It certainly worked for Taylor Knibb on her way to the IRONMAN 70.3 World title. But it’s worth noting that the next two fastest splits finished second and fourth in the race, respectively. Here’s a look at the rides, along with my quick take on the bike positions of the women who had the 10 fastest bike splits in New Zealand.

Before I dive into this piece, I want to acknowledge a few things:

• These are static images taken at a single moment during the race.
• Camera angles can distort positions.

I’m also assuming that athletes have arrived at these positions through a deliberate process, supported by trial and error, bike fit professionals, and some form of aerodynamic testing.

Taylor Knibb – 2:10:09

Taylor just flat out looks good on a bike. She does everything right; she has great posture on the bike, solid anterior pelvic tilt, stretches out, relaxes her head and keeps it low. I can just tell she is very conscious of these “aero cues” will riding. She does at times, appear to run out of the length she is looking for on the bike, but most athletes will assume a few different positions on the bike based on effort. For example, you might tighten up a bit if you’re powering over a roller and then stretch out at high speed and lower power.

I don’t have much feedback here. I would potentially experiment with more bar tilt which could provide more stability on the front end.

Imogen Simmonds – 2:14:34

Imogen’s position checks most of the boxes. However, she doesn’t ride as long or low as Taylor, nor does she achieve the same anterior pelvic tilt. This could be due to soft tissue pressure from the rotation, potentially limiting her ability to achieve a lower or longer position. Another small tweak I’d suggest is extending her arms to place her hands on top of the shifters. While this likely wouldn’t affect her speed significantly, it’s a minor detail that I noticed while watching the race coverage.

Kat Matthews – 2:14:41

It’s hard not to be drawn towards Kat’s spirited attitude on the race course. Kat does a great job of staying relaxed and keeping her head low on the bike. I made a note to myself while watching the coverage that if I was working with her, I’d experiment with moving her saddle forward and her bars slightly out and down while preserving the overall characteristics of her position.

Laura Madsen – 2:16:05

Laura’s performance was impressive, so it’s hard to argue with her setup. However, her position seems a bit too conservative to me. If she hasn’t validated this through aerodynamic testing, I’d recommend lowering the front end by 20-30mm for potential aero gains.

Lisa Becharas – 2:16:10

Lisa’s position looks great and checks all the boxes. If she’s experiencing any discomfort—like feeling as though she’s falling off the saddle or the front of the bike—I’d consider experimenting with more bar tilt for added stability.

Nikki Bartlett – 2:16:41

Nikki’s position looks strong. If she were open to experimenting, I’d suggest moving her saddle forward by 10-20mm to ride steeper.

Paula Findlay – 2:17:37

The 3x Canadian Road Time Trial Champion is a great cyclist with undeniable power on the bike. Paula’s riding style reminds me old-school TT positions—she sits further behind the bottom bracket and drops her heel significantly during the pedal stroke. Paula is very experienced and her riding style seems to work well for her—but since I’m armchair quarterbacking here, I’d recommend moving the saddle forward to enable a steeper position and a more open hip angle. Specialized offers a seat post that can extend forward by 20-25mm, but it might not be enough for the range I had in mind.

Ashleigh Gentle – 2:18:03

Ashleigh’s position is reminiscent of some top male pros, including Magnus Ditlev, a fellow Scott athlete. Whether they’ve used the same resources or not, her position looks fantastic.

Hannah Berry – 2:18:10

Hannah rides a long and low position, one of the best in the female field. Without feedback from her on comfort, there’s little to critique.

Julie Derron – 2:18:15

Julie’s position has room for improvement from a comfort and aerodynamic perspective. I would move Julie’s front end both up and out. These adjustments would allow Julie to relax more on the bike and close the gap between her head and hands. With these changes, I believe her cycling performance would improve substantially.

Hanne De Vet – 2:18:15

Hanne’s setup demonstrates attention to detail, and her position looks solid. Adding a bit more length to the front end could further refine her position by lowering her back angle slightly and encouraging greater forward hip rotation.

Photos by Kevin Mackinnon

The post Taupō Rides: The Positions of the Women’s Top 10 Bike Splits from 70.3 Worlds first appeared on Slowtwitch News.

This is part two of my Pillars of SPEED series. Click here to read Part One: Unlocking Speed on the Bike

I’m defining COMFORT as:

The ability to sustain your position for the duration of your event.

Notice I use the word “sustain“. I could also use the word “tolerate“. Regardless of whether you’re riding in the World Tour, an Ironman Champion, or a recreational cyclist, if you can’t hold your position because of discomfort, nothing else matters.

When you purchase a TT/Tri bike, you’re investing in speed via a bike that promotes a position that minimizes aerodynamic drag. However, achieving that speed depends on your ability as an athlete to stay in that position. While it won’t feel like lounging in a La-Z-Boy, it shouldn’t be so uncomfortable that it compromises your race execution—whether staying aero or running off the bike.

Comfort: Adaptability vs. Incompatibility

If you’re struggling to find comfort in the TT/Tri position, remember: it’s not a natural posture on the bike and requires time to adapt.

