Australian Cycling Forums - Bicycles Network Australia

Hi Guys,

Do you know if there is a category for the more "rotund" rider like myself?

Here is my thought, i have bought a bike, and i am riding for the sydney to gong at the moment, but i would love to get into a club and do some races one day.

In training i get smashed on the slightest incline, and they leave me for dead on the flats. If i was to race, i would be at the back the whole time and could loose the motivation to get up there, get disinterested and my bike could be a statistic collecting dust with all the other new years resolutioners

It would be cool/hope it has been done if i can start racing against the other chunky riders, aim for podiums, competition brings motivation, more training and will eventually have me in the lower weight class/normal category. for example, the 110kilo+ category.

It could be called the FBT (not fringe benefits tax) but the "Fat B@stard Trophy". Have a laugh with it too, it wouldnt be the yellow jersey, it would be the yellow tent.

Has anyone heard of this sort of categories within a club?

I dont know the first thing about it.

No weight class ... just A to E / F grades. Find one that suits... or move to the US of A. I think that is the only place that has a Clydesdale class, says something about the US I suppose. I think Clydesdale is classed as 100 kgs rider and bike weight. Cycling is a sport for those with low body fat at the top end ... all the rest of us just find a place on the scale that works .

Ok, i forgot about the grading systems.

I might tag along to a race day and watch. see how it all works

Unless you qualify for masters racing, in which there are age divisions.

RonK wrote:Unless you qualify for masters racing, in which there are age divisions.

Masters are still graded A to F ... only championship races are graded by age.

The grading is probably the right way to go

i was just thinking the power to weight and newbie big boys

Gidday Mike. Its true that cycling favours the lean skinny guys unfortunately. Big blokes are at a disadvantage in a number of areas. Nevertheless, there are quite a few big units who do okay in bike races. Im glad you are considering racing. Too many blokes decide to just go the charity ride /gran fondo / coffee shop cruiser path because they realise they will never make A grade in a real bike race. But bike racing has so much to offer and I don't mean a plastic trophy. I mean a network of like minded guys who have a ball every weekend, who form friendships when they are in the trenches (of a race) together, who motivate each other to train and stay healthy. I have met literally thousands of people through bike racing and no one gives a crap if you are in D grade or A grade. Its a brilliant sport full of great people.
Charity rides will do nothing for you apart from a small sense of achievement at completing the thing. Sydney to Gong is just downright dangerous and you need to be very careful. Its full of kids on BMXs and dinkys and people who have never even ridden a bike but just pulled some old rusty thing out of a back shed and pumped up the perished tyres which will fail them on the first hill. I live in Wollongong and the hospital will be full on Monday. So be careful. There will be people everywhere doing unpredictable and dangerous things.
I can see the attraction of charity rides for a casual cyclist, but once you have done a race or two you will never go near a gran fondo again. Don't worry about your performance or where you will finish in a race. Just do it. You will eventually creep up through the grades and get a few results. But you need to persevere at it.
Good on you for getting on your bike and having a go mate. Good luck with everything.

I have returned to my wicked ways and when I do eventually return to racing I'll be at least 10kg heavier than my last race. However, I'll drop a grade or 2 and start going around again. Having said that, the lightest I got to was 97kg so I'm never going to go well up hill.

That is why God invented Criteriums. Almost ever cycling club races them over the summer months, some clubs go throughout the year. Only a few have hills and even then they are usually manageable. Often courses are close to flat. Big bloke racing.

If that doesn't work, get on the track. I believe there are even some heavy weight only racing on the track. But one thing for certain there are no hills.

Derny Driver wrote:Gidday Mike. Its true that cycling favours the lean skinny guys unfortunately. Big blokes are at a disadvantage in a number of areas. Nevertheless, there are quite a few big units who do okay in bike races. Im glad you are considering racing. Too many blokes decide to just go the charity ride /gran fondo / coffee shop cruiser path because they realise they will never make A grade in a real bike race. But bike racing has so much to offer and I don't mean a plastic trophy. I mean a network of like minded guys who have a ball every weekend, who form friendships when they are in the trenches (of a race) together, who motivate each other to train and stay healthy. I have met literally thousands of people through bike racing and no one gives a crap if you are in D grade or A grade. Its a brilliant sport full of great people.
Charity rides will do nothing for you apart from a small sense of achievement at completing the thing. Sydney to Gong is just downright dangerous and you need to be very careful. Its full of kids on BMXs and dinkys and people who have never even ridden a bike but just pulled some old rusty thing out of a back shed and pumped up the perished tyres which will fail them on the first hill. I live in Wollongong and the hospital will be full on Monday. So be careful. There will be people everywhere doing unpredictable and dangerous things.
I can see the attraction of charity rides for a casual cyclist, but once you have done a race or two you will never go near a gran fondo again. Don't worry about your performance or where you will finish in a race. Just do it. You will eventually creep up through the grades and get a few results. But you need to persevere at it.
Good on you for getting on your bike and having a go mate. Good luck with everything.

