Originally Posted by branman1986
So the best TTers are the big guys? If power increases linearly with mass, but surface area doesn't, shouldn't large guys have the highest power/drag ratios?
Yeah on perfectly flat TTs, the big guys are usually fastest. However, add rolling terrain and hills and it really mixes things up. Also power actually doesn't increase linearly with mass due to VO2-max & lung-capacity not going up linearly. Steady-state power produced at LT/VO2-max therefore doesn't go up linearly.
What I was pointing out is to not overlook the aero part of the equation. It starts playing a bigger part of the equation once you get over a certain speed. I'd say 23-25mph. After that, you have to add HUGE amounts of power for each 1mph gain. It's easier to get that 1mph through aerodynamic optimization.