How aero is aero?

A Specialized Transition looking very aero
Photo ©: Jeff Jones

You want to get faster against the clock. You want to know if you spend X you will get Y time savings in return. Problem is, you're bamboozled by a plethora of marketing hype and scientific data put out by companies who want you to buy their stuff, whether it be snazzy equipment or even time in a wind tunnel. Where do you start? Jeff Jones shines a light on the topic.

Let's break it down into a simple question:

How much time can you save by going from your normal road bike and helmet to adding clip-on handlebar extensions to a full-on time trial bike with an aero helmet? That's it. All other equipment (wheels, tyres, clothing) stays the same.

The answer is quantifiable but finding it is another matter. You need to know what you're doing, and most of us don't. Luckily there are people called engineers in the cycling world whose job it is to find the answers to these questions.

We were given the opportunity to spend a day with Specialized's young aerodynamicist Mark Cote at the A2 Wind Tunnel and Lowe's Motor Speedway in North Carolina. It's NASCAR heartland here, and they put a lot of money into aerodynamic testing facilities. The A2 Wind Tunnel, the smaller brother to the AeroDYN tunnel, is used to test small vehicles and bicycles. It's one of the cheapest in the US at $390 per hour (compared to $800/hr for the San Diego tunnel) and the tunnel managers Mike Giraud and Dave Salazar know exactly what they're doing when it comes to bikes. Plus they can compare wind tunnel data to on road data by using the nearby Lowe's Motor Speedway, a 2.3km banked NASCAR oval.

Lowe's Motor Speedway in North Carolina.
Photo ©: Jeff Jones

For the test, Mark enlisted the help of Nathan O'Neill, eight time Australian time trial champion who has raced for European and US pro teams for the past eight years. He's coming off a 15 month ban (expired November 12, 2008) after testing positive for the appetite suppressant Phentermine, which bizarrely is legal out of competition but illegal in competition. But his experience as a wind tunnel subject, time trialist and of course his availability makes him an ideal test rider.

How it's done

Wind tunnel measurement is currently considered the gold standard of bicycle aerodynamic testing. For best results, you need the rider on the bike to be able to hold their position stable while pedalling. You can test the bike alone, but it makes more sense to have someone on it, because the overall shape will be completely different. You also need to test over a range of yaw angles (wind direction relative to the rider's direction) to account for crosswinds, because aerodynamics are significantly affected by wind direction.

The downside of doing this in a tunnel is that you can't account for handling in a crosswind, because the bike is fixed to a set of rollers.

Testing outdoors is useful because it's closer to real world conditions. That said, it's time consuming and you still need to control as many variables as possible. Even if you have a smooth flat track and precise measuring equipment, like the SRM cranks and mobile weather station that we had, too much wind will give you large errors, even greater than what you are trying to measure.

The 70 watt benchmark

Nathan rides the Tarmac
Photo ©: Jeff Jones

In late July, Cote and his team did a series of tests comparing a standard road bike (Specialized Tarmac SL2 with HED Bastogne wheels) to a full time trial bike (Specialized Transition with HED3 Trispoke wheels and a Specialized TT3 aero helmet).

They compared wind tunnel data with track testing at the Lowe's Speedway and the Asheville velodrome, which consisted of several 10 mile and 1km time trials at a constant speed of 40km/h. They were lucky to have near ideal conditions for the outdoor tests, which kept the measurement errors down to around 2% of total power. The corresponding errors in the wind tunnel are under 1%. From doing this, they found the outdoor testing validated the wind tunnel testing, but did not replicate it.

They also found that outdoors there was a 60-70 watt saving at 40km/h between the normal road bike setup, which required ~280-290W at this speed, and the full time trial setup (~220W). That worked out at between 22-24% in aerodynamic savings. To put it another way, it was 9 seconds per kilometre, 2'14 per 10 miles (16.1km), 5'33 per 40km, and 24'58 over 180.2km, the distance of the bike leg in an Ironman triathlon. Or another way, if you can ride a road bike at 40km/h and switch to a time trial bike and helmet, you can do over 44km/h.

