Benefit of racing with others??

jhpiii

I have read a lot of race reports, especially from pros or other fast guys, that talk about racing "with others" on the bike course. Usually the context is that it is easier/faster to ride in the presence of another competitor, especially if that compeitior is in your age group. Is this just because of motivation? It doesn't refer to drafting, right? I would think it would be irrelevant in any race longer than an Oly, since we just fix our noses to the Powermeter and hold the goal watts, regardless of what another competitor is doing. Is there something I am missing?

John

Steven Ford

I use it for motivation and to keep myself in check more on the longer races than short. In shorter races I am all out so thats how I judge it. In the longer races if I see someone who I think is about my ability I see where I am compared to them.

 

 

Coach Patrick

I think that (A) after you have proven you can execute a great day and know your ability as focused in your box then (B) you can begin to explore what it means to push your limits by using the competition for motivation.

But part (A) is critical as so many folks just cook themselves so knowing which folks to pick to follow and at what points is critical!!!

Al Truscott

Speaking as one who has consciously raced vs others in my AG in IM races over the past 4-5 years  (after 6-7 years of learning how to pace an IM) I do not worry about my AG competitiors on the bike. There are many other people to ride "with", and yes, it does help to go back and forth with someone 7 meters apart (trade spots in a "draft"). Same concept as to why we go faster in a 5K road race than alone on the track.

Remember the pros and people at the front end have very few others around them - 20-30 pros is a big field (except in HI), and not all of them bike at the same speed. So sticking together probably has a high psychological return over 4-5 hours.

When it comes to the run, I agree with Patrick - know your capabilities and limits, and pick your spots judiciously - you probably have only one match to burn on an IM marathon; use it wisely.

cgres123

@ John, I suggest perhaps you are missing something albeit from a sprint on up really. With regards to sticking you nose to a power meter , I in my head ride a race doing that as well and always pushing the envelope. Execution is an awesome tool to motivate yourself in a race. A sprint on up the competition is pushing on the rollers your laying back they fizz on the crest and stop on the down hill where as you hammer it blowing by them.

That motivates the crap out of me as well as knowing not to light any matches on the bike cause of the up coming run. Then I use the same principle over again. I pick my target, I stay in my box, I hunt .....

mancona

This one is a double edge sword in my opinion. There can be a mental and physical benefit to being "in the race" and close to competitors but it can also encourage you to do dumb things.

the 7m (10M) for pro draft zone gets ride of the major draft benefit, however there is still some draft benefit. Plus if you time passes right and slingshot (per the rules) there is an even bigger benefit as you get a 15 second draft and over time those can add up if you are working with a group legal.

As usual, Al explains it well. I'm no were near a pro and a week swimmer, but I still get into situations where I am alone on the bike for long periods of time. It can be nice as you can just hold your watts, but it is a hell of a lot harder mentally to race alone for long course. Little stupid things like which way do I go at the next turn start to add up when there is no one else around. Also, even one has low periods during an IM and having others around helps a ton to push through the low period. Again the downside is you have to be very careful not to push too hard (I know this from personal experience).

That said, the shorter the race the more important I think it is to be near/in the pack... in longer races it's more important to pace right, period. For 99% of the people doing IM (myself included) we need to race within our box.

Coach Rich

The longer the race the more dangerous it becomes (very) to race with other people, race at their pace, etc. I think it's valuable to mark someone in the final several miles of the IM run, for example, but just too dangerous to do it at any other time because it soooooo easy, across such a long day, to lose big chunks of time very quickly.

As a fast swimmer and cyclist, I tend to spend a lot of time in IM's almost completely by myself. I also 100% ignore anyone not in my age group...and I never "go" with anyone in my age group. We still have a very, very long day ahead of us. However I've had a few exceptions. At IMCDA'05 I found myself near / with the leaders of the M30-34 race. I was 37 at the time. I just sat 4 lengths off the last guy as they did their racey-racey stuff in front of me. I didn't really affect my pace but it gave me something to do and pay attention to. More importantly, I ended up turning down my planned effort on hills because I saw I was doing just fine relative to these guys.