by Dean Woods with Rupert Guiness
Track Cycling
Track cycling may not reap as much public attention in Europe as road racing, but to any converted cycling fan it is a fascinating element of the sport. It's not only thrilling to participate in but also gives you a superb education in bike handling and tactics. All cyclists will benefit from some form of track cycling, whether they focus on track racing or not.
Track cycling can take place on indoor and outdoor tracks, or velodromes. Velodromes differ in size and dimension and are made of varying materials, ranging from wood and cement to a combination of woods and synthetics.
Tactical instinct will need to be sharper because of the velocity of race patterns on the track. Leg speed will be much higher, yet at no cost - rather, benefit - to endurance. This will improve your road skills too, and the sport is full of many great track cyclists who have proved themselves as road stars as well.
Patrick Sercu of Belgium was one example. He was Amateur World Sprint Champion, an Olympic 'kilometre' gold medallist and then the greatest professional six-day rider ever. Yet he also won eight stages of the Tour de France, and the Tour's green points jersey.
On a more general front, track cycling is also a great spectator sport.
While road events like the Tour can cover up to 4000 kilometres (2485 miles), making it quite a logistical feat to witness, track competition is fought out in front of your eyes just as tennis is. This also makes it easier to cover on television, an important element in promoting the sport.
The flipside to the coin, though, is threefold: firstly, track cycling can at first appear to be a complicated thing to understand; secondly, it is a discipline which demands specific skills and steel nerves, and it can be more difficult to get into; and thirdly, construction of a velodrome is a costly affair which can limit the availability of facilities.
Nevertheless, any cyclist should not miss their first chance to either ride, race or watch a night of track racing. We can guarantee it won't be the last time you'll go!
Choosing the Right Bike [back to top]
To find the best track bike is an undertaking similar to choosing a road bike. However, you'll have fewer headaches as far as equipment is concerned, because there aren't so many components to a track bike - making them lighter and cheaper. And not only are there no brakes on a track bicycle, they also come equipped with only a fixed gear.
Positioning [back to top]
To position yourself on a track bicycle, use the same procedure as for a road bicycle. If you already have a road bike, your position should be the same, even though a track bike's geometric design is different.
In some disciplines like pursuiting there may be cause for alterations, especially if you are using a revolutionary design. And when a novice becomes more experienced, he/she will notice slight positional variations (above the difference in frame designs) depending on the type of track event, and from this can make a more informed choice. However, beginners are best advised to stick to the basics and start with a traditional track bicycle.
Anatomy [back to top]
Frame angles in a track cycle are different. The fork rake - the bend in the lower part of the fork - is straighter (in road bikes it is angled to absorb the shock from bumps and holes). And the head column - the section of frame joining the head fittings with the forks - is normally much steeper on track bikes. This enhances the bike's responsiveness, a vital factor on tracks where lightning speeds and a tight circuit call for greater manoeuvrability.
The pursuit of aerodynamism has seen frame and wheel design and material undergo frequent and radical changes. So rapid have they been that the cycling world's governing body, the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI), has been forced to implement strict regulations. These have kept bicycle manufacturing and retailing costs within acceptable limits as well as establishing a more equitable level of competition where emphasis is on the person rather than the machine.
Wheels [back to top]
Another difference between road and track machines is that track wheels have no quick-release system. And the spokes are often tied with fine grey fuse wire and soldered to give more strength. The use of disc wheels is also more popular nowadays.
Tyres [back to top]
Track tyres are lighter too. A good track tyre is made of silk and cotton. (While good road tyres can be made of cotton, they have a heavier and thicker tread for the rougher conditions.) A recommended brand for singles is Continental from Germany and, for high-pressures, Michelin, Continental and Specialised.
Gears [back to top]
Fixed gears are used in track racing because with a fixed gear you can pedal at higher revolutions for longer periods.
Brakes [back to top]
There's no need for brakes in track bikes because on a velodrome, unlike a road, there are no obstacles to negotiate. To stop, track riders either roll to a halt during two or three warm-down laps, or a handler can take hold of a slowing rider's hand and pull him or her to a halt.
Handlebars [back to top]
Track sprinters generally use rounded, chrome-steel handlebars. They are stronger and more comfortable to use than the traditional square design of the road bike, because track riders spend most of their time riding on the drops.
Cranks [back to top]
Another difference between road and track bikes is that the latter has shorter cranks. Track cranks vary between 165 and 170 millimetres, whereas road cranks vary from 170 to 180 millimetres. And the chain width is 3 millimetres (1/8th inch) on a track bike compared to a slimmer 2.25 millimetres (3/32nd inch) on a road bike.