This article focuses on distinguishing between discomfort that requires adaptation and discomfort caused by incompatibility.

Here are a few common scenarios that most athletes will find themselves in during their time trial/triathlon journey:

• Purchasing your first TT/Tri bike.
• Making significant changes to your position or contact points.
• Returning to the TT/Tri position after a long break.

When working with athletes, I emphasize the importance of the adaptation phase. Overlooking this step leads to unhappy riders and poor fits. By setting clear expectations, I foster trust between the rider and fitter, ensuring the rider knows to reach out for guidance rather than abandoning the process when discomfort arises.

Why Comfort Matters

The human body is amazing—it can adapt to most stressors over time. This is why you’ll often see successful athletes achieve results despite suboptimal positions or techniques; their bodies have compensated and adapted. However, to save ourselves and our clients unnecessary headaches, it’s best to start with a solid foundation—bike position or technique—and make adjustments from there.

When it comes to the adaptation phase, it’s imperative to understand its importance—both for your own position and for the clients you work with. Failure to do so can result in several negative outcomes:

• The client may lose trust in the fitter, assuming incompetence after experiencing discomfort within the first 30 minutes of riding.
• They might lose faith in bike fitting altogether, attempting ill-informed adjustments to fix discomfort that would have resolved with time.
• The client could seek another fitter who simply explains the adaptation phase or makes unnecessary changes.
• Frustration might lead them to unfairly blame the bike brand for their discomfort.
• Ultimately, they may fall out of love with cycling, discouraged by persistent discomfort.

When riders know what to expect, they’re more likely to think: “This is normal—I just need to give it time.”

Common Areas of Discomfort

Saddle Discomfort

The saddle is the cornerstone of the TT/Tri position. Achieving an effective position requires anterior pelvic rotation, which pivots the rider forward and places pressure on sensitive soft tissue areas. To address this, manufacturers have designed TT/Tri-specific saddles that redirect pressure onto bony landmarks, such as the ischium or pubic rami. However, this shift often requires an adjustment period, as we’re not accustomed to bearing weight in these areas.

While a saddle may feel comfortable during a fitting session, discomfort can emerge on the road. I always inform clients that this is normal and advise allowing 1–3 weeks for bone and soft tissue to adapt.

If the saddle becomes intolerable or remains uncomfortable after this adaptation period, exploring alternative options is essential.

Saddle demo and return programs offered by most manufacturers or shops are invaluable in this process. While fitting tools and experience help narrow down choices, finding the ideal saddle ultimately relies on client feedback and trial-and-error once the rider takes to the road.

Shoulder Discomfort

The forward rotation of the TT/Tri position will place more weight on the front end of the bike than you’re used to. The lower the front end, the more weight you’ll need to support. The key here is supporting your weight skeletally, which is achieved through proper placement of your elbow on the arm cup, bar angulation, and fore/aft bar positioning. Even with a proper fit, we may experience shoulder discomfort during the initial adaptation phase.

Neck Discomfort

During our normal everyday lives, we walk around with what can be described as a neutral spine. To maintain a neutral spine when lowered into the TT/Tri position, we’d be looking straight down at the front wheel. To see where we are going, we must extend our necks in a very unfamiliar way to see up the road. By giving postural cues — setting a neutral spine then lifting the chin, versus lifting the entire head (a.k.a periscope head) — we can minimize the impact, but we must still adapt to this unnatural head and neck posture.

The Key Takeaway

The TT/Tri position is inherently unnatural, and some initial discomfort is expected. However, with persistence and time, the body adapts, and discomfort subsides.

Understanding this concept equips riders and fitters to navigate the adaptation phase confidently, knowing when to wait versus when to make adjustments. The result? Greater satisfaction, better TT positions, and increased confidence in the bike fit process.

-Mat

The post Pillars of Speed, Part 2: Comfort, The Foundation first appeared on Slowtwitch News.

As Mat Steinmetz has recently detailed for us with professionals onboard their machines at the IRONMAN World Championships — fit is more paramount than ever. Shoes, saddles, and bikes all play an important role in getting the right fit. We have a long history here at slowtwitch talking about fit. And yet, proper fitting feels further and further away from the average triathlete than it has in a very long time. One only needs to look around at transition at any distance race these days to see the smorgasbord of “fitting” that has been or, better yet, not been done.

Where did this go wrong? Why aren’t we taking care of new athletes to our sport like we should? And how do we fix it?

Let’s start with the obvious two statements: first, the COVID pandemic significantly disrupted services across all sectors. Bike fit was certainly included as part of that, but so were many other things; for example, we couldn’t get a ski lesson for our daughter in the state of Vermont in the winter of 2020-2021. And fitting has, admittedly, been slow to rebound from that disruption. We’ve seen many fitters leave the industry entirely, and we (as an industry) have not done a good enough job replacing them.

Secondly, there’s direct-to-consumer sales of bicycles that, I believe, has further contributed to the problem. Although some brands, like Quintana Roo, offer certain services that ensure that your bike is matched to your fit coordinates upon purchase, this still requires you to know what your fit coordinates are. And I would bet all the money in my pocket against all the money in your pocket that if you were to ask the full field at your next race what their fit coordinates were you might get 20 correct responses out of 2000 entrants. (Bonus points if you get the reference in the prior sentence.)

