An overview of track racing

The women's points race in Sydney (Image credit: John Veage)

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Velodromes can range from less than 200 metres (with very steep banking) to over 450 metres on outdoor, concrete tracks. However, Olympic standard velodromes need to be 250 metres in length, completely covered, and made of wood. Wooden velodromes need to be hard, straight and hold their shapes as they age. For this reason, most are built from Baltic Pine which often comes from a plantation in Finland that has supplied virtually every recently built velodrome. A 250 metre track has 60km of 40mm x 40mm x 6m planks and is held together by 360,000 nails.

The area infield of the track accommodates team support staff such as coaches, managers, mechanics, and masseurs; the press; officials and timing and in the case of the track at Atlanta, event office space. Offices are usually underground, but the Atlanta track was temporary so no no underground facilities were dug. The track was purchased by the Quebec governement in 2000 and is now a part of the Bromont Canadian Cycling Traning Center.

Riders are firmly attached to the bikes using step-in pedal systems, or standard pedals with two sets of straps. It's vital that riders can't accidentally pull out of the pedals, and that power transfer be as efficient as possible, so riders use shoes with extremely stiff soles. Over the years many pedal and shoe systems have been tried, including ones that build the pedal axle and bearings into the sole, so the rider has to be laced into the bike.

Track racing is aggressive and crashes are common, but rarely serious. One of the worst in recent Australian racing was Craig Milton's now legendary spill in Launceston in 1985. Milton went down when a tyre blew out on him, and as he landed his pedal dug up a splinter of the then-new track surface. A 33cm long, 1cm wide spike entered his torso just under the armpit, puncturing his lung and stopping 1cm from his heart. The spike had to be broken off the track surface so Milton could be removed and he spent 8 hours under the knife as surgeons pulled bits of wood out of the wound. Milton got back on the bike a week later to win the Australian 10 mile and team pursuit championships. His effort in the team pursuit tore open the stitches and he finished the event with his blue NSW track squad strip dyed red, and had to immediately return to hospital. The spike is on display in his bike shop in the Sydney suburb of Cronulla.

Track racers need excellent fitness, usually expressed as a high VO2 Max measurement which indicates the rider's ability to use oxygen efficiently. Sprinters need lots of 'fast-twitch' muscle fibres, and one coach was famous for refusing to even look at riders who can't jump to reach a point a certain distance above them. The hugely-muscled anaerobic animals that infested sprinting in the 80s are less common now, though, because sprinters typically have to do slightly longer events as well, and so cannot afford the extra mass that comes from training specifically to go like a nutter over 200m.

Traditionally held over 1000m, this event captures the essence of track cycling, although it is the most mysterious. Although it is normally a one-on-one event, earlier rounds can feature three or more cyclists on the track at the same time. One rider is designated to lead for the first lap (usually by a coin toss), and can not relinquish it unless those behind take it from him/her. The competitors typically eye each other off for the first 6-700 metres, trying to maneuver each other into an unfavourable position, before launching an explosive sprint for the last 200 metres, which is the only part of the event that is timed. The first across the line wins the race.

A three man time trial held over three laps of the velodrome, with teams starting on opposite sides of the track. After the end of each lap, the leading rider pulls off completely, leaving the next to fight the wind. Therefore, the first rider has to do one laps, the second, two laps, and the last rider three laps. Hence, rider number three typically has the best endurance: A good kilometre time trial rider e.g. Arnaud Tournant or Shane Kelly is chosen for this position.

It is similar to the match sprint, but features 6-8 riders on the track. A derny motorbike paces the riders from 25 km/h up to 45 km/h for the first few laps. During this time, riders jostle each other for the best position and this is often the roughest part of the event. With two and a half laps to go, the derny bike pulls off and the sprint is on. Team tactics are important here, as the leadout is often quite long. If one team can get two of their riders in the final, then they are at a distinct advantage.

Held over 4000 metres for elite men and 3000 metres for elite women (shorter for masters riders), this is considered an "endurance" track event, although the speeds are still extremely high. Two riders start on opposite sides of the track and try to set the fastest time over the allotted distance. Normally, a qualifying time trial is ridden that determines who is eligible for the semi finals and finals. The fastest ride is often produced here, as in the finals, the only important criterion is to beat your opponent. If one rider catches the other, i.e. puts half a lap into them, then the race is over.

An explosive start is not critical (but it's handy to have), however the ability to ride at a consistently high speed is far more important. Many riders who go out too hard can look to be well up on their opponent, only to fade in the last 1000 metres. This has typically the greatest "cross-over" to the road. i.e. good pursuiters make good road riders and vice versa. Stuart O'Grady, Vjatcheslav Ekimov, and Chris Boardman are a few examples of top pursuiters who have had successful road careers.

This race is named after Madison Square Garden in New York where the event was first held (also called "Americaine" in French. Two man teams contest the event, which is typically 50-60 kilometres. After a mass start where all riders are on the track, only one rider from each team is allowed in the race at a given time, meaning that teams must take it in turn each lap (or more) to have a rider in the race. Changeovers are quite dangerous, but impressive to watch when done well - one rider circles around waiting for his teammate, who joins hands and imparts his momentum to the slower rider.

This is a solo event, scored similarly to the madison and raced by both men and women. Again, a rider scores points in intermediate bonus sprints every 10th lap (5, 3, 2, 1) with double points usually awarded on the last lap. If a rider can lap the field, then they get 20 points, which can be enough to secure the win - but not always. If a rider drops back a lap, they will have 20 points deducted from their total, so you sometimes see riders with negative scores.

One track event stands outside and above typical track events: the hour record. This is a simple test of ability to cover distance in 60 minutes and both UCI and Absolute records are currently held by Brit Chris Boardman. In 1996, Boardman rode 56.375 kilometres around Manchester velodrome using the now outlawed "superman position". In October 2000, he rode 49.441 kilometres on a UCI standardised bike: a steel tubed triangular frame with spoked wheels and no aero helmet.

Traditionally, only great riders at the peak of their careers attempted the hour record. Eddy Merckx' 1972 record stood for 12 years until being broken in 1984 by Francesco Moser: both were international superstars at the height of their powers. This all changed in 1993 when Graeme Obree, an unemployed Scotsmam riding a home-made bike in a bizarre, folded-up riding position added 400m to Moser's record. Over the next three years the record fell six times. Boardman's record was set in the radical, highly aerodynamic 'Superman' position, invented by Obree when his tucked position was banned. The 'Superman' position was later banned also.