Will i make a good spritner?

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Hi Everyone,

Up until recently i have been doing mainly time trialling but i am not really very good at this because i weigh too much and my surface area is too large. I have been trying to get into sprint cycling which is not going too badly (i think). I have managed to do a 400m sprint standing start in 32 secs on a MTB (albeit a very fast one). I have also been trying to measure my max power output and so far i have managed (according to analyticcyling) 1.106 kW average for 27 seconds but this was going up a 17% hill, when i go along a flat bit of road i can only manage about 800W:confused: , does anyone know why this is? I am thinking that it's something to do with the gears and my cadence was too high to put out a decent power, also i tend to find that i cannot go as hard because i am tired out after accelerating through the crappy speeds, and when i get up to good speeds i no longer have any energy, whats the best way of getting through the crappy speeds? Do professional sprinters push hard through the crappies, or do they accelerate slowly and save their energy for the decent speeds? I dont really have much money so i want to make sure that i can actually sprint well before i buy a fixed wheel track bike.

Thanks

Originally posted by DrBorque
Hi Everyone,

Up until recently i have been doing mainly time trialling but i am not really very good at this because i weigh too much and my surface area is too large. I have been trying to get into sprint cycling which is not going too badly (i think). I have managed to do a 400m sprint standing start in 32 secs on a MTB (albeit a very fast one). I have also been trying to measure my max power output and so far i have managed (according to analyticcyling) 1.106 kW average for 27 seconds but this was going up a 17% hill, when i go along a flat bit of road i can only manage about 800W:confused: , does anyone know why this is? I am thinking that it's something to do with the gears and my cadence was too high to put out a decent power, also i tend to find that i cannot go as hard because i am tired out after accelerating through the crappy speeds, and when i get up to good speeds i no longer have any energy, whats the best way of getting through the crappy speeds? Do professional sprinters push hard through the crappies, or do they accelerate slowly and save their energy for the decent speeds? I dont really have much money so i want to make sure that i can actually sprint well before i buy a fixed wheel track bike.

Thanks

If you are achieving 32 seconds for 400m on an MTB, presuming you were at a max speed of say 55kph (for MTB) at end, that would equate to about 37.5 seconds for a 500m TT if sustained for a further 100m.

You are talking about an acceptable TT time on a slower bike built for rugged terrain and obviously not on a fast velodrome surface.

You are definitely a sprinter or you have your facts muddled or you are tampering with the truth! :)

You do put out higher wattages at AT while climbing as opposed to the flats. I would not have thought this also applies to maximum output. It could be cadence related if your cycling muscles have not been adapted through training to firing at high rpm's.

If you are training for all out speed it is advisable to by pass the "crappy" accelerating speeds. Jump out from behind a wheel of a training partner or a motor bike/car or use a downhill leading into a flat section of road.

Training for accelerations or jumps should be a separate exercise.

If you are doing a flying 200m TT, your acceleration to the start would be gradual and you would not be hitting the mark at top speed. You would be conserving power to use within the 200m as a human being's ability to sustain top speed is limited to about 6 seconds.

However, in a track sprint race whether you jump hard or gradually build up will be either dictated by the tactics of yourself or of your opponent(s) (plural for a derby).

Thanks for your advice VeloFlash, the reason why it was quick is because of gears (top speed was 35.4 mph), i would have thought that with a fixed wheel bike it would be slower for 400m (about 34-35 secs maybe?)because you cannot accelerate as quickly. I will try a run in 27th gear and see how the times compare. I have been practising recently and whilst i have been doing so i could not help but think that perhaps hauling 96 kg to 20 mph in 4 seconds is a bit bad for you (regardless of the gear you are in), especially your knee's! Is sprinting bad for your knee's, or am i just accelerating too quickly or in the wrong gear(500m events)? I know what you mean about the technique, i have found that i can get to a much higher speed if i accelerate slowly. I have been improving though i think, me and my friend are going to herne hill velodrome soon and if all goes well then i will see you all at Manchester :)

Originally posted by DrBorque
Thanks for your advice VeloFlash, the reason why it was quick is because of gears (top speed was 35.4 mph), i would have thought that with a fixed wheel bike it would be slower for 400m (about 34-35 secs maybe?)because you cannot accelerate as quickly. I will try a run in 27th gear and see how the times compare. I have been practising recently and whilst i have been doing so i could not help but think that perhaps hauling 96 kg to 20 mph in 4 seconds is a bit bad for you (regardless of the gear you are in), especially your knee's! Is sprinting bad for your knee's, or am i just accelerating too quickly or in the wrong gear(500m events)? I know what you mean about the technique, i have found that i can get to a much higher speed if i accelerate slowly. I have been improving though i think, me and my friend are going to herne hill velodrome soon and if all goes well then i will see you all at Manchester :)

Here in Australia, some clubs allow road bikes to compete on velodromes. These are usually flat concrete tracks. It is an encouragement to introduce road riders to track competition.

