When it comes to cycling around the velodrome, Britain’s women lead the way. Thanks to Olympic champions such as Rebecca Romero and Victoria Pendleton, and more recently Laura Trott, Joanna Rowsell and Dani King, track cycling has become the hot ticket in sport.
But velodrome cycling is not just the preserve of elite athletes. The good news is that you too can get involved.
You don’t have to be an Olympic athlete, and you don’t need to travel all the way to London or Manchester to take part. There are a number of velodromes up and down the country where you can have a go at track cycling.
What’s it all about?
Imagine riding a bicycle that has only one gear, no freewheel and no brakes. You just keep your pedals turning as you ride around a banked surface.
It sounds a strange concept – perhaps a little scary. In fact, it is surprisingly easy. This is cycling in its purest form.
There are no worries about needing to brake suddenly, or having to change gear. Everything is done through pedalling. Fast pedalling can be for sprinting to get across the finish line first, while slow pedalling may be more about stealth and control.
Even if you do not have designs on becoming an Olympic athlete, track cycling is still very good for fitness as well as for improving bike handling skills and developing a smooth riding style.
The Basics
For this sport you will need a track bike and a velodrome. There are a number of velodromes around the country. Some are indoors on wooden surfaces and are usually around 250m in circumference. Others are outdoors on tarmac and are up to 400m in circumference.
Velodromes have banked bends and flat straight sections, though the banking in outdoor local circuits are very shallow. Locations and addresses of velodromes can be found on www.britishcycling.org.uk. Many velodromes have bicycles available for hire.
Your first trip to the velodrome is likely to be as part of an organised group, like with a local cycle club, or you can go independently. It will be a coached induction session, where you learn to set off, stop, slow down, and ride on different sections of the banking.
After a few months of attending training sessions you may wish to race. Racing is not compulsory, and many people just continue to do training sessions in order to improve their general cycling skills and fitness. It is surprising how much energy you use just by constantly pedalling!
Victoria Pendleton in action
What type of bike do I need and where do I get it?
You will need a track bike. You can either buy one at a cycle shop, or you may be able to buy a second hand bicycle from other club cyclists. Some velodromes hire out track bikes, which is a good option for those who just want to try out track cycling before they make it a regular activity. Your bicycle should have drop handlebars and normal spokes. When you are more experienced you would consider bicycles with disc wheels or aero bars.
What do I wear?
You wear the same clothing you would wear for any other types of cycling – cycling shorts, jersey, cycling shoes, helmet, gloves. You can even wear trainers as hire bikes will usually have toe clip pedals. It is better to wear tight fitting clothing that will not get caught on the bike, or slow you down as you whizz around the track!
Some people wear a skinsuit and a pointed aerodynamic helmet, though this is by no means compulsory!
I am worried about riding on such a steep slope. What if I slip and fall?
Most of the local tracks around the UK do not have the characteristically steep, 45 degree banking. In fact, some of them are almost flat!
The tracks at Manchester, Newport and London, which have steep slopes are not used so much by beginners, so you have nothing to worry about. The key to not falling is to keep pedalling. If you pedal too slowly you lose so much speed that you can lose forward momentum and slip.
Where and when can I race?
Depending on where you live, track cycling can be done all year round. However amateur races take place mainly in the spring and summer. Many of the local tracks organise races that are part of a series or league. For a list of all the races taking place, check the British Cycling website for details.
Check your local track club too as they may hold women-only sessions.
Experienced track racer Rebecca Charlton is a co-ordinator of women’s sessions that are run by Team Mulebar and held at Herne Hill Velodrome, South London. She finds that women appreciate the fun environment, and they find track cycling beneficial at all levels.
“We tailor the sessions specifically to the riders we have on the day so that everyone gets the most out of their training. We’ve had ladies worry that they will find the sessions tough or intimidating but all leave reassured after their first time on the track and most importantly, smiling!
“While we run novice inductions we also provide coaching for all abilities up to elite female riders, with a qualified team on hand to provide advice and guidance. We split women into ability groups - from ladies who want to lose a few pounds and have a laugh on a Sunday afternoon, up to riders who are targeting national and even international events.
