I strained my shoulder muscles for being the holder for the prologue of G20 race - I should take it easy when I am still recovering from my bike crash.
I've never been a holder before. I was told to clamp down on the rider's rear wheel with my knees and hold the rider's waist with my hands, and give the rider a push when the count-down ends. I think people usually don't give the rider a push, but it was an uphill start. Also, I think people hold the bike by seat tube or saddle (as shown in the picture).
After sending off a couple of riders, I found out that the most stable position is to squat down so that the inside of my knees are pushing against the top of the rear wheel and hold the waist of the rider just above the iliac crest.
The easiest rider I worked with is a little girl named Angie. She was riding a 20-inch wheel road bike, and weighs probably less than 100 lb, so I hardly had to exert myself to hold the bike and the rider steady.
And I feel it is easier to hold the women racers steady, probably because they have greater waist-to-hip ratio! ;-)
