[Closed] So I want to try road racing + build a bike specifically for this

Bike was fine thanks gang!!

Sadly a last lap crash scuppered my efforts. I took to the grass to avoid and then went wider for good luck. Thank **** I did because the guy that was on the grass where I was going to ride got taken out by a bouncing bike!! Then his bike hit my back wheel but not enough to knock me over.

Then I stood up to sprint back on as the bunch hadn't capitalised immediately and got horrendous cramp 😀

Cruised in about 25th or so in the end I reckon.

The guy who punched me last week was there. He came tonking down the main straight doing about 33/34 at one point with his head down and rode straight into the back of someone!!

It was a hard race today in the wind. 294w weighted. I think I stuck to my plan. Once or twice I took too much wind but generally I felt in control.

The new bike rode nicely. Shifts from 2-4 on the back were a bit clicky after a while but otherwise nothing fell off and once or twice I put the hammer down and really noticed the extra acceleration.

Basically, we're all good but need a few more fitnesses to stay right at the front out of the way if anyone has any for sale 😆

Ah well- at least I made another comedy Strava Flyby 😀

Well done today CH!! Bloody shame about the crash as you were in a REALLY good position when you went past just before it!

STW Standard Team issue bikes:
[img] [/img]

Chequered flag:
[img] [/img]

Thanks for coming Nath! And for all your help with the bike. I really like it now it's done.

I think I will go back to the other Jersey 😆

blimey, all that crashing could put a lad off - how many in the race ?

45ish.

It was brewing all race. If you haven't managed to negotiate a tricky part of the course for the last 50mins without nearly causing a prang- surely it's obvious you're not going to manage it when everyone is going balls-out to the sprint??

I knew who it was going to be- they were just a little too fast for me to spend the whole race out of their way!

Luckily 'Nathing' on the edges meant I had an easy escape route.

Just finished tinkering. Rear mech cable needed un-bolting and re-bolting to get the tension right but was no drama. Then I gave the front mech cable a better pull whilst my wife tightened the bolt (should have bought an inline adjuster I guess). There was a tiny rub in top gear so that's cured now too.

Finally, I double checked my saddle height as it looked too high in Naths pic and I was curious about the cause of the cramp. It was about 15/18mm higher than the BTwin so that's now adjusted too.

I'll give her a spin around Hillingdon Tuesday afternoon all being well 🙂

Did my first TT today (on the propel, no TT bike for me) and first ride on the Propel, local-ish at Hanborough hilly.
Think I loved and hated it in equal measure...! Was quite hilly and don't think i paced myself too well as I didn't have much left in the tank for the hills on the 3rd (of 3) laps.
I also missed a turn and did 2 extra miles..!
16th of 24, could have been worse, and if I did the same course as everyone else may have been a couple places higher. Next time...

First road race:(well first since I did the same race 4 years ago as a bucket list thing and got dropped before 1/2 way :-D)

Did the pan flat Seacroft Spring 3/4 road race yesterday. Being a 62kg climber I didn't have high hopes either for the sprint or a breakaway. I managed 12th though, no points but there is hope on a flat course. At one point I followed a guy going to bridge for a break and then tried to take turns with him to get on. He couldn't come through after his first effot though and after 360w for 2 mins we had to go back in the bunch.

I was placed reasonably well for the sprint but without the out and out power of some of the bigger guys it was never going to end in a podium but I moved up past people who had judged it badly.

Two thing supprised me
A/crashing, which I avoided. caused by

1/ people bunching as they jostled for position on the last corner
2/ inability to hold line on sprint.

B/ Effort. My WAP was 205 watts, pretty easy, most hard training sessions are 230 watts plus

Well done Djglover! Sounds like you found the sweet spot at those wattages. I'd quite like to try a road race but it seems pretty dangerous with no run off!

I have been told it will calm down later in the season and on more hilly courses... so going to avoid flat races now.

After much deliberation I decided to renew race licence when renewing BC membership yesterday. I wasn't going to bother, as I found myself enjoying it less and less over the few years I've raced - potholes and point chasers the main culrpits!

However, I thought I might regret it if not...could be tempted by some of the Oxfordshire road race league races, and if there is some summer crits at Abingdon. Possibly even a return to the once beloved MK Bowl!

Plus it was payday, so naturally I had to waste some money!

Well well.

I last replied to this thread 5 months ago, before I get caught up in hillclimb season and winter hibernation.

I've now trawled through all 47 pages of this thread, but sadly not all 5Kg of my winter padding yet.

