TT equipment

[Will1985]

You sound like a triathlete if you believe the gear is the most important thing. I've seen very fast rides done on a standard road bike, and lets not forget Alf Engers' 25 record of sub 50 mins which was set in 1778 before carbon and aero existed in cycling!

Slipstreaming - illegal.
Order - amateur events don't run like the pro TTs. Riders are ranked according to PB or fastest in last three seasons, then the fastest 10% assigned a number ending in 0, the next 10% in 5, then 1,6,2,7,3,8,4,9. I see where you were going with it, and it does help if you are one of the fastest and have someone to chase down, but you could be given 116, 117, 118 or 119 out of 120 and never pass anyone. The exception to this is a national championship event.

 

[a_n_t]

I used aero bars for the first time on my last 10 and knocked 31 secs off my PB. I "slightly modify" my ribble winter trainer for summer TT's.

 

[HeartAttack]

Another good if not great bit of kit to make you faster is something like the Garmin 705, it allows you to set a ride/tt as a workout, where you set the distance and time, then it'll tell you all the way how you are doing compared to this pace. I now use this and it stops me going too hard in the early part so allowing me to bury myself more in the latter miles.

 

[a_n_t]

just knocked off another 41 seconds!! i like aero-bars

 

[Will1985]

Has anyone hopped off a full on TT bike onto a road bike and noticed the difference? I had over 50km on the TT bike yesterday going to and from the evening 10, then I jumped on my road bike to go to Sainsburys before it closed. I had never done it before and it felt really weird! The acceleration was so much better and the back end felt light - I suppose it doesn't help having a power tap and wheelcover combination on the back. Even the front felt different, although I think that was because the bar height is higher.

It has got me wondering what difference a decent carbon TT frame and proper disc might make, especially on the slightly lumpy courses!

 

[SimonRoberts0204]

Thanks for all your feedback! I went away for 2 weeks without an internet connection, so pleased to see so much has been posted! I think clip on aero bars are the go, since it makes sense to get good at riding TTs in that position.

 

[tango_kid]

Don't mean to hijack the thread but what is the dfference between a TT bike and your average road bike and how much time difference over 10 miles would you expect??

 

[Will1985]

Everything - geometry, handlebars, frame shape, wheels. Look at the flickr link I put near the top for an idea of what a TT bike looks like. They can be insanely expensive - there are plenty of threads around here detailing the best methods for improving times inexpensively and expensively.

The time gains are greater for a slower rider - on the one 10 course where I've ridden both road and TT bikes (a few weeks apart), the difference was just over a minute (23:33 v 24:41). Plenty of riders have all the gear and can't do 25mins. For the top riders like Wiggins, the difference is probably less than 20 seconds between bikes.

 

[a_n_t]

Plenty of riders have all the gear and can't do 25mins.

And?


"All the gear" might be saving them 2 minutes wether its sub 25 or over half an hour.

 

[Will1985]

I agree - slower riders experience greater gains.... *some* people I see believe that all the gear will put them up at the top end of the results list.

 

[HeartAttack]

Well after last nights TT, I'm even more convinced on the use of the garmin as a pacing/training aid, I've now taken over 85 sec's off my 10 in 2 weeks, and last night wasn't as good weather as last week and I still went faster.

 

[Will1985]

Well after last nights TT, I'm even more convinced on the use of the garmin as a pacing/training aid, I've now taken over 85 sec's off my 10 in 2 weeks, and last night wasn't as good weather as last week and I still went faster.

Nice one! Does that make it a short 24 or long 23?

 

[Bill Gates]

The faster you go then the air resistance is squared. Therefore if you think about it then an efficient aero position and aero equipment becomes more important for the faster rider, because the air resistance they are experiencing is much much greater, than the slower rider.

The sports scientists will tell you that the slowest rider makes the most gains in terms of time but I'm not convinced. IMO the biggest impact is in the winner getting those extra few seconds at the other end of the scale.

 

[HeartAttack]

Nice one! Does that make it a short 24 or long 23?

Cheers mate, still not as quick as I'd like or you but did a 23.36 and felt like I should have pushed harder in the middle but I was trying to ride at the pace I'd set the garmin at till the last 2 miles, oh for a faster course and better weather.

Still not bad I think for an old fart with a dodgy heart and a 20 a day habit

 

[peanut]

Cheers mate, still not as quick as I'd like or you but did a 23.36 and felt like I should have pushed harder in the middle but I was trying to ride at the pace I'd set the garmin at till the last 2 miles, oh for a faster course and better weather.

Still not bad I think for an old fart with a dodgy heart and a 20 a day habit

that sounds pretty fantastic to me. I'd be glad to get under 30 minutes. Mind you there isn't a straight bit of flat road over 2 miles anywhere near me. I'm dying to try a 10