Josh is totally right. I'll elaborate on the frames of reference for each claim I made in the Bicycling article very soon, but just so everyone knows most of the quotes were meant to be referenced for general cases (how you'd actually ride the bike, component, etc.). Another thing I'd like to preface everything with is that frontal area and drag are not everything! Disc and aero wheels (at certain yaw angles) can actually contribute forward thrust to the bike due to side forces involved. I'm not trying to say wear an aero helmet and ditch the wheels -- rather I'm trying to mention what should be done if you're trying to get faster on a budget. Cycling and triathlon are expensive sports and the general public should know that they aren't at a loss if they don't have a $10,000 bike!
I'll get into more detail over the next few days, but just know that I didn't make up the things I said in that article and I knew I'd need to back up a lot of the details. Dr. Kim Blair and I are extremely meticulous when we test (and when we release data). I apologize for the lack of context for a lot of the aero notes, but it was Bicycling's choice to not publish the details I included. However, I think the article points to some interesting things that haven't really been written down anywhere.
Thanks for all of your comments. -- Mark Cote, MIT Center for Sports Innovation
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Mark Cote
MITAerobike
Specialized Bicycle Components
I'll get into more detail over the next few days, but just know that I didn't make up the things I said in that article and I knew I'd need to back up a lot of the details. Dr. Kim Blair and I are extremely meticulous when we test (and when we release data). I apologize for the lack of context for a lot of the aero notes, but it was Bicycling's choice to not publish the details I included. However, I think the article points to some interesting things that haven't really been written down anywhere.
Thanks for all of your comments. -- Mark Cote, MIT Center for Sports Innovation
--
Mark Cote
MITAerobike
Specialized Bicycle Components