Section head text.
Now that 2 weeks of the season have passed – it’s time for bold, premature pronouncements! How has your season gone? Have you seen your winter hopes of spring dominance dashed? Have you surprised yourself with your own mightiness? Do you now have to realign your goals and hopes? Have you even raced yet? Obviously, any races you haven’t entered yet, you would’ve won, of course…
The UCI has set limits on bike dimensions (saddle setback, handlebar position, etc) based on some arbitrary sizing scheme. Here’s something (radios) that actually has an effect on the way races play out, and helps determine who is actually playing the game.
I’ve always thought radios made for boring racing
Make the teams too big and you have boring racing a la Armstrong, make them too small and you have corrupt deals and collusion…here’s an idea (just like something else that everyone has!), make the teams ride with 6 riders, with radios, with no team cars…they can talk to each other, but the have to survive together, a flat may mean the loss of a team mate altogether…like mt.bik stage racing, except different?
Or go solo altogether, no help, no nada, and have …. already happens? RAAM? Gran Fondo Campagnolo? Flanders sportif?
Sorry just got out of cryogenic reanimation and have no inner monologue! My bad…
ban automobiles in races too
the bicycles, too much innovative technology there. Should be old school back before bikes existed, and bicycle races were done on foot.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/chi-chicago-bicycle-lawmar13,0,1615738.story
Discuss.
yeah, a lot of older retired racer guys complain about it so much, they don’t want it to be like a chess game for the DS’, they want it to be like the olden days.
BRING ON THE TECHNOLOGY, it’s the new age. lettem race with the radios.
Prudhomme considers Tour de France stages without race radios
Director of the Tour de France, Christian Prudhomme, is considering the idea of banning race radios in the 2008 Tour de France. The Frenchman might prohibit the use of the devices that allow for rider-director sportif communication in the mountains stages.
He said to Belgium’s Het Nieuwsblad that he is studying “the idea of banning the race radio in some of the stages of the Tour, maybe in the mountains [stages].”
The International Cycling Union (UCI) announced on February 15 that it formed a “working group” to “treat the question of radio transmissions and coaching during competitions. In particular, it will consider the use of earphones.” It decided to go ahead and ban the devices for Under 23 races. The issue, and its regards to top-tier professional races is expected at UCI Management Committee meeting in Copenhagen this June, while more information is expected from Prudhomme as the Tour nears.
assault on mt mitchell is not a race. it’s a “ride”. most of the regional racers show up for it though, and treat it as such at the front. it’s a super mixed group of riders though, so the first 20-50 miles can be tough going staying away from mishaps. there’s also an off-road assault on mt mitchell in july–60 mile mtb
I’ve heard it’s one of the toughest climbing races in the US, and closes out same day with previous competitors getting early registration priority.
is dope as hell. I used to live there. be warned…you may like it so much tou might not come back
spring hopes = dreaming about cross
not 8K?
Ok, I just remember crawling for an hour.
http://www.bikereg.com/events/register.asp?eventid=6086
I can’t comment on the event but I did the climb from Asheville to the top of Mt. Mitchell back in February and can’t recommend it highly enough. The roads are great, the views are stunning and there aren’t too many two hour climbs you get the opportunity. Granted the weather might be super hot in June, but I actually enjoyed that climb more than any of the big climbs in the Bay Area.
whiteface is 8 miles, not 8k
It’s the June 21 race. There is also a standalone hill climb June 14
for the flyer help
has anyone ever done, or know anything about “The Assualt on Mt Mitchell?”
not 1.6k my mistake
Well, that’ll be painful, but the full climb is 8K. I did it at the end of two races and it took an hour in 39×23: way dropped, sucky, 5MPH. 5 M P H. The winner took 45 minutes approximately and I think used 42×21.
Based on the Flyer it is a 1.6k finish up the mountain. So not to the top but still painful. Cant wait! Its about time those guys showed the flatlanders what real hills are.
Any help is appreciated…
I doubt being outside *makes* you sick – colds, flu etc come from germs and being around people indoors is the biggest cause of that. Probably hard riding in the cold (or even in the heat) reduces our immune capacity and makes it more likely a bug can make one sick.
i know I got it from co workers. half (!) of the place has been out with the same plague.
don’t think racing in the cold was a problem, and still had been doing most of my training indoors anyway.
I will be ready for XC season in November?
I think?
I have shaved my legs twice and I havent even been on a training ride..
SWEEEET!!!
Yeayy for cat 3 lifers
Race with the form you got, and with cross, track, mtn.bikn, have some fun instead of carbon/powering out what little is left…No point in waiting for sprint with Weeson in CPH laser sighted GPS guided perfection and precision!
