I’m finding all the aerodynamic data we’re being bombarded with is starting to take the attention away from the athlete and onto the equipment…
It’s getting to the point where you’d think you have to spend a few days in the wind tunnel each year to be competitive in this sport.
If you just buy and off the shelf time trial bike and a set of deep race wheels without researching according to all the figures being bandied around you could be up to 3 minutes slower then your competitors that have the right pair of pedals, sunglasses, helmet, aerobars etc…
I really don’t like the focus on technology and it’s starting to make me wonder if triathlon will become out of reach for the average person who wants to just get out there and race other people without having to invest thousands and thousands and thousands to be competitive.
Of course, my head tells me that really all the data isn’t so transferable to the real world as the manufacturers would like us to believe, but even so, it’d be nice to have a little more focus on developing physical capabilities.
everyone is still free to enter triathlons with a steel round tube bike
and such a bike is probably faster than of lot of the fake aero bikes
=)
I’m finding all the aerodynamic data we’re being bombarded with is starting to take the attention away from the athlete and onto the equipment…
It’s getting to the point where you’d think you have to spend a few days in the wind tunnel each year to be competitive in this sport.
If you just buy and off the shelf time trial bike and a set of deep race wheels without researching according to all the figures being bandied around you could be up to 3 minutes slower then your competitors that have the right pair of pedals, sunglasses, helmet, aerobars etc…
I really don’t like the focus on technology and it’s starting to make me wonder if triathlon will become out of reach for the average person who wants to just get out there and race other people without having to invest thousands and thousands and thousands to be competitive.
Of course, my head tells me that really all the data isn’t so transferable to the real world as the manufacturers would like us to believe, but even so, it’d be nice to have a little more focus on developing physical capabilities.
I think some people enjoy playing around with the numbers and finding the latest and greatest gear. Others just get a bike and try to make it faster by pedaling harder. There is merit in either approach. If you race often enough, you occasionally win or lose by very small margins where some equipment choice may cost you a place, particularly in heats against time. In any event, no bike is going to pedal itself.
That’s actually a part of the sport that I love. I’m a bike geek. And yes, all that stuff can make you 3 minutes faster in a 40k tt/tri. Does 3 minutes make the difference between being able to participate in a tri? Of course not.
I try to make a point not to be elitist and encourage a lot of people to race tris on road bikes, even mtn bikes.
But I personally love having the right tool for the job. Heck, I’ve even got 2 mtn bikes for different terrain.
Simon Smart, ex aerodynamics expert on F1 team Red Bull and now a consult for Team Columbia says in procyclicng that 90 procent of energy during cycling is burned on overcoming the drag.Someone with a not so good position on the bike can cause 75-80 % of that drag all by himself, the rest caused by the bike. On a smaller person, woman for example,her part of drag could be as low as 60%. But think of it. is it worth refining your ridining positiong, check on it from all angels, compare to what the pros look like, think what looks unnecessary, which open spaces are presented. where is turbulence caused. and eliminate them. flat back, drop helmet between shoulders, head straight, shaved legs, using an aero bottle. having your hands tight together on the aerio bars, etfc. or you can just go out and buy the hottest aero stuff.
even I though, will rolls my eyes at threads like “speedplay claims huge aero gains from pedals”
That’s actually a part of the sport that I love. I’m a bike geek. And yes, all that stuff can make you 3 minutes faster in a 40k tt/tri. Does 3 minutes make the difference between being able to participate in a tri? Of course not.
I try to make a point not to be elitist and encourage a lot of people to race tris on road bikes, even mtn bikes.
But I personally love having the right tool for the job. Heck, I’ve even got 2 mtn bikes for different terrain.
I really like the technological elements of the sport, actually. Though I don’t know how much of the wind tunnel data fully transmits to real life racing, I’m intrigued by aerodynamics and enjoy studying it.
I wouldn’t sweat it. If you’re in a position where 2 or 3 minutes in either direction is keeping you from reaching your goals or enjoying the sport then you’re a lot more competitive than most of us.
I am on an old aluminium frame with (gasp) round tubing and a set of old 404 clinchers and I am more aero than a majority of the field on any given race day. Things like proper position, helmet, tires, water bottles, etc… can make as much, or more, of a difference than thousands of dollars worth of the latest gear. Of course, if you have the means, having the latest gear AND being smart about set up is better, but there are very few racers with both money and smarts.
don’t worry about it, the ST crowd is not necessarily a real representitive sample of all triathletes. You also will find a lot of discussion on wattage, ftp, VI, here. These are guys who are seeing how hard they can push still run fast. I think it is some real cool stuff
I’m finding all the aerodynamic data we’re being bombarded with is starting to take the attention away from the athlete and onto the equipment…
It’s getting to the point where you’d think you have to spend a few days in the wind tunnel each year to be competitive in this sport.
If you just buy and off the shelf time trial bike and a set of deep race wheels without researching according to all the figures being bandied around you could be up to 3 minutes slower then your competitors that have the right pair of pedals, sunglasses, helmet, aerobars etc…
I really don’t like the focus on technology and it’s starting to make me wonder if triathlon will become out of reach for the average person who wants to just get out there and race other people without having to invest thousands and thousands and thousands to be competitive.
