Bike Spotlight: rmcboy's Cervelo P3C

The excellent component selection and attention to aesthetics have easily warranted Slowtwitch forum member rmcboy's Cervelo P3C the attention of a bike spotlight post.

This machine is majestic. I would describe this bike the same as I would a 100 foot tall supermodel: beautiful and terrifying.

Though the sum of this P3C's parts is greater than the whole, I'll mention just a few highlights of what is, for all intensive purposes, a perfect machine.

The Frame:

Cervelo's venerable P3C is the standard by which all other triathlon bikes are compared. That might even be an understatement.

The Cockpit:

Easton has been underrepresented in the aerobar market and undeservedly so. Their excellent products present a minimalist aesthetic appeal and excellent performance. As an example of the attention to detail demonstrated on the Easton Delta CNT Carbon Base Bar (pictured here), the resin of the carbon fiber is impregnated with nanotubes which strengthen the matrix. Is there a notable performance advantage? Who cares! They're ****ing nanotubes!

A bike isn't sexy unless it's ridden properly, however, and the extremely low front end is just one indication of how the position afforded by this bike has been refined for aerodynamics.

The Fork:

Blackwell research helped pioneer a technology by which a central channel within the fork redirects oncoming air away from the turbulent air created by the spinning motion of the wheel. And it's sexy.

The Wheelset:

The only faster wheel combination than a HED 3-spoke and a rear disk is, well, there isn't one. And the aesthetic appeal is so far through the roof that the building is no longer visible.

The Crank:

The crankset is often neglected in regards to aerodynamics. Generating both rotational and translational drag, inappropriate crank selection could have a surprisingly significant detrimental impact on an otherwise excellent machine. That is certainly not the case here, as the excellent FSA SL-K carbon crank is outfitted with an aerodynamic outer chain ring, offering up both enhanced aero performance and undeniable visual appeal.

The Saddle:

The perfect bike has to address one fundamental consideration- it must make you comfortable, so that you can remain in the aerodynamic position and generate the optimal amount of power. Here rmcboy has equipped his ride with an ISM Adamo saddle. For those unfamiliar, this saddle is essentially a seat with a central cutout and no nose, forcing the rider to bear weight on the sit bones and not on the sensitive perineum. A bike isn't sexy if it keeps you from performing sexually, and this P3C certainly doesn't stand in the way of any post-race activities.

Honorable mention goes to the rear bottle cage retrofitted to the seatpost head. Rather than having a heavy rear attachment (often referrred to quite correctly as 'bottle launchers'), rmcboy has affixed a lightweight cage.

From the gorgeous and flawlessly performing component spec, to the overall presentation of one of the most intimidating and beautiful machines I've ever seen, rmcboy has hit a home run with this P3C. The additional details such as the low-front end, rear bottle cage attachment, and overall presentation of the bike make it a grand slam. I wouldn't be surprised if I am a faster cyclist just for having seen it.

Race for a Cause: Your Cause

Do you have a particular cause that you'd like to raise money for but don't have or want to join an affiliated organization? Sign up to use the service provided by firstgiving's website. Check out an example of a page here. This page is the gateway to triathlete Daniel Trott's effort to raise money for World Vision. Please feel free to support him with a donation as well.

I personally plan on using firstgiving in the future. Triathlon is an inherently selfish activity, requiring a significant investment of time and money. Give back to the sport and others through establishing a page here.

(Note: I have no connection whatsoever with firstgiving, I just think it's a great service)

Race Report: Apple Capital Triathlon (8/23/2009)

Tri Wenatchee (event organizer) logo

After a night of interrupted sleep I found myself walking my bike out to the car for a quick drive north from Wenatchee along the Columbia River to Daroga State Park. The Park, lining an inlet and framed by the rocky cliffside of the gorge, is to me the perfect site for what has come to be one of my favorite races.

I ate my peanut butter and blackberry jam (never jelly) as I made the scenic drive between lush orchards and the wide river. Making the left turn into the park, I drove down the long downhill (which is tragically featured twice as an uphill on the run course) to park right next to transition.

Surprised at the chill in the air, I walked over and performed the usual sign-in ritual. Despite the early time, each volunteer was cheerful as I got my packet, some energy gels, an well-designed, high-quality performance t-shirt, and then left to set up transition.

Even though I arrived early, all but one of the 'end-of-rack' positions were taken in transition. I took the remaining spot, which was closest to the swim entrance. I prefer being closer to the bike entrance/exit as then you have to run with your bike for a shorter distance (every second counts).