Racing [back to top]
How and Where to Start [back to top]
If the cycling club you have joined is a good one, then you should have access to a velodrome. Track cycling is, after all, a vital skill any rider should aim to learn whether they want to concentrate on track or road cycling.
If your club does not have access to track facilities, then - as with road cycling - ask your nearest cycling shop or contact any cycling magazine. Or you could ask a regional, state or national cycling federation to direct you to the most appropriate facility.
If you haven't cycled on a track before, remember to respect what more experienced people have to say or do.
The Disciplines [back to top]
Kilometre [back to top]
The Kilometre is a demanding discipline where the rider is timed over a 1000-metre (1094-yard) track distance after a held start. The rider is forced to expend maximum energy from the gun. It's the ideal sprinters' time trial, requiring an extremely high anaerobic threshold and mental determination. Mechanical glitches or other misfortunes can cost a rider vital time at the beginning, but if all goes well many 'kilo' riders can achieve a good speed over the first 500 metres (547 yards). The top placings, however, are usually decided on who is strongest over the last half.
Match Sprint [back to top]
The Sprint is one of track cycling's most exciting events. A sprinter not only needs to be able put on a burst of explosive speed, but he/she must also be cunning and opportunistic in what is as much a psychological as a physical battle.
Match Sprints pit two riders against each other. A rider's starting position is either close to the centre of the track or up on the bank. It is determined by drawing a ticket from a hat. What is considered the best position is a personal thing: some riders prefer the inside lane, starting from the front position; others like to begin from the outside and follow on. Once they have started, riders can change positions as often as they like.
The Match usually becomes a psychological game of 'cat and mouse'. In the preliminary laps accelerations and tactical moves up and down the bank are made by both riders to provoke the other into making a mistake. Another tactic is the 'stand-up', or track stand, where the rider will roll to a halt, balance and wait until either they or their rival takes off again. Physically, a stand-up can be painful after a period of time and can sap vital fast-twitch sprinting energy for the eventual sprint to come.
A crescendo of tension is created until one or the other finally launches the all-committed sprint to the line with about 200 metres (219 yards) to go. This final and decisive burst of speed can see riders edge frighteningly close to colliding, and sometimes they do. (Hence the need for steel nerves!) Sprinters are often large and robust as a result of the weight work they do to increase muscle power. Not only are their legs huge, but so also are their shoulder and arm muscles, which are used a lot in accelerating.
Tandem [back to top]
The Tandem is like the individual Sprint, only much faster and more dangerous.
Because there are two people on the bike, tactics like stand-ups are more difficult. Also, as there is a greater weight to wind up to the maximum speed, the finishing sprint often begins further from the finish than in the individual Sprint.
Individual Pursuit [back to top]
The Individual Pursuit is a race where two riders start off at either ends of the track - one on the back straight and the other on the home straight. The aim of the race is for one rider to try to catch the other.
If a rider is caught, they lose. If neither competitor is caught, the winner is the rider with the fastest time for the 4000-metre (4374-yard) distance.
An Individual Pursuit series is normally made up of qualifying rides where a cyclist completes the distance against another competitor. This is done to establish the fastest and slowest riders and to work out match-ups for the first round. From there on until the final, the series sees riders eliminated as they are beaten.
A pursuiter needs to have both speed and endurance. Such qualities also overlap with other cycling disciplines like road time-trialling. It is not uncommon for pursuiters to become excellent road racers as well.
A pursuiter should race with the strategic cunning of a road cyclist too. They can pinpoint the time they should need to win and race to a schedule. Or, if their opponent is an unknown quantity, they could take a more confrontational approach and try to scare him or her by blasting from the starting line with added vigour in the hope of unnerving their rival.
In the 19808 the former Soviet Union and East Germany reigned supreme as the world's best pursuiters, although the early 1990s saw Great Britain and Australia produce some excellent 'heirs' to the former eastern bloc's throne.
Team Pursuit [back to top]
The Team Pursuit is akin to individual pursuiting, although it is a far more visual spectacle.
Each race has two teams of four riders. And, like the Individual Pursuit, both teams start at opposite sides of the track, with each aiming to catch the other.
If the teams don't catch each other, the result is decided on time which is measured when the third rider of each team finishes. This requires that all four riders try as much as possible to stay together and ride at an even tempo, rather than split up. It is usually with a couple of laps to go that a rider falls adrift after putting on a final extra turn of speed at the front.