Cheers Mate, thank you for your thoughts and advice, i will prob pop down to an LACC club race or something, try and meet some people.

Derny Driver wrote:Sydney to Gong is just downright dangerous and you need to be very careful. Its full of kids on BMXs and dinkys and people who have never even ridden a bike but just pulled some old rusty thing out of a back shed and pumped up the perished tyres which will fail them on the first hill. I live in Wollongong and the hospital will be full on Monday. So be careful. There will be people everywhere doing unpredictable and dangerous things.
I can see the attraction of charity rides for a casual cyclist, but once you have done a race or two you will never go near a gran fondo again. Don't worry about your performance or where you will finish in a race. Just do it. You will eventually creep up through the grades and get a few results. But you need to persevere at it.
Good on you for getting on your bike and having a go mate. Good luck with everything.

+1 By all means do the events, I think everyone should do them at least once. But keep your expectations in check and your eyes wide open.

I agree 100% with derny's comments . The achievement bit was fun when I've done them, your colleagues look at you like you're some kind of super human but I found it a very tense experience. The road was full of windscreen wipers. You'd be coming up to pass and people would randomly change their line or sweep straight across in front of you. Lots of near misses on last few Spring Cycles and I witnessed a couple of stacks. Doubt I'll do another. At the first (and last) Gong ride I did, there were 3 or four ambulances in attendance along the descent from Waterfall station, and we were staged off and slow-paced down in groups by motos that we were not allowed to pass. Once they swung off I ended up riding slightly on the wrong side of the road most of the way just to be away from the risk of having my front wheel swept out from under me,

It's great to see families and kids out enjoying themselves, but I didn't really find the riding part to be so enjoyable - more tense than commuting by some margin in fact.

A club is much the better option. Or if you don't want the commitment, and have a mountain bike, events like the Kowalski Classic, Back Yamma Bigfoot, Highland Fling and other 50-100km point-to-point events are a lot of fun, the vibe is really good and chilled, and the windscreen wiper factor is almost non-existent.

Seeing you have a roadie I'd try the club first.

toppity wrote:That is why God invented Criteriums.

there is your answer!

Mike I only got into riding last October and have a few miles and 5-6 races under the belt now - ALL of it is fun. I'm on the incorrect side of 100Kg also, so feel your pain on the hills!

You'll find that clubs cater for everyone and there will be different races / events conducted throughout the year. Club members can also provide training tips and advice on how to get faster / better on the bike.

I've found that racing increases fitness and with increased fitness, good diet and miles in the legs, you'll improve more than you can imagine!

Cheers and good luck.

Awesome, Thanks for the input guys

i will go and check out a crit, and probably enter the next 30 of them

As mentioned Mike, just get out there and get amongst it. I for one have never even tried a GF, and as of this moment, have no intention to. I started riding road when I tipped the scales at 140kg! I started in my club C grade and have made my way over 3 years into middle B grade. I started out with a passion for track racing and just kind of did road on the side. I'm cumrrently racing Div 3 at RAW and I'm pretty happy with that. As a big guy myself and with a few years of experience under my belt now, I don't see the need for some sort of weight class. I still tip the scales at just under 120kg and if I was thrown in with most riders around my weight, I would say I could hand most of their backsides to them. There is such a wide variety of ability compared to weights that it's just not warranted.

Get out there and enjoy racing. There are races that are not so friendly to the heavier amongst us, but there are also races that do favour us. You will need to build your fitness to just keep up as a start. Racing is the best way to really do this. It's way better than any training ride. Once you can keep up, that is a goal worth celebrating, and you can just get better from there.

I started out JRA and it didn't work for me. I LOVE racing as it gives me goals and incentive to get out there and keep going. I may not be the best, but I am certainly going to try to be the best I can be.