Bicycle racing

Bicycle racing has been around since the birth of the first bicycle. It is not so important who invented this wonderful means of transport - the great Leonardo, the simple Russian peasant Artamonov or the German von Dres, today cycling and bicycle games have become one of the most popular and sought-after spectacles.

The first bicycle races were recorded by inquisitive journalists at the end of the 19th century. The year 1869 was marked by the Paris-Rouen bicycle race, where a representative of Foggy Albion won, reaching a speed of 11 kilometers per hour. European racers loved road competitions, and the English, due to the terrible state of the roads, preferred track bicycle races at that time. Since 1896, the rapidly developing sport was included in the Olympic Games program.

Later, bicycle races began to last for several days and the very first, significant multi-day race was the 1200-kilometer race - Paris-Brest-Paris, which started in 1891. It did not provide for stages, each participant independently determined his own speed in pursuit of the coveted prize. Twelve years later, a truly grand race was born, which is now one of the most prestigious in cycling - the Grand Tour, called the "Tour de France". Modern bicycle races have various options, types, disciplines, including extreme ones. The rules and regulations determining the process of bicycle racing were developed in 1900, when athletes united in an organization - the International Cycling Union, later the UCI created several more divisions regulating competitions between amateurs and professionals in cycling.

Bicycle racing, categories, types

Road cycling races, of which there are quite a lot today, but the most popular are cycling races in the form of individual races. An individual cycling race is held as follows: each cyclist starts the race separately, usually a minute after the next one. The goal of the cycling race is to cover a certain distance as quickly as possible or to cover as much distance as possible in a fixed period of time. The distance can be from 16 kilometers to 160 kilometers, and the usual fixed time for such competitions fits between 12 hours and a day.

There are road cycling races where the start is given to all riders or teams at the same time, if the road race is supposed to be a team competition. "Criterium" is a type of bicycle race in which a fairly short circular section of the highway is set, usually no more than five kilometers, located within the city limits. The athletes' task is to be the first to reach the finish line, having ridden a certain number of laps. There is also a type of race on an open highway or a longer circular cycle. Ring cycling races last no more than one day.

Longer, multi-day road cycling races are stage competitions on open, long roads, the task of the athletes is to pass all the stages in the minimum time, regardless of the championship at each stage. The most prestigious world competition of this type is the international race Tour de France, which involves covering about 5,000 kilometers (from 4,000 to 4,800) on the roads of France and other, neighboring countries. Every year, the organizers of the tour change the route, including new roads and mountain passes. The cyclist who becomes the happy owner of the "yellow jersey" proudly bears the title of the best, fastest, most enduring cyclist in the world for a whole year.

Road cycling also involves endurance competitions, where racers are given a very long, difficult route that they must overcome with virtually no stops or rest, with races continuing literally around the clock.

Road cycling is also included in the multi-sport competition triathlon, where athletes compete for victory not only on bicycles, but also in swimming and running.

Track cycling is a competition on steep turns, created artificially (at velodromes) or built in the open air. A track is an oval closed track with a given slope (42 degrees) on the turns, with a concrete or wooden surface. The length of the track is on average 333 meters, but in the air it can reach 500 meters.

Handicap cycling is a mass start competition that determines athletes' previous achievements in terms of speed, endurance and skill.

Track sprints are multi-lap (up to three) races where victory is literally snatched from the opponent in the last 200 meters. Sprints are one of the oldest competitions, for which cyclists are carefully selected through qualifying races.

Scratch track racing is a group cycling competition where many participants start at the same time. The one who is only one lap behind is immediately eliminated from the competition, the one who is ahead of all competitors by one lap, that is, breaks ahead, is determined as the winner, and the race is considered finished.

The Japanese have come up with an original type of track cycling – keirin, when the participants who start at the same time rush after the “derni” – a motorcyclist. Almost to the very finish (2.5 laps) the athletes must move after the motorcycle without overtaking it. As soon as the “derni” leaves the track, the athletes begin to compete for victory among themselves. Of course, the winner is the one who reaches the finish line first.

Track bike races can be in the form of general races over a fairly short distance, there are pursuit races, more similar to bike games, bike races for speed, time and over a medium distance.

Off-road cycling races are European cyclocross races up to 25 kilometers in a circle with overcoming obstacles - ditches, fallen trees, fords, barriers, river beds and streams. Cyclocross races are held in the autumn-winter period, apparently to add additional difficulties in the form of weather conditions. Cyclists start at the same time, during the journey they can even run or walk next to the bike, they also have assistants. Such a competition, game and bikes must match each other, so the vehicle is equipped with wide special tires and has strong wheel rims. In the USA, off-road cycling races are held with the most difficult obstacles, sometimes bordering on extreme.

There are also more extreme bicycle races, among which we can name mountain bikes - races on special mountain bikes, dirt jumping - jumping over double-humped ramps, freeride, biker cross, dual, bicycle motocross, racing, street and many other interesting cycling disciplines.

Bicycle Games

Obviously, racing and independent training were not enough for cycling fans, so starting from the end of the 19th century, bicycle games appeared. Bicycle games do not exclude, since the process of driving a two-wheeled vehicle itself resembles a kind of game with your own coordination and endurance. Bicycle games are a team competition aimed, like any other competition, at getting the coveted prize.

