A3/A4 Racers - How fast do you climb?

mirv

Hey, I'm thinking of starting to race at some point but I haven't got a clue how much power you need to start racing and to not get dropped. I haven't competed in anything except 'adventure races' such as WAR/ROAR where the standard of cycling is pretty low in the short course.

I understand that racing is often to do with responding to surges and trying to hide in the pack but all I have for comparison is my solo rides logged on strava. I usually come in the top half or third in most proper hill (4km+ and 5%+ avg gradient).

I know the perennial question asked by newbie racers is how fast your average speed is but that's really like asking how long a piece of string is - it depends on if you're cycling in the flatlands in a group or paceline or if you're in the hills solo - so it's a bit of a pointless question unless the specifics are given.

On average how fast do you climb at an A4 level?

Wicklow Gap - I'm just over 24mins
http://app.strava.com/segments/635753

Turlough Hill TT - Around 38mins
http://app.strava.com/segments/846761

Stocking Lane to Viewing Point - Around 19mins
http://app.strava.com/segments/693111

Ballyboden, Stocking Lane, Featherbeds, Sally Gap - Around 58mins
http://app.strava.com/segments/1262202

Arthurdaly

The real question is how fast can you ride on the last hill of a race when you are nearly spent.

Yesterday des hanlon a4 was very tough until the final hill, the final hill was incredibly tough and the leading bunch of around 12 riders went over at about 24/25 k/ph, I'm guessing the front of the a3 probable went over at 25/26 k/ph. I lost most sensation in both arms and that was clinging on the back.

If there is a hilly race like yesterday the entire race splits to pieces, there were probably 7 or 8 groups on that final hill with averages probably as low as 16 k/ph out the back.

The standard and speed of climbing is very high at the front of the a4/a3 races but if are selective with your races then you should be ok. Don't do the des hanlon as your first race. Lots of flat easy races like the Lucan gp out there.

I wouldn't worry too much about your averages, join a club and do club league races.

mirv

I understand pace is relative to the course and especially in a racing context, but that was why I was wondering what sort of pace you would go up those climbs I mentioned in a normal 50-100km training spin.

I don't mean to compare my times up an X percent gradient for Y kilometres in my training spin to your times up a different climb gradient X and length Y in a race context. I guess I'm kind of looking for a climbing based power comparison since I don't have access to a power metre myself - I guess I could very well compare my 19min up Stocking Lane to a 20 min FTP considering it's sheltered from the wind and I'm going at a snails pace so the power estimation is fairly accurate so long as I enter my own weight and my bikes weight in.

I know it's a bit sterile but I want to know whether I should even bother or not. I'm not in a club yet so there'll be a decent chunk of expense that I'd need to dip into for CI membership, race license, club membership, club kit, club race fees and I'm sure there's hidden extras so I'm wary of just joining a club as it's a decent chunk of change in one go.

Harrybelafonte

mirv wrote: »

I understand pace is relative to the course and especially in a racing context, but that was why I was wondering what sort of pace you would go up those climbs I mentioned in a normal 50-100km training spin.

I don't mean to compare my times up an X percent gradient for Y kilometres in my training spin to your times up a different climb gradient X and length Y in a race context. I guess I'm kind of looking for a climbing based power comparison since I don't have access to a power metre myself - I guess I could very well compare my 19min up Stocking Lane to a 20 min FTP considering it's sheltered from the wind and I'm going at a snails pace so the power estimation is fairly accurate so long as I enter my own weight and my bikes weight in.

I know it's a bit sterile but I want to know whether I should even bother or not. I'm not in a club yet so there'll be a decent chunk of expense that I'd need to dip into for CI membership, race license, club membership, club kit, club race fees and I'm sure there's hidden extras so I'm wary of just joining a club as it's a decent chunk of change in one go.

You've already posted a Strava link, so you can compare speeds.