So we have a fitting problem. Even those of us long in the sport get it wrong. (Hi, I’m the problem — it’s me.) How do we fix it?

A Lesson Learned From Another Sport

I think a couple of the answers can be found out of a recent experience I had in a fitting for another sport — skiing. We were recently out in Colorado for a pre-season ski racing camp for my daughter, based out of Loveland and Copper Mountains.

I knew going into the ski season that I was likely going to be looking at new boots at some point during the year; I’d had my prior pair for almost 5 full seasons and 300+ days on them. As it turns out, the timeline for looking at boots accelerated to “right f’n now” when, midway through a descent of mogul fields, I had to make a decision between a.) retaining the tight fit in my ankles and losing more feeling in my feet, or b.) loosening the fit and having slop in response and actually knowing where my feet were underneath me. I chose option B, which worked in the moguls, less so on the boilerplate where things had gotten skied off.

And with feet of snow on the way, it was time to rip the bandaid off.

A cursory Google search revealed that one of the top boot fitters in all of North America was at the base of Copper Mountain: Surefoot. If you were to think of Surefoot as a cross between a bike fitter and a Fleet Feet you’re probably not far off; there’s a few dozen locations at mountains nationwide, and there’s a process in place, although the process is only as good as the person leading the fitting (and, in some regards, the person being fit — you need to know yourself, too).

So as the snow started flying on a Monday morning, I walked into Surefoot and got down to business.

We kicked off the process by talking through what was working and not working with my current boots (working: they clipped into my bindings; everything else stunk), as well as my skiing style (I ski everything, including introducing myself to trees and signs named Cliff). Then it’s off to a foot scanner, which is pretty much a pin pad under your feet. It’s there to measure foot length, pressure, and volume; it’s also there to build up a custom footbed. Total time spent thus far: 15 minutes.

You then grab a seat as the footbed gets made. I had good company for it.

Then your fitter comes back over to you with all of the measurements for your feet. It then gets matched against the characteristics of the dozens of models of boot shells that Surefoot has on offer to come back with the best fit. In my case, that is Lange’s Shadow 120 MV (that’s medium volume, for the fellow ski nerds). That doesn’t mean it’s perfect; there was still some punching and adjustment that was needed, but it was the best fit. After some shell work, then it’s custom liner time — foam is injected into the boot as you move back and forth (you know, like you’re on the hill), molding it to your shape and movement patterns. Then after curing, you’re done.

Total time spent: 45 minutes. Wallet: an additional 30% lighter than if you bought the boot off the shelf from another retailer. Performance difference? Absolutely. Comfort difference? Night and day. I was able to rip through steeps and chutes without worrying about my feet or slop in response between trying to turn and actually turning. It was like the first time I put on prescription sunglasses and I could see the difference between what I thought was clear vision and what actually clear vision is.

And that’s where I think there’s three solutions that are applicable back to our industry.

Fit Databases, Shoes, and Cockpits

Let’s start with the easiest fix: we need to get back to coming out of fittings with specific prescriptions on what the best fitting bicycle is for that user within their stated budget range. Too many fits these days come back with too many options for someone. A recent fit sheet I saw for someone gave them five different solutions without input as to what the best of those options were. How does that customer know which is the best fit?

This is where Retül used to be an industry leader. But, as mentioned before, a tool is only as good as the fitter using it — and we’ve lost a fair number of high quality fitters over the last five years. We at Slowtwitch used to carry a database of frames, but it did not get us to the proper contact points of fit, which are pad stack and pad reach. But — fitters, customers — I implore you. If you’re not getting a specific fit prescription out of a fitting (x bike, y bar, z stem, q saddle) — you aren’t having a proper fitting done.

Next, I think there’s a key lesson to be learned from the pressure mapping and boot shell database that Surefoot provides. Cycling shoe fit (and potentially, pedal selection) could be handled this way, too. Far too much of shoe selection comes down to trial and error without really understanding foot shapes, volumes, support needs, and ultimately, comfort. As a primary contact point on board the bike, being able to ensure that your feet are comfortable is a gateway to a better experience while riding. This feels like a simple enough solution — match your foot to a shoe shell, and then identify whether or not you need a foot bed, or the shoe stretched in a certain way, and depending on pressure mapping, might dictate cleat position.

Then there’s my pie in the sky idea that came as I was having the injected foam liner made for my boots: why couldn’t we do this for aerobar pads? I think we are missing the plot a bit with 3D printing specific carbon parts. Instead, what if your fit prescription involved a specific length of a full-arm aerobar (say, a Profile Design 43ASC in 400mm), and then the foam padding is injected and molded to your for comfort? That feels far more in-reach (and potentially attainable) for athletes versus the thousands of dollars certain cockpits can cost today.

In all, it was just another in this year opening my eyes to just how critical proper fitting is.

The post The Difference Custom Fitting Provides first appeared on Slowtwitch News.

