So your kid wants to race road bikes…

Where to start?

The age categories for kids to race in the US are as follows:

Youth 6-9 years of age, Junior 10-12 years, Junior 13-14 years, Junior 15-16 years, Junior 17-18 years and Under-23. The age of a junior is determined by their age on December 31st of that year. This is their “racing age”. Girls and boys race together in juniors.*

*There are some races designated LAJRS, Lance Armstrong Junior Racing Series, that have separate medals for girls and boys.

USA Cycling is the governing body for most bicycle races in the US. They sanction everything from Road races to Mountain bike races, which means that the events will have officials and will be run within the rules and regulations of USA Cycling. To participate in a sanctioned race, you must have a USA Cycling license (USA Cycling.org then go to membership). If you would like to try out racing you may buy a “one day license” on the day of the race.

Things you need

For road racing, the bicycle must have drop style handlebars and two working brakes. Any size wheels are allowed for juniors. “Clip-on” or triathlon bars are not allowed. The rider must have an approved bicycle helmet (ANSI or Snell) and a jersey or shirt that has sleeves to cover the shoulders. There is a limitation on the size of the gearing on a junior’s bike. (See junior gearing below). A rider does not need to be a member of a team or club to race.

Types of races

In road cycling there are four types of races: road races, circuit races, criteriums (crits) and time trials.

A road race is a massed start event on open roads and is usually a set distance (ie: 12 miles) The riders are led and followed by officials or police in cars. The road is open to traffic. There are not a lot of junior road races due to the safety of letting young kids ride out in traffic.

A circuit race is a massed start event on a closed course that can be from one to five miles long. They are usually run by time. (ie: 30 minutes) usually has challenging turns and higher speeds. The criterium or “crit” is run by time and are about 30 minutes long. This is the most common type of race in the US.

A time trial is an individual race against the clock. Riders start at set intervals and ride the course as fast as they can. The length can be from three to over 20 miles depending on the age category. No drafting is allowed and juniors under age 13 must use a regular road bike. (No special TT or triathlon bikes.)

Getting ready to race

Go to myFBRA.org and click on the calendar section to view the USA Cycling permitted races in the state. Click on the individual race to bring up the race flyer. Not all races will have youth and junior categories. Most junior races do not have any extra late fees for entering the day of the race. Arrive at the race at least an hour before the listed star time to allow for number pick up and warm up. Make sure you have the USA Cycling license in hand or fill out the one-day license form. (Side note: if you sign up for the license online you will have to print out and send in a form signed by a parent before they will send you the actual license. This sometimes takes several weeks. Print out the “ authorization to ride form” on the license site to take to the races until you get the license.) Remember, a parent or guardian will have to sign a release form at EVERY race for anyone under 18. You must show your license at every race. Most races in Florida are scored by transponder chips that are tied to the bike. You will be required to rent a “chip” at these races for an extra fee. If you race a lot you will want to purchase a chip.

Junior Gearing

Juniors are restricted in the size of the gears on their bikes until they are 19 years old. What that means is that they must spin their legs faster if they want to go faster. It is much better on developing bones and muscles to spin rather than push hard gears. The limit is “ 26 feet” which is how far a bike travels in one crank revolution. The bikes are checked at the end of every race for compliance, a process called rollout. Look at front chainring on the bike and it has to have a 52-tooth ring. The rear cog cannot be any smaller than a 14-tooth cog. Most new bikes today have a 53-12 combination that will not pass. A good bike shop should be able to help you by “blocking out” gears or selling you the right combination. USA Cycling officials at the races will gladly check the bike before the race to make sure it is legal.

Things to know

Absolutely NO profanity or poor sportsmanship is tolerated at any race, period. You may not ride on a closed race course when there is a race in progress if you are not registered for it. All riders must wear a helmet ANY time they are on a bike at a race venue. USA Cycling officials will try very hard to answer any questions about rules and regulations that you may have. The official USA Cycling rulebook is available to all members through the USACycling.org website (See also a link to the rulebook under the “Resources>Racers” tab on myFBRA.org). And remember, just because the pros throw their arms in the air when they win, it will get you disqualified in a junior race.

For more detailed information on junior racing we suggest Bike Racing For Juniors by Kristen Dieffenbach and Steve McCauley (Velopress).

Thanks to Diane Blake for writing this article to inform new juniors and their parents about some basic bicycle racing information. Photos by Michelle Blake.

Download PDF of this article.

Grants are another option for the FRCA to consider. We had 35 junior / U23 attend road nationals, 2 at track nationals, and perhaps a few will attend cross nats.  Then we also have another 4-5 that attend the USA Cycling devo camps each year and 3 or 4 that make it to Belgium each year. We also have 2 riders that have qualified for World’s road or track.

At his time, we are seeking input from you on how you would like monies spent to support juniors. Some of the ideas that have come up with are as follows:

• free first race entry for new juniors
• free first day one day license for new juniors
• junior camps
• grants to teams with junior development programs
• improved junior awards at events
• featured junior race weekend
• support to promoters that host junior focused events
• grants to individual riders to attend major events such as Nationals, l’Abitibi, etc.
• grants to individual riders to attend USA Cycling devo camps
• grants to individual riders to go to Belgium on National team
• grants to composite team to attend major junior events
• improved junior trophies, awards