I'd just give a racing a go. It'll improve your abilities quicker. I spent about 40km of Des Hanlon out on my own and was climbing at 13km/h at one stage. So you'd be beating me anyway

mirv

Well I was really wondering what the speed of A3/A4 racers would be up those or similar types of climbs. I wouldn't have a clue whether the people on the leaderboard are A4/A3 or A2 or A1 or Pro (cough RYAN SHERLOCK cough)

I'm not worried about my averages as I had already pre-emptively tried to acknowledge that race pace is nothing like solo or even group ride pace. I was just trying to ask how I would compare with the A3/A4 lot on training spins with my climbs on training spins. I'd imagine most people would climb at their own pace on climbs rather than slow down with the group, and then regroup at the top so times would be comparable.

Peterx

Race next weekend so. It's the final time this year you can race on a whim.
There will be no one day licences given out after April 1st ( not a joke! )

Hold your line in the bunch, watch for wobbly willies and have fun. If you still have legs near the end - go for it!

If you really have loads of time Strava is great for stalking. Find an A3 and an A4 with times on your segments which are similar to yours and see what their Strava race times and race VAM's are like after 50/80km.

morana

mirv wrote: »

Well I was really wondering what the speed of A3/A4 racers would be up those or similar types of climbs. I wouldn't have a clue whether the people on the leaderboard are A4/A3 or A2 or A1 or Pro (cough RYAN SHERLOCK cough)

I'm not worried about my averages as I had already pre-emptively tried to acknowledge that race pace is nothing like solo or even group ride pace. I was just trying to ask how I would compare with the A3/A4 lot on training spins with my climbs on training spins. I'd imagine most people would climb at their own pace on climbs rather than slow down with the group, and then regroup at the top so times would be comparable.

but they dont race on those hills so its pointless. I always found being lined out in a crosswind harder than riding a hill in an 3rd cat race. The best training was sprinting up hills like the strawbeery beds and doing it a number of times because except for the odd race like the Ras you dont do those really long 30min climbs. As Harry said just go racing

colm_gti

Peterx wrote: »

....watch for wobbly willies....

And I thought I already had enough to be worried about in races!

Lumen

You need a nice steep, sheltered hill to eliminate the effects of wind.

So...off you go to Kilmashogue Lane
http://app.strava.com/segments/631099

Peterx

Lumen wrote: »

You need a nice steep, sheltered hill to eliminate the effects of wind.

So...off you go to Kilmashogue Lane
http://app.strava.com/segments/631099

and maybe start your spin in Carlingford, just to get that nicely fatigued effect of racing.

IM0

see now this is the problem with sky in the pro peloton, people start to think racing is by average speed and watts :rolleyes:

just go racing and you'll soon find out

but Il give you some numbers.

wicklow gap [laragh side] 19min flatout during a training spin of 70k+ including a shorter but as steep if not moreso climb about 45 min b4.

alpe dhuez TT 52 min 30 [12.2k @8%]

both TT efforts @300w

use to race at A3 before getting into doing marmottes and climbing training mostly up most of the climbs you mentioned and around the area of wicklow / dub mtns

mirv

Hey! I've mentioned about three times now that I understand racing isn't about averages. That's why I asked for times on a hilly segment. Just 'trying' racing costs about 200 quid unless I go to the very last one-day-license race of the year next weekend. Strava leaderboards won't tell me if I'm looking at times from pros (unlikely apart from sherlock) or seasoned a1/a2/a3 or sandbagging a4s so it's hard to use as a metric when I'm looking for how much power it costs to be in a race without getting dropped.

Anyhow thanks for finally giving me a answer to my original question! 19mins up the Wicklow Gap is stonking fast.

Lumen

mirv wrote: »

Hey! I've mentioned about three times now that I understand racing isn't about averages

Yes, but people apparently never tire of smugly pointing out that a road race is not a time trial, like it's not screamingly obvious to anyone with the smallest scrap of understanding.

Chips Lovell

morana wrote: »

but they dont race on those hills so its pointless. I always found being lined out in a crosswind harder than riding a hill in an 3rd cat race. The best training was sprinting up hills like the strawbeery beds and doing it a number of times because except for the odd race like the Ras you dont do those really long 30min climbs. As Harry said just go racing

This is excellent advice from morana. What time you can do on those kinds of hills will have little relevance to how you get on in a A3/A4 race.

