Showing posts with label l.advanced. Show all posts
Showing posts with label l.advanced. Show all posts
Pinning Race Numbers: A Commentary
How to pin on race numbers—it's a topic I love, some for the rhetoric of the argument, but also because I think it demonstrates a person's perspective on bike racing and their ability and/or willingness to see it from different perspectives. So a little commentary on the topic....
(The following addresses the #1 technique for quality number pinning, but for a more instructional and comprehensive coverage of the topic, check out the original Race numbers: Pinning and Placement.)
Bike racers want their numbers to lay flat and not flap in the wind. They think that crumpling their number helps this. Let me give you the secret: 8 pins. Not 4 pins (and absolutely not 4 pins using the provided holes—this is cycling, not sailing club), not even 6. You get a handful of pins at nearly every race. Save a few. Then don't be lazy, don't whine, use 8 and this entire official/racer argument goes away, save the lazy bike racer.
But of course, bike racers are (by definition, I believe) lazy. So we have a problem.
For officials, seeing the numbers on riders whizzing by 5 deep at 25+ mph is an exercise in futility. A single line at 30 mph is no better, but this is the job of the official. Some officials are lazy, too (former racers?), and don't actually try to read all the numbers every lap, so they don't care how numbers are pinned. These officials should be stoned—they are the ones that take a millennium to figure out results because they have no practice at picking out 10 places in order at the finish. But most officials do care and spend the entirety of a race trying to decipher the perspective-bending Dali-esque attachments racers manage to make with their numbers. For them, crumpled numbers are the emblem of their nearly-futile task, not the cause of it. Sure, the stickler quotes the rule book, but one of the jobs of an official is educating riders. Aside from the occasional power trip, it's just part of the job.
So we have lazy bike racers and officials who've found a scapegoat for the nearly impossible task of reading thousands of numbers during a day.
The reality is that the rule is stupid for three reasons. First, like all other riders, I pin on my number, warm up, go to the bathroom, sit down, load and unload my rear pockets multiple times, and perform numerous other actions that WILL crumple my number whether or not I did it intentionally.
Second, the Tyvek material used for numbers reflects sunlight pretty well if you get the right angle. A poorly crumpled number (intentionally or incidentally) will probably have a few surfaces that reflect light and reduce the visibility of the number. However, a pristine number can reflect light across its entire surface rendering it completely illegible.
This illustrates the third point that proper placement of the number is usually far more important than the surface smoothness for visibility of the number. Up on the back: bad. Down along the side of the jersey: good. Right side up? Yeah, I'm talking to you, genius—put your number on right side up. (Cat. 2 - Cat. 5 — I've seen them all do it this season.)
That all points to the fact that you need to learn how to put on a number like a pro. When you crumple the number, don't just wad it up and be done. You need to decimate it! So get comfy and start crumpling. And rolling. And flexing. Now repeat. Finally, find a nice edge and smooth it all out. Hey, don't rip it—that's way amateur. But when you're done, the thing should feel like silk and lay on your jersey like your head on a 600 thread-count Egyptian cotton pillowcase.
Once you take the pro approach the officials won't notice a thing but the high resolution outline of your number. Unless it's upside down. Or on your back. Or flapping like a sail from 4 pins poked through the 4 dummy holes.
So just use 8 pins, put it on your side, and get the race started already.
TrainingPeaks WKO+ 3 with CrossOver Mac 8
[Update Jan. 29, 2012: The usefulness of running WKO+ on Mac via CrossOver has run its course. Updates to CrossOver Mac (v. 9–10) have rendered the process described below unusable and Mac OS (10.7 Lion) requires you run CrossOver Mac 10. Unfortunately a functional work around has not been found. Unless you have access to running the versions of software noted below, this process is no longer recommended; it may appear that everything is working properly until the final steps where you actually try to run WKO+ at which point it fails. And as the comments show, many gotchas have popped up over time as new devices come to market that have made a working CrossOver setup a fast moving target to pin down.
