- 10 months ago
Cycling is always known to be in the constant pursuit of speed, but, are there some upgrades that you can make to your ride which not only make it better but potentially slower?
Cycling Weekly's Sam Gupta looks into all the ways he believes you can improve your time on the bike and have more fun but potentially at the detriment of going fast. For some, these may be the best cycling upgrades out there.
Cycling Weekly's Sam Gupta looks into all the ways he believes you can improve your time on the bike and have more fun but potentially at the detriment of going fast. For some, these may be the best cycling upgrades out there.
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00:00As brands are constantly pushing to bring out the next best thing to make riding faster,
00:05smoother and more efficient, it recently got me wondering about what upgrades we can make to our
00:10rides that actually bring out more of the fun that we all love. So here are my favourite ride
00:16upgrades which could actually make you slower. We often talk about how the biggest aerodynamic
00:27gains can come from tighter fitting, crease-free clothing. High-end cycling clothing tends to be
00:33made of exotic materials designed to wick away all moisture away from the skin, provide extra
00:38aero benefits through different textures but also be incredibly well tailored. And that's before we've
00:43even got onto the different ways that manufacturers try to make clothing more practical. Sure, another
00:50big part of what brands try to do is make clothing as comfortable as possible and I will be the first
00:55to say that cycling specific shorts absolutely changed the game for me in this regard. However,
01:01shorts to one side, I believe that looser fitting baggy clothing can be even better some of the time.
01:08I think we're getting real evidence of this in multiple places in cycling. First, we're seeing
01:13some brands actually design active clothing for road cyclists which is there to replace your ride
01:19jersey as a more relaxed and comfortable option. Now these garments tend to be made of similar materials
01:24to their typical cycling jersey counterparts as that means it'll maintain the breathability but then
01:30a t-shirt fit is then used to bring the best of both casual and serious sporting worlds together.
01:37I think that the recent boom in gravel cycling also points to some roadies wanting to continue their
01:43drop bar fun but in a more relaxed environment. So how can we achieve this? Well, as mentioned,
01:49there is kit out there designed to provide that relaxed ride feel but another alternative is
01:55actually just to forget cycling clothing altogether. Try popping on your cycling shoes and your favourite
02:01bib shorts and then just a t-shirt and probably a jumper as well at this time of year. Business downstairs
02:06and party up top. And I'll be honest, I've done this a few times recently and there's something that just
02:11makes it feel super freeing. I wouldn't do this on a ride where I actually want to go out and achieve a new
02:17personal record but for a rest ride or a roll around the lanes it feels so much better. It's just so much
02:23more relaxed. There's a constant very physical reminder when you're riding to just chill out and enjoy it.
02:35There's one number that gets banded around quite a lot in bike shops when a new road cyclist
02:40is purchasing their first road bike and wants to experiment with clipless shoes. Riding clipped in
02:47will increase your pedaling efficiency by 30%. Now, while I'm not here to argue that number at all,
02:52I think it's worth remembering what it was like to ride a bike with flat pedals. You jump on and go
02:58without needing to worry about what shoes you're wearing. Much like my first point, I wouldn't do
03:03this for a ride where I want to go out and execute a really hard training session but if you want a nice
03:09evening cruise or you just want to pop to the shops or go to the pub, there's got to be flat pedals all the way.
03:20This one has to be a bit of a no-brainer. There's no one thing which can provide a constant distraction
03:25for the entirety of a ride like a head unit does, apart from maybe a creaky bottom bracket. Now, riding
03:33without a head unit will instantly mean that you switch off from heart rate zones, power numbers
03:37and average speeds. When you're not fixating on however many data metrics can be presented in front
03:44of you, you provide yourself the headspace to let your mind wander, lose yourself from the ride and
03:49just really absorb the joys of being on two wheels. I find doing this on rest rides incredibly helpful.
