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Why some professional triathletes race Ironman/Half Ironman WITHOUT an aero helmet?
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Remember Chrissie Wellington... she didnt wear an aero helmet while racing ironman.
Looking at video recaps of some races I always see some pro athletes with a "regular" helmet.

The only thing I see is the ventilation that may be lacking in an aero?
If the outside temperature is too warm it must be like racing with the head in a microwave if you have an aero helmet?
The time that you may win on long distance races wearing an aero helmet is not worth it?

I need to buy a new helmet this year and am racing 1 ironman & many olympics (on a TT bike) hence all these questions!

Thoughts?
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Re: Why some professional triathletes race Ironman/Half Ironman WITHOUT an aero helmet? [tamiii] [ In reply to ]
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My relatively unscientific n=1 experience was my aero lid netted me 0.5 mph increase in speed over my normal helmet. If I were racing for a paycheck I would not leave that inexpensive speed on the table. YMMV.

"It never gets easier, you just go faster."
-Greg LeMond

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Re: Why some professional triathletes race Ironman/Half Ironman WITHOUT an aero helmet? [tamiii] [ In reply to ]
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Read: http://triathlon.competitor.com/...ro-helmet-test_63574

Crowie is a good example of a top pro who preferred standard helmets....until he realized they were costing him race wins.

Bottom line is: get an aero helmet.

ECMGN Therapy Silicon Valley:
Depression, Neurocognitive problems, Dementias (Testing and Evaluation), Trauma and PTSD, Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI)
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Re: Why some professional triathletes race Ironman/Half Ironman WITHOUT an aero helmet? [tamiii] [ In reply to ]
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ive done Louisville twice and several halfs where it was in the 90s, never noticed any different with an aero helmet
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Re: Why some professional triathletes race Ironman/Half Ironman WITHOUT an aero helmet? [tamiii] [ In reply to ]
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If you can't make up your mind you could always go in between with an aero-road helmet such as the Specialized Evade

"Just don’t abandon everything you’ve ever learned because of something someone said on the internet." - Eric McGinnis
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Re: Why some professional triathletes race Ironman/Half Ironman WITHOUT an aero helmet? [tamiii] [ In reply to ]
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I wanna tack on here...aero is the way to go for sure.
Nice article link posted above too.
But - how do us amateurs w/o wind tunnel access find the fastest aero helmet?
Heck, I can't go out & purchase 3 kids and run time trials over & over wearing each. Not practical!
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Re: Why some professional triathletes race Ironman/Half Ironman WITHOUT an aero helmet? [tamiii] [ In reply to ]
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If anyone believes they'll get to hot in an aero helmet, I recommend they try:

LG P09 with the vent open
RP Wingspan with the vent open

Both of those helmets most likely have better ventilation than the typical road helmet.

Not convinced? Use the LG course aero road helmet. Coolest helmet on the market.
Last edited by: Nick B: Mar 29, 15 8:16
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Re: Why some professional triathletes race Ironman/Half Ironman WITHOUT an aero helmet? [tamiii] [ In reply to ]
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What is your budget? You can easily find a discounted Giro A2 from a season or 2 ago. The Aero Camp last year observed that any one of several (or maybe a few) helmets worked best for each person, but the A2 was almost always second best. So, for the money, the A2 is pretty smart. You also fit a good road helmet into your budget, since, much like the A2, you can often find older models discounted online.

If you're worried about ventilation, what you might want to avoid is an aero helmet with a visor and no ventilation. Having air on your face helps a lot.
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Re: Why some professional triathletes race Ironman/Half Ironman WITHOUT an aero helmet? [tamiii] [ In reply to ]
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In many cases pros seem to be uninformed, or oblivious to the details that matter. I would look at what the top age groupers are doing. For example, many age groupers were wearing sleeved aero suits in Kona 2013, and very few pros were. In 2014 there were a lot of pros with sleeved suits. I have no idea why a lot of pros don't pay attention to that stuff, maybe they are too busy training and stuff

____________________________________

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Re: Why some professional triathletes race Ironman/Half Ironman WITHOUT an aero helmet? [robgray] [ In reply to ]
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I think, for a lot of pros, sponsorship limits what they can and can't use. Whether a clothing sponsor, for instance, makes a sleeved suit, or if the suit they do make isn't perhaps fast because of fit ( or it's just slow in general), a pro is sometimes forced to choose what they know is a slower option.

Last year I posted about some pros finding the fastest helmet for them, and then selling the real estate for advertising to the highest bidder. Smart, and usually worth more money than a helmet sponsor anyway.

