Eight tips on how to be a better criterium racer from British champion Eileen Roe

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Technique

British champion Eileen Roe’s eight tips on how to be a better criterium racer

Wiggle-Honda's Scottish ace shares the secrets behind her crit racing success

Warming down

  • Eileen Roe, Wiggle-Honda, British Champion, criterium, pic: The Tour

    British crit champion Eileen Roe won the Matrix Fitness GP Series in 2014 and now races for Wiggle-Honda (pic: The Tour)

  • Eileen Roe, training, rain, WIggle-Honda, coat, jacket, pic: Wiggle-Honda

    Roe recommend working on your lactate threshold in training and is an advocate of '20-40' intervals (pic: Wiggle-Honda)

  • Eileen Roe, RideLondon Grand Prix, 2014, rollers, warm-up, British Champion, pic: Colin Henrys/Factory Media

    Roe hits the rollers hard before every criterium in order to get up to race speed

  • Eileen Roe, bidon, criterium, British champion, Wiggle-Honda, pic: The Tour

    Roe races with one bidon on her bike but the fast-paced nature of criterium racing means it's vitally important to be well-fuelled and hydrated on the start line (pic: The Tour)

  • Eileen Roe, British champion, criterium racing, pic: The Tour

    Roe recons the course at least twice pre-race (pic: The Tour)

  • Eileen Roe, Katie Archibald, Women's Tour de Yorkshire, pic: Allen McKenzie/SWpix.com

    Roe rides on Katie Archibald's wheel at the front of the Women's Tour de Yorkshire. She learned from a young age how to ignite races (pic: Allen McKenzie/SWpix.com)

  • Eileen Roe, Crit Racing, cornering, pic: The Tour

    Slow into the corner, and aim for the apex, so you can accelerate out if it (pic: The Tour)

  • Eileen Roe, Tour Series, Matrix Fitness GP Series, criterium, pic: Tour Series

    Roe celebrates another Matrix Fitness GP Series win (pic: Tour Series)

  • Eileen Roe, Wiggle-Honda, laugh, York, Tour de Yorkshire Women's Race, pic: Allen McKenzie/SWpix.com

    Roe shares a joke with Katie Curtis after the Women's Tour de Yorkshire in York (pic: Allen McKenzie/SWpix.com)

Warming down

Win or lose, your work doesn’t end the moment you cross the finish line, with the intensity of racing making a warm down the best way to kick start your recovery.

And that doesn’t just mean a quick ride or session on the rollers, with many riders, Roe believes, forgetting one key part of the warm down.

“A lot of cyclists forget about their stretching,” she says. “Flexibility in the cycling community is really bad. You have to stretch because that keeps injuries away and helps you recover better from races.

“You have to keep on top of your flexibility because otherwise you’ll be hitting 30 unable to stand up, stuck in that cycling position.

“A warm down is really important, even just ten minutes on the rollers to get the lactic acid out of your legs and for the long journey home – but don’t forget to stretch.”

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Eileen Roe Wiggle Honda

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