Olympics Women's Road Race

[RoadRaven]

I was talking about the fact that a lot of these riders would not be use to the humidity and the bad air quality. When I watched the men a lot of great riders suffered because of the humidity. The girls were perhaps being cautious incase the humidity etc took the same toll on them.

Yeah, I could see wanting to go out as slowly as possible and spend as little time in the red zone with that smog and humidity.

Oh I agree, Hawk. The humidity was awful. And yes, of course, humidity does take a toll on any person, male or female.

However, since both of you raise the mens RR, and both mention humidity, I guess its useful to point out that yes, while I agree that some of the men started to wilt probably because of humidity... they went twice the distance.

The two racing styles (men - "who can I drop?") (women - "I hope I don't get dropped") really bear no comparison. And that is what I was hoping to get into discussion with TEers about.

Why do women's races tend to be so different from men's? I find it so frustrating in more than one way. Its frustrating to watch because it looks slow and boring. Its frustrating to watch because if I, who want to watch, and love cycling, find it boring, than how in heck will women's cycling begin to get a high media profile or high sponsorship like men's?

[Eden]

Why do women's races tend to be so different from men's? I find it so frustrating in more than one way. Its frustrating to watch because it looks slow and boring. Its frustrating to watch because if I, who want to watch, and love cycing find it boring, than how in heck will women's cycling bedin to get a high media profile or high sponsorship like men's?

I'm wondering if it isn't a chicken and egg thing.... the men often race the way they do - long break aways, early attacks, for no other reason than to get airtime for their sponsors...... A lot of the men know they stand little to no chance of winning the race with a suicide break (OK, well this years TDF did disabuse that notion a bit), but the fans and the sponsors love it. The women on the other hand have no motivation as their races are rarely televised, so they don't have any reason to get out there and show their colors without thinking about the win.....

[RoadRaven]

I'd be happy to say I raced in the Olympics

And if you said that, you would have been thinking tactically, attacking and moving when others showed weakness.
Good on you, Tulip

[RoadRaven]

I'm wondering if it isn't a chicken and egg thing.... the men often race the way they do - long break aways, early attacks, for no other reason than to get airtime for their sponsors...... A lot of the men know they stand little to no chance of winning the race with a suicide break (OK, well this years TDF did disabuse that notion a bit), but the fans and the sponsors love it. The women on the other hand have no motivation as their races are rarely televised, so they don't have any reason to get out there and show their colors without thinking about the win.....

Ah yes... good observation.
That probably factors hugely. If you have decided beforehand "there is point" then you wont try to MAKE a point.
And so much of racing is in the head.

So much a chicken/egg thing.
You so often think so clearly Eden. Thankyou.
This is probably a significant factor in why women often race the way women do.

[spokewench]

Women are smart! If you haven't noticed. If you know that your competition will not jump a lot; then why would you waste your energy jumping a lot? You will just wear yourself out and then lose in the end.

Women tend to be more conservative in racing - even at the local level; cause they are used to other women being conservative also.

It can be very frustrating in a pack to have it slow down, more and more, as ladies don't want to take pulls or do the work; but whether for good or bad, that is women's road racing in a nutshell.