Page 10 - Aug_2014

Looking For a Faster Race?

TRY A

CRITERIUM

By Evan Johnson

ESSEX JUNCTION — While many inevitably fade as the rest of the pack

riders can tell tales of multiple-gap cen- drafts and works together to catch any
tury rides through the Green Moun- ambitious racers.
tains, there’s more than one way to earn Corners are a key strategic feature Cyclists line up at the start of a recent criterium practice race in Essex Junction.
and play a crucial role in separating Photo by Evan Johnson
your bragging rights. If you’re all about
speed, look no further than criterium leaders from the pack. As riders enter a Courses are closed loops about a Some competitors who prefer the
racing.
corner, the paceline comes together for third of a mile long. Ideal courses are fast-pace of the race use practice rides
Andre Sturm, a resident of Essex a few intense moments as each rider at- in industrial and commercial parks that as preparation for the Queen City Cri-
have relatively closed loops of paved
Junction, organizes spring and sum- tempts to take the shortest line possible terium, the fourth and final stage of the
mer criterium races — “crits” for short around the turn. Like cars in a stock car roads with predictable levels of traffic. Green Mountain Stage Race, held from
— through the Green Mountain Bicy- race, the cyclists carefully position and Races are often held at the end of the Aug. 29 to Sept. 1. Featuring a variety of
cling Club. Sturm says the rides help cy- control themselves through the turn workday when the offices have closed
and the number of vehicles drops off, climbs, descents and six sharp corners
clists develop skills for riding in larger and then sprint forward as the course starting and finishing on Main Street
groups, plus they offer intense interval straightens to create space they can giving rides all over the country the fit- in downtown Burlington, the course is
workouts.
maximize.
ting nickname “office park crits.”
“Here, riders can practice riding These “attacks,” are critical, as it On the evenings of races, course more technical and requires smart rac-
marshals sweep the course of dirt or ing from participants in the 10 divisions
consistently at speeds of fifteen to twen- gives riders a chance to catch the lead- (ranging from teens to seniors).
ty miles per hour,” he says. “Typically, ers or put space between them and oth- gravel and position themselves at access
if you’re training in a group on the road, ers. But failing to anticipate the sudden points to the course, waving down and “A rider that is technically very sav-
you don’t get an opportunity to practice sprints can be devastating, explains redirecting traffic and monitoring the vy and race-smart can compensate
races for crashes.
for physical fitness quite a bit on that
those speeds with regularity.”
Sturm.
Criterium courses are short – some “If you’re in fifteenth position, you The Green Mountain Bike Club course,” says Sturm. “Also, the oppo-
no longer than a half mile—but the might be ten feet behind the first guy be- holds a series of practice criteriums over site is true; riders can be very fit and
sport demands both endurance and a fore the turn,” he says. “But sixteen or the summer at courses in Colchester and
be dropped in the first lap because they
powerful, sustained sprint.
seventeen feet after the turn, if you’re at Essex. The course in Essex, located near lose contact with the field.”
Success in criterium racing also the back of the group, you have to ac- the Edge Sport & Fitness center is flat That combination of fast-paced
requires as much patience and strategy celerate harder to keep up because the with three 90-degree turns, while the
as it does power. During a race, riders first guy is already gone and you’ve lost course in Colchester on Water Tower action and strategy is why Sturm enjoys
organizing the crits.
pedal the course for a given amount of a little bit of ground.”
Hill is on a hill, creating two different “For some people, it’s about the
time determined by their class (begin- This creates what he calls an “ac- racing experiences.
ners race 20 minutes, advanced racers cordion effect” that separates the lead- “It’s a different workload,” he says. high intensity training. But for other
pedal for 40). In that time, riders test ers from the rest of the field and any “On the hill, because of the profile of the people who don’t want to travel three
hours to races, this is their race. They
their opponents’ limits by slowly ratch- lapped riders are cut from the pack. The course, you get your workout – twenty
eting up the intensity of the pace. Rac- race finishes with a head-to-head battle seconds on and twenty seconds off. But in come every other week and this is how
ers that attempt to break away early
to the finish line.
Essex you have to work as a group.”
they race.”

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10 VTSPORTS.COM
AUGUST 2014