The Science of the Sprint

[Lester Long]

Hi:

My wife recently started entering cycling races, and is able to stay in the second to fifth place
throughout the race, until the sprint. What are some pointers for her that might help her
performance during that last 100 yards of the race?

Thanks in advance.

Regards, Lester

 

[Raptor]

Lester Long wrote:
> Hi:
>
> My wife recently started entering cycling races, and is able to stay in the second to fifth place
> throughout the race, until the sprint. What are some pointers for her that might help her
> performance during that last 100 yards of the race?
>
> Thanks in advance.
>
> Regards, Lester

I'll toss out (though I haven't even contested a sprint in 10 years, and that was a weekly training
race, but I won by 20 yards):

Strength building for the legs (weights). Develop a fast spin, 150RPM should be comfortable.

Tactically, your wife should be on the second-fastest rider's wheel at 100 yards, then swing around
to nip her at the line.

--
--
Lynn Wallace http://www.xmission.com/~lawall "I'm not proud. We really haven't done everything we
could to protect our customers. Our products just aren't engineered for security." --Microsoft VP in
charge of Windows OS Development, Brian Valentine.

 

[Kyle Legate]

Lester Long wrote:
> Hi:
>
> My wife recently started entering cycling races, and is able to stay in the second to fifth place
> throughout the race, until the sprint. What are some pointers for her that might help her
> performance during that last 100 yards of the race?
>
Ask her to stay in the fifth to tenth place throughout the race. I think that being so close to the
front of the race she's still working too hard before the sprint.

 

[Tom Kunich]

"Lester Long" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:[email protected]...
>
> My wife recently started entering cycling races, and is able to stay
in the
> second to fifth place throughout the race, until the sprint. What
are some
> pointers for her that might help her performance during that last
100 yards
> of the race?

The key to all of this is "recently started". As she gains experience she'll also gain fitness. It
isn't unusual for even very strong beginners (and your wife would qualify as that since she can stay
on the front) to be all out during races for a year or two.

Intervals will make more difference to her riding than anything else in my opinion.

 

[G]

For a start, do a sprint training session every week.

my 2c GK

Lester Long <[email protected]> wrote:

> Hi:
>
> My wife recently started entering cycling races, and is able to stay in the second to fifth place
> throughout the race, until the sprint. What are some pointers for her that might help her
> performance during that last 100 yards of the race?
>
> Thanks in advance.
>
> Regards, Lester

 

[Lester Long]

"Lester Long" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:[email protected]...
> Hi:
>
> My wife recently started entering cycling races, and is able to stay in
the
> second to fifth place throughout the race, until the sprint. What are
some
> pointers for her that might help her performance during that last 100
yards
> of the race?
>
> Thanks in advance.
>
> Regards, Lester

Thanks everyone for your advice. She'll try it next race.

Regards, Lester

 

[Dominic Richens]

Lester Long wrote:

> My wife recently started entering cycling races, and is able to stay in the second to fifth place
> throughout the race, until the sprint. What are some pointers for her that might help her
> performance during that last 100 yards of the race?

Needs more power. When the volume is at 10, she needs to be able to turn it to 11.

Here are my favs:

Find a nice straight 1km bit of (quiet) road, paint a line every 100m. Start at zero in a nice big
gear and hammer until the first line. Turn around and lazily make your way back to zero. Hammer
until the second line. repeat until you've done the whole thing. (Note, I could never finish the
whole thing)

Moto pacing is good for this. Go 50km/h behind a moto then pull out of the slipstream and see how
long you can maintain the speed. When you've had enough, pull back in.

cheers!

oh, and try wearing a thong.

--
Dominic Richens | [email protected] "If you're not *outraged*, you're not paying attention!"

 

[Christopher A M]

On Wed, 2 Jul 2003, Dominic Richens wrote:

> Lester Long wrote:
>
> > My wife recently started entering cycling races, and is able to stay in the second to fifth
> > place throughout the race, until the sprint. What are some pointers for her that might help her
> > performance during that last 100 yards of the race?
>
> Needs more power. When the volume is at 10, she needs to be able to turn it to 11.
>

In other words, she needs an 11.

-CM