03:56Sure, you may not want to go above zone two for example and having a head unit does really help
04:01with keeping your effort in check but there's other ways to gauge it. For example, if you get to the
04:07point of not being able to hold a full conversation then it's likely you're going too hard. The point
04:13stands though, while checking your head unit may become second nature and almost instinct, when you
04:18take it away you'll realise how much more of your ride you actually absorb. Now, while this next one
04:29isn't an upgrade per se, it is a firm favourite of mine but it does come with a word of warning. Me and
04:35one of my very good friends often consider what has been our favourite ride ever and we always look back
04:40many many years to the same one. It was a warm summer's evening, we'd got around 20 of our favourite
04:45local loop miles in our legs and we decided to stop in a town about seven miles outside of home for
04:51dinner and we went to a gorgeous riverside pub and we planted ourselves in the garden. What followed
04:57was to this day the best fish and chips that I have ever eaten along with a refreshing pint of local
05:03ale. Now, once we'd filled our bellies we then set off again completely forgetting that the toughest
05:08climb of the ride was the next bit of parkour that we'd have to navigate. Reluctantly we spun up it and
05:14sheepishly nursed ourselves home. Now, while the end of the ride may not have been the most
05:18comfortable thing in the world, for me and my friend it has to have been the perfect way to enjoy
05:22cycling and a timeless summer's evening. So, while I'd implore all of you to go get a burger or a fish
05:29and chips midway through a ride, be sure to time it right and maybe don't go too heavy on the beers
05:35and don't expect to go quickly any time soon afterwards.
05:44Somewhere between 70 and 90 percent of what causes drag on a moving cyclist is the rider themselves.
05:51This is why time trial specialists, breakaway riders and those who spend more time in a velodrome
05:56than out of it will go to agonizing lengths to contort their bodies in ways to be as slippery as
06:02possible. This is also why professional cyclists spend so much time working on their flexibility
06:07so they have the ability to sit in these more aggressive positions for hour after hour.
06:12We'll be the first to say that being flexible by regularly stretching is no doubt a good thing and
06:17it does help prevent injury. However, while riding the most aggressive position may be the fastest
06:22position, it isn't always what you might want to do and arguably if you're not a professional or trying
06:28to be one, then what's the point? Bring that stem up and back, don't try and overextend yourself
06:34and get yourself sorted with a bike fit if you can and just put your body in a position that's
06:39actually comfortable. Sure, it may not be the fastest position in the world but if you're comfortable,
06:44then who cares?
06:50There's one modern trend that I've absolutely loved seeing develop over the past 10 years and that is
06:56bigger tyres. It's now the norm for pros to be racing on 25s rather than 23s and it's also the norm for
07:02amateurs to ride on 28s rather than 25s. And actually, I think we could see amateurs actually
07:08graduate to 30s as more tyre options hit the market. The best thing about this upgrade is that
07:13it doesn't actually make you slower. When you run the correct pressure for your weight, you'll enjoy
07:18fast rolling tyres, great grip and more comfort. Now, if you were to pivot away from just thinking about
07:23road bikes for a second, then I'm sure we've all rolled down the road on a gravel or mountain bike
07:28and enjoyed just how smooth and cushioned it was. So, if you apply that thinking here, you could go
07:34even bigger and maybe use a fast rolling all-road tyre on the tarmac. But do bear in mind, if you go past
07:4130mm, you will likely compromise on speed and you will be pushing the limits on what size tyre you can
07:47actually fit in your bike. But as clearances get bigger, maybe you should experiment with the
07:52largest size possible that you can fit in. You'll be able to run lower pressures and it will feel
07:58great. If you want to prioritise comfort over speed, then this one is a must.
08:08A big theme of all my points is comfort and arguably, being more comfortable makes things
08:14more enjoyable at the cost of speed. You may not be breaking any new ground in terms of fitness,
08:19as you'll literally not be leaving your comfort zone, but surely that would make the ride quite
08:24enjoyable. Steel frames have long been credited as being one of the most comfortable materials
08:28for a bike. Sure, it's heavy, but like I say, that comes with comfort. You most certainly won't be as
08:34fast as you would be on a modern day carbon fibre rocket, but it sure would be smooth. Think about it
08:40like this. If you were to combine all the points that I've made here today, what would you end up
08:44with? Well, I guess it would be a steel frame bike with a relaxed geometry. It could take around a 32c
08:51wide tyre and would probably be fitted with flat pedals. There wouldn't be a mount for a head unit
08:56because you'd just be heading to your favourite local pub for dinner and you wouldn't stand out
09:00like a sore thumb because you'd be wearing a normal t-shirt and jumpers and shoes that you can
09:05actually walk around in. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I think I may have just described everyone's
09:11pub bike and something that has arguably been around for a hundred years. Hmm. With that in mind,
09:19I think I need to slowly question everything I thought I knew about cycling. Let me know about
09:25this down in the comments below. If you enjoyed the video, then please do drop a like, subscribe to
09:29the channel for more content and I'll see you again very soon.
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