An aero helmet can be had for less than $100. A wheel cover for about the same.

Spending $10,000 isn't the only way to get aero.

Agreed as is making sure your front end is clean and your cables dressed out nicely and you've ticked the boxes on getting the most out of your current ride. There's also a lot of steps between an entry level tri bike and a superbike that are worth considering like a good used P2C or P3C modern enough to have all the cables routed internally.

I don't know your bike or much about your position and there are 'fittings' and fittings so you may or may not be set up as fast as possible right now. You could be running aero bars in a sky high comfort fit and have a lot of low hanging fruit with your current frame or you may be low and tight and very aero but your cycling specific fitness is the low hanging fruit in which case a power meter and or a good coach could be worth far more than the superbike.

Personally I wouldn't drop a couple of months salary on a superbike until you're sure you've taken both your current bike and your cycling fitness pretty far but if you've got the cash and want a new shiny bike then it sure won't hurt.

-Dave

Buy a new bike when you can afford to pay it all in cash without adversely affecting your or your families financial situation. If you can do that you can spend your money however you want.

Guys in the late 80's and early 90's were setting bike splits just as fast as today's using aluminum or steel roadbikes with clipped on aerobars.

Buy it if you have the disposable income to dispose of on a nice toy.

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Remember - It's important to be comfortable in your own skin... because it turns out society frowns on wearing other people's

It is more fun to ride a slow bike fast (and pass people doing it) than to ride a fast bike slow. :)

A top notch bike setup - position, frame, wheels, etc, would bump you up to about 20mph

So, if you would like to go 2mph faster

then do!

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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

That isn't quite true, bike splits have been getting faster any way you slice it.

It is true though that professionals on crap bikes went faster than most of us amateurs do on p5s!

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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

I'd suggest that since the mid 80's the improvements in bike splits have been modest at most, statistically insignificant at worst.

Check out this graph:

http://www.slowtwitch.com/..._in_Hawaii_1048.html

- zoom between 1988 and 2009 and look at the dark green line - its flat. There is no big dip attributable to the arrival of the Cervelo P2/3/4 or Scott Plasma or any other super bike.
The real dip happened beween 84' and '88 when dedicated tribike frames / geometries and intergrated tri-cockpits came along.

Luc Van Lierde set an amazing time in '96. Stadler in 2006. But they're deviations on a fairly steady performance line. Even with Cervelo P5's and Trek SC9.9's around I don't expect this year's bike splits to better 4:20 (though its possible)

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Remember - It's important to be comfortable in your own skin... because it turns out society frowns on wearing other people's

I'd argue that you can get pretty damn good on your Focus and that it's a pretty nice bike when properly fitted. With a disc cover, an aero helmet, and a good position - there won't be a lot separating you from your peers in terms of equipment quality.

Solid points on the helmet, wheel cover etc. and $10k isn't an option and when I mention super-bike I meant a $3k shiv. (Which would be plenty super to me)
But let's say I invested in the lower cost upgrades, do they benefit a modest cyclist like me to the point of worth buying? I continue to build my engine, since I am sure a CAT 1 cyclist could rock my current setup. Or does the difference in aerodynamics between my ride and the Shiv make little difference at 18mph? It seems getting increasing aero becomes more important as you get fitter. So I'm asking where the benefits really become valuable.
For my income, even $3k would be a stretch. Yes, I've had video fit and all that, and I'm as low as my belly will allow.
I run SRAM Force, and chose aluminum so I could afford a better shifting group. Not jonsing for new stuff, and if I look at my splits, I will gain more from swim coaching than more carbon fiber.
Yesterday at Vineman all the 30-35 year old blew buy me on a fleet of Cervelos, and I started wondering "how fast would I be going if I had a P5?"

Interesting, if this is true. 2 mph seems like a huge amount. I am in the same position as the OP, aluminum base model tri-bike (a few year old model) but it has internal routing and a hidden rear brake and 50mm carbon race wheels. I rode Vineman yesterday at around 18.1@about 150 watts average - haven't checked my power file yet but I took it pretty easy to save for the run. I know, my power is weak... I have a lot of work (gain?) to do there.

