Bike bottle setup

sleighcastle

Not sure if this should go here or somewhere else, and I'm sure this has been addressed before but I can't find it.

I previously raced an IM with bottles on the back/x-lab setup in addition to the downtube bottle; but I've had a lot of problems with the setup, hard to grab bottles off the back, etc and I've just been training with the single bottle and refilling. I have no problems with Ironman Perform so could, in theory, just race with that single bottle and grab stuff from aid stations.

Has anyone done this? See any major problems?

I realize I should have addressed this awhile ago rather than 2 weeks and change from my race... but it is what it is.

 

Shannon

mattsull

Shannon,

I don't race with the rear cages. I use one on the downtube and one mounted horizonatlly on my aerobars. You can get mounting kits (X-Lab, Profile) or just use zip ties. There are pics out ther eon Slowtwitch and probably on our site too.

I would prefer to have two cages, one for fuel and one for water.

ghernand

yeah, not sure if this is the right place either?  i never come to this forum!! but i should!

the only issue with taking from the aid stations, if they use powder to mix, is that the concentration varies.  if they use pre-made factory bottles, the your golden and i would just go with one bottle water and one perform from the course.

i am just taking water from the aid stations, since i use gels and infinit for electrolytes and calories.

you can email the race organizers and they'll tell you what version of perform will be on course.

gh

 

Coach Rich

Shanon is racing CDA so Perform will be in bottles vs mixed by the volunteers (right??)

I'm going with one bottle cage horizontally between the aerobars. I'll likely also keep a budget aluminum cage on the downtube, just in case I want to rack a second bottle but I shouldn't need to.

Bento box for spare tube, co2, lever, mulitool (using an aero one from Fuel Belt, zips closed, looks clean which is really what it's all about...)

Nothing behind the saddle.

Jeff Braaten

I will do exactly what Matt does and it works well for me. I hate having to sit up and try to reach around and find a bottle behind me. I will start out with Infinit in both bottles and as they are depleted replace them with water and Perform. At the special needs station I pick up two new Infinit bottles that I have frozen overnight and they are just right when I get there. Then repeat for the second half of the ride.

Michael Byerts

Is the reasoning for no bottles behind the seat that it's un-aero or that it is awkward to get to? I use water only in the aero drink, infinit in the downtube, refilling the water at aid stations. But I can't re-fill and dump the rest over my head before the aid station is over, so I wind up with a bottle behind the seat anyway.

sleighcastle

Thanks guys. looks like I may add a horizontal bottle on my bars. I'm pretty sure CDA will have the bottles, not volunteer mixes, but I may email to see... w 2 bottles I can be golden if I just replace at special needs anyway, regardless of the aid stations. I guarantee that the extra 30 seconds will not keep me from Kona.

Rich, I've got one of those fuel belt bento boxes too, and because I got it free (why would I admit to buying a bento box?!!!!) it's a hideous cammo-print. Awesome.

William Jenks

I'm doing the two Matt-like 2 bottles and the bento as per Rich.

An important thing to do is practice with the horizontal bottle. You may find it trivial, but some people find it takes a little getting used to handling it just right.

There is a crowd out there that advocates carrying your spare and toolkit in a bike bottle, but I don't think you need more room than is in a bento.

mancona

Every WTC race i have done as had Ironman perform in the retail botles but with the sport cap you can twist open with your month. Typically the cap was already open and I was able to take a quick sip when grabing it.

Note: at some races the bottles are shipped separately from the sport caps and the volunteers have to put them on. I have never had this happen but have heard of people getting bottles that had the standard cap that you have to remove to drink still on them or in one case a bottle even had the foil seal still on under the twist cap. I'm sure they were just honest mistakes by the volunteers but I also like to try and grab one one of the first bottles I see and check it so I have time to grab a different one if need be.

kurshing

I am doing IM CdA with a profile design aero bottle and a cage on the downtube...just can't seem to find a reason to do anything rear-mounted, or any reason to justify more than 2 bottles. I wish I could carry one like Rich, but, that makes me a little nervous.

