For most, confidence comes with experience. Some people will never be as comfortable as others plowing into a tiny hole. I’m still not proposing that anyone should get good enough to wanna pull that curb hugging move the guy in the video did… But there’s a reason there are a categories and it isnt just because each one is faster than the other. You gotta get comfortable and confident with where you put your bike. It takes time. Cat 5 races gonna give each other a huge buffer, the buffer gets smaller and smaller as you move up.
We have to practice it in drills - group of people rides literally shoulder to shoulder in a cluster and you have to ride through the group just sticking your front tire in there and nudging everyone apart with your shoulders. You have to commit though.
That’s in the grass, in the mud though, not on concrete at 30mph. But the whole point is to slowly master the mental game.
[quote=Viggen]And that is why I’ll never be a “proper” racer-bro.
I’d freak the fuck out and probably hurt myself and others badly while freaking out…[/quote]
I hate crits. I’m hardly a “real” racer bro, but I did race over 60 races last year. There are many, many races that aren’t crits. You do have to be comfortable with pack riding, but in road races, as opposed to crits, there’s a lot less skill involved (i.e. you’re probably not going to be bumping people or riding quite so close and dealing with 90 degree corners and stuff).
I did do a few crits. The first one was very, very non-technical, and I pulled a mid-pack finish. The other 3 I did were all awful. I am not confident riding close to other people, and I hate cornering in groups. I only registered because my team got points in a women’s team competition just for me showing up and racing.
All that is to say that you can race and kind of avoid crits if you want. If you want to excel and be really awesome, you’ll probably have to become competent at crits, but you can certainly race without having crit-racer brass balls.
Speaking of crits… big one here (Cherry Pie) this Sunday, finishes on a 20sec or so 3-5% climb. Despite not doing any sprint practice this year until this week, hill sprint intervals at the end of my big ride today saw best 10s power since a podium worthy effort in April last year. Found myself checking the course profile and watching footage from last year’s race just now.
[quote=Roundabout]Speaking of crits… big one here (Cherry Pie) this Sunday, finishes on a 20sec or so 3-5% climb. Despite not doing any sprint practice this year until this week, hill sprint intervals at the end of my big ride today saw best 10s power since a podium worthy effort in April last year. Found myself checking the course profile and watching footage from last year’s race just now.
I think I want to do well.[/quote]
shit
i would rule that
still haven’t done much as far as intervals since recently getting at PM, but looking at GC looks like my best are sittin at
10s power 800w
20s power 724w
Thanks to such rad weather, our season opener races had a pretty solid turnout. I mean, the below race is typically 50* and raining. Then this happened:
DeFeet makes a pretty awesome shoecover. You should buy two pairs though, they do wear out quicker than most. Also, read the instructions before cutting a hole in them. Seriously.
imo they’re decently warm and perhaps slightly more aero than your standard shoes, also come in neon pink so that’s a bonus. Definitely not the same aero benefit as a pair of bdsm covers. Then again you can wear the defeets, have warm feet that still breathe, and not look like you take yourself so seriously. I cut the hole then chain stitch the edges so it’s on lock, but don’t expect much more than a season out of a pair, particularly if you walk much in em.
On Saturday, Folsom Winter Crit:
Got boxed in during the cat 3 sprint by a rider who blew his load and pulled off out of the wind instead of into it. Finished 3rd.
Let the winning break go up the road in the 2/3s and had to duke it out for 5th in the field sprint. 5th.
Cherry Pie in Napa on Sunday:
Again, let the winning break stay away–despite bridging to within 5s, seeing it wasn’t riders from the big teams and assumed they’re be reeled in and sunk back to the peloton. Took 6th in the bunch sprint.
I’m so frustrated. So many tactical fuck-ups on my part. Still 1 measly point away from my cat 2. When I easily left 3-4 pts. on the road this weekend.
Cherry Pie: Despite having zero rain all winter, today saw us caught in a huge storm, probably heaviest rain/wind combo I’ve experienced in a roadie race. Got in a bunch of dangerous-looking attacks that didn’t stick. Watched winning break get a 10s or so gap, thought “that’s the winning break” right as my teammate jumped to bridge. Sat on the front as he attempted the bridge but then blew up. Realized a lap later they weren’t coming back, so I jumped. Spent 4/14 laps in no man’s land trying to bridge, got reeled back in with 3 to go. Didn’t position well in the leadup to the sprint and ended up having to take the windy inside on my own the whole way up the climb rather than the protected right. Made up a few places and finished 8th. Got some Clif gels (gross) and a free wine tasting for four (less gross) for a prime. Not what I had in mind. Bummed.
Road race next Sunday is one I really want to do well at, though this whole “work and be on my feet the whole day before racing” thing is quickly losing its charm. Especially since next Sat will be a late night as I get off work 6:30ish and have a 3hr drive that evening.