As result, I am now running WKO+ on my MacBook Pro by using Windows 7 Professional running inside the VMware Fusion 4 virtualization software. I have also heard from multiple people that Parallels Desktop 7 virtualization software works well. It is important to note that I have 8GB of RAM installed—lots of RAM will make a huge difference for running a virtualization set up for WKO+. This setup isn't as clean as it was with CrossOver but I can still manage just one computer for my primary work. I do have a recent model basic Windows laptop running Windows 7 Home Premium with another install of WKO+, and I can say that my VMware setup runs much faster so overall this Mac setup works great.
[Update Jan. 24, 2011: Updates have been made to this post since it originally was posted in January 2010 to include some subtle updates. The following information presents using version 8 of CrossOver Mac. Version 9 is now the current version but has been generally reported to not work well with WKO+. If you've had success with version 9 of CrossOver Mac, please post your experience in the comments.]
Let me cut to the chase: running TrainingPeaks WKO+ 3 with Mac CrossOver 8 is pretty easy. You have a Mac and want to run WKO+ without messing with Windows? Just keep reading.
Some background...
In early 2009 I posted step by step instructions for running TrainingPeaks WKO+ on a Mac using only CrossOver Mac—no Bootcamp, Parallels, or other installations of Windows needed. I figured it could be helpful for others but was surprised at just how popular, especially considering it wasn’t the most straight forward process. Success varied, but it showed there was a big interest for Mac users to run a Mac-only solution.
The original post used TrainingPeaks WKO+ 2 and CrossOver Mac 7, and both have since moved to newer versions. I was very interested in upgrading to TrainingPeaks WKO+ 3, but I was afraid the setup wouldn’t work. Given all the advantages of my working set up (not installing, maintaining, protecting, backing up or running Windows in any way), I was hesitant. But as with all things foolish I figured, “Let’s just see what happens?” Since then I've updated again to the latest version of WKO+ 3 and am now seemlessly syncing my WKO+ data for multiple athletes between my Mac setup and Windows setup using Dropbox. Drop me a line if you're interested in more details on that. If you want more background on the project, check out the original post.
The process...
I said this was pretty simple. But it’s not Steve Jobs simple. Downloading from your device directly to WKO+ doesn’t work out of the box, so you’ll need a separate Mac-native application to do that. But generally, all you need is:
To get files from a previous version of WKO+ I recommend reviewing the online help topic “Migrating Your Data...” at WKO+ Start Up Guide: First Hour. This will give you the needed background for migrating data, but I found a slight modification to those directions that works better:
To get new files into WKO+, you’ll need to use TrainingPeaks Device Agent, GoldenCheetah, Garmin Training Center, PowerAgent, or whatever other software you want to use to download data from your device. Then find the file you downloaded in that application (or export it from that app), and open it from within WKO+. Unfortunately, dragging and dropping a file from the Finder onto WKO+ doesn’t work when using CrossOver as it would when using WKO+ in Windows.
Since using this setup for nearly a year, I've found one caveat. The data comparing different files in the multi-file/multi-range analysis tool doesn't work. The graph displays the comparative data just fine but the numerical data isn't displayed.
Got all that? Now sit back, relax, and enjoy the fact that you have one less reason to run Windows! Unless you're me and had to buy a Windows computer for another use and are now syncing and maintaining both anyway. I still do 95% of my WKO+ work on the Mac, though.
As result, I am now running WKO+ on my MacBook Pro by using Windows 7 Professional running inside the VMware Fusion 4 virtualization software. I have also heard from multiple people that Parallels Desktop 7 virtualization software works well. It is important to note that I have 8GB of RAM installed—lots of RAM will make a huge difference for running a virtualization set up for WKO+. This setup isn't as clean as it was with CrossOver but I can still manage just one computer for my primary work. I do have a recent model basic Windows laptop running Windows 7 Home Premium with another install of WKO+, and I can say that my VMware setup runs much faster so overall this Mac setup works great.
