Biking Faster
Replies
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Just slap some clip on aero bars on that bad boy boom instant speed. Hip angle be dammed
Time trial bike! Aero wheels! Shoe covers, skin suit, and aero helmet. Probably a small backpack to smooth the turbulent flow behind your head, if you don't go with the space invaders helmet.0 -
NorthCascades wrote: »I've been riding tubeless for 3 years now. You need a little bit more mechanical aptitude, or you can pay the shop to set them up for you. Need a valve core remover tool, and maybe an air compressor. The tires are more expensive, but there are very good choices available.
I went from flatting once or twice a month to twice in three years. That's worth the expense and hassle for me. Changing a tube in 40F rain isn't fun, you're chilled before it's done, and then getting started again is miserable.
Also you get to run your tires softer which is a plusher ride, and gets you better RR on anything but the most pristine roads, like brand new pavement, or maybe an indoor track. You feel more planted through corners, and have slightly better breaking power because the lower air pressure creates a large contact patch.
What is RR?1 -
NorthCascades wrote: »
Aero everything! I wish I could afford a new tri bike but I’d have to sell my body on the street only for bmc to immediately come out with a newer nicer one that shoots lasers and saves kittens.
I run tubeless too the convenience is just insane.1 -
NorthCascades wrote: »I've been riding tubeless for 3 years now. You need a little bit more mechanical aptitude, or you can pay the shop to set them up for you. Need a valve core remover tool, and maybe an air compressor. The tires are more expensive, but there are very good choices available.
I went from flatting once or twice a month to twice in three years. That's worth the expense and hassle for me. Changing a tube in 40F rain isn't fun, you're chilled before it's done, and then getting started again is miserable.
Also you get to run your tires softer which is a plusher ride, and gets you better RR on anything but the most pristine roads, like brand new pavement, or maybe an indoor track. You feel more planted through corners, and have slightly better breaking power because the lower air pressure creates a large contact patch.
What is RR?
You're going to be sorry you asked, @lorrpb. 😆
RR is short for rolling resistance, and crr is short for coefficient of rolling resistance. Usually if you read a tire review (yeah, people do that) it'll be expressed as crr and lower numbers are better. 0.01 crr = 0.1% gradient (hill steepness) in terms of energy.
If you hang your bike on the wall, the tires are a perfect circle. But when you put it on the ground and weight it, the bottom of the tire flattens out. Then, you start moving, and which part of the tire is on the bottom keeps changing - which means part of the circular tire is always flattening. And that takes energy. Energy that would otherwise be moving you forward. (You get some of that back when the rear of the contact pacth springs back into shape, but only some.)
It sounds incredibly minor, but it's actually a big deal. The best tires "cost" about 12 watts each (front and back) in rolling resistance, it can easily be double that. A recreational cyclist puts out somewhere from 75 to 150 watts, and 25 to 50 of that might go to flexing the tires. It's really really hard to get fit enough to be able to put 25 more watts out, so being able to change your tires and get the same effect is a very big deal.
Aero stuff only has a big impact on your energy when you're going fast, or in a headwind, and almost vanishes in a headwind, but RR is always there. And again, it's like the difference between flat ground and up a moderate hill.1 -
NorthCascades wrote: »NorthCascades wrote: »I've been riding tubeless for 3 years now. You need a little bit more mechanical aptitude, or you can pay the shop to set them up for you. Need a valve core remover tool, and maybe an air compressor. The tires are more expensive, but there are very good choices available.
I went from flatting once or twice a month to twice in three years. That's worth the expense and hassle for me. Changing a tube in 40F rain isn't fun, you're chilled before it's done, and then getting started again is miserable.
Also you get to run your tires softer which is a plusher ride, and gets you better RR on anything but the most pristine roads, like brand new pavement, or maybe an indoor track. You feel more planted through corners, and have slightly better breaking power because the lower air pressure creates a large contact patch.
What is RR?
You're going to be sorry you asked, @lorrpb. 😆
RR is short for rolling resistance, and crr is short for coefficient of rolling resistance. Usually if you read a tire review (yeah, people do that) it'll be expressed as crr and lower numbers are better. 0.01 crr = 0.1% gradient (hill steepness) in terms of energy.
