Average speed per category??

memphiscyclist

I have just recently really gotten into road racing and will be starting Cat5 races this coming season. I have been riding for about a year, and at this point I can average around 22 mph for an hour or so on my own, on flat terrain. I am curious to know what fitness level a rider in each category is generally expected to have as it pertains to your solo average speed. I say solo because it's pretty hard to tell what the actual fitness level is of a rider that wheelsits most of the race. I mean, I can do more than 25 mph with a smile on my face if I am behind the line during the entire race, so when I read somewhere that a certain CAT3,2 etc race averaged 26 mph, it doesn't really help me in figuring out how fit the individual racers are. I know alot of making it to the next category depends on how well you are able to break and sprint that last little distance at the end, but I am just trying to gauge myself with respect to how fit I should expect myself to be to make it to each category as it pertains to solo average speed. Can anyone help with this?

Daremo

As a 5, I did only 5 races before advancing to 4, because I won one race, scored two seconds, and two thirds. The averages in the 5 group were between 23-25 for the distance (usually only near 20 miles or so).

The speeds in 4 didn't go up that much, it was just longer, more chaotic, and a hell of a lot faster for the last few laps, or basically the last 5 miles or so.

At the 3 level (they always grouped us as 1/2/3 for most of my races) the speeds were much faster, but the averages were still around the 25-27 level. That is deceiving becasue the breaks are a lot faster and more of them, and the sprints would get up close to 40 or so.

My fastest recorded sprint (on my Cateye) was 41 mph, and that was in a 4 race ........ ugh!!

These averages are also from '95-'97 ..... it may have changed since when I was racing twice a week back then .......

You should do fine as a 4/5. No worries other than crashing.

__________________
'05 Aussie version Giant TCR C Zero ...... finally went over to the dark side and riding a carbon bike. But you can't beat a 17 lb. ride!!

Eagleman 70.3 half ironman - 6/11/06 - here I come!!

memphiscyclist

Yeah really...crashing is my biggest fear. I've done it once, although it wasn't my fault. I competed in several non USCF races last year, and I know I was as fit or even slightly more fit than all but maybe one, however when it came down to that sprint toward the finish and the line spread out into a tightly packed and crazed group that covered the entire width of the road with all of us wacking into each other while going over 30mph, I just about lost it and decided in a split second that trying for first was not worth another broken collar bone...so I placed 5th. Guess it depends on how much risk you are willing to take. Just curious, are you a 3 now? And what can you typically average on your own, and how long did it take to get there? For me, it only took me around 4 or 5 months to go from 19 mph to 22 mph, however I know that given the laws of physics it will take alot longer to get from 22 to 25.

Daremo

I went from Cat. 5 to Cat. 3 in a year. But that was way back when .........

I stopped racing in '98, and stopped riding in '99 after getting married ..... no time ......... Not to mention I sold all my bikes to pay off a bunch of debt.

Since then I've gained close to 40 pounds (weighed 170 then, 210 now .......). I feel like a total fat azz, so I went out and bought all the stuff to build up th Torrelli frame I bought in the Fall, and I just got a mag trainer for my x-mas gift from my family, So I will pull out my old winter training regimen I always did (clsoe to 1,000 miles indoor between Jan. and March), and get my fat lazy butt back in shape.

I plan on doing a few citizen/5 races towards the end of the year. The problem is, I'm about to start my thesis project semester for my grad. degree in Architecture, so all my time will be limited.

I always tried to train at 20+ for my average, whether it was for a quick 20 mile ride, or for a century training ride. Regardless of whether it was a hilly route or not. I almost always trained alone, or with one of my teammates at the time.

The key to coming out strong in the spring and NOT burning out by the Fall is to train smart over the winter. Work on your spinning and endurance more than just power. Do some swimming and running to mix it up a bit. My problem was that I always came out in the Spring as a beast, but was cooked by the Fall.

Averages don't mean much. If you can keep a good pace by yourself, all you need is practice in the group to be successful. Try and vary your terrain as much as possible. I used to love to climb, even though I'm 6'-1" and ride a 59/60 frame. Now, I just think of how I used to climb, and that gets me up the hills. Doesn't hurt that I'm surrounded by a fairly rolly area in MD.

__________________
'05 Aussie version Giant TCR C Zero ...... finally went over to the dark side and riding a carbon bike. But you can't beat a 17 lb. ride!!

Eagleman 70.3 half ironman - 6/11/06 - here I come!!

memphiscyclist

It's the same with me and graduate school..not much time. Your winter training sounds about like mine. I can only do it on the weekends during winter and generally do a fast paced 25 mile on flat terrain on Sat, then a slower 50 miler on Sundy on hilly terrain. It's amazing how much all that winter clothing can slow you down! Thanks for the info.

yayaya

OMG you and I are just alike..exactly alike...I quit racing in 98 stopped riding in late 98....was 168lbs now after riding again for a month or so am down to 203, was 210. I too raced cat 3 when I stopped...same reasons I stopped as well...married....first kid..spooky.

MC your average is about right for solo riding as a cat 4/5. When I was racing cat 3's on my solo rides...my hard solo rides I would average between 23 and 24 pending on the terrain. I would average between 26 and 28 on our hard team training rides. Your average for such a short period of time riding is good. I wasnt averaging that until I had been riding for a couple of years, keep it up.

The best way to avoid crashes in cat 4/5 races is to stay in the first 15 or so riders as much as you can. Riding in the middle or at the back of these races in much worse. However racing at the front part of the group is'nt always a gurantee My last cat 5 race I was in the top 5 going into the last lap when the guy in front of me caught a peddal and down we both went.

Oh and my fastest recorded sprint...48 in a cat 3 race.....slight downhill finish.

J-Law

Obviously racing is as much about tactics, strategy, and recovery from efforts, as it is about sprinting or the speed you can maintain on your own. Your question is a good one though. As winner of the cat 5 state title 2 yrs ago I could average around 22-23 on my own for long distances (I did a 1:03 for the state 40k TT). At the beginning of last yr as a cat 4 I was very competitive and could average about 24 on my own for close to an hour with the road bike. By the end of the yr I was averaging almost 26 on the TT bike and about 25 on the road bike for an hour. At that point I was a cat 3 and despite having no sprint finished 7th in the state cat 3 crit.

gntlmn

If you're a strong solo rider, maybe you ought to concentrate on your breakaway. If you attack at the right time and drop the peloton successfully to the finish, you won't have to contend with all that other metal near the finish. It will just be you and the finish line, not to mention the cheering fans.