[Update Jan. 24, 2011: Updates have been made to this post since it originally was posted in January 2010 to include some subtle updates. The following information presents using version 8 of CrossOver Mac. Version 9 is now the current version but has been generally reported to not work well with WKO+. If you've had success with version 9 of CrossOver Mac, please post your experience in the comments.]
Let me cut to the chase: running TrainingPeaks WKO+ 3 with Mac CrossOver 8 is pretty easy. You have a Mac and want to run WKO+ without messing with Windows? Just keep reading.
Some background...
The process...
I said this was pretty simple. But it’s not Steve Jobs simple. Downloading from your device directly to WKO+ doesn’t work out of the box, so you’ll need a separate Mac-native application to do that. But generally, all you need is:
- Desire to run WKO+ without ever starting up Windows
- Mac with an Intel processor
- TrainingPeaks Device Agent, GoldenCheetah, Garmin Training Center, PowerAgent, or other software to download data from your power meter or heart rate monitor. I recommend TrainingPeaks Device Agent for it's simplicity of installation (included needed drivers for various devices) and the fact that it supports lots of devices. The drivers Device Agent installs will work in GoldenCheetah, too, if you choose to use it.
- CrossOver Mac version 8 (30-day free trial, $40); version 9 is the current version but those buying a license should be able to access version 8 and the old version may be available by hunting around the Codeweavers website
- TrainingPeaks WKO+ 3 (30-day free trial, $129)
- Install TrainingPeaks Device Agent, GoldenCheetah, Garmin Training Center, PowerAgent, or whatever other software you want to use to download data from your device.
- Download the TrainingPeaks WKO+ 3 installer
- Install CrossOver Mac.
- Install Internet Explorer 6 in CrossOver (optional step, but I did it, everything works, so I’m including it). In CrossOver, select Configure > Install Software..., then select Internet Explorer 6 from the list and install it in a new bottle of its own following on the onscreen prompts. A standard install works fine—no need to customize it.
- Install TrainingPeaks WKO+ 3 in CrossOver. Select Configure > Install Software..., then click “Install unsupported software...” and install it in a new bottle of its own. When asked for the installer file, find where you saved the WKO+ installer and let it go through its paces.
To get files from a previous version of WKO+ I recommend reviewing the online help topic “Migrating Your Data...” at WKO+ Start Up Guide: First Hour. This will give you the needed background for migrating data, but I found a slight modification to those directions that works better:
- Manually create a new athlete in WKO+ 3 with the same name as the data you want to import
- Exit WKO+
- Find the folder created for that athlete’s data (should be at /user home folder/Documents/TrainingPeaks/WKO/Data/).
- Drag the old .wko files into that folder
- Launch WKO+ again and ta-da! This only seems to work, though, if you manually create the athlete in WKO+ first.
To get new files into WKO+, you’ll need to use TrainingPeaks Device Agent, GoldenCheetah, Garmin Training Center, PowerAgent, or whatever other software you want to use to download data from your device. Then find the file you downloaded in that application (or export it from that app), and open it from within WKO+. Unfortunately, dragging and dropping a file from the Finder onto WKO+ doesn’t work when using CrossOver as it would when using WKO+ in Windows.
Since using this setup for nearly a year, I've found one caveat. The data comparing different files in the multi-file/multi-range analysis tool doesn't work. The graph displays the comparative data just fine but the numerical data isn't displayed.
Got all that? Now sit back, relax, and enjoy the fact that you have one less reason to run Windows! Unless you're me and had to buy a Windows computer for another use and are now syncing and maintaining both anyway. I still do 95% of my WKO+ work on the Mac, though.
Use TrainingPeaks WKO+ on a Mac with CrossOver
Big Update! Details on using new versions of WKO+ and CrossOver were posted 1-27-10. Check the new post for a much simpler process with these new versions.