I've resisted spending any more money on my gear because I feel like I have a lot to gain on the fitness side. I've also considered picking up an older P3C or the like, but I wasn't sure how much more aero a 5-7 year old P3C would be over a 3 year old base model aluminum version of a "superbike".

I certainly respect Jack's aero estimates but that 2 mph seems generous in this case. In recent threads 2 mph seemed about right or even a tad on the high side for folks moving from a road bike to a well fitted TT bike with the aero goodies. Going from a decently fitted Tri bike as the OP already has (and you already have) to a high end TT/Tri bike I doubt you'd see as big a jump in speed vs power.

Of course if you or the OP can also achieve a much better fit on the new bike then it could be a very reasonable estimate.

-Dave

It looks flat but it isn't. Hawaii is about the noisiest place to measure this too (huge wind variability), yet the trend is still faster.

Would be interesting to get the most recent data in there too, in the last three years almost ALL of the strong bikers have been on good bike setups, whereas the trend in that flat-ish period was for the good cyclists to be on shit frames (Torbjorn on Argon, Norman on Kuota, etc)

I ran the numbers myself about 3 years ago, should do it again.

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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

No you are right, I was thinking road bike to TT bike.

Might still be 2mph there depending on tires and current position

But maybe more like 1mph with a top notch frame, wheels, helmet etc. which is still a lot!

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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

Probably many will say "don't listen to hotman" but there IS a source of FREE SPEED! RAISE your seat ONE INCH and slide it forward and SLANT IT DOWN as much as possible. You will go 5% FASTER from the first pedal! You may then want to lower your bars. The three people who have done this rant and rave about much faster and easier biking is with this set up. Do not reject it till you have TRIED IT!

this is a hobby. something you do for fun.
there is no 'need' here. buy a cool bike if you've got the coin and you fall in love with it. It may bring you pleasure.

as suggested above- start with a good position, an aero helmet, wheels or a cover, cleaning up your current steed, tires (GP4000S and latex tubes). Sounds like you've already got a power meter- so that's good.

at that point- ~$3K will buy you a pretty nice new steed, that you'll probably really enjoy. Will the extra 1 minute saved in a 70.3 really make a difference to you? probably not. You won't really know how much time you saved anyway. You may have a lot more 'fun' just because you love your new piece of technology tho'.

the only downside is being passed by chicks on lesser bikes.

When I put Focus tri bike in a google search I saw some pretty nice bikes. Which one do you have?

jaretj

It's a 2009 Culebro Tria. I had the pro fit done at Mikes Bikes in the Bay Area and that was huge benefit. I have A PowerTap, and 4000s, but it's otherwise stock except for the stem/seat from the fit.

That's a pretty nice bike from what I see. I don't think you'll get another 2mph out of anything else unless the geometry is holding you back from getting in a better aero position.

jaretj

The fitter said I can't go lower without my knees hitting my fat stomach. Lol. That's where the work has to be done. Just back into this after a long time off and moving in the right direction.

That depends on you.

Assuming the P5 fits the same as your Focus - and assuming you have "low end" equipment on it - the answer is going to be something along the lines of "not a whole lot" imo.

This guy? That's a nice bike imo. Put a wheelcover on your powertap wheel, get an aero helmet, and work on the motor.

If you're averaging 18 mph - chances are a "superbike" isn't going to magically help that overnight. Especially over this bike if it's fitted well for you.

yep, that's it. Getting back into the sport from scratch, I chose to get a 910xt, PowerTap, SpeedPlay Zeros, Helix wetsuit, and some nice cycling shoes. You guys/gals know how it all adds up. Got the bike on close-out for $1,300, and that was just my limit. Love hearing that I'm not being left behind just because I don't have deep pockets. Fitness is something I can change and take pride in.
Maybe Santa can bring me a 404 for Christmas..... :)

Cheers,

Michael