People are often surprised to learn that bicycle track racing in the USA has a long history. During the early days of bicycling, as far back as the turn of the century, track cycling was just as popular in America as it is now in Europe, the undisputed track racing capital of the world. By the time the "Roaring '20's" rolled around, indoor track racing had become one of the nation's most popular spectator sports, drawing enormous, celebrity-filled, capacity crowds in such huge stadiums and auditoriums as Madison Square Garden in New York City, and the Chicago Stadium, and the like. But, unfortunately, just as sports can grow in popularity, they can also fall out of favor, and that's just what happened to track racing in the USA during the late 1930's and early 40's. The decline was principally brought about by two things; the rapid development of the internal combustion engine, and the wide scale production of automobiles on an enormous scale. As the American public discovered the thrills of the automobile, the bicycle was soon all but forgotten, and bicycle track racing lost its former position as the nation's number one spectator sport. Incredibly, virtually all of the hundreds of indoor bicycle tracks in the country were torn down during this dark period, and most of the outdoor tracks were demolished as well. America had completely turned its back on track cycling.

Then, gradually, in the late 1950's and early '60's, the public's interest in track cycling was slowly revived. A half-dozen bicycle tracks were constructed in America during the 1960's alone, and yet, even so, when the cycling boom of the 1970's got underway, the US could claim only nine world-class tracks in the entire country! Today, as all forms of bicycle racing are growing in popularity, velodromes are very slowly being built again in many states, and, perhaps, one day, just about everyone in the USA will once again be able to observe and participate in the exciting sport of bicycle track racing just as their grandparents once did.

Found on the internet, written by FGF Founder, Durer Shomer

SOME VELODROME BASICS

Brian Piccolo Velodrome is a 333m banked track. Velodromes come in a variety of sizes and shapes (some magnificent and some monstrosity) even at world level . Some of the following will apply to all these tracks but, for our purposes, I will discuss the markings, etc. which are specific to our track.

PAINTED LINES

The wide, blue band at the bottom of the track and, technically, on the apron is called the BLUE BAND or the Cote d'Azure. Do not ride here--only cross it to get off or on the track. On some tracks, there is a bit of sand mixed into the paint to facilitate slowing when coming down off very steep, short indoor tracks. But at Brian Piccolo, the blue band is a bit dangerous as it becomes slippery when even a little wet, it gathers grit and other debris, and it extends to the CRACK at the bottom of the track. I am always cautioning riders to stay away from the crack as I have seen a lot of cyclists crash from catching a wheel in there. It is filled with rubber and this gets melty in the hot sun. Please, especially in the pacelines, try not to veer over the crack as it is too dicey. In time trials on the track, there are long SPONGES placed across the blue band, perpendicular to the bike traffic, to prevent riders from cutting the measured distance short.

POLE LANE: This is the area between the black line at the bottom of the track and the red line less than one meter above it. The actual POLE LINE is the black line and it is the line on which all time trials are measured. Obviously, in a timed effort, you should attempt to ride on or close to the black line so that you can travel the shortest possible distance. The RED LINE is the limit for the pole lane and, in match sprint competition, once a rider enters the pole line and goes underneath this red line once the sprint is engaged (and for the final 200m), he must stay in the pole lane until the finish line. If a sprinter stays above the red at the 200m point, he is free to ride the line of his choice. The pole lane is a right-of-way area. Riders doing fast efforts definitely have the right of way in the pole. Always use caution when entering or crossing the pole as riders will be going the fastest down there.

The STAYERS LINE is the blue line about 1/2 way up the track. This is a traditional bike racing term drawn from the (now-extinct at World level) Stayer's or Motorpaced event. For our purposes, the stayer's line is a good secondary place to run a paceline warm-up (when the pole is busy or when not going fast) or to ride around for a solo warm-up. It is also a good place to stay out of the way when things are busy at the bottom.

The area between the red line and the stayer's line is NO MAN'S LAND. Use it to cross into or out of the pole only. Do not ride or do efforts here--it is too confusing and dangerous as the riders in the pole do not know whether a No Man's Land wanker is going to drop down on them. This does not include bunch racing--it only applies to training.

The black line near the top of the track is a MADISON marker. It is an antiquated devise and we'll just skip it. However, riders winding up for efforts at the top on the RAIL always have right-of-way and those just rolling around should stay below the madison line.

Note:  Most tracks do not have Madison Markers.

The big white bands with black lines through them running perpendicular to the bike traffic are the START/FINISH LINE (home straight) and the 200M LINE (backstraight). The homestraight is the side the bleachers are on. Most massed start races and all match sprints start and finish on the start/finish line. The 200m line is the starting point for the 200m time trial, which is the qualifying and seeding event for the match sprints.

The PURSUIT LINES are the red, perpendicular lines 1/2 way up the homestraight and the backstraight. These are line from which 500m, 1000m, 2km, 3km and 4km time trials are measured. We will use this line as the starting and finishing point for most of our interval distances. We will only use the start/finish line when specified.

Graciously submitted by former world champion, Lucy Tyler

The oval tracks used for bicycle track racing are called velodromes (VELL-o-dromes). They can be found indoors or outdoors, and can be made of wood, concrete, asphalt, or cement, and, occasionally, grass or dirt. Velodromes are usually 333.3 meters around, although they can run as long as 500 meters or more, or as short as 200m, or, in the case of some of the "portable" tracks, even less.

Found on the internet, written by FGF Founder, Durer Shomer

The bicycle ridden on the track is different from the one ridden on the road, and it is one of the simplest and most beautifully designed machines in the world. A bicycle that has been stripped to its basic components, it has none of the complicated, and sometimes delicate, gearing and braking systems found on a road or mountain bike.

Found on the internet, written by FGF Founder, Durer Shomer