Just watched a preview ride of the Nice bike course and there negligible flats/straights where it looks like you can get down on the aerobars. What’s the consensus on road vs. TT bike on a course like that where you spend the majority of your time climbing or descending technical roads?
https://forum.slowtwitch.com/forum/Slowtwitch_Forums_C1/Triathlon_Forum_F1/Bike_choice_for_70.3_Nice_P6993765
https://forum.slowtwitch.com/forum/Slowtwitch_Forums_C1/Triathlon_Forum_F1/IM_70.3_WC_-_NICE_P6886314
.
Thanks…didn’t see that
.
I did the Best Bike Split analysis (https://www.bestbikesplit.com/) and it was 30 seconds slower for my wife on aero road bike vs. TT bike and 60 seconds slower for standard road bike vs TT. (same wheels, and weight).
So, as far as time goes, it’s close either way.
Running off the TT bike vs running off the road bike after a heavy climb (albeit early) - I’m not sure which would be better - or if there is a difference.
I did the Best Bike Split analysis (https://www.bestbikesplit.com/) and it was 30 seconds slower for my wife on aero road bike vs. TT bike and 60 seconds slower for standard road bike vs TT. (same wheels, and weight).
So, as far as time goes, it’s close either way.
Running off the TT bike vs running off the road bike after a heavy climb (albeit early) - I’m not sure which would be better - or if there is a difference.
For her, perhaps but not for others. Perhaps she has a really aggressive position on the road bike? Are her drag numbers on both bikes as accurate as can be using the aero analyzer? Does she just have a very upright position on her tri bike? These are all things to consider before saying what works for your wife works for anyone else.
While I am advocating against anecdotes, here is mine: I had a 5 minute difference between my 7.8kg Cervelo S3 and my 10.46kg Felt IA10. Even with all that extra weight, I was still faster on the tri bike by a race-breaking time.
My guess is that for 99% of people, tri bikes will always be faster, just as the disc would also be faster here than lightweight wheels. This last statement is covered in hundreds of threads.
I think mine came in at 6 minutes faster trek SC vs Madone
.
It’s going to be the rare triathlon where a road bike with clip ons is going to be the faster choice.
It’s going to be the rare triathlon where a road bike with clip ons is going to be the faster choice.
+1
Plus I’m going to the Alps after for some cycling adventures and didn’t want to bring 2 bikes. But I don’t care about time, it’s more of a cycling vacation with a triathlon thrown in.
I’m curious why this topics keeps coming up. My understanding is that
- A tri bike will always give you a faster bike split unless you’re literally climbing the Alpe d’huez
- Even if the road bike is slightly faster in that rare scenario, you’re going to run slower off of it due to geometry/fit and the strong likelihood that you’re racing in a different position and using different muscles than you trained with
Not trying to be flippant here, just wondering why the question is asked when 99.999% of the time the answer is “tri bike”. Am I missing something?
In my case: I read this post in the hope that someone might tell me that actually riding my Cervelo R3 which is infinitely more pleasurable to ride than my Slice, and where i can hold a decent power value over time, will be faster than the TT option… It must be true, it feels so much better and faster…
But no - I cross checked my results from past 10 mile TTs on my TT bike vs recently on my road bike and even though i am now much faster and can hold high power for the duration i was slower than as a newbie on the TT bike.
I’m curious why this topics keeps coming up. My understanding is that
- A tri bike will always give you a faster bike split unless you’re literally climbing the Alpe d’huez
- Even if the road bike is slightly faster in that rare scenario, you’re going to run slower off of it due to geometry/fit and the strong likelihood that you’re racing in a different position and using different muscles than you trained with
Not trying to be flippant here, just wondering why the question is asked when 99.999% of the time the answer is “tri bike”. Am I missing something?
Because somewhere, someone once decided that tri bikes don’t climb as well as road bikes, and therefore any course with even a small hill on it is obviously better done on a road bike. It’s among the list of actual stupid questions. They exist, and “should I use a road bike instead of a tri bike” is one of them.
That said I once raced a sprint tri where the bike course climbed 1000 ft over the first 5 miles, then had a twisty, switchbacked descent down the back of the mountain. Only the last 2 miles were on straighter terrain where the aerobars could be used. That was probably only case I would ever consider a road bike in a triathlon assuming I had a tri bike also available.
I’m curious why this topics keeps coming up. My understanding is that
- A tri bike will always give you a faster bike split unless you’re literally climbing the Alpe d’huez
- Even if the road bike is slightly faster in that rare scenario, you’re going to run slower off of it due to geometry/fit and the strong likelihood that you’re racing in a different position and using different muscles than you trained with
Not trying to be flippant here, just wondering why the question is asked when 99.999% of the time the answer is “tri bike”. Am I missing something?
