3 Reasons You Should Learn to Race Your Bike
Check it out - NEBC is continuing their fantastic program to get new racers up to speed in a safe and effective manner. I went through this program some years ago and it was really great.
To the newbie, bike racing can seem dangerous and trying it out can seem risky. Well, it is a bit dangerous and risky, I suppose, but that's all the more reason you should learn from patient, experienced racers. It might be a lot less dangerous and risky if more people participated in clinics like this one. Even if you never intend to race, you should still take this clinic.
1. You will learn how to ride safely in groups - whether those groups are racing or not.
2. You will learn how to control your bike - a little knowledge and experience can help you avoid panic and disaster when you need to react quickly (again, whether or not this is in a race situation).
3. You will gain an even greater appreciation for the sport by learning and practicing the tactics and strategies used by racers.
You'll also likely find that there are many other riders out there just like you who are enthusiastic about cycling and interested in racing or improving their skills, but need a little hands-on guidance to get to the next level.
Here's the blurb from NEBC on the clinic:
As it has every Spring since 1993, the Northeast Bicycle Club is planning to offer its Introduction to Bicycle Racing program to the public during the month of April, 2010. This 4 week program will introduce you to the exciting world of bicycle road racing, and will prepare you to enter and be competitive in your first race. Among the things you will learn are:
Bike handling: Cornering; pacelines & double pacelines; riding in close groups; incidental contact.
Racing skills: Sprinting; time trialing; climbing and descending; starting and finishing.
Tactics and strategies: Road racing as a team sport; applying team strategies and tactics in race situations; using the race course and your strengths to your advantage.
Training and equipment: Periodization and specificity; training effort zones; racing bicycles & equipment; maintaining and performance tuning your equipment; proper bike fit.
At the conclusion of the program is a Graduation Exercise, in which we will bring you to an actual race to test out your new skills!
Find the full details on the program and how to register here.
Photo Credit: Eleaf
New England Racing Season – Just Around the Corner
Three race series start up next month. The 2010 Plainville CT race series runs on March 6, 13, 20, 27 and April 3, 10, and 17. It's a criterium race around a 0.5 mile course.
The Charge Pond Training Series ramps up on March 6th for four Saturdays of racing action in Plymouth, MA. And, the 2010 Bethel Spring Series runs on Sundays in Bethel, CT all of March (7, 14, 21, 28) and into April (11, 18).
Photo Credit: talldoofyirish
Harpoon Indoor Time Trial 2.0
The second annual Harpoon Indoor Time Trial was bigger and better than last year. Hundreds of racers competed in many heats throughout the day and night. Up to 24 could race at a time, in groups of 8 surrounding a three-sided techno-center of digital race readouts. Racers and viewers could see real-time speed, distance, wattage and other stats for each rider as each race progressed. Little cyclist avatars also played out the action in real-time. Winners of each heat (male & female) got a free case of beer and overall winners (male and female) won free entry into the Harpoon Brewery to Brewery ride in June.
This year's race was a lot of fun, and more crowded. The layout was expanded with more bathrooms and larger changing areas. Since the brewery was open for tours this year (with racing on Saturday instead of Sunday), they also setup a bar down near the race warm up area. Uncle Ted's BBQ food was also available from the Forza-G racing team who were raising money for this year's PMC ride.
Boston's WBUR radio station was also on hand, interviewing various folks for its show It's Only A Game. The Harpoon ITT show should air next Saturday.
George Street Bike Challenge
The Major Taylor Association has announced the 2010 date for the George Street Bike Challenge for Major Taylor. On July 25, 2010 the uphill time trial will take place on George Street in downtown Worcester, MA. As the billing goes, "See how fast you can pedal up George Street, a two-block quad-buster that was a training ground for 1899 world champion Major Taylor." Find out more about who this champion cyclist was at their website here. Also, check out this earlier post - 100 Years Before Lance - that contains some great video footage from the event.
New England Velodrome Gearing Up for 2010
New England Velodrome surveyed riders at the end of 2009 and they are working on several changes to their schedule and programs as a result. Weather permitting, the track will open on April 1, 2010. The track program will include open track time, coached sessions and even motor pacing. The racing program will include Omnium and Keirin as well as record attempts for Kilo and Mile. NEV will also hold its own 24 hour record attempt.
If you're new to track racing, New England Velodrome makes it easy for you to try out the sport. They offer a new rider training class, bike rentals, coaching, and beginner programs. Riding on the track is a lot of fun, even if you're a "roadie" at heart.
Find out more details at nevelodrome.com.
Get Ready for the Tour Down Under
One week from tomorrow we'll get to see Lance Armstrong and the rest of Team RadioShack in their first race. It also mark's the beginning of Lance's 2010 program which he has planned carefully around this year's Tour de France.
