Icetrack cycling is a bicycle racing sport usually held on 400 m speed skating ice ovals. However, any ice sheet can be used, including ice hockey rinks and frozen lakes.
Icetrack cycling is a bicycle racing sport usually held on 400 m speed skating ice ovals. However, any ice sheet can be used, including ice hockey rinks and frozen lakes.
The sport of cycling on ice is probably as old as the sport of cycling. Icetrack cycling has many similarities to track cycling. [1] There are many examples of bikes that have been built or adapted to cope with the hard and slippery surface of ice. Usually practiced in places where a winter freeze turns lakes into inviting sheets of ice, annual events attract all types of ice bikes and competitors. Various ice rinks also host (annual) events. In the Netherlands, icetrack cycling is developing rapidly due to the availability of standard ice bikes, making the sport more accessible. The term icetrack is specifically used for cycling on ice suitable for skating on (i.e., not on snow or rough ice).
Many types of bike have been tried over the years. The current standard bikes use one drive wheel at the back, a steering skate at the front and a cornering skate out to the right.
The drive wheel is a 20″ bicycle wheel with derailleur gears. Various tyres can be selected to suit the ice surface. Spikes are not used on a 400 m ice oval.
The steering skate is ground to a profile which ensures the bike turns when the skate is turned - the skate being attached to handlebars operated by the user.
The cornering skate provides the force needed to get the bike round the left hand corners at either end of the ice oval.
The user sits in a recumbent position to ensure a low centre of gravity on the slippery ice.
Icetrack cycling events fit into two broad categories: timed/individual races and multiple bike races.
Timed races use the same format as speed skating events. [2] Various distances between 500 m and 10,000 m are completed against the clock, with a maximum of two competitors on the ice at any one time. Many ice ovals include a wire loop embedded in the ice along the finish line which can detect the passing of a transponder attached to the competitor, thus providing automated timing (often linked to the internet).
Multiple bike races of up to 20 bikes use a standing start from a grid with races held over three, five or nine laps. The position on the start grid is decided based on a timed qualifying flying lap.
Keirin. [3] The bikes are also used to start a Keirin race for speed skating (replacing the Derny in a velodrome). In a keirin for skaters, the bike starts on the opposite side of the oval and the skaters then start from a standing start as the bike passes them. The bike then regulates the speed, which increases over two laps, before slowing and moving to the left. The skaters then sprint the last lap to the finish. Any number of skaters between six and 16 can take part in a race, depending on the local club. Championship races have eight competitors.
The current record for one flying lap of a 400 m ice oval stands at 33.18 s, set on 11 December 2015 in De Bonte Wever Assen NL
The ice track hour record stands at 35.258 km, set by Eva Navratilova (CZE) on 14 November 2015 in Thialf (Heerenveen, NL). This record is recognised by the WHPVA. [4]
Speed skating is a competitive form of ice skating in which the competitors race each other in travelling a certain distance on skates. Types of speed skating are long track speed skating, short track speed skating, and marathon speed skating. In the Olympic Games, long-track speed skating is usually referred to as just "speed skating", while short-track speed skating is known as "short track". The International Skating Union (ISU), the governing body of competitive ice sports, refers to long track as "speed skating" and short track as "short track skating".
Track cycling is a bicycle racing sport usually held on specially built banked tracks or velodromes using purpose-designed track bicycles.
Keirin – literally "racing cycle" – is a form of motor-paced cycle racing in which track cyclists sprint for victory following a speed-controlled start behind a motorized or non-motorized pacer. It was developed in Japan around 1948 for gambling purposes and became an official event at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney, Australia.
A velodrome is an arena for track cycling. Modern velodromes feature steeply banked oval tracks, consisting of two 180-degree circular bends connected by two straights. The straights transition to the circular turn through a moderate easement curve.
Short-track speed skating is a form of competitive ice speed skating. In competitions, multiple skaters skate on an oval ice track with a length of 111.111 metres (364.54 ft). The rink itself is 60 metres (196.85 ft) long by 30 metres (98.43 ft) wide, which is the same size as an Olympic-sized figure skating rink and an international-sized ice hockey rink. Related sports include long track speed skating and inline speed skating.
Inline speed skating is the roller sport of racing on inline skates. The sport may also be called inline racing by participants. Although it primarily evolved from racing on traditional roller skates, the sport is similar enough to ice speed skating that many competitors are known to switch between inline and ice speed skating according to the season.