If you hang your bike on the wall, the tires are a perfect circle. But when you put it on the ground and weight it, the bottom of the tire flattens out. Then, you start moving, and which part of the tire is on the bottom keeps changing - which means part of the circular tire is always flattening. And that takes energy. Energy that would otherwise be moving you forward. (You get some of that back when the rear of the contact pacth springs back into shape, but only some.)
It sounds incredibly minor, but it's actually a big deal. The best tires "cost" about 12 watts each (front and back) in rolling resistance, it can easily be double that. A recreational cyclist puts out somewhere from 75 to 150 watts, and 25 to 50 of that might go to flexing the tires. It's really really hard to get fit enough to be able to put 25 more watts out, so being able to change your tires and get the same effect is a very big deal.
Aero stuff only has a big impact on your energy when you're going fast, or in a headwind, and almost vanishes in a headwind, but RR is always there. And again, it's like the difference between flat ground and up a moderate hill.
Well at least it’s not something “obvious” I should’ve known 😂0 -
NorthCascades wrote: »
I once saw a commuter on a time trial bike while I was carrying a boat back in after rowing practice. It took a lot not to burst out laughing. I used to see a lot of people with the POC Octal Aero helmets while riding a hybrid or riding a bike with panniers. Gotta go for those marginal gains in mildly comfortable, or at the very least very warm, ways (I need helmets with a lot of vents).1 -
Pretty much everything has been covered.
1 - Ride More
2 - Ride a Red bike (because we know red is fastest)
3 - Be as light as possible.
4 - Ride more and adhere to rule #5 (see the rules by the Velominati but don't take it too seriously)
If your commute is urban with stops and starts, 16MPH may be a difficult target to hit.1 -
NorthCascades wrote: »
I once saw a commuter on a time trial bike while I was carrying a boat back in after rowing practice. It took a lot not to burst out laughing. I used to see a lot of people with the POC Octal Aero helmets while riding a hybrid or riding a bike with panniers. Gotta go for those marginal gains in mildly comfortable, or at the very least very warm, ways (I need helmets with a lot of vents).
I used to see somebody riding around on $3k racing wheels with fenders. I wonder how much wind tunnel testing that scenario got!0 -
NorthCascades wrote: »NorthCascades wrote: »I've been riding tubeless for 3 years now. You need a little bit more mechanical aptitude, or you can pay the shop to set them up for you. Need a valve core remover tool, and maybe an air compressor. The tires are more expensive, but there are very good choices available.
I went from flatting once or twice a month to twice in three years. That's worth the expense and hassle for me. Changing a tube in 40F rain isn't fun, you're chilled before it's done, and then getting started again is miserable.
Also you get to run your tires softer which is a plusher ride, and gets you better RR on anything but the most pristine roads, like brand new pavement, or maybe an indoor track. You feel more planted through corners, and have slightly better breaking power because the lower air pressure creates a large contact patch.
What is RR?
You're going to be sorry you asked, @lorrpb. 😆
RR is short for rolling resistance, and crr is short for coefficient of rolling resistance. Usually if you read a tire review (yeah, people do that) it'll be expressed as crr and lower numbers are better. 0.01 crr = 0.1% gradient (hill steepness) in terms of energy.
If you hang your bike on the wall, the tires are a perfect circle. But when you put it on the ground and weight it, the bottom of the tire flattens out. Then, you start moving, and which part of the tire is on the bottom keeps changing - which means part of the circular tire is always flattening. And that takes energy. Energy that would otherwise be moving you forward. (You get some of that back when the rear of the contact pacth springs back into shape, but only some.)
It sounds incredibly minor, but it's actually a big deal. The best tires "cost" about 12 watts each (front and back) in rolling resistance, it can easily be double that. A recreational cyclist puts out somewhere from 75 to 150 watts, and 25 to 50 of that might go to flexing the tires. It's really really hard to get fit enough to be able to put 25 more watts out, so being able to change your tires and get the same effect is a very big deal.
Aero stuff only has a big impact on your energy when you're going fast, or in a headwind, and almost vanishes in a headwind, but RR is always there. And again, it's like the difference between flat ground and up a moderate hill.