In the controlled environment of the wind tunnel, the savings were greater: between 32-42%, depending on yaw angle. These are aero savings only. About 70% of total power goes towards aero. So 70% of 32-42% = 22-29% of total power. This almost exactly matches the 22-24% from the track The bigger the crosswind, the better off you are on a time trial bike because of the sail affect. Of course, you've got to be able to keep the thing upright…

Drilling down

Nathan rides the Transition
Photo ©: Jeff Jones

So how do we break down that 70 watt saving? How much is position, how much is the bike, how much is the helmet and how much is the wheels? That was the purpose of this test, although we didn't actually test different wheel configurations, so we were looking at ~60 watts worth of savings.

Mark Cote decided on five protocols:
Tarmac SL2 road bike | SWorks Road Helmet | Drop bars
Tarmac SL2 road bike | SWorks Road Helmet | Clip-on aerobars
Tarmac SL2 road bike| TT2 Helmet | Clip-on aerobars
Transition time trial bike | SWorks Road Helmet | Aerobars
Transition time trial bike | TT2 Helmet | Aerobars

For each one, we used the same wheels (Roval) and tyres, and Nathan rode in a short sleeved skinsuit with arm warmers and full finger gloves, but no shoe covers. The mass of the bike + rider was 83kg.

All five setups were tested over two laps (4.6km) of the Lowe's Motor Speedway at as close to 40km/h as we could get. The tests were repeated in the wind tunnel later that day. During each test, Mike Giraud acted as a control, riding his bike around the circuit at ~32km/h, with a wind probe attached to the front of his bike that could measure wind speed and direction. The probe looked like it could double as a harpoon, but luckily there were no whales on the circuit.

It was a clear, sunny November morning but the conditions weren't quite ideal at the Speedway. While we could account for the changes in temperature and humidity, the wind affected things at little.

[CdA = Coefficient of drag x frontal area]

Mark Cote and Dave Salazar analyse
Photo ©: Jeff Jones

Speedway data

On the plus side, the trends were accurate and there was still that big 77W (25%) difference between the road bike and the full TT setup. And it looked as though position would account for about half of that. But as for deciding how much the bike was worth relative to the aero helmet, it was tough. This appeared to be because of an unreliable data point, as the time trial bike plus road helmet should have required about 240W rather than 263W at 40km/h. We suspected this was because of an SRM calibration error, rather than the wind on the track, but at the time of publication this was an known unknown.

Wind tunnel testing

Nathan O'Neill in the tunnel
Photo ©: Jeff Jones

Mark was happier once we got into the wind tunnel. Nice repeatable data that did make sense and gelled with his considerable testing experience. The testing was done at yaw angles of 0 and 10 degrees in 48.3km/h (30mph) wind, which was extrapolated back to 40km/h.

Wind tunnel data

Mike Giraud and Dave Salazar
Photo ©: Jeff Jones

The nice thing about this set of protocols is that there are two separate ways of comparing bikes and helmets. The difference between the Specialized road helmet and the TT2 was 8.6W or 9.4W, depending on which set of protocols we chose. The difference between the Specialized Tarmac SL2 with clip-ons and the Transition was 18.5W or 19.3W. Finally, the difference between a road frame and one with a set of clip-ons on it was a whopping 29.4 watts. This difference is due to rider position (in the drops vs. in the aerobars).

That's 60 watts accounted for in savings. The July tests showed 70 watts, but the wheels were also changed in that one so we can guesstimate that HED 3 Trispokes will save an extra 10 watts over Hed Bastogne wheels. Since there were other differences (wore a TT3 in July vs. a TT2 this time, and a skinsuit vs. road wheels) we have to be careful in making this conclusion. But if it is made, it also shows that the Roval wheels tested about the same as the trispokes and the Roval wheels saved about the same 10 watts the trispokes did.

Finally, to put it in perspective, we can list the wattage savings per unit cost.

How much is it worth? That's for you to decide.

Notes:

• We only used one rider and one set of equipment, which is great for controlling variables but it means we shouldn't generalise too much. We did anyway….
• Apart from the 'high' CdA in the Transition | Road Helmet | Aerobars track test, the other CdAs were all within 3% of the tunnel data. Not perfect but good for power testing, according to Mark Cote.
• Some of the savings going from the road bike with clip-ons to the time trial bike are due to position, not just frame aerodynamics.
• You will save more time but fewer watts at slower speeds with these improvements. The constants are the percentage aero drag savings.
• You can quickly learn a lot from wind tunnel testing, provided you have people who know what they're doing

November is the month the annual Lifecycle Spring Challenge takes place. This is a weekend ride from Brisbane to O'Reillys 1000m up in the Lamington Mountains in the Gold Coast hinterland. Sunday sees the descent of the mountain and a flat ride home. This year saw the third edition of the event and unanimously rated the best by all who came.

