NYC Spring Cycling Series 2013

Feb 11, 2013 at 01:25 AM

I know everyone loves to hate this series, but sometimes the location may be too convenient to pass up especially in Prospect. I was hoping to race Masters this year to avoid the early season Cat 4 jitters, but it looks like it's 45+ this year. Not sure why. I reached out to see if this could be changed.

http://www.newyorkbikeracing.com/images/2013SSflyer.pdf

Jules

Feb 11, 2013 at 01:26 AM

Jules

Feb 11, 2013 at 03:14 AM

L&C cup masters will be 45+

R&A races will be 40+

per Charlie I

dstokes

Feb 11, 2013 at 12:58 PM

I think they wanted to keep Jens Voigt out of the Masters race.

Jules

Feb 11, 2013 at 02:14 PM

Wouldn't the new dope tests do that?
ZING!

Ryan J

Feb 11, 2013 at 05:57 PM

This may not be popular advice, and I would welcome to hear it overridden by the likes of Marc, JP, Eric, or other veterans. That said, I would urge our lower category riders to consider skipping the first few races of the spring series… especially the early Central Park ones. That first race last year was a utter mayhem. On the last lap there were like 20 guys left in the 4 field because there had been so many crashes. The racing was absolutely awful. It was messy, disorganized, and dangerous. I mean, I watched guys crash themselves for absolutely no reason at all. Towards the end as we were chasing back on after being behind one the crashes, coming down the hill there were two velocity guys in front of me in a group of four. They touched wheels and went down. It was totally unbelievable. A whole bunch of you guys are near your upgrades and are going to have awesome seasons. There is a lot to lose and very little to gain. If we were limited in our opportunities for racing I wouldn't say this. But there are way more opportunities than anyone rider can possibly take advantage of during the season. So I say exercise caution.

Bruce van-Schalkwyk

Feb 11, 2013 at 06:38 PM

I think that's good advice. I was planning on not going to the first race, because of that. The first race last year was absolutely packed and most fields got neutralized, if I recall, because of a major crash near the finish line. AVD made some changes to the series, but that first race was a mess. I don't want to be around that again. And I still need to add into my training plan getting up that early.

dstokes

Feb 11, 2013 at 07:28 PM

I think this is what Ryan refers to:
https://player.vimeo.com/video/37906740

Commentary from Schmalz:
http://nyvelocity.com/content/journals/2012/schmalz-spring-series-march-4-2012

eragot

Feb 11, 2013 at 08:01 PM

I try to avoid the Spring Series races when I can. I don't like the organization of them, their safety and their time. Given that, I do them when there is nothing else, or teammates pressure me to. I much prefer Branchbrook.

So, if you ask me about skipping the first few Central Park races, I say yes. Go for a long hard ride instead once the sun has come up. With Daylight Savings coming earlier now, the racing is harder to get in before the racers need to get out of the park.

Jules

Feb 11, 2013 at 09:11 PM

Spring races are a mixed bag so you have to choose carefully. CP's switchback descent is a nightmare in the rain for lower categories but branchbrook is relatively safe (just don't mention them hosing blood off the curb last year)

The early season "race clinics" where they put some higher cat riders in the field were widely praised as very helpful and instructive; I'd try hard to get to those if you can.

mperlberg

Feb 12, 2013 at 01:27 AM

I have a love hate relationship with the spring series. the overall race organization sucks in comparison to the races Charlie I puts on. That being said, they are not THAT bad. But yes: poor communication, poor results management, poor marshaling at times, and the early season jitters from the bike racers. But overall, its a bike race, and the racing itself usually goes off without a hitch.

That said - I have a hard time passing up Prospect Park races. They are so damn convenient for me so you'll probably see me many of those. I will do a mix of Branchbrook, Spring Series, and whatever else I can sneak in without going to crazy in March and April. I've also had some really good luck in the spring series, getting 2 solo wins in prospect makes it hard to not want to do these races.

I'll also plan on hosting a prospect park pre-race post-race course and racing breakdown for interested newbies.

Dan Reiners

Feb 12, 2013 at 03:01 AM

I'll be holding a post race muffin breakdown session...

Jeff Owens

Feb 12, 2013 at 03:35 AM

As Ryan pointed out, it's more of a cat 345's in early season massive packs that just haven't done much group riding over the fall/winter and are super amped up for the first few races. We were in that race together last year and it was a mess. AVD does deserve some responsibility for packing races and not being able to ensure their safety. Yeah, he can't control sketchy cat 4's who sweep peoples' wheels, but he can improve on communication. I've done quite a few of his races where there weren't enough marshals, no radios/cells for the marshals, not enough pace cars/motorcycles for all the fields, and poor directions given to them on what to do in a given situation, many of which are predictable (crash, overlap, etc).

He's not a bad guy and being a race promoter is a thankless job with no real profit. But after trying them for 3 years, I'll wait until April when things have calmed down and sorted out a bit.

tito

Feb 13, 2013 at 03:39 AM

Dan Reiners said:

muffin breakdown session

I love that song - Jerry and Phil jammed so hard on that one when I saw them at Giants stadium in '83.

mugwump

Feb 13, 2013 at 04:51 AM

Yes, I'll add some thoughts.

AVD. There are lots of things he does poorly, but he also gets blamed for plenty that isn't his fault. His races are, by and large, safe. And Charlie, on occasion, seems to run them.

