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andyp
@Fixienut
IMO if this is your first fixed crit race its not a good place to start. As I have found out it takes years to become a good crit rider. Currently doing my first ever fixed crit season (which is punishing and especially when racing against the likes of Team Cinelli Chrome who are just insanely fast). I am not saying you shouldn't do the qualifying or racing but bear the following points in mind:
You need to be aggressive - meaning you have to push yourself to the front of the pack at the starting line (you haven't even started racing yet). You have to fight for your space on the course.
Sprinting - one needs to be able to maintain sprints at high intensity (120rpm+) in order to keep up with the peloton. Gear ratio plays a big part here - going too heavy will hamper your ability to do this in the beginning and also end of the race when you really need to sprint for the line. Blackouts can occur if you are not used to such high levels of intensity. It is the last thing you want being in the middle of a pack - losing focus for a nanosecond is not an option.
Drafting - this has been mooted before. You need to be confident to stay in a back wheel of the the rider in front to maintain the pace - once you lose more than a metre or two you will drop back fast unless you can recover quick enough to sprint again (again gear ratio all important). Bring chainrings because on the day there are other factors to consider - wind, gear ratio others are riding etc. Double sided track hubs are a good weapon too ;-)
Confidence/fearlessness - from my own personal experience of having amateur crit racers around you is a terrifying experience. Why you may ask? The inexperienced ones will jump up back wheels/skid to slow down as coming in too fast to a technical corner and this is a classic recipe for disaster - often ends in crashes and broken collarbones. You need to be able to slow down by releasing pressure from the pedals as you would do in the velodrome (its a big plus to be an experienced velodrome rider). Fear is a big aspect to this race - one cannot have any fear because it will likely cause a crash.
To achieve the best possible performance you need to train hard (this goes without saying) and work on the high intensity training for runs of 35-50km. Average should be around 30-35kmh solo (in a pack its easier to maintain if you regularly switch riders at the front). Doing anything more than 50km is counter productive.
I hope this gives you guys (newbies) some idea what to expect. I would have competed this year but know my level is not there yet and I'm aiming to be on course for next season.
Happy training guys and go H.A.M. on the day! If you need any good training routes in London feel free to ask ;-)