Coach Rich

Posted By Stephen Anderson on 10 Jun 2011 02:12 PM

I am doing IM CdA with a profile design aero bottle and a cage on the downtube...just can't seem to find a reason to do anything rear-mounted, or any reason to justify more than 2 bottles. I wish I could carry one like Rich, but, that makes me a little nervous.

 

I haven't done it yet . Like I said, I will likely leave a cage on the downtube so I can rack a bottle if I need to.

What are people using as the mount between the bars?

I found this, mounts it to the steer tube, though seems it would angle the bottle up. A friend of mine uses it, haven't seen his set up yet though. I want to get the bottle as far back as possible so I can, hopefully, avoid moving my Joule. It's in a perfect spot.

Then there is this, from XLab. Yes, I know I can zip tie a bottle cage between the bars, but has two ingredients that a man can't resist: carbon and velco. Duct tape would be irresistable...

 

mattsull

I used zip ties last year and they were fine. I'm trying this out now www.profile-design.com/profile-desi...mount.html. Much cheaper than the X-Lab option. It's sturdier than zip ties alone. I like it.

sleighcastle

Thanks. Any way you can post a pic of your ziptie setup? Or I can dig through the depths of slowtwitch again--- can't seem to find it. Plus I'd rather not go back onto slowtwitch.

 

Coach Rich

Posted By Matt Sullivan on 10 Jun 2011 04:45 PM

I used zip ties last year and they were fine. I'm trying this out now www.profile-design.com/profile-desi...mount.html. Much cheaper than the X-Lab option. It's sturdier than zip ties alone. I like it.

 

Thanks, just picked this up via One Click on Amazon, delivered by TriJungle.

I'll likely have to figure out something for the Joule though. Oh well.

ghernand

this weekend i'll take pics of my set up.  it's not make-shift, but works well.

i do like the idea of no seat bag.  i store my gu's in the xlab power pocket (bento box, but cooler looking).  i suppose i could put my flat repair stuff in there and just grab my gus (x6) and stuff them in my back jersey pocket....not sure.

i take 1 gu plus 1/3rd bottle of 3hr infinit bottle per hour.  otherwise, i'd just go with infinit.

gh

 

mattsull

Posted By Shannon Castle on 10 Jun 2011 05:04 PM

Thanks. Any way you can post a pic of your ziptie setup? Or I can dig through the depths of slowtwitch again--- can't seem to find it. Plus I'd rather not go back onto slowtwitch.

 

forum.slowtwitch.com/Slowtwitch_For...9_P2653555

J.T. Thompson

Hey Shannon - My set up for CDA will be on the traditional side - 1 bottle each on the down tube and seat tube. I did think about doing the "torpedo" bottle in-between the aero bars, but then not a real good place for the joule and moving it too far back would not work for well for my neck. So I'll be doing the 3 hr Infinit bottle and then picking up water bottles from the aide stations and grabbing more Infinit at special needs.

As an FYI - I recently saw a presentation by Specialized and their top aerodynamic engineer, and he noted that have the bottle between the aero bars is more aero efficient than actually having one on the down tube, unless you have one of the aero water bottles (like the one Bontraeger makes and Leito uses) and then it's about equal... Only problem is those bottle cages for the aero bottles won't take the standard water bottles on the course...

scottwstewart

I guess I'm one of the few people here who actually likes the x-lab rear-mounted cages. From what I've found there are two keys to making this system work.

1. You have to have cages that hold your bottles tightly, otherwise you risk launching your bottles. I have some nice tight carbon cages and have never come close to launching a bottle.

2. You have to practice, practice, practice grabbing those bottles. You have to develop the muscle memory to know exactly where those bottles and cages are. I've gotten so use to mine that I never fumble for bottles anymore, and it's easier for me to grab a bottle from behind me then from my downtube.