The terrain is different but also the efforts required are very different. You've also got to factor in a large degree of skill and that won't come through training on your own.

I've noticed a lot of people considering racing getting caught up in numbers, trying to compare how fast they can ride with how fast the average racer can go. The best approach is to join a club and learn how to ride in a bunch and then dipping your toes in a few races. You'll learn a huge amount and be able to identify where you need to improve rather than be working in the dark.

lennymc

as i realised yesterday, not fast enough

most races are fairly flat, couple of drags. the thing with (a4) racing is the unpredictable digs and random short hard efforts that come out of no where. rule of thumb seems to be 30kph average over 100 km on rolling roads would suggest that you would be fine in A4. I hadnt done that average when i first raced, flat races I was fine, hide in the bunch, hilly races id get dropped, Just do it, its great!

mirv

Fourth time now, I understand that it's not about averages over long training spins. 30kph/100km in rollers in Kildare is different to 30kph/100km over Dublin/Wicklow mountains. One persons mountain is anothers molehill so the definition of rolling terrain is a vague one at best. People on the Des Hanlon thread are a testament to that, some thinking the climbing was grand and others thinking it was horrendous.

That's why I chose hilly segments like Stocking Lane or the Wicklow Gap to compare to - you can't really sit-in on a group ride and roll over them at 35-40km/h over those climbs so you'll have to dig in and actually climb. Them being in the middle of a ride takes out the time trial aspect somewhat and makes it more similar to a race.

Similarly I can learn bike handling and racecraft faster than I can gain power outright so asking whether I have enough legs to compare to the rest of bunch is still a valid question. It's pretty hard to get a straight answer out of you lot sometimes

lennymc wrote: »

as i realised yesterday, not fast enough

most races are fairly flat, couple of drags. the thing with (a4) racing is the unpredictable digs and random short hard efforts that come out of no where. rule of thumb seems to be 30kph average over 100 km on rolling roads would suggest that you would be fine in A4. I hadnt done that average when i first raced, flat races I was fine, hide in the bunch, hilly races id get dropped, Just do it, its great!

Plastik

I reckon you've plenty legs for A4. Try it, that's what it's there for.

lennymc

fine. you asked, i answered. what more do you want?

Chips Lovell

It's not that nobody wants to give you a straight answer. People are genuinely trying to be helpful here.

Harrybelafonte

You asked a question with multie variables but want a definite answer. Sure ask again but give us multiple choice answers. Then we can get close to your all encompassing answer.

Are you really only going to race if you can stay with the bunch?

Lumen

Regardless of all complicating factors, the facts are that...

(a) whilst hillclimbing ability is not sufficient to do well in a hilly race like the Des Hanlon, it is necessary. You can't just draft your way to the top.

(b) being able to chuck out a load of watts at various intervals is significantly correlated with ability to win races of various profiles.

mirv

Hey Lennymc, I didn't mean it to be a dig at you personally. I just mean that I've already tried to clarify in the second and third paragraph of my very first post that I understand responding to surges in pace and racecraft such as sitting in and cornering safely are more important in a race.

I already tried to point at this out at the very start so as I wouldn't get chided for asking for something as vague as average speed over 100km. Pushing on the pedals at a balls out pace on your own for 20 minutes is just as hard as pushing those same pedals at a balls out pace for 20 minutes in a race as long as you're just as tired starting off. That's why I tried to use a comparable metric of a hill climb rather than a flat spin where you can hide in the pack.

I've searched the forums on beginning a4 racing and since I haven't been to a race before to ask these sorts of questions so I've read the usual answers and the qualifications that these answers come with. It seems pretty daunting to shell out about 150-200e to 'try' racing if every A4 has a 3000e bike, SRMs, carbon wheels and is a sandbagger who's been 'competitive' in a introductory category for years which is the impression I kind of get.

lennymc wrote: »

fine. you asked, i answered. what more do you want?

lennymc

fair enough - i started last year, got dropped in some races, finished in the bunch in some races. you really wont know until you try it. A guy I know is handy on hills, but cant drive on on the flats, also, some people are fine on the flats, but go out the back on hills. I dont think there are many sandbaggers, more people who will sit in, and wait for a sprint. Get a one day licence, do the race next weekend and see how you get on.

smurphy29

mirv, for what it's worth this is my first year doing A4 and I have broadly similar times to yourself, maybe I've a small edge. I did Turlough Hill in 34.30 or something but that was in the Hill Climb Championship (you'll always go harder in a competitive environment) and I did it in 38 the week before in my training .

