I never had two bottles, but I went with one after seeing Craig Alexander doing it. ;)

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"In the world I see you are stalking elk through the damp canyon forests around the ruins of Rockefeller Center. You'll wear leather clothes that will last you the rest of your life. You'll climb the wrist-thick kudzu vines that wrap the Sears Towers. And when you look down, you'll see tiny figures pounding corn, laying stripes of venison on the empty car pool lane of some abandoned superhighway." T Durden

i started with 2 and switched to 1. mainly because i was carrying the 2nd bottle and not using it.

for training i like carrying the 2nd bottle filled for extra weight. figured whatever hurts me up the hills will help me race day.

One is faster and it has to be really well placed to have no aero penalty.

So here is my setup.

XLAB Torpedo BTA, Dark Speed Works Speedpack 480 behind the stem. I have a Gorilla cage I can use on the downtube if needed.

I have the Carbon Sonic Wing in the back with the 2 Gorilla XTs. 1 Gorilla XT has a Specialized Purist bottle. The other XT has a Specialized Keg pod with tube, co2, inflator, levers, and multi-tool. For long rides, I strap an XLAB mini bag on the back with another tube and co2 in it.

For Sprints, I use Torpedo and leave tool pod in cage. For Olympics, same setup. For Half-Ironman I use Torpedo, keg pod, and 1 bottle in the back.

Should I switch to the Delta 400 system and find a new way to carry my flat kit? I prefer to keep the Speedpack 480 for nutrition only but I'm sure I could fit a tube in their with my nutrition.

If I switch to 1 bottle, what's the best way to carry 2 Co2, 2 tubes, a multitool, inflator, and tire levers?

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There's your problem. You should be able to fit 1 co2, 1 tube, a level and inflator under your saddle. Then one bottle between the arms and one bottle behind the saddle (ziptied).

That's your best option unless you can put your storage in your dark speed bag (that's if you don't need food) or you have a Trek SC and you use the back storage box or you have a Shiv and use whatever that storage box is.

What bike is this for? I use a Torhans VR cut out for flat kit, and it seems to help aero on mine, but can't afford the testing for real data. As much as you want aero, I'd surely stay away from regular cages on the frame.

I have the old P2 so I'm going to have to stay with what I have or get creative. Hopefully all of these new bikes coming out start getting storage boxes!

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2011 Cervelo P2. I never race with a down tube bottle.

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Make Inside Out Sports your next online tri shop! http://www.insideoutsports.com/

Take a look at the XLab Multi Strike.

I wonder which is more aero?



or




The Carbon Wing 400i allows me to keep my setup and put the mini bag inside.

The Delta 400 with the Aero pouch seems to solve the 1 bottle and flat kit problem? I'm not 100% sold on the aero pouch idea.

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This is what I meant..... "I have a Gorilla cage I can use on the downtube if needed. ".
I must have misunderstood that you would never race that way. That said, the Torhans is a great option to fill the space and hold anything you use.

http://www.slowtwitch.com/...of_Starky__5263.html

My setup looks like this:



I'm trying to see if there is a faster, better way

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Most of the testing I've seen says that rear bottles carry a small penalty (lots of variation depending on position); they are not like a BTA bottle that is zero drag, or may help with airflow behind the hands (when done right).

I used to have a two-bottle Profile setup, but switched to one cage ziptied behind the saddle; just a lot cleaner and lighter setup, and with the torpedo up front I didn't need the 2nd cage in back. The bottle sits more horizontal, so a bit more aero, and easier to flying mount over.

My setup is as follows:
Torpedo BTA (water)
1 Cage behind the saddle (water)
DSW bento behind the stem (flat kit and gel flask for long races)

I've got a Fuel Cell on order (I have a Shiv), and will try moving the flat kit and hydration there (aero benefit and weight further down the frame)

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I switched from 2 to 1 this year, primarily because I found I didn't really need 2 back there, and preferred to shed a little weight for IMLou. I don't have any aero data, but I'm thin and it's hard for me to believe that 1 wouldn't be at least a tiny bit more aero than 2. The 2nd bottle used to be my 2nd concentrated nutrition bottle, but I'm putting that in SN this year. My tube and tools go either under my saddle or in the bento box that came with my Trek SC. YMMV.

Two bottles has no effect based on the below

.....This turned out to be the most surprising result of the test for me. There was almost no penalty to having two bottles behind the saddle"

http://www.thebikeracer.com/visiting-a2-wind-tunnel

Cheers,
Ender

Great article. I know Derek. I need to call him and talk to him about this.

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For what its worth, when I have tested this on a velodrome:
For me: wider hips, on a Felt IA: I saw 1 bottle and no bottle neutral. 2 bottles was a 6w improvement
My Gf: Narrower hips on a P3: 1 bottle better than no bottle, by about 5w, never tested 2 (but we knew it was too wide).

I tested both (two bottles zip-tied below the saddle, vs. 1 bottle on the X-Lab holder for the Cervelo seatpost), and there was close enough to no difference between the set-ups.

I have the 2012 P2 and use a speedfill standard on the bottom bracket and 2 bottles behind the saddle. One bottle is a flat kit and the other is hydration. I am in Alabama, so yes, I need 60+oz of fluid on a long ride. I use a bento for my gels and cell phone.

It may not be the most aero during training rides, but when I strip it down on race day it feels like the bike isn't even there.

How/where do you zip tie below the saddle - I can't picture it in my head.

I'm thinking about changing my setup to this: The Delta 400 and Mult-Strike


I can then put a tube under the saddle and put the inflator in my Dark Speed Works bag. I think this might be a little more aero than what I have now.

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Excellent link!

I have a P2 as well, and I race on tubulars, making storage a big problem. I use the Sonic wing with two rear bottles, one for storage. One bottle up front between the arms. The link to the A2 wind tunnel was enlightening... looks like 2 bottles in the back isnt slowing anyone down.