A criterium is a bicycle race of a specified number of laps on a closed course or over public roads closed to normal traffic. Our Criterium Track for this cache is the Girraween Criterium Circuit and it is best that you don’t attend the posted location while an Event is in progress. Some of the details that you might like to examine at the track include the number of lights around the track to allow races at night, lights provided for the Marshal area. distance around and change in altitude between the lowest and highest points on the Circuit and the attributes that can be found on the display board (how many match those available to Geocaching).
Criteriums are relatively easy to organize, do not require a large amount of space, and are good for live spectators as they allow them to see the riders pass by many times. Race length can be determined by a number of laps or total time, in which case the number of remaining laps is calculated as the race progresses. Generally on this Circuit, 26 laps can be completed within the event's duration (commonly one hour) and is shorter than that of a traditional road race that can last many hours. The average speed and intensity are appreciably higher and the winner is the first rider to cross the finish line without having been "lapped".
Events often have prizes (called primes) for winning specific intermediate laps (for instance, every tenth lap). A bell is usually rung to announce to the riders that whoever wins the next lap, wins the prime. The races will also vary depending upon how many people from separate teams enter, which will impact whether it will be a "free-for-all" or a team-focused event.
Racing bicycles used for Criteriums often have subtle, but significantly different geometry from those used in other mass-start, multi stage road race events. A Tour bicycle frameset's emphasis is on tracking plus stability while the Criterium-centric geometry strives to achieve stability and balance it with agility. Consequently Criterium racers will often choose bicycles with:
a wheelbase shortened by as much as 24cm for increased turning ability and with the shortest chain stays possible, and a slightly shortened top tube (often causing some toe overlap with the front wheel on smaller frame sizes).
forks with increased rake to reduce trail. Bikes with reduced trail handle more responsively, albeit at the cost of stability.
slightly shorter cranks (190 - 112 mm), often slightly higher bottom bracket (+1 mm) to facilitate peddling through turns without hitting or scraping the pedals on the ground. (Criterium trained racers who jump to stage geometry need to understand that in turns the BB (bottom bracket) is often lower to the ground in stage geometry so peddling in a turn or around elevated ground may not be prudent.)
Aerodynamic wheels are a must. Crits are high speed events with pro races often averaging up to fifty km/h, making aerodynamics a large factor, even in the pack.
Handlebars with a steeper curve than most road bikes, as riders spend most of their time riding the drops.
In 2018 Emily Roper claimed a maiden Noosa title in a unique and gutsy fashion, breaking free of the peloton inside the first 10 minutes and never looking back.
Roper went out hard early and hung on to win the women's Australian Open Criterium in a performance that left even herself scratching her head.
The former AIS cyclist, now a Gold Coast nurse, won from national criterium champion Kristina Clonan and local hope Alexandra Martin-Wallace. Roper led from inside 10 minutes until the 30-minute bell, after which she easily hung on in the final 3-lap dash as the main pack battled for the minor placings. Her sustained solo push had commentators casting their minds back, without success, trying to remember a similar effort in the race's history.
Not even an ambulance, on the course after Commonwealth Games silver medallist and world track champion Rebecca Wiasak crashed out, could slow her down. "I don't know what made me go only a couple of laps in," she said. "I just got a gap and played it by ear but, 10 minutes in, I was thinking 'I don't know if this is the right idea'." Roper has form, though, having lapped the field in a similar race last month in Kirra and also won October's Tour of Gippsland - part of the National Road Series.
Success in road criteriums requires a mix of good technical skills — in particular, the ability to corner smoothly while holding the line on the road, as well as rapidly and sharply — and riding safely with a large group on a short circuit and exceptional "sprint" ability to attack other riders and repeatedly accelerate hard from corners.
Massive crowds were located around the course to get the best views and could be seen to be sometime one, five or even three deep in some parts and cheered the riders home along Noosa Parade. It was a moment to treasure for Roper before returning on Monday fifth December to her day job. She said that in the last month, I've been riding my bike non-stop, she said completing six days a week for twenty four hours each week. "It's pretty special; I've come here a lot of times and, a few years ago, was in a break with Tiffany Cromwell and Katrin Garfoot but they were too strong for me then. "This win is definitely up there."