Huge congrats on getting upgraded, nathb! 8)

And well done to crosshair and everyone else who's got stuck in.

Nath, you really should get yourself over to Hog Hill. With your power and weight you should do well in the 3/4 races over there. You seem to be putting out more Watts/Kg than I was when I was getting points. And because it's a hill sprint, you're not disadvantaged against some of the bigger, but powerful sprinters.

Nath, you really should get yourself over to Hog Hill. With your power and weight you should do well in the 3/4 races over there. You seem to be putting out more Watts/Kg than I was when I was getting points. And because it's a hill sprint, you're not disadvantaged against some of the bigger, but powerful sprinters.

My club (Redbridge) is associated with the Hog Hill circuit and I'd definitely say that if they full circuit is being used it'd suit a climber. I normally start out on lap 1 climbing it out of the saddle in the big ring, but after a just a few (ok, maybe 2) laps I'm down into the granny ring and spinning my way up it slowly. I think some races just use the bottom circuit though, which is pretty flat.

Sunday was the busiest I've ever seen the circuit as it was some kind of youth championship (which I think was using the full course) and there were hordes of kids with nice bikes, along with lots of pushy Audi driving parents! We were meeting up for the Sunday club run but were glad to get away as we reckoned we were the slowest riders there by miles!

If anyone is racing at Hog Hill then let me know and I'll come and spectate as I live nearby.

Thanks @matts - I'll certainly keep an eye out for races there, although it's a bit of a trek for me from West London.

Who's racing this weekend?

My last day of employ at my current place tomorrow so I'm off out for a few shandy's. Had a bit of a rest week this week so will be back on it next week.

I think some races just use the bottom circuit though, which is pretty flat

Vets races use the bottom circuit and climb for the last lap. It's a great course, far more technical than Hillingdon, with hairpins that you cannot pedal around. I did my Level 3 coaching course at the circuit. Not managed to race there yet.

Surrey League 2/3 road race on Saturday, on my nemesis hill. Will see if I can hang on now the E1/2's aren't in the race (doubt it!)

So WDMBC have appeared to have been alternating between clockwise and anti-clockwise. That would make this week clockwise again hence why I did 30miles there clockwise again on Tuesday.

So of course, it's anti-clockwise this week 😆

surely you know both routes by now ? 😉

(turns out that circuit is about 20 min drive from my in-laws house. hmmmm)

Yes I do but it would have given me a mental boost 😉

I think I slightly prefer clockwise though. Silver lining is that the first round of the West Thames series is clockwise.

First couple of road races for me this weekend, not done back to back before so its a bit of leap into the unknown.

The summer chaingangs started this week too, i enjoy them as much as racing.

Good luck TiRed and Omar Little!

I'm not really nervous this week- just knackered!
I feel like I ought to give more consideration to warming up. I either need to do a road ride pre race or take the Turbo. My warm ups for a Zwift race are more thorough than what I do at Hillingdon.

Hard. Signing on showed that all the 3rd cat riders had opted for the 9am 3/4 race and easy points. So just me and one other. And I'm the oldest in what looks like a big field of some very strong teams of up to eight.

First sighting lap sees the comm stop the race for poor riding. If you can't ride on the LHS when cars are coming in the opposite direction, there will be no future for road racing. Then it's 16 laps of the Staple Hill circuit on Chobham Common. A few attacks the inevitable hill, a couple of crashes, including one on the technical 150 degree downhill hairpin junction (left hander, of course). I hung in with the pack until the penultimate lap where an ambulance had blocked this corner and I was squeezed out of position as we filtered through. Couldn't sprint back to the pack on the climb, so rode the final lap with two others and finished a half a minute down on a diminished field.

Very please, and an average speed of 25mph for the 50 miles and 900m of climbing. Still have 140 km to ride tomorrow for the weekly target.

Hillingdon Tuesday races start this week, Wednesday Westerly ten and and bit time trials as well, old man's races the following Wednesday. Surrey League Hadnicaps on Thursday.

Well done @TiRed!!

I'm still off the bike (racing wise), back on with training and eating properly next week. Not racing until I get a job though as I'm now officially unemployed 😆

Today's pics: [url=

Well done today @CH!!!

4th cat at hoghill today. Man alive there are some choppers about! Couple of nasty crashes, including one needing an ambulance. Anyway, got 14th which I was happy with. Screwed it up for myself with the sprint but I know what to do next time.

Good circuit is HH, that climb sorts the bunch out!

