To aero or not to aero....compuetr says "YES"!

edhunter1999

I recently upgraded my Shimano wheelset 1670g that came with my Spesh Roubaix to a pair of aero Mavic Cosmic Carbone SLs 1740g.
I was a bit gutted because I didn't feel the perfoermance had increased.

So....Here's the deal.........I put them to the test.
I rode the same stretch of road and back.
It was approx 1 mile, flat, approx a 10MPH wind, I had similar tyres, warmed up and took a short break in between.

Here's the results.
The Cosmics took approx 7 seconds longer to reach a high speed.
Shimano against wind 15.5 MPH, Cosmic 17.4 MPH
Wind behind Shimano 22.8, Cosmic 24.3 MPH.

I know this is in now way a lab condition test but it was the best I could do
and personally I'm convinced of the advantage. Hopefull y the info will be helpful to others.

COMPUTER SAYS YES!

On the down side I looked at my bathroom scales recently.
COMPUTER SAYS NO!

I was considering geting some wheels that would shave 200kgs off ....however I cannot justifiy this when I'm apound overweight.
Thats approx 7 KGs......................!
My excess fat weighs almost as much as my bike!!
The weight has gota come off first.

Keep riding, Keep Smiling

Pross

I'd love to see the wheels that save you 200kgs :shock: Also, I assume you mean you are a stone overweight as a pound is less than 0.5kg

Pokerface

Did you mean wheels that are 200 grams lighter? And that you are 7KG overweight?



Your math at the end there is a little dodgy.

inseine

An interesting excercise, but how did you match your effort? HRM, powermeter? I assume you didn't just 'go for it' since the speeds are not that high.

Essex Man

Trial not blinded, therefore void.

twotyred

Pretty difficult to do a blind trial of bike wheels unless the cyclist is actually blind.

However using a power meter and riding the course at a constant power would have been a start. As it stands your trial is meaningless.

You're right about losing the lard before spending a fortune on lighter parts.

Scrumple

Professor Denzil Dexter likes!

morstar

I know you guys are having a laugh but give the guy a break.
It is possible to satisfy yourself of a certain set of beliefs without necessarily having sufficient evidence to prove it in a court of law/ scientific way.
I used to live next door to a drug dealer but I couldn't prove it.
The op is both happy and flush with cash. It is our responsibility to ensure he contributes to the economy and the greater good by buying more wheels urgently.

Pokerface

While his tests are not scientific, they do mimic actual scientific tests that have been done on aero vs non aero wheels. And probably the experiences of virtually every single rider that has ever swapped from regular to aero wheels.

secretsqizz

OP you need to get yourself over to
http://weightweenies.starbike.com/forum/
asap

Essex Man

Pokerface wrote:

While his tests are not scientific, they do mimic actual scientific tests that have been done on aero vs non aero wheels. And probably the experiences of virtually every single rider that has ever swapped from regular to aero wheels.

OK, but 2 mph??? 2 mph is a lot.

Barteos

You'd need at least 5-10 runs with a powermeter on each set of wheels (same tyres and pressure, same clothes, same position, similar conditions), to come to any conclusions.

Since your body is responsible for around 75% of air resistance anyway, one less headset spacer will probably make more difference than the best aero wheels.

Pokerface

Barteos wrote:

Since your body is responsible for around 75% of air resistance anyway, one less headset spacer will probably make more difference than the best aero wheels.

OK smart guy. What do you do once your set up is as low as possible? :roll:

Barteos

Pokerface wrote:

Barteos wrote:

Since your body is responsible for around 75% of air resistance anyway, one less headset spacer will probably make more difference than the best aero wheels.

OK smart guy. What do you do once your set up is as low as possible? :roll:

Buy an aero helmet which will make a bigger difference than the wheels and may be cheaper?

Seriously though I was just trying to show the magnitude of the gains.

benjiwenge

I'd love a set of wheels that could save me 200kg...

Actually I think I've read wheels can save a couple of minutes over an hour at 40kph, whereas a helmet saves just a few seconds. Read that after I bought an aero helmet, which was bloody uncomfortable and directed freezing morning air into my eyes every Sunday I rode it. And cost £100. Good wheels DO make a difference... before buying a helmet though I'd go for a ceramic bottom bracket, a top quality chain, and optimising body position because they're all going to make a greater efficiency difference than a helmet.

danowat

benjiwenge wrote:

Actually I think I've read wheels can save a couple of minutes over an hour at 40kph, whereas a helmet saves just a few seconds.

What wheels?, discs?, tri-spokes?, 50mm rims?, what, you can't just say "wheels"

A helmet infact, according to many sets of tunnel data, will save you double the time a set of tri-spoke wheels will save, plus the time saved per £ basis, an aero helmet wins by miles, the 3 biggest "aero" things you can do are skinsuit, TT bars and an aero helmet, aero wheel savings are minimal by comparison.

http://www.cyclingtipsblog.com/2010/04/ ... equipment/

Although, quite why you'd want to wear an aero helmet outside of a TT is beyond me, they aren't very practical or comfortable for anything other than a TT

brettjmcc

They didn't do wheels, but I thought this aero article on here was good, and showed the power required to maintain 40kph. The swapped through framesets, handlebars and helmets. For me its quite significant enogh to start thnking of maybe saving for a proper TT frame, as I want to get into it with the club I have just joined.

http://www.bikeradar.com/news/article/h ... aero-19273

To the OP. Fella, I like those stats. The most important thing it has done is boost your confidence and outlook on riding IMO.

inseine

before buying a helmet though I'd go for a ceramic bottom bracket, a top quality chain, and optimising body position because they're all going to make a greater efficiency difference than a helmet.

How people just toss these facts about amazes me! I agree about postion but where is the data re helmets v ceramic BBs and chains?

brettjmcc

Well, the link above shows you how it affects it with a helmet. They tested both on a track and in a wind tunnel. Not huge, but on avaerage about 8-9Watts to maintain 40kmh. Based on the watts they were having to produce it would be 3-4%, or as Team Sky would say, 'a marginal gain'

Pokerface

I think you'll find that the cheapest and easiest way to go faster..... is to put a number on your back. 8)

edhunter1999

Cheers for your feedback guys.
As I said, this experiment no way pretends to be a bullet-proof lab test.
I can see how a blind test and multiple tests would likely create a far more reliable result.
If a wheel producer used my test as proof about their product it would be pretty laughable.

However, with the time and tools at my disposable (and not having a blindfold) it was good enough for me to generate a quick personal opinion.
I've also done a couple of longer runs, mainly rolling flats, and found I comfortably cruised on the Shimano set at aprox 17MPH and on the Cosmics at aprox 18MPH.
Again, I know there are a million variables, and this a personal opinion, but I am convinced the aeros have resulted in a 1 to 2 MPH increase in my average performance.

Individual experience is not void nor meaningless.
In the end, it is all that matters.
Plus this puppies look ********ing cool. 8)