I haven’t been in the sport for long but I am really enjoying it. Here pictures of me on recent bike leg of Singapore 70.3, any observations from more experienced ST’ers is greatly appreciated.
What’s Guitar Golf and how do you play it?
What’s Guitar Golf and how do you play it?
check again… 
Your front wheel is mounted backwards. Compare the decals with the rear wheel. The profile of the spoke of a HED3 is not symmetric.
Your front wheel is mounted backwards. Compare the decals with the rear wheel. The profile of the spoke of a HED3 is not symmetric.
I don’t have any experience, so I will ask the question: “Are you serious?”
“I don’t have any experience”
Obvious…to the most casual observer…
“so I will ask the question: “Are you serious?””
Yes he is. The H3 has airfoil shaped spokes which are, by design, directional. Blunter edge greets the wind, tapered edge kisses it goodbye. Don’t fret tho’, you are in good company. Jan Ulrich couldn’t get his front Xentis on correctly either!
Yes, he’s serious. The valve hole should be on the right side.
On what side of the bike should one be?
Sorry, the valve holes should be on the drivetrain side.
In response to the original question … I think that your position looks pretty good.
Thanks for the observation on the direction of the front wheel. Just so I am sure of what I am doing then: the valve of the rear wheel is currently on the right side of the bike when I am mounted on it, the valve of the front wheel currently is also on the right side, in order to correct the wheel position the valve on the front wheel would be on the opposite side (i.e. left). Is this correct?, sorry for the detail but I want to make sure I have it right, its the way the LBS installed it.
Any other comments?, I have the desire to get a bit lower on the front, I still have about 2 spacers in the headtube, my bike fitter says its a good position already.
If your valve holes are on the right (drivetrain side ) of the bike, you are correct!! It appears as though you have them on just fine as I see no valve hole on the left side in your photos. The decals are placed differently, which lead to the first comment about your wheel being on backwards, which is no big deal.
Just make sure your front looks like your rear. You cannot mount the rear backwards. Both valves need to be on the right, or drivetrain, side.
The decals on my H3’s align the same way as those in the photos in the OP when mounted properly.
Your wheel is fine, but, the rest of your bike is on the wrong side. B~)
Zipp nailed it.
Sure, you can get lower. But, how do you breathe when you are lower? How do you digest when you are lower? If you were doing a sprint, I’d try lower, for a half, I personally wouldn’t go lower. But, I’m no Bjorn…he’s lower. You’ll find better riders than you that are lower, higher, and the same as you. Tinker with your position, take notes over a period of time, and you’ll find out what works the best. Best of wishes in doing so…that’s half the fun to me!
I think your seat should be a little higher and your whole body more forward. Better cross angel shots would help the critics, try to get one with your foot all the way down and one with the leg all the way up. Also a straight on head shot and a straight on butt shot would be good. And get a real freaking helmet. But more important, what did you think of Singapore? Tim
Thank’s, I concluded that my wheels are mounted properly then.
I will try to get different angle shots soon, it’s hard to get good pictures at an actual race, I guess I could stage them and have my wife take some but somehow I think the actual race ones are more realistic of how I am actually riding under ‘real’ circumstances.
I am thinking about the helmet… soon.
Tim: I thought it was ok, I seriously think the bike course had a couple of very risky turns, I did witness a few accidents. Other than that it seems to have been good, I heard people had generally positive comments.
For my amateur eye, it looks like your saddle may be a tad low, and you may want to move your saddle forward. But then, I’m not a fitter, just a tinkerer.
For my personal use, the best approach I have found to work is
do some roll-down tests: find a down-hill in a controlled environment, where you can do repeat runs while gathering your max speed, while changing one parameter at a time. This will allow you to (well, sort of, not nearly as scientifically as in a tunnel) determine the aerodynamically best position. Best thing is to repeat a (series of) test(s) on one or more days, to eliminate measuring error, minor winds, etc.put a power meter on your bike for the position(s) that came out best during the roll-down, and do a time-trial (could be on a CompuTrainer). This will allow you to determine what position awards the most power. Make sure to record level of comfort, don’t just do a short TT but at least 40kTake the remaining position(s) - ideally with a power meter - to a ride you do regularly and know pretty well, in terms of RPE, and do it at least twice for each position, making sure to record RPE (plus power data if available).Once you have one or more final candidates, make sure to do a couple of transition runs (at the very least 4 miles), to ensure that your legs are in good shape for running after spending (race) time in the new position(s).
At the end, you are likely to end up with the most powerful and aerodynamic position for your personal application. Granted, this process can take days if not weeks and requires considerable patience and equipment (power meter, etc). What I found most interesting, though, is that after I did the above process using a CT, I arrived at very close to the FIST position documented here on slowtwitch. Got a power meter this year, and did some fine-tuning, but the position (pictures taken on the trainer, with points of reference marked on body to measure angles) did not deviate significantly.
What it comes down to, IMO, is that fitting is a highly individual process. Finding a reputable pro is one great way to go about it. Personally, I am just too curious about the implications of changing parameters and impact on performance and aerodynamics, so I did it myself, learning as I went. Of course this home-made approach takes considerably longer than if going with a pro, and chances are a pro would still improve the position, but I learned a lot about my body and performance in the different positions, which - to me - was invaluable. Does not mean it’s optimal. YMMV.
- Stephan