Cat. 5 racing!

If this is your first race ever, chances are you will not finish. Your average speeds are nothing to write home about, and I wonder about your ability to mix it up in a group.

I know nothing of American categories and the competition you are up against, and I am not trying to get you down, but I think you should expect not to finish your first few races... that is normally part of the learning process.

Have you done lots of interval training?

Remember to enjoy yourself! Best of luck, and let us know how you do.

ToffoIsMe said:

Well my first race is coming up very quickly (March 4th to be exact), and I am curious as to how I should expect to rank. It's a 14 mile race with one short climb (~250 feet?). From what I understand, a lot of people aren't in race shape yet this early in the season, so I think that should be to my advantage because I've been training very hard since the beginning of January. I can hold in average speed of around 20-23mph for over an hour without killing myself to much, thats with multiple hills of varying heights and lengths. My sprints on flat ground can get to around 35mph for 45 seconds or so. Any idea how I would compare to the other racers in the cat 5 class, or how I'd compare to them this early in the season? Is finishing in the top half of the peloton within my grasp?

Crit or road race?

Bob

Powerful Pete said:

Have you done lots of interval training?

Tons of it. Been doing intervals in all zones up to 5c. Wattage and heart rate for each zone has been tested once a month with the conconi (sp?) test to make sure it doesn't get too easy. I'm not one for giving up, so I am planning on finishing at least. Guess theres really no way to tell how i'll do until the day of the race...

Bobby Lex said:

Crit or road race?

Bob

4.8 mile loop, 3 laps.

Well, I would disagree with PP on this one.

If you are holding 23 mph you will easily be able to sit with the Cat 5 pack and if you can get it up to 35 mph in the sprint you should be there at the finish.

Just don't be reckless in trying to ride off the front and you should be fine.

Let us know how you do.

Don't get me wrong, I hope you do well... I do not know what kind of competition you are up against in a cat. 5 (I assume this is the lowest category).

We work on a different system here, and in our races you end up with guys motoring for kms at 45-50 kph... if you are just starting and lose a wheel it is over... trust me, I know... 🙄

All the best Toffo, try to stay relatively near the front (the elastic effect at the back of the group usually makes the braking harder and the accelerations worse). And tear their legs off. :p

ToffoIsMe said:

4.8 mile loop, 3 laps.

Thoughts:

Road races are easier than crits for first-timers because you don't have to deal with the repeated accelerations coming out of the frequent corners. (A 6-turn 30-lap crit requires 180 accelerations. Try doing 180 10-second wind sprints in a 45 minute training ride, while holding 23--25 mph between sprints, for a "sample" of what a cat.5 crit might be like). And, with most road races you don't have to deal with the cornering-carnage or near-carnage that often accompanies crits.

So, fitness-wise, depending on level of the field, your cat.5 road race might evolve into something like this:

The pace will be hellacious to start off due to high adrenaline levels, perhaps 27--29 mph for a few miles. [Advice: do a good warm-up]

The pace will slightly slow, perhaps to 24--26 mph for a few miles, around the middle of the race as everyone gets settled into a rythym. [Advice: don't get caught napping. This is where attacks go off the front]

Attacks will occur on uphill sections, the steeper the more likely to have attacks. [Advice: don't get caught napping. Since attacks go off the front, be up there and be ready to go with an attack if you think it has a chance of succeeding]

The pace will slowly ramp up toward the end of the race. However, often the last 2 miles are a little slower because everyone is "resting" for the final effort. This could be a good place to attack if you can stay away alone, or if you have another rider or two to help.

Your race is short, so don't expect things to ever slow down significantly. A 14 mile race isn't a test of endurance, so much as a test of speed.

50% of your results will depend on:

1. how well you draft and conserve energy [race smart. do not waste energy!]

2. your pack-handling and bike-handling skills [newbies find it hard to relax when riding in tight formation with dozens of unfamiliar riders at high speeds. stay tight in the pack, learn to ride in the drops, and go easy on the brakes]

3. your positioning. [fight to stay in the top 10 riders. the top 10 use much less energy than those behind them. poor positioning at the beginning of the race will have negative consequences at the end of the race. most racers know this, so the trick is to be able to accomplish staying up front, when everyone else in the race is trying to do the same thing.]

You can't change your fitness very much in just a couple of weeks, but you can improve the other stuff a lot, so I would work on those things.