“Track cycling is exhilarating, great for your fitness, builds confidence and above all is fantastic fun. For more information visit www.hernehillvelodrome.com and check the Mule Bar Girl Facebook page for weather and session updates.”
Tips from the Experts
Dani King (pictured below right) is a young Team GB hopeful, who lists as part of her palmares World Team Pursuit Champion for 2011 and 2012. Her previous road racing experience makes her a strong endurance track racer.
My Tips:
- Keep pedalling – remember it’s all in the pedalling. Whether they are fast or slow revs you should keep your legs turning. If you stop pedalling your legs are jerked forward abruptly and you might even fall.
- Stay relaxed – by keeping your body loose you are more flexible and your riding is smoother while on the track.
- Training – it is better to do a little bit of training often rather than a lot of training less frequently. You may only be able to get to the velodrome once a week, however when you can still train by doing steady rides on the road for 2 or 3 hours.
Also do some interval sessions on a turbo trainer to practice fast pedalling.
Victoria Pendleton is Britain’s most successful female track cyclist. She is the Olympic Sprint Champion and has World Championship titles to her name too.
My Tips:
- Warm up laps first – like with all sports it is important to ride around at slow/medium pace for at least 15 minutes before tackling fast paced riding.
- Big gear or small gear? - it depends on your riding style, the type of racing you are doing and also the power you can generate. As a beginner it is better to stick to a smaller gear, to spin a higher cadence. Once you are used to the track you can decide to change gearings.
- Use the banking – the steeped banking is good for controlling your speed. Riding up it will slow you down. Accelerating down it gives you that extra momentum and speed.
- It’s all in the mind – keep a can-do positive attitude and you’ll be fine.
- Join a cycling club – by riding with others you get tips and motivation and make improvements quite quickly. It’s also more fun.
Types of races
Sprint events
500m time trial – A timed event. From a standing start, on your own, you race around the track as fast as you can over 500m.
Match sprint – Two riders race against each other over 2 or 3 laps of the track. The opening lap often involves a game of stealth where riders use the banking to try to outwit each other into gaining the edge, and get ahead in the final lap.
In major competitions the order of sprint races in the initial heats is decided after an initial time trial in order to seed riders. Quarter-finals, semi-finals and finals take place. The winners of these races are decided on a best of 3 matched sprints against the same opponent. Riders who are knocked out during the opening heats have another chance to get back in the running by taking part in “repechage” rounds.
Keiren – Riders are paced around the track for a around 3 laps by a derny (a small motorbike) which brings them to a high speed. The derny then pulls off the track with two and a half laps to go and riders sprint for the line to decide the overall winner.
Endurance Events
Individual Pursuit – Opposing riders start at opposite ends of the track and race against each other over 3,000m. The rider with the quickest time is the winner.
Team Pursuit – The same as the individual sprint but done in teams of 3. Team members ride in a line with each rider taking it in turns to ride at the front to set a high pace.
Scratch Race – A conventional cycle race on the track over 10, 15, 20 or 25km. The winner is the first person over the finish line.
Points Race – Similar format to a scratch race except that there are intermediate sprint races every few laps, where riders accrue points. Riders will try to lap the field in order to gain bonus points. The winner is not automatically the first person across the finish line, but the person who has accrued the highest number of points.
Madison – A points race but done in pairs. You and your team mate will take it in turns to race around the track. While one person races the other person circles around the top of the banking, and when it is their turn to race they are tagged relay style by their partner with a “Madison sling”. The pairs aim to accrue points and also to lap the field. The winner is the pair that has managed to lap the field or the pair with the highest number of points.
Elimination Race (The Devil Take the Hindmost) – Similar to a scratch race except that every few laps a whistle or bell is blown meaning that the last one or two riders to cross the start/finish line will be eliminated from the race. This continues until there are only 2 riders left on the track and they battle it out to determine the winner.
Omnium – A one or two day event in which riders compete in a number of races. The winner is decided by the person with the lowest number of points accrued. Races included will be a 200m time trial, a scratch race, a points race, a 500m time trial and sometimes an elimination race.
Maria David, Sportsister
The Women’s Sports Magazine
Image credit:
Velodrome - British Cycling
Victoria Pendleton - From victoriapendleton.co.uk/gallery (Jamie Squire/Getty Images)