  All week the forecast was predicting a wet weekend and early morning weather radar confirmed a huge bank of rain heading towards Brisbane. Our main concern was to try and get on the road before it started. With this in mind the Wombles were lined up promptly at 6am for their departure. They had in mind two things….beating the rain and beating the fast group leaving 30min later!

A little later after packing the support van and getting last minute instructions we were away with our worst fears realised as light rain began to fall. However luck was on our side and the clouds lifted to a nice morning with a touch of tail wind to help us along. Our chances of catching the Wombles were dashed as we got a report from John Schaab , who joined us later that the Wombles were strung out in single file and appeared to be travelling at 40+!

Sure enough they still had a considerable time gap as we got to Canungra so were keen to head off soon after the main group arrived. After filling up on cold drinks and Paula's famous fruit cake a few started sneaking up the road that leads to the top of the mountain.

Not to be outdone the fast group took off soon after in hot pursuit and we were strung out ourselves as a few tried to make a break and get a headstart on the hill. All to no avail as we all came together at the base of the mountain. Here Simone, who had a wager with Blair the old fox as to who would be first to the top, took off in the company of Liam, Jason Reed, Matt Barnes and Major Dave. The rest were soon strung out like Browns cows.

Soon we were into the rainforest and the Wombles were getting caught. Rockin" Rod Stewart was taking his role as photographer fairly seriously and was stopping periodically to take pictures of the field going by….no wonder he was still pretty fresh at the top! A few more succumbed to cramp as the heat took its toll…by now rain would have been welcome!

Jason Reed took the honours at the top followed closely by Major Dave and Simone who had successfully negated Blair's challenge for the $5 wager. Over the next 20 min or so everyone made their way to the top, most in surprisingly good condition.Melissa was really impressive completing the ride to the top hardly out of breath.

After a lunch of sandwiches and fruit juice it was time for a rest. The Rainforest Villas were a huge upgrade on previous accommodation and well worth the extra cost. The showers were awesome and quite a few took advantage of the spa's on the deck. A big storm reminded us we were in rainforest and glad to have made it up in good time.

Soon it was time for Happy Hour in the Irish bar. As we had a couple of Irishmen in the party it didn't take long for a great atmosphere to get going led by Ray and Marshall. Major Dave came through again with cheese and crackers and after a few cocktails the pain of the ride up was remarkably diminished.

  The highlight was still to come. Major Dave had called on all his army trained catering skills and put on a magnificent buffet BBQ. There was way too much food and a few were quietly pleased it was a 30km descent in the morning to start off!

  Morning dawned and the rain was largely gone with a lot of clouds and mist about. The less adventurous took off a bit early as the roads are rough and windy as well as still wet from the previous nights rain.The pace picked up at the back and a few egos were being tested and some rode a little beyond their limit at times. One Jason Moore, in a valiant attempt to be first down slid out on a corner near the bottom resulting in some nasty wounds and cuts.  A ride in the van with Dudley into Canungra was required in case of concussion but after a Big Country Breakfast at the cafe he declared himself ready for the ride home!The Wombles again headed out looking to make good time with the tail wind. The main group took a bit longer route up through Beenleigh before coming back in through Logan Rd. as usual taking a refreshment stop under the freeway near Loganholme.

 Once again the Wombles showed the benefit of another year of training under the belt and were waiting at Lifecycle for the "fast" guys to show up. Time for a few tall tales and then home to rest. Once again a great weekend. Major thanks to Major Dave for his work in the catering department and also to Dudley Cowan who did a great job as support driver. Without that we would not be able to have the ride. 

As many may know Lifecycle identity Josie Loane was involved in a serious accident last Wednesday. She had finshed taking the regular  lifecycle shop ride around Mt Cootha and Josie was heading home to get changed for work at the shop when she had a collision with a car while going down the hill from Ashgrove West. She suffered serious chest injuries including multiple broken ribs and lung damage. It was only due to the prompt action of paramedics that she survived. In an amazing coincidence,if there is such a thing, the same paramedics had been in the shop talking to Josie about bikes the previous day!