Racing is an absolute BLAST! Have fun and good luck!

Bob

ToffoIsMe said:

4.8 mile loop, 3 laps.

Sounds like your in good shape for racing. Your average speed doesn't mean anything in a race though. The speeds during a race are usually faster than I can average on my training rides.

Keys are to "not" attempt to go off the front and "don't" pull at the front either. Sit in a wait for the final couple of miles to get in to position. Your spring sounds pretty good so I would imagine you'll do well.

BanditManDan

Bobby Lex said:

You can't change your fitness very much in just a couple of weeks, but you can improve the other stuff a lot, so I would work on those things.

What would be best to work on, and what would the best intervals/techniques of working on them be? Thanks to all of you for your help and support, I'll be sure to post how I did after the race.

ToffoIsMe said:

What would be best to work on, and what would the best intervals/techniques of working on them be? Thanks to all of you for your help and support, I'll be sure to post how I did after the race.

Fitness-wise: Just keep doing your normal training routine. There is not much time for fitness improvement in just 10 days. But you could actually suffer a decline in performance if you go too hard too close to race-day. Taper just a little before the race (last hard workout before a Sat. race would be Wednesday, no ride Thurs., 20 minutes Fri. with one or two brief max efforts).

Race-day: Get there 2 hours early. Register right away. Then warm up for at least 40 minutes, getting in at least 2 x 120 second max efforts to get your heart rate up as close to starting time as possible. Note that the later in the day your start time is, the more likely your race will start late. Also, take off your saddle bag, and bring only one water bottle.

Technique-wise: Find a group to ride with and practice drafting and close-quarters riding. You want your wheel to be within 12" (or less) of the wheel in front of you. BUT DO NOT OVERLAP wheels. When you overlap, and the guy in front suddenly moves over and his rear wheel hits your front wheel, usually YOU go down, and he stays up. Also, practice riding in the drops for extended periods. Learn to pay attention to which way the wind is blowing. If from the right, you stay on the left side of the group and move up that side. If from the right, vice-versa. Note, the wind-direction changes the road turns and position yourself accordingly.

If I seem to be placing a lot of emphasis on drafting, aerodynamics, and wind, that's because this is the single most important dynamic of a race. I have seen enormously fit cyclists who get dropped every race because they could not master the concept of riding in the shelter of other riders. They sit up a little too high, they ride a little too close to the back, they move up along the windward side of the pack, they draft a little too far behind the wheel in front, they pull a little too long.

Eventually, all those "littles" add up to a lot of wasted energy and you either blow up or can't match an acceleration because you're spent. So ride smart.

Last note on fitness-training: Although there's not much you can do to improve your fitness before next Saturday, for the long run you should invest in a book like Joe Friel's Cyclist's Training Bible, or Carmichael's Ultimate Ride, to learn the principles of cycling training and to help you set up your own long-term training program. Because after Saturday's race you're sure to get hooked on the sport, and there's likely to be many more races in your future.

I'm looking forward to reading your "race-report".

Bob

Yeah I would really be cautious at first and then worry about winning or finishing strong. I just did my first cat 5 race in Greenville, SC they mass started 120 of us. It was a really nasty race. Probably 5 big wrecks, in 21 miles, you could about count on seeing one every 10min. My advice is def. stay up front, but realize that some of the guys haven't never even been in a paceline much less a race and they cant hold lines.
Im just glad Ive ride with some Cat 2 riders and alot of club race nights or I would have wrecked.
Hopefully this weekend will be better its got some climbs so maybe it will sort the field out.

Its a long season, good luck, hope your race is a lot smoother than mine.
Let us know how it goes.

What???? 35 mph on your sprints and you can hold that for 45 seconds or so? Are you talking about downhill or with wind, because that's hard to believe!

ToffoIsMe said:

Well my first race is coming up very quickly (March 4th to be exact), and I am curious as to how I should expect to rank. It's a 14 mile race with one short climb (~250 feet?). From what I understand, a lot of people aren't in race shape yet this early in the season, so I think that should be to my advantage because I've been training very hard since the beginning of January. I can hold in average speed of around 20-23mph for over an hour without killing myself to much, thats with multiple hills of varying heights and lengths. My sprints on flat ground can get to around 35mph for 45 seconds or so. Any idea how I would compare to the other racers in the cat 5 class, or how I'd compare to them this early in the season? Is finishing in the top half of the peloton within my grasp?

