First Crit of the Season

Awesome! I hope you had a blast and gave 'em 'ell out there!

I'm addicted as well, crits and RR get the adrenaline flowing more quickly than triathlons. I like the tactical and team aspects of being a roadie as well. 

I raced Tuesday night here in STL in our weekly series. I'm in the "B" race, which is Cat 4 and up. Somehow I managed the win, even with a 4 hour hill ride on Monday. A teammate gave me an AWESOME pull before the final turn, and when he started slowing down I dug deep and was gone. 

Overall, my first season has been going pretty well! All the races I peaked for I did well at, and I've gotten 2 first place finishes, 2 second place finishes, and one 2nd overall at an omnium.

Seems a lot of you folks are in the upper midwest. Are any of you going to Tour of America's Dairyland?

That is rough getting combined with the A racers in your first crit of the year.  Good job hanging in and getting the experience.   There is definitely a skill component. I need to do fast crits at least once a month or so to keep my head in the game.  If I don't do them for a while, it takes me a few laps to get back to being efficient.

Sure. You could already be at the limit of what you can learn.

On the other hand, if you stay open to the possibility, you might find that there are still changes you can make that can lead to big improvements in efficiency. I guess I've done over 150 races and I am still regularly finding ways to improve. 

I keep waiting to have that perfect race where I'm in the right spot at the right time and haven't done too much work prior.

Congratulations on the race.

There is a weekly Thursday night race in the here that I've been wanting to go watch and see what its all about. How does a beginner get involved? It looks like a lot of fun. sorry for the hijack.

Craig, you can race on a one-day license, but it's worth getting an annual license right away if you plan to do more than a couple of races.  Once you have a license, you can just sign up and race. 

You can order licenses online through www.usacycling.org

To be safe, you should have experience in fast group riding beforehand.  Ideally, you affiliate with a club and have some experience riding with racers who can give you some tips and drills. Short of a good club network like that, clinics can also be valuable.

I'd also advise going out and watching the race.  See if you can find some of the folks involved in putting it together (usually they are run by teams) and introduce yourself.  You might find that they are quite happy to point you in the right direction. 

crowny2 - 2011-06-07 9:39 AM

dalessit - 2011-06-07 8:16 AM

I keep waiting to have that perfect race where I'm in the right spot at the right time and haven't done too much work prior.

I guess the more you race, the more opportunity you have to have that perfect race. 

... or the more skilled you become at creating that situation for yourself. It doesn't usually happen by chance.

Another idea is to check out local bike shops for group rides in your area.  Definitely want to get some pack experience before racing.

dredwards - 2011-06-07 10:50 PM

crowny2 - 2011-06-07 9:39 AM

dalessit - 2011-06-07 8:16 AM

I keep waiting to have that perfect race where I'm in the right spot at the right time and haven't done too much work prior.

I guess the more you race, the more opportunity you have to have that perfect race. 

 ... or the more skilled you become at creating that situation for yourself. It doesn't usually happen by chance.

Very true, patience in the group is tough, no one wants to do the work, but everyone wants to win.  LOL my goal for tonights training crit is to only be on the front inside the last 200M : )

I'm also finding out which types of courses I like and don't like.  Our training crit (actually circuit) has a steep little hill inside the last 500M which I'm not a fan of, it takes the energy out of you because everyone sprints up it, then sprints for the line.  Trick is to find a wheel moving forward through the group so I don't have to sprint until the top of the hill, then open it up. 

Funny thing is I am coming up on 10 races here real soon but in the DC area Cat 5 races are 8am and Cat 4 are 4pm.  I much prefer the 8am starts, race is over and I can get stuff done with family.  With a 4:00 race I'll have worked my butt off around the house all day then have to make it to the race.