Circuit Racing at All Saints Academy

Cycle Stars trying out Circuit Racing for the first time.

Opportunities for this type of racing is very limited in Gloucestershire due to the lack of facilities, resulting in most clubs only offering Cyclo Cross as a form of racing for kids.

Circuit racing is the closest you are going to get to track cycling, without the luxury of a velodrome. Coaching can be very similar, except in this instance road bikes are allowed, whereas track cycling requires a fixed wheel bike with no accessories fitted.

The difference of Cyclo Cross to Circuit racing, is that circuit racing is faster and more explosive, and Cyclo Cross is an endurance sport where a high level of skill is required. Many young riders find Cyclo Cross too demanding to begin with which can put kids of racing.

No matter what your ability is circuit racing can be fun and exhilarating. Coaching sessions can be set up to have riders of the same ability racing or a handicap race, where the less able riders get a head start.

The facilities at All Saints Academy have provided an ideal location to coach Circuit Racing and our riders had their first taste of it on Saturday.

It was interesting to see riders that normally struggle at Cyclo Cross, excelling at this discipline, whereas riders who are normally proficient at Cyclo Cross found the adjustment to Circuit Racing as a bit of a shock, due to the high cadence (pedaling action) required and the fast recovery required from continuous short sprints.

We hope to attract more riders to the sssions to try out this new discipline and in the future hopefully Cycle Stars will host their own Go-Ride Race