Starting Out On The Track

Now the evenings are drawing in and it’s getting too cold and dark to enjoy your cycling out on the open roads, if you’ve still got any competitive urges in you give track racing a go! And with the current Franko Bianco £899 carbon track bike with free carbon wheels offer now is the time to do it...

To start the ball rolling you’ll need a fixed gear bike with no brakes (don’t worry … no-one else will have any either!). This works surprisingly well as everyone’s in the same boat, going the same way round the track with very little likelihood (hopefully none) that anyone is going to pull out in front of you. You can either mix ‘n’ match something together from the spares laying around your garage or workshop, or pick up a brand new track specific bike for as little as £799.

Click here to order the Franko Bianco track bike with FREE carbon wheels for only £899

Track bikes can be as cheap and cheerful, or as exotic and expensive, as you like. Take a look at Franko’s Bianco … a touch of class at a bargain price (with free Pro Carbon track wheels for a limited period only- and it doesn't have to be white if you don't want it to be!). Track bikes are relatively simple to put together and easy to maintain as there aren’t as many things to go wrong as on a road bike … no gears or brakes for starters! Choice of gearing is quite critical though as once racing is underway you don’t want to find yourself either under or over-geared. Something in the region of 48 or 49 chainring plus an assortment of sprockets ranging from 19 to 14 should provide a wide enough range to suit the novice schoolboy through to the mature seasoned racer.

Britain's indoor tracks at Manchester, Newport (South Wales) and Calshot (near Southampton) all have regular public beginner or ‘taster’ sessions where newcomers are taken through the necessary skills by a trained coach. These are fun, cheap and easy for virtually anyone over the age of 12 to take part in. They teach you the basic skills needed to ride banked tracks in the company of others. Once you’ve been shown the ropes and received the necessary track skills accreditation, you can start racing.

During the winter, indoor tracks are the only option, but in the summer Britain's many outdoor tracks come into their own and most have resident clubs, which are usually happy to help you get into the sport. There’s far less red-tape involved in racing on outdoor tracks although an element of pre-race induction is still required – then it’s just turn up with your track bike, sign on, pay the entry fee and enjoy! There’s also a far greater choice of venue for outdoor racing. Herne Hill, Welwyn, Reading, Scunthorpe, Newcastle Under Lyme, Edinburgh, Dundee and Wolverhampton all have open air banked velodromes where weekly track leagues are run (during the summer) for all shapes, sizes, ages and abilities which makes it a very sociable side of our sport. When you’re not actually taking part in the racing, you can spectate in the stands or mingle with like-minded individuals in the track centre. Most enjoyable!

The track racing itself comprises a number of different disciplines. These range from the more ‘individual’ aspects like pursuiting (that’s where you start on the opposite side of the track to your competitor and try to catch him / her) to bunched racing which requires quick thinking and an ability to ride at a pace dictated by others. That makes it particularly challenging and physically rewarding in that it helps to develop speed and ‘souplesse’ as well as improving your bike handling skills.

Track racing provides an excellent means of maintaining fitness for roadmen and time triallists throughout the winter – it is also an aspect of the sport in its own right. Britain is a leading nation in track cycling and if you’ve got the talent, it will most probably be spotted. Who knows where that could lead? Bradley Marc Wiggins made his name on the track and is now a leading Tour de France General Classification contender. Give it a go and you too could end up spending your summer holidays riding round France … just like Bradley.

Click here to order the Franko Bianco track bike with FREE carbon wheels for only £899

5 October 2011