So far I've gone ok, had a good day out in Navan where the bunch split and I was with the lead group, but blew up on the final climb in the Des yesterday (although my poor descending skills were part of the reason for that as I lost my place on the downhill before the climb - going downhill at speed is important too!).

I'm not sure how relevant it is. The hills are never as long as those sort of 'endurance climbs' and it's more about being able to power over the drags than keep tempo on 20 minute-long climbs.

I'd have thought you'd do fine. Of more importance might be how comfortable you are riding tight in a bunch. It's been a crashy season so far.

mirv

My question had as little variables as possible - I tried to pre-empt that.

I chose hilly segments to as to take out the draft and wind resistance factor. I also asked how fast you would go up those or similar segments in the middle of a training spin rather than an all-out time trial. I also asked specifically for A3/A4 rider times as the strava leaderboard can be populated by people of any category.

Like Lumen said, chucking out a load of watts for 10-20 minutes in the middle of a spin is pretty useful. Since I don't have a powermeter the easiest way to estimate power is to use hilly climbs where the wind and road surface quality aren't issues and is a valid metric.

I'd understand if a lightly built climber type wouldn't be able to sustain a breakaway in a headwind on the flat, but there's little reason to think why he'd get dropped on the flat if he could sit in. Maybe he won't be able to contest a bunch sprint so well but I was still just asking if I've got enough power to not get shot out the back end.

Harrybelafonte wrote: »

You asked a question with multie variables but want a definite answer. Sure ask again but give us multiple choice answers. Then we can get close to your all encompassing answer.

Are you really only going to race if you can stay with the bunch?

buffalo

mirv wrote: »

On average how fast do you climb at an A4 level?

Wicklow Gap - I'm just over 24mins 18.18 set during NC, otherwise 18:50
http://app.strava.com/segments/635753

Turlough Hill TT - Around 38mins 27.54 set during NC (not recorded properly on Strava)
http://app.strava.com/segments/846761

Stocking Lane to Viewing Point - Around 19mins 18.07
http://app.strava.com/segments/693111

Ballyboden, Stocking Lane, Featherbeds, Sally Gap - Around 58mins n/a
http://app.strava.com/segments/1262202

I've never managed to win an A4 race, but my times are in bold.

I've never done the last one, Wicklow Gap I rode hard on, Stocking Lane I've never targetted, and Turlough Hill was set during a National Champs.

Is this more or less helpful than everyone else's answers?

mirv

Thanks that was very helpful! Do you find it difficult to hang on to the bunch at all or do you find it hard to place in a bunch sprint?

I'm small (shortarse) and light (but not light enough) and have basically no sprint so I don't think I'd stand a chance on a flat course where people don't get tired and breakaways can't form.

buffalo wrote: »

I've never managed to win an A4 race, but my times are in bold.

I've never done the last one, Wicklow Gap I rode hard on, Stocking Lane I've never targetted, and Turlough Hill was set during a National Champs.

Is this more or less helpful than everyone else's answers?

petethedrummer

mirv wrote: »

It seems pretty daunting to shell out about 150-200e to 'try' racing if every A4 has a 3000e bike, SRMs, carbon wheels and is a sandbagger who's been 'competitive' in a introductory category for years which is the impression I kind of get.

Plenty of lads are not getting dropped on budget Alu bikes. And plenty of lads are getting dropped on super duper bikes.

Lets say hypothetically you want to target a race in Mid-June to do well in. You could do 2 things.
a) Buy a €3000 bike and keep training till mid-June.
b) Start racing now on whatever bike you have, get dropped a few times (maybe). Turn up mid-June with some very hard miles in your legs, some tactical nous and a few kicks to the ego.

