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Advice for crits please (complete beginner)

  • This topic has 8 replies, 7 voices, and was last updated 11 years ago by tower.ii.
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  • June 11, 2015 at 6:00 pm #24228
    tower.ii

    Hi guys,

    So I’m relatively new to road cycling (started in December) and was thinking of having a go at racing crits. I’ve got a sporty background and have been working on bike fitness (tabata’s, FTP training, hills), can comfortably do 50 milers, but have no clue how to ride in a pack of racers, race strategy, etc. Watching videos and races can only teach you so much before you actually have to experience the real thing to learn.

    My question is whether or not it’s madness to have a go at the Crystal Palace Crits (I know it’s wayy out of my league, but it’s the only race series that seems to be going on right now within a reasonable distance). If it is a terrible idea, how should I get involved in the local crit scene? Any and all advice is welcome! Thanks!

    [I haven’t joined a cycling club yet as their intro rides are the first weekend of each month and I missed June’s]

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  • June 16, 2015 at 9:34 am #850059
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    tower.ii

    Awesome! Thanks so much for
    Awesome! Thanks so much for all the feedback guys. Super helpful!

    June 12, 2015 at 12:24 pm #850057
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    KirinChris

    Gkam84 wrote:
    Riding in a

    Gkam84 wrote:

    Riding in a group isn’t a great help in a crit, because most courses string it out from the start to the finish with the speed and the nature of the cornering.

    But you need to have basic group riding skills before you can start to master those additional elements of crit riding so it is the best place to start and it will help.

    A good group rider might or might not be good in a crit, but a poor group rider will never be good in a crit.

    I would suggest starting with some of the more ‘competitive’ group rides at a club, ones where you have to keep up or be dropped. Then move up to road or circuit racing where you have to be comfortable in a bunch and after that to crit racing.

    I certainly wouldn’t start with crits, especially if you haven’t done much group riding before.

    If you’re in south London go out on some of the ‘A’ rides with Dulwich Paragon, who organise the crits. If nothing else you will find people there who do them and will be able to give you a real-life opinion on how you would handle it.

    June 12, 2015 at 10:21 am #850055
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    adamtaylor

    Where do you live? There is
    Where do you live? There is more than one club in London 🙂

    Regarding the crits, you could say group riding is not that important but at cat 4 level, it’s often a big bunch moving around for an hour with a sprint at the end. Unless your comfortable riding around in close proximity to other riders, it’s going to be very difficult.

    The locations might not be convenient but you could try and get down to the Surrey Leagues beginner training sessions: http://www.surreyleague.co.uk/news/novice4thcattraining.htm

    In terms of other venues, there’s also HIllingdon, Redbridge Cycling Centre, Cyclopark and Lee Valley Velo Park. None of them are super convenient if you live in central London. There’s also the Surrey League and the South East Road Racing League.

    Track riding at Herne Hill or Lee Valley will undoubtable help with group riding and awareness, although it won’t be quite the same as racing on a road bike. I wouldn’t suggest sportives as particularly helpful for racing but from a fitness perspective it could help.

    Good luck and do join a club as soon as you can. It’s good fun and good practice.

    June 11, 2015 at 10:03 pm #850053
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    tower.ii

    Thanks for the replies guys.
    Thanks for the replies guys. I definitely intend to join a cycling club (not least of all because I’m new to London and don’t have any friends 🙁 ), but can’t do that until next month. Any suggestions for getting practice riding in a group in the meantime? Would a sportive or some time at the track help?

    And yeah Paul, I’m most definitely getting involved in CX (it’s actually what got me into cycling).

    June 11, 2015 at 10:02 pm #850051
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    Simon E

    Gkam84 wrote:Crits are

    Gkam84 wrote:
    Crits are difficult to practice, you really just have to enter and see how you go
    …
    Riding in a group isn’t a great help in a crit, because most courses string it out from the start to the finish with the speed and the nature of the cornering.

    Was thinking the same as Keith.

    The people I know who ride crits talk about the effort you have to make through and out of every corner to stay in touch, not letting yourself get swamped or ‘cut up’, of knowing how hard you can dive through corners and which line to take if you want to pass someone.

    But don’t be afraid to have a go, everyone has to be a first-timer once. Providing club membership isn’t a condition (it usually isn’t) then you can always just go for it see how you get on. You’ll probably love it.

    Some basic advice:
    http://www.active.com/cycling/articles/your-guide-to-criterium-racing

    June 11, 2015 at 9:42 pm #850049
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    paulrattew

    A good club is really the
    A good club is really the best way to learn. A good club will teach you how to ride in a group comfortably – the etiquette and the skills.
    A good club will have people who have experience with all sorts of racing – TTs, road races, crits. You will be able to learn from them.

    As Gkam says, some of the top riders aren’t exactly great in comparison to other pros when it comes to riding in groups. It is all a matter of relative levels though – they might not be as good as the average pro, but they are still vastly better than the average Joe. I wouldn’t even think of racing (apart from triathlon) unless you are reasonably comfortable in a group. You don’t have to be brilliant, but you need to make sure that you are not dangerous to the other riders around you.

    Get a bit of experience in group riding with a club, then through yourself into a race and have some fun. You will almost certainly be spat out the back early on, but you won’t be the only one and it should only spur you on to improve 🙂

    Also, when the winter season comes along you should definitely try cyclocross. Most fun you can have in an hour on a bike

    June 11, 2015 at 8:57 pm #850047
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    Gkam84

    Some of the best domestic
    Some of the best domestic riders can’t ride in groups and especially not in Crits, so you are not alone on that. I won’t name any names, but there are a number in the mens and women’s tour series that you will see in one of two places, off the front attacking or sitting right at the back of a group, sprinting out of each corner to get back on, depending on the race they are having.

    Crits are difficult to practice, you really just have to enter and see how you go, as long as you can get a couple of laps of the track to get to know the corners, don’t go pulling “chopper” moves, like slamming on the brakes in the middle of a corner because you’ve over cooked it, instead, roll out of it to the edge of the circuit so you don’t take anyone out.

    Riding in a group isn’t a great help in a crit, because most courses string it out from the start to the finish with the speed and the nature of the cornering.

    June 11, 2015 at 8:38 pm #850045
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    2 Wheeled Idiot

    If you haven’t ridden in a
    If you haven’t ridden in a close bunch before, I would recommend doing this before racing otherwise you could be a danger to yourself and others…
    The only way to learn to race tactics IMO is to actually do it, once the red mist descends its pure instinct and no amount of videos or articles will help you focus on tactics.

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