By Coach Brendon

Basic Positioning in a Bunch

Never line your wheel directly behind another wheel. Always be 5-8cm to one side (2-3in) Pic 1. You also need to anticipate and ask the what if's. What if the rider in front stands up, effectively moving the bike back wards. By sitting slightly to one side you can also ride closer to the rider in front. This also saves energy.

The next most important point it to be careful when needing to 'cross the wheel'. Pic 1. You may need to do this in order to move passed a rider when there is not enough room on one side, or when the leading rider(s) move to the edge of the road. Many crashes are caused by this, anticipation of the need to cross the wheel is important as it allows you the ability to 'back off' and then cross, allowing for the 'what if'.



Cross Winds

With a direct cross wind, the apparent wind will be near 45deg. Therefore the drafting shadow is 45deg and to maximize the drafting effect you will need to sit on the hip of the rider in front (Pic 2). Cross Winds are the best place to attack a bunch, particularly a small bunch, where you can sit on the side of the road 'down wind'. That is when the wind is coming from your right you sit as far to the left as possible so that following riders receive no shelter. In a variation on this concept. you may sit so that only those riders strong enough to work, or riders you desire to protect are given shelter (Pic 4).



Taking Turns

By sharing the lead a group of cyclists can travel at a greater speed. Generally in large groups the amount of time spent in the lead is small enough to move past the last rider in the front (pic 3). Generally you take the pressure off the pedals for 2-3 pedal revolutions and then reapply, this will allow the next rider to take over smoothly. In cross winds the idea is to protect the riders coming forward by moving back on the windward side. Note) watch crossing the wheel when moving onto the back of the group, see pic 1. When moving back you need to anticipate when you need to speed up to join the back of the group. By speeding up before the last rider is past you, you will not need to accelerate too fast and thus save energy.

Click here to return to the Articles page