I have picked b).

Keep training if you want to get/stay fit. Go racing if you want to get good at racing. It is extremely difficult, unless you are a masochist, to replicate in training the efforts you make in a race in order to keep in touch/win/breakaway.

Chips Lovell

mirv wrote: »

chucking out a load of watts for 10-20 minutes in the middle of a spin is pretty useful.

Climbing is about power to weight ratio. Racing, in the vast majority of cases in A3/A4 is about power alone.

There's plenty of non-racers who'd drop the average A3 on the Wicklow Gap but get spat out the back of the A3 bunch in no time.

If you really want to do comparisons, you'd probably be better off asking what time someone can do a 20km TT in on a flat, windless circuit. Even that will still be a very rough gauge as there's plenty of lads who're poor time triallists but great road racers. Just as there's plenty of guys who come from triathlons, can do a good TT, but can't cope with the surges in races.

mirv wrote: »

It seems pretty daunting to shell out about 150-200e to 'try' racing if every A4 has a 3000e bike, SRMs, carbon wheels and is a sandbagger who's been 'competitive' in a introductory category for years which is the impression I kind of get.

While you will see some guys on show pony bikes, the majority are on relatively ordinary machines.

mirv

That would invoke how power to aero, or power to wallet size ratio somewhat as well if you're talking about a flat 20km TT. Wheels, bars, frame, skinsuit, helmet and position all come into account there.

I understand climbing time is about power to weight ratio, but as an estimate of power using a climb where wind resistance and aero/wallet size isn't an issue it's more accurate than a flat TT. I'm not trying to get an idea of whether I can beat the hour record here.

Similarly a light (I'm a good 8kg overweight now at 64kg, my racing weight should be 56-57kg) rider should have no problems staying in a bunch on the flat before contesting a hilly finish like on the Des Hanlon, all other things being equal, but would get spat out the back on a flat TT, or even a downhill if I don't catch a wheel.

Vladimir Kurtains wrote: »

Climbing is about power to weight ratio. Racing, in the vast majority of cases in A3/A4 is about power alone.

There's plenty of non-racers who'd drop the average A3 on the Wicklow Gap but get spat out the back of the A3 bunch in no time.

If you really want to do comparisons, you'd probably be better off asking what time someone can do a 20km TT in on a flat, windless circuit. Even that will still be a very rough gauge as there's plenty of lads who're poor time triallists but great road racers. Just as there's plenty of guys who come from triathlons, can do a good TT, but can't cope with the surges in races.



While you will see some guys on show pony bikes, the majority are on relatively ordinary machines.

colm_gti

How is this conversation still going on? Nobodies answer is good enough. What do you want to hear? Someone praising your times on strava and telling you you'll be A1 in no time?

Seriously, you have 1 more chance to have a go at A4 racing without paying for a full competition licence, just try it and see how you do!

buffalo

mirv wrote: »

Thanks that was very helpful! Do you find it difficult to hang on to the bunch at all or do you find it hard to place in a bunch sprint?

I'm small (shortarse) and light (but not light enough) and have basically no sprint so I don't think I'd stand a chance on a flat course where people don't get tired and breakaways can't form.

If you only do races where you think you'll win, you'll never get started. I have no problem at the moment staying in to the bunch, but I was dropped a few times in my first year as an A4, including hilly races. I was overtaken by a youth (not even junior) race behind once, that was a low point. I have legs enough to give an A4 or A3 sprint a go, but don't have the desire to risk my body and bike most of the time.

Breaks are all about the riders that are in them and the bunch's reaction, not the course. Dunsany GP last year was won by a break, and that course is pretty flat (a drag or two) except for the finishing ramp. I was in a break yesterday in one of the hilliest races in the country, and it didn't stick.

I'm A3 now, but the point I was actually trying to make with my post is that no matter how well you can climb hills, it's not enough to win races, even in A4. Unless you're really good, in which case you missed your chance to solo to victory yesterday.

chakattack

Try some of the shorter popular sections on strava (3-10 mins). I reckon racers (speaking from my own view at least) are more inclined to go full gas on these segments so the strava times will match what they can do in a race. Anywhere in the top 50 and you're good to go.

