I get increasingly peeved off with people claiming that anyone that did not do 75% of the work at the front of the bunch is a wheelsucker (as in a person who only follows other riders wheels and does not do their fair share of work to ensure that the group is able to be in a position to win - not to be confused with the loony tunes type "weel sucker" which is a person of low intelligence prone to being taken advantage of by less than scrupulous characters. But anyway, enough of all that.
What I don’t like is the insinuation that a person who is tactically astute and made good decisions to allow others to do work at key times was in some way undeserving of winning. The commentary on this at times shows how little many "fan's" actually know about cycling. So let’s look at this contentious issue in a little more detail.
Tim Krabbe wrote "the" book about cycling when he wrote "The Rider". It is such an eye wateringly good explanation of cycling that I am actually tearing up a bit as I am writing this. So you should really read this book if you want to understand cycling at a deep level rather than the superficial that seems to be the way we are going. As a taster, he states "cycling is about licking your opponent’s plate clean before you start your own meal". This is a good starting point for further discussion of what is good tactics and what is wheelsucking.
Example 1 - Six riders have broken away with 40 km to go in a race in a club race. The main bunch is chasing furiously behind as 5 of our 6 breakaway riders swap turns off the front. Rider number 6 sits back and refuses to do any work. The other 5 have a decision to make, do they worry themselves with non-worker or do they get their heads down and allow themselves a chance of victory? They decide to just ride and as they approach the finish, with the bunch meters behind, our boy sitting on comes around and easily wins the sprint.
Verdict - His name goes in the paper, but it is a hollow victory and he deserves all the scorn he receives and will most likely be talked about by the old timers as a "sitting on (the Aussie term for wheelsucking) bastard" for the next 20 years no matter what he does from this point on.
Example 2 - In a club race with 15 riders, people start attacking with 10 km to go. Attacks are followed by counter attacks and it’s all very dramatic and exciting. The strong non sprinters know that they have to try and get away from the sprinters and the sprinters know they need to hang in there. With 2km to go, rider A launches a huge attack and gains 20 meters. There is a hesitation in the bunch as riders wait for each other to chase and at this point rider B launches from the back of the bunch and tries to bridge across to rider A on their own. They reach him with 1km to go. Rider A motions for rider B to come around and help work to the finish, but rider B sits impassively on his wheel. Bunch has now got itself organised and is coming fast. Rider A sees this and pushes on to the line. Rider B starts his sprint 200 meters out and manages to easily pass rider A, who is also passed by three riders from the fast finishing bunch in the last 10 meters. They don’t catch rider B however. During the post-race sandwiches rider A complains long and hard about "sitting on bastard" rider B.
Verdict - A cool and smart ride by rider B nets a well deserved victory. A risk needed to be taken, but it was worth it. Rider A is pissed, but the reality is that rider B did exactly what he should have done and after bridging across and connecting with 1k to go, they had no obligation to come to the front as they were getting ready to sprint. 10k to go would have been a very different story.
It is very easy to see any tactical decision as "wheelsucking", but this is overly simplistic. You should only be on the front in cycling when there is a reason to be on the front. Attacking 20 times and then claiming everyone was wheelsucking is just tactical stupidity.
Some good tactical rules of thumb:
Attack once and attack well.
A counter attack is better than the first attack.
Any attack in the last 2km is your last attack so give it everything.
Always attack from behind, the faster you can come past the better.
If you know you are the fastest, then your attack should be with 200 meters to go.
If you know you are not the fastest, then waiting for the last 200 meters is stupid.
Be very clear about how fast you actually are - if you have never won a sprint, then you are not the fastest.
If someone else is likely to chase, then let them go first if you are prepared to take the risk that they won’t.
If you are not prepared to take the risk then react immediately.
Be prepared to lose 10 races for every one you win.
If someone won't work then the last person in the group just keep rolling off the back and constantly make them come around to catch up to the bunch. They will start working pretty quick.
If there is an aggressive and classy rider who attacks and a good sprinter in the group, who is known for not working, let the aggressive rider go - they might repay you the favour down the track. Don’t just keep riding the fastest guy to the front.
Don't give up if the pack is 20 meters behind you with a couple of km to go. No one wants to close the last bit of a break and you can hold an advantage to the end if you keep focussed
The most satisfying way to win a bike race is to ride away on your own. This may happen in one race in your life. On a day where you have good legs and you feel like attacking every time the pace drops, wait until 5km to go and attack from the back on any type of climb. Don’t look back and ride to the finish. Hope someone there has a camera.
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