Most 'turns' last half a lap, with the rider ending their spell at the front by sweeping up one of the two bankings and dropping down and behind the last rider in their team. While it was once regarded as impressive for strong riders to do one-lap turns, teams like the 1993 world champions - Australia - have riders who can produce two-lap turns!
Points Racing [back to top]
The Points Race is an event in which points are awarded to the top five riders in sprints at allocated laps.
Of all the track events, it is this discipline which most requires the skill of road racing. The race is full of attacks, chases and official and secret alliances between riders.
Endurance, speed and pursuiting skills are major physical assets. Yet a points racer must also be able to 'read' a race well too. It is definitely an event where psychology, as well as strength, is a major factor.
In world championship competition women compete over 30 kilometres (18 miles). Up until the 1993 amalgamation of professional and amateur men's racing organisations there were 50-kilometre (31-mile) events for professionals and amateurs. Now, the new Open men's race is 40 kilometres (25 miles).
Teams for world-title and Commonwealth Games events can number two riders, whereas Olympic and Commonwealth Games competitions only allow for one rider per country.
Six-day Racing [back to top]
Six-day racing originated in the United States, but has long found its base in Europe - especially in Germany.
Six-day Races used to last for the entire duration of six 24-hour days. Nowadays, however, this competition involves six nights of indoor racing between 8 p.m. and 3 a.m.
Unsurprisingly, the 'Sixes' are also major social events. While racing continues, paying visitors are provided with live music, restaurant and bar service and even access to on-site discos.
A Six-day meeting is a combination of numerous events contested by two-person teams. The overall winner is the team with the most laps or, if there are two or more teams with the same lap count, the winner is the one with the most points derived from intermediate sprints and bonuses.
The crucial event in a Six-day Race is the chase, or 'madison', where riders ignite attack after attack in bids to lap the field. (The name comes from its origins in Madison Square Gardens in New York.) A madison requires both riders of a team to race, but they take it in turns and alternate every two or three laps by hand-slinging each other back into the thick of the action. The rider not racing rolls slowly around the top of the track, banking, until it is his or her turn to rejoin the race.
Distances vary, but can reach 75 kilometres (46 miles). Two races are usually held per night. Other components to a Six-day Race programme include motor-paced, intermediate sprint and elimination races. But they rarely carry the prestige of a madison, which will also appear in the World Championship programme in 1995.
Japanese Keirin [back to top]
The Keirin is a special sprint event originating in Japan which has also been contested around the world under slightly different regulations.
In a Keirin race a field of about eight riders lines up and cycles the first laps behind a pacer. The aim of the pacer, who drops off with one lap to go before the finishing sprint, is to boost the pace of the race up to frighteningly fast levels. In a world-title programme, the pacer drives a motorbike. In Japan, where this type of cycling originated, the pacer rides a bicycle.
After trying to push and shove into the best positions, it is in this last lap that Keirin racers hit their peak as the full-out sprint to the line begins. Crashes are a common result.
In Japan, the Keirin is a lucrative, mass-marketed sporting institution which is open to legal betting, as horse and greyhound betting is in Australia, Great Britain and the United States.
There are official Keirin stadiums all over Japan and millions of dollars - or yen - pass hands between punters and bookmakers.
For those on the circuit, doors are only opened by invitation. Japanese riders must graduate to a competitor's class via strict and rigorous schooling.
Foreigners are also invited, but can only compete in an international round of races lasting three months from June. They, too, must go to 'Keirin school', but they're only required to attend a three-week crash course.
Motor-paced Racing [back to top]
Motor-paced racing is also one of track cycling's more dangerous outlets. And it's one of the most demanding in terms of endurance.
Events usually last for about one hour. Each rider races behind a motorbike at speeds which can reach 80 kph (50 mph). Starting positions hinge on a pre-race draw and certainly affect one's chance of winning.
Precise cohesion between the driver and rider is vital, for a rider's intention of attacking or passing an opponent depends on the driver being able to accelerate and provide the extra slipstream when the rider needs it.
Like the Tandem, motor-paced racing was a world-title event for professionals and amateurs until 1993. Sadly, despite the athletic prowess needed to win a Motor-paced Race, such racing has become something of a black sheep in the flock of track cycling.
The deafening noise of accelerating motorbikes is a contributing factor to its decline in favour. A separate winter circuit in Europe helps to further marginalise the event's identity. And being allied to other events - such as the world titles - only once a year doesn't help its popularity.
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