The premise of marginal gains is nothing new for cycling. A term synonymous with the higher levels of the sport, the maximum intriguing marginal gains are discovered in the ranks of fans. Like the popular climbing season here in the UK, where runners make excessive efforts to decrease the weight and coefficient of resistance (drag coefficient x surface) of their configuration.
You’ve probably read that Ronan McLaughlin recently broke Alberto Contador’s Everesting record in 23 minutes for a time of seven hours and 4 minutes, more than an hour faster than his previous attempt just two weeks ago. As he prepared to cross the eight-hour barrier he had so desperately lost before, McLaughlin knew the record in sight, but said the mark of less than eight hours was the main target.
Of course, a single stop climb, as is the case during the climbing season, will gain advantages from a weight force build-up (or CoA strength). But when you extrapolate this in a seven-hour effort, profits can become still marginal.
“In fact, I learned that if I hadn’t achieved the aerodynamic gains for relegation, I would have lost a minimum of 10 seconds consistent with the descent and would have added more than ten to fifteen minutes over the total course, as much as the 23 minutes I took the record,” McLaughlin told Cyclingnews.
Of course, the new Tarmac SL7 has arrived, but don’t let that hurt what a super motorcycle is, the Tarmac SL6. Our comparison piece pits the SL6 opposite to the SL7 and discovered that the SL6 was the lightest motorcycle. McLaughlin would use the SL6 with Aerofly II bars, but admits they are not the lightest.
The cab is McLaughlin’s ultimate noticeable customization. He replaced the Aerofly II handlebar with Ergosum 3T bars, to which he then carried a saw for the drops. A Deda Team Zero gallows connects the bar to the frame, which includes the EPS interface for greater aerodynamics.
Hacking his own previous configuration, McLaughlin changed the classic 2×12 configuration of his Organization Campagnolo to an event-specific 1×3 configuration. By cutting the outer tray, McLaughlin ended up with a single 39T tray on the front, which he combined with a changed cassette that eliminates the maximum of the stingers, leaving only 3 speeds.
Updated to his initial attempt, McLaughlin switched to the Dura-Ace C35 tubular wheels, which inflated to the front and rear pressures.
The entire motorcycle tilts the scale to 6.2 kg.
We met with McLaughlin to discuss the main points of his election.
“All portions eliminated were going to significantly decrease weight, but aerodynamics also played an important role in decision-making,” he said. “By cutting the front derailment, bottle holders, handlebars, a tray and a handlebar tape, it would have stored grams of weight and also a significant amount of resistance. At the maximum speeds that go down, those small adjustments can make a big difference because the aerodynamic drag is tied to the square of speed, so every time my speed doubled downhill, my quadrupled resistance in upright would have made a big difference.
“I had been making plans for Everesting for some time, probably seriously since March. But since the motorcycle I used for Everesting is also my everyday motorcycle, it’s possible that all the modifications I made were only made at the last minute. I did the day before I cut the bar drops, which I did the morning of the challenge.”
McLaughlin has not overlooked anything in the quest for optimization, admits that the budget has become the biggest constraint, as evidenced by the selection of the saddle. Instead of using the Specialized Power Arc carbon rail saddle, it couldn’t justify the savings of grams compared to expenses and opted for Power Arc Pro titanium rails.
Practically, he controlled saving the same amount of grams by using a metal saw on his Ergosum 3T handlebar.
“An unfortunate oversight that I did because of the nature of the last-minute modifications was to leave the cables on the front of the motorcycle very exposed,” he admits. “I was far from ideal and disappointing to me, given the length I covered on the rest of the motorcycle.”
However, McLaughlin not only cut parts of his motorcycle in search of a loose speed. Throughout the plan-making phase, the former Continental professional resorted to knowledge modeling to calculate stimulation methods and estimate response times.
“The first and maximum non-unusual style I used was the everesting.cc calculator for the number of repetitions needed, etc. was accurate at about 2%.
“I also used Best Bike Split and several Excel sheets that I have to calculate aerodynamic savings, weight savings and genuine pace. I had been looking for at least 10 other stimulation strategies. However, I would say that all of this modeling was more for my confidence at the time than a stimulus strategy to follow rigidly. The day I used RPE [perceived stress rate] and central rate as limiters with an eye on the force that sticked strictly to a plane of force.”
As for the finer main points of its configuration, McLaughlin turned to the Notio Konect and the aerodynamic resistance measurement unit on the bike. By standardizing aerodynamics, Mclaughlin was able to measure the most productive tires and pressures for rolling resistance.
“I identified that tire tension would be very vital in this challenge. Rolling resistance will be a paramount thing and therefore tyre selection and tension were selected as much as I can.”
However, McLaughlin’s accessory is not limited to motorcycling, and McLaughlin implemented the same scrutiny in his selection of clothing, helmet, footwear and diet.
“My food intake in the days leading up to the challenge was optimized to provide enough energy, but also to make sure I’m not overweight,” McLaughlin said. I also paid special attention to hydration, I came back to make sure that I ‘resupply’ absolutely, but not too hydrated and, as such, carried an excess of fluid.
“In fact, I went into details about my clothing selection. I wore aerodynamic footwear covers. I was quite disappointed that once it rained in the rain, they did not stay in position and started beating a little on the descent. Fortunately, I was able to take them off, one downhill on two straight descents, and more fortunately, I expected this dressed in aerodynamic travel socks underneath them just in case.
“I also decide to wear a Pactimo Ascent Flyte suit, which, as a one-piece racing suit, is more streamlined than the popular sweater and shorts, but also has a similar weight, has a wallet on the back of my phone that provided the sound of the race band.
“Finally, I chose a Kask Infinity helmet because it has the adjustable vent at the front, for the ascents I opened the vent, then without delay after climbing I closed the vent, closed the Flyte suit and went down in a wonderful compatibility all the way down. In fact, I was able to put my head on the tip of the Garmin and at least the A of my CoA was as low as possible for each descent.”
McLaughlin increases GoFundMe’s budget for the Community Rescue Service (CRS), a search and rescue charity run by volunteers from Communities in Northern Ireland. So far, it has raised 5547 euros on the appropriate target of EUR 8848. Donations can be made in https://www.gofundme.com/f/22imvh8w1c
You can watch the race in Strava: https://www.strava.com/activities/3840715465
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