Just sitting around watching the commonwealth games and got to thinking that Given that I’m quite lazy and easily bored I was thinking that I’d like to limit my bike racing to as short a time as possible. Does anyone know how much power a half reasonable track rider needs to do a 1k race in a respectable time. Especially in an old git category (40)

Cheers.

Track is pretty hard, with nowhere to hide. I find it a lot harder than road or mtb.

At a guess I’d say somewhere around a 700W average for a 1k would probably put you at the lower end of reasonable club level. Based on nothing more than what I think I could probably achieve now, though I’m definitely no sprinter and not a track rider, so that’s probably on the low side.

Edit: check out this thread.

How long would the 1k take you mr blobby?

No idea, I’ve never done one. My guesstimate was based on power I think I could average over 90 seconds. I would be curious to give it a go, but I’m not a big powerful type so I’m guessing I’d be pretty average. Also probably be quite slow to get going as I wouldn’t have the massive power needed to quickly accelerate a big gear.

My brother claims his max is just over 1600w. He does alright in the masters class on road and track.

Not track but a good idea about relative power outputs

My brother claims his max is just over 1600w

Max power is just the start of the kilo 🙂 May be called a sprint but it’s still an endurance event.

You need a big max to get off the line and up to speed, then good endurance to hold on after that initial 30 seconds. Sounds horrendous 🙂

On the track from the info I have found on t’interweb:

Kilo world record was /is 7.7w/kg

Hour world record was / is 6.6w/kg

Average outputs for the duration of the event

So assuming a 70kg rider that would put their average power outputs at 539 for the kilo and 462 for the hour.

Youusy be teh awsum at 700w

I think that you’d do pretty well mr blobby, unless you’re huge. 750 to 850 watts for a minute according to your link gets you a good time, just over a minute. So if you can do 700 for 90 secs you should do really well. Not sure I could keep up 700 for anywhere near 90 seconds. I’m only 72kg when in shape, not sure how much difference weight would make thou after you get up to speed.

Max power is just the start of the kilo May be called a sprint but it’s still an endurance event.

Ah, missed that crucial part. I think he does points & scratch too.

I could manage 700 I’d of thought, for a minute, if I was fit. Maybe I should give it a go, I’m a bit over road riding.

Youusy be teh awsum at 700w

Probably not! It is that combination of a large max to get going and being able to hang on over the distance. And I suspect the kilo guys are a lot more than 70kg (Hoy is 93kg according to wikipedia.)

One of the posts from the earlier link…

Standing Kilo, 1.04, 80.5kg, 108″ gear, Bordeaux track in training before Athens Olympics.

1585 max watts
859 ave watts
556 watts at end

Riders peak watts from data supplied 1690 watts
Peak 15sec Power 1345 watts
Peak 30sec Power 1095 watts
Peak 45sec Power 970 watts
Peak 60sec Power 887 watts

But that is olympic standard so properly awsumn.

Well, I’m a competent road racer with 300W FTP and can hack it in E123. I raced the Reading GP on Saturday and struggled in the “endurance” events – endurance is 20km. As for the keiren, five riders went past me for the sprint relatively easily (the last was another endurance rider!)

For the sprint events, 1000W will not be enough! For the 4000m Team Pursuit, it will be 600, 430, 370 and 370 Watts, depending on position.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10589873

It’s a nice paper on selection of US team for Atlanta

Even at Hoy size it’s ‘only’ 716w average over the distance.

Kilo world record was /is 7.7w/kg

Really? That seems very low. That quote above gives over 10w/kg (and over 20w/kg peak) and that was apparently in training.

Have a look at this link. World class guys over 11w/kg for 60 seconds.

Even at Hoy size it’s ‘only’ 716w average over the distance.

Wow, really? I’d of thought it’d be more than that. It must be more Shirley?

Taking 11w/kg for Hoy, he’d be averaging at least 1000w. Though the kilo is probably a bit skewed due to the massive power required at the start.

Looking at that chart, I’d guess about 8w/kg for a minute would have you going ok at club level, assuming decent aero setup etc.

W/kg doesn’t matter on the track – it’s power to drag, not power to weight that is critical because you’re not climbing and you’re going fast. That Yeti chat yesterday showed that two of their enduro racers manage 2000W+ but they’re both big guys.

W/kg doesn’t matter on the track – it’s power to drag

Very true. Don’t really have figures for that so just guesstimating power based on weight. For the OPs question, assuming you are reasonably areo, a reasonable size for a club rider (say about 12 stone) and can manage about 8 w/kg for a minute, then you’d probably not embarrass yourself 🙂

Edit… there are probably more informed forums on which to ask this question though!

Edit… there are probably more informed forums on which to ask this question though!

Probably :D, but I don’t have the worry of coming across as a clueless noob so much on here, as I guess lots of guys from here have probably given track a go. I guess that weight must be a factor to some extent, as you have to accelerate, and then you generally have more drag if you are wider, ie fatter.

A guy I sometimes ride with is pretty handy on the track, he does the 3k (as he’s too old for the 4k). I might tag along and check it out. I guess that I wouldn’t have to do so much training to race for just a minute either, which is good! Maybe that’s me just being optimistic thou.

Very different training to longer events, but I can imagine some horrendous sessions needed to get good at it. Sounds like a horrible event to me. Bust a gut getting off the line, all out for the first 30 seconds then a painful horrible death over the next 45 or so seconds.

I might tag along and check it out

if you want to get on the track you will have to go through accreditation first, it’s not just a case of rocking up and hopping on a bike unless you hire the track for a private session, even then i imagine you would need a bike as the hire bikes are not geared up for the kilo but for inductions.

I think things are a little more backward where I live! Our local track is outdoors! She’ll be right!

alexathome – Member

I think things are a little more backward where I live! Our local track is outdoors! She’ll be right!

I think most of the outdoor tracks require accreditation.

Get accredited and have a go at the novice track league, good fun but no where to hide (as someone else said above). Very addictive.

Lots of nice theory stuff going on there Alex.
If you have never ridden fixed or a track before ,then you are in for some wonderful enlightenment.
As Mr Smith says ,you generally can’t just rock up and give it a go.
I went on a club day (two clubs shared the booking )and had two approved coaches in our group ,so the cost wasn’t fierce.
It was at the Glasgow track,so it will be nice to watch the racing knowing how it feels ( a little )to swoop down off one of those corners.
Brilliant and scary in equal measures 🙂

minimum time racing you say?

Here you go.

Wow, that looks like a lot of fun, I’ve never seen that before. I don’t think that they have anything like that where I live. I’ve ridden track before, 3 or 4 times, in Newport years ago. It was fun.

It’s pretty popular where I live, but the local velodrome is a bit crap compared to the new ones. I just need to fill some void for being a bit competitive at something and I think that track might play to my strengths more than road does, if that makes any sense.

the club I’m a member of had a number of “proper” sprinters (mainly masters), these guys rode the sprinters league, national and world masters

there is a fundamental difference between these guys and other riders, their size is different, the training different their body type is different, and in terms of sprinting they are different to an endurance rider with a sprint

as a coach once told me “you know if you are sprinter and if you don’t, you’re not”

but the beauty of a local track league is that you get to play at everything,

also try grass track racing, its bonkers

But is a 1k effort really a sprint? I know that I’m not a sprinter, but I know that on a 1 minute effort that I am pretty strong, I tend to die on my ass after 2 and a half mins thou. At least that’s what my stravering tells me.