However, it's much more common to be stuck in the LSD crowd and not have the peak-power to hang with the surges (up to 45mph+), than it is to be caught doing too much intensity. That actually self-regulates itself since you won't be able to get up out of bed and walk without back and muscle-aches and you're forced to do LSD rides anyway.... heh, heh.. ;)

mindaugas, read up on all the links posted, but don't worry about average-speed. It's really meaningless. Average-speed of 20-23mph only means total-distance covered in total-time. But inside that distance, you're looking at long stretches of 18mph separated by spurts of 40mph. If you can't do 40mph to hang on, you'll be doing 20mph by yourself for the rest of the race trying to catch back on the tail-end of the pack.

This was my (painful) experience in my transition from triathlete to bike racer. I could go all day at 22-23 but could only accelerate to 27 and couldn't recover from it. Road racing, especially crits, is all about red-lining and recovering repeatedly.

wow, nice advice guys this helps a lot. I know I shouldn't be paying attention to my overall speed a whole lot, and no I don't think 22mph is fast, I think I need VAST improvement. But I have all Winter and my trusty OCR3. I did ride for an hour yesterday and did 20mph. I practiced attacking groups I'd see in the distance but I only got up to 27mph. And some muscle on my left leg right above the knee protested violently over that. I commute every day but its 7 miles round trip and I do it without clips. The bike weighs 30lbs though so that's something ;) (jk).

Tomorrow I'll go out again around Wash park here in Denver and practice some of that. I'll see if I can get up to 27 in the wind on the west side which tens to be a little harder.

I've never gone over 40mph, even on a descent. I think my bike would explode but I'll have to do another deer creek run and try it. hopefully I live to tell the tale.

I will make sure to read those links and the racing forum. With riding and working 12 hour shifts its been hard to find the time. Today's slow at work though, should get some good reading in.

If you are going to race for the first time...

Why start with a crit?

There are other kinds of races that are not as crash-prone

40mph downhill is certainly something you should see in Denver.

I see 50mph downhill around here from time to time, but that usually takes some rather fast pedaling.

My recommendation is to join a club that does training races, you will be able to get used to race pace before entering in money races

So I've read the mantra that says to train intensity over duration, but what does that mean? I know it depends on a number of variables, but I'm trying to get in the ballpark. Here's my HRM summary displayed as a % of max HR from a 90 minute "training" ride. I tried to push the pace, including a couple sprints.

Heart Rate Zone Time (m:s)
Zone 0 0%-50% 00:00
Zone 1 50%-60% 06:37
Zone 2 60%-70% 17:11
Zone 3 70%-80% 34:01
Zone 4 80%-90% 35:13
Zone 5 90%-100% 02:40

it doesn't necessarily have to be a crit. I plan on doing the ms150 and maybe the elephant rock here locally. crits just sound more exciting. I'll be careful but I've excepted that eventually I'll crash, it will suck and as long as I don't die and I can ride again I'll be ok. I haven't heard of too many people dying or loosing limbs so I think the odds are in my favor. That said I plan on never crashing ever. I dream big.

I hit 39 down deer creek and pulled on the brakes. I was pretty friken scared but not until I realized how fast it was. I just don't trust my OCR3 at speeds like that. my handlebars are too wide I think and I never feel completely stable. plus I didn't have the tires or brakes for that.

do u know any good clubs in Denver that do that stuff? I'll prob need to start out in the recreation rides. I think there's Rocky Mountain cycling and Denver touring? idk if anyone has experience with those clubs.