There was a lot of chopping today at Hillingdon by the sounds of things.

Looks like I got out of the 4ths just in time 😆

Damn straight! Quality of riding today was appalling, shame as its an ace circuit

Well done Flange and TiRed! That RR sounds brutal!

I think I called it with my knackered comment earlier. I was 'training through' this week with a view to upping my game for the 3/4 Tuesday nighters which have been my target for the past 10 weeks or so.

I decided to try and do less work today but it back-fired. Whilst it is a lot safer, the constant yo-yo's at the back are not good for my border-line fitness and pushed the weighted power up.

Anyway, I hung on ok and soon catapulted myself forward alongside Johnny. A few laps later, I realised he was now surfing the top 5 whilst I was in the last 5 😆

With about 6 to go, I was right at the back and thinking about where to move up. Sadly, every time the bunch slowed, I got swamped and was unable to launch to the front. Anti-clockwise definitely doesn't suit me as the pace with a tail wind up the hill was too hot as well.

Anyway, with 2 to go, I realised it was now or never. Sadly, Johnny had attempted a break a lap earlier so the whole field was drilling it. I was maintaining my position but I literally had nothing in the tank to create a move.

Down the straight on the final lap and the bunch pressed on into the wind. That had been my final hope for an easy ride to the front so I just clung on and waited to see if there would perhaps be a crash like last week. Negative tactics in the extreme but I had nothing else up my sleeve. Luckily for everyone's safety, the remaining bunch stayed rubber side down and I just didn't fancy a sprint for 30th so sat up after Brian's and cruised over the line.

With hindsight, it was a bit of a waste of an entry fee from a points POV as I was cooked this week. But... I felt relatively happy in what was another sketchy bunch and no doubt added some skillz to my racing repertoire. The saddle height was spot on this week and the bike was flawless.

With a good taper, I'm just about a contender for a Cat4 point now I would say but that's the limit of my fitness.

Rest and recovery next week, so let's hope I've lifted things up a level ready for the 11th.

My plan progresses to the Build phase then so I should be able to shoehorn some Under/Overs in and try and get my 2 minute power up as well as the Tuesday evening Cat 3/4 sufferfests.

If I find I'm back to getting comprehensively dropped then I may give them up in favour of training then Banjo's Summer CX and or Thruxton.

Well done today mate, with you being knackered it wasn't going to be your best race. Avoided all the crashes etc and I even saw some expertly done "Nathing": [url= ?oh=273fc56ac2782b8aaabee951042f6bcd&oe=5993FC34]HERE[/url]

Oh yeah, we'll potentially be racing together again in the 3/4s! 🙂

I'm going to head to the track Tuesday afternoon for a few laps, I have an interview around 12 but totally free (so far) after that if you fancy it?

May try an outdoor FTP test for 20 mins- see what happens!

I've got your positioning nailed, just need a few more of your Watts 😉

Thanks for turning out! Hopefully it helped clear your head 😆

That's a great set of pics Nath too.

I couldn't help but have a hearty-chortle at this one:

[img] [/img]

Looks like we've made up 😆

Great race. Racing when you are tired and have had a heavy week is the real sign of progress. Well done. When you are consistently competitive at Hillingdon, you'll be in the points at other races. The standard is that high.

Will be along for a few double header Tuesday evenings when I'm not out with the club.

Thanks TiRed! That means a lot.

I've been trying to be positive about it but couldn't help feel a little flat. It should be a 12hr week by the time I'm done tomorrow so I'll go with your verdict 🙂

Did my first race of the year (second ever race) today at Westpoint in Exeter. Found it quite tough, struggled to get going at the start after a very short warm up and really struggled having only had one lap around the course beforehand. I stuck in and around the back of the bunch for about 15 minutes, I struggled a bit with the proximity and found some of the corners a bit choppy. The course has a bit of a hill on the final straight, and then an uphill off camber corner which caused two minor crashes today, luckily I avoided both. After my initial 15 minutes in the group I was slightly distanced, I managed to hold the gap but couldn't make it back. After another 10 minutes solo I had found my groove and managed to hold off the bunch, who at this point were chasing me to lap me, for about 5 minutes. Overall I really enjoyed it and liked watching the end of the race after I pulled off. I really want to have another go, I'd love to be mixing it in the bunch. I've been training with TR and club runs, this seems to have worked well, just need to get some experience I think, any hints or tips more than welcome though.
P.s. I've loved reading this thread so far, keep it up

Well done Methers27! Kudos for keeping the bunch at bay!
Not sure how far the course was but I tend to just sit up and wait if I get dropped now. There is far more for me personally to learn by trying to get on again with fresh legs.