Bike Polo - Bike Polo or bicycle polo

This is the most famous and "ancient" game, which involves replacing horses with bicycles. Bike Polo finally formed as an independent type by 1891 thanks to the efforts of the Irish fan of cycling - Richard Macredy. The enterprising cyclist even managed to get a personal patent for his "invention", originally called Cycle Polo. Since 1908, when bicycle games were included in the program of Olympic competitions, up until the period of World War II, Cycle Polo was one of the most popular types of competitions in Europe and the USA. The union of "bicycle games" received a second birth in the 80s of the last century in India, and then in America. Today, bicycle games are very different from the competitions of past periods, and this is what happened with Bike Polo, which was renamed Urban Cycle Polo. For a modern game, a bicycle must be equipped with protective discs on the wheel spokes, an athlete needs an attribute in the form of a bat, as well as a ball or a puck, which must actually be scored into the opponent's goal. The rapid growth of Urban Cycle Polo popularity has not left indifferent members of the International Cycling Association, who have recognized the cycling game as official and included it in the list of their planned annual events. Despite the official recognition, Bike Polo in each region has its own nuances and rules regarding the number of team members, the duration of the game. There are also uniform rules, which are as follows:

• The athlete has no right to touch the surface, the ground with his feet, except in cases when it is necessary to touch the bat to a specially designated area in the middle of the playing field. A fine is imposed for violation.
• The ball must be hit only with the narrow side of the bat, otherwise the hit or goal will not count.
• The team that scored the goal must wait until the opponents cross the halfway line, or the ball crosses the halfway line. Until the Rubicon is crossed by the ball or the opponents, the athletes who scored the goal must remain within their own zone.

Bike Polo continues to gain popularity as a fun, exciting game that requires participants to masterfully handle a bike, think strategically, and have quick, agile thinking and reaction.

Cycleball – or bicycle ball

This combination of "games and bicycles" is reminiscent of football, of course, with its own unique nuances, because all players kick the ball into the opponent's goal not with their feet, but with the help of a bicycle wheel. Bicycle ball is played both indoors and outdoors, but the indoor game is the most popular. A team can consist of only two players, the maximum number of participants in one group is six people. Bicycle ball is the brainchild of American cyclists, which was born almost at the same time as bicycle polo. According to legend, while riding a bike, a certain Kaufman met an aggressive dog that threw itself under his wheels. The virtuoso of cycling allegedly hooked the little dog with a wheel and, without injuring the vicious animal, threw it aside. This is how the idea of manipulating the ball with a bicycle wheel appeared. In 1883, the resourceful Kaufman, in partnership with his friend Ferley, surprised the public with a paired game of ball on bicycles. Veloball was loved by Americans, then the baton was picked up by European cycling enthusiasts. Modern games use bicycles even more surprisingly, there is even ice veloball, which, however, is not as widespread as Cycleball. Veloball is divided into the following types:

• Bicycle games with 4 players - two teams of two participants. Field size 11 by 14 meters.
• Veloball is a game played by 10 people, two teams of five cyclists. The size of the field corresponds to the size of a handball field.
• Veloball is a game played between two teams of six players each. The game is played with a soccer ball on a large open field.

The players' task is similar to the goal of any team game involving manipulation of the ball - to score as many goals as possible. The ball is scored using the front wheel, but you can also use your head or body. Touching the ball with your hands or feet is not allowed, the attack of the participant scoring the ball has strict restrictions, as well as various force resistances (running over, points). The duration of the game on this type of bicycles is only 14 minutes - two halves of seven minutes. The break is no more than 2-3 minutes, and if no one wins in such a short period, another half is added. In bikeball, a special ball, a prepared area and a bike with a very mobile, manipulative steering wheel are used.

Flash Cross

This is one of the youngest games that are born at the junction of the "bike game", in which the participants need very good athletic training, resourcefulness, and quick reaction. Flash cross is also called a bike quest or photo bike cross due to the fact that a camera is used during the game. The goal of the game is to get to the finish line first while simultaneously completing certain tasks. Before the start, the participants receive a detailed map of the area and a photo task. Athletes must find the captured points in the real area and record their arrival at the point in the photo. The peculiarity of the bike quest is that the photo must be as close as possible to the specified original. The photo must also capture the participant himself with his faithful "friend" - a bicycle. At the finish line, the jury counts the points of the entire team, summing up the achievements of each participant. If all team members photographed a certain place in the task, a minimum score is given, for an individual "find" the score is higher, for very difficult and confusing places in terms of searches the maximum score is given. Flash cross lasts throughout the day and ends at a certain time; lateness is subject to a penalty in the form of deprivation of points earned.

Games and bicycles, bicycle races, bicycle tourism and just bicycle rides are a great way to recharge your batteries, maintain muscle tone, and therefore your health, and get a boost of positive emotions. It is obvious that as long as people are “friends” with bicycles, new types of races and games will appear. There is probably no need to fear the disappearance of cycling in the next century, and the prospects for human development, according to the writer Mark Twain, seem to be quite positive, because he stated the following: “When I see a man on a bicycle, I am not afraid for the future of mankind.”

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