The very first bike that I did see in Transition was an orange Trek Equinox TTX. The sight has sent a chill down the spine of any Washington triathlete, as it's a sure sign that Team TIMEX member Roger Thompson is in the general vicinity. I had the good fortune to catch Roger before the race and we had a nice conversation. He's a great guy and a excellent diplomat for the sport and his sponsors.

Having accepted that today's festivities were now a race for second, I set up my transition area and began my warm-up. I really enjoy warming up on the bike trainer, believing it to be a great way to spin up the legs, do a final check to ensure my bike's running smoothly, and demonstrate an heir of cycling authority (those needn't be backed up by performance by the way...)

We were soon called over to the swim start and I was ready to go. The surprisingly cold waters of the flowing  river will assuredly wake you up if you're still sleepy, and after a short swim I did some stretches and waved my arms about to keep them warm.

There was the final countdown, a hard push against the soft mud of the bottom (I started about belly-button deep in the water) and we were off. One of the very few imperfections in this race lies in the presence of millfoil, an underwater weed of sorts that grows towards the surface. The directors contract the county to clear a 6-foot swathe through the plant, however, so you can keep out of it and stay on course.

This year's swim was two laps of the triangular course. I took it out fast and settled into a sustainable pace as I watched my placing in the field. I was pleased that my sighting went flawlessly, except on the section of the triangle that comes back into the beach, as that was directly into the sun and, lacking vision, I had to essentially sight by feel.

In the past month since Chelanman, where I averaged 1:30/100 yrds for the swim, I did my best to try and achieve the swim fitness that would result in a pace of 1:25/100 yrds. I was proud to emerge from the water in 25:35. Why proud, you ask? Well the swim was approx. 100 - 200 yrds long due to buoy drift, making my  adjusted time right at target pace.

I came in to the beach and stood up right as the ground came in reach. I saw my wife and mom cheering and snapping photos to my right as I made the short sprint to transition.

Given the fairly long uphill that leads out of transition to the highway upon which the bike course treks out and back, I decided to put my shoes on in transition rather than on the bike. I didn't want to climb for a kilometer on the shoes or struggle with putting them on while riding uphill, but it hindered my T1 time to 57 seconds.

From this cropped picture of me in transition, you can note three things:

1) I'm racing on my road bike. It's always best to use the bike you've been training on and I hadn't had time to put miles on the tri bike. I certainly sacrificed some time in aerodynamics, but it was the best choice.

2) I'm using an aerobar mounted water bottle.

3) My bike pump (with adapter for the rear wheelcover) and spare tube are taped to the back of my saddle, aerodynamically tucked behind the seatpost. If you have the cash, I recommend purchasing an aerobottle to use as your flat kit carrier, but at least this way my emergency supplies presented no frontal profile. I already had a mess of cables, a drop bar, and a fairly upright position combating the benefit of the rear disk.

The bike course is surprisingly hilly, with some incline and decline for the first six miles leading to an equivalent distance of flat out and back. You can really hammer along the wide shoulder, but do your best to keep your eyes on the road and off of the gorgeous vistas of desert cliffs framed by the orchard-lined river.

I did my best to maintain an optimal cadence and level of exertion. I had an aerobar mounted bottle with Nuun and downtube mounted bottle with Gu2O. In addition, I took a gel 15 minutes in and with 15 minutes remaining. Taking my race hydration and nutrition more seriously greatly enhanced how I felt during the race and how I performed. This system worked great, but I'm excited to perfect it in future races.

Coming out of the water in about 5th, I lost my position in the field by several paces on the bike, but I was confident that I would take them back in the run.

The long downhill into transition gave me free speed to get out of the shoes and prepare for a speedy transition. Here I'm about to make the final turn to the dismount line and onto the grass before a very short run to the transition zone.

                          The short run to the transition zone.

Despite taking the time to put on socks ( more than 7 blisters helped me learn my lesson at Chelanman), I had a quick 35sec T2 and can be seen here just a few strides into the run.

 The two laps of the 5km circuit around Daroga State Park is scenic but punishing. After a short loop of with a quick ascent and decline, you're lead to the long climb out of the park to an equally long descent along the highway. Coming off the descent you snake your way through the beautful park and run past transition for your final lap. In the above pic, if I am actually smiling and not grimacing, it's despite the pain of the uphill.

