-I'm sure you've
all heard this before,
but I'm going to say again,
roughly 80% of air resistance
that you experience
when cycling comes from your body,
remaining comes
from your bike kit and equipment,
all of which is important
and should be taken
into consideration.
If you do want to go faster
on the bike,
obviously a fitness plays
a big factor,
but your position and your equipment
should not be overlooked.
Today,
we've teamed up with the Notio.
We're going to be
giving you five ways
that you can test
your cycling aerodynamics.
[music]
Let's start with probably
the most basic of the tests,
and this is the roll-down test.
Now, this one's really quite simple.
You can perform yourself
out on the road,
but with that does come
some slightly more rough results,
but it does obviously
provide a very nice indication,
and it can be performed
about a power meter.
Ideally, you need to find
a nice downhill that kicks straight
into a bit of an uphill at the end,
a bit like a ski jump.
Then, from a standstill,
don't paddle,
just roll down the hill
and see how far up
the other side you get
before grinding to a halt.
Simply track the time,
speed and distance
that you get for each
of your runs as you compare
different positions or kit.
Now, the only thing to be wary
of with all of these tests
that are outdoors is
that the weather isn't changing.
The wind and the air pressure remain
the same throughout all the tests,
or obviously as close to you
as you possibly can.
That means performing all the tests
at the same time on the same day.
In addition to that as well,
a very important ground rule
with all aero testing
is that you shouldn't change
more than one variable
or one thing at a time.
For instance, you don't change
your position
and a piece of kit at the same time,
because therefore it'd be quite hard
to decipher which has had
what effect in your results.
Then, moving on a level,
I guess we have
the standard back yard field tests.
As the name suggests,
this is another one
that you perform yourself
out on the road,
with this you'll need a power meter
and some way of measuring
your speed.
With that just comes
some slightly more accurate results
when you compare it
to the previous roll-down test.
This is one that I've performed
numerous times before myself,
so, yes, I think if I can do it,
pretty sure you guys can do it.
It's really quite simple.
What I've found, best practices
using a nice flat
and relatively straight section
of road
between two to three kilometers long.
I've actually known people to use
existing Strava segments before,
or even going as far as creating
a Strava segment,
so they've got the same start
and endpoint on each of their runs.
The idea is quite simple really.
You try and travel at the same speed
on each of your runs.
You monitor and track
your power difference
between each of those.
For instance, if you're able
to travel the same speed,
but put out less power,
that means you're more aerodynamic
and you're onto a winner.
Obviously, the biggest issue
or the biggest hindrance
may be actually being able
to travel at the same speed.
Again, from experience,
suggestion here,
it's having a good role
in before the segment starts.
You hit that start point
at the same speed
on each of those runs.
Another thing to bear in mind
is that you can't control
all the variables
such as the weather,
but you may unintentionally change
your position
when you shouldn't have.
Also, just make sure
you do a number of runs
on each of your setups
to get the best results possible.
Following on from that,
we have the Chung method
developed by Robert Chung.
Again, one that you could perform
yourself out on the road.
Now, this is one that I've not
actually done myself before,
but it does seem
to be incredibly popular,
partly because it's a little
bit more accurate, again,
than the previous two tests,
but also because you can test
several variables off
in the space of around 30 minutes.
You'll need a power meter
and you need to find a quiet stretch
of road with a definite,
ride down one side of the hill
and up the other side,
turning around at the top
without touching your brakes
and repeating a few times
over for each test
while staying
in your position the whole time.
That is it really, the hill naturally
allows you to slow down
without having to touch your brakes,
or even move from the position
you're in on your bike each time.
Then, it's just simply a case
of downloading your data
from your head unit
or from your watch
into a free bit of software,
which some of you may be familiar
with called "Golden cheetah."
Within this, load up
the Aerolab Chung analysis tool
and enter a few specifics
such as weight,
air density, and rolling resistance.
Don't worry. You can actually find
the last two online quite easily.
Once these variables are entered,
the software will be able
to calculate your drag
and compare each of the runs.
