Not an aero post this week. I thought I’d share the Excel spreadsheet that I use to plan and record my training and events schedule. I’ve just updated it to run from November 1st 2016 to the end of 2017.
GPS speed or dedicated speed sensor?
What we need when aero testing is reliable speed and power data. A speed sensor working properly will be more repeatable than speed derived from GPS data. The speed and distance recorded will also be more accurate if the wheel circumference is set-up correctly.
Three Open Area Testing Scenarios
In an ideal world, all our testing would be undertaken at a velodrome with no other riders using the track. In the real world, we don’t always have that luxury. Here we look at the characteristics of using three different types of venue.
The importance of a clean drive train
Grimy drive trains are sticky and they absorb power. Why waste power when you’ve invested in aero gains? So before every important event I remove the chain, the mech., and the cassette, and clean them all thoroughly. I clean the chain ring on the bike. I lubricate the mech on the work bench and then re-fit it …… ….. then …
Mark Florence Cycling Time Trial Podcast
A few weeks ago I was invite to participate in one of Mark Florence’s series of Cycling Time Trial Podcasts. One of the questions that came up was how did I come up with the name “FloatAero”? When I was think about a name for the service I started from my existing web site address for Formic Intelligent Training Labs …
Testing Race Set-up from Last Sunday
4th October 2016 Another good morning for testing, early before the wind got up. Tested my race set-up from last Sunday (Nopinz skin suit and trip socks) with the AeroHead helmet and then the Bambino. When I used the Nopinz skin suit and trip socks at the Cambridge Chrono earlier in the year my CdA came out a bit higher …
VTTA Rocco Memorial 25
2nd October 2016 VTTA Rocco memorial 25 this morning on H25/1. I was hoping to make top 10 but came out as 14th on standard, 1:02:12 with an average power of 174 watts and a CdA of roughly 0.1760, which is slightly lower than I get when I test at Hillingdon in race kit, but then there is no traffic …
Progression from CdA 0.2400 to CdA 0.1750
When I came back to time trialing in 2011 I was using an old low-end Pinarello road frame with a SRAM S60 front wheel and a FFWD disk. I’ve gain about 40 watts of FTP since then, but I’ve also gained about 65 virtual watts by reducing my CdA. I achieved my goals of under the hour for a 25TT …