Can One Bike Do It All? Aero Road bikes vs Regular Road bikes vs tri bikes
Interesting article about Aero Road bikes and their comparison to Tri/TT bikes.
triathlon.competitor.com/2011/07/ge...-2_34339/2
Discuss...
0
Interesting article about Aero Road bikes and their comparison to Tri/TT bikes.
triathlon.competitor.com/2011/07/ge...-2_34339/2
Discuss...
Comments
My big concern is the fit. I think to get a bike that you can be in both position means one of the two will have to be compromised by a good bit. For example, here is a Cervelo S5 vs P4 geo:
S5 54 - Stack 555 Reach 378 Seattube Angle 73
S5 51 - Stack 530 Reach 369 Seattube Angle 73
P4 54 - Stack 498 Reach 419 Seatube Angle 75-78
The P4 has 57 mm less stack and 41 mm less reach then the same size S5, that is a HUGE gap to make up with a stem, spacers, etc.
If I bought the S5 in a 54 (my correct fit for a road bike) and IF (and that is a big if) I could get my seat far enough forward on a S5, and then get a stem/bar combo to get me low enough, I would still need a 130mm or so stem to get enough reach. I would then have a good bit of weight over the front wheel and I bet the handling would suffer. However an S5 setup as road bike would fit me just about perfect.
So the alternative is to by the S5 in a size too small, 51. Again, i think it would be very hard to actually get my seat step enough, but if I could, with a stack of 530 I actually could get the bars low enough by using low stack bars and a -17 stem no spacers. The problem here is again the reach is so short that I would need a really long stem and the weight distribution would be off. Aslo, if I tried to set this up as a road bike, it would be too small for that as well and I would end up with a stack of spacers and long stem.
Also, to really use it like a road bike you would want drop bars and road shifters. To get the full aero benefits you would want TT bars/shifters. It's not that hard for someone that can work on their own bikes to do this switch, but it is a pain and requires additional componets (i.e. stem, bars, shifters). I guess you cold set it up with drop bars/sti shifters for most of the year, then prior to your first tri switch to the aerobar setup for tri season. Therefore switching just twice a year.
Now, all that said, I do think you could find a position on a aero roadbike that is a good inbetween. Not quite as aero and low as a normal tribike and not quite as comfortable as a road bike. This is probably a good solution for many people, but if you are looking to go as fast as you can then you need to either be on a TT bike, of have the aero road bike setup exactly like a TT bike would be. Hope that makes sense as I'm multitasking while working.
I personally would rather have a cheaper dedicated TT bike and a chearper decicated road bike, then one nice one that tries to do both.... that's just me though.
BTW, I do think the S5 is an awesome bike, as an aero road bike, just not as a TT bike.
The article is focusing on the drag of the bikes in the windtunnel, however as I said in way too many words, a TT bike has completely different geometry than an road bike.
Nothing to add, except I'm seriously thinking about getting an S5 in the Fall. My Calfee is an '02 with about 500k miles on it (not that many...but it's a well used bike). Thinking of getting the S5 and converting the Calfee to a break-away bike for travel.
Intuitively, I "think" I should be able to put the saddle in the forward most position and get a set of bars that facilitate at forearms on the tops style of riding. I think Zipp makes a pair? A friend of mine has them. Anyway, I think the combination of a steep seat tube angle + ability to sorta-TT on my forearms would make the switch from roadie to tri bike less dramatic?
As far as handling goes, weight forward on the bike makes a big difference but it's also what you get used to. I can do technical descents on my tri bike probably as fast as on my road bike, but I am hanging it out there a bit more. It's feels about 90% of "turns on rails" as my road bike and the brakes are not as good, a function of the aerobars/levers I use vs the brakes. But I noticed a huge difference when I had a bottle mounted between the aerobars. I did NOT like the weight up there, could really feel it when handling the bike at high and low speeds. I've since moved it back on top of the stem and that's gone away.
