What makes the soloist a better climbing bike than the PC3. Is it the geometry or the positioning of the bars or something else. I understand on mostly flat roads the PC3 should be faster but on a “hilly” course wouldn’t a bike like the soloist be more advantageous?
KC
depends upon your definition of “hilly”, but yes, the soloist would be better since it is a std geometry road bike really (with slightly shorter chainstays and lower headtube than most road bikes).
Given the choice between the PC3 and the soloist at IMPL. What would you choose?
KC
Plenty of aero opportunities at IMLP… I would say P3C. However, it would be nice to have a climbing bike for a few sections.
Given the choice between the PC3 and the soloist at IMPL. What would you choose?
KC
Well, I had that choice last year and I rode a Soloist Carbon 
I think Simon did pretty on the LP course on a Soloist team as well…
But, for 90% of riders, I’d say a tri bike would be fastest as LP
What makes the soloist a better climbing bike than the PC3. Is it the geometry or the positioning of the bars or something else. I understand on mostly flat roads the PC3 should be faster but on a “hilly” course wouldn’t a bike like the soloist be more advantageous?
KC
If you are geared correctly and you have a powerful, yet aero TT position, the P3C should be faster in any TT or Tri situation, hilly or not.
I can climb grades up to 8% in the aero bars at 80-85 rpm. How? Because I don’t give up much power in my TT position as compared to my road position, AND I’ve got a 39-27 gear combo on my bike when I do that.
The only thing that would make the Soloist a better “climbing bike” than a P3C would be the slightly lower weight. But, for equivalent equipment hung on those frames, you’d most likely need to have significant climbs of over 9-10% before the weight difference was an advantage for the Soloist.
Just my 2 pesos…
But, for 90% of riders, I’d say a tri bike would be fastest as LP
Explain this statement for me… Like I’m a 5 year old.
It is all about geometry when climbing, not “weight” as Tom A suggests. An 8% climb is a significant climb (like Tour de France type climb and how many guys there do you see on a steep angled tri bike 
Yes, low weight is nice, but a P3C is a pretty light bike and the 1-2 lbs. won’t make near the difference a 73 degree seat angle will to recruit the hamstrings for climbing or standing (if necessary) over the pedals/bottom bracket instead of in front of them on an 80 degree tri bike. Then there is the descending part where sliding your butt way back off the seat (like 70 degrees) makes a huge different in handling that you just can’t physically accomplish on a tri bike (forget about the brakes on the bullhorns or position as well).
But, LP has LOTS of flat areas to make up lots of time in a good, aero position tri bike (that maybe 15% of IMers I see have). But, it has been said that each time you come up out of the aero position on your tri bike, you would be better off on your road bike. Since you (I did) do this lots during an IM like LP, YOU many be better off on your Soloist with clip-ons vs. a tri bike.
It is all about geometry when climbing, not “weight” as Tom A suggests. An 8% climb is a significant climb (like Tour de France type climb and how many guys there do you see on a steep angled tri bike Yes, low weight is nice, but a P3C is a pretty light bike and the 1-2 lbs. won’t make near the difference a 73 degree seat angle will to recruit the hamstrings for climbing or standing (if necessary) over the pedals/bottom bracket instead of in front of them on an 80 degree tri bike. Then there is the descending part where sliding your butt way back off the seat (like 70 degrees) makes a huge different in handling that you just can’t physically accomplish on a tri bike (forget about the brakes on the bullhorns or position as well).
But, LP has LOTS of flat areas to make up lots of time in a good, aero position tri bike (that maybe 15% of IMers I see have). But, it has been said that each time you come up out of the aero position on your tri bike, you would be better off on your road bike. Since you (I did) do this lots during an IM like LP, YOU many be better off on your Soloist with clip-ons vs. a tri bike.
I’m sorry if I wasn’t completely clear, but I never said I’d PREFER a TT geometry to a road geometry for pure climbing. What I meant was that if you’re geared properly and positioned properly, you’re not going to give up much with the TT bike on the climbs. When things get really steep, I can still hammer out of the saddle on either bike with the same effectiveness since when you stand, the position of the seat gets taken out of the equation.
As you say, however, you’ll reap large benefits from the pure TT/Tri bike on any flat or rolling sections.
Lastly, if your TT/Tri bike has a long enough “front center” measurement, the descending issues you point to above should be minimzed as well. This would not be true if your TT/Tri bike is a “converted” road bike. In other words, it’s not so much about geometry (i.e. seat tube angle) as it is about weight distribution and CG location
Thank you very much.
What wheelset did you use and would you use the soloist again or go with the PC3?
KC
I used some Zipp 404s.
Doing it again, I’d probably go with the P3C