Interesting discussion, stats, and equations here. I realize that most of it aimed at things like bar types, bar heights, and rider positions when encountering wind resistance at various speed thresholds. Two things that I have not noticed yet (and these may get me kicked off the discussion thread): 1) tire width and pressure (therefore rolling resistance) and 2) "wind breaks." The first of these might be kind of moot since the rider would be starting a ride with the same tires and pressures as he/she encounters headwinds. So...if pressures and widths (maybe throw in tire weight as a wild card) make some difference a tail/head wind ride differential would be represented in a ratio similar to what's been discussed previously only at more optimal levels? "Wind breaks" occur in pace lines. The poor chap at the front bears the strain of a headwind and is solely responsible for keep the line at more or less the same speed when it's his or her turn to pull. Meanwhile, everyone else enjoys an easier effort on down the line EXCEPT for those who are riding a more upright position - they'll catch some of the wind, too, and can't do anything about it (although those behind will enjoy a bit of "double break").
On Friday, May 16, 2025 at 11:53:56 AM UTC-5 [email protected] wrote: > There's a chart here that describes the power required to ride at any > given speed for various positions on a bike (aerobars, drops, hoods, tops, > and standing): > https://ridefar.info/bike/cycling-speed/air-resistance-cyclist/ > > You can see that the standing position is clearly a lot worse than the > others, and that the article claims that the difference between the tops > and the drops is about 1kph or 0.6mph. That doesn't sound like a lot, at > 15mph 70% your power is going into overcoming air resistance. ( > https://maa.org/math-values/2018-7-19-devlins-angle-post-1-sf48y-x6edp-l56an/#:~:text=What%20the%20math%20tells%20you,accounting%20for%20the%20other%20half) > .) > > I guess what this tells me is that I should try lowering the handlebars on > my son's Roadini. > -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To view this discussion visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/0ecb4075-7cd5-4f59-a778-c7d514cc5a6bn%40googlegroups.com.
