Siberian Larch that my local (for the moment) velodrome is made of, gives me wood. It's hard to see from this snap just how steep the banking is. It's a work of art. I went along to suss out if they had a Tomfoolery class. Bottom line is, there's no chance in hell I'll be allowed around on my mystery French rat bike even if I do fixie it - one of the many things I didn't realise about track bikes is that they have shorter cranks so the pedals don't ground out while weaving on pursuits. But they do run 'clinics' when you can rent a real McCoy bike and all the gear (but I am NOT going to wear Lycra). BP
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4 comments:
cool - you should definitely take a clinic!
I went with a buddy to a local velodrome for a clinic over here in CA, USA. Actually an English gent led the session (you guys take the track very seriously in UK). Same deal here: bikes can be rented.
Anyway, riding a track bike on that banking proved to be a real thrill. And don't let the spandex be an obstacle. At least here, we had a few sporting baggies and it wasn't a big deal; everyone's too freaked out about direct drive trains, no brakes and the banking anyway.
The main point is to learn a few important rules about the track for saftey(where to enter, exit, etc).
try it!
Not only do track riders use shorter cranks, but the bike geometries generally have higher bottom brackets, raising the center of rotation of the cranks.
Ben, there's an outdoor velodrom in Zürich. I believe the have free practice sessions once week. check google earth 47deg 24'34"N / 8deg 33' 05"E. or check www.rennbahn-oerlikon.ch. Hope to see you in Amman Valley!
Intelligent beings are suggesting I keep my road bike as a soft-core, free-wheeling, braked vehicle. They may well be right. And who can argue with that when the rental bikes are pukka?
BP
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