I think you'll do fine given your training to date. IMO your first goal should be to avoid crashing. Cat5s are often unsure of their power, so they feel they have to stick like glue to someone's wheel or they will be dropped. In their haste to get in position, they do some really dangerous riding. With your power, you can ride with a little more separation and protect yourself. Above all, avoid wheel overlaps -- keep your fingers wrapped around at least one brake lever at all times. Watch out for gaps. Weaker riders will suddenly allow a gap to open up when the lead group surges. If you're behind one of these riders, your first instinct will be to maintain position and hope he closes the gap. But, often he won't (or can't). My advice -- if a gap opens up (even 1-2 bike lengths), immediately go around the riders in front of you and close the gap. Otherwise, you will find yourself chasing a long way to get back in contact. Bobby Lex's advice to remain in the top 10 positions is good advice, to minimize this scenario. Chances are you will be with the lead group for the finishing sprint. In a Cat5 race, finishing sprints are really dangerous. Hopefully, you will have identified the strongest riders during the (short) race -- they will be up front pushing the pace. Find the smoothest rider (smooth accelerations, careful position changes, smooth pace) amongst these and get on his wheel early on before the sprint. Then, just go with him. If you have a clear lane in the last 100 yards, pull out to pass him if you have the power. Otherwise, just draft his wheel all the way to the finish line.

AmpedCycle said:

What???? 35 mph on your sprints and you can hold that for 45 seconds or so? Are you talking about downhill or with wind, because that's hard to believe!

Flat ground, usually not much wind around here. I can do it, just not easily and I'm pretty much drained after it.

cyclinmaniac said:

Im just glad Ive ride with some Cat 2 riders and alot of club race nights or I would have wrecked.

I ride with a lot of Cat 2 and 3 riders, so hopefully keeping pacelines with them has given me the experience to stay up in a race. Although I've never ridden with more than 10-12 people at a time. Guess this is really a 50-50 chance kind of situation.

ToffoIsMe said:

I ride with a lot of Cat 2 and 3 riders, so hopefully keeping pacelines with them has given me the experience to stay up in a race. Although I've never ridden with more than 10-12 people at a time. Guess this is really a 50-50 chance kind of situation.

Unfortunately, riding with Cat 2s & 3s has spoiled you. They ride more safely because they are confident of their power to close gaps so they don't panic to stay on a guy's wheel. The Cat5s are going to be real jumpy because they're terrified of being dropped. You need to acquire 360 degree vision. Not to worry -- you've got two full days!😄

Anyway Toffo, now you have the advice of a lot of people. Just stay out front and rip their legs off in the final sprint. 😄

Very best of luck, kick their a$$, and then tell us all about it! 🙂

Well the registration is officially closed with a 30 man peloton. That doesn't seem like it will be too bad, I was expecting to go on today and see 70 or 80 people registered.

If you are in the lead group towards the end, listen to the advice previously given to attack. I've participated in a lot of Cat 5 races where things slow way down a mile or two from the end. Everyone is trying to get into a position, or on a certain rider(s) wheel. Things become very disorganized and no one wants to pull at the front.

This is an excellent time to just ride off the front. Don't make a big show of attacking, just a medium effort to try and get some separation. If solo, just ride smoothe and don't make it look like you are going for broke. A lot of times if it looks like you aren't really attacking hard the group will wait a little longer before someone decides to pull the group in an attempt to catch you. Now, at some point you will have to put the hammer down. Try to time this where you have enough separation where it won't be as perceptible to the group.

If a rider(s) go with you on your attack, take a hard short to medium pull and come off the front. If the rider(s) play ball and work with you, keep it up to the finish and try to time your pulls where you will be 2nd or 3rd in line coming to the point where you think you can sprint. If riders go with you on the break but won't work, it is decision time. You can either shut it down and drift back to the group, or you can pull the other guys to an almost certain victory. Just remember, sometimes 2nd, 3rd, or even 4th is better than a 20+ Cat 5 group sprint.

Probably the most important thing to remember is this; You only need 10 mass starts to upgrade to Cat 4. Trying to win a Cat 5 race isn't worth getting hurt. Back out of situations when things start to get dicey. Save your skin for another day.