OK that clarifies a lot. Thanks! I almost wrote that your position B looks very "triathlete" but held back :-)

Actually, in my experience you can make these fast positions very comfortable for a lot of people -- the key is finding a front end setup such that the rider pretty much just falls into the right position, without having to strain to hold it. If you find that sweet spot then it's possible to stay very aero for hours at a time. The UK guys do it for 12, and even 24 hour races.

Hi rruff,

I think you are right on the money. In a long course triathlon, you use the core/trunk in the cycle, but to stay as relaxed as possible will get you to the start of the run fresher.

Regards,

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An age group triathlete just like you.
TopTriGear - https://www.toptrigear.com

As rruff mentions, the best way to be able to run well off a long bike ride as by bleeding as little energy as possible. So while, semantically, me saying "core engagement" might not be the best way to approach bike fit postural explanations, the goal is to make the position as relaxed as possible and if a cue like that helps set an athlete on the right path then I will continue to use it...even if rruff doesn't like the terminology. DZ may very well be extremely aero, but to get his shoulders "out of the way" requires a fair amount of tension in his upper body. Given that he only trains the bike and probably (when he was good) rides 20-30 hours a week (if not more) then his adaptation period for changes like that are going to be a LOT shorter than someone who rides 4-8 hours a week. Consequently, I would say that it is possible to make his position (or a position like his) sustainable but it's simply not that realistic for a triathlete.

Plus, my aero helmet fills in that little crevice I create with my shoulder shrug.

I wager you guys are saying the same thing and simply having a semantic debate.

"You can't fire a cannon from a canoe"......a stable base to express force from is end goal always IMHO. In a relaxed state (A) better than through postural tension (B), getting from (A) to (B) takes functional adaptation a la Zabrizkie example or mindful practice of posture on the bike as James suggests.

Why do you want to work towards less postural tension to hold a position?..... because otherwise there are risks of reciprocal inhibition in other musculature that can impact on breathing, as one example, and other less than ideal side effects.

Regards

David

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David T-D
http://www.tilburydavis.com