Yes. This one's meant
to be a very good option.
It's certainly been quite
popular in the past.
It is definitely starting to sound
a little more sophisticated as well,
but I must admit,
it is also starting to sound
a little bit more complicated too.
Then, of course,
you've got the option
of the velodrome or the wind turn.
Now, the benefit of both of these is,
obviously,
that they're
in a controlled environment.
In theory, they should provide
more accurate and better results,
because we haven't got interference
from external factors
and, hopefully,
haven't got abnormalities,
the results from that.
Now, on the velodrome,
the idea is quite simple.
You try and hold the same power
on each of the runs,
and then track and monitor
a change in your speed.
Very similar to that, the field test,
just obviously
a little bit more accurate.
The drawback, however, is the cost,
and then also the fact
that you can't just retest
and pop into a velodrome
on any day of the week.
Typically, the higher the velodrome
and for the testing will cost you
anywhere in the region
of 400 to 600 pounds per session.
That cost and exclusivity
just increases,
again, I'm afraid,
for the wind tunnel,
because you're looking upwards
of 700 pounds per session.
However,
it is arguably the most accurate.
That is why so many brands
use the wind tunnel for testing
of their products
during the development phases
and pre-release,
because you can control
and change everything,
including how the wind interacts
with a ride
or a product at different speeds
and even different angles.
Not only is there a downside
in the cost,
but also the fact
that it's not like the real world.
Now, so many riders
come out of the wind tunnel
with a super low CDA
and then just cannot replicate
that outdoors.
That's because maybe they had
their head down super low.
That's really common
in the wind tunnel.
Obviously, you're not going
to do that outside,
but also they may have got
themselves in a position
that they can't sustain outside
and push the same power outside.
That's where I think it's time
to talk about Notio.
In my opinion,
this is a perfect blend
of that high accuracy
whilst being readily accessible
and easy to retest.
Now, essentially,
this device is a pitot tube,
like that you may have seen
on F1 cars
or maybe even aeroplanes.
This device has got a bunch
of sensors built into it that,
when you link
that with a power meter
and a speed sensor,
can calculate your CDA,
and your own bike performance
in real-time.
Now, I'm actually going to give
this device a bit of a world today,
just a simple experiment,
gilet fastened versus unfastened.
I think you'll know
the results on this one,
but that's the idea, anyway.
For this, simply
I've got to connect the Notio device,
the power meter and the speed sensor
to the Notio app, then just input
a few specifics similar
to that "Golden cheetah."
In this instance,
it's the bike weight,
the wheel circumference,
and the role in resistance,
which, again, you can find
very easily online, and that's it.
I think it's time for me
to get going.
For this test, I'm using a good three
to four kilometer flat section
of road as recommended,
with no sharp turns
or anything that might cause me
to decelerate.
I'm going to maintain 35 kilometers
per hour throughout all my test runs
as I ride out along the section turn
and then ride back all in position,
a total of approximately
six to eight kilometers.
Wow, I've done my runs.
I've got all the data stored here
on the Notio app.
You can also record it and collect it
onto your head unit
as well if you like.
Now, no surprises,
I think here really.
I did have a lower CDA
and a quicker time
with the gilet fastened up.
They think I've really shocked
anyone with that one.
The cool thing was,
I had all that data
and very accurate data
for that matter
within seconds of finishing
the test and in a way
that I could quickly
and easily understand.
In fact, you can go a step further.
If you've got a Garmin head unit,
you can see that all in real-time
as you're riding along,
which is a very cool feature.
They're planning to roll it out
across other brands and devices soon.
Now, this Notio device
will cost you in the region of $950,
which is similar
to that of maybe wind tunnel testing.
The beauty with this one is that you
have that to own,
to keep it,
to use as of when you like.
If you do get some new kit
or you change
and tweak your position,
you can quickly whiz out
and verify that and check it.
Pretty cool, in my opinion.
Now, if you do have
any more questions on aero testing
or the Notio device,
please do drop them
in the comment section below.
I will try and get back to you.
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