A race track is a facility built for racing of vehicles, athletes, or animals. A race track also may feature grandstands or concourses. Race tracks are also used in the study of animal locomotion.
Cyclo-cross is a form of bicycle racing. Races typically take place in the autumn and winter, and consist of many laps of a short course featuring pavement, wooded trails, grass, steep hills and obstacles requiring the rider to quickly dismount, carry the bike while navigating the obstruction and remount. Races for senior categories are generally between 40 minutes and an hour long, with the distance varying depending on the ground conditions. The sport is strongest in the traditional road cycling countries such as Belgium, France and the Netherlands.
Cycle sport is competitive physical activity using bicycles. There are several categories of bicycle racing including road bicycle racing, cyclo-cross, mountain bike racing, track cycling, BMX, and cycle speedway. Non-racing cycling sports include artistic cycling, cycle polo, freestyle BMX and mountain bike trials. The Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) is the world governing body for cycling and international competitive cycling events. The International Human Powered Vehicle Association is the governing body for human-powered vehicles that imposes far fewer restrictions on their design than does the UCI. The UltraMarathon Cycling Association is the governing body for many ultra-distance cycling races.
A track bicycle or track bike is a bicycle optimized for racing at a velodrome or outdoor track. Unlike road bicycles, the track bike is a fixed-gear bicycle; thus, it has only a single gear ratio and has neither a freewheel nor brakes. Tires are narrow and inflated to high pressure to reduce rolling resistance.
Long-track speed skating, usually simply referred to as speed skating, is the Olympic discipline of speed skating where competitors are timed while crossing a set distance. It is also a sport for leisure. Sports such as ice skating marathon, short track speedskating, inline speedskating, and quad speed skating are also called speed skating.
Ice racing is a form of racing that uses cars, motorcycles, snowmobiles, all-terrain vehicles, or other motorized vehicles. Ice racing takes place on frozen lakes or rivers, or on groomed frozen lots. As cold weather is a requirement for natural ice, it is usually found at higher latitudes in Canada, the northern United States, and in northern Europe, although limited indoor events are held in warmer climates, typically on ice hockey rinks. Tracks in North America vary from 1/4 mile to several mile-long circuits.
This is a glossary of terms and jargon used in cycling, mountain biking, and cycle sport.
Cycle speedway is a form of bicycle racing on short oval dirt tracks, usually outdoors, occasionally indoors, typically 70–90 metres long. Like motorcycle speedway, riders use machines without brakes or multiple gears but, unlike motor speedway, the object is not to slide bikes round the turns.
Vikingskipet, officially known as Hamar Olympic Hall, is an indoor multi-use sport and event venue in Hamar, Norway. It was built as the speed skating rink for the 1994 Winter Olympics, and has since also hosted events and tournaments in ice speedway, motorcycle speedway, rally, association football, bandy, ice sledge speed racing, flying disc and track cycling. The arena is also used for concerts, trade fair and the annual computer party The Gathering. It is the home arena of Hamar IL bandy team. The venue is owned by Hamar Municipality, and along with Hamar Olympic Amphitheatre is run by the municipal Hamar Olympiske Anlegg. Vikingskipet has a capacity for 10,600 spectators during sporting events and 20,000 during concerts.
The Canadian city of Calgary, Alberta, is home to a relatively deep-seated tradition of winter sports. Much of this stems from its location, with proximity to the Alberta Rocky Mountains and Banff National Park. After hosting the 1988 Winter Olympics, the city has also had winter sports and training facilities. Beyond winter sports, Calgary has a number of professional and amateur sports teams and is a major world pro rodeo centre, with the city's Stampede Park holding the annual Calgary Stampede.
Motorcycle racing is the motorcycle sport of racing motorcycles. Major varieties include motorcycle road racing and off-road racing, both either on circuits or open courses, and track racing. Other categories include hill climbs, drag racing and land speed record trials.
Track racing is a form of motorcycle racing where teams or individuals race opponents around an unpaved oval track. There are differing variants, with each variant racing on a different surface type.
A speed skating rink is an ice rink in which a speed skating competition is held.
An ice cycle, ice bike, or icycle is a bicycle adapted for use on ice, usually by replacing the front wheel with an ice skate. Versions exist with and without additional skates to provide lateral stability, that have been based on upright and recumbent bikes, and that have been used for racing. Ice cycles have been in use since at least the 1890s, and theory predicts that a bicycle with a front skate can exhibit riderless self-stability similar to the same bicycle with a front wheel. At least one example has been made with both the front and the rear wheels replaced by skates.
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