First race ever

[profàvélo]

We are lucky enough to have a a series of training races here. They started this past weekend. My training buddy did one of them last year and survived, so I decided, what the heck? My husband was riding in them and encouraged me to do it. The course was a rolling 7-mile loop that I am very familiar with, so that helped. Nevertheless, I was very nervous at the start. My goal was to finish the race without taking anyone down. I have decided that drafting is a great invention. I have drafted in groups before, but never in such a tight, consistent group. I was amazed at how much the draft pulled me up the hills, such that by the time I had to really pedal, we were almost to the top. I was surprised at how much fun it was! I had thought that I would have to really push myself to keep up, but it wasn't that bad. After the first lap, I was still with the pack, so my goal changed to staying with the pack for a second lap...and then a third, and so on. There was a breakaway that succeeded because the women in it had teammates in the race, and, of course, their team members sat on the front and slowed the group down. That was quite frustrating, but I just don't have the power to go chase down a breakaway by myself. All in all, it was a great experience, I finished with the pack, I didn't cause any crashes, and someone even asked me to come be on a club team with her! I'm thinking about it...more races this weekend, different course. Will report.

[yellow]

I'm not all that versed in racing, but I assume this was a criterium? Or?

That's great that you had such a good experience. I might actually try something like that if it were a "fun" race only. I did a couple of TTs last year and enjoyed it because it drew all levels, from the bug suits on down, and was pretty laid back and fun. They have tons of TTs here in the new place that I live (I moved in Oct), but they are USCF races. I'd get laughed off the course with my triple.

Looking forward to hearing about your adventures.

Maybe I'll start my own "fun race" night!

[runnergirl]

Congrats on the first race!!! Getting out there in a pelaton for the first time is the toughest part.

Keep us posted on your racing-it's very addicting!

[Nanci]

That's so exciting! What was your average speed? And you finished with the peloton? So then does the peloton all get the same time? How cool! I would _never_ be brave enough (or fast enough!) to do that!

Nanci

[profàvélo]

Nanci, if I could do it, anyone can. You just have to make yourself be brave enough. I am not a 'racer type,' whatever that is. I don't think of myself as a racer or even a very strong rider, just average. Our average was 20.9 mph. I was 23rd out of 36, sort of in the middle of the main group.

Yellow, I believe it counted as a road race because the laps were so long (7 miles). I think a crit has much shorter laps, and a larger number of them. (Anybody out there want to define a criterium?) I did it with a TRIPLE, and if anyone laughed at me, I was unaware. Who cares? We had to have a USCF license. There were all types there. The men raced in lots of categories: cat 5, cat 4, cat 3, and the pro-1-2 group. They lumped all the women together, regardless of category, so there were some teams, but also a bunch of individuals. As a woman you get to start out at cat 4.

[Nanci]

You may not be a "racer type," but you're FAST!!

Nanci

[Pink Kona]

I think a crit has much shorter laps, and a larger number of them. (Anybody out there want to define a criterium?)

Usually Crits are less than a mile and are based on time rather than laps. For instance, the typical Northwest Cat 4 Women's crit will last anywhere from 20-30 minutes. Of course that time increases as the difficulty goes up - I believe world cups are 130 minutes. Talk about painful! You become very proficient at sprinting and anaerobic threshold.

Nice work on the racing!