Because somewhere, someone once decided that tri bikes don’t climb as well as road bikes, and therefore any course with even a small hill on it is obviously better done on a road bike. It’s among the list of actual stupid questions. They exist, and “should I use a road bike instead of a tri bike” is one of them.
That said I once raced a sprint tri where the bike course climbed 1000 ft over the first 5 miles, then had a twisty, switchbacked descent down the back of the mountain. Only the last 2 miles were on straighter terrain where the aerobars could be used. That was probably only case I would ever consider a road bike in a triathlon assuming I had a tri bike also available.
This last paragraph is why I asked the question. I understand a Tri bike will always be faster **when you can use the aerobars **, so to ask my question a bit differently- does this course prohibit the use of aerobars enough due to climbing and technical descending that a road bike might be faster? And just to put it out there, I’m comfortable up to 50+mph in the aerobars on a straight descent and competent on technical descents on my road bike, just not sure I can stay on the aerobars on the technical sections of this particular descent. And I assume that I won’t be on the aerobars on much of the ascent. To my understanding, best bike split assumes the use of aerobars on a Tri bike, which on this course may be a faulty assumption.
I think the tricky part in this race will be faster descenders approaching those sharper turns where less experienced riders are moving extremely slow. When there’s 2-3 riders abreast it could get interesting.
Wouldn’t it depend how steep and technical the descents are? To my knowledge best bike split doesn’t take account things like cornering, weight distributions, and the aero advantage of descending on a road bike on the drops or super tucking.
N=1 sample size, but there is no way in hell i could descend any road as fast on the TT bike as the road bike. The braking/cornering of disc brakes and using the drops is miles away from the awkward position on the bullhorns. Even in a straight line, I’m much more aero super tucking on my road bike than the TT bike, plus I have more control and can take fast corners in full tuck. Combined with the added comfort/lighter weight of climbing on a road bike, I think you’d more than make up the aero deficit on a climb/descent.
have to make sure you are in front of them by then!!!
your right. Makes no sense.
I see it like this . People have shitty TT setups that make is so they hate riding them and can’t generate power be it aero or upright.
On there road bike they ride more comfortably upright ( breathing) and can possibly generate more power with a different fit and it maybe a slight bit lighter.
SO they think it is faster but a watt is a watt. the power meter doesn’t measure which bike you are on.
I road the course in June and had no qualms about going with the tri bike. This was posted on the IM 70.3 WC Nice FB page today and the result surprised me:
As a couple of other people have alluded to I think the reason this is coming up (at least for me) has to do with the descent, not the climb. I did the race in Austria a few years ago and had no qualms about using my TT bike as I am comfortable going up and down mountains on it. However, the race organizers have done a great job instilling the fear of God in to me and obviously a few others, with the numerous warnings on both the course directions and the course video. Personally I am much more comfortable with my road bike and disc brakes than my TT bike with carbon rims and caliper brakes for a twisty and stop start course like this one.
However, given all the comments that I have seen, I am going with my TT bike.
Good luck to everyone racing there no matter what you ride.
Thanks for posting.
Not the best test though, as he had aero bars on his road bike ( basically was a tri bike). But on this course all the hard work is on the hoods anyways. I would have likely to see descents fast and see if he can stay aero or has to stay on the hoods.
like I mentioned before a watt is a watt.
The road bike and tri bike go up the same.
I am taking my tri bike super light set up plus I am going to make sure I drink much more water then he did.
I am no aero expert so I’ll stay out of that side of things, but I would have thought a key part of the consideration here is gearing. If someone takes a 53/39 11/25 TT bike onto the Nice course then they might have a fairly unpleasant time of it. They might end up with wasted legs from having to grind in 39-25 and have a sub-standard run on the back of it. Alternatively, the same person might take a road bike with a 52/36 11/28 or even a 50/34 11/30 or 11/32 onto the same course they will feel significantly better because they will take longer to run out of gears. Add into this that if you have to get out of the saddle for the steep stuff, my N=1 is that being out of the saddle on the TT bike is not as efficient as being out of the saddle on a road bike.
I am not the strongest cyclist in the world and for CeltMan this year invested in a 50/34 up front and it felt much better than the 53/39 I had been mashing the pedals on previously for flatter races. Even if it was partly placebo effect, so long as I did feel better then it doesn’t really matter.
Therefore, if all things considered a TT bike will *always *be faster than a road bike except for grand tour style climbs, then a TT bike with a more sympathetic gearing could be the ticket for a lot of riders?