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2-Person 40K TT advice
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I'm looking for advice and tips for competing in my first 2-person 40K TT in a few weeks. Me and my team mate haven't ridden together much but have similar riding styles and power; actually we only did a road race and a crit together once.


What do I need to know about pacing versus a solo TT?
How long should each of us pull for? What if one of us is slightly stronger?
What effort should we shoot for?


I'm sure I'll have more questions but lets hear your advice/tips.
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Re: 2-Person 40K TT advice [casper_8303] [ In reply to ]
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Been a while, but some helpful tips for TTT on aero bikes.

You can't point out debris, so lead rider must go around junk or potholes and follower must stay directly behind, not more than 6" or so to a side. Lead should make sure he passes with enough room that tail will be safe.
Sometimes it is hard to hear, so yell loud if it's important.
We did 30 strokes of the same side pedal then swapped. A little longer for long tailwind sections and maybe 20 on the uphills.
Understand how to fall back on the lee side and slip back in without a lot of effort.
Agree beforehand when you will grab the base bars if there are hills.

That's most of what I can remember.
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Re: 2-Person 40K TT advice [casper_8303] [ In reply to ]
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First three rules of TTs apply:-
1. Don't start too hard.
2. Don't start too hard.
3. Don't start too hard.

Longer turns than in a full TTT, ~60secs depending on relatively fitness level. Practice of pacing beforehand is ideal. Trick is to be smooth on the swapping and not to go full gas when you hit the front. Power and speed help greatly here. Ensure you have a "communication protocol" that you both understand for going harder or easier.
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Re: 2-Person 40K TT advice [casper_8303] [ In reply to ]
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Thank y'all for the tips.

Do y'all have any suggestions for a communication protocol?
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Re: 2-Person 40K TT advice [casper_8303] [ In reply to ]
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casper_8303 wrote:
Do y'all have any suggestions for a communication protocol?

You can't, basically. Best to practice a lot and know what one another are doing.
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Re: 2-Person 40K TT advice [casper_8303] [ In reply to ]
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First rule, especially if you haven't ridden together much, is don't start too hard. The trick with a 2 person TT is NOT blowing one person up, because it is Impossible to recover. It then just becomes a 1 person TT or even worse, the strong guy has to wait for the blown person! Your first priority is coming up with a way to communicate if the pace is too hard for the weaker rider BEFORE you have problems.

The other trick is to figure out what terrain each person is best at. I used to do these with a guy who was a much better climber than I was, but he was also really tall, so he didn't get much of a draft. He did long pulls on ALL the climbs. I would do the descents and the flats. He would take over about 50 yards before the climbs, so I could recover a bit. We were a killer team because we could use this strategy to even out our individual efforts (I.e., I got enough of a draft on the rises to go at his pace).
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Re: 2-Person 40K TT advice [casper_8303] [ In reply to ]
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Good points mentioned so far. I've done several 2-man with guys my size and bigger. We all had similar fitness, but different cycling strengths. Communication in a 2-man is key. Yell "gap" if you start drifting, and "on" once you're back behind him. Soft pedal through when taking over on the front. You're rested and ready to push it, your teammate is tired from having just taken a pull. The most successful 2-mans were when we decided how long to pull. I was better for longer pulls, while some of my teammates could put more power through shorter periods. The one thing we did have down was routine. Even practicing during the warm-up is a huge help. It's amazing how many teams out there look like they are in a beginner tri or Cat 5 crit (eg, dropping your water bottle and stopping during the race in the middle of the road to pick it up when you're only 5K from the finish). Good luck!

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Re: 2-Person 40K TT advice [android] [ In reply to ]
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30 "strokes" is way too short, that is less than 20 sec. too short a pull and too short for recovery.

also, lead rider can point out debris/potholes it is not that hard to take an arm out of aero for that. granted they should ride to avoid it, but if they missed it until too late to go around fully, then point it out
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Re: 2-Person 40K TT advice [casper_8303] [ In reply to ]
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Thanks. This is all great stuff.

I know we have challenges with not being able to practice our technique before the race but we can discuss it and this will help us speed up the process when we do start the TT.
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Re: 2-Person 40K TT advice [casper_8303] [ In reply to ]
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I do these all the time.
First rule - communicate, communicate, communicate. If you have not ridden together , it is tough to formulate a plan. General tips - 30 sec pulls at 105% FTP. Pull off direction according to wind direction. When you pass, stay tight and do not surge. Just come through slowly and evenly so that the other guy can drop back and grab your wheel. Then slowly increase effort. Have a set of commands that you use like EASY - ease up, OFF - off the back, ON - on your rear wheel, PULL Right/Left - pull off right or left.
Again, always communicate bc you will have to adjust effort and pull time depending on how the other guy is doing.
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