Time Trial

[Hammer]

Last night was my first time trial with my local bike club. It's not really a competitive event, we're all at different abilities. I've only been biking for a year. The wind was pretty calm, no big difference during the five miles out or back.

I watched my cadence more so then speed. I didn't really know how much to push because I'd never done 10 miles as fast as I could before. So, I shifted back and forth just trying to keep the RPMS around 95. I wasn't sure *exactly* where the turnaround point was, even though I was watching my odometer on the way out. The road was narrow, and I'd never turned around on it before so I did slow down quite a bit to make the switch.

I tried to crank it up more for the last mile. I finished with 32:42, averaging roughly 18 mph. I was pleased with my first attempt on the flat course.

Do any of you do time trials? How long have you been working at it? What was your first time? How fast can you go now?

[maillotpois]

As SK this - she's been doing them for a year now, I think!

We just went to her Davis TT last night. I'd done it a month (?) ago - great, flat 10 mile course. I can't ride right now because of my medical issues (which probably affected the TT I did do last month because I sure had a hard time breathing, and it was less than a week later I ended up in the hospital.) Anyway, that time I did somewhere under 29 minutes, 28 something - don't remember exactly. DH didn't complete the course that day because he had a sidewall blow out. Last night he did something like 26:40 or thereabouts. Roughly 2 minutes faster than me. So that gives me something to shoot for when I am back on the bike next year! :)

It is a real challenge finding that balance you can hold for 10 miles - not too slow, not too fast.

SK? Wanna weigh in? (I know you do.)

[RoadRaven]

I love TTs

Thats what I train for, though there are sadly not too many organised TTs locally.

I do 18-20 kilometre TTs (11.25 -12.5 miles)

I started training for TTs in January 2005 - doing averages that year of about 25.5kph (15.93mph)

I rode in my first club race this year in April. The course is called the "Dartmoor TT" and is an out and back just-under-18km mostly flat course. It has about 3 kms of low rolling hillocks either side of the turn around.

I first rode this course in August 2005 with a time of 37.57 minutes and an average of 28.1kph

In the race this last April I did it in 35.02minutes with an average of 30.13kph

There is a club race in two weeks for this TT - I hope to shave at least another minute off my time.

My goal is to do this course in 33 minutes by the end of the year.

Training for a TT is alot about getting your head-space right... you have to ride to the limit of your lactate threshold for the entire race and then crank it up another notch for the last few kilometres.

Because you ride it on your own, it can be very tough. If someone passes you it takes a great deal of mental effort to stay with your own rythym and not get sucked into chasing them.

The TT is the ultimate race of truth... ideally TTs should be over flat courses... they are about the power you can create and maintain... they leave out variables such as light riders dacing up hills or the strategy of drafting or faking tiredness or surges to wear other riders down.

The TT is about you and the clock.

Ideally, when you cross the finish line you should have nothing left... you should only be able to spin your legs slowly to disperse the lactic acid, and the next day your muscles will feel quite different to how they feel after a race in a pelaton.

Remember... men will be faster then women ...

For example... the "Dump Block TT" has the fastest man as 24.06 minutes at an average of 44.81kph.
My partner has the ninth fastest time of 25.56, averaging 41.94
The fastest woman did it in 28.59 minutes at an average of 37.26
My last time I did that course was October last year in 37.01 minutes, averaging 24.33kph

The Dartmoor TT I mentioned above has the fastest man at 23.27 minutes
My partner has the 10th fastest time at 25.25mins and 41.55 average
The fastest woman did it in 29minutes at an average of 36.14

I hope those stats are the kind of thing you were after???

I'll stop here... I could talk TT strategy, stats and training til the internet shut down...

[SheFly]

...time trialing is addictive!

Three years ago, I talked DH into doing a time trial that was being hosted in Maine (we were on vacation, and have a house there). It was a 13 mile out and back. We both showed up with our regular road bike, which, at that time, still had MTB pedals on them. I was VERY intimidated - other racers had skin suits, full TT setups, etc.

It was a relatively "flat" course (a few rollers for good measure), and I ended up having the fastest "First Timer" ride, and the second fastest ride in my age category (36:18/21.1 mph)! That was it - I was hooked.

