I find that riding into a headwind is harder than with a tailwind, even at the exact same power. RPE and even HR are higher for the same power. Or, conversely, I struggle to put out the same power at the same RPE, so will often unconsioucly drop power into the wind. It even seems to be harder than p…

I suspect cadence could fall if you turn into a headwind, which would probably affect RPE if you fell outside of your usual/self-selected range. Like you said, you might also make a more conscious effort to maintain aero position for long bouts. Psychologically it can feel like mother nature is con…

This is my quick take on it. When riding into headwind at same pwr the headwind gives lower speed so it’s fundamentally a little frustrating “I am trying hard but going slow!”. It is hard to ignore this psychologically. Second headwinds are rarely perfectly even, more often they are blustery meanin…

See video in the first post of this thread [image] Do you Pedal down hill? Racing This video by Alex Dowsett was in my feed tonight and I thought what he had to say about pacing TTs was interesting; especially the bit about pedalling downhill. [How to Pace a TT] …

It’s not this thread…I started this one. :smile: But yeah, what he said in that video made me think more about it. But if it was just inertia, why doesn’t it feel the same on a climb, where inertia is even higher?

Smoothing out micro variations is interesting. Maybe even more of an effort of keeping the bike in a straight line (if the wind is changing direction slightly)?

I feel the same about the headwind. I put it down to mostly mentally. It’s just a lot more fun to go wwweeeeeeeeee with a nice tailwind. And fun lowers RPE.

The variation in wind speed/gusts is the key to me, much easier to sustain a consistent power on a climb than into a headwind. Although I do treat headwinds like I would a climb, higher cadence and trying to be super consistent with effort/power.

I think it’s tension. I see a lot of people really tensing up and trying to fight the wind, which raises RPE and wastes energy. Made worse if, as above, the wind is gusting. Trying to push too big a gear doesn’t help either. I find the best thing is to focus on power not speed, and stay relaxed. If…

Riding into a headwind is frustrating, to be sure – and it requires additional skills. That said, I find it more difficult to keep a consistent power when I am riding with a tailwind. I suppose that it is the same problem as downhills: I keep pedalling but not with the same power as uphill.

There is also something to be said about the noise… Riding into a headwind increases the wind noise in your ears which is super frustrating and probably decreases some of the concentration you have which then increases RPE… This is at least true for me.

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Riding into a headwind

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onemanpeloton March 23, 2021, 9:23am 4

See video in the first post of this thread

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Getting stronger riding into a headwind Training	25	2288	January 7, 2022
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Do you Pedal down hill? Racing	57	4558	March 29, 2021
Uphill v downhill power Training	34	2975	May 21, 2022
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