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in Germany]] Road bicycle racing is a popular Bicycle Racing Sport held on Road s (following the Geography of the area), using Racing Bicycle s. The term 'road racing' is usually applied to massed-start events where competing riders start simultaneously (unless riding a handicap event) with the winner being the first to cross the line at the end of the specified course ( Individual and Team Time Trial s are another form of cycle racing on roads). Road racing is popular all over the world, but especially in Europe . The most competitive and devoted countries are generally thought to be Belgium , France , Germany , Italy , Luxembourg , the Netherlands , Spain and Switzerland , although the sport is popular also in Australia , Russia , and the United States . Of course, many other countries without as strong a fandom ( Kazakhstan , for example) have accomplished professional Cyclists and/or cycling teams. Road racing that bears a resemblance to today's races has a history that stretches back to the early 20th century. The sport was hugely popular in the western European countries of France, Spain, Belgium, and Italy. Although road conditions were harsher, races often incredibly long, and riders under paid, the modern sport is a direct descendant of those early days. Some of Europe's earliest road bicycle races remain among the sport's marquee events. These early trailblazing races include the Paris-Roubaix (est. 1896), the Tour Du France (est. 1903), the Giro D'Italia (est. 1909), the Ronde Van Vlaanderen (est. 1913) and the Vuelta A España (est. 1935). They have provided a template for other races to follow around the world. While the sport has spread throughout the world, these historic races remain the most prestigious for a cyclist to win (or even take part in). TACTICS Though the objective of a race is quite simple, to be the first rider to cross the line, a number of tactics are employed. They are based on the benefit of riding in the slipstream of another rider and thus making it possible to save a considerable amount of energy. A group that breaks away from the main field, bunch or Peloton , has more space and freedom and can therefore be at an advantage in certain situations. A small group of riders can work together smoothly an effciently to maintain a higher speed than the peloton, where the remaining riders may not be as motivated or organized to chase effectively. Usually a rider or group of riders will try to break from the peloton by attacking and riding ahead to reduce the number of riders competing for the win. If the break doesn't succeed, and the body of cyclists comes back together, the winner will often be a Sprinter . Teamwork between riders (both pre-arranged and ad-hoc) is important in many aspects: to prevent a break from getting away, helping riders in a break get clear of the bunch, and sometimes in delivering a sprinter to the front of the field. Races often feature difficult sections such as tough climbs, fast descents, and sometimes technical surfaces (such as the cobbled ''pave'' used in the Paris-Roubaix race) to make the course more ''selective''. Stronger riders will be able to drop weaker riders during such sections to reduce the number of direct competitors able to take the win. In order to be successful, riders must develop excellent bike handling skills in order to be able ride at hign speeds in close quarters with other riders. Individual riders can approach speeds of 110 km/h while descending winding mountain roads and may reach speeds of 60-80 km/h during the final sprint to the finish line. In more organized races there is a bus (the Broom Waggon ) that follows the race, picking up stragglers. In all road racing, Drafting is a very important concept whereby one rider can save a lot of effort by closely following the rider in front in order to stay in his Slipstream . Riding in a peloton can save as much as 35% of the energy employed in forward motion when compared to riding in the wind. . Some teams will designate a leader, while the rest of the team is charged with keeping that rider out of the wind and in a good position until a critical section of the race.. This can be used as a strength or a weakness by competitors; riders can cooperate and draft each other to ride at high speed (a paceline), or one rider can '''sit''' on a competitor's wheel, forcing him to do a greater share of the work to maintain the pace and potentially tiring earlier. Drafting may not be employed in a time trial, unless it is a team time trial. ROAD RACE TYPES
A stage race can also be a series of road races and Individual Time Trial s (some events include Team Time Trial s). The stage winner is the first person to cross the finish line that day or the time trial rider (or team) with the lowest time on the course. The overall winner of a stage race is the rider who takes the lowest aggregate time to complete all stages. TYPES OF RIDERS The main specialities in road bicycle racing are: FAMOUS BICYCLE RACES The Grand Tours The most famous cycling race is the Tour De France , a multi-stage tour over three weeks nominally through France , traditionally ending in Paris . Similar long multi-stage tours are held in Italy (the Giro D'Italia ) and Spain (the Vuelta A España ). These three races make up the " Grand Tours ". UCI ProTour events Professional racing is governed by the Union Cycliste Internationale . In 2005 it instituted the UCI ProTour to replace the UCI Road World Cup series. While the World Cup contained only one-day races, the ProTour includes the Grand Tours and other large stage races such as Tour De Suisse , Paris-Nice and the Critérium De Dauphiné Libéré . The former ( Italy ), Ronde Van Vlaanderen ( Belgium ), Paris-Roubaix ( France ), Liège-Bastogne-Liège ( Belgium ) and Amstel Gold Race ( Netherlands ) in the spring, and Clásica De San Sebastián ( Spain ), HEW Cyclassics ( Germany ), Züri-Metzgete ( Switzerland ), Paris-Tours ( France ) and Giro Di Lombardia ( Italy ) in the autumn season. UCI Also holds races in the United States, like the Nationals Race in 7 Springs, Pennsylvania. Other notable races Philadelphia International Championship , the highest ranked single-day race in all of North and South America. The Tour of California: The longest North American race (10 stages) The Tour of Georgia The Race Across America , or RAAM is an ultra Marathon road race. It is a single stage race without designated rest periods about or 4,830 kilometers long over 9 days with cyclists racing approximately 22 hours a day. For a more extensive list see: List Of Important Cycling Events BICYCLE CHAMPIONSHIPS CALENDAR SEE ALSO |
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