Short answer is it depends on how low you can/are willing to go in your racing position. If the combination of your height, frame size, and flexibility means that you don't have a very significant drop from elbow pads to saddle height, then you might be just as good with a road bike + shorty bars as you would with a tri bike + aerobars. Meaning, you may have about the same riding position but have a more versatile bike.
Something like that
All part of my Evil Plan which began with ToC11, when I instructed all of the campers to cast pitiful looks towards the direction of me and my bike whenever Joanne was around and mutter stuff like "it's a shame that Rich has to ride such an old, out-dated bicycle..."
Like that tactic Rich. I am always talking about the need for new bikes around my daughters as I know Meredith will repeat it. Though maybe you should dip into your motorbike fund for a new S5
Keep in mind the forward most position on a S5 is simply a standard 73 degree seattube with a zero offest post. My guess is saddle slammed all the way forward is only gonna get you 75-76 degrees. That is probably more than fine for your sorta-TT on your forearm position and will work just fine for you. However for someone looking to use it as a tri bike... there is a HUGE difference between a 73 degree seattube and a 78 degree.
Also, those Zipp bars are the Contour SL, which I highly recomend. The 3T ergonova is also another very similar and very nice bar with the ovalized top section you are looking for. Ritchey makes one as well but I don't know the model off hand.
Not sure what the brand of bars are/where but the tops are crazy big. Bigger than those Zipps, I think.
Not saying I would ride the bike crazy steep, just that's the rationalization in my head at the moment for upgrading the Calfee
. My significant problem with bicycles is that in my other two-wheel hobby, $5-8k for a bike buys you...an engine, electronics, suspension, tons of engineering work...you know...stuff you can actually point to and add up the $$ to equal $5-8k. Not so with bicycles and so I ride a 9yo road bike and am completely happy with it 
@Kurt - Your math looks correct, assuming your current speed is about 19mph or so...I think.
Is it worth it? That's a personal decision. Every 1 MPH increase in average bike speed equates to about an equivalent of 46 seconds/mile on the run in full Ironman. Some speed is easier to buy.
Caveat: This is if all things are equal and gaining advantage in one area doesn't cause something else to suffer.
Personal story: I added a full 2 MPH increase in speed to my bike over last year. I attribute it to two things. 1) Better fitness 2) tt/tri-specific bike. Point 1 is obvious...stronger = faster. Point 2, I can tell a huge difference in wind drag over my road bike (even with clip ons). Clip ons aren't the same, plus I shift constantly and going form aero bar to sti shifter just isn't very ideal. Second, I run MUCH MUCH better off the tt bike than I do off the road bike. It's a much bigger difference that I ever expected it would be. For my body type and riding style, I guess the steep seat tube angle really does matter. Based upon ftp gains in general, I would estimate that the speed gain is 70% bike, for me. Your mileage may vary.
@ Matt, Jennifer, Scott, et al - Sounds like you all are dancing around the key issue which is: THEY'RE TESTING THE WRONG THING!!! What we care about is NOT wind tunnel tests, but real world speed in a race. Matt suggests that a road bike, no matter how aero, will always have a compromised position. I assume the conclusion would be: poor position = loss of maximum possible power, even if aero (wind tunnel) factors are the same. Anyway, I stand by my position, which is that the test of a bike/rider combination is not found in theoretical watts saved in wind tunnel tests at various yaw angles, but in what happens out on the bike/run race course.
Or, as Jerry suggests, another criterion might be comfort, not speed or power. Depends on your values.
@ Kurt - I would love to get another 1 mph in a race. I don't really follow your conclusion - can you expand on that a bit. I'm willing to buy a new bike and transport it to select races, but I only want to buy one bike. Like Rich, I'm salivating after the S5. My LBS stock Specialized, Cervelo, and Cannondale, so I guess the Super Six might also be n the mix. But if a P3 could get me 18 minutes at IM Coeur d'Alene, I'd pony up for that. I can drive there.