SoCalCycling.com

hans911 · Joined: 27 May 2007 Posts: 2

Just a question to throw out to the Masters.

What is your opinion on the level of racing say Masters 35+ 4/5 vs straight Elite 4 Category?

Safer, wiser, faster, or similar???

magardiner · Joined: 02 Jun 2007 Posts: 49 Location: San Diego

I've generally found the 35+ 4/5 (and for CBR, 40+4/5) to be hands down more enjoyable, safer and often (but not always) faster than the straight Cat 4 races. The main reason is the Juniors who tend to populate the Cat 4 fields. You know the ones: quads of steel, brains of mush.

MAG

PS That is not meant as a swipe at ALL Juniors. There are more than a few who race in Cats 4 and 5 and do so safely as well as with strength. Unfortunately, they seem to be the exception.

mgrhammer · Joined: 16 Jul 2007 Posts: 4 Location: Altadena

Not too sure what you mean by "Elite" 4. The Cat 4s that race today are quite different then 25yrs. ago when I first started racing. Back then there were no Cat 5's and most of us were on a team that had a developmental program. Another thing to bear in mind the race format was totally different compared to now. First off there were no timed races...they were all "laps" instead of 35mins. The 4's were generally 25 laps for a crit. Riders were stronger and smarter as they had the proper training and instruction. Additionally, there were a ton more road races.

In order to move up you had to place top 6 in 6 races....or top 3 in 3 races. There was none of this moving up by the "number" of races you did as it is today...you actually had to perform to move up. I found that the 30+ 4/5 are a little safer but not by much. Train hard and race masters if you really want to learn about "racing"...and how to win races.

Good luck!