Road Racing - Types of races

After all of last season of race reports, and the first few reports of this season, I figured at some point I should probably describe the different types of races I typically see, so you know what I'm talking about when I do these reports.  For racers, this might seem fairly obvious, but for outsiders I think it might be pretty confusing.  I know it was confusing for me before I started racing.

So, without further ado, here are some descriptions of the types of races I see during the racing season, and keep in mind this is coming from an amateur Masters racer in Colorado, not a European pro or something:

Time Trial:
A time trial is fairly straightforward, which is why I put it first on this list.  Sometimes known as "the race of truth", this consists of a rider racing against the clock.  While multiple racers are on the course at the same time, they leave the starting line at different points.  In the case of my races, the time gaps are usually about 20 or 30 seconds apart.  You ride along a set course, typically an out-and-back or a loop, and get to the finish line as fast as you can.  The entire race is about the racer covering that distance faster than the other racers, with no interference.  There are no race tactics, no drafting, no working with teammates.  It's just you versus the road and the wind.  Therefore, I think success in a time trial comes down to three things:  1) Your strength, and how much steady power you can produce over the distance of the course, 2) your weight, including the bike, since your power output is being used to push that weight around, and 3) aerodynamics.  Without being able to draft or work with other riders, it is up to the individual to fight the wind themselves.  This is often done with equipment and clothing selections.  That is why you see time trialists riding crazy bikes and wearing skinsuits and funny helmets.  It's all about reducing drag.

At the start line, one official controls the clock while another holds your bike steady so you can get clipped into your pedals.  When the starters says go, you go.  Take a few pedal strokes to get up to speed, then get into your aero position and push it until the end.  Typically, you will start off at a hard, but not ridiculous, pace, and slowly pick it up throughout the race.  You want to cross the line with absolutely nothing left in the tank.

Some riders have very specific time trial equipment.  I am not one of those people.  For a time trial, I use my standard road bike, but with a slightly modified saddle position.  I also have clip-on aero bars, which allow me to get into a fairly good aero position on the bike.  I don't have a skin suit, so I will wear my aero road kit, along with some aero shoe covers.  I typically don't wear gloves, although I don't know if this actually makes a difference.  And last fall I bought one of those silly time-trial helmets off Craigslist for $40.  I've only done one time trial this year, and it looks like no one took my picture, so I can't really show you what it looks like.  I won't be doing another time trial until about mid-May, so maybe I'll get a photo then.

Time trials are really boring for spectators.  They leave the start line, then show up again a while later.  There's no real racing action.  As a racer, it's nice to have people cheering you on, but as a spectator, there's just not a whole lot to see.

Criterium:
Criteriums seem kind of hard to understand because there is no set distance.  The easiest way to explain it is that it is multiple laps around a short course for a set period of time, and the first one across the line wins.  Easy enough.

The courses are typically around a mile, plus or minus.  The course is completely closed to traffic, so racers can take up the full width of the road.  The race is given a fixed time.  In my case, it's usually about 40 minutes.  As the race proceeds, the race officials keep track of the group's average lap times, and decides how many more laps to go until the race reaches it's designated time.  Usually there will be an official standing at the side of the start/finish line with cards showing how many laps you have left, often starting with anywhere from 5-10 laps to go.

Most of the race is spent trying to gain position while staying in the draft of other riders to save your energy.  Sometimes you are saving energy for a sprint finish, or sometimes you want to try a breakaway and leave the main pack behind.  While a time trial is about expending hard, steady power for the duration of the event, criteriums are about saving your energy and using that extra power only when you need it.  Maybe you're the strongest rider in the race, but if you're working harder than everyone else, you're not going to win.

Most criteriums also have something known as "primes" (pronounced "preems").  These are laps, usually in the middle of the race, where some kind of bonus is offered for the winner of that particular lap.  These are kind of fun because they tend to break up the monotony of the single group just going around and around for 40 minutes.  Sometimes a prime can be cash, but more often it seems to be a gift certificate to a local restaurant or something.  So, maybe someone in the race knows they aren't strong enough to win the whole race, but they might be able to spend that energy to win a box of Clif Bars or something 15 minutes into the race.  Primes also give the spectators something fun to cheer for in the middle of the race.

Criteriums are great for spectators because the racing is fast and crowded, with a pack of racers coming past every couple minutes.  There is also usually an announcer keeping things interested, giving a little play-by-play on the race.  And I really hate to say this, but there are crashes.  When you have a lot of racers packed into a small course with a lot of corners, it's bound to happen.  Like NASCAR, people won't say they come for the crashes, but you know they do.