Not sure I can make it, but I expect it to be really good. The Placid Planet guys and the whole bike racing scene up there are great. Whiteface is HARRDDD at the end of a race. Does the race go all the way to the top or does it stop at the gate for the private road. Eitehr way it’ll be painful.
I was racing in Placid this past Sunday on snow and it was awesome too…
Literally. I have a bum knee and my ass has ballooned to bout three times it’s normal size. My knee keeps getting worse and keeping me off the bike. It was good for a week so I tried to race and got dropped like third period french.
And now because I rode way too much for two weeks with no fitness I am sick, on my couch with a nice low grade fever and chills.
So how is my season going? Perfect. Next stop: domination. Nothin’ can stop me now.
Sounds like a blast and put on the buy guys and gals at Placid Planet. Finish up Whiteface road 1.5 miles. Races like these are what motivate me. I will be training and doing the occaisonal 25 miles circuit race but for many of us our seasons start in April. Seems like alot of guys burn themselves out racing 2 times a week in March in the cold and dark.
why does our season start with a month of freezing, pitch black riding to go, and end about a month before it starts to get cold again?
I started the season over weight-so with low hopes there is only one way to go, hmm hope that is not onto the pavement.
goes to winner of the first lap. comes in the form a chain drive dildo thru your saddle or aero bars, take your pick!
http://gizmodo.com/assets/resources/2008/03/hump_lady_bike.jpg
how do you know you got sick from riding outside? Maybe you got it from a subway handlebar, maybe a friend at work, maybe something else? Cold temps dont contain bacteria. Subways do. Take a warm shower when you ride in cold and its all good. If you wear yourself down, thats another story.
I got sick twice so far and from riding outside.
A total of 10 days off the bike so far.
Is it enough to damage my season?. Now the last thing I want to do is race at 6am in the park when it’s below 30.
If you start with no ‘hope’ or expectation of any kind, then just finishing with the pack can be seen as a huge accomplishment. I think this works best unless you actually train hard enough to be a top 10 threat. Training hard and still being slow is depressing, so default to no expectations and its all good.
This is how I conveniently view my season every year.
Spitzer: I look at my tenure as what ‘might have been’
In case you didn’t read the thread’s subject matter it didn’t pertain to your vain, speed wishful, expensive, and time consuming analysis of stuff you probably can’t afford.
Just train harder, that’s the best setup!
For an eye-bleeding comparison of an easy way to part with all of you earnings try peloton east…
tearing my calf muscle in a cross race in Oct, tailbone injury from snowboarding in January, Flu first week of March.. so far my winter training has been great!
That must be some flu! Sleep for a few days and then get back on the damn bike.
less fat than at this time last year
did one race, it went fine…now sick.
see you in May.
…saw all the pics or Igor in the breaks and assumed “last season” hasn’t ended yet…Rider of the year again.
That someone has the ability (and budget) to compare all of these side by side?
Ok, can we move on now?
What’s the fastest set up for TT…The ZIPP combo with disc? But they have a few different versions. How about Mavic or Renn discs? All discs same?
Tri spokes?
How about front? Better to go with deep dish(like Cosmic Carbones, Zipp 404/808) or tri?
How about disc cover?
it is crazy to see how fit some of the guys around here are already. it will be interesting to see how they look in june or july. i am just coming off of base and it looks like some are on top form already.
as I lined up. I realized that there were other people racing. I was hoping that no one would show up because it was so early and so cold. I had no idea people trained for these events and they rode fast.
People seem to be really serious about this racing stuff.
I’m a success! I got a Cervelo, SRM, Lightweights, a CTS coach, an LT test at Cadence and went to an AZ training camp. Yeah I finished only 15 minutes behind the winner of the Cat 5 CP race. My coach says if I keep up the work and the monthly payments I will be a Cat 2 by the end of the season. Man this sport is waaaay better than golf.
is a test. of fitness. of spirit. you win when you try. you win when you start. its alright, says Traveling Wilbury…
when they start giving out awards for spirit or fitness
and didn’t ride that day. My season is over đ
nice one
test, nice. merckx comment, nice.
Don’t worry about my back, I’ll be good for the Tour. It’ll give me a chance to learn a little more about racing in Europe while I heal.
I practice tantric racing. I always withhold my potential energy, whether by sucking wheel for months on end until I peak for a glorious 20 minute wattage frenzy (usually sometime in June, but always in training as opposed to racing), or by sabotaging my own equipment so that something breaks while I’m up the road and I don’t have to worry about closing the deal, or sometimes by simply not even signing up to race in the first place. This maximizes the power stores at my mental disposal at all times, and I thusly crown myself the imaginary puppetmaster of NYC racing without ever having to embarrass myself by failing. So, my season is going fine, thank you.
An awareness test as part of a London’s Cycling Campaign.
http://www.dothetest.co.uk/
nice one– every year I’m the champ until the first race