In training I had prepared to hit the final half-mile hard and did just that in the race, digging deep to make a final surge to the finish. I put in a hard final sprint to make to to the line.

                     The final sprint to the finish

Having just finished, you can see me standing there feeling pain as my timing chip is removed.

I would finish 8th overall and 1st in my age group in a time of 2:21:58 (25:35/1:10:24/44:25). I received an excellent Apple Capital Triathlon wine glass for my efforts but didn't take home any of the free swag from the best post-race raffle I've ever seen (Zoot shoes, a wetsuit, bike trainer, apparel, etc...). I can't speak highly enough of this race and would of course recommend it to any triathlete looking for a challenging but fast Olympic distance race in a beautiful desert setting. I'd like to thank my wonderful mother for her support and my incredible wife for her love and support.

I'm pleased to have taken 7minutes off of my Chelanman time and look forward to breaking 2:10 next season and hopefully 2:00 the season after. Any improvements found next summer will be made over the base miles during the winter ahead, so it's time to stop typing and hop on the trainer.

                   Icing down in a cold river following the race

Run: Today's Run (9/20/09)

Out in the middle of this prairie/savannah area, there's an abandoned factory complex. It looks like a zombie apocalypse happened and is just begging to be explored.

I like the color spectrum of the sky and the rust color of the tree.

Bike Tech: Aerodynamic Helmets

One of the simplest tests of aerodynamics lies in sticking your hand out of a moving car's window. Holding your hand slicing into the wind, there's hardly any resistance. But turn it flat against the wind and you'll encounter a strong force pushing you backwards. This force is the result of a multitude of air molecules colliding with the surface area of your hand. Minimize and refine the presentation of this surface area to the wind, and you'll experience less force. This principal is fundamental to the study of aerodynamics within cycling and directly relates to the aero helmet.

The prominent location of the head within cycling gives it great significance in regards to aerodynamics. Not only is it usually above the body in a vertical sense, it is also the first area to contact the still air ahead of you. This is where aerodynamic helmets come into play. Rather than the bulbous, muschroomesque shape and rough, vented surface of a road helmet hitting the wind first, an aero helmet allows a smooth, teardrop shape to slice through the wind. Not only does the smooth surface (with very few vents) facilitate the flow of air around the helmet, the shaping of the helmet in a teardrop shape keeps the air flowing along the helmets surface for longer, minimizing the drag-inducing disruption that occurs when air separates from flowing around the helmet into little vortices.


Compare the following two images. Notice how the integrity of the smoke is maintained when faced with a properly oriented aero helmet (2nd pic), as opposed to the disruption caused by the vertical orientation of the helmet in the top pic. (Note: Should you purchase an aero helmet, practice looking forward for extended periods to adapt to the strain on your neck. Not only is looking down extremely dangerous, you might as well wear the thing backwards).

Thanks to Getty images for the above photo

Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) utilizes a computer program to graphically illustrate fluid dynamics. Not a huge surprise there. But it is tremendously useful for determining the aerodynamic properties of different shapes. Check out the below CFD images of aero helmets produced by the Sports Engineering Research Group at the University of Sheffield for the British Cycling Team.

You can also view here a complete CFD model of an 'unhelmeted' cyclist (probably European) aboard a Felt model bicycle.

Not only does an aero helmet facilitate movement of air passed the front of the head, it also, when properly fitted, occupies the low pressure area that forms in the cradle of the neck (seen in the above as the rather vacant area immediately behind the head and above the neck/upper back). This is a significant and often overlooked benefit of the helmet that results from proper helmet selection (there are numerous models) matched to your triathlon-specific position on the bike.

Think of an aero helmet not as an aerodynamic replacement for a road helmet, but as a piece of equipment that will help integrate you with your bike into a single aerodynamic missile. It's commonly cited that at 25mph, 80% of a cyclist's energy is allocated towards overcoming air resistance. An aero helmet can most effectively combat this statistic when combined with a proper position.

I wish I could provide specifics in terms of how much time can be saved in a 40km TT, but that would be nearly impossible. I wouldn't be surprised if a good cyclist (say, 1:05 for a 40km) saved around 30sec - 1min.

At the very least, if you're training well and properly fit to a tri/tt bike, look into adding an aero helmet to your speed arsenal.

Bike Spotlight: Swimfan's Felt DA

So many bikes are simply that, bicycles. But, rarely, one will be built up with a perfect regard to the dual importance of aesthetics and performance. Swimfan's Felt DA is just such a machine, and that's really the only way that I can describe it.