There are usually a large number of races throughout the day, with each category on the course by themselves.  With such a short lap, it is difficult to get multiple categories racing at the same time.  Having a timed race like this allows the officials to keep the event moving on schedule.

Criteriums are very popular in the US, because they are easier to organize than other types of races.  Because the laps are so short, it requires closing a minimum amount of roadway.  This means less disruption to the neighbors, and fewer requirements for things like traffic control.  Criteriums are often held in places like office parks that are nearly empty on weekends.  They may also take place on a couple blocks of downtown streets where it's easy to draw good crowds.


Road Race:
A road race is a long race over a fixed distance.  Instead of point-to-point races like you might be familiar with, like watching the Tour de France on TV, these races typically start and finish in the same place.  They consist of a number of laps like a criterium, but the laps are significantly longer.  A race for my category might be something like 3 laps of a 15-mile course.

Road races, at least the ones here in Colorado, sometimes include dirt roads to make things interesting.  Because of the amount of road being used, these races require a lot more traffic control.  That means they often take place on the quieter country roads where traffic management is easier.  That also means dirt roads are a lot more plentiful.

Unlike criteriums, road races often include multiple categories on the course at one time.  Often they will start a few minutes apart, with the "faster" groups going first.  That way, the faster group is on the road, but the slower group behind them has less of a chance of catching up with them and causing confusion.  They will slowly spread apart on the road, but because the laps are so long, the faster group probably won't be fast enough to lap the slower group.

Typically, each category will include their own lead vehicle out in front of the lead group of riders, a follow vehicle behind the end of the race, which can assist riders who have quit, crashed, or gotten a flat tire, and an official on a motorcycle keeping an eye out for violations.

Road races typically don't completely close roads completely.  Often, the road is closed in the direction of the race, but traffic is moving normally in the other direction.  That means the race usually has full access to one lane of traffic, unlike the races you might see on TV.  The race will have a "centerline rule", which means if you cross over the centerline of the road, into oncoming traffic, you will be penalized or pulled from the race.  Even on dirt or unmarked country roads, this rule is enforced, whether there is an actual centerline or not.

The goal:  Finish before the other guy.  Pretty simple.

Circuit Race:
I have seen a couple different descriptions of circuit races.  Sometimes they say it's the same rules as a criterium, but on a longer course, usually 2-3 miles per lap.  Other times, it's similar rules to a road race, but on with much shorter laps.  I don't know.  Around here, I have seen a few races advertised as circuit races, and they tend to be more like shorter road races, not longer criteriums.



Stage Race:
A stage race is an event consisting of multiple days of racing, with your time accumulating throughout each stage.  Prizes are awarded for each race, as well as an overall prize to the winner at the end of all the stages.  This is what you see when you watch something like the Tour de France on TV.

For local amateur racing, like what I do, a stage race will usually include three or four stages.  I most often see 3-stage races, from Friday through Sunday, which include a time trial, a criterium and a road race.  You need to complete one stage to move onto the next.  If you crash out of Saturday's crit, you don't get to participate in Sunday's road race, for example.

Stage races have their own strategy, particularly if you are aiming to win the entire race.  You need to keep an eye on all the other racers, particularly those who seem to be in contention for the overall win.  If you are in a good position for the overall race and you see someone take off to try to win a particular stage, you have to determine whether that person is a threat to your position or not.  There's no point in wasting energy chasing someone who is so far behind you in the standings that it doesn't matter.

Stage races are a fun challenge, and a good test for an all-around rider.  They also tend to be much bigger events, with better prizes, bigger crowds, and racers coming from far and wide to participate.

Omnium:
In road racing, an Omnium is very similar to a stage race.  Multiple stages, with prizes for each race and for the overall.  The difference is that the overall win is not determined by the lowest time.  In an Omnium, points are awarded for your placing on each stage.  You get the most points for first place, with fewer points for each placing.  Maybe on a particular stage, the top 20 riders get a certain number of points.  After all the stages, the rider with the most accumulated points wins the event.

Unlike a stage race, this type of event often allows you to pick and choose the individual events you want to enter.  You don't need to complete one event to participate in the next.  Riders still accumulate points, but it's obviously easier to do well in the overall points classification if you place well in all the events.

As a side note, the "Omnium" is also a track racing event.  I don't really know anything about track racing, but my understanding is that a track omnium has a very specific set of events, while a road-racing omnium can be whatever the organizer wants it to be.