Your bike fitter likely uses a range of metrics to dial in your fit with the goal of making you as efficient (and comfortable) as possible on the bike. Your bike fitter also likely teaches you how to pay attention to your body so that you can learn to feel what it is like to be moving optimally on the bike. This is not unlike what physical therapists refer to as neuro re-education. The process takes time, as you can likely attest to the adaptation phase after a new bike fit being correlated with how much your position changed.

The only problem is that as soon as the fitting session ends, you are left alone without the motion metrics and the bike fitter’s teaching to reinforce what you just learned about your body moving optimally with the new bike fit. Further, you become dependent on your bike fitter to set up each new bicycle you introduce to your stable.

Motion Tracking System

The team at 3D Wearable sets out to supplement that scenario by creating a system consisting of two motion sensors that communicate via Bluetooth to an app on your phone. The two motion sensors can map the baseline of any motion (i.e., pitch, yaw, roll, acceleration) on a landmark on the body and provide real-time audio feedback of that same motion within an adjustable tolerance.

The simplest use case is saddle height. One of the motion sensors can be placed on your sacrum to locate your ideal saddle height and hip angle while pedaling. This motion can then be recorded as the ideal baseline. Then, while you are out on a ride you can receive audio feedback – a chime coming from your mobile phone – when you are outside a set degree of variance from the ideal motion.

As we fatigue, our ideal motion form is susceptible to deterioration, especially when it is a motion we are still training our nervous system to enact unconsciously. We get fatigued on a long ride, and we tend to hunch our back and roll our hips back. This then leads to compensation and potential for injury. The audio feedback from the 3DWearable system can help us correct our posture on the bike and prevent injury. It can also be an indicator that it is time to stop.

Training the Nervous System

As co-founder and long-time bike fitter, Eddie O’Dea, explained, we are constantly training our nervous system through repetition. Ideally, our training is reinforcing our bodies and nervous system to maintain an ideal motion for longer and longer durations of efficiency. As soon as we are falling outside a set range of an ideal motion, we are not only no longer reinforcing the ideal motion but also reinforcing a less efficient motion. We get tired and our bike posture (and running form) gets sloppy.

There is a very good chance we are all reinforcing less than ideal motion when stuck indoors logging hours on the trainer. I bet you can relate to moving your hands from the hoods to the bar tops, hunching your back, and rolling your hips backward late into an indoor endurance ride. Pay attention to it next long indoor ride, then imagine having audio feedback to remind you of when your posture on the bike is getting lazy. And then, consider the over-use injuries from compensation you would be avoiding.

Eddie went on to explain that the neuro re-education phase is accelerated with the audio feedback from the sensors. The chimes from the 3DWearable app allow athletes to practice the motion outside the lab or fitting studio where many other variables are at play. Newcomers to a sport or activity benefit from a wider tolerance variation as they are making far greater adjustments to their motion toward the ideal. Highly specialized, veterans of a sport of activity benefit from a tighter tolerance variation as they are seeking out small margins of improvement on already very efficient motions.

Eddie O’Dea has been in the bike fitting game for a long time, and I trust him when he tells me that the 3DWearable system has changed the way he approaches bike fits. Eddie first fit me and my team in 2006 alongside 3DWearable co-founder Tom Coleman. And, Eddie was my go to bike fitter years later when I lived in Atlanta. Eddie and Tom are driven by the desire to get more people moving more efficiently and with less injury. They invented the 3DWearable system to both extend the value of the bike fit out on to the road in real-time training and to equip the end user with tools and knowledge to refine their own motion.

Increased Variables

Eddie went on to explain that the more sensors that are introduced to the system, the complexity of the number of motions and the relationships among them grows exponentially. Eddie foresees being able to map baseline motions for additional variables experienced outside on open roads. This means that the sensors on the body are not only tracking their relative position (i.e., pitch, yaw, roll) for hip angle and cadence (as examples), but also doing so in relationship to the speed of the bike and the angle of the bike on the road’s grade.

Eddie can imagine having an aero position motion mapped for when the bike is up to speed and the rider benefits from being in the aero bars, as well as having a climbing motion mapped when the bike is at a lower speed going uphill and the rider benefits from sitting upright in the bull horns. The 3DWearable system would know based on speed and grade which set of motions was ideal for each scenario and would cue the athlete to adjust to the ideal baseline motion for each scenario.

The possibilities are endless, and 3DWearable has identified several user groups that would benefit from their system, including golf; cycling; walking/running/hiking; strength training; target sports like archery and shooting; racket sports; and skiing.

Early Adopters

3DWearable is offering limited quantities of the system to early adopters at a reduced price. The 3DWearable team will be in close communication with the early adopters to coach them through how to apply the sensors and use the system to map and track motion. As the company scales the system and number of users, they intend on offering more instructional video content through their application.

The sensors have an 8-hour battery life and are rechargeable. The application is available for both Apple iOS and Android devices.

The introductory reduced price is $799 for two sensors, or $399 for a single sensor, and the app with no subscription fee for cloud storage for the first year. If you are interested, visit them at 3DWearable.org or e-mail them at info@3DWearable.org.

Eddie O’Dea will also answer your questions in the forum.

The post New Tech: 3DWearable Motion Tracking first appeared on Slowtwitch News.

