So I’m two years into this sport, still bringing my roadie to races and starting to get real jealous of the guys on P5’s or Shivs blowing by me in the headwinds. But I’m also not at the point where I’m willing to spend to buy a decent tri bike. So I’m looking now for the one accessory that will give me the biggest aero (or other speed) advantage for a reasonable price. Is it a helmet? high quality suit? tires even? I suspect the correct answer is “aerobars”…
Not an expert, but from what I’ve gathered over the 8+ years I’ve been doing this, here are a few thoughts.
Helmet - Giro A2 is a great bet and priced quite cheaply
Tires & latex tubes - good tires and tubes save a significant chunk of time
Clip on aero bars - get you into a lower position
These three pretty simple changes might total $300 or so and could save a good amount of time.
Carbon wheels are a less economical way to go and are pretty pricey for the gains you make compared to a good helmet.
A tight fitting race kit is definitely better than anything flapping in the wind - size down, especially on the top.
Latex tubes and tires with good rolling resistance that fit your wheels. And chain lube.
I think a lot of people here are missing that you don’t have clip on aerobars. Aerobars and a good position will probably get you 50% of your potential maximum aero+crr gains for about 2% of what that theoretical outlay would be.
A good position takes time and testing to achieve but you can get pretty close by trying to mimic guys like Kienle, Frodeno, etc.
So I’m two years into this sport, still bringing my roadie to races and starting to get real jealous of the guys on P5’s or Shivs blowing by me in the headwinds. But I’m also not at the point where I’m willing to spend to buy a decent tri bike. So I’m looking now for the one accessory that will give me the biggest aero (or other speed) advantage for a reasonable price. Is it a helmet? high quality suit? tires even? I suspect the correct answer is “aerobars”…
Yep definitely aerobars but not far behind is tires, tubes, aero helmet.
not an expert but from what I’ve read and experienced myself in order of lowest $/saved watt
- clip on aero bars - cheapest of the options and I think they will save you around 5-10%… could be off on the % so people please correct me
- good hydration set up (i.e. BTA and behind the saddle vs round bottle on the downtube)
- Aero helmet
- latex tube - I’ve heard they can save you as much as 5 watts per tire
- good fitting aero tri suit
Then there’s also getting a good fit - Could by highest or lowest bang for your buck depending on your fit now.
Deep, aero wheels are probably the most exciting upgrade but you basically get the same time savings with an aero helmet for 10-20% of the cost.
Everyone is neglecting to mention a wheel cover for $99.
Everyone is neglecting to mention a wheel cover for $99.
THIS.
The air thinks it’s a disk. Your wallet thinks it’s 1/10 or 1/20th of a disk.
But - there’s the weight penalty of having all that extra $ in your wallet. 
Everyone is neglecting to mention a wheel cover for $99.
I was wondering this the other day - do the covers have a hole in them for valve access? I haven’t seen that they do from pics. What do you do if you get a rear flat during a race with a wheel cover?
there’s a cut out for valve access. pump the tire, put a sticker on and you’re done
Give this tool a try, it should help you out.
Along with positioning, tight fitting clothes offers good bang for the buck.
testing
other than your time, it’s free… and it will make you faster.
My $.02 is all of the above but also keep in perspective that the people flying by you are most likely just better cyclists, not more aero. Get a TR subscription and ride with roadies.
Clip on aero bars is #1. I used my roadie with clip ons for 4 years and it worked well. I also used the profile design fast forward seatpost to change up the geometry to mimic a tri bike.
Get really strong on the bike first and foremost, then get a skin suit, get a good bike fit (say Retul), and an aero helmet. That’s all you need.
But if you got the $$$, you can do more…
Clip on Tri-bars.
People are saying an aero-helmet, but without tri-bars there is no point in having an aero-helmet.
BTA nutrition might also be difficult without the tri-bars!
Body Position (Aerobars!)
Tight Clothes
Tires/Tubes
Helmet
.
Not to dissuade you from your plan, as I likely won’t, but you may want to hold off buying any equipment until you spring for the tri bike. I agree that aero bars are a good choice and can be fun to practice the position prior to buying a whole new frame. However, you’ll never use them again once you get the new bike. If this is a 2-3 year solution, then it’s probably a good purchase, but if it’s a 1-year bridge to your new P5 or Shiv, IMO just save your money. And without the bars, the wheels, helmet and expensive suit maybe don’t make sense. Maybe they do if you know you’d buy the same exact models with your tri bike.
I bought Profile Design aero bars for my Look road bike and used them for my first IM and it was great. But then I bought a tri bike one year later - RIP aero bars. Also mentally it’s nice to wait on “buying” those time savings until you’re passing those guys on the nice bikes.
Clip on Tri-bars.
People are saying an aero-helmet, but without tri-bars there is no point in having an aero-helmet.
BTA nutrition might also be difficult without the tri-bars!
Even with normal road bars, an aero helmet will help.