How much further can bike design go?

Triathlon Forum
1

How much further can bike design go (whilst remaining a bike)? How much of a time benifit will future bikes give compair to current bikes?

I guess there is still plenty of room for improvements in gear/drive train systems. When mountain bike I often think how exposed an vonrable to damage and wear the current systems are. And I guess there must be a reasonable amount of power lost through the current mechanisms that can maybe be improved.

So how much better will future TT/Tri bikes be? where will we see the improvements?

2

With aerodynamics they’re probably fairly close to maxed out, at least with a double diamond frame.

Probably going to see more carbon/super plastic type materials in the future. Look for 15 lbs bikes as being the norm.

What about continuously variable automatic transmissions for a bike? They would have to be light to be viable.

3

The truth of the matter is not much further. I like all the geegaws too, but more as a hobby than any real improvement.

Look at it this way. The weight of the bike can only go down by 15 pounds or so. At that point its virtually weightless.

The rolling resistance and drivetrain resistance can be improved to zero.

The coefficient of drag can go to zero.

This leaves a rider on a frictionless, weightless, completely aero bike, but still has his weight and aero drag, which is the major source for both.

Even riding this theoretically perfect bicycle I doubt that you would take more than 8 minutes off a 40Km TT versus the current state of the art.

Styrrell

4

“Everything that can be invented, has been invented,” announced Charles H. Duell, commissioner of the U.S. Patents Office, in 1899. Time Magazine, Forward Thinking, October 3, 2004

5

Never said it. In fact is on record saying just the opposite.

http://66.102.7.104/search?q=cache:zL04sW_3SxMJ:www.myoutbox.net/posass.htm+charles+h+duell&hl=en

6

The coefficient of drag can go to zero.

This leaves a rider on a frictionless, weightless, completely aero bike, but still has his weight and aero drag, which is the major source for both.

Even riding this theoretically perfect bicycle I doubt that you would take more than 8 minutes off a 40Km TT versus the current state of the art.

Styrrell
Couldn’t agree more. I blew by a guy on a Litespeed Blade last weekend on my entry level Canondale, my 140lbs will beat his 190lbs no matter how aero and light his bike is.

7

bike design can go a long way. As long as the UCI doesn’t stick their grubby noses in too often.

8

I think weight is the next big thing - bikes are pretty damn aero now if you have the $$$ so are wheels. What’s going to change is 14 pound Aero-tubing bikes at Ironman races and $3000 wheelsets that are under 1000g…

9

my 140lbs will beat his 190lbs no matter how aero and light his bike is.
REALLY? i sure have beat a lot of lighter guys in TTs and road races

10

Honestly a bicycle is a pretty amazing thing. If you look back at nearly every other form of transportation and its design 100 years ago, a bicycle remains pretty much the same. It is a beautiful, pure, work. Aside from lower weight and slightly better aerodynamics changes are slight.

What was the first vehicle to reach a speed of 1 mile a minute? the second?

-SD

11

RR Steam engine… and then a bicycle drafting the steam engine.

12

I think the question is what will be the next hot frame / fork / wheel / drivetrain material. Seems to me there hasn’t been as much drive train material changes as there has been frame and fork. Maybe that will be the next big step function in bike weight.