Before I dive into this piece, I want to acknowledge a few things:

• These are static images taken at a single moment in time during a 180k race segment.
• Camera angles can distort positions, and athletes may not be at the same point in the pedal stroke, so these comparisons are made at a high level.

I’m also going to assume that athletes have arrived at their positions through a deliberate process, supported by trial and error, bike fit professionals, and some form of aerodynamic testing—whether in the wind tunnel, velodrome, or using modern field-testing devices.

Observations and Trends

Steep vs Slack’ish

Most athletes are riding steep, with saddles pushed forward or their bodies positioned so they sit forward relative to the bottom bracket. In my fit studio, I use a motion capture system to obtain a measurement similar to KOPS (knee over pedal spindle) to gauge how steeply an athlete is riding. While there is no definitive number, I use a range or established norms to ensure an athlete is in the ballpark. This measurement serves as a key variable I can adjust to optimize their fit.

For this article, another way to assess steepness is by comparing hip position relative to the bottom bracket. In the image above, you can see that Lionel Sanders is positioned further back on the bike compared to Patrick Lange.

A few other riders, like Matthew Marquardt and Cameron Wurf, adopt “slacker” positions. Cameron, racing in the pro tour, adheres to UCI regulations requiring the saddle to be at least 50mm behind the bottom bracket. I’m not sure whether he adjusts his position for triathlon or maintains the same setup, but he does a solid job of rotating his pelvis forward to maintain an open hip angle, mitigating any potential impact on biomechanics.

Hip Angle

When athletes report power loss due to bike position, I typically start by evaluating their hip angle. A closed hip angle can create restriction over the top of the pedal stroke. This closure can result from several factors: bars set too low, excessive reach, a saddle positioned too far back, or a poorly suited saddle that limits anterior pelvic tilt.

For some athletes, a closed hip angle doesn’t pose a significant problem- I can give you numerous examples of triathletes and pro cyclists who have performed exceptionally well with closed hip angles. For others, a closed hip angle can be the root of the power loss issue.

The image above illustrates the contrast between hip angles of Lionel Sanders and Magnus Ditlev. Although their pedal positions aren’t identical, it’s evident that Lionel rides with a more closed hip angle.

Matthew Marquardt is another athlete to ride with more closed hip angles. While this may or may not affect cycling power, the key question is whether this impacts their performance during the marathon. If I were working with these athletes, this would be an area for further investigation.

Back Angle & Reach

Back angle and reach are interdependent. While back angles haven’t changed significantly over the years, athletes have shifted away from the “how low can you go” mindset. Instead, the bars have gone up and out, with athletes raising their front ends an estimated ~40-60mm and extending their reach ~60-100mm compared to positions of the past.

Athletes are also adding 10-20 degrees of bar tilt, which helps support the upper body, relax the shoulders, and create a “pocket” for the athlete to hide their head behind their hands. This configuration results in what I call a solid, “all-day” aero position, allowing athletes to settle comfortably and keep their heads low without reaching for their bar drop.

To illustrate the change in positioning, I’ll use Sam Appleton as an example since I have his fit coordinates from the past several years. Sam’s position looks great in either setup, but you can see how much modern positions have evolved.

These are significant changes. If this trend continues—and I believe it will—bike manufacturers will need to account for the extra length and height in future designs.

I understand this is a challenging task, as creating a bike that fits everyone isn’t easy. Manufacturers have done an excellent job expanding the fit window of their bikes over the years. However, could we see a return to the days when bikes or brands offered distinct fit characteristics—like long and low, short and shallow, or now, long and tall?

With athletes positioned so far over the front end, we need to find ways to incorporate more frame into the design rather than relying on spacers, bolts, and extenders to achieve these new positions. Currently, it’s concerning to see athletes resorting to DIY or third-party solutions to extend and raise their front ends, placing significant trust in these “Lego-like” constructs to support the weight of their upper bodies.

Outliers

Kristian Blummenfelt and Gustav Iden have the most unorthodox positions. Gustav has maintained a more consistent position over the years, whereas Kristian’s approach has been more variable. Their setups have shifted from highly aero-driven to comfort-focused and back again.

Not a fan of KB’s position here. I have no doubt that the position tests fast and helps narrow and elongate his frontal aero profile. However, I think this can be done with a position that might be more comfortable and robust.

When Gustav is on the nose of the saddle throwing down power, this position is not quite as “superman” as was expected. Still, I think bringing the front end back ~20-30mm and lowering it ~20mm would be a more orthodox position by today’s standards.

While these positions may test well aerodynamically, a truly effective position must be holistic. I’ll elaborate on the fitting pillars I use when working with athletes in future articles, but I’ll leave you with this:

The primary goal of the time trial position is to reduce aerodynamic drag in the quest for speed, but the fastest positions are rarely purely aero-driven.

Quick Takes on Individual Rider Positions

For this section, I’m going to give you my quick high-level thoughts on the bike positions of the athletes below. I’d love to get your thoughts as well in the comments section.

Sam Laidlow has a great holistic looking bike position. He does seem to put a bit more weight on the front end compared to someone like Magnus, but this is a great “all day” aero position that is achievable by most triathletes.