Post updates:
(Updated 1-16-10 with a correction/addition regarding running WKO+ version 2 with builds later than 102. WKO+ version 3 will be covered separately, though reports are that it works, too.)
(Updated 6-4-09 with info to assist people using something other than WKO+ build 102 (i.e. build 103 or later).
Post updates:
(Updated 1-16-10 with a correction/addition regarding running WKO+ version 2 with builds later than 102. WKO+ version 3 will be covered separately, though reports are that it works, too.)
(Updated 6-4-09 with info to assist people using something other than WKO+ build 102 (i.e. build 103 or later).
, but who don’t want to run Windows, the following is one option you can use. It’s not clean, it’s not pretty, and those pretty much mean it’s not very Mac-like. But it can save you from needing a box just to run Windows, using a virtualization application (Parallels, VMWare Fusion), or dual booting with Bootcamp.What you need:
- Desire to run WKO+ without ever starting up Windows
- Mac with an Intel processor
GoldenCheetah, Garmin Training Center, PowerAgent, or other software to download data from your power meter or heart rate monitor- CrossOver Mac (30-day free trial, $40) [version 7 is covered here; version 8 will be covered separately in the future]
- TrainingPeaks WKO+ (30-day free trial, $99) [version 2 is covered here; version 3 will be covered separately in the future]
CrossOver Mac is a commercial version of Wine, the open source software that enables you to run Windows applications on a Mac or Linux computer without actually running Windows. Why would you want to do this? Running CrossOver Mac is a great way to run a single Windows application because it saves you from buying, installing, maintaining, safeguarding, backing up, and even booting Windows.The downside is that WKO is not a supported application in CrossOver Mac so it requires some additional manual set up, the device download into WKO+ does not work, nor does the in-app help. (Users much smarter than me may be able to custom-configure their CrossOver installation to enable device download or enable the Help viewer; I would be eternally greatful for the sharing of such knowledge.) As a result, you need to download data using another Mac application, export the data to a csv file, then import it in WKO+. This process usually takes much less time than simply booting Windows, so I haven't found it a problem.
Now that you know that background, let’s get to business. Check out the WKO+ with CrossOver Mac installation directions (PDF, 42 KB; updated 1-16-10) for all the nitty gritty. If you have additional suggestions, please leave a comment. If you try this, I recommend you bring your own tech savvy and patience. Since I can’t see exactly what you did and all of your settings, I’m not likely to have many troubleshooting tips other than, “Try a clean installation of CrossOver and WKO+ following the directions exactly as written. Oh, and good luck.” But I do hope these details offer some assistance to others interested in a Windows-less WKO+ experience.
Learning to Live in the Pro Peloton
If you aspire to be a Euro pro, there are a few skills you may want to start working on now. As Velonews' The Explainer shares in his Daily life in the peloton article, language skills and the art of relieving oneself make for pro peloton prowess.
While English has become common in the pro peloton in the last couple of decades, being able to speak some French, Spanish or Italian will help you connect with teammates. And the fans. But learning when and how to heed the call of nature is something that will simply help you make to the end of the race without unnecessary discomfort. Or embarrassment.
If you need some help, grab a copy of Rosetta Stone to polish your Polish (or any of 30 other languages), and become an on-the-bike whiz with tips (both practical and legal) from FatCyclist.com.
While English has become common in the pro peloton in the last couple of decades, being able to speak some French, Spanish or Italian will help you connect with teammates. And the fans. But learning when and how to heed the call of nature is something that will simply help you make to the end of the race without unnecessary discomfort. Or embarrassment.
If you need some help, grab a copy of Rosetta Stone to polish your Polish (or any of 30 other languages), and become an on-the-bike whiz with tips (both practical and legal) from FatCyclist.com.
