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What is the safest cycling race discipline?

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What is the safest cycling race discipline?

Old 04-26-20, 01:20 PM
  #51  
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Originally Posted by caloso
Except that you’re not racing down. Every hill climb I know of is timed to the top, and it’s neutral on the way down. Mt Diablo would pace you down in groups, when I did it, at least.
Originally Posted by livedarklions
Mt. Washington requires the bike to go down on a car or truck. No downhill riding at all.
Absolutely disgusting. I could never EVER climb 1 foot up a hill if I knew I wouldn’t be allowed to rail the descent.
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Old 04-26-20, 01:44 PM
  #52  
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Originally Posted by smashndash
Absolutely disgusting. I could never EVER climb 1 foot up a hill if I knew I wouldn’t be allowed to rail the descent.

Careful of those one foot descents, though, some of them are tricky.

Mt. Washington is actually a steeper climb than anything on the TdF.
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Old 04-27-20, 04:56 AM
  #53  
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Having done road races, time trials, and hill climbs in the past I can concur that hill climbs are the safest form of racing.

The two worst cycling accidents I've had happened on normal Sunday rides, one with the club, and one with my daughter.
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Old 04-27-20, 12:31 PM
  #54  
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Originally Posted by downtube42
Individual pursuit is probably pretty safe.
But damn it hurts. The only time I road pursuit I got 2nd in the state championships (1st time I had ever ridden the track) but I was coughing up blood for a few minutes afterwards.
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Old 04-27-20, 03:17 PM
  #55  
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Crits are probably the most dangerous. Road races, especially ones that have a bunch of climbing temd to be pretty safe. Time trials should be safe but people wreck in those all the time, mostly due to pushing it. Hill climbs are great.

Triathlon is safe if you're know how to swim. I have seen people eat it hard there, a tri bike down a steep hill can be unruly.

Have you considered chess?
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Old 04-27-20, 03:54 PM
  #56  
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Racing on one of them peloton bikes in your living room is bout the safest I imagine
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Old 04-28-20, 06:08 AM
  #57  
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Originally Posted by caloso
Except that you’re not racing down. Every hill climb I know of is timed to the top, and it’s neutral on the way down. Mt Diablo would pace you down in groups, when I did it, at least.
I have been in some races with mountain top finishes, but there were usually several climbs and descents before the finish. I am not masochistic enough to think hill climbs are fun, and to compete in a race which is entirely uphill, and I have ridden the alto d L'Angliru. That was a hell of a climb for a sprinter like myself.
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Old 04-28-20, 07:25 AM
  #58  
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I don’t think anyone says that they’re fun. The question was whether they are safe.
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Old 04-28-20, 09:19 AM
  #59  
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To me, road/crit can be pretty bad. I went to the hospital for a sprint crash at the end of a race this year.

I crash almost EVERY cyclocross ride. A little washout or something. It's slower and usually not life altering stuff. I feel cyclocross is THE 'road' bike thing to do if you want to race bikes that way. I feel it's pretty safe.

Time trial? Yeah, most here are still open road so not any safer than a solo training ride is. Also, downhill on the TT bike I'll hit 40's mph. There's no way to say that is safe in anyway IMHO. Despite the improvement from not being in a rabid bunch of Cat 5 roadies.

So, my ultimate vote is for slower/muddier cyclocross races. I think the fastest avg speed for a 30min race was like 14mph. That was good for almost a top 10 despite a little slide out mid-race I had and almost vomiting mid-race. The single-speed division is really more "fun" and super friendly and friendly on the wallet bike wise.

So, my #1 would be single-speed cyclocross racing.
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Old 04-20-21, 09:52 AM
  #60  
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Originally Posted by burnthesheep
T
So, my ultimate vote is for slower/muddier cyclocross races. That was good for almost a top 10 despite a little slide out mid-race I had and almost vomiting mid-race.
Almost? Clearly you aren't riding hard enough.
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Old 04-20-21, 10:01 AM
  #61  
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Individual pursuit at a velodrome has to be the safest outdoor form of outdoor racing.
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Old 04-20-21, 10:35 AM
  #62  
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Originally Posted by DeathCurse7
Hey so I want to get into racing and I did my first crit race and crashed at 30 mph luckily it was not to bad just a sore wrist and road rash. I really enjoy endurance sports and don't want to have a bad accident and be on a wheelchair for the rest of my life. So I was wondering what is the safest discipline in cycling? (Mountain biking, cycle cross, road racing, etc)
I talked to the local ambulance barn some years ago. They said they were making daily runs to the nearby mountain bike trails. No races, just newbs and dweebs riding into trees or just falling down and tearing shoulder muscles or breaking collar bones. Mostly first time crashers who panic and call 911.

By far the most dangerous discipline is riding or training on the roads by yourself. National death rates for bicyclists out number race deaths by 1000x. Deaths in organized races are pretty rare.

