All these guys are world-class time trialists (except Jordan, he's a Fred.)
Their positions are very different in some respects. Armstrong and Ullrich forego aggressive positions and rely on their power for speed. (Armstrong's saddle is 22cm behind the BB/Ullrich's is 18). Vino wasn't a great time trialist in 2006. Their trunk angles are in the 13-degree range, as was mine in Rome in September. Someone told me they thought Armstrong looked like a piece of plywood rolling down the road.
Cancellara, Zabriski, and Vinokurov-2007 all have very aggressive positions (7-10cm from saddle to BB). They're trunk angles are all 6-7 degrees from the horizontal, very aggressive and effective in making you faster if you can generate power in that position. Vino worked on his TT position between 2006 and 2007 and it showed in his TT results (although he might have had more help than just a more agressive position). If you look closely in my picture, you can see that I have my forearms resting directly on the bar, not on the arm pads. If I want to achieve this position, a-la Zabriski, I'll need to go bar shopping. I have no idea how much power I could put out in that position or how it would change my CdA, but I can and will test both.
Then you have Leipheimer and Landis. Their trunk angles are 8-11 degrees (semi-agressive), but their upper arm angles are in the 78-80 degree range, unlike the 88-93 degree range of most others. Maybe that gives them leverage to generate more power?
But one thing common among them all - the angles formed by their bottom brackets, their hip joints, and their trunks are all very near 90 degrees. So if you want to lower your bars, you have to move your seat forward to compensate.
Their positions are very different in some respects. Armstrong and Ullrich forego aggressive positions and rely on their power for speed. (Armstrong's saddle is 22cm behind the BB/Ullrich's is 18). Vino wasn't a great time trialist in 2006. Their trunk angles are in the 13-degree range, as was mine in Rome in September. Someone told me they thought Armstrong looked like a piece of plywood rolling down the road.
Cancellara, Zabriski, and Vinokurov-2007 all have very aggressive positions (7-10cm from saddle to BB). They're trunk angles are all 6-7 degrees from the horizontal, very aggressive and effective in making you faster if you can generate power in that position. Vino worked on his TT position between 2006 and 2007 and it showed in his TT results (although he might have had more help than just a more agressive position). If you look closely in my picture, you can see that I have my forearms resting directly on the bar, not on the arm pads. If I want to achieve this position, a-la Zabriski, I'll need to go bar shopping. I have no idea how much power I could put out in that position or how it would change my CdA, but I can and will test both.
Then you have Leipheimer and Landis. Their trunk angles are 8-11 degrees (semi-agressive), but their upper arm angles are in the 78-80 degree range, unlike the 88-93 degree range of most others. Maybe that gives them leverage to generate more power?
But one thing common among them all - the angles formed by their bottom brackets, their hip joints, and their trunks are all very near 90 degrees. So if you want to lower your bars, you have to move your seat forward to compensate.
1 Comment:
Robert,
Just checked my blog (I haven't updated since November) and noticed you made a comment about my CTL - TSB box and I'd like to share it with you but need an email address.
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