Time Trial Positoning Part 1

A recent experience at a local time trial inspired me to do a little research on the issue of UCI positioning rules. I've found the relevent rules here: http://tinyurl.com/6mc7rx , although not without difficulty. The UCI could do a lot to make it easy to find the rules that are of great interest to riders more accessible.

I'll paraphrase a rule that is of relevance to the riders at UCI governed time trials.

1. The tip of the saddle needs to be 5cm behind the bottom bracket (1.3.013)

So here is the issue: riders were showing up at the start line, with their bikes in what I am going to assume is their optimized time trail position, one that they have probably spent time training in. The commissars checked their setup measuring the distance from the bottom bracket to the nose of the saddle, found them out of compliance with the rule above and required them to change their setup minutes before their race (the photos posted here demonstrate the measuring and are not intended to imply any of these riders had a positioning issue).

This is a big deal for 3 reasons:

1. This forces the riders to sit on the nose of their saddle in order to maintain that optimized position (something I can't do, that is for sure)
2. If they decide to ride on a more comfortable part of the saddle, the distance to the cockpit increases, perhaps stretching the rider and resulting in comfort issues.
3. Riding further back on the saddle also requires the saddle height to be decreased to prevent over-reaching during the pedal stroke.

Just imagine having your positioning de-optimized right before your race.

--Next Up--

Positiong solutions, equipment options and the other rules

Mo'Flow Saddle

Last Saturday I took off my rebranded Selle Italia saddle (received on a previous bike) and slapped the Blackwell Research Mo'Flow saddle on for a test ride. Do you consider 138 KM a bit much for the first ride on a new saddle? Me too, but it was sure to indicate whether or not the design worked for me.

The first thing that you notice about this saddle is that the nose just falls away at the front. This gets it right out of the way of your nether regions and also makes sure that the stitching does not cause any chaffing or rubbing.


Next up in the slightly peculiar department are the long sides of the saddle that hide the rails. What I found was that these "wings" prevented chaffing/rubbing of the inside of my legs against the head of the seat post. A nice little feature that I think a lot of people will appreciate.

The mass is in line with other lightweight saddles.

This saddle also had a 1 cm higher stack than the one I replaced and so I needed to lower my seat post in order to get my position where I needed it.

Pros: After 138 KM I was still reasonably comfortable. Down in the drops was the most comfortable position on this saddle and this indicates that this could be a great one for riding in the aero position.

Cons: The deep channels that provide relief proved to be a bit too sharp when up on the hoods of the brake levers. Where the ridges of the centre-cut on my previous saddle were very flat, the Mo'Flow ridges were definitely more peaked. At about the 100KM mark I could definitely fell these on my butt, BUT never on my tender bits.

Were I racing triathlon this year, this saddle would be on my TT machine. Since I am not and am restricted by UCI rules, I am using ISM Racing instead. As for the road bike, I am putting the old Selle Italia back on. For me the irritation from the centre-cut ridges of the Mo'Flow was manageable, but it was not something that I wish to learn to live with.

Want to try it out to see if it is the right one for you? Send me an email.

Stolen Bikes in Toronto Recovered

More info: http://www.torontosun.com/News/TorontoAndGTA/2008/07/19/6204991-sun.html

Andrew Wanie - Tour de Terra Cotta

Andrew gives us a peak at the Tour de Terra Cotta.