Other times, it's just about poor choices. As an example, virtually every woman, be they pro or amateur, will refuse to wear longer length shorts even though we show them it's faster. Why? They don't like the look in them.

Then, of course, you have those who simply haven't educated themselves, though I think there are fewer and fewer every year.

Jim Manton / ERO Sports
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Re: Why some professional triathletes race Ironman/Half Ironman WITHOUT an aero helmet? [Jim@EROsports] [ In reply to ]
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Bun huggers for the Win!
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Re: Why some professional triathletes race Ironman/Half Ironman WITHOUT an aero helmet? [Jim@EROsports] [ In reply to ]
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Jim@EROsports wrote:
Then, of course, you have those who simply haven't educated themselves, though I think there are fewer and fewer every year.

I don't think there are fewer and fewer every year. I just read something that Jodi Swallow didn't learn about salt until 2013. How many years had she been doing the sport - you wouldn't happen to come across it? Bottom line, there are too many pros that think it is all about the swimming, biking, and running and not worry about the details that add up like pennies in a penny jar. I would agree that pros who have been in the sport continue to advance their knowledge, but there seems to be a newbie to replace them every year. I myself use fellow pros as a reference, but keeping sponsorship in mind - some of the ones I watch include or included Lieto, Rapp, Tollakson, Kienle. When something they do doesn't jive with common knowledge or what I think it common knowledge I ask them about it.


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Re: Why some professional triathletes race Ironman/Half Ironman WITHOUT an aero helmet? [tamiii] [ In reply to ]
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A lot of people assume it could hurt them via core temperature/heat.

There isn't much in the way of public data sufficient to convince people that this won't happen.

Intuition is stronger than data in people's minds.

So, while there is a nice study that shows core temp and performance aren't significantly affected by aero helmets in 100 degree temps in a 12k TT

People will say "well in a longer event it will be a problem!"

And they might hear that a famous pro tested it on a long ride outdoors and didn't find a difference in core temp, people will say things like "well it does for ME, everyone is individual"

Because, yeah, you put out more heat than a pro male triathlete or domestic pro cyclist? =)



Kat Hunter reports on the San Dimas Stage Race from inside the GC winning team
Aeroweenie.com -Compendium of Aero Data and Knowledge
Freelance sports & outdoors writer Kathryn Hunter
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Re: Why some professional triathletes race Ironman/Half Ironman WITHOUT an aero helmet? [goregrind] [ In reply to ]
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goregrind wrote:
ive done Louisville twice and several halfs where it was in the 90s, never noticed any different with an aero helmet

I can feel a little heat difference with an aero helmet. I just tilt head down and pour water into the helmet and onto my head to make up for it. Works fine.

----------------------------------------------------------
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Interviews with Chris McCormack, Helle Frederikson, Angela Naeth, and many more.
http://www.zentriathlon.com
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Re: Why some professional triathletes race Ironman/Half Ironman WITHOUT an aero helmet? [texafornia] [ In reply to ]
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Well

chrissie and daniella ryff both use normal helmet, a recomendation from sutton

He said he prefer to keep the body fresh, especially due to the hot conditions in kona
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Re: Why some professional triathletes race Ironman/Half Ironman WITHOUT an aero helmet? [Jim@EROsports] [ In reply to ]
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Jim,

I know we've chatted about this some and I'm looking forward to picking back up the discussion when we test those pros in a few weeks.

For the women I think it's a bit tougher. There just aren't as many proven women's aero clothing options out there.

For the guys there are almost too many options, even though a lot of them are crap. But for chicks it's still thin.

I'd really love for one or two companies to come out with something that blows other choices for women out of the water.

Brian Stover USAT LII
Accelerate3 Coaching
Insta

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Re: Why some professional triathletes race Ironman/Half Ironman WITHOUT an aero helmet? [xtianspuma] [ In reply to ]
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xtianspuma wrote:
Well

chrissie and daniella ryff both use normal helmet, a recomendation from sutton

He said he prefer to keep the body fresh, especially due to the hot conditions in kona


Ryf used an aero helmet at Challenge Dubai this year
Last edited by: walie: Mar 29, 15 12:42
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Re: Why some professional triathletes race Ironman/Half Ironman WITHOUT an aero helmet? [tamiii] [ In reply to ]
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tamiii wrote:
Remember Chrissie Wellington... she didnt wear an aero helmet while racing ironman.
Looking at video recaps of some races I always see some pro athletes with a "regular" helmet.

The only thing I see is the ventilation that may be lacking in an aero?
If the outside temperature is too warm it must be like racing with the head in a microwave if you have an aero helmet?
The time that you may win on long distance races wearing an aero helmet is not worth it?

