UmneyDurak

Missing the Point

miyata man

Honestly considered expressing how flattered I am you were compelled towards imitation. You can have the last word if it ends a pointless disagreement.

Recently it has become obvious my overall fitness requires a nearly back to the keystone rebuild. Which is to say years of activity left the foundation relatively intact. That structure currently in place I'd hoped to recondition is shaky to the point of being uninhabitable though. Effectively I've forgotten or lost through disuse nearly everything of use in racing. What I'm looking for is 45 minutes or less of performance in crits. I'm going to show up to the first race with a little less than 2 months of, mediocre at best, base work on the heels of a stilted previous year.. I came back here expecting a treasure trove of hard won lessons learned in race situations that apparently got erased. So I'm left asking some very remedial questions to give my preparation a boost.

For starters what are some really basic drills, I'm dumb but I do understand how to circle a streetlamp and do one leg drills, that will help educate my legs for the efforts I'll need to sustain. Having a hard time mentally picturing how to bring all the elements together cohesively because much of it is foreign to anything I've focused on before. So over-unders, set up to learn not burn, and some subtler less specific stuff that indirectly works on single elements of more complex skills.

The information I could have dug through years of chatter for here is a greater concern and more valuable. A refresher after five years of not actively pursuing a mental state shaped around racing. Very well aware I've either got the type of skills you can't teach or I don't. The reason I put this last is so it's easier to respond with a few pointers on what to avoid doing. Stuff that flies out the window as soon as the race starts and will get me yelled at or purposely guttered.

Thanks for any replies.

rubiksoval

Just go race? I didn't ride for seven years (!), hopped back on a bike and rode for about four months and then got 8th or 9th in a 60+ person p/1/2 crit just by hanging out in the pack to get a feel for things and then sprinting at the end.

Bike racing really isn't rocket science, especially when you've already cut your teeth a few times. If you've done it before, it'll come back quickly. Just like...riding a bike.

Overthinking and over-analyzing are two things you look back on and realize you just wasted a lot of nervous energy for nothing. Drills and whatnot, in my opinion, are completely a waste of time because they're so unlike anything you actually do in a race. What's one-legged pedaling going to do for you? I guess if you lost a pedal or something.

So anyway, just go race.

miyata man

Thanks, but I can't go race until there are any. It is below freezing with high winds outside right now. Not 60 at dusk and trending to mid 70's all week. I made the adult decision to ask after the most beneficial use of limited time before venturing outside in between snow storms. Not out of misplaced duty to fulfill a stereotype this place continually propagates. No, I thought it was worth being mocked and insulted by those who didn't outright ignore me in the hopes someone might actually let something slip that was of use in my current situation.

Let me make it clearer:

- Never raced
- Never Strava raced
- Never stroked my e-peen
- Never attempted a single interval
- Never even considered riding a trainer until I did it a couple weeks ago
- Never thought I'd actually miss the very impossibly rare piece of usable information buried in years worth of miserable argumentative BS
- Never had worse luck getting out on the bike to actually get some form that would allow me jump into group rides or pursue my own ends where they didn't align with others

globecanvas

The answer is still the same though. There are perennial threads saying "what do I need to know/do/prepare/etc before racing" (including this one). The answer is always "just race." It will very quickly become clear what you are good at and what you need to work on. Some people are naturally strong but need to work on confident bike handling; some people are naturally confident but need to work on repeated hard efforts; etc.

And you will have as much preparation as anyone else in your race.

Costco hot dogs

it sounds like you don't want to race. you shouldn't race bikes if you don't want to race bikes. not only is it bad for your mental health, but if your head isn't in the race, you're a danger to those around you. Get in, get focused, get pedaling. If you don't want to do any of those things, it's probably best to keep training and riding with others in a non-race format.

I say those things having enjoyed 2 broken collarbones, 2 surgeries, 2 wicked cool titanium plates, and about 14 titanium screws thanks to poor choices on my own during races. Get your head in it first. And then get ready to be completely unprepared.

racing is dangerous, it's hard, and it's humiliating. But then, by racing, there's winning, improving yourself, attaining goals, and accomplishing more than you thought you were capable of.

Make your choice.

1) want to race? go race bikes. don't just say "yes" - know you want to race bikes.