Lead Outs, Part 2: The “Simple” Lead Out
So your team got together, assessed the day’s race, developed a strategy including a lead out for your sprinter, and have assigned specific roles (see Lead Outs, Part 1). It turns out that you only have 2 or 3 riders available (or capable) of working for the sprint. To keep it easy, we’ll call this the “simple” lead out. Of course lead outs are not simple—they require planning, practice, communication, fitness, commitment, and discipline—but with the “simple” lead out, at least you only have to coordinate the efforts of a few people.
In this scenario it is good to make sure that everyone knows the purpose and limitations of doing a lead out. A lead out is designed to control as much about the dynamics at the end of a race as possible, and to save energy for the designated sprinter. Despite your best efforts, cycling is like gambling—you can do your best to increase your odds by playing smart but in the end it is still up to chance.
In this scenario, there are only 2-3 teammates, so your ability to control the race is pretty limited. If you have an excellent time trial rider, you may be able to set a high tempo for the last lap and half. Either way, you probably won’t be able to respond to attacks if you remain committed to the lead out. It is important to define this clearly so a teammate does not abandon the lead out to chase an attack, unless the plan is to cover late attacks and leave the sprinter once they are in position. Focusing on using teammates to maintain good position and keep your sprinter out of the wind is often the best bet, though.
Whether you have a couple teammates and or a lot, coming together in the field and getting into position before 5 km to go is necessary. If it is a small field, this is easy, but if it is a field of 50, 75, or more, teammates should start moving into position with about 10 km to go. Once gathered together, the job of the riders providing the lead out is to get to and stay in the top 10, always moving up in a way that the sprinter can follow a wheel and is never out in the wind. Obviously, snaking up through the field doesn’t work very well for any team except the most experienced racers.
Usually the best way to get to and stay in the front is to go up the side. This means the lead out riders will need to sit in the wind, at least somewhat. That is their job: take the wind and get in the right spot so the sprinter doesn’t have to. If the race is fast, this is obviously a hard task, but less riders will be fighting to come by you. If the race is slower, it will be a constant battle of moving up and not getting boxed in so that you can maintain that top 5 positioning. Fast or not, some jockeying will go on all the way to the finish line.
Once in the top 5-10, the final role for the lead out riders is to get their sprinter into the desired position before reaching 500 meters to go, then making an all out effort to stay there. In most criteriums, the final places are determined from the last corner to the finish line, but your chances for placing well are determined by your place before you reach the final 200 meters, whether it’s a criterium or road race. This is why it is critical for the lead out riders to get and keep the sprinter in good position up to final 200 meters.
Getting and keeping this position and bringing your sprint to the right spot by 200 meters will likely be a full out effort. If the lead out riders can’t contest the sprint after that, no problem—job well done! Just stay out of the way of everyone sprinting by.
Around 200 meters to go it is the sprinter’s job to take over. Sometimes this is right about where the final corner is and you will need to guess if the final sprint needs to start before or after the corner. In a road race with a clear line to the finish, the distances are the same and you again have to estimate where the final sprint will start based on the speed, course, wind, riders’ abilities, etc.
It should be obvious by now that the “simple” lead out is anything but easy to do. It mainly involves a teammate or two helping the sprinter get and stay in position while sheltering them from the wind. This won’t be any easy ride for the sprinter, either, but the hope is that the positioning and wind break will leave just enough gas in your sprinter’s tank to finish strong all the way to the line.
After a cool down, make sure to gather together again and talk about the race: what worked well with your strategy and execution, and what can be improved next time. And if you’re working together to get one rider placed well, be ready to share prize money evenly. The rider who buries himself to put the sprinter in the right position with 1 lap to go, then finishes way out of the money should expect to get an even split with the sprinter who got the big check. If your team decides to do the prize money splits differently, fine, but this is something you should talk about before the race, not after.