Josie was transferred to the intensive care unit at the RBH with  a couple of anxious days for family and friends. The good news is that she has made remarkable progress and is back in the ward although still has a drain from her lungs and a drip in her arm. It is a great testament to her fitness and courage that she is doing so well.

She has appreciated all the vistors and best wishes she has received from locally and all around the world. Knowing Josie she will be back on deck before you know it!

Spring Challenge – 250klm in two days

Join us for a full weekend of riding.

Saturday 8 – Sunday 9 November. Leaving 0630 from the Lifecycle car park.

We will depart Lifecycle and head south to Logan Village via Woodridge.  From Logan Village we continue south to Tamborine Village and then take a left turn towards Canungra.   Once at Canungra the steady climb to O'Reillys National Park begins and continues for 30km before a final sharp pinch in the last 0.5km helps greet you to the finish of the climb. The climb is one of the most beautiful climbs that you will find in the world with very unique rainforest sections, switchbacks all on a very pleasant gradient.

Most of the ride to the base of the climb will be done as a group, followed by a support vehicle, however after a short stop in Canungra, and up the O'Reillys climb, we anticipate the group will break up.  There will be some riders who may wish to power ahead while others may want to take it a little slower or stop for some short rests up the Mountain to enjoy the views.  There's no pressure as we will all reunite at the top!

Once at O'Reillys we will book into the luxury villas, which will be our accommodation. Previously we have been in the Kootatonga Lodge dorm style accommodation, this year we will be staying in the Luxury Mountain Villas. Each villa is fully self-contained with full kitchen and feature modern designer decor interiors (including high definition LCD TV) opening onto expansive private decks with outdoor spa bath and BBQ.

After freshening up post ride, a lunch will be provided in the Rainforest Café and later that evening a BBQ dinner will be cooked in one of the villas TBA.  Lunch is included in the price of the cycling weekend as well as the BBQ dinner later that evening, if BBQ food is not in the list of things you eat please advise of any specific meal requirements.

On Sunday morning we will roll out early (0700) for the long and beautiful descent down the O'Reillys mountain to Canungra. If you would like to ride down at an easier pace you are free to leave a little earlier than the main group. Once again everyone will descend at their own pace and we will stop to re group and take breakfast at a Cafe in Canungra.  From Canungra we will head northeast to Beenleigh and then cycle north on the service roads beside the South East freeway and back to Lifecycle.

More information can be found at: www.oreillys.com.au

Cycling weekend includes:

• Follow/Support Vehicle
• Luggage transportation
• Accommodation
• Meals: Lunch & BBQ dinner
• Saturday night entertainment
• Use of O’Reilly’s facilities – see spa above!!

$160.00 p.p.

Suggestions for packing

• Tubes(at least two)
• Two water bottles (cages)
• Ear plugs (if you're sharing with Kimble)
• Sunscreen
• Windproof vest for the early morning descent
• Swimmers (for the spa)

Bookings essential. Limited numbers

Must be paid by 1st November

Call:  38312611 

or call in to LIFECYCLE

276 Petrie tce. Brisbane 4000

SRAM has released there 2009 groupsets at unbelievable prices. SRAM Red is the lightest groupset on the market and many of our staff members have built bikes in the sub 6.5 kg mark using Red.

Lance Armstrong announced today that he is investing millions of dollars into the development of SRAM and will be using their equipment on his return to racing this season.

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September brings the start of the Avanti September Sellout Sale at Lifecycle.  We have a huge range of bikes which are selling out at up to 40% off. The sale includes Fitness bikes, Road bikes and hardtail and dual suspension MTB's.  We also have a range of other products such as gloves, windtrainers and helmets which have sale tickets attached.  If you're after a bike upgrade or just getting into cycling then now's the time to buy.

We've also been able to get our hands on some 2007 Specialized Tarmacs and Roubaix for the road riders out there.  If you're after an amazing deal then these are the bikes for you. 

Check out the list of sellout bikes below and give us a call here at Lifecycle or come and visit for more information.