I need to buy a new helmet this year and am racing 1 ironman & many olympics (on a TT bike) hence all these questions!

Thoughts?


Mindgames.

If you think you will be hotter, then your performance will suffer.
Easy as that.

Rest deleted,
as people will believe what they want to believe without actually having data (see above).
Last edited by: windschatten: Mar 29, 15 15:56
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Re: Why some professional triathletes race Ironman/Half Ironman WITHOUT an aero helmet? [Jim@EROsports] [ In reply to ]
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Because Jim, we want to look good. If you can design a Fashion meets Function kit, you've hit the jackpot

leslie myers
http://www.foodsensenow.com
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Re: Why some professional triathletes race Ironman/Half Ironman WITHOUT an aero helmet? [kenpetruzzelli] [ In reply to ]
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Links to older ones? What kind of price are you thinking?
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Re: Why some professional triathletes race Ironman/Half Ironman WITHOUT an aero helmet? [windschatten] [ In reply to ]
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windschatten wrote:
If you think you will be hotter, then your performance will suffer.
Easy as that.

I'd say there is quite a bit of evidence that this is not true.



Kat Hunter reports on the San Dimas Stage Race from inside the GC winning team
Aeroweenie.com -Compendium of Aero Data and Knowledge
Freelance sports & outdoors writer Kathryn Hunter
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Re: Why some professional triathletes race Ironman/Half Ironman WITHOUT an aero helmet? [Mac] [ In reply to ]
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Mac wrote:
I wanna tack on here...aero is the way to go for sure.
Nice article link posted above too.
But - how do us amateurs w/o wind tunnel access find the fastest aero helmet?
Heck, I can't go out & purchase 3 kids and run time trials over & over wearing each. Not practical!

Based on head position, back curve, etc. you can eyeball windtunnel which helmets are likely to work best for you (no way to be sure w/o tunnel testing). There are also helmets that tend to consistently test well for a wide range of riders. For example, the Giro A2 is an older design, but tends to test well for lots of riders (the LG P09 does as well) . It's rarely the top helmet, but regularly in people's top3.
Some helmets (ex. the Spiuk Kronos) are great for a few people (the head-up/flat back crowd), and test poorly on everyone else.

For long tail helmets, make sure to get one where the tail sits well against your back. Less of an issue (or a non-issue) for mid and short tail helmets.

If you post a pic of your aero position the ST peanut gallery will gladly chime in on what helmets might work best, and provide a free critique of room's interior design.

ECMGN Therapy Silicon Valley:
Depression, Neurocognitive problems, Dementias (Testing and Evaluation), Trauma and PTSD, Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI)
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Re: Why some professional triathletes race Ironman/Half Ironman WITHOUT an aero helmet? [xtianspuma] [ In reply to ]
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xtianspuma wrote:
Well

chrissie and daniella ryf both use normal helmet, a recomendation from sutton

He said he prefer to keep the body fresh, especially due to the hot conditions in kona

Ryf's poor aero choices on the bike probably cost her the win at Kona.

Road helmet, loose top w/wrinkles, shallow rear wheel.


Chrissie had such a big engine, she could make poor aero choices and win anyway.

ECMGN Therapy Silicon Valley:
Depression, Neurocognitive problems, Dementias (Testing and Evaluation), Trauma and PTSD, Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI)
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Re: Why some professional triathletes race Ironman/Half Ironman WITHOUT an aero helmet? [Titanflexr] [ In reply to ]
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Quote:
Based on head position, back curve, etc. you can eyeball windtunnel which helmets are likely to work best for you

The more I test the more I find out this isn't true.

Brian Stover USAT LII
Accelerate3 Coaching
Insta

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Re: Why some professional triathletes race Ironman/Half Ironman WITHOUT an aero helmet? [xtianspuma] [ In reply to ]
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xtianspuma wrote:
Well

chrissie and daniella ryff both use normal helmet, a recomendation from sutton

He said he prefer to keep the body fresh, especially due to the hot conditions in kona

Because he says, and I qoute, "It cooks their brain." Sure he has absolutely no data to back this up and the few studies that looked into it, as jackmott described, say they will not. Sure, maybe for some people or maybe even somewhere like Kona that is an issue, but why does he still believe that when all evidence points to contrary? I mean just look at who beat Ryff and the mens podium. Where those people's brains cooked? Of course this is coming from the man that says that woman should not ride disk wheels, because of some hogwash that they beat the rider up to much, apparently even when they are Hed disks that are spoked wheels with a cover! Why would they beat you up more?

Sutton is apparently good at some things, equipment selection is not one of those things.
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