I am about to ride in my first criterium race this weekend (its only about 15 miles total) and I was looking for some pointers from the wonderful world of 2spoke. I have done many group rides, some of them at race pace so I am comfortable in the pack. And I am not looking for training tips cause lets face it; its a little late for that. Any suggestions are welcome....Thanks
the first few laps will be fast as the group tries to drop the less experienced riders, but it will slow down after that. Try to get out on the course beforehand so you can get a look at the corners and plan out your lines. If you are planning on trying to win the thing stay within the top ten riders. The group can stretch out big time in crits, if you're not in the first few places you're probably going to be too far back to have a shot at winning. And if this is your first race, don't let your enthusiasm get the best of you off the start line.
When you start the race, stay top ten like Bantam said. After the bell rings for the last few laps, move up to 5 4 or even 3. Last lap, stick on the wheel closest to the finish line and on the straight sprint away! And, around corners, make sure you go outside-in. Dont get hurt, ive seen way too many rookies make the bad choice of going out at the gun and crashing in the first lap. Stay calm, its going to get hectic, and your body is going to go crazy. Good Luck!
Thanks for the advice....The closer I get to the race, the more nervous and excited I get. Hopefully this will be the first of many.
Well the race was a success....and I didn't crash!!!! Thankfully, no one else did either. It proved to be a good time and I am looking foward to next Sunday's crit. Thanks for the advice!!!!!
There was no podium finish for me this time...but I learned a lot. There are a few things I want to try differently from a strategy stand point.
Here are the details...... It was a 20 lap (.8 mile lap = 16 total miles) crit. For the most part there was 1 solid pack for most of the race. We lost a few people around the last 2or 3 laps. The first 4 or 5 laps we had an average speed of around 23 to 25 mph. From that point on it slowed a little until the last 2 or 3 laps. Then it exploded to about 27 mph. I actualy felt it was slow until after the race, someone told me that we had some pretty nasty crosswinds along the back part of the course where there is some mild elevation. I am planning on another race this weekend so it will interesting to see how I feel about that one.
2008 Specialized Allez Elite...its not the fastest thing on the road, but it held up well. And the course wasn't the smoothest either, so it was nice to see it handle well.
