[Sportsandrec] What is a velodrome?

[Ron & the bears]

Hi John,

A velodrome is an oval track for  bicycles. Think of your middle school 
track, mine was 220 yards. Most velodromes are 250 meters for the innermost 
lane. They also come in 200, 333, and 400 meter variations. They are usually 
made of concrete or wood.

The cool thing about a velodrome is that the turns are banked, like a NASCAR 
track. So, as you go to the outer lanes, you are actually moving higher up 
off the infield. It seems to me that you are about 1 story to a story and a 
half off the ground at the rail, the outermost lane. Once I was riding at 
the rail with my pilot. Another rider passed under us. He was in the next 
lane over, or perhaps, two. His helmet was lower than our tires.

The banking in the turns ranges from maybe 28 degrees to maybe 48 degrees? 
My first walk around a velodrome, I tried to walk radially from the middle 
of one of the turns, up the embankment. I was wearing a regular pair of Nike 
cross-trainers. I could barely get enough traction to move up. It is that 
steep. That banking was only about 38 degrees. The steepest track I raced on 
was maybe 48 degrees. It is scary to think about, but once you get 
acclimated, it actually feels real comfortable at speed. At 35 mph, the 
banking actually helps you get through the turn. Remember, when you turn a 
bicycle, you are leaning over anyway. It is like riding around the far side 
of your bath tub. With the banking, you have to maintain about 15 mph to 
prevent the bike from losing traction. If this happens,  the bike will slide 
out from underneath you, toward the bottom of the track. Remember the Banana 
Splits' opening theme?

Because of the steep angles of the turns, even the straight-aways are 
pitched to better transition into the steeper corners. As you are riding 
down the straights, you can actually feel the bike slow as you climb up to 
the banking. Coming out of the turn, carrying enough speed, you can feel the 
bike drop down and accelerate underneath you. It is a rush to haul freight 
around the velodrome. The spectators are right there, too.

Now, let me tell you a few more minor details about track racing. Oh, by the 
way, the tandems are no different than any other bike out there. This is the 
real deal, plain and simple! First of all, the bikes have no brakes. They 
are actually illegal! Remember, this is a closed course, with no dogs, cars, 
or intersections. No one out there with you has brakes either, so the 
playing field is level. You only get one gear, with no shifting on the 
track. It is  a bicycle in its simplest and purest form. There is a gear on 
your crank, and one on the rear wheel. That is it! Oh yeah, there is also no 
coasting. If that bike is moving, your feet are turning. So, if you want to 
slow down the bike, you have to try to resist the cranks to slow down. It is 
like the tricycle you rode as a kid. If you pedal forward, you go forward, 
if you pedal backwards, you will move in reverse.

Today, I did a road ride on a Cannondale tandem. We rode about 65 miles in 
four hours. It was 98 degrees when we finished. We had 120 psi of air in our 
tires, which measure about 1 inch wide. On the track, you are riding tires 
that are a little bit skinnier, with about 160 psi or more. These tires glue 
onto the rim as well. They are not normal road tires that mount to the rim 
with a hook and bead. These tires can actually be safer when they lose air, 
because they usually stay glued to the rim and prevent you from slipping 
down the embankment. Remember, you can be up there, pretty high.

One more barbaric thing about riding a track tandem, your feet are locked 
into the pedals and then, strapped down, twice over for good measure. This, 
too is for safety and performance. Since you are riding, or racing shorter 
distances on the track, your efforts on the pedals are much more intense. It 
is almost like weight lifting on the bike. You do not want to come out of 
the pedals at 40 mph and the pedals not wanting to stop and coast underneath 
you.

Now, with all that craziness out of the way, once you get used to riding the 
track, it is a lot of fun. I have two reports of my experiences at the camp 
and a national championship that I can post, or share with you individually 
if desired.

Anyone want to try it? The camps are first class all the way. It changed my 
life!

Best,

Ron & the Dad, can we go out to the velodrome, soon? bears
Austin, TX

John asked, "What is a velodrome? 



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