• This topic has 109 replies, 51 voices, and was last updated 9 years ago by TiRed.
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  • Roadie Content: TT's and having "all the gear"
  • adi66
    Free Member

    So I’ve started to get a bit hooked on Time Trialing – after 3 x 10 mile TT’s.

    But I’m curious, when I sit waiting to start I see people on Mega money bikes – like £6-8K and wearing all of the aero gear etc.

    I rock up on my £800 Sora equipped Boardman fitted with nothing more than a set of Shimano’s cheapest SPD’s, my MTB shoes, clip on Aero Bars, Baggie top (I’m not slim lol), normal helmet and my MTB long fingered gloves.
    I look around at these guys on their dream machines, and think; How fast could I go on one of “those” ?

    Does anybody know how to quantify what effect a uber aero & light bike plus “all the gear” would make to my times?

    K28-10 Times:

    1st Ever TT: 26:39
    2nd TT: 25:48
    3rd TT: 25:10

    FYI – Adding a TT bike to my collection is starting to get into my head! lol hence the question.

    umop3pisdn
    Free Member

    Perhaps a minute. Buy yourself a skinsuit and an aero helmet and spend some time optimising your position, those are some of the biggest gains to be had.

    tonyg2003
    Full Member

    Position is the biggest difference to TT times. Maybe a cheap second hand TT?

    dannybgoode
    Full Member

    Some decent road shoes and pedals will make a difference. Don’t need to be mega expensive. The cheapest Shimano and a pair of say Specialized Comp will make a world of difference.

    cynic-al
    Free Member

    There was a good article (on road.cc IIRC) comparing std bike vs one with aero bars then wheels and probs a helmet.

    The main thing was the aero bars, the helmet, wheels and bike all made about the same difference – about 1/3 of the bars IIRC.

    Good times for a noob BTW, well done.

    lemonysam
    Free Member

    Does anybody know how to quantify what effect a uber aero & light bike plus “all the gear” would make to my times?

    These guys had a good stab:
    http://cyclingtips.com.au/2010/04/biggest-bang-for-your-buck-in-time-trial-equipment/

    barrykellett
    Free Member

    You already sold out when you fitted clip on bars to a road bike.

    Its road bike or the full blown TT rig.

    back2basics
    Free Member

    why bother with all that,
    you’ll be faster than others
    others will be faster than you
    so just enjoy it and spend the money on holidays and beer and pies.

    aracer
    Free Member

    Some being quite close to bugger all.

    Start with the clothes – just a tight fitting top and getting rid of the gloves (tests show that bare handed is a significant improvement) will make a lot more difference than the shoes.

    Though it’s worth mentioning again that the most important thing is position – with a standard road bike you can move the saddle forwards and lower the bars to improve that.

    adi66
    Free Member

    Position:
    I’m working on that each week.

    Skin Suite:
    Er I weight 14 stone! enough said.

    Road Specific Shoes & Pedals:
    Why ? My MTB shoes are Carbon soles and SOOO stiff, and I don’t get “Hot Spots” around the cleats even after 80+ miles. Is it all about “fitting in ?”

    BigEaredBiker
    Free Member

    I was in a similar situation with basic road bike, mtb shoes etc. last year.

    My fastest 25 miler time was around 1:09. One of the experienced TT riders reckoned I would benefit most from getting my position on the bike right and losing some weight. He reckoned that sorting that would see me get down to around 1:05 and then if I wanted any chance of dipping under 60 minutes I would need to be a lot fitter and have a proper TT bike.

    I remember overtaking a rider who had all the gear but was looking down so his streamlined helmet was like an air-brake sticking up in the air…

    I’ve gone back to just riding around my local trails this year, much more relaxing 🙂

    adi66
    Free Member

    ‘Al

    Good times for a noob BTW, well done.

    Cheers, I was happy with being under 30 for my 1st. getting to 25 was great… This week I want to get a 24: something …. but without spending too much money the equation for the correct number of bikes being N+1 is not washing to well with Mrs Adi66 at the moment!

    So it’s time to dig out a old “too small” jersey, and duck a little lower in the Tri Bars ! lol

    crazy-legs
    Full Member

    Ditch the MTB shoes, get some proper road shoes & pedals, you’ll get WAY more power down through them.

    Ditch the baggy top – it might look cool on an MTB but it looks wrong on a road bike.

    martello
    Free Member

    Ignore what everybody has told you and buy Dr Hutch’s book Faster 😉

    adi66
    Free Member

    I’ve gone back to just riding around my local trails this year, much more relaxing

    I LOVE the Sadism of “Pushing myself to the Limit” it REALLY appeals to my Psyche 😛

    midlifecrashes
    Full Member

    Are your teeth nice and straight? If not, a smooth gumshield is a must.

    MostlyBalanced
    Free Member

    Stick with the kit you’ve got then you’ll know for sure how much any improvement is due to training and increased fitness.

    YellowBelly
    Free Member

    Don’t forget shaving the legs.. gotta be worth minus 2 mins on a 10.

    cheers_drive
    Full Member

    OP – I’ve been having similar ponderings to you. Never did a TT before moving to the area and the local club is very TT orientated (it’s pan flat around here), I’ve tried a few on the road bike and enjoyed but the kit that they all use makes BOS suspension look affordable. One of the things I like about road bikes is that urge to spend big bucks on magical kit that will make me faster isn’t there, as opposed to the MTB where I still get sucked in to suspension efficiency and the tyre speed and grip claims, TT is like MTB in that way – especially with the wheels.