I've never gone particularly hard on the segments named.

Chips Lovell

I give up.

DirkVoodoo

I think you are over-complicating this far too much.

A good tester to prepare you for open racing is a club league.

Times up climbs are one thing. They will certainly tell you how well you might do in a hill-climb TT, but there is more to racing (as others have alluded to) than simply being the fastest.

From your times, you certainly won't have an issue with sticking in the bunches.

But what can Strava tell you?

• Which is the winning move and when to go across?
• Cornering in a bunch at speed?
• Descending down a potholed road in a bunch?
• Sprinting shoulder to shoulder with a bunch for the line 100m ahead?

There is only one way to learn this stuff and find out how good you are.

mirv

That's completely unfair. Two people answered the actual question I asked and I was incredibly glad to hear there answers and I thanked them.

I didn't ask whether I was going to win A4 and with my very modest times, and even though I had said multiple times that I understand that just hill climb times aren't the ultimate measure of how strong or fast you are and that surging and racecraft is very important, people assume I'm an idiot and need to tell me what I already understand and have tried to point out, like the nonsense about comparing spin to race average pace which I tried to avoid, to no avail.

Chakattack's point of using short popular 3-10 min segments at full gas is more useful than telling me to do Kilmashogue Lane after starting from Carlingford.

colm_gti wrote: »

How is this conversation still going on? Nobodies answer is good enough. What do you want to hear? Someone praising your times on strava and telling you you'll be A1 in no time?

Seriously, you have 1 more chance to have a go at A4 racing without paying for a full competition licence, just try it and see how you do!

mirv

I have alluded, acknowledged, repeated my acknowledgement of the aforementioned allusion, and repeated my repetition ad hoc nauseum of the other skills required. All I was wondering is if I had the legs or not.

DirkVoodoo wrote: »

I think you are over-complicating this far too much.

A good tester to prepare you for open racing is a club league.

Times up climbs are one thing. They will certainly tell you how well you might do in a hill-climb TT, but there is more to racing (as others have alluded to) than simply being the fastest.

From your times, you certainly won't have an issue with sticking in the bunches.

But what can Strava tell you?

• Which is the winning move and when to go across?
• Cornering in a bunch at speed?
• Descending down a potholed road in a bunch?
• Sprinting shoulder to shoulder with a bunch for the line 100m ahead?

There is only one way to learn this stuff and find out how good you are.

colm_gti

mirv wrote: »

That's completely unfair. Two people answered the actual question I asked and I was incredibly glad to hear there answers and I thanked them.

I didn't ask whether I was going to win A4 and with my very modest times, and even though I had said multiple times that I understand that just hill climb times aren't the ultimate measure of how strong or fast you are and that surging and racecraft is very important, people assume I'm an idiot and need to tell me what I already understand and have tried to point out, like the nonsense about comparing spin to race average pace which I tried to avoid, to no avail.

Chakattack's point of using short popular 3-10 min segments at full gas is more useful than telling me to do Kilmashogue Lane after starting from Carlingford.

Sorry I didn't mean to come across as that much of an ass, but it seems like similar threads are popping up on a very regular basis now. I didn't even cycle this time last year so I don't know if the same happened at the beginning of last season, but do a search and you'll probably find all the answers you need. I'd imagine that's why you're getting a lot of funny answers like climbing Kilmashogue lane after a cycle from Carlingford, and not because they're trying to poke fun at you.

lennymc

im joining vladimir in giving up.

1750W

I started my first race in over 15yrs at a weight of 15kg in sept 2011 I got dropped after the a4 caught the novice group. I am now on 7 points in an a2 license in within 4 weeks. Why? How? Because I went out races trained and got my arsenal kicked and got dropped in races. Bottom line just get off boards and race your bike. If you get to any decent kind of level start worrying about 10k bikes power meters then.

mirv

I give up too. Sorry for wasting everyones time.

chakattack

Mirv is getting an unduly harsh time I think.

