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that 275 watts is all the total energy that rider has to offer in an hour long ride. This is simply not true.
275 watts were measured at the wheel, but MUCH more energy has been produced by that rider.
BTW -- Watts are not a measure of "energy". Perhaps that is leading to some confusion. Joules measure energy, and have to do with watts over time. Watts is a measure of power; force applied at a given velocity. It is an instantaneous measure, not a measure over time.
As for why ankling is meaningless -- if you point your toe down as the pedal stroke comes to the bottom, while holding torque/power constant, you do not decrease the load on the quads. You might decrease the velocity of contraction of the quads, but not the force (do the math). Analogies to swimming and running do not apply, because cycling is a fixed mechanical system -- muscle actions do not change the way the system provides propulsion. In swimming, if you kick, the whole system changes. In running, if you "toe off", the whole system changes. In cycling, if you ankle, the system remains exactly the same. Pointing your toe does not "move the workload around."
Power is power is power. Use different muscles, use them at different rates. In the end, power is power is power.
This has been studied half to death in labs. Ankling is a personal choice, like cadence and crank length and bunches of other things.