Amped up racers who have power but not pack riding skills are the biggest threat in the V's and IV's regardless of where you go, and yes, the first races of the year are a place for them to find out how lacking their skills are. The biggest risk factor is other racers, and you can't predict where the racer who specializes in chopping wheels will show. (and this is a reminder to all of you to do some group rides before the season starts--don't be the guy who rides dangerously and crashes others)

I used to tell people to go out for the early season races in the terrible weather to get used to racing in bad conditions, but considering the big crashes of the past few years, I'm wavering on this for the V's and IV's.

Central Park, in my opinion, is a more exciting race venue than Prospect or Branchbrook (and much less of a hassle to get to than Bb). Longer, more hills, more curves; you have to be better at shifting, maintaining position, thinking about what's next, where to attack, when to worry about attacks, etc. What makes it good is what also adds to the danger. The downhill at the north end is easy, but even people who ride it every day can suck at racing down it because they don't know how to hold their line. The last mile-and-a-half can be great if you know how to position, but without a team leading out the sprint, people often go too slowly, bunch on the curves, and sometimes crash.

Add to consideration the fact that Grant's Tomb is early in the season. People see GT as "important" because it's not in the park. It also has lots and lots of turns. For both reasons, it's a good idea to have one race under your helmet before going to GT. Start to learn or re-learn the rhythms of racing, to work on pack skills, and because you start to get a sense of how awful some people are at riding their bikes.

I'm doing Central Park races because I love the venue and its close to home. The racing can be very good, but it's not as good as it used to be--too many spring races these days, and when I started, it was the only Sunday race around. (I'd love teammates at these races)

For V's I'd suggest choosing which race to do based on your schedule, the ease or difficulty of travel, and the presence of teammates. (I'm also generally opposed to racing both weekend days in March)

For IV's and I/II/III's, I'd add that I don't think we should put 20 riders in any local race when we have multiple races to choose from, maybe not even 10 if we can help it. A huge Kissena contingent limits opportunities for us, and it is not fun for others. I'd love to get it so we have decent contingents at both the Bb series and the Spring Series in the various fields. Some guys are going to be in good enough form to win and we should support them. And as I've written elsewhere, when we do the same race course over and over again against largely the same competition, it is easier to mentally break down the components of racing. Work on your pack riding skills, work on your positioning, work on anticipating attacks, going on attacks, chasing, doing leadouts, and so on. Every race is a test, every race is training.

mugwump

Feb 14, 2013 at 02:47 AM

and another thing...

Sprinting can be dangerous. So if the argy-bargy is freaking you out, attack, go as hard as you can. Maybe you'll win, maybe you'll get a late race break. Or, go to the front and string out the field for a teammate. If you blow up, make sure you get off to the side the race isn't on, and fade behind the pack. If you're in the back of the pack or even mid pack and don't feel right moving up, let gaps open (though not with teammates on your wheel) and make sure you don't crash--there's no prize for finishing in bike racing.

Getting better at the craziness that is setting up for a sprint at hte end of a race is a skill, and an important one, but if you're not in position to sprint for a place and either don't have the gas or the desire to move up, there is no reason to take crazy risks.

Jeff Condon

Feb 14, 2013 at 02:26 PM

AVD is asking about making Masters a 40+ race on Facebook instead of 45+. If anyone is interested in lowering the age requirement, please weigh in and perhaps we can get it changed. Personally I'd love to race CP but not sure I want to do it in the 4s in fear of a repeat from last year. Purely selfish reasons of course.

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Metropolitan-Cycling-Association/204950009519180

Jules

Feb 14, 2013 at 03:09 PM

Posted, thanks for the update.

alyoshas

Feb 14, 2013 at 11:54 PM

can I be 40? my age is irrelevant anyway, I'm a leap year baby.

Bruce van-Schalkwyk

Feb 16, 2013 at 05:39 PM

Sunday, March 3rd Registration is now open

https://www.bikereg.com/NET/18658/2013-New-York-City-Spring-Bicycle-Racing-Series

mugwump

Feb 17, 2013 at 03:18 AM

First, show up for the Sunday, Feb 24th ride.

second, show up for the tactics talk, Monday, February 25th at Ride Brooklyn. Find the thread.

Then decide. The wheel choppers will change but the game remains the same.

Marc Bertucco

Feb 17, 2013 at 02:54 PM

Also, don't forget that I will be leading a pre-race ride of the Central Park course on Saturday the 2nd at 8:30 am. We will talk about the key sections as we ride (hint: they're not where you think they are).

Bruce van-Schalkwyk

Feb 18, 2013 at 09:23 PM

I want to also mention that you can sign up for the entire spring series at a discount

https://www.bikereg.com/Net/18659

There are 11 races in the series, and at $29 each, signing up for $290 for the whole series saves you $29

Marc Bertucco

Feb 19, 2013 at 08:16 PM

The biggest benefit to signing up for the series, is that you get something like 50 points towards the overall ranking. And for those who are gunning for overall glory, then it's kind of a must-have point bonus. Yeah, saving $29 is nice but if you miss out on the points, you better be damn sure you are going to place highly every week.

mugwump

Feb 26, 2013 at 03:48 AM

I expect to preregister for the series tomorrow. Anyone else joining me in the 1/2/3's this weekend? I hear Myles will and Marc might.