A road bike is no match for a track bike from my observations and personal experience. That is in either a standing or rolling start.

Going a step further, an MTB would not match a road bike as it has greater weight, a higher rolling resistance with wider stiffer tyres with smaller wheels and the rider position on the bike is less aero being more erect and higher for bottom bracket clearance.

Nearly all MTB's are sold with at least a front suspension system. If this cannot be locked out then a lot of pedalling power is absorbed and lost into that suspension.

So I would check your timing, the length of the course, whether it was even and flat and whether wind had an assisting influence.

Your terminal speed of 57kph over 400m from a standing start would embarrass a lot of trackies.

Is it really that quick? I thought it was about right for a Mtb. I must have done something wrong then i guess, the distance was definately 400m, my friend measured it out with one of those wheel things that click for every rotation. I probably had a tailwind or something, i didn't think to do one in the other direction and take an average. I am going up to Herne hill Velodrome in June, i'll see how i get on up there on a fixed wheel machine. Thanks again for your advice VeloFlash, i'll keep you posted on how i do :)

I would be inclined to agree with Veloflash on this one. Fixed wheel bikes are quicker to accelerate than pretty much any other bike once u get past the first couple of pedal strokes, even though this does not feel like it would be the case. If u can achieve a speed of 57km/h on any type of bike on a flat road without a leadout of some sort, then that is a good start to being a "sprinter". I am basically just re-iterating veloflash's comments on this one. I think u have what it takes to atleast be a half decent trackie/sprinter.

It sounds like you would be a decent sprinter. But even if you aren't they are still other track events. You could be good at scratch races, who knows until you try. Track racing is a load of fun and all bike rides sdould try it at least once.

It sounds like you would be a decent sprinter. But even if you aren't they are still other track events. You could be good at scratch races, who knows until you try. Track racing is a load of fun and all bike rides sdould try it at least once.
i'd like to know how you get over the fear of taking the corners at speed, i'm so used to road racing and i can comfortably get around sharp corners. but when i'm on the track i feel as if i'm going faster than nomal and fear turning at the corners at such speeds. pedals hitting floor turning to far on one occassion i almost bottled out of turning altogether i was slamming it and before i knew it i could see the rail, it was only the thought of hitting the rail that i turned..

i'd like to know how you get over the fear of taking the corners at speed, i'm so used to road racing and i can comfortably get around sharp corners. but when i'm on the track i feel as if i'm going faster than nomal and fear turning at the corners at such speeds. pedals hitting floor turning to far on one occassion i almost bottled out of turning altogether i was slamming it and before i knew it i could see the rail, it was only the thought of hitting the rail that i turned..


You've got to lean into the banking and trust the force.....


the centrifugal force that is :cool:

A lot of people find it hard to relax their arms and shoulders at first, try bending your elbows a bit, don't grip the bars as hard & follow the line around. If you concentrate on looking about a foot above the line you're trying to follow then you might find that easier.



DrBorque, I'd suggest that you get down to your nearest track & find out if they rent bikes/have novice training sessions & give it a go there. failing that contact a local club that has a track racing team & see if anyone's prepared to lend you a bike for a training session.

Good luck anyhow, those sound like quick times :D

You've got to lean into the banking and trust the force.....


the centrifugal force that is :cool:

A lot of people find it hard to relax their arms and shoulders at first, try bending your elbows a bit, don't grip the bars as hard & follow the line around. If you concentrate on looking about a foot above the line you're trying to follow then you might find that easier.



DrBorque, I'd suggest that you get down to your nearest track & find out if they rent bikes/have novice training sessions & give it a go there. failing that contact a local club that has a track racing team & see if anyone's prepared to lend you a bike for a training session.

Good luck anyhow, those sound like quick times :Dfollowing the line was easy, it was the relaxing thing i was finding hard not only that but there where other riders on the track which made me feel a little nervous. although i did feel at home when i had 2 riders to follow the cornering was alot easier, weather it was because i was concentrating on the persons line in front rather than what was comming up.

lets hope next time the force is with me :D