Time Trial Tips for Competitive Cyclists

Video Transcript

"Okay, competing in a time trial. The important thing is that your effort, again, be set out so that you're at your maximum output without killing yourself for that entire time. If there are hills or something tricky in your time trial, that's fine. You need to adjust a little bit for that. But in general, you need to be at your maximum output that you can do for that distance. Also, remain in that tucked position. If your back hurts a little bit, that's okay. That's better than you putting your head up and creating a wind block with your chest. You need to always keep yourself down in that position, keep your head down, as low as you can, adjust your position on the saddle if you're uncomfortable, stand up for a short amount of time, but stay still tucked down in that position the whole time. Wind is your biggest enemy in a time trial. You need to cut through that wind. Well, one way you can do it is just with the power of your legs. After about a half-hour or 40 minutes of chugging along, you're going to start losing some of that power, and then it's going to be important that you have less wind resistance. So assuming all your equipment is in order and you're in shape, then the next thing that happens is body position. And go down to your local bike shop, get fitted correctly to your time trial bike but then keep that position, shifting gears, drinking if you have to. All of that needs to be done in that tight configuration. The wind is your enemy; keep it off of you."