Aerodynamics have become a hot topic in the cycling and triathlon world. When I first got on a TT bike in 2017, aerodynamics were acknowledged but the process of optimizing your aerodynamics with a wind tunnel, velodrome, or any kind of testing seemed obscure, intangible and only available to to the likes of Team Sky and Chris Froome.
Now, aerodynamics couldn’t be any more talked about. Take a walk through transition at any IRONMAN race and you will see all kinds of aerodynamic gadgets, ranging from homemade duct tape products to $4,000 custom, 3D printed, carbon fiber monobars. No matter the level of athlete, nearly everyone acknowledges the importance of aerodynamics (whether or not they take the right steps to actually get more aero is up for debate).
If you would like to do aerodynamic testing in a wind tunnel or velodrome but simply don’t have the money or time, I’ll provide you with 3 ways to improve your aerodynamics for free.
Let’s get started!
Riding in crosswinds
People often think of riding in crosswinds as either scary or a good way to work on bike handling. If you think riding is crosswinds is scary, a mentality shift is needed. We will cover how to overcome this mental block in another article. If you think that riding in strong crosswinds is good for your bike handling, you are exactly right. What does that have to do with aerodynamics? Everything! Forming your body into an aerodynamic position while pedaling hard is essentially good straight-line bike handling. How you ride - and what position your body is in - is the essence of aerodynamics. Crosswind is simply a free and effective way to test those skills.
In a head or crosswind, any drag that you are producing with your body is quickly magnified. Head too high? Now you can’t hear anything besides the wind. Shoulders too wide? Now you feel your jersey - even a decent aero jersey - start to flap around on your skin. Not sitting on the bike in a “realistically aero” way? Now you’re laying in the ditch. Using the enhanced feedback you get during windy rides is a great way to identify the most glaring of aero-penalties and work on them in real time. Ideally, the changes you make to your body position mid-ride should quickly make the wind less volatile and, in the end, make riding in the wind easier. An aero rider feels the negative effect of the wind less than an un-aero rider.
2. Descending
In my opinion, descending down long and fast descents is by far the best way to be aware of and improve your aerodynamics. Much like riding in strong wind, fast descents offer you the ability to feel your aerodynamics in an enhanced way - much like a wind tunnel.
Descending well requires both skill and a certain mentality - just like riding in strong winds. If you can find and embrace the free speed that downhills can offer, you have a distinct advantage. Not only will you be more comfortable on your bike (which usually makes you more aero), but you can use the high (wind) speed to make real-time position changes with effects that are immediately noticeable. Want to try out a new aero bar angle? Angle your arms! Feel what the wind does around your body and see what happens to the speed. Want to try an exaggerated shoulder shrug? Do it! And feel the immediate effect of changed airflow over your back. Try Adjustments like these several times during the descent and make a mental note of which feels fastest. These small position changes sometimes have big effects that you can’t easily feel when you’re riding at slower speeds.
3. Field Testing
There are methods like the Chung or Shen Method that are quite easy to use but require Golden Cheetah or a lot of math. I am not into math, therefore I would use Golden Cheetah! If you’re really, really not into math and want to do field testing completely “on your own”, there is another method that I have tried several times and have found to be pretty good at telling you what setup is faster. This is the out and back with power and speed.
Some key reminders are:
1- Use a road that has a slight gradient(~2% is nice)
2- Avoid windy days
3- Keep position as constant as possible
4- Avoid cars (when cars pass, they will give you a “push” and mess up the data)
How to do it:
1- Find a marked stretch of road that takes about 90” to 3’ to complete from point A to point B
2- Roll into point A at full speed (for your given power output, which should remain constant) and hit lap
3- Hit lap at Point B
4- Do the same from point B to point A
5- Repeat steps 2-4
6- Now make a change to your setup that you want to test
7- Repeat steps 2-4
8- You can do this for as many setups as you like
Tip: I like to come back to the original setup at the end to compare the first runs to the last runs in order to make sure there are no conditional differences altering your final test runs
9- Lay out all the data and see which setup gives the highest average speed for your given power (ideally, race power)
Overall, aerodynamics is an extremely important part of triathlon and time trialing. With good awareness and a bit of trial and error in training, you can save a huge amount of power/time on race day. Try implementing these methods into your own training and let me know how much faster you are riding!
Disclaimer: Safety is always your first priority while riding. Never put your “aero gains” over your safety. Riding in strong crosswinds and descending at high speed magnifies your aero awareness - it also could magnify the consequences of crashing. Se safe, be aero, be fast!
4. Bonus Method - Imitate (but think first)
A lot of people have spent unbelievable amounts of time and money on their aerodynamics. Through wind tunnel and velodrome testing they’ve optimized every aspect of their position and equipment. So why would you not copy them?! Yes, what is fastest for one person could very well be slow for another. However, every rider is aiming for the same goal and we are all shaped fairly similarly. I suggest taking some time to study the choices and methods of those who have optimized their positions and equipment. Think about why they are doing what they’re doing and how that would likely affect your own speed. If it seems logical, try it out using the methods I’ve outlined above! If the person is shaped completely differently than you are, maybe don’t waste your time. It’s amazing how many age groupers and pros alike have done something to their bike/position that is clearly a terrible choice for their own position simply because they saw someone else doing it. Observe, THINK, and experiment.
If you have any questions or would like to learn more about coaching, testing or consulting, please reach out to schedule a free phone consultation! My email is rdeckard14@gmail.com or you can use the contact page at the bottom of my home page.
Train hard, train smart.
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