This is really bugging me. I can ride pretty fast over long distance both on and off road. I’m also reasonably quick for example I got round the selkirk crc marathon in 4.5hours, got 8 laps at the Glentress 7 finishing top 20, got one of the top 20 fastest times in the norther rock cyclone, won the Kielder border raid etc.

I can also climb hill, current club hill climb champion and in a road race I can normally get to and off the front provided I start in the bunch.

But I keep getting dropped or really struggle to stay in the group when riding short road race (~35miles long). They’re pursuit races open to all but handicapped. I normally get away in the second group and feel fine but when the scratch group catches I’m struggling massively. Last night wasn’t helped by the scratch group having a pro rider and newly crowned race across america (team) world record holder.

So tips to get faster? I know about positioning etc. even though I’m rubbish at it and find myself slipping backwards. Average speeds towards the end are ~30mph. Is it just a case of getting some interval training and working on sustaining a high top speed? Any good guides online. Will endurance suffer if I focus on getting faster?

More Guinness, you need more Guinness…. 🙂

You know the answer…Hard painful intervals. But make sure you keep a balance between that and some steady work.

the best answer: you need a coach try Mark Grange at Velo 24

the alternative; research training periodisation and try and implement it, you might rescue what’s left of this season

the short answer:

Is it just a case of getting some interval training ?

YES

the important thing is to do them right, otherwise all that happens is that you get tired.

Short intervals is what you need.

Is it just a case of getting some interval training and working on sustaining a high top speed?

Yes.

And no your endurance won’t suffer unless you ONLY do short stuff for 6 months – imo.

It’s because you’re neither fit enough or fast enough at present.

+1
You need to try harder for longer.

You obviously need to spend lots of money on a new carbon bike and 😉 then upgrade the wheels straight away.

Positioning.
Short races and crits are brutal, all out efforts and if you can’t hold your place in the bunch you’ll suffer. The extra effort it takes to hang on at the back where you have correspondingly harder sprints out of corners and where you’re not getting the full benefit of the slipstream is incredible. You don’t realise what a difference it makes until you actually manage to sit in the front 30% of the field for the whole race.

Sitting at the back works well if you’re strong enough – I’ve seen Ed Clancy do it at several crits then he’ll smoothly move up through the field in the last few laps. But he’s an Olympic gold medallist, you’re not.

Jon you aren’t built for those fast sustained flat finishes that is why you can climb like a demented goat and ride quick all day.
So as has been mentioned before you need more hard interval training.

Find a hill that tkes up to 2 mins to climb and do 10 hard efforts up it with rest in between as you roll back down.
Also on your long steady rides throw in a few 5 min hard efforts.

Maybe cosider going to the gym and do calf raises and leg presses once or twice a week to increase power.

Turbo trainers are brilliant for the intervals that you need to be doing.

Basically you have trained yourself into an all day diesel engine and now you are looking to add more speed and power on top.

I found this hard too in the few road races I’ve done. As well as the whole fitness /training thing, there is a surprising amount of skill and tactics in road racing. I got absolutely dropped on a couple of races, when people who I knew were way less fit than me in every way (slower, less good at accelerating quickly, less endurance etc.) were hanging in there with the main bunch.

Joe

Never done a pursuit race…. but my experience of crits is as crazy_legs describes. Brutally hard if you let yourself slip back hoping to recover.

The key to road racing, from a fitness perspective, is the ability to go into the red for bursts and then recover while still maintain speed.

But the ones who do best are the tacticians who just know how to stay towards the front of the bunch.

warm-up properly first?

The key to road racing, from a fitness perspective, is the ability to go into the red for bursts and then recover while still maintain speed.

+1

I worked on brutal intervals and trynig to sustain sprints for as long as i could and this has worked wonders on my recovery.

Now in every break at crit races and getting on the front (also have got better at moving through the bunch instead of hitting the wind)

Could it be your mountain bike is not designed for racing roadies?

Hmmm, not I’ll look something up on intervals then. I still prefer to ride for fun rather than training which is why the endurance stuff comes more naturally as it’s just going for long rides often that has got me fit. Not sure intervals will kill my enjoyment but I’ll give a go because it should make the races more fun.

I have a carbon bike, maybe I need some carbon wheels 🙂

My mtb is rubbish at racing roadies but it’s not being used.

Warm up is fine, I ride to the races at a steady pace with a few short effort to get my heart rate up. Normally 45 minutes riding to get there.