Getting it all out there!

Ade Merckx said:

Hi guys, I'm wondering whether I really give my all or keep too much back in reserve. I'm a 3rd cat and I'm pretty comfortable in 3rd cat races. I haven't got any placings yet (only done 4-6 races). I know all about keeping near the front , preserving energy etc etc but I often think negatively.......

Should I just designate a race as training and attack constantly just to see what I'm capable of coz the truth is I don't know.
I read about Dr Andy C winning races with 'the energiser bunny approach' There's been a few races where I' haven't been 'redlining it' and have wanted to try - too scared though:o I don't wanna become a TT man cause I love RR and crits... Oh I'll shut up now!...All ideas welcome, cheers🙂

Yes, you should if for no other reason than the "Beauty of Winning Solo" thread needs a couple of really good entries ASAP.

FWIW, I think I'm in a similar situation. It can be so challenging to simply stay with the group because my positioning skills really need work, that I end up thinking that I'm not as strong as some of the others,and I'm hesitant to be aggressive.

Some TT-ing might help you understand your limits better.

I'm not sure I'm totally understanding your question, though. Are you thinking that your FTP should be allowing you to dictate races or get away from the pack more? Or are you thinking that you should be doing more work and being more tired at the end?

IME, there'll be plenty of riders in a Cat-3 field that have power in that range, and some with more who also have the use of teammates to help out. A single attack at that level would have to be very timely, or have the support of other riders in order to have much impact on the field. In the crit you spoke of where the small group rode off the front, maybe those riders had teammates in the pack blocking whereas your 2-man break did not?

🙂

frenchyge said:

Some TT-ing might help you understand your limits better.

I'm not sure I'm totally understanding your question, though. Are you thinking that your FTP should be allowing you to dictate races or get away from the pack more? Or are you thinking that you should be doing more work and being more tired at the end?

IME, there'll be plenty of riders in a Cat-3 field that have power in that range, and some with more who also have the use of teammates to help out. A single attack at that level would have to be very timely, or have the support of other riders in order to have much impact on the field. In the crit you spoke of where the small group rode off the front, maybe those riders had teammates in the pack blocking whereas your 2-man break did not?

Thanks for the replies. Yes you're right at 3rd cat level an FT of ~300watts is not remarkable and there was indeed significant blocking going on. I did think that Ft would give me a bit more rope to cause damage, but apparently not. The fact that my bunch riding skill need to be a lot slicker probably doesn't help either. Oh well I'll keep going there's another crit tonight.I will try a TT or two to test my limit. Cheers I keep y'all posted

You should have enough strength to be a solid contributor on successful breaks, and maybe even win with the right moves. That's a fun place to start, but may not quite constitute enough of a threat to put a Cat-3 field in panic mode. Riding behind another rider saves ~20%, so anyone with an FTP above ~250w should be able to hang behind you on a long stretch. That's pretty much everyone in your races.

If you lack strong team support, then you'll want to be mindful of the composition of groups that are going off the front. Try to get into breaks with riders who have the backing of strong teams so that you can take advantage of their teams' blocking behind you. If there's a big team, then try to take one of their riders with you on your attacks. Some riders are able to ride away from a moderate chase effort, but I think you'll want to be a little more selective on your tactics than that.

Good luck! 🙂

I'd expressed some similar sentiments in a post i wrote called "reading the race"

cyclingforums.comt459732.htmlOpen ↗

I had just come off a crit whereby i lost out on what was a good finishing place b/c i had tried to read the race...probably a little too much reading into it. My frustration was with constantly finishing 12-15th place. I always seemed to miss the winning move, or fail to get in the right place for the finish, although my power profile suggested i could do both well. I always hesitated trying to guess what was going to happen next.

I think it boils down to the fact that trying to fully grasp at how or why things happen in a RR/Crit is like trying to fit predictability into a chaotic system. especially as an amateur: riders turn over each year, teammate help is unpredictable, courses change, etc. you can't count on much...except you're own effort.

More than likely, unless you're off the charts in some niche (sprinter, TT'er, etc) you'll lose much more often than you win...or even place. Having just come off 2 races where i just "let it fly" (rode my ass off but not doing too much wasted efforts) and i was finally able to get into a winning breakaway with a group of elite riders, (while finishing 2 minutes off the group during the other race:eek: ).

I decided after reading some of the helpful posts on that thread, I'll either make something happen or turn myself inside out trying. Well normally i'd be upset at being off the back, but i was more than happy to be, b/c i had been in a long breakaway that day. The other race, well, I was in the winning breakaway and never saw it coming but happened to grab the right wheel at the right time then put it in cruise control. Had i been waiting for the right move i never would have had any chance. Both results are much more satisfying in either case than finishing with the peleton at 14th place after sitting in the whole race. Not to knock it however, it's a strategy that works fine in a lot of situations for a lot of people and a strategy that i will use for the right race.

My recs: find out what you really like about racing, find your strengths on each course, forget about the results for now, and just try to race hard. Accept fate if things don't go your way...there's always next week. But at least don't go down without a fight.

Let us know how it goes!!!!!

-Mike