Bicycle racing can be a tough sport. It is common knowledge that the longer bike races are very physically demanding, but even if you race over the shorter distances you will still be faced with the strains on the body from training. For this reason the mental aspect of cycling is very important, as focus and willpower become valuable weapons in the racers armoury. Cycling is one sport where physical ability will only get you so far, which keeps the playing field fairly even and allows the most dedicated riders to climb the ranks in the racing world. So what are the weapons that a cyclist can use to forge their way to the top?
Patience - Possibly the greatest skill a cyclist can develop. In most other sports, athletes can achieve success at a very young age. How often do we see school children winning tennis grand-slam titles, 14 year old swimmers taking home Olympic gold medals, teenage football and basketball players becoming instant stars. Cycling is not like this, and it often takes riders until their mid-twenties to reach the pinnacle in many cycling disciplines. Patience is important on this front where a rider should not expect instant success, and also important to have as they will experience many ups and downs in their cycling career. So never give up and keep persisting, because a quitter is guaranteed to win nothing.
Goal Setting - To be successful, a cyclist must keep one eye on the bigger picture, and know what they want to achieve in their cycling career. To reach a certain level in cycling performance, you must establish what it will take to get there, and devise a clear plan to help you reach it. Apart from setting ultimate goals and career objectives, it is also worthwhile to set smaller milestone goals. Achieving milestones is a great way to build momentum and can give you a clearer picture of what you are able to accomplish in the long term, and what goals may be unrealistic. A novice rider can not expect to start cycling and win the Tour de France in their first year, but if they instead focus on more achievable milestones, they can build on them and use this knowledge to learn which areas they need to focus on in training.
Training - Just like the old saying 'practice makes perfect', a cyclist needs to be dedicated to training to reach the pinnacle in bike racing. Some people might note that a five year old knows how to pedal, so how much can training improve your pedaling ability? Well training in cycling is not so much to improve skills, but rather to improve the cyclists physical conditioning. Continuous riding will help to develop the right parts of the body, including the legs and the lungs. If you can pedal faster, harder, and for longer, then you are naturally going to become a better rider and achieve improved race results.
Experience - This is a crucial element for cyclists, as it is the best way to learn tactics and strategies to use within races. Reading books or talking with coaches can only benefit you to a limited degree, while having the ingrained knowledge of what to do and what not to do in certain race situations is invaluable. Although cycling is an individual sport, it is unlike the others in the sense that other competitors can have a major impact on your performance. A runner in a 100m sprint or a marathon will have a fair idea of what time they will run, but in cycling your times in training will be very different from those in a race, as a number of different factors come into play with other riders on the track. This is where experience is extremely valuable, and can help a rider achieve the best result for the circumstances that befall them.
Attitude - Where there are two riders with equal experience and equal ability, it is often their attitudes which set them apart. Having that fierce determination to win the race will help you to get 110% out of your body and stay ahead of the pack. We often hear of runners who are spent and running on heart or running on emotion, and the same can hold true for cyclists. When the legs are tired and there is no juice left in the tank, sheer willpower is what can drag a cyclist across the line in first place. Attitude is also important when things don't go to plan, either during or after a race. Whether it is not giving up during a race, or if you finish in the knowledge that sometimes it is just not your day, it is important to not get discouraged at any stage. If you can remain positive at all times, then that will hold you in good stead during your cycling career.
Apart from these five weapons a cyclist can develop, there are a couple of easier tips which can be achieved immediately. If you are in a car race, you will naturally drive and race in a top performance vehicle, and the same goes for cycling. If you don't have the right racing gear, it puts you at a distinct disadvantage.
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