We came back home, and found a weekly TT put on by a local bike club. I have now been doing this TT for three seasons, on a fiarly regular/weekly basis. Last year, I upgraded to a dedicated TT bike, and this year added aero helmet and a skinsuit (now I am one of those dorky looking people :D ).

Our local course is a 9.75 mile loop (all right hand turns), and includes one significant (?) hill (it's a big ring climber). The first time I did this course, I finished in 27:18 (21 mph). By the end of the season, I had reduced that to 25:45 (22.71 mph). I set a PR this season, hitting 24:32 (23.72 mph). I am hoping to best that in the next few weeks, before this season is done.

DH and I also started doing this race on our tandem in the first season. In our first attempt, we finished in 23:07 (25.32 mph). This year, we added a TT-specific tandem - full aero bars, disk rear wheel, etc. Just this week, we hit a PR of 21:08:01! This is within 9 seconds of the course record for tandems (which we are hoping to break!).

As I said, this gets addictive! I have learned that the TT is my specialty, but this experience has also launched my road racing for the season, and in my first year (this season), I competed in and finished 12 races! The TT skills come in handy as a great base.

Have a great time! I love competing against myself....

SheFly

[SadieKate]

How did I miss this? Was there something going on that distracted me? Of course, I want to chip in!

I know this thread is long, but over on www.bikejournal.com we've got a pretty detailed thread going. Rather than try to summarize it all, go read it. Good tips on both racing and training. Of course, my schizophrenic approach this year with trying to ride double metrics and mtbike vacations (plus bad weather and flat kharma) has not helped my results but I suspect that things will get better. The Grand Pois did really well in his first flat-free TT.

http://www.bikejournal.com/thread.asp?ThreadID={A19C3EF0-D3B9-44CB-A65B-2A26D52A3FDE}

[Eden]

I did my first road races before I did a TT. The first one that I did was part of a stage race. It was more of a prologue, being short only about 5.5 miles.

The first plain TT that I did was a 12 mile and I finished in 31.45. The course is pretty flat, steady wind tail on the way out, head on the way back.

A few weekends ago I did a 40K TT which I finished in 71.06 on a rolling course with one very short steeper hill.

Sunday is the state Team Time Trial - wish me luck!

Up to this point I've been using my road bike with clip on aerobars, but I found a killer deal on Craig's list and I'm picking up my used Quintana Roo tonight. I'm hoping that this will make a difference to me, though I don't have any of the other specialized TT equipment yet. In any case it will make stage races easier, as I won't have to change around my road setup to do the time trial stage - plus I can't put aerobars on my new road bike. From what I understand, after aerobars, a TT helmet is the next best piece of equipment to own. I might order a skin suit on next year's team clothing order.

[SadieKate]

I forgot to mention that the latest issue of Bicycling Magazine has a great article with the MIT Cycling Team. They talk about aerodynamics. Who know that gloves had such huge drag.

Of course, psychologically I feel naked without gloves. Haven't crashed in years but leaving off my gloves might jinx the kharma.

[kelownagirl]

This is an interesting thread. I haven't been riding long enough to do TT's but it's definitely a goal of mine eventually. I think I do pretty well on the flat courses and have pretty good endurance so maybe someday I'll be able to try one. So my question is - how do you know when you're ready? Is it realistic to go out and do the TT route on my own and see how fast I can go over a 10km ride or are the conditions/ situation just too different from the actual even to be able to compare? There are not many women my age who race around here so I can't even compare myself with others my age.

My fastest average speed on the flats so far was a 25km ride, averaging 29 km/h (about 18 mph?). (Would have been faster if we hadn't had to slow down on a hwy offramp/overpass :rolleyes: ) Downside, I was drafting part of the way - upside, I was on my mountain bike. I have nothing more accurate to use as a comparison...

Anyway, thanks for posting the stats etc!

