Time Trial / Time Trialling / TT

Can't someone invent crank arms that shorten at high rpm?

The Revolox cranks were pretty mad!

http://thebloomingpoint.com/revelox-innovative-bicycle-crankset-version-rc1

Xav

Interesting but I guess you can get the same kind of results with the elliptic crank alone.

And you don't have to look such a knob.

Can't someone invent crank arms that shorten at high rpm?

They could, but it's easier to vary the transmission ratio between crankshaft and driving wheel to achieve the same effect.

I believe some Ordinaries were fitted with adjustable cranks to provide different gain ratio without changing the wheel size, long cranks (low gain) for leisure and short ones (high gain) for racing.

They could, but it's easier to vary the transmission ratio between crankshaft and driving wheel to achieve the same effect.

I believe some Ordinaries were fitted with adjustable cranks to provide different gain ratio without changing the wheel size, long cranks (low gain) for leisure and short ones (high gain) for racing.

What about some kind of spring arms that get longer during the bottom half cycle of pedalling when pushing on them, but stay a fixed lenght when not pushing

That could make uphills a lot easier in conjunction with clip on pedals and would avoid spinning too much on downhills, when not pushing

I'm not sure that would have an effective benefit, and they'd have to be Star Trekked up to the max to change crank length based up cadence and power output

Xav

What clip-on aero bars should I buy?

I'm firmly at the cheap end of the market and they want to be aluminium so I can strip and polish them.

What clip-on aero bars should I buy?

How long is a piece of string?

Do you need lots of adjustability? Loads of or very little stack height above the base? A specific extension length and/or bend? How fussy are you about pad area and thickness?

My Deda Parabolica Dues were fine for 2 years. Go for a pair that offer lots of adjustability.

Dunno what I want. I've not had any before.

I guess that means as adjustable as possible.

The bike has a fair drop, c. 13cm from the top of the saddle to the top if the bars, but other than that I can't tell you much...

deda ones are just dandy. And well priced.

Deda Parabolica Zero/Uno/Due are cheap and light, Profile T1/T2/T3/T4 are chunky and more adjustable and more comfortable but nearly twice the price.

If you haven't used tribars before, I'd suggest starting with the Uno/T4 as the shallow ski bend is probably the most comfortable and controllable, as the wrist angle is more natural than straights or S-bends, but of course the other bends wouldn't exist on mass market products like Profile and Deda if plenty of people didn't get on with them.

I've got a pair of Profile Jammer GT clip-ons going spare you could have for a modest sum. One of the threads on the clamps is slightly cross-threaded, but it's usable with a bit of care. I could drop them off with our Mutual Nautical Friend if you're interested.

I've got a pair of Profile Jammer GT clip-ons going spare you could have for a modest sum. One of the threads on the clamps is slightly cross-threaded, but it's usable with a bit of care. I could drop them off with our Mutual Nautical Friend if you're interested.

Thanks Dan, that sounded great until I looked at them. I'm probably doing it wrong caring about aesthetics on a TT biek but those look a bit too lumpy for my dainty little machine.

I think the Unos might be the ones.

Don't over-think your first set of tribars; you'll go through loads of them before finding a set you like (especially as your body will change as you TT more) and you could well end up with with clamps, extensions and elbow cups from 3 different sets as your eventual favourite.

Really? Fussing little thing aren't you. :P

I've only ever owned two. The set on the P-X and the set on the S-Works. Both still in use now.

I was thinking of some HED clip lites for a set of clip-ons.

They look neat, are uber light, you can flip the pads in (I use 40cm bars, not much hand space), and they do extrensions in a 'lazy-S'. The extension shape looked good for a noob. Dont think I could do a proper S bend.

Thanks Dan, that sounded great until I looked at them. I'm probably doing it wrong caring about aesthetics on a TT biek but those look a bit too lumpy for my dainty little machine.

I think the Unos might be the ones.

Yeah, the Jammers aren't purdy, but they are very adjustable for a clip-on (except for height). That's why I bought them - so I could work out a position I was comfortable with on my road bike and then build a TT bike with the same position. Which I have now of course totally buggered up with constant doomed experiments with a lower bar height.

Anyway, if you want a borrow before committing hard cash on some nicer ones, let me know. Like I said, they're not exactly over-used right now.

Try before I buy? That could work well, very kind of you. I'll pm you.

How daft would it be to sign up for the Newbury RC 12hr TT, bearing in mind i haven't done a ride longer than 50 miles since September?

Injury history/potential is the only daft carrying weight in this regard.

How daft would it be to sign up for the Newbury RC 12hr TT, bearing in mind i haven't done a ride longer than 50 miles since September?

It's not daft at all.

For one, you have a long time to train for it and secondly, no one forces you to ride so if you are really struggling you can hop off for a bit or do whatever you need to do to complete it.

Plus they'd probably appreciate an extra entry fee. My dad always sends an entry fee for the Sussex 24h, just to show support for the idea.

How daft would it be to sign up for the Newbury RC 12hr TT, bearing in mind i haven't done a ride longer than 50 miles since September?

If I could get to the finish timekeeper of a 12, on almost no racing and not much training, I'm sure you'll be able to - and probably make a better job of it.

Assuming you've never ridden one before, this will be the surest way of achieving a p.b. in 2014.

How daft would it be to sign up for the Newbury RC 12hr TT, bearing in mind i haven't done a ride longer than 50 miles since September?

No dafter than me signing up to do a 100 when my previous longest race is a 10!