Injuries in races. I worked as a ref for 30 years. I scraped up countless falls, sat on some and had to stop races to let the ambulances get the victims out. You get all kinds. Potential for any injury are high in most disciplines but its the serious injuries to worry about. Riding into a parking meter or concrete planter at the crit course is usually worse than a pile up. Yet, most crashes are not all that serious despite what spectators, ambulance drivers or newbie racers think. I have yet to see any really serious injury in cx. The rest (road, crit, track, mtb, tt), yep. In one road race a guy knocked out for 10 minutes, when he came to he insisted he could catch the peloton. The golfball size lump on his head said, no way are you moving until the EMS gets here. Another crashed in a crit, decided to drive himself home. Woke up at 3 am coughing blood, wife took him to the hospital. Had a few broken ribs and a punctured lung. Meh. Tough guy, eh? Another broke his pelvis in a crit, decided to drive himself home. After 50 miles of driving he stopped by a hospital and got career ending treatment from a clueless resident covering the holiday weekend shift. Another 30 miles and he would have gotten expert care and been back on the bike in a few months. At one cx I organized, a junior (minor) crash and broke his collarbone before the race, before signing up. No release. His older team mates made him wait for the race to conclude before they would drive him the 2 hours back home. One of my training buddies broke his collar bone 7 times that I know of. He was more pissed about having to take some time off the bike. My sister in law rode off the edge of the pavement, tried to steer back on and crashed, broke her collarbone and I've been hearing about it for 20 years why she won't ride a bike again. My mom turned 90 this year. Still riding! 87 years so far! She learned to ride a bike on real gravel roads. yeah. She crashes about once a year. She has so much experience falling off her bike she knows how to avoid getting seriously hurt. 3 trips to the emergency room in the past 15 years. Two of those hauled in by panicky friends or relatives. Everyone has their own tolerances for pain and adventure and excitement.
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Old 04-20-21, 11:36 AM
  #63  
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BMX F1...Oh wait it doesn't exist anymore because it was too boring.
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Old 04-20-21, 11:36 AM
  #64  
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Not all crits are dangerous. I watched a Strider crit one day that seemed pretty safe.
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Old 04-20-21, 02:17 PM
  #65  
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Originally Posted by tomato coupe
Not all crits are dangerous. I watched a Strider crit one day that seemed pretty safe.
Just for kids or did they have an adult version? How about a antique category for the original strider. 200 pounds of iron and wood and no brakes.
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Old 04-20-21, 02:51 PM
  #66  
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Originally Posted by rsbob
Individual pursuit at a velodrome has to be the safest outdoor form of outdoor racing.
^This^. The Kilo and 500 for older folks is the same. The 200 and it's end result the Match Sprint aren't too bad. Team Sprint is great. Stay away from my favorite, the Keirin.
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Old 04-20-21, 04:51 PM
  #67  
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You can suffer very serious injury in cyclocross even if the speeds are not high and the ground is generally soft. Too easy to simply break your neck or punch your guts by handlebars or hitting a tree head on, countless possibilities.

One way to prevent accidents happening by one's own fault is not to ride past some limit when you become careless from being too tired out. Then it is like being drunk, attention span and situation awareness goes down and that's when accidents happen.

Experience also helps to prevent being in accidents since it enables you to keep cool head in difficult situations like those road mass sprints. That is a good advice but you need to stay in one piece to eventually get it, the experience I mean, no easy feat.

Last edited by vane171; 04-20-21 at 04:56 PM.
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Old 04-20-21, 06:40 PM
  #68  
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Try a Madison event on the track. You're only racing half the race. So your risk of crashing is reduced 50%. And remember, NO exchanges in the last 200 meters.
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Old 04-20-21, 07:45 PM
  #69  
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Originally Posted by rickpaulos
Almost? Clearly you aren't riding hard enough.
Not during, I held it. I did after the race. Head cold and hard work. That junk went to the belly during the race. Wanted out afterwards. Found a tree to hide behind.
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Old 04-20-21, 07:55 PM
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Originally Posted by big chainring
Try a Madison event on the track. You're only racing half the race. So your risk of crashing is reduced 50%. And remember, NO exchanges in the last 200 meters.
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Old 04-20-21, 07:56 PM
  #71  
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Zwift
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Old 04-20-21, 09:33 PM
  #72  
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Gran Fondos. Most riders just treat them like leisurely century rides, but they are timed.
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Old 04-21-21, 05:56 AM
  #73  
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Originally Posted by DeathCurse7
Hey so I want to get into racing and I did my first crit race and crashed at 30 mph luckily it was not to bad just a sore wrist and road rash. I really enjoy endurance sports and don't want to have a bad accident and be on a wheelchair for the rest of my life. So I was wondering what is the safest discipline in cycling? (Mountain biking, cycle cross, road racing, etc)
I think the first year I raced I crashed in one out of three races. But I was learning. Second year only crashed a couple times. After that it was rare to go down. Its a learning curve. And when you figure it out you'll be a darn good bike handler and racer. Of course age is a factor too. At 15 yrs old you crash and pop right back up.
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Old 04-21-21, 06:05 AM
  #74  
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This sound super lame, but I came across a random Ebay find a while ago........Keirin armor. Apparently for track racing Keirin it is almost like cycling padding for track racers.

Typically, we have some early season crits and road races. Given how cold it is you could wear it with no aero penalty at all. Nobody would likely even notice it.

My thing with some of the road stuff is after my road crash, I'd like to see an integrated face hoop on race helmets. It protected my noggin, but my face was hamburger. A company was working on one, but probably since it isn't by a major maker of helmets has languished.

I call this "vaporware", basically a design project and nothing more.
https://bikerumor.com/2019/02/18/ven...ng-protection/
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Old 04-21-21, 06:08 AM
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Originally Posted by HarborBandS
Gran Fondos. Most riders just treat them like leisurely century rides, but they are timed.
Also, to make them safer around here.....some of them now only time segments UP a few climbs where they total your efforts. In between you have a "max" amount of time to get to each segment start to get in under the overall time limit.

That way you don't wind up with a multi category impromptu 100mi rolling road race of crazies.
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