Get down to sub 60kg and dish out the pain at the hill climb champs.

You'll probably find racing though at first (everyone does!) and can use the hills to catch your breath. In training, short hill repeats with not much recovery time are great to get used to surges in racing.

chakattack

On a side note - racing isn't everything.

Progressive training is much more important if you want to build a strong aerobic system and get fast. Bradley Wiggin's approach in 2012 reflects that..less racing and more training.

Racing itself (certainly a3/a4 style) is more like icing on the cake with lots of freewheeling mixed with hard anerobic efforts.

morana

mirv wrote: »

I give up too. Sorry for wasting everyones time.

just do the race next week enjoy it and comeback and give us all the data!!!! a 1st with a bit of luck
:eek:

buffalo

1750W wrote: »

I started my first race in over 15yrs at a weight of 15kg in sept 2011 I got dropped after the a4 caught the novice group. I am now on 7 points in an a2 license in within 4 weeks. Why? How? Because I went out races trained and got my arsenal kicked and got dropped in races. Bottom line just get off boards and race your bike. If you get to any decent kind of level start worrying about 10k bikes power meters then.

:eek::eek: You must've been skin and bone!

petethedrummer

mirv wrote: »

Chakattack's point of using short popular 3-10 min segments at full gas is more useful than telling me to do Kilmashogue Lane after starting from Carlingford.

There's nothing concrete anyone can tell you. You can go out and do these little hills or big hills on your own if you want. But racing is about having to make an effort when you really really don't want to, unless you are one of the strongest. With solo training one tends to only go hard when one feels like going hard. It's not the same. In a race, you don't get to pick when the bunch takes it easy or how easy you go, the fit fellas at the front do.

Go train with some people who race and they might be able to judge, or join a club and see how you get on when they start putting the hammer down at the end of a training spin. Do the tour of Louth Sportive in the gold group if you want an idea of what racing pace is like in a non-competitive environment.

If you have ever played football and marked someone who is alot fitter than you, you will know what its like to be non-race fit.

1750W

buffalo wrote: »

:eek::eek: You must've been skin and bone!

109kg big thumbs small keypad

mirv

I think I might leave it to next year so.

I looked up the fee table so as to get into club league racing on Orwell (my nearest club) and when you add it up it's just a bit too much (membership 50, club league fee 30, marshalling 50, club license 60, team kit 50-100) to get started considering both the one day licenses are pretty much over, and the Orwell training spins end in March.

I probably should have tried a few one-day license events earlier but I guess now I don't have that option thanks to the 2013 CI regulation and I might be better off going for a full 120e license without the hassle of being attached to a and having to pay 200 quid more. I thought bike racing was meant to be a blue collar sport?

Peterx

morana wrote: »

just do the race next week enjoy it and comeback and give us all the data!!!! a 1st with a bit of luck
:eek:

+1


This March weekend is your last chance this year to race for €30 (one day 20e)

From April 1st your first race will cost you €165 (full competition 155e)

And I can't speak for Lumen's Kilmashogue Hillclimb Championship Segment but I wasn't taking the piss about starting a spin in Carlingford or wherever, putting out hard efforts at the business end of a race is hard and if you wish to use Strava to gauge your race fitness you may need to be race fatigued at the time.

1750W

mirv wrote: »

I think I might leave it to next year so.

I looked up the fee table so as to get into club league racing on Orwell (my nearest club) and when you add it up it's just a bit too much (membership 50, club league fee 30, marshalling 50, club license 60, team kit 50-100) to get started considering both the one day licenses are pretty much over, and the Orwell training spins end in March.

I probably should have tried a few one-day license events earlier but I guess now I don't have that option thanks to the 2013 CI regulation and I might be better off going for a full 120e license without the hassle of being attached to a and having to pay 200 quid more. I thought bike racing was meant to be a blue collar sport?

The first race of the season was just 5 weeks ago and you gave decided to leave it to next year????
Are you looking for reasons to race or not to race?

Plastik

There's an A4 race on Easter Sunday that you can do on a 1DL - Ros An Laois, starting in Rathdowney. Last 1DL licence event of the year.