In this scenario it is good to make sure that everyone knows the purpose and limitations of doing a lead out. A lead out is designed to control as much about the dynamics at the end of a race as possible, and to save energy for the designated sprinter. Despite your best efforts, cycling is like gambling—you can do your best to increase your odds by playing smart but in the end it is still up to chance.
In this scenario, there are only 2-3 teammates, so your ability to control the race is pretty limited. If you have an excellent time trial rider, you may be able to set a high tempo for the last lap and half. Either way, you probably won’t be able to respond to attacks if you remain committed to the lead out. It is important to define this clearly so a teammate does not abandon the lead out to chase an attack, unless the plan is to cover late attacks and leave the sprinter once they are in position. Focusing on using teammates to maintain good position and keep your sprinter out of the wind is often the best bet, though.Whether you have a couple teammates and or a lot, coming together in the field and getting into position before 5 km to go is necessary. If it is a small field, this is easy, but if it is a field of 50, 75, or more, teammates should start moving into position with about 10 km to go. Once gathered together, the job of the riders providing the lead out is to get to and stay in the top 10, always moving up in a way that the sprinter can follow a wheel and is never out in the wind. Obviously, snaking up through the field doesn’t work very well for any team except the most experienced racers.
Usually the best way to get to and stay in the front is to go up the side. This means the lead out riders will need to sit in the wind, at least somewhat. That is their job: take the wind and get in the right spot so the sprinter doesn’t have to. If the race is fast, this is obviously a hard task, but less riders will be fighting to come by you. If the race is slower, it will be a constant battle of moving up and not getting boxed in so that you can maintain that top 5 positioning. Fast or not, some jockeying will go on all the way to the finish line.
Once in the top 5-10, the final role for the lead out riders is to get their sprinter into the desired position before reaching 500 meters to go, then making an all out effort to stay there. In most criteriums, the final places are determined from the last corner to the finish line, but your chances for placing well are determined by your place before you reach the final 200 meters, whether it’s a criterium or road race. This is why it is critical for the lead out riders to get and keep the sprinter in good position up to final 200 meters.
Getting and keeping this position and bringing your sprint to the right spot by 200 meters will likely be a full out effort. If the lead out riders can’t contest the sprint after that, no problem—job well done! Just stay out of the way of everyone sprinting by.
Around 200 meters to go it is the sprinter’s job to take over. Sometimes this is right about where the final corner is and you will need to guess if the final sprint needs to start before or after the corner. In a road race with a clear line to the finish, the distances are the same and you again have to estimate where the final sprint will start based on the speed, course, wind, riders’ abilities, etc.
It should be obvious by now that the “simple” lead out is anything but easy to do. It mainly involves a teammate or two helping the sprinter get and stay in position while sheltering them from the wind. This won’t be any easy ride for the sprinter, either, but the hope is that the positioning and wind break will leave just enough gas in your sprinter’s tank to finish strong all the way to the line.
After a cool down, make sure to gather together again and talk about the race: what worked well with your strategy and execution, and what can be improved next time. And if you’re working together to get one rider placed well, be ready to share prize money evenly. The rider who buries himself to put the sprinter in the right position with 1 lap to go, then finishes way out of the money should expect to get an even split with the sprinter who got the big check. If your team decides to do the prize money splits differently, fine, but this is something you should talk about before the race, not after.
Lead outs, part 1: Planning, Communication, and Assessment
Sooner or later, every racer who has more than one person from their club at a race wants to set up a lead out. Inevitably, racers have watched Le Tour on TV and think that they'll just say, "Let's do a lead out," and magically this train of riders will emerge at the front with a force that shreds the field and leads to certain success.
The sarcasm used and magic required in this scenario come from the inevitable collapse of the plan before more than three riders get within 20 feet of each other any time in the last 5 km of the race. So why the difficulties? Why not streaking trains of coordinated beauty?
