"The 33"-Road Bike Racing - Floyd's praying mantis TT position

Has there been any comment anywhere (interviews, bike mags, etc.) that say how much time Floyd figures he's saving by riding in that praying mantis position? It looks funny, but seems to be working for him.

Has there been any comment anywhere (interviews, bike mags, etc.) that say how much time Floyd figures he's saving by riding in that praying mantis position? It looks funny, but seems to be working for him.


Funny it looked less severe at the TdG than it did at the Amgen tour. I know that the UCI looked at it very closely as he was barely legal in the Amgen position. If it works for him great but it looks pretty damn uncomfortable. BTW how'd your TT go?

Pics? i googled it and didnt find anything.

Here is a good shot from the ToC.


http://www.cyclingnews.com/photos/2006/feb06/california06/?id=california063/JD_tcastg3_floyd


and another from TdG

http://www.cyclingnews.com/photos/2006/apr06/georgia06/?id=georgia063/TdG1113_41906

Funny it looked less severe at the TdG than it did at the Amgen tour. I know that the UCI looked at it very closely as he was barely legal in the Amgen position. If it works for him great but it looks pretty damn uncomfortable. BTW how'd your TT go?

Too bad they can't ride in the Graham Obree style anymore, although that looks even more uncomfortable than what Landis is doing. :)

My TT went really well. It was the first time I have ever done one and it's still just my first season of racing. My time was good enough for just about mid-pack placing which I was happy about. Actually even before I had finished, I didn't even care about what my placing might be because I knew that I was riding well. The TT was something I actually found fun even though I was a bit tired and sore from the last month of back-to-back racing, a hard week and also a hard day from doing the crit in the morning. The thing I was happiest about was how my coach told me to try to ride it at a certain average power but I managed to do 10% higher average power than that. I don't think I've ever ridden so fast in my life! I was surprised to see what I could do in spite of being tired. Makes me wonder what would happen if I were fresh.

Too bad they can't ride in the Graham Obree style anymore, although that looks even more uncomfortable than what Landis is doing. :)

My TT went really well. It was the first time I have ever done one and it's still just my first season of racing. My time was good enough for just about mid-pack placing which I was happy about. Actually even before I had finished, I didn't even care about what my placing might be because I knew that I was riding well. The TT was something I actually found fun even though I was a bit tired and sore from the last month of back-to-back racing, a hard week and also a hard day from doing the crit in the morning. The thing I was happiest about was how my coach told me to try to ride it at a certain average power but I managed to do 10% higher average power than that. I don't think I've ever ridden so fast in my life! I was surprised to see what I could do in spite of being tired. Makes me wonder what would happen if I were fresh.


Yeah I did my first "race" TT at Ft Davis and allthough I finished 12 out of 49 my time was kind of dissapointing. I actully like TT'ing I find it really fun and challenging. My coach told me that we can do somethings that will help me improve my TT'ing but not affect my climbing too much.

Funny it looked less severe at the TdG than it did at the Amgen tour. I know that the UCI looked at it very closely as he was barely legal in the Amgen position.

Can you explain about the questionable positioning? Does the UCI have a regulation on the angle of the aero bars or something? Just curious....

Can you explain about the questionable positioning? Does the UCI have a regulation on the angle of the aero bars or something? Just curious....

I don't know the exact wording ( I couldn't find the rule at the UCI or USCF) but they regulate how far forward you are allowed to be. the tip of your saddle has to be a certain distance from the head tube also.

Can you explain about the questionable positioning? Does the UCI have a regulation on the angle of the aero bars or something? Just curious....Hand-positioning is fair-game. Seems with wind-tunnel testing, they've found that horizontal arms are more aero because your forearms aren't blocking any wind; they're drafting off your hands.

Hand-positioning is fair-game. Seems with wind-tunnel testing, they've found that horizontal arms are more aero because your forearms aren't blocking any wind; they're drafting off your hands.

I thought the idea behind the UCI rule was analogous to the airline baggage requirement - the whole "package" has to fit inside a certain box. The riders can modify their position somewhat but the restrictions imposed by the UCI's dimension rules make it very difficult to do anything drastic.

I just don't know what the exact rules are. Does anyone know?

I know that the aerobars are only allowed to be a certain length (in protrusion), the saddle nose must be 5 cm behind the BB, there must be a certain amount of space between the seattube and the rear wheel, the basic setup must be a double triangle, no fairing devices may be used with the exception of a) the helmet, and b) shoe covers. These means that any aero changes to the bike must be structurally necessary. This applies to wheels as well. UCI requires 16 spoke wheels except for TTs where lower spoke counts and disc wheels are allowed (I am not including track racing) Skin suits must have at least short sleeves (no sleeveless tri suits), though long sleeves and/or arm warmers are allowed as weather dictates.

I think those are the major rules.

There's been a few threads about Landis' TT position. He has some lower back issues, if you look at his regular road setup, he runs very high bars. This is not some high-tech solution, it's a fit issue for Landis and a back problem that he has.

I swear, when he gets on a TT bike he is the ugliest guy in the peloton. I can't stand to watch him in his "tuck" with the huge, goofy glasses.

I swear, when he gets on a TT bike he is the ugliest guy in the peloton. I can't stand to watch him in his "tuck" with the huge, goofy glasses.


..soooo 1997...

http://www.miserabili.com/archives/PANTANI.gif