Reduce drag profile or build more muscle?

[CoachStuartMcDougal]

Which is priority, the shape of your vessel or build a bigger engine? The skillful cyclist: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bvmibwafGXc

Stuart

[Streak]

Message received!

[Zenturtle]

Reduce drag profile AND build stronger AND smarter muscle.

Streamlining is useless without a stream.

As can be seen: cyclists have tight hip flexors

[bx]

He's overgliding!

[Zenturtle]

I thought balance was the main priority
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vu598EhI7LU


But best to combine it with streamline
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WpnHWqR69cA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wk3Af691T-o

[CoachStuartMcDougal]

Originally Posted by bx

He's overgliding!

Lol, hilarious - damn those 'over-gliders'

He's got excellent balance laid out on the edge of his seat, minimizing his drag profile. I wonder if this is triathlon or USAT legal? Sure beats dropping $2,500 on a set of Zipp wheels that would never return those kind of results.

'The shape of your vessel matters more than the size of your engine' ~Bill Boomer

[lloyddinma]

Originally Posted by CoachStuartMcDougal

Lol, hilarious - damn those 'over-gliders'

He's got excellent balance laid out on the edge of his seat, minimizing his drag profile. I wonder if this is triathlon or USAT legal? Sure beats dropping $2,500 on a set of Zipp wheels that would never return those kind of results.

'The shape of your vessel matters more than the size of your engine' ~Bill Boomer

Lol! Is this real?

Anyway, Bill Boomer is right only within the context of efficiency or energy transfer.

[s.sciame]

Originally Posted by CoachStuartMcDougal

Which is priority, the shape of your vessel or build a bigger engine? The skillful cyclist: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bvmibwafGXc

Stuart

Cool video, cool soundtrack! However, a smart commentator says:

no trae bici de carrera, por eso lo adelantan, pero uso un buen y estúpido truco. (he doesn't ride a road bike, that's why they overtake him, anyway he used a good and stupid trick)

Not a cycling expert, anyway this seems to be a fake. Just to expand the above comment: he's the only one using one of those bikes without brakes (on the road downhill, not something you would normally do) and with only 1 gear, and this gear is pretty low: his mates, especially the first 2, initially take the lead and stay ahead with a lower cadence, ie they have an higher gear (and the brakes, just in case it's needed).

So he's initially slower because of the low gear of his bike. He basically has the engine braking on (the limited cadence of his legs is the engine braking). Like going downhill with a car with the 2nd gear on.

When he leaves the pedals, he not only improves his vessel shape, but he also takes the engine braking off. That's the "good and stupid trick". Like taking the 2nd gear off and letting the car free to go downhill by gravity. The pedals are now free to increase their cadence as much as they want, and when he overtakes his mates his pedals roll very fast (much faster than his mates' pedals and much faster than they rolled when connected to his feet).

But still, I liked it :)
Salvo

[s.sciame]

Originally Posted by Zenturtle

I thought balance was the main priority
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vu598EhI7LU

They should get an award just because they do it with those shoes. They're like the finis freestyler paddles: get the foot misaligned and the shoe slips away. The guys show very good balance but very good mechanics as well :)

Salvo

[CoachStuartMcDougal]

Originally Posted by s.sciame

Cool video, cool soundtrack! However, a smart commentator says:

no trae bici de carrera, por eso lo adelantan, pero uso un buen y estúpido truco. (he doesn't ride a road bike, that's why they overtake him, anyway he used a good and stupid trick)

Not a cycling expert, anyway this seems to be a fake. Just to expand the above comment: he's the only one using one of those bikes without brakes (on the road downhill, not something you would normally do) and with only 1 gear, and this gear is pretty low: his mates, especially the first 2, initially take the lead and stay ahead with a lower cadence, ie they have an higher gear (and the brakes, just in case it's needed).

So he's initially slower because of the low gear of his bike. He basically has the engine braking on (the limited cadence of his legs is the engine braking). Like going downhill with a car with the 2nd gear on.

When he leaves the pedals, he not only improves his vessel shape, but he also takes the engine braking off. That's the "good and stupid trick". Like taking the 2nd gear off and letting the car free to go downhill by gravity. The pedals are now free to increase their cadence as much as they want, and when he overtakes his mates his pedals roll very fast (much faster than his mates' pedals and much faster than they rolled when connected to his feet).

But still, I liked it :)
Salvo

Interesting perception Salvo, seems like you are having a tough time accepting this. It's simpler to characterize as a fraud when it doesn't fit behind our normal filters. Clearly the (streamlined) rider is on a fixie (single low gear) and is the reason those peddles revolve quicker as compared to his mates on the multi-geared bikes. He's going downhill, well they all are - all are under peddle power, except for one - the fixie rider. Faster speed can be seen with the wheel speed between bikes. You can look at this as a stupid trick, or a smart way for a fixie rider to keep up with multi-geared bikes. What is obvious, is how much drag is created from an upright rider under power, verses the horizontal/streamlined rider under no power , other than gravity itself.

Stuart