With road permits not granted for the weekend's club racing there was still demand to keep road cyclists' legs clicking over - but it won't be in a familiar setting.

The club are running criterium events outside of their regular road season, coinciding with the same event at the Road Nationals, to put riders' top speed to the test.

Normally the club has held their events at Sulman Park on Mount Panorama but with the location out of the question in the lead up to the Bathurst 12 Hour - and with the open road unavailable - there was still somewhere for them to turn to.

In a rare sight the club will welcome road bikes onto the velodrome for a competitive weekend event, while barring track bikes from entering.

Bathurst Cycling Club road manager Glen Partridge said the club will always endeavour to provide racing opportunities, no matter the venue.

"The club evolves mainly on its racing. We have bunch riders who go out and do their own thing but people still really want to get out there and race," he said.

"We're not allowing track bikes on there, only road bikes with gears and brakes. They'll be running around for 15 minutes in D grade, 20 minutes in C grade, 25 minutes in B grade and 30 minutes in A grade."

At the conclusion of each grade's time window they will race a further three laps before the chequered flag is waved.

Criteriums are the highest-speed road event on offer but on a velodrome riders can expect an even faster event than normal.

It's not the first time though that road bikes have left their mark on the Bathurst Velodrome.

The club has routinely run its 'Chopfest' events on a Friday to encourage road riders to bring their bikes and experience racing on the oval.

"We usually get riders out to Chopfest, sometimes 20 to 30 on some nights, because it was something to do and gave every that extra bit of training," Partridge said.

"If we can keep a little bit of interest there then hopefully when we're back on the road we can have some good racing. We've got a huge calendar ready for the year."

Bathurst's criterium championships often fall in winter, though there's plenty of interest to keep opportunities for local criterium racing open throughout the year.

It's uncertain what numbers will be like for Sunday's racing but with some members absent on their annual Tour Down Under holiday there could be an impact.

Racing gets underway from 8am with the D grade event, with action to carry through until the A grade start at 9.20am.