30 October 2008

Bike weight vs. bike aerodynamics

This is an interesting technical presentation from Cervelo, discussing the importance of bike weight and bike aerodynamics. I hope the link works on your PC, otherwise check here, "Col de la Tipping Point."

The company's conclusion in a nutshell:


"Let's look at the 2007 Etape du Tour, held on one of the toughest stages of the Tour. Our model predicts a time of 8h00m35s (including turns, stops and group riding) for the aero bike. This is 35 sec faster than the light bike with the same 250W rider - despite the very hilly course."


My conclusion:


"At the average 30 minute duration JCRC race, a better bike would bring an advantage of 2 to 3 seconds. This will probably not be enough to close the two minute gap between myself and the second last rider (unless, Stephen Coady attends)."


Still, I love my Cervelo. As I loved my Cannondale.

1 comment:

Manfred von Holstein said...

What they fail to mention is that it is all about psychology. As long as I'm proud of my light bike, I'm sure I will ride much better with it...