[SadieKate]

I don't have the magazine in front of me to know if this is the entire article from Bicycling Mag:

http://www.bicycling.com/article/0,6610,s1-3-12-14995-1,00.html?cm_mmc=TDF%20NL-_-2006_08_11-_-xxxx-_-Get%20Faster

[SadieKate]

Kelowna, race adrenaline always drives you faster. Our local TT is very informal in that no stats are kept regarding age or gender. There might be a comment about something extraordinary like last week's 8 yr old rider or someone using a racing trike. Name and and time are the only items recorded. I use it as a personal goal and a benchmark for myself and myself alone. I don't have the genetic make-up for superb timetrialing. I really don't care (well, not that much :) ). I use it as a personal goal and a benchmark for myself and myself alone.

I need to go look up that 8 yr old. Apparently, he rode with Lance in Indiana and the newpaper article quoted Lance's comments about him. He averaged 17.48 mph for 10 miles.

[SheFly]

I'm picking up my used Quintana Roo tonight.

This will DEFINITELY make a difference! Nice ride, too.


From what I understand, after aerobars, a TT helmet is the next best piece of equipment to own. I might order a skin suit on next year's team clothing order.

This is also true. The aero helmet will definitely shave time off. After aero bars, they claim that this is the next best piece of equipment.

The skinsuit, in my first wearing, actually shaved time as well. Although, I'm unclear whether this was a HUGE factor, or whether it was just a marked improvement given my training and base...

Many of us in our club have been laughing about "buying time" off of our records. I forgot to mention that DH also ordered us "booties". Not sure how much of a difference those actually make...

I don't normally ride with gloves, but did see the MIT research that said you are better off without.

SheFly

[Eden]

I need to go look up that 8 yr old. Apparently, he rode with Lance in Indiana and the newpaper article quoted Lance's comments about him. He averaged 17.48 mph for 10 miles.

Don't those little kids just amaze you sometimes. There's a little one on the race circuit around here, I'm not sure of his age, but he's looks to be maybe 10 or 12, who rides crit's with the cat 5 men and keeps up just fine. There's a lot of grown men who can't do that, much less with the handicap of being about 80 lbs and having to use junior gearing.

[Hammer]

Hey, fun discussion! I live in Southeast South Dakota, there doesn't seem to be much for racing around here. Our club just sets up different rides with different goals in mind. Tonight they're going to go and do hill repeats. It'd actually be a good night to do them, but it's my turn to go and visit the boyfriend. :D

I haven't done the time trial since the first attempt two weeks ago. I want to get out there and keep at it, but I've succombed to using humidity as an excuse not to exert myself quite THAT much. oops, I'm a pansy... but like 60+ percent humidity... blah, I'd rather not. AND it's HOT!

Still, if there isn't a race circuit around here, I may as well try to beat myself. I find myself comparing my times to the other gals and guys a bit too.

[RoadRaven]

Wow SheFly… the first time you did your local course you averaged 33.6kph ( I have to keep the calculator open on the PC while I visit TE)
I am well-impressed! And your PB is 37.95… May I ask how old you are or your age category?
This def is your speciality, at that kind of speed you could consider trying out some national competitions…

My partner and I have talked about getting a racing tandem too… although at the moment it would probably be used by my two older sons as they are of similar ability and cadence. My partner could ride with either of them, but he is still stronger than them and would have to adjust his cadence to match their flying legs.

My partner and I are similar in cadence, so once I’m a little stronger (and lighter – still have about 10-15kgs to go) then we might be able to race together.

You are right – It is extremely addictive – I have printouts of the fastest club times at work which I (not infrequently) sometimes just stare at and drift off into a world of numbers, calculations, variables – like wind, and heart rate…

[kelownagirl]

Do they ever have TT teams racing? - ie husband/wife team? DH and I love to ride and draft and are always trying to beat our last time / avg speed. It would be fun to do that in a race...

[RoadRaven]

Kelowna, SadieKate is soooo right. I train over the TT courses I mentioned above, and some other courses I treat as a TT. But I always beat a PB set training when in a race situation. Although a TT is a race against yourself, when you do it in a race situation, setting off a minute apart from other riders, you have two incentives to give you wings… you want to keep in sight of the person in front, and hopefully close the gap a little (then you know you are improving your time) and you want to stay ahead of the person behind (having someone pass you can be a bit of a head f**k and sometimes demoralising).