I've found there is a safety/effort trade off at play that will probably limit how far I get with this game. If I stuck myself in the heart of the bunch I would probably save 50w average a race.
But I would have been on the deck at least twice if not three more times already with the crashes. I don't have the power to avoid trouble.

TiReds best tips for me were:
Cadence- especially before and up the small climbs.
Look through the corners. Find the exit and focus on it. Let your peripheral vision worry about bunch positioning.
Do not brake! I mean, obviously brake over and above crashing but just use your momentum to move up instead if you can.
Hillingdon specifically- that the course is designed to be pedalled around in its entirety- so keep on trucking through the bends! This may not apply elsewhere so use that one with caution 😀

MrBlobby's "if you're not moving forwards, you are moving backwards" old favourite is also true with knobs on but took me a race or two to contextualise.
It was going up the small hill at Hillingdon and finding myself having to brake that switched the light bulb on! It's not a group ride!!!! Yes follow a wheel but be aware of your blind spots and move up if the guys in front slow- same with the headwind sections.
Momentum trumps taking wind if it moves you up.

But I have 0 points still so take as you wish 😆

Popping my head into this thread after I picked up my first points this morning 😀 I've been dabbling with racing on and off for a couple of years but I mainly do time trialling and it was only a handful of infrequent races each year. This year my OH is training specifically for bunch races so I've started racing a bit earlier than my annual dabble in about May!

Today was a ladies 3/4 at Tameside. 15 starters which relatively quickly dropped to a front group of 11. I spent a lot of the time at the back of the group - I still struggle with the confidence to move up and get back into the line a bit further forward. I had to chase on a bit after the hairpin each lap due to being at the back but it was manageable.

I knew it wouldn't be quite so manageable on the last lap or two, and that if I stayed at the back I'd probably be gapped at that point. I didn't want to be the person who missed out on a top 10! With an aim of getting top 10 rather than actually winning the thing I decided to ride right to the front with two laps to go, lead out through the penultimate hairpin and then try to hang on as best I could for the last lap and a half in the hope that the increase in pace would drop at least one person so even if people came back past me I'd get a top 10. And that's precisely what happened. My increase in pace gapped 2 people, and I know that if I'd stayed at the back someone else would have done what I did, and that would have been me off the back. I still have work to do, but it's the first time I've tried much more than just sticking with the group and wishing I had any sprinting ability!

That's awesome, well done 🙂

Westpoint in Exeter.

But my clubmate won the E12 today 😀

I didn't want to be the person who missed out on a top 10! With an aim of getting top 10 rather than actually winning the thing I decided to ride right to the front with two laps to go, lead out through the penultimate hairpin and then try to hang on as best I could for the last lap

And that's excellent, I've led out a few last laps in vets races, keeps it safe, gives the chance of points, better to try something.

Well done all!!

I'm back to building my base up ready for some longer road races: https://www.strava.com/activities/925338967

This is after doing a "body pump" class at the gym this morning (I'd been promising the missus I'd go for ages 😆 )

100k and only 300m elevation gain. No wonder you like racing at Hillingdon. 😆 8)

Still, going to Slough must be enough punishment in itself.

Makes me glad i live out in the relative sticks.... you must have had 10,000 cars though Nath.

I can do hills too, there's just not that many around here... when I visit the folks though: https://www.strava.com/activities/555054035

Cars are very well behaved on that route, that's why it's my staple popping out for 3 hours route lol. I don't think that's too bad of a time considering I had been doing squats and weight lifting etc in the gym. 😆

I don't think that's too bad of a time considering I had been doing squats and weight lifting etc in the gym.

I did my first metric century at the weekend and given that took me exactly 4 hours I'm certainly impressed that yours was an hour quicker! Mine had more hills though...

I wouldn't read tol much into my elevation on strava - my mio ALWAYS underestimates it.

Even comparing races at Hillingdon I seem to be able to go a different route to everyone else avoiding any inclines...

I'm hoping that now it's summer I can steal some of TiReds strava routes 😆

Head up onto Chobham Common and get the circuits in. Three Surrey League race circuits t be tested. And you can have a go at my Staple Hill circuit time, if you're hard enough 😉

Sounds like a challenge 😀

I wouldn't read tol much into my elevation on strava - my mio ALWAYS underestimates it.

Actually looking at the Strava data again I see your 100km was actually slower than mine, given it took you 4:47...!