Aero Deep Dive in The Specialized Win Tunnel – Ask a Cycling a Coach 188

[Ian]

Aerodynamics in cycling is a complex topic, so we took your questions to Chris Yu and Dave Koesel, two of the foremost experts in cycling aerodynamics, at the Specialized Win Tunnel. This is one of our most informative episodes yet, and we think you’ll love it!

Any questions about the episode or questions for Chris and Dave? Leave a reply below and we’ll get them answered!

---

Youtube Live Video:

---

Topics covered in this episode:

• What’s so special about the Specialized Win-Tunnel?
• Are aerodynamics important?
• Pros vs Joes with equipment and performance
• How does going into the drops effect aerodynamics?
• Does bar length matter?
• How to shift your head to gain watts
• Why do some riders create a better drafts than others?
• Does sitting up with a tail wind help?
• Does optimizing aerodynamics make a difference on the draft?
• When do you not want to wear an aero road helmet?
• How to choose a bike based on your strengths
• Glasses and Beards - do they cause more drag?
• Head position on a road bike
• Does lateral movement decrease aerodynamics?
• Why are shaved legs faster?
• Why is the UCI beginning to crack down on sock length?
• Skin suit vs. skin tight race kit
• The evolution of wheel design
• Why aren’t mountain bikes aero?
• Does Nate’s “Franken Bike” make sense for gravel racing?
• Do downhill and enduro athletes benefit from aerodynamics?
• What effects do number plates have on aerodynamics?
• Aero bars vs. round bars
• Are hydration packs beneficial?
• Does Jonathan actually have a world class CdA?
• Do the UCI rules cause frustration for product engineers?

---

Links mentioned in this podcast

• Specialized Win Tunnel Youtube Channel
• Specialized Venge
• Specialized Tarmac
• Specialized Evade Helmet
• Specialized Prevail Helmet
• Win Tunnel: To Beard or Not to Beard
• Specialized Evade Skin Suit
• Specialized 321 Disk Wheel
• Specialized Epic
• Specialized Ambush Helmet
• Specialized Aerofly Carbon Handlebar
• Specialized Shiv
• WIn Tunnel: Pin it to Win it video

---

Subscribe to the Podcast

Listen to previous episodes on SoundCloud

[Captain_Doughnutman]

Woah. I predict a ‘most watched’ podcast!

[KatherineT]

this podcast. It was awesome.

[nathan]

Two Things:
Dave from Specialized said their molded tubeless clinchers are the fastest tire option with the least rolling resistance. Are any of their Pro Tour riders making the jump to this or are they still tubular?

They mention a video about how to mount number plates. Anyone know where that is?

[osmondcreative]

It’s official WORLD CLASS CDA!!! Ha ha ha

[Landis]

Super Dave! Awesome dude. That guy is a beast on the bike as well. Felt to 3T to Specialized! Good for him!

[Zmontalto]

Amazing podcast! The girlfriend doesn’t approve of me shaving my legs, but for 20 watts she might change her mind haha.

[Landis]

Amazing podcast! The girlfriend doesn’t approve of me shaving my legs, but for 20 watts she might change her mind haha.

That and I’m thinking of cutting my long sleeve Velotec skinsuit. Have a few wrinkles near/around the elbow area…ha!

[ErickVH]

That’s silly. Then you’ll have a flappy unfinished edge.

[Landis]

If I could cut it just under the bicep. Clean like. Maybe have it professionally done. But yeah all this is sorta silly. Reminds me of watching Dave K there ride me off his wheel. No amount of aero would have made a difference.

[alexstenerson]

Did it take anyone else 10 minutes to figure out what “rov-vle components” are? Lol

[Captain_Doughnutman]

The girlfriend doesn’t approve of me shaving my legs…

Tell her it’s the cheapest aero hack you’ll ever do.
It’s either shave the legs or buy a $4,000 wheel set.

[Bryce]

Here is the Blog Post on number pinning, the video is part of the post

What Every Racer Should Know About Number Pinning

[stevenbrandes]

This is now my new favorite TR podcast. Awesome content!

[BenTheStig]

Best podcast in a long while, only caveat I have is after watching some of the S-Works wind tunnel videos, it’s important to note all their testing is done a elite level speed (45kph for example). You need to consider two factors here: aero resistance is logarithmic, but also, that ‘air speed’ and ‘ground speed’ are two different metrics. This is how aircraft take off on short runways when they have strong head winds. The ground speed can be slow, but the air speed is high.

Can I also suggest limiting all podcasts to an hour, I feel this forces people in to clear, concise answers

[ErickVH]

The power loss due to drag scales with the square of velocity. The aero gains of improving your CdA is linear at any given speed.

Drag = p/2 * Cd * A * v^2

[Jayacher]

Was listening to the podcast without video and didn’t even realise Chad was there until he spoke up about half an hour in!

[neil]

This was what I was going to ask. They keep stating gains (or rather, reducing losses) of 5, 10, 20 Watts for various changes, but didn’t seem to mention the speed at which these numbers were observed.

[ajh127]

Really enjoyed this podcast, the small tips and hints were great. Keen to try them out on the road

[Sustainer]

Great topic and really informative, other than @Nate_Pearson asking a great question at 19:44 on who should buy which bike (Venge/Tarmac). Chris said there’s a different answer for a pro and everyday person, but before he’s allowed to answer for the everyday person, he’s interrupted to go off on a tangent about sprint finishes. Aaagh! Any chance of a follow-up with Chris to get the everyday person answer, as I’m test riding both bikes (and the new S5) this month and would appreciate more thoughts on how to think about the different bikes?