Cyclocross: Pre-Ride and Race Start Staging, by Matt McNamara
2 November 2009
Race starts matter. In cyclocross they matter more than any other mass start discipline. They matter because of the technical nature of the courses, the huge importance of the first ten minutes and the inherent slowness of anyone in front of you! So, let’s break them down a little bit to make yours better…
Pre Ride and Staging: Unless you are part of a race series, and eligible for a call up, getting a good start spot is crucial, so plan ahead. Many promoters are now keeping their race courses closed to warm ups during races, so if you want to pre ride you’ll have to get there early. Plan your day so you get your pre-ride and warm up done at least 20-30 minutes before your start.
Pre riding in those hectic few minutes before your start is a bit too risky for my liking. Instead, get to the staging area early and secure that front row spot. It may mean five or more minutes of standing around waiting, but you’ll appreciate it when the whistle blows. Many is the time I’ve gotten to the staging area thirty minutes early and just stood there so I KNOW I’ll be ready when it’s time to do the first race of the day, the one to the line.
Finally, and this is nearly proprietary, learn to be a lurker. Time and again, year after year I’ve been able to get myself on the first or second row at races big and small because I have a finely honed ability to lurk my way forward. It’s as simple as striking up a conversation with the announcer, finding a crowd crossing that just happens to be near the start, or conveniently dropping by the wheel pit to touch base. Embrace your inner lurker, it will serve you well.
One trick that is NOT acceptable is the ‘roll to the front of the field after they’ve assembled and squeeze your way in’ move. If you’re not fast enough to get a call up, focused enough to wait, or smart enough to lurk then you deserve to be at the back. Earn that grid position.
Next time we’ll look at some power numbers that will help you get your starts right.
About the author: Matt McNamara is the president and founder of Sterling Sports Group, a performance coaching company in Northern California. We strive to provide cutting edge performance solutions to our athletes that make use of both state-of-the-art technology and personal service to achieve your goals. By combining these elements our coaches are able to effectively create, manage, and communicate the program to each athlete directly. Visit us online at www.sterlingwins.com
7 Responses to “Cyclocross: Pre-Ride and Race Start Staging, by Matt McNamara”
November 3rd, 2009 at 6:58 am
So, you’re one of those creepy lurker guys that are instructing others how to be a lurker too. We have a few here too that are usual the jerks that step on their fellow competitors to squirm to the front of the stationary starting group. With 30 years of racing experience, it’s usually these same guys having early race flats, mechanicals, crashes and in general, exhibit poor sportsmanship. Especially prevalent in crits, less so in cx races. It’s an unsavory pre-race annoyance that makes most seasoned riders irritated. The lurkers are marked targets once the gun goes off and the real racing begins. Perhaps a follow-up article on pre-race posturing for a defense of lurkers called “lockers”? Lockers are the guys that show up to the start early, position themselves appropriately and keep any lowlife lurkers from slimeballing their way forward. If you want a primo starting spot in pole position #1: come prepared, come early and hold your spot from lurkers, even if it comes to vocally calling them out. Everyone at the starting line will thank you.
November 3rd, 2009 at 10:48 am
Hi Jim, thanks for your comments…I always appreciate a good discussion. I am perplexed that you took the ‘lurker’ comment seemingly out of context however. Perhaps I should have chosen a different word – your ‘lockers’ comment seems akin to what most of my post was about, earning your start position. To wit: “Many is the time I’ve gotten to the staging area thirty minutes early and just stood there so I KNOW I’ll be ready when it’s time to do the first race of the day, the one to the line.”
Did I espouse pushing your way forward, cutting in front of those already staged, being annoying, or a nuisance? Certainly not – reread the last sentence of the post if you doubt. Like you, I’ve been racing for over 20 years and DO NOT believe, nor teach poor sportsmanship. If striking up a conversation at the staging area or start line in the minutes before staging gets me the chance to avoid the mad dash and retain a decent start position, to me that’s acceptable and not unsportsmanlike. Certainly over the course of 30 years you’ve done the same. I’d be happy to discuss this more if you’d like
best
Matt
November 3rd, 2009 at 2:05 pm
Hi Matt,
Maybe it was just the use of the word “lurker” and it’s dictonary definition:
1 an underhand scheme; dodge.
2. an easy, somewhat lazy or unethical way of earning a living, performing a task, etc.
Jim
November 3rd, 2009 at 3:37 pm
Maybe ‘lingerer’ is a better term – kind of hanging around the start waiting for the official call-up/line-up process to start. It’s a good time to catch up with other racers and be ready to line-up. As soon as a critical mass has assembled, you should be in a relatively good spot. I think this is what Matt is recommending.
What I think we all agree on is that it’s NOT cool to saunter up to the start with 5 minutes to go and think you can wedge your bike in up in the 2nd row just because there’s a foot of clearance.
The downfall of this is that in a race with a large field, sometimes this early lingering can start 30-40 minutes before the start of your race. Whatever warm-up you had is likely long gone.
November 3rd, 2009 at 4:29 pm
Jim – Thanks for the reality check. I’ll be more careful with word choice in the future. Hope you like the next post!
Matt
November 3rd, 2009 at 5:30 pm
Hey Matt, great article. I’m racing my first CX season as a Cat4 and am continually surprised that I can manage to line up in the first or second row in a field of 30 or 60! All I do is show up early – no sneaking or pushing. I just end up looking back and wondering why so many people show up at the last minute.
November 4th, 2009 at 11:48 am
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