I really like Magnus Ditlev’s position—it checks all the boxes and looks incredibly comfortable. I don’t see anything I would change, especially knowing the thought and effort that went into the position you see above.

Robert Kallin could be Magnus’s twin on a bike and that’s not a bad thing.

Patrick Lange rides in a steep, compact position. Riders often fall into one of two categories: bar chasers or saddle chasers. A bar chaser, like Patrick, tends to preserve their shoulder angle and may pull themselves off the front of the saddle if the bars are extended too far. In contrast, saddle chasers stay firmly seated and extend their arm and shoulder angles as the bars are pushed forward—think “superman” position.

Leon Chevalier is another athlete with a textbook position. He rides forward with a relaxed upper body and his helmet mates nicely to his back.

I’ve worked with Rudy Von Berg for a number of years and I think his position has progressed nicely. He rides a position that is both long and low while maintaining a relaxed posture and a great head position.

I’ve used Lionel Sanders as an example of a rider sitting further back on the bike with a more closed-off hip angle compared to his competitors. This might be the most aerodynamic I’ve ever seen him, but his upper and lower body appear incongruent. I’d be curious to see the impact of moving him forward 40-50mm to open his hip angle, and slightly adjusting the bars forward to maintain reach. The goal would be to retain the aerodynamic profile of his current position while improving biomechanics for better power production. But, who knows—maybe he can crush it in the position above?

Daniel Baekkegard doesn’t ride quite as long as others, but I don’t have much to critique here. Based on this image, maybe he could work on rolling his pelvis more forward?

Ben Kanute’s arrival at his position was well documented in a recent Slowtwitch article where he visited the Zipp wind tunnel. Ben’s position looks great and I’m glad he decided that going lower in the front end was not going to improve his aerodynamics.

Braden Currie rides in a more traditional, textbook throwback position. He seems to have some room to stretch out if needed, but currently rides with a more vertical upper arm and a larger drop. The newer, higher, and longer positions might offer more comfort and could be worth considering here.

I think the camera angle is distorting Mathias Petersen‘s position. I’ve seen other images of his position and they look much better than what we are seeing above.

Bradley Weiss had a great ride in Kona. My quick take: he looks a bit too comfortable and might benefit from lowering and extending the front end more.

Mike Phillips has a really nice position. If Mike asked for my advice, I’d look to bring his front end up and see if it has any impact on drag. As long as he could keep his head low, I think there would be minimal impact on aerodynamics and he could potentially be more relaxed on the front end.

If I were working with Arnaud Guilloux, I’d add more tilt to the bars. After doing so, I’d probably want to raise his front end 10-20mm.

Matt Hanson has a good position. Something I might try, would be to add more upward angulation to his bars and then raise the front end around 10mm.

Igor Amorelli is riding really steep and basically coming off the front of his arm cups. Looks like he might be doing something with his hands here…like opening nutrition?

Not the best angle of Tristan Olij, but from sitting here at my computer, this position passes the eyeball test.

Reinaldo Colucci is one of the few athletes riding with flat arms—a setup that worked well for Jan Frodeno. As long as he feels locked in on the front end, his position looks solid, and his head position is on point.

Gregory Barnaby rides a long and low position that flattens out his back and does a great job of keeping his head low.

Trevor Foley was having a great ride until an unfortunate crash near the end of the bike leg ruined his day. His position is textbook—he rides steep, maintaining a relaxed posture over the front end, which allows him to keep his head low. In terms of reach, he doesn’t stretch out as much as some athletes, but he doesn’t ride compact either; he sits comfortably in the middle.

The evolution of bike positions and technology at Kona reflects the relentless pursuit of speed by reducing resistive forces—wind, road, and drivetrain. While trends point toward steeper angles, higher front ends, and extended reaches, the goal remains the same: maximizing speed while balancing personalized comfort, biomechanical efficiency, and power output.

It’s exciting to consider where we go from here. From a bike fit perspective, these modern positions appear to not only be faster, but also significantly more comfortable.

-Mat

The post Aero Evolution: Kona Pro Bike Positions first appeared on Slowtwitch News.

If this story sounds familiar, hi, I’m the problem, it’s me. As noted in my article about this year’s IRONMAN Lake Placid, I managed to move my completion ratio for 140.6 distance events below the Mendoza line. One wrong step while running seemingly had blown the back half of my leg apart.

As it turns out, well, that wasn’t true. It had nothing to do with running at all. In fact, it had everything to do with cycling — and, really, just one very critical component of cycling. One that I, a fifteen year veteran of our sport, and nearly twenty years in the business of our sport, had completely overlooked.

It was my saddle.

You’re probably asking, “oh, come on Ryan. Just how bad of a problem can you create for yourself with the wrong saddle.” The answer is this wrong, from my MRI report: oblique linear low signal right inferior ramus compatible with nondisplaced fracture. Adjacent marrow edema superior rami fracture appreciated. Relatively localized high signal within the adductor minimus and ischiocavernosus muscles, adjacent to the fracture suggest contusion or strain.

