This is a sponsored article, brought to you in association with Scott.
There are two basic ways to go faster on the bike: pedal harder or decrease resistance. Here we’ll show you how to do the latter and explain how much of a difference that can make.
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Air drag makes up the bulk of resistance you have to overcome and your body makes up 70 to 80 percent of your total drag. So, just changing the shape your body presents to the wind can make a huge difference on your speed.
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As with everything in cycling, though, it’s a balance — the fastest position is not the most comfortable or sustainable. To quantify the differences, and to qualify what they mean in the real world, we measured four basic position options on the Los Angeles Velodrome with data provided by Jim Manton of ERO Sports. Jim is a professional bike fitter with the unique situation of having tools to measure drag in real time.
The basic idea in reducing aero drag is that a smaller frontal profile is faster. You can feel this yourself while coasting downhill. Sit up high and you catch more wind, slowing your progress. Tuck down tight, effectively reducing your shape at the front, and you go faster as you’re creating less wind resistance.
Four positions, four drag measurements
Using ERO Sports’ Alphamantis Track software, we did two run-throughs of each position, measuring CdA (Cd is coefficient of drag, and A is the frontal area you present to the wind). A lower number means a faster rider, for the same effort.
Position 1: Straight arms, hands on hoods
- CdA 0.4678
Position 2: Straight arms, hands in the drops
- CdA 0.4065
- Watts saved at 40kph — 67
Position 3: Bent arms, hands in drops
- CdA 0.3403
- Watts saved at 40kph — 112
Position 4: Bent arms, hands on hoods
- CdA 0.3627
- Watts saved at 40kph — 94
Other tricks and tips for going fast without going harder
Bottom line: bend your elbows for free speed
You can read more at BikeRadar.com
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