[NCNCA] Women's Races

[Dan Connelly]

Sarah Clatterbuck wrote:

> Clinging desperately to the back of a whipping tail
> does not provide me with an opportunity to hone my
> racing skills or assist my team mates.

It does, however, add to fitness, and if you are able to work your way up a bit, integrated power over threshold can be a lot less (ie it's easier to hang).

I think riding with faster riders, if you're not dropped immediately, can be a great way to gain fitness and practices necessary to ride at that lvel.  For example, one might be able to get away with poor pack positioning at a lower category, while in the higher category, there is a strong feedback loop encouraging more active engagement.

This is why the best cat 1 women occasionally race in men's fields.  They're not usually competing for the win (although there are exceptions: Laura Van Guilder won the 1-2 Danville, NJ Crit in 2001).

Dan