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aerodynamics after adding bags

  • This topic has 18 replies, 10 voices, and was last updated 11 years ago by Topcat.
Viewing 15 replies - 1 through 15 (of 18 total)
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  • June 24, 2015 at 6:45 pm #851275
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    Topcat

    You need to look at how
    You need to look at how people manage long audax rides. They’re doing what you want to by touring at a good average speed for days. They usually use road bikes or dedicated light touring bikes.

    The main point of my first post is that if you rely on putting the bulk of luggage on a saddlebag like the Alpkit Koala then the bike becomes really top heavy and a pain at low speeds, especially if you need to man-handle the bike as it will want to fall over. If the straps work loose at all the bag acts as a big pendulum.

    Lightweight touring and alternatives to heavy-duty camping & touring gear is a hot topic at the moment. There are lots of people pushing alternative luggage. Alpkit have been developing all sorts of bags and I have noticed Condor have their own luggage range now: http://www.condorcycles.com/Luggage/View-all-products.html

    I’ve bought a touring bike as I have accepted that I do want to take weight, go camping and rattle down some by-ways. It’s essentially replaced my mountain bike. I would like to build up an in-between bike at some point too, as much as I love the touring bike it is slower!

    June 24, 2015 at 2:58 pm #851273
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    cyclebeatz

    I see… Thats why I has
    I see… Thats why I has never see stuff like that on a race..
    It looks like, partial fairing makes only sense if you cycle very fast or I am wrong?

    And yeah, with lots of wight its better not to go with a road bike
    and better use a touring bike…

    I have see videos of people who had lots of wight in the bags
    and its very hard to ride. Thats why I would only take
    very few items on my tour

    June 23, 2015 at 12:53 pm #851271
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    Topcat

    Having used my CAAD8 with a
    Having used my CAAD8 with a large saddle bag from Alpkit and other stuff in drybags attached to the frame I gave up and bought a touring bike. Racey geometry with weight high up will make your bike horrible to ride and difficult to maneuver in traffic. There definitely is middle ground but I suspect it involves using a rack and placing the weight as low as possible in a slim profile and a handlebar bag. A frame bag looks like a good idea but I imagine is a pain in a side-wind.

    June 23, 2015 at 12:03 pm #851269
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    bdsl

    You’re unlikely to see a
    You’re unlikely to see a professional riding a bike with a fairing at the Tour de France or a TT because the UCI has banned fairings. The fastest human powered vehicles are fully enclosed and recumbent, which makes them illegal twice in UCI races.

    June 23, 2015 at 11:00 am #851267
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    cyclebeatz

    Found a interesting chart at
    Found a interesting chart at Google

    The partial fairing (zzipper) looks kind of strange lol
    Anybody serious cycling with that?

    http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_urSQl6wUA5g/TTZFTUOs6FI/AAAAAAAAIe8/zeE_bHhBpOE/s1600/drag_chart.jpg

    I has never see a professional, cycling with this on a TT or
    Tour de France. The chart tells, it makes you faster not much but faster…

    Would feel strange cycling with this lol

    June 23, 2015 at 10:55 am #851265
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    kwi

    Don’t underestimate the
    Don’t underestimate the amount of food you’ll need either.

    June 23, 2015 at 10:45 am #851263
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    ChuckB

    Yup, your’e either Wiggo or
    Yup, your’e either Wiggo or Mr. Bean. i couldn’t find a middle ground…

    June 23, 2015 at 10:45 am #851261
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    cyclebeatz

    Here are 2 pics – the one is
    Here are 2 pics – the one is the standard touring bike with
    2 panniers at the front wheel and 2 at the rear wheel
    and sometimes one at the handlebar.

    This is not how I want go on tour.

    More like the 2nd pic. But, only the bag at
    the frame and the saddle bag because I only take a tent,
    sleeping bag and mattress. Every item has only some grams.

    So the wight will not be a problem if I carry only
    these few lightweight items and a little food.

    Only question was I had, about aero if I would get any
    positive benefits from a aero bike with bags or not.

    Would be cool if but I see now – even these
    2 bags are already to much and destroy completely the aero

    June 23, 2015 at 10:31 am #851259
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    cyclebeatz

    Thanks for the very nice
    Thanks for the very nice answers guys!

    Well it was only a thinking of a completely newbie lol
    So in other words, the aero bike is only aero if nothing is added.

    If I add bags, I destroy the aerodynamic design
    of the company who build the bike. And I only get
    benefits from a aero bike, if I am very fast on the road.

    June 23, 2015 at 9:15 am #851257
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    kwi

    Comfort should be your 1st
    Comfort should be your 1st consideration, more comfort will equal less fatigue, less fatigue means a more consistent pace, think of the tortoise and the hare.

    June 23, 2015 at 9:05 am #851255
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    ChuckB

    Give up all hope of remaining
    Give up all hope of remaining aero, but this should not be your big concern. Weight is the big issue, you will significantly raise your center of gravity and you will come much closer to the weight limits of both the bike frame and the wheel limits. You also want to consider 28’s if your frame will allow that width. Did Bordeaux to Santiago de Campostella on a CAAD8 with Conti 4 Seasons (the same ones we did Paris-Roubaix and the Tour of Flanders Psyclo) and ended up with an average of 2 flats per day, all pinch flats and got slaughtered on every hill. Average speed dropped from low 30’s to mid 20’s, so a 10% increase in weight yielded a 30% drop in speed. PM me if you want to go into details.

    June 23, 2015 at 1:38 am #851253
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    Must be Mad

    If you are putting that much
    If you are putting that much baggage on a bike, then I kind of thinking the aero profile of the frame is not too much of a concern…. I would be looking at a bike more tailored to long distance comfort.

    June 22, 2015 at 10:28 pm #851251
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    Eric D

    A saddlebag with uplift is
    A saddlebag with uplift is good for a few days.
    http://www.carradice.co.uk/index.php?page_id=product&product_id=82
    GoreTex bivvy beats tent.
    Down sleeping-bags pack smaller.
    Matress ? Thinnest foam you can find. Or you can find corrugated cardboard in most town centres when the shops shut. Sometimes Pound shops have silver/foam radiator reflectors or windscreen shades.

    June 22, 2015 at 10:17 pm #851249
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    Eric D

    (No subject)

    June 22, 2015 at 5:50 pm #851247
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    crikey

    …and if you’ve not even
    …and if you’ve not even bought a bike yet, I suspect your idea of ‘fast’ and the reality might represent something of a big gap… đŸ˜‰

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