For those who don’t speak radiology reports: I broke my pelvis in one place, I had a stress fracture in another place, and I had a lot of swelling / fluid in the hamstring and adductor, along with a strain of both muscles. Go big or go home.

And after talking with my orthopedic team, we narrowed down the source of the injury to one specific item. One that I consistently ignored some of the warning signs of. One that I just kept saying, “oh, it’s just part of riding. It’s never truly comfortable.” One that I rode for mile after uncomfortable mile, and figuring it was all down to the price we pay for biking 4-5 times a week for months on end.

Again: it was my saddle.

Hindsight being 20/20, I’d say I first started noticing that the saddle was really uncomfortable at what turned into my fracture site around February — five months before the race. As I wrote in some of my articles leading up to IRONMAN Lake Placid this year, almost all of my bike training occurred indoors, with my trainer bike and Wahoo KICKR. As rides got longer, my discomfort increased; I tried different shorts and new chamois cream, but never touched the saddle (a Bontrager road one that came stock on the trainer bike).

There is a reason why a friend of mine calls me “dazzlingly incompetent.”

We don’t think of bike saddles as something that can go disastrously wrong. But, as a reminder: your saddle is really only one of three places where your body comes in contact with a bike. And if any one of those is wrong, the rest of your bike fit is a series of compromises. As it turns out, an improper bike saddle can go severely wrong; that pressure onto the pubic rami wound up putting a stress fracture into both ends of the bone. Then me attempting to run on it pulled the inferior part of it apart into a full-blown fracture — that’s when it felt like someone had shot me in the back of the leg.

Let’s not forget: I work in the industry. I have countless good saddles at my disposal, from the ISM PS 2.0 that was on my triathlon bike (and gave me zero problems during the 112 miles at Lake Placid) to the Fizik Argo on my gravel bike or literally anything else (like the excellent WOVE saddle pictured below). But it points to a much larger trend that we’ve been alluding to over the past two years looking at the World Championships bike count: we seem to have lost the plot on bike fit and technology.

Look through the bike racks of your next triathlon and you will see plenty of newer bikes with what can only be described as compromised set-ups. Whether that’s interesting stem or bar choices, or saddles pointed toward the ground, or athletes still not utilizing their aerobars, it all comes back to fit not being placed at the front end of the decision-making process. Fit has to come back to the forefront — the thing you do before you even consider what bike you might be purchasing.

Or don’t. And perhaps you too can join me on the sidelines, cursing yourself for not being smart enough to just change your saddle.

Photos: Rob Piperno / Kelly Burns Gallagher / WOVE Bike

The post A Case Study on the Importance of Saddles first appeared on Slowtwitch News.

The question I have is this. As a top-tier professional triathlete, do you change up bikes 3.5 weeks before a World Championship? If I asked 95% of the professional field this question, they would look at me like I was crazy. I mean, I get it. So let me be clear: I didn’t “Ask” Jackie to do this. What I did for Jackie was help her get it done. The real credit goes to the village of people who are her sponsors and friends who support her. 

Certified Piedmontese, Shimano, ENVE, and her new sponsor Cervelo. At the last minute, every single one of the brand managers at these companies dropped everything to make sure she had everything she needed to be shipped to Lincoln,NE in time so she could make this happen.  Also, a huge shot out to our very own Ian Murray at F.I.S.T who made the long trip at the last minute to make sure that Jackie’s transition over was as smooth as possible, and let’s not forget Eli Cullison, who took the time at the GOODLIFE CYCLERY who not only blocked out the F.I.S.T studio for the day but also made sure that Jackie‘s bike got built. 

If you don’t know much about Jackie Hering, you should. Why? Because she is cool. I don’t know what else to say about that. She has a lengthy history as an amateur and professional triathlete in our sport. She has multiple 140.6 and 70.3 titles. She was one of the first to take time off to become a mom and start a family and come back into peak racing form. Yes many have done this and probably maybe even before her but I can’t think of anyone that is now really current that stopped triathlon has a female 8 years ago to have 2 kids get them going for a good couple of years, and then get back to in the sport years later and still be as successful as she is currently. Also usually (unless someone is just an odd duck), she is very much liked and respected by her peers and fans. 

Now, I’m not saying Jackie is some butterball of joy all the time. She is a mother of two who is just getting stuff done. She can be quick on the uptake, and if she doesn’t like something, she will be the first to tell you. If you don’t know any better, you will think you are getting the “Mom look” and probably reply with, “Yes, mam.”  It’s why I have always respected her, though I appreciate people who are direct and have the common sense to go with that.  I would guess that is what most people would agree with me on. She has fun while getting things done.

