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Why is Schleck not as strong as AC in long ITTs?

Jun 29, 2009
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At 40-60 minutes of climbing at 6-8% he seems to be atleast as strong as Contador, considering that he is 5-6kg heavier he is pushing ~20 Watts more than Contador. Now Contador is more explosive which gives him the edge in a prologue (or a short climb for that matter) but why can't Schleck keep up in long(>40k) ITTs?He doesnt have broad shoulders or anything that should reduce his aerodynamics signficantly...any ideas?
 
May 13, 2009
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Sophistic said:
At 40-60 minutes of climbing at 6-8% he seems to be atleast as strong as Contador, considering that he is 5-6kg heavier he is pushing ~20 Watts more than Contador. Now Contador is more explosive which gives him the edge in a prologue (or a short climb for that matter) but why can't Schleck keep up in long(>40k) ITTs?He doesnt have broad shoulders or anything that should reduce his aerodynamics signficantly...any ideas?

And he is not heavier than AC he is actually lighter..
 
Jun 29, 2009
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That matters because it means that he is pushing less watts during a climb as Schleck (or Cancellara) at the same pace while Schleck (and Canc) don't have the same disadvantage at a flat ITT.
 
Jul 16, 2010
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Sophistic said:
That matters because it means that he is pushing less watts during a climb as Schleck (or Cancellara) at the same pace while Schleck (and Canc) don't have the same disadvantage at a flat ITT.

Time Trial and climbing or 2 different things, so why even compare them?:)
 
Aug 4, 2009
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El Pistolero said:
Time Trial and climbing or (sic) 2 different things, so why even compare them?:)

astute observation

why not "luxembourg national TT champion" -versus- "spaniard" ??

oh, wait...they are "2 different things" .... so why even compare them?

yah go ahead and slam every cyclist in luxembourg who works their asses off for a living, just to minimize that national championship, fanboyz
 
Jun 23, 2010
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Hmmm, I remember when Roberto Heras (all 100 pounds of him) out time-trialed specialists, including one Denis Menchov on a pancake flat course at the Vuelta. Perhaps this correlates with Contador's suspicious TT wattage. And beating Cancellara during TT at last year's TDF.

Climber's on EPO GAS= TT FAST

Ain't microdosing wonderful?
 
Jul 1, 2010
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My understanding is positioning on the TT bike and smoothness of cadence, play a major role in being a good TT bike rider. The lower and smoother you are on the bike the faster you go. I would imagine all riders in the TDF can produce high wattage... the rest comes down to technique.....

having said that I do not ride a TT bike...... this is just what I have gleaned from people that do...
 
Mar 11, 2009
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he didnt do his TT homerwork, AC did!
+ compare the Schlecklets body to that of EBH, Cancellara or Lance...
Schleck is slender with a weak frame, Contador is smaller but became more compact as he aged, much like Levi...Schleck doesnt have the legs/body of a TTer! YET!
 
Jul 4, 2010
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I suspect that AC and AS will be quite close in the TT, I would be surprised if the difference is the 2 mins we have been talking about.

AC is used to racing Tour TTs for the overall, but AS has not really done a tour TT for the win.

Two years ago everyone thought that Sastre's TT was suspect but he held it together to defend the lead from Evans.

My guess is that AS will be within 30 seconds of AC.
 
Jul 17, 2010
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www.traininspain.net
A good question, if you find out the answer I'm sure Andy would be pleased to hear. Let's be honest, and mostly because of his age, AS is only starting to become a complete rider - he has improved greatly in the last two years and his TTing will no doubt improve the more focus he gives to it.

Like any sport, there are parts of it that you can excel in and others you suck at but can improve if you have the desire to do so. AC works hard on TT training, perfecting everything he can, maybe Andy finds it boring and doesn't give it the attention it needs?

Gifted sportsmen often over rely on their natural gifts and neglect the basics, I would guess AS will become a competent TTer in the next 12-24 months - he knows the biggest prize depends on it.
 
Jun 18, 2009
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Train in Spain said:
A good question, if you find out the answer I'm sure Andy would be pleased to hear.

Actually, I don't think he's going to like my answer, 'cause there isn't much he can do about it.

I think someone almost nailed it earlier: weight. I don't care what the official weights are, there's no way in hell Schleck is 68 kg. I've ridden right next to the guy and he's 60-62 kg, max. That makes him roughly the same weight as Contador, but 3 inches taller.

Obviously, these guys are putting out almost identical w/kg, but with Contador being shorter/stockier, his w/cda is higher. While Contador may be able to hit a higher percentage of his full power output on his TT bike (trains on it more maybe, or maybe can just pedal more bent over then AS, can focus more in a solo effort), Schleck is going to have a really difficult time ever reducing his drag to AC's levels, given his size.

There have been a ton of good TT guys who are light, some of the best: Hinault, LeMond, Rominger, so it's not fair to automatically pull the doping card. They're all compact guys though. 6'1" and lanky is a tough build for TT's. I don't doubt he'll get a little better, but his position is already pretty good. I don't see him ever being able to match Contador in the TT department.
 
there are many factors,they have same bike/equipment so lets say thats equal

one of the major factors is how much you move on the bike or how can you not move when you feel pain because of unnatural position on the bike
thats why f.e. ivan basso trained his positioning and back muscles and neck muscles under riis (same with armstrong who as far as positioning goes was proly the best)

also underestimated but very important is shifting your gears and also strategy,knowing the course,where to go full ahead where to rest for a bit

in my mind why contador is better is because he looks smoother on the bike,same with cancellara they look like their body is part of bicycle,but if andy put himself into serious TT training he can be a lot better and eventually be on the same lvl as contador
 
Mar 31, 2010
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Sophistic said:
At 40-60 minutes of climbing at 6-8% he seems to be atleast as strong as Contador, considering that he is 5-6kg heavier he is pushing ~20 Watts more than Contador. Now Contador is more explosive which gives him the edge in a prologue (or a short climb for that matter) but why can't Schleck keep up in long(>40k) ITTs?He doesnt have broad shoulders or anything that should reduce his aerodynamics signficantly...any ideas?

schleck is actually 3/4 kg heavier, and contador has better positioning on the bike as well as more power wattage/kg weight
 
Mar 31, 2010
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veloracer said:
Hmmm, I remember when Roberto Heras (all 100 pounds of him) out time-trialed specialists, including one Denis Menchov on a pancake flat course at the Vuelta. Perhaps this correlates with Contador's suspicious TT wattage. And beating Cancellara during TT at last year's TDF.

Climber's on EPO GAS= TT FAST

Ain't microdosing wonderful?


seriously shut the f*** up you never heard of recuperating?? gt riders recuperate much better than guys like cancellara. if you are a climber you have more chance of coming out less tired after the mountains than the non-climbing itt specialists. seriously you are so full of sh*t
 

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