The first club TT I did I was started first… so I had two goals. One was to do a PB and the other was to make sure no-one caught me. I achieved both.

[RoadRaven]

Hammer… you don’t need to wait til the club does another TT… you can practice on your own or with friends (just don’t draft off each other). Remember, if you do a hard ride (like a training TT) then make sure you allow yourself enough recovery time between it and your next hard ride.

Ideally I would do a TT attempt at a PB in training about every 2 ½ - 3 weeks. Unfortunately, weather, work and kids mean this isn’t possible. But if it was, I wouldn’t do TTs any closer – I’m not fit enough for my age to be able to recover quickly from close intensive rides.

[RoadRaven]

Do they ever have TT teams racing? - ie husband/wife team? DH and I love to ride and draft and are always trying to beat our last time / avg speed. It would be fun to do that in a race...

I don't know about over your way, but we do have a husband/wife on a tandem in the club.

But I learned about a week ago that for a while tandems were not allowed to race in our club... I think the UCI regs were used as a reason to stop tandems from racing and I'm not sure of the history. However, they are allowed to race again... I think there is just the husband wife, and also two brothers that race sometimes on a tandem.

Certainly in nationals and internationals, tandems have their own category.

As for mixed teams, you would have to check - I'm not sure. But see how your local club feels.

In our local TTs, the tandem races, but always in the results (TTs or RRs) they are listed as the *****(their name) Tandem with their time beside, because the nature of a tandem will of course give different results (sometimes more favourable, sometimes less, depending on the course) to a single rider/bike.

[Eden]

Do they ever have TT teams racing? - ie husband/wife team? DH and I love to ride and draft and are always trying to beat our last time / avg speed. It would be fun to do that in a race...

Down here we sometimes have tandems included in time trials - mostly in the non-uscf races, but sometimes in those too. In fact our Road Nationals included tandem catagories in not only the TT, but in the road race too. I also know that mixed teams are allowed - the one person I know who does tandem racing rides as a mixed pair.

There's a big tandem race every year down in Oregon - its a little far for you to travel, but it could be fun - its already over but here is this year's flyer http://www.wsbaracing.com/flyers/2006/2006_Wasco_Wild_West_Tandem_RR.pdf

[SheFly]

Wow SheFly… the first time you did your local course you averaged 33.6kph ( I have to keep the calculator open on the PC while I visit TE)
I am well-impressed! And your PB is 37.95… May I ask how old you are or your age category?
This def is your speciality, at that kind of speed you could consider trying out some national competitions…

My partner and I have talked about getting a racing tandem too… although at the moment it would probably be used by my two older sons as they are of similar ability and cadence. My partner could ride with either of them, but he is still stronger than them and would have to adjust his cadence to match their flying legs.

My partner and I are similar in cadence, so once I’m a little stronger (and lighter – still have about 10-15kgs to go) then we might be able to race together.

You are right – It is extremely addictive – I have printouts of the fastest club times at work which I (not infrequently) sometimes just stare at and drift off into a world of numbers, calculations, variables – like wind, and heart rate…

Thanks, RoadRaven! I am 38, and really LOVE doing the TT! You should consider a tandem ride despite difference in cadence - DH and I are at two VERY different racing levels, but the tandem allows us to stay together, and the cadence adjustment comes with time and miles on the road. We have been riding our tandems for several years, and I really LOVE to do the TT on it as well (although the past two weeks, there has been some swearing involved ;) ).

Eden - a humid day is the BEST day for a TT! Two weeks ago, the heat index here was 114 - 101 degrees plus vicious humidity. Believe it or not, the humidity makes the air less dense, meaning that it is faster to get through with less effort. I came within a few seconds of my PR that night...

Tandems are a separate category in most races, but are not allowed in most USCF events. DH and I are planning a road trip (from MA to OR) next year for the very same stage race Eden posted! I think that would be an absolute hoot!

RoadRaven - we have 9 seconds to trim before setting our club course TT record on the tandem.... The longest 9 seconds in eternity :D . I'll keep you posted - next race is this coming Weds. There are worse things to which to be addicted!