During the crazy time of COVID-19, when the bike business was having its hay day with sales, Jackie was trying to get back into the sport. She didn’t have a bike sponsor, and things didn’t look good at the time. We at Slowtwitch couldn’t even get bikes because the marketing people thought they didn’t need us. (That aged well) She started racing again and was on a very old BMC that worked but didn’t compare to the rest of the field. She was swimming well, losing time on the bike, and showing strength on the run. When she would show up RUN fit, she was able to claw back to podiums and some wins. When she wasn’t totally fit, she would probably think to herself (Do I really want to do this again) During that time going into the fall of 2023, I had been talking to her about her Certified Piedmontese sponsorship and I was trying to help her (as I try to do with anyone that I can be successful as I can). The conversation about her bike situation was an issue for her. She had been cancelled from her local shop for standing up for women in sport and she really didnt have any recent results to show. We at slowtwitch had just gotten a P series to do some other things with, and it was 54cm (not my size at all), so instead of sending it back, I called our contact at Cervelo and asked the question and they 100% where onboard with my request to repurpose that ride. Jackie was going in the Long Course direction in 2024, Which I might add has been the right choice for her, as she continues to sit #1 on the Ironman Pro Series.

Long story short, Jackie, on her own, ended up winning Cervelo’s eyeballs, and Jackie alone closed that deal with them. We at SlowTwitch did what we do: connect people. We also wanted to tell the story about it. So, what is this story? 

How did a top-tier professional triathlete feel comfortable switching bikes 3.5 weeks before the biggest race of her year?

Simple.  She wanted to, and the new bike is basically the old one (from a fit perspective) 

There is a reason Cervelo has owned the Bike count at Kona since 2005. Yep, you read that right. Cervelo has won every single bike count since 2005.  Why? A couple of reasons:
#1 They make fast bikes, and people know they are fast;
#2 They have great marketing for the most part; and
#3 They, for the most part, never chase the rabbit down the hole.

The engineers at Cervelo are smart, sensible, and for the most part, move slowly.  In other words, they don’t tend to get “Side Quested,” and when it came to the recent P series and the P5, they didn’t. They made just the right number of changes that made the new bike “more better” to entice people to pay attention and “easy enough” to make the change.  After all, we are talking about less than a 1% change in geometry. (If you want to read more about what I am talking about CLICK HERE for our P5 Article)

Over the last two years at the helm of Slowtwitch, I have learned that people hate change. They ask for it all the time. But when you do it, you, “The Changer,” become the most hated idiot on the planet (so they say).

The biggest thing that Jackie wanted was internal cable routing. She wanted to not only be fast, she wanted to “LOOK FAST.” I told her it comes at a price, just like I told everyone in my other video. You are always and will forever lose adjustability regarding a proprietary cockpit. The million-dollar question is. Does that actual wind tunnel speed and that “look speed” translate to the rider in the real world? Or, in other words, can the rider get comfortable enough to hold the position that proprietary front will force them into? 

In the newer Cervelo P5, they have certainly made the argument that one can get in almost every position one needs. They even allow you to switch to third-party extensions with the more general 31.8mm clamp diameter. Nonetheless, it’s still an integrated front end,so yes, it does test faster in the wind tunnel, but, stem length, steam, and armrest height, and just packing your bike will all be more complicated.

Don’t ever tell a strong woman what to do. So when Jackie was dead set on this I was ok. LFG!!! Jackie contacted Shimano and Enve, and once we knew everything was en route to Lincoln, NE. Ian Murray was the first person I called and asked for assistance. The date was set, and Ian, Jackie, and Eli knocked it out of the park. Jackie came down for a long weekend. She did the GRAVEL WORLDS 20K run, the 75-mile gravel ride, and the Great Plains Gravel Triathlon. Then it was off the shop for new bike day.

What’s the build? 

• Cervelo P5 54cm Blue Frame
• Complete Shimano Drive Train
• ENVE SES 6.7
• ISM PN 1.1
• Garmin Rally RS200 pedals
  

“Every fit begins with understanding where the athlete is in their career and where they are headed.  Jackie’s fit carried a bit more gravitas in that she sits in first place in the Ironman Pro Series, and her next stop is the Ironman World Championships in Nice, France. Her existing fit coordinates could have been transferred – straight across – to the new bike, but we wanted to explore her position to see if there might be a slight improvement. Jackie is a tough and durable athlete, but we still wanted to follow the same elements that drive every fit: comfort first, then the ability to make power. Jackie’s feedback, the Goodlife Cyclery fit studio tooling, and the Fit Institute Slowtwitch process all came together to find a place that worked.” – Ian Murray

What changed during her fit with Ian Murray? Mostly down a little more, slightly more forward.

• Saddle was pushed 2mm forward
• Saddle height came down 24mm
• Arm rest width came in 15mm
• Pad elevation came down 13mm
• Nose to extension extended 3mm
• Cleats pushed back (under the sole)

Note that some saddle height reductions would occur because of the cleat adjustments. So, when you consider all of those, these are pretty minor adjustments, but I’ll let the fit geeks chime in. Also chime into the later part of the video where Ian and Jackie talk about it.

So what changed with her fit after about a week of her riding outside? Jackie bought a pair of Zipp S curves extensions that were on her P-Series prior, and ended up moving her cleats back to the front again. Ultimately, those two things wouldn’t work for her on such short notice. All of which was based on some common sense logic.

We wish Jackie the best with the new rig and will check on her progress once we get into Nice later this week. So stay tuned.

The post Jackie Hering’s New Bike Before IRONMAN World Championship in Nice first appeared on Slowtwitch News.