2) not so sure about racing? take some more time to think about it. you can only get stronger by training with purpose.

miyata man

Bikeracer123

Well I did it and had a ton of fun. As we got going all the thoughts and nervousness went away and I was thinking about racing.i did great but due to bad preparation (mainly hydration and tiny water bottles) I ended up getting dropped in the last few miles. Their were no crashes, and it actually seemed easier since I was able to sit in easier with a bigger bunch. Glad I did it.

gl98115

Good job. Racing usually beats not racing.

rubiksoval

Sorry, man, there just isn't any substitute. First thing is to do group rides, moving up to the hardest/fastest you can hang on to. The second is to actually race. I genuinely have zero other suggestions because it may seem like you can just go out and ride around lamp poles and hit corners in a parking lot at speed or something, but until you've done it in a group at speed, you just don't realize what "speed" and "cornering" and everything really is. So any suggestions on how to improve it will be lost in translation.

rubiksoval

I was doing a stage race a few weeks ago and my teammate and I had a conversation about this very thing. We both had that nasty butterfly feeling and were super anxious to just clip in and go because as soon as that happens it all goes away. The difference between one minute before the start and one minute after is huge!

hammer down

The other thing is how much fun it is the first time you ride fast in a group. You may found you're more motivated to get to more group rides and race after that initial rush.

Doge

Good job.

My kid was a junior last year and raced about 10 years. I am in favor of getting rid of OLDER (15+) junior fields for all but the big races where they have some 30+ racers. It is too hard to fill many fields and the promoters are encouraged to put on junior races loose money. Most 15-16s can handle the Cat 4 + and Most 17-18s Cat 3. For those 15+ just starting - Cat 5 is a fine place to start.
And "real racing" involves packs of riders as opposed to 5 juniors that start that typically vary a bunch in ability.

If we could just get USAC to allow everyone to use the same equipment - gears - we'd be all set.

carpediemracing 

After losing use of my 53T one race, and being limited to a 39x11 aka 53x15 aka one gear lower than a Junior gear, and winning the sprint from my group from a Cat 2 that typically runs a 55x11, I thought that having gear limits for everyone Cat 5 might be interesting. It would certain take the peak off the speeds if the limit was, say 52x14 like Juniors. It would also encourage people to upgrade so they could use "real" gears. Etc. And in the meantime it would hopefully help get some good pedaling habits in place.

miyata man

No garmin/cellphone/etc for cat5's would win out over mandating junior gearing if it was up to me. Run what ya brung but leave your e-peen in the team tent.

rubiksoval

You've said it twice now but I still have no idea what an e-peen is. Can you explain?

Doge

Actually any idea that has all the riders on the same thing is better, but in general I don't like the rules being used to teach good habits (other than safety). Anything that offers the same opportunity to every competitor is an improvement.

Making a barrier to racing the "big boys" other than for safety could also discourage new riders. Learning how to not crash/cause a crash in the pack makes sense. Telling a rider they have to pedal this way or that seems beyond the purpose of a race.

TheKillerPenguin

the (in)famous cycling power chart that tells you whether or not you're gonna be a pro bike bro. You unfurl your watt dong on the chart and post about it on the internet to make it an e-wang.

Doge

Unfortunately USAC junior coaches agree with you. To me winning is a better measure.

TheKillerPenguin

We can all agree that it tells you your worth as a human being at least. I may only be a at 2 on the road but the chart tells me I'm good enough, I'm smart enough, and doggone it, people like me.

miyata man

w/kg specifically is referred to as your e-peen. In this instance glancing at your stem 60 times a minute the entire race for rolling power numbers.

Basically eliminating diminished focus by taking the largest distraction away to accomplish the same things CDR is talking about.

Doge

Is that the with/or without chart?
(PEDs)

rubiksoval

Is it? Because in four years of reading forums daily you're the first person I've ever seen say that. What's it stand for, exactly?

rubiksoval

Yeah, I was trying to think of what it's "traditionally" been called. That's the one.

That chart typically tells me I'm a cat 4 or 3 or something. Probably why it's pretty much ignored by everyone now.

rubiksoval

Agreed. Gear restrictions is just about the dumbest "rule" there is on the books (that's implemented on a per-race basis).

I remember riding junior gears and it didn't do a thing for my "spinning" because a 52/14 or whatever is still a big gear to push!