Well at least it’s not something “obvious” I should’ve known 😂
Looks like I was a little wrong on the numbers. Here's a list of road tires:
https://www.bicyclerollingresistance.com/road-bike-reviews
Corsa Speed G+ costs 7 to 9.3 watts depending how much air you put in it.
Lugano costs 22 to 28 watts, depending on air pressure. Per tire. That could be half the energy you're putting into the bike!1 -
NorthCascades wrote: »NorthCascades wrote: »
I once saw a commuter on a time trial bike while I was carrying a boat back in after rowing practice. It took a lot not to burst out laughing. I used to see a lot of people with the POC Octal Aero helmets while riding a hybrid or riding a bike with panniers. Gotta go for those marginal gains in mildly comfortable, or at the very least very warm, ways (I need helmets with a lot of vents).
I used to see somebody riding around on $3k racing wheels with fenders. I wonder how much wind tunnel testing that scenario got!
See this at these combinations at the veloway all the time and it blows my mind.1 -
NorthCascades wrote: »
Looks like I was a little wrong on the numbers. Here's a list of road tires:
https://www.bicyclerollingresistance.com/road-bike-reviews
Corsa Speed G+ costs 7 to 9.3 watts depending how much air you put in it.
Lugano costs 22 to 28 watts, depending on air pressure. Per tire. That could be half the energy you're putting into the bike!
Heck, I glanced over at my neighbor in spin class today and 28x2 was ALL the energy he was putting into his bike at times... and I do mean times we were supposed to be exerting beyond a flat road or downhill.1 -
Another plug, but really liking Matt Wilpers powerzone rides on Peleton (I do digital and don't have the Peleton bike cause it's a lot cheaper).
I'm doing 2 of his endurance rides ("powerzone endurance") per week, then two harder intervals ("powerzone" or "powerzone max") per week (then riding outdoors on the weekend).
Significant and measurable performance improvements in terms of Watt output. (And losing weight so power/weight improving faster than
that.)
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NorthCascades wrote: »
I once saw a commuter on a time trial bike while I was carrying a boat back in after rowing practice. It took a lot not to burst out laughing. I used to see a lot of people with the POC Octal Aero helmets while riding a hybrid or riding a bike with panniers. Gotta go for those marginal gains in mildly comfortable, or at the very least very warm, ways (I need helmets with a lot of vents).
Last summer I saw someone commuting on a very high end Cervelo TT bike riding on the sidewalk - aero helmet and all, I practically pissed myself laughing.1 -
Cervelo Man strikes again!
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huntersvonnegut wrote: »
That is the coolest pic ever! Is that real or photoshop?1 -
NorthCascades wrote: »Supple tires. Or tyres if you prefer. People think narrow ones will be faster automatically, probably because of weight and maybe some aero. But there's more to it than that. It takes energy to flatten the bottom of the tire, and as long as the tire is rolling this is constantly happening. (You get some of that energy back when the back of the contact patch springs back to shape, but only some.)
Tires are the #1 best upgrade you can make to any bike. But you can only do it once. Grand Prix 4000 and 5000 are excellent tires.
Every 0.01 crr is like riding up an extra 0.1% gradient. Always, for every mile of every ride. Even when you're riding downhill it's like a less step hill, on the flat you're working exactly as hard as you would going up however step a hill the math works out to with a better tire. Unlike with air resistance this is constant at every speed and not helped by drafting or anything else.
Supple tires grip better in turns too.
Best tires ever --- Ikon 29 x 2.0 and they going out of production.0 -
BuddysSurrogateGrandpa1 wrote: »huntersvonnegut wrote: »
That is the coolest pic ever! Is that real or photoshop?
Photoshop.0 -
I have free months of trainer road if you want try indoor training that are just accumulating. So shoot me a message if you want to give that a shot.0
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There's a lot of good advice here. The type of bike may impact your speed as will the tire size. I did not see what kind if bicycle you are riding. Look at a tires in a 28-32cm width. Increasing your mileage on non-work days will help you increase your speed as you increase your fitness (and yes, hills are your friends). What I have found recently is that my weight loss has positively increased my speed considerably. Yes, leg weights, and more importantly, core exercises will assist your speed. To narrow it down: (1) weight; (2) tires; (3) fitness; (4) legs, core and light upper body weightlifting. Best of luck!0
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