@Shannon, go with whatever you are comfortable using. You still have a couple weeks to practice if you're trying out a new system.

easton99

I just put on a Profile Designs Aero bottle between the aero bars. So far I like it, but it does change the handling of the bike esp when full. Because I added the quick mount for my Garmin at the same time, I had to 'improvise' a mount for that in front of the bottle. I used a wooden dowel wrapped in electrical tape and zipped the gps mount to it. Now I have quite a cockpit, but I am curious how much it will affect my aerodynamics. I have only put in one ride with this set-up so I am still on the fence about it. Things fit well, and I can drink and see my computer, the bike just feels different.

Cary Blanco

You might want to check out this thread http://members.endurancenation.us/T...fault.aspx from last year with a bunch of ways to mount a bottle on the aerobars.


Has anyone used the XLAB zip tie holder thing? It looks like it would be extremely unstable.

Also XLAB makes this computer mount that might work great for the Jule

sleighcastle

Thanks all. I just bought the cheap profile zip-tie mount option and we'll see how it works.

kurshing

Cary...if you are referring to the x-Lab Torpedo Mount, I have it and it is great. I is very stable on my P3.

Bruce Thompson

Shannon - I have one of the Profile aero bar bottle mounts too.  Had it about a month and so far so good.  EZ to get bottles in and out.  I also have bottle mounts on the seat and down tubes, so I can carry 3 bottles on the bike, and a 4th bottle in my jersey pocket if need be.  The only thing I'd make you aware of is that if you are going down a steep descent that has even a minor bump you may want to just put your thumb over or against the bottle to make sure it doesn't slide out.  I  almost had a bottle come out in front of me once.  Now if it is really steep descent , I just make a suble shift of my thumb off the aero bar to hold the bottle in place just in case.  Still keep your fingers on the aero bar and keep your other hand on the aero bar as normal or on the rear brake.  Try this adjustment on a flat piece of ground first.

Coach Rich

Shannon, I got the same. We can match and all the local kids will want to be like us. Except for the camo bento box...uh...nevermind...

Cary Blanco

Posted By Stephen Anderson on 11 Jun 2011 06:49 PM

Cary...if you are referring to the x-Lab Torpedo Mount, I have it and it is great. I is very stable on my P3.

Yes, I was. Thanks for the info.

gsadleriii

 @Rich - I used the XLab setup between my aero bars (for water bottles at aid stations) and one bottle on the down tube (Infinit Jetfuel mix) at St George.  Had my Joule mounted in front of my bottle mount up against the grips.  Had enough room to pull out the bottle without messing up the Joule mount. Let me know if you want a pic.

Be careful with any aerobar mount and make sure its angled nose up a bit.  i found that bumps in the road will launch your bottles if they aren't canted up a bit.  I used a hard plastic wedge about a 1/4" thick and a bit wider than my bars under the XLab mount in front, which did the trick.

Posted By Rich Strauss on 10 Jun 2011 04:36 PM

Then there is this, from XLab. Yes, I know I can zip tie a bottle cage between the bars, but has two ingredients that a man can't resist: carbon and velco. Duct tape would be irresistable...

 

gsadleriii

Here's my XLab setup and Joule mount between the aero bars (pics attached). The wedge is taped in black electrical tape and placed just behind the front straps.  I use the rear straps to tie down my salt tab dispensers too.

sleighcastle

Thx for the pics. Mounting your joule there doesn't bug your hands? This is my project for tomorrow and the joule-mounting was a conundrum so I appreciate your pictures...

sleighcastle

Yeah, and I'm not going to try to pull off the bandana look either, so people will still be able to tell us apart.

 

ghernand

george, that's a good set up.  i found my pics of my set up.  this one is all store bought and all designed to work together.  i no longer use that x-lab bento box, i use a more aero xlab bento box that tapers down towards the rear.

i also have a speedfill that is not pictured.

my hands are not obstructed at all and i usually wrap them around the bottle.  i can still choke up for climbing or extend.  there is currently a small penalty for the bottle not being completely flat, but i am comfortable with my arms slighlty angled up.

oh by the way, i tried the tools in the bento and it worked nice.  so, nothing behind the seat for me. 

gh

 

ghernand

sorry, here are the pics.