I want to enter a race to see how I compare to other serious cyclists, how do I what level to sign up as?

Question

Sorry for the typo, how do I know what level as a beginning racer I should sign up as? I am 26 and bike atleast 4 times per week.

Answer 1

Road races are sometimes open to beginners (it's not just age that determines the category ... and you will be slotted appropriately), but racing is much more risky that time trials (crashes are common in road races, and even more in criterum races) so if all you want is to know how you stack up, I'd try a "time trial" first.

If you have a local bike club, they may hold regular time trials that are open to anyone.

Typically these are run as 10 mile (or longer) races, where each competitor rides the same course, but starts are staggered (one minute apart is typical.) You aren't allowed to draft and the slowest riders start first. You start and finish time are recorded for you and you can compare your times to all the other riders.

Might not sound like much, but time trials are a really good test. The general rule is if you can stand up at the end and don't feel like throwing up ... you didn't go hard enough.  Many cyclists I know do time trials to keep track of how they are improving by monitoring their personal best time over the same course.

Answer 2

Lowest level they have.  No one would expect a first timer to do more.  That's cat 5 for road.

Answer 3

talk with someone associated with the race. I would start at the lower division and get a feel of your 1st race. Then decide from there. If you're better than those around you you'll win and be more inclined to race more.