Pure and simple, lead outs are hard. They require high levels of planning, practice, communication, fitness, commitment, and discipline. This is the first part of a series on lead outs that will cover the details needed to plan, communicate, and execute a lead out. But keep in mind, knowing how and doing it are two different things.
Planning, communication, and assessment are the first things to consider in setting up a lead out. These need to be done before, during, and after an event to implement and improve a team's lead out.
The first part of planning, communication, and assessment is developing a common understanding. To some, a lead out is one guy drilling it for 300 meters while a second guy waits to jump around in the last 150 meters. To others, it is 6 riders in one synchronized effort to ward off all attacks, minimize battling for position, and provide shelter to launch their star to the finish line. In reality, both of these are legitimate lead outs.
So which lead out is the team planning to do? That depends on a lot of factors: type of race, length, weather, likelihood of a pack sprint, riders' fitness, and more. Start with an assessment of your team's fitness. If you have two strong riders who can get to the front and finish well, but everyone else is pack fill just hoping to hang on, it is not realistic to think the team can orchestrate a team TT on the front for the last few kilometers. On the other hand, if you have a group of riders who are all strong enough to get to the front, then planning a train may make sense if you also have a sprinter to finish off the effort.
Next, what type of lead out makes the most sense for the team's overall race plan? If a few riders are targeted for a break, then the lead out is likely to be a 2-3 rider effort. Of course, having a plan B is good if the break doesn't work, but a lead out for the final sprint needs to be part of the whole-race plan.
After assessing your team's abilities and race strategy, the plan needs to be developed and communicated so everyone knows their role during the race. All too often a team says, "We're going to lead out Bob for the sprint," then has one of its own riders attack with 2 laps to go. That's not a well defined plan. Races are like the weather—the forecast is always subject to change, but to every degree possible, you need to create a specific plan so each rider knows when and where they are supposed to do something. As teams and riders gain more and more experience, this becomes more fluid to adapt to the immediate race conditions, but let's suffice it say, if you aren't a category 1 or pro, plan more and improvise less.
Future posts will go into detail about what the various roles may be, but as a team plans a lead out as part of their race strategy, each rider on the team should know their specific role and when they are supposed to act. Schedule a time before the race to meet, discuss the race, develop a plan, and define clear roles for each team member that fit their ability level.
Meeting at least 30 minutes before the start, if not an hour or more, is a good idea so everyone can focus on the team plan, not registration, getting dressed, their bike, or getting to the line. Make sure that when the team meeting is done, every person knows what their role is and understands the general team strategy: what he/she is supposed to do and when in the race. This helps make sure there aren't any last second surprises from your own teammates that could derail a lead out.
During the race, continue to communicate with each other. Make sure people are feeling good and remain capable of fulfilling their role. If someone's having a bad day, it's good to know that early so the plan can be altered rather than a critical link in your lead out being left out as you start the effort. If changes are made to the plan during the race, make sure your teammates know so one rider doesn't just do their own thing while the rest of the team is expecting something else.
After the race, it is important to meet again to assess what happened during the race and how the plan and execution worked. Any team strategy, including a lead out, is a gamble. Everyone could have executed their role perfectly and another ride could have still taken the win. I have enjoyed numerous other teams' lead outs that happened to be perfect for me. Just because you organize the perfect lead out does not mean your team will win. That doesn't mean you shouldn't do it—it may be your team's best shot an ensuring a high placing. But that's why you need to meet after the race to assess what worked, what didn't, and why.
One last tip: meeting 20 or so minutes after the finish is a good idea. Little rational thought occurs in the first few minutes following the race. Grab some food, a brief cool down, then meet at a pre-determined location to talk about the race and how to change for next time.
What roles should riders play in a lead out? How long should a lead out be? What can throw a wrench in your train? These questions and more will come in the following parts of this series on lead outs.
The sarcasm used and magic required in this scenario come from the inevitable collapse of the plan before more than three riders get within 20 feet of each other any time in the last 5 km of the race. So why the difficulties? Why not streaking trains of coordinated beauty?
