Ok I’ve been meaning to post this question for months, finally getting around to it
I’m 47, my focus is sprint triathlons and I generally go ok in my age cat. The swim is my strongest leg, bike is second and unfortunately the run is my weakest.
For a couple of years I tried to focus on improving my running but with limited success and I suspect I’m at a plateau. This year I’ve focused more on the bike and have seen some good improvements on TR. I’m closer to 4W/kg now on 3h/week training.
Last season I got a TT bike and it helped a lot, I can sometimes challenge for a podium in the age cat now.
Apart from training, I’d like to know what I can do to get faster on the bike leg? I had domestic approval to buy a new TT bike but ended up getting a used one off a mate for a fraction of the price, so in theory I have a bit of budget to spend on upgrades.
I got a bike fit, but otherwise haven’t changed anything and am wondering if some little upgrades here and there might all add up to a decent saving? I’m pretty clueless about all this!
This is what I have:
2014 Cervelo P3
Giant SLR 55mm carbon rims and hubs (the rear is the same as the front, and these are not the new ones, they are nearly as old as the bike)
Vittoria Corsa 700x25c tyres
Inner tubes: unknown
2XU sleeveless trisuit (I’d happily upgrade this as it’s not very comfortable)
BTA water bottle
Rudy Wing helmet
Northwave Extreme Triathlon carbon shoes
The guy who did the bike fit said to keep an eye out on Marketplace for a set of Zipp 808s and there are some floating around from time to time for around A$1k. I hear about latex inner tubes, waxed chains, etc. but don’t know if it makes that much difference.
Maybe my aero position also needs work? I’ve attached a couple of photos. The head up one is probably the norm when it’s crowded and I’m passing people, the head down position is about as "tucked” as I can get with this setup.
I’d honestly appreciate any suggestions or guidance. Thanks a lot!
Disk wheel is where I saw the biggest improvement on TT’s, I think that saved me abouts 30s over 10 miles. There’s probably something to be gained with deeper front wheels too. I’m limited to a choice between a 62.5mm and a standard 25mm for blowy days, the 62.5mm is faster but I have no real testing of the 25mm on calmer days.
Bang for buck is going to be a cover for the rear wheel you have, no real point in upgrading the rear unless you plan to do a race that might ban the cover and then the deeper rear would help.
Deeper front wheel will have less of an impact but still something.
That frame is setup to put a bento box on the top tube, been a while but think they showed some benefits, plus storage.
Tririg front brake that someone suggested, they aren’t the best at being brakes but probably the best at being aero ( I run them)
You should be able to do all that for the budget of used 808s
Thinking of it, whilst I might have the numbers wrong, I think a cover saved me 15s on a 10miles TT ans the full disc saved me a further 15s (30s in total as opposed to an open wheel). So yes, for bang for buck a cover is far better
The largest source of aero drag is your position, so I would see if you can find a fitting service that utilizes aerodynamic sensors / testing. This includes helmet testing for you in your position.
After the above, make sure your clothes really fit tightly - any wrinkles cause major drag - and I know you are a triathlete, but get a aero suit with sleeves.
Aero socks are another cheap gain.
As was said, low rolling resistance tires run either with latex tubes or tubeless is another relatively “cheap gain” + run a good quality wax chain / make sure your bike is clean.
Everything else is diminishing returns on a aero / $$$ basis
I would go with a properly setup up tubeless system. Better to not get a flat in the first place especially during a race. With latex, most of my flats were always the pin prick variety. With tubeless you don’t even notice them.
I don’t think you have a lot of low hanging fruit there. Upgrading individual components will likely yield tiny incremental gains.
What I’d do in your position was look at an aero sensor or use aero simulation software while making various changes. Short of going to a wind tunnel, it’s the only option for an amateur on a budget to know they are heading in the right direction. Aerotune is super cheap.
Also they need a narrow due to frame age newer stuff might be a tight fit, rim brake, tubeless wheel set which do exist but are much trickier to actually find.
this is where you went wrong. you should have gone for the best frame and helmet you could have. For reference, if you follow any YouTube triathlete content you’ll see them all on disc brakes, with a disc rear wheel and some very aero clothing (think NoPins and the like). All the money you saved on the bike was for naught in my opinion, you are trying to put lipstick on a pig (rim brake bike with narrow wheels). You are married to obsolete technology here.
I would have never bought a bike in 2025 that would only take 25mm tires. Could care less about discs but they are probably required to ride 30mm tires. I hope this bike was an exceptional deal.
You’ll have a very hard time trying to get 30mm tires into a rim brake frame like the one from the pics at the beginning.
I don’t think it’s been on the list so far, but aero carbon extension bars will likely also bring at least minor improvements. Might be tricky to find one for mechanical shifting though.
Even more gains, but also significantly more cost from a fully integrated cockpit.
Really miniscule improvement: tubes with shorter valve length.
Off topic but always amazed by how countries apart from the UK approach TT’s
Similar to you I am at 3.9-4.2w/kg over a 10 or 25 mile TT but Im lucky if I break the top 20 out of a field of 40 over here
Aero wise, best thing I did was find a fitter with experience in TT & Aero setups. If they have Aero simulation tech, even better.
I found that on a road bike, adding TT bars saved me 3 seconds over a 10 mile flat closed course TT (so credit to the aggressive roadbike fit). Likewise waxing the chain with MSW vs an immaculate silca drip waxed chain netted a few seconds
OT, until last week I had my summer wheels in the rim braked road bike and the rear is 32mm. On the TT bike though I can just squeeze in a 25mm if I don’t pump it too hard. No problems with the brakes but the curves seat tube is just too close
Maybe I’ll be a contrarian here by saying: how about focussing to improve your run? Depending on how you train, that part might essentially be free.
The second thing you can do is improve your nutrition on the bike with an eye on your run. I am not a triathletet, but I reckon that you can take in more on the bike than while you are running. (That has been my experience, although I haven’t. been running consistently for 12 years.)
A third point I have heard mention is to improve your transitions. A lot of people work very hard/spend a lot of €€€ to gain 30 seconds per 10k on the bike. So improving your transition times by, say, 15–30 seconds each would equal serious money.
The only equipment-related advice is that I second the suggestion to pick fast rolling tires. You will be limited by your brake calipers and frame, but get tires that are as wide as you can and as fast as you can. If you are ok with increasing the risk of flatting, you can also go for TT tires.
Once you give yourself permission to spend serious money, you can basically replace your entire equipment
This is a great list @noahphence, thank you! I’ve looked into some of the items towards the top of this list and I reckon there could be 30-40W out there just for a few hundred dollars!
Do you have any thoughts on the rear wheel cover to make it like a disc?
to buy a new TT bike but ended up getting a used one off a mate for a fraction of the price, so in theory I have a bit of budget to spend on upgrades.