    Some of the club members are trying to get me hooked and I’ve been offered some good secondhand kit but I’ve come to the conclusion that the only person I’m kidding is myself as I won’t be anywhere near the fastest. I’m going to suggest at the AGM that the those who ride on standard road bike with no aero helmet or tri bars should get there own section in the club TTs so at least we can compare to each other.

    Having said all that those aero wheels and disks sound amazing!!!

    umop3pisdn
    Free Member

    It’s always an unpopular suggestion, but have you considered training?

    adi66
    Free Member

    Riding a Zipp equipped, Scott Plasma!! lol

    [/quote]
    http://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/that-portly-chap-in-the-lampre-kit-might-have-kin-in-fife

    Point taken on the tight clothes.

    mogrim
    Full Member

    One of the things I like about road bikes is that urge to spend big bucks on magical kit that will make me faster isn’t there,

    😯

    tomhoward
    Full Member

    Not TT but road bike, on the same hill with roughly the same effort, kit (no pointy hat though) and position. Dead scientific like…..

    max speed on a round tubed, shallow wheeled, spd pedaled bike with mtb shoes and 23mm tires- 33mph

    max speed on an aero framed, 50mm wheeled, proper pedaled bike with stiff road shoes and 25mm tires- 42 mph

    adi66
    Free Member

    Having said all that those aero wheels and disks sound amazing!!!

    Yeah, strangely I though about those wheels when I put the wheelie bins out this morning! lol

    …. I’m only jealous, cos they look BAD ASS, and I’m seriously wanting.

    stoffel
    Free Member

    Turn your seatpost the other way round; puts you over the front of the bike more, which isn’t as comfortable, but is more efficient.

    Cost: £0.00. 8)

    grahamg
    Free Member

    Shoes will make very, very little difference – if anything, seeing as you’ve carbon soled mtb shoes, it’ll purely be in aerodynamics/weight that the improvement would come. I went for the full set up this year for the first time and it almost felt like cheating. Helmet makes massive difference and wheels make massive difference, after that TT frame made a reasonable difference but only because it allowed a much better position thanks to the relatively shorter TT allowing tri-bar tuck to be set up optimally.

    umop3pisdn
    Free Member

    Don’t move your saddle forward.

    bjj.andy.w
    Free Member

    What a coincidence this thread is. I was thinking exactly the same after doing a 10 mile TT this morning. Obviously it wasn’t an official TT (it was 5am this morning on the way to work) but a strava segment that someone has made up after doing the official meeting on a midweek evening. My bike was a bog standard sensa romagna, mtb pedals and shoes but unlike the op dressed in Lycra. Managed a time of 24:32 so although really happy with that I was wondering like the OP how faster I could of done.

    adi66
    Free Member

    Managed a time of 24:32 so although really happy with that I was wondering like the OP how faster I could of done.

    Good Man 🙂

    nickc
    Full Member

    Have you shaved your forearms….

    mudshark
    Free Member

    Get one of these bargains – only available in larger sizes now Kinda like a skinsuit but can use for road biking.

    http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/castelli-sanremo-2-0-speed-suit/rp-prod94224

    njee20
    Free Member

    This article is quite good too: How aero is aero?

    So aero bars – helmet – bike – wheels

    In order of descending usefulness, although their “normal” wheels were more aero than most folks’.

    m1kea
    Free Member

    Completely get the desire to throw money at this but I’d suggest doing some more training, and more importantly, races. – Race yourself fitter can definitely work.

    Position is key and whilst TT bars and aero frames DO make a big difference, I’d focus on tweaking your current set up before spending pennies.

    After TT bars, pointy hats are probably the cheapest way to knock time off

    Oh and get thee over to the TT forum for more on the subject

    slowpuncheur
    Free Member

    For mph per £ ignore what type of shoes you have but make sure you have overshoes. Those and pointy hat are best value.

    lunge
    Full Member

    On a related note, do all TT bikes creak? I got overtaken by a guy on a Shiv last night, he was flying but by gosh his bike was noisy, it sounded bloody horrible

    warton
    Free Member

    Position is the biggest difference to TT times

    Specific fitness is the the biggest difference to TT times.

    so I’d put in a few weeks of specific threshold training, 3 or 4 days a week, an hour a session, see what your times are like at the end of the season, then if you’re still hooked look at buying a cheap second hand TT bike over the winter. there are some real bargains to be had, as the OCD Triathletes offload their year old kit for peanuts.

    after that, its position, look at getting a flat back and try to move forward on the bike a bit, aero bars will obviously let you achieve that, then think about helmet, wheels, skinsuit etc.

    I’m still on a road bike with aero bars. best time this year is 22.34 for a 10, 57.13 for a 25. taking the plunge this winter for a full on TT bike. It’s addictive. also, a bit of weight loss with the training increases your speed more than anything else. I started the year at 13.75Stone, now I’m 11.75, and you can fit a skinsuit 🙂

    nealglover
    Free Member

    (tests show that bare handed is a significant improvement)

    When you say “significant”

    What sort difference are you actually talking about ?

    “Significant” to an Olympian, means “insignificant” to pretty much everybody else

    Sandwich
    Full Member

    Have you shaved your forearms….

    Cyclist Mag this month reckons a mini mohican down the back of the limb will be best for aero gains!!

    kcr
    Free Member

    The MIT cycling team did some wind tunnel testing that suggested taking your mitts off gave the same advantage as an aero front wheel. Have a Google, article should still be out there somewhere.
    Other people have already pointed out the most effective ways of getting faster, and they don’t have to be costly. There are lots of people on expensive bikes with dreadful positions, sitting up in the wind like a sack of tatties.
    I would like to put in a word for the humble safety pin. Make sure your number is pinned around the edges, not just attached at the corners and blowing out like a parachute on your back.

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