Pure and simple, lead outs are hard. They require high levels of planning, practice, communication, fitness, commitment, and discipline. This is the first part of a series on lead outs that will cover the details needed to plan, communicate, and execute a lead out. But keep in mind, knowing how and doing it are two different things.
Planning, communication, and assessment are the first things to consider in setting up a lead out. These need to be done before, during, and after an event to implement and improve a team's lead out.
The first part of planning, communication, and assessment is developing a common understanding. To some, a lead out is one guy drilling it for 300 meters while a second guy waits to jump around in the last 150 meters. To others, it is 6 riders in one synchronized effort to ward off all attacks, minimize battling for position, and provide shelter to launch their star to the finish line. In reality, both of these are legitimate lead outs.
So which lead out is the team planning to do? That depends on a lot of factors: type of race, length, weather, likelihood of a pack sprint, riders' fitness, and more. Start with an assessment of your team's fitness. If you have two strong riders who can get to the front and finish well, but everyone else is pack fill just hoping to hang on, it is not realistic to think the team can orchestrate a team TT on the front for the last few kilometers. On the other hand, if you have a group of riders who are all strong enough to get to the front, then planning a train may make sense if you also have a sprinter to finish off the effort.
Next, what type of lead out makes the most sense for the team's overall race plan? If a few riders are targeted for a break, then the lead out is likely to be a 2-3 rider effort. Of course, having a plan B is good if the break doesn't work, but a lead out for the final sprint needs to be part of the whole-race plan.
After assessing your team's abilities and race strategy, the plan needs to be developed and communicated so everyone knows their role during the race. All too often a team says, "We're going to lead out Bob for the sprint," then has one of its own riders attack with 2 laps to go. That's not a well defined plan. Races are like the weather—the forecast is always subject to change, but to every degree possible, you need to create a specific plan so each rider knows when and where they are supposed to do something. As teams and riders gain more and more experience, this becomes more fluid to adapt to the immediate race conditions, but let's suffice it say, if you aren't a category 1 or pro, plan more and improvise less.
Future posts will go into detail about what the various roles may be, but as a team plans a lead out as part of their race strategy, each rider on the team should know their specific role and when they are supposed to act. Schedule a time before the race to meet, discuss the race, develop a plan, and define clear roles for each team member that fit their ability level.
Meeting at least 30 minutes before the start, if not an hour or more, is a good idea so everyone can focus on the team plan, not registration, getting dressed, their bike, or getting to the line. Make sure that when the team meeting is done, every person knows what their role is and understands the general team strategy: what he/she is supposed to do and when in the race. This helps make sure there aren't any last second surprises from your own teammates that could derail a lead out.
During the race, continue to communicate with each other. Make sure people are feeling good and remain capable of fulfilling their role. If someone's having a bad day, it's good to know that early so the plan can be altered rather than a critical link in your lead out being left out as you start the effort. If changes are made to the plan during the race, make sure your teammates know so one rider doesn't just do their own thing while the rest of the team is expecting something else.
After the race, it is important to meet again to assess what happened during the race and how the plan and execution worked. Any team strategy, including a lead out, is a gamble. Everyone could have executed their role perfectly and another ride could have still taken the win. I have enjoyed numerous other teams' lead outs that happened to be perfect for me. Just because you organize the perfect lead out does not mean your team will win. That doesn't mean you shouldn't do it—it may be your team's best shot an ensuring a high placing. But that's why you need to meet after the race to assess what worked, what didn't, and why.
One last tip: meeting 20 or so minutes after the finish is a good idea. Little rational thought occurs in the first few minutes following the race. Grab some food, a brief cool down, then meet at a pre-determined location to talk about the race and how to change for next time.
What roles should riders play in a lead out? How long should a lead out be? What can throw a wrench in your train? These questions and more will come in the following parts of this series on lead outs.
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