In this article at Velonation.com, Armstrong explains the changes he's making from 2009. He'll be less visible this year, though he did announce plans this week to participate in some of the Spring and Ardennes Classics: Amstel Gold, Ronde van Vlaanderen, and Liège-Bastogne-Liège.
The week long Tour Down Under should be fun to watch, though tracking these things down on TV or the internet seems to always be a last minute scramble. It looks like Versus has the rights to show the event in the US but I haven't found any specific schedule just yet.
Photo Credit: brooxy28
Boston Mayor’s Cup Race
Exciting times for cycling in Boston... A great race this past Saturday around City Hall Plaza. It was very exciting to see pro peletons speed around the bend and up the hill by the old State House.
Many vendors were present with food and giveaways, and there was plenty of opportunity to see the racing action. With the entire course inside barriers and the event well staffed by marshalls and police, it was easy to get around and safe for riders and spectators alike.
The mascot race was great fun for the kids. Wally, Pat Patriot and others sped down the final stretch in an exciting show of spirit for cycling and Boston.
Would love to see more racing in Boston!
BMX Racing!
Went to check out the local BMX track in Wakefield, MA today. Never realized this was here until I stumbled upon it in some recent reading about BMX racing in New England.
The field was full of kids and the action was fast. The three turn track offered lots of challenges, and races started every couple of minutes. There were usually two or three racers in each of the fields, which seemed to be organized by age. There were kids of all ages there. The youngest rider, I heard the announcer say, was 4 years old!
I shot some video of one of the heats and snapped a couple of photos. Check it out, and check out their web site for more details: Wakefield BMX.
100 Years Before Lance Armstrong…
Great little peak into the Major Taylor story and some video shots of the annual Major Taylor Hillclimb race held in Worcester each summer:
Remembering Major Taylor (from the Boston Globe, 8/19/09)
Here's some additional footage from the 2009 event.
Coming up in just about six weeks is the Major Taylor Century Ride produced by the Seven Hills Wheelmen. 25, 62 and 100 mile routes begin in Whitinsville, MA through some really great cycling roads.
New England Velodrome Expansions
The most recent update from New England Velodrome is pretty exciting. First, they have just completed building their new Cyclocross course and are gearing up to begin races. Here are the complete details:
"The New England Velodrome and Cycling Park's Cyclo-cross course was completed this past weekend. There are several new additions to the course this year that we believe will deliver the perfect combination of technical and power sections.
Weekly training races will be held on the same course that will be featured during the 2nd New England Velo-Cross Challenge on Saturday October 17, 2009.
We will be conducting training races and opening the course for practice on Thursday evenings beginning September 3rd.
Cost: $10 per rider
Gate opens: 5 PM
Beginner Class: 5:40 PM
Racing: 6 PMPlease let us know if Tuesday or Wednesday is an evening that you would like to see training races in addition to Thursdays. Also, should we run weekend training races?. Please let us know. Contact us by email at nevelodrome@gmail.com or give us your feedback on our Blog.
Special Thanks to our weekend volunteers who worked so hard on the Cyclo-cross course: Tony and Kelly Fedirko, Victoria Gates, and the Goguen boys Patrick, Manny, Tom and Peter."
Also announced was the official opening of the new Velocity BMX track. Again, here are the full details from the source:
"The Velocity BMX Track officially opened on Saturday, August 22, 2009. With over 30 riders participating, the opening day was a huge success! The mission of Velocity BMX is to provide a safe, managed, environment for the enjoyment of the sport of BMX racing. Anyone will tell you that this mission was achieved on Saturday and the track has a promising future!
What is BMX? BMX stands for Bicycle Moto Cross,
BMX Racing provides a safe and challenging sport for kids and adults of all ages and proficiency levels to include all riders, male and female alike. A BMX track benefits the community by keeping youth involved in a positive, healthy environment that promotes family bonding and safe competition.
BMX racing is a type of off-road bicycle racing. The format of BMX was derived from motocross racing. BMX bicycle races are sprint races on purpose built, off road, single lap race tracks. The track usually consists of a starting gate for up to eight racers, a groomed serpentine dirt race course with banked corners, various jumps, terrain challenges, and a finish line.Check out the Velocity BMX Website for pictures and great information. The website is www.velocitybmx.com."
These are great developments for New England racing. Not only does NE Velodrome provide great track racing, now there are two additional new and exciting types of bike racing easily accessible to Massachusetts and New Hampshire riders. All of these are sure to be great fun for spectators too... more action than your typical crit or circuit racing for spectators.
Check out New England Velodrome at http://nevelodrome.com/
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