I have decided that this bike's most likely origin is that it was sent back in time to crush the dreams of all modern bicycles.

Swimfan, a notorious poster on Slowtwitch's forums, posted these photos in response to a thread about participants posting their rides for the upcoming (at the time) Ironman Wisconsin. His post inspired me to add a section to my blog demonstrating tri bikes that are built up essentially without flaw. It's a PSA to the triathlete currently building up or modifying their bike.

Though much could be written of the machine in a thorough review, I'll post some of the highlights that caught my eye:

-The overall complementary color scheme: the black and white lines on the frame perfectly match the white Zipp Decals on the wheelset. The black bottles, cages, black saddle, tires, cable housings,  and HED Aerobar complete the ensemble.

-The top-notch component spec: the Dura-Ace componentry (with honorable mention to the beautiful crankset), Zipp 808 front wheel, Zipp disk, HED Aerobar, Fizik Arione saddle, and Look Keo pedals.

-The Hutchinson Fast Air strapped aerodynamically to the top tube. In the war of Clinchers vs. Tubulars, Swimfan's sided with the Tubies and has this sealant/compressed air mounted in case of a flat. To change a tubular would require at least 15min, but with the proper operation of the Fast Air, he can be back on the road in possibly less than a minute.

-The trim cable housing. No excess. You'd be surprised how pervasive this problem is on time trial machines.

-The Aerobar-mounted standard bottle. This is my preferred method of hydration referenced in my earlier introduction of aerobottles. Swimfan devised an attractive and convenient method of attachment with the use of a Profile Aerodrink bracket and a carbon bottle cage.

Even the bar tape is in perfect condition. Notice the extensions come together for a narrow presentation of the arms.

- An additional detail, among many, include the forward position of the saddle for an aggressive geometry.

All I can say is that, while many bikes merely deserve a passing glance, this DA deserves an extended pause which elevates into a standing slow clap. Well done.

Thanks to Swimfan for letting me post these pictures. Check out the thread here.

Injury: ITB Impingement

Recently I caught up with one of my best friends from college following his summer long biochemistry research project at UC Berkeley. A runner, he told me that through running 5 miles a day during the project, he regained his 6 pack only to lose it recently due to a knee injury. The mention of a knee injury immediately piqued my interest.

"Does it hurt at the tiny bump of bone just below and outside of the knee?"

"Yeah, exactly."

"Does it only hurt when you run? It's fine when you walk or bike?"

"Right again."

What he was describing was in all likelihood ITB impingement, a monstrous beast that I had only recently killed after a 2 year long struggle.

The Iliotibial Band is a tendon that runs along the outside of your thigh, essentially connecting the hip with the knee. When it becomes tight, it becomes inflamed by rubbing over either or both of these joints and this inflammation is manifested as sharp pain.

I first felt this pain following Spring Break of my Sophomore year of college. I spent the week as any reasonable collegiate triathlete would- putting in epic volume. Following a winter of heavy running mileage, I thought I was safe putting in massive miles on the road and in the pool. I was quite wrong.

On Wednesday I completed a 50 mile bike / 5 mile run brick workout. 10 miles into Thursday's 14 mile long run, I felt a tightness in my right knee. I managed to limp my way home and elected to take a precautionary week off.

One 'pain-and-tightness-free' week later, I decided to capitalize on the pleasant Spring weather with a 4 mile run. 2 miles in, a sharp pain presented itself right at the bump of bone just outside of and below the knee. I stopped and stretched in various ways,  then continued. 100 yards later, the pain became debilitating and I was forced to limp the remaining two miles back to campus. So it began.

The pain would stay with me for a couple of days, making travel up and down stairs especially difficult, and then disappear entirely. But the bastard was only giving me a false sense of security, and it only took a second exploratory run to learn that it wasn't going away.

After 6 months I could run consistently again, and only after two years can I say that I'm no longer affected. By stretching obsessively, running only on soft trails, and doing ice (or heat/cold shock therapy) following each run, I was able to recover. I believe a foam roller would have greatly expedited this process. If you find yourself with ITB, seek a Sports-medicine trained health care professional immediately and please don't underestimate the condition. It can do a lot to wreck a season.

For more information on ITB impingement, please see this excellent article by Jordan D. Metzle, M.D., that he wrote for Triathlete Magazine.

This site, where I acquired the above photo, is a good resource as well and demonstrates two helpful stretches along with the foam roller.