SheFly

[SheFly]

Do they ever have TT teams racing? - ie husband/wife team? DH and I love to ride and draft and are always trying to beat our last time / avg speed. It would be fun to do that in a race...

Do you mean on a tandem, or on single bikes? Locally we have a couple of team time trial races(everyone on their own bike), but they typically have 4 racers. I'm not sure if there are any team TTs with just two racers...

SheFly

[SheFly]

Ideally I would do a TT attempt at a PB in training about every 2 ½ - 3 weeks. Unfortunately, weather, work and kids mean this isn’t possible. But if it was, I wouldn’t do TTs any closer – I’m not fit enough for my age to be able to recover quickly from close intensive rides.

You'd be surprised - I do our club TT each week, in between my training and racing on the weekends (I don't have kids, in case you can't tell...).

SheFly

[kelownagirl]

Do you mean on a tandem, or on single bikes? Locally we have a couple of team time trial races(everyone on their own bike), but they typically have 4 racers. I'm not sure if there are any team TTs with just two racers...

SheFly

I mean single bikes. A tandem would be fun but I am too... hmmm... independent? for lack of a better word - to ride a tandem all the time. I want to ride my own bike. Test myself. So I was imagining m/f pairs TT's, drafting, racing against other couples.

[RoadRaven]

I have never heard of paired TTs

Perhaps there is a race designed like this, but I doubt it would be called a TT

The TT is about individual performance, individual power output and individual endurance.

The one exception of course is the team TT - but I have not heard of m/f pairs in a TT...

I do think your idea is an interesting concept and I would be interested to know if anyone out there has heard of such a race... I might suggest it for one of our end of year "fun" events for the club to trial...

[RoadRaven]

Ahhhh... my partner just left for his Sunday morning bunch training ride and as I was helping him and my son sort breakfast, bars, water/glucose water etc etc i asked about m/f TTs.

He said, "you mean 2-up TTs?"

I said... "I dunno, I guess"

He said he didn't know of them happening here in Middle Earth, but overseas they do 2-up TTs and the second person across the line is time recorded for the pair.
So I guess it works like a team TT, but with only two. He wasn't aware of m/f - husband/wife teams as an event. But in much bigger countries like you all have, you're bound to find one in yours!...

[RoadRaven]

Thanks, RoadRaven! I am 38, and really LOVE doing the TT! You should consider a tandem ride despite difference in cadence - DH and I are at two VERY different racing levels, but the tandem allows us to stay together, and the cadence adjustment comes with time and miles on the road. We have been riding our tandems for several years, and I really LOVE to do the TT on it as well (although the past two weeks, there has been some swearing involved ;) ).

And I'm 41 this month - if we were in the same country we'd be racing the same races at the local club (Vet 1 35-44) and sometimes in nationals (Vet 1 35-39, Vet 2 40-44).
I'd love to do the tandem thing with my partner - its one of the great pleasures we get from cycling - being able to do it together. The younger children still limit this, but not for too much longer. Tandem would make it better... yesterday we both raced (not a TT, just a road race) and wanted to hear about each others races... but we both came in at different times, so we didn't see each other finish (I was at the car getting a jacket when he arrived) and then our older boys want to dissect their races, so we listen to them.


You'd be surprised - I do our club TT each week, in between my training and racing on the weekends (I don't have kids, in case you can't tell...).

I am looking forward to the club's summer series, because as well as the Saturday club races, they also organise Thursday evening TTs, usually based from the local school - they don't count towards series points, but the results do go up on the web page. I am hoping to be able to get to some of these this summer - I watched with some envy as my partner and oldest son headed off last summer.


RoadRaven - we have 9 seconds to trim before setting our club course TT record on the tandem.... The longest 9 seconds in eternity :D . I'll keep you posted - next race is this coming Weds. There are worse things to which to be addicted!

Good luck with it... I'll be thinking of you. I have to wait two weeks (well, 1 week and 6 days... hmmm... how many sleeps is that???) til my next TT race...