Of course, my head tells me that really all the data isn’t so transferable to the real world as the manufacturers would like us to believe, but even so, it’d be nice to have a little more focus on developing physical capabilities.
I think the whole idea is that by learning from people who do go to the windtunnel YOU dont have to. There have been quite a few lately and I love it, it beats threads about whether lance dopes, contador is a jerk, whats your favorite flavor clif bar, etc.
In any sport where an athlete races to be competitive and in the top 5, equipment is very important not just tri’s. Plus, aero gear isnt as person-specific as a training plan.
There’s a reason that there’s “WeightWeenies.com” b/c some can/want to be that light at that price.
There’s also a reason that people still make steel frames.
There’s enough for everyone, and there’s that reason that old guy with rusty safety-pins on his race number in centuries, or marathons, or unshaven legs in tri always beats me/us…genetics and experience and perseverance!
It’s become a bit ridiculous with all the claims. You don’t know who to believe any more. When I bought my early model P2K with rear disc and Jet 60 front I was state of the art for the time, but since then I’ve just accepted that I’m in this for fun and can’t afford updating to the latest and greatest every few weeks.
It’s interesting that the UCI has been nibbling around the edges of this but has not just gone ahead and banned aero bars in the open TT events. They have a spec for the hour record bike, why not just add brakes, soften it a little if needed to encompass off the shelf road bikes and be done with it. I’d be more than happy to just roll out on a plain old road bike with normal wheels, the finish order would be the same, just the times would be slower.
Since nobody watches or cares about time trials, it would hardly be the shot heard round the world.
In terms of triathlon, it would be a whale of a lot safer out there if riders were just using normal road bikes.
But it’s not going to happen, so I need to digest all this glop before I decide on a TT bike that I can do half decent on w/o wasting a lot of money.
It’s become a bit ridiculous with all the claims. You don’t know who to believe any more. When I bought my early model P2K with rear disc and Jet 60 front I was state of the art for the time, but since then I’ve just accepted that I’m in this for fun and can’t afford updating to the latest and greatest every few weeks.
All the BS and hype aside, that setup is still very nearly state of the art right now.
Assuming comparable positions, you are probably giving up a handful of seconds over 40k to the same “you” riding a Shiv or P4 w/ Sub-9 or whatever high-zoot wheels on it.
The relatively cheap stuff anybody can do to go faster w/o going broke:
proper bike fit
actually staying in aero position while riding (see: proper bike fit)
wheel cover for rear if you don’t own a disk
aero helmet
fast tires
latex tubes
no loose/flapping stuff
I enjoy all the tech talk, and I’ve applied as much of it (see my list above) as I can w/o breaking the budget.
Eventually I’d like to upgrade my trusty old-style B2 for a more aero frame (but mostly so I can potentially get myself more aero too, as I have maxed out my position on the current bike, due to geometry limitations of the former B2 frameset).
Don’t sweat it dude, these things go in cycles (no pun intended) in slowtwitchville. Pretty soon the front page posts will shift to run volume, which peaks (again, no pun intended) in late fall, then move onto swimming in mid winter, then back to running around Boston time, and back to cycling again come spring.
BTW, I’m with you, cover the aero basics, then get on with the hard work. Even the slowest Tour de France rider after 3 grueling weeks can out TT 99% of slowtwitchers on a 24lb round tubed, non-aero wheeled 1985 Schwinn LeTour because of his massive engine and endless miles in the legs.
It’s become a bit ridiculous with all the claims. You don’t know who to believe any more. When I bought my early model P2K with rear disc and Jet 60 front I was state of the art for the time, but since then I’ve just accepted that I’m in this for fun and can’t afford updating to the latest and greatest every few weeks.
All the BS and hype aside, that setup is still very nearly state of the art right now.
Assuming comparable positions, you are probably giving up a handful of seconds over 40k to the same “you” riding a Shiv or P4 w/ Sub-9 or whatever high-zoot wheels on it…
Only if you consider ~1 to 2 minutes over 40K to be just “a handful of seconds”…you must have BIG hands
It’s interesting that the UCI has been nibbling around the edges of this but has not just gone ahead and banned aero bars in the open TT events. They have a spec for the hour record bike, why not just add brakes, soften it a little if needed to encompass off the shelf road bikes and be done with it. I’d be more than happy to just roll out on a plain old road bike with normal wheels, the finish order would be the same, just the times would be slower.
I’m not convinced that last statement would be true.
even I though, will rolls my eyes at threads like “speedplay claims huge aero gains from pedals”
That’s actually a part of the sport that I love. I’m a bike geek. And yes, all that stuff can make you 3 minutes faster in a 40k tt/tri. Does 3 minutes make the difference between being able to participate in a tri? Of course not.
I try to make a point not to be elitist and encourage a lot of people to race tris on road bikes, even mtn bikes.
But I personally love having the right tool for the job. Heck, I’ve even got 2 mtn bikes for different terrain.
I agree. Frame aerodynamics, wheels etc OK but WTF pedals and EYEGLASSES???