Raven

[SheFly]

Good luck with it... I'll be thinking of you. I have to wait two weeks (well, 1 week and 6 days... hmmm... how many sleeps is that???) til my next TT race...

Raven

Let me know how it goes! I'll post again on Weds and let you know how we did. BTW - hope all is well over there in Middle Earth...

SheFly

[Eden]

Eden - a humid day is the BEST day for a TT! Two weeks ago, the heat index here was 114 - 101 degrees plus vicious humidity. Believe it or not, the humidity makes the air less dense, meaning that it is faster to get through with less effort. I came within a few seconds of my PR that night...

Tandems are a separate category in most races, but are not allowed in most USCF events. DH and I are planning a road trip (from MA to OR) next year for the very same stage race Eden posted! I think that would be an absolute hoot!SheFly

Have fun down in Oregon next year!
I think it was Hammer who mentioned the humidity - though I must admit I find it harder to breathe when the humidity is very high. My last ITT was in wicked dry heat. It was between 99 and 105 when we were out on course and it was oven dry. Us western Washington folks aren't used to it (both the heat and dryness). One guy passed out from heat exhaustion at the finish and they had to call an ambulance for him!

[RoadRaven]

Pssst.... SheFly.... how'd it go?

[SheFly]

Sorry for being so late with the response. The TT last week was cancelled due to road construction. DH and I thought it was too minor to cancel, but they did.

So tonight was the race of truth. Honestly, I was stressed about the whole thing. DH had even gone so far as to put stickers on the disk wheel, proclaiming 20:45 - our target time. The course record for a tandem before tonight was 20:59:9, and our PR was 21:08 - 9 seconds to beat it, but DH wanted a comfortable margin.

When we got to the event tonight, a number of regulars kept asking us if this was the night. Talk about adding to my stress level! A friend asked me how I was feeling, and I said that given that I wasn't even riding yet and my HR was over 130 bpm, I should be fine ;) . Even at the start, as we were prepping for takeoff, one of the volunteers kept repeating "This is the night."

The past two weeks, we have had issues at the start getting clipped into our pedals. Tonight's start was stellar, and we quickly ramped up to speed. I made the mistake of having my HRM so that I could see it, and started to panic somewhat when my HR was over 180 so early in the race... I ended the 9.75 mile loop with a 180 average, and a max of 186 :eek: - trust me when I tell you that we were working hard...

Thankfully, the race was fairly uneventful for us, despite the effort we were both expending. I usually can't see anything on the back of the tandem when we are doing the TT, but on the final climb of the circuit, I could tell that we were pretty far out in the lane, and looked up to see us passing a rider who was passing a rider (two abreast), with a car coming in the opposite direction :eek: . I decided at that point to put my head back down so I couldn't see anything.

We crossed the line ecstatic - we finished in 20:42! This is a new course record for tandems at our TT event, and faster than we had ever thought we could go. The other tandem (previous record holders) didn't have a stellar night, and we handily beat their time. Only two more weeks left of the series - I am headed back on my single bike next week to see if I can eat into my 24:32 PR time....

Raven - this one was for you!

SheFly

[RoadRaven]

Woohoo Shefly - thats awesome - I can imagine you both dissecting the race for weeks to come...
Isn't it fabulous when it all comes togther!!!?

Thanks to your great story, I have decided I'd love to TT on a tandem with my partner - have to be on the long-term goals...

I have my TT on Saturday, its a different course than the one I thought it was, and 25km not 18km, but I'll be thinking of you and imagining you two behind me... that'll make me keep my pace up!!!

So impressed... well dome seems inadequate... but WELL DONE!!!

TINO KINO PAI!!!!

[SheFly]

Thanks, Raven! We definitely spent last night dissecting, and celebrating. I forgot to mention that we are now within 30 seconds of the OVERALL course record, so that, apparently is next year's goal - always good to have goals.

I'm glad that you are inspired to try a TT on the tandem! Last night was fun, since with both teams at the event, it was really like a "showdown" from the old west....

Good luck on Saturday! I'll be thinking of you, and wishing you a tailwind the entire way. Let me know how it goes!

SheFly