Road Bikes: 

Specialized Tarmac, Roubaix, Ruby's, Dolce

Avanti Team Corsa, Corsa, Vivace, Monza

SUB Subzero 3, Subzero 2, Subzero 1

MTB:

Specialized Myka, FSR XC Comp, Stumpjumper FSR Comp, Hardrocks, 

Avanti Scratch 29, Derelikt 1, 2 and 3, Competitor 1 & 2, Aggressor, Hammer, Barracuda

Fitness Bikes:

Specialzed Globe IG8

Avanti Blade Team, Blade 5.0, Illusion, Pioneer, Discover, Expedition

The big news in the European pro peloton for 2009 is Specialized and Team Saxo Bank (Team CSC Saxo Bank 2008) are joining forces to create the number one cycling team in the World: Team Saxo Bank. Specialized will continue their partnership with Quickstep for 2009 however its good to see they'll also continue their work with other teams. Following is the latest Press Release:

September 1, 2008

“I am pleased to announce that the Specialized and Team Saxo Bank will join forces starting with the 2009 racing season,” said Mike Sinyard, President and Founder ofSpecialized. “Bjarne (Riis) and I have been talking about working together for years. It is a natural relationship based on parallel visions and values. Both Specialized and Team Saxo Bank are extremely driven and aim to be the best in our respective fields. Our cooperation will enable each of us to achieve more than ever before.”

Bjarne Riis added, “I am really excited to start this new partnership, and I think that we can create great things together with Specialized. We have had a lot of different possibilities in terms of equipment for the coming years, including working together with our existing partners, but wehave chosen to embark on a new project, and we are ready to take the next step with Specialized. There has been a clear mutual understanding and a good business fit between the two companies from day one, and I am convinced that it will become clear to everyone that these are two highly ambitious organizations that are going to collaborate closely in this deal. I chose Specialized based on our common vision, their excellent bikes and equipment, combined withtheir ability to develop future materials that will help us win.”

Starting with the 2009 racing season, Specialized will be the official supplier of complete bikes and shoes to Riis Cycling/Team Saxo Bank for at least three years.

“For my team, the bikes and equipment must be perfect. During my visits to Specialized, I have met with the engineering team and ridden the materials personally. I am very impressed with Specialized bikes, equipment and the Specialized development process overall. I know we will push Specialized to constantly improve, and I know Specialized will make the materials that will help us win races,” Riis said.

Specialized continues as the bike, helmet and optics supplier to Team QuickStep and supplies multiple pro and development teams with helmets and optics. In 2009, over 100 top European proriders will ride Specialized Body Geometry shoes.

About Specialized:
Specialized Bicycles was founded in 1974 by riders for riders. Headquartered in Morgan Hill,
California, with global distribution, the company focuses on improving every rider’s cycling
experience by delivering functional and technically advanced bikes and equipment that provide true performance benefits.

About Riis Cycling:
Riis Cycling is the company that runs the number one professional bike team in the world, Team CSC Saxo Bank (as of 2009 Team Saxo Bank). Dedicated to the values of communication,loyalty, respect and commitment, both the team and the company incorporate the very essence of teamwork. With fantastic results in all the major races and a state-of-the-art anti-doping program, Riis Cycling has excelled at bringing cycling into the future.

Congratulations to one of our shop riders, Kelli,who has just finished a 14 day tour across England and Scotland.  Kelli completed 1860km in 14 days and the ride started at Land's End in Cornwall, England and finshed at John O'Groats at the tip of Scotland.  Kelli has only been riding with the Wombles for around 6 months so its amazing to see what can be done in such a short time.  

Check out the map below which shows just how far Kelli travelled.  Congrat's on finishing such a big ride! 

In sharp contrast to previous years, Saturday August 9th dawned bright and clear for the 4th annual Winter Warmer. This is a weekend ride covering varying terrain over 250km of south east Queensland's best country side.  At 6:15 on Saturday morning the troops began to arrive and load the team support vehicle driven by Paul, our friendly `kiwi' driver. People looked rather nervous as they parted with their bags, wondering if they'd ever see their clothes again.  Paul had never been to Maleny, is obviously not a local and directions are not his forte!

The Wombles were first to release their bags and at 6:30am they rolled out with a team 15 strong.  The rest of the WW riders pedaled out of the shop car park at 7am, on a Wombles hunt, and were closely followed by the support/sweep wagon.  Unfortunately the team had to leave with 2 less riders than initially planned for, as Jeremy and Lisa had an alarm clock blow out that morning.   They were forced to kit up in the car and high tail it to the Alderley hotel to catch the group.  Secretly, we all think it was a sneaky way of dodging a few miles as neither party accepted responsibility for the shonky 'alarm clock'.  If anyone's wondering what to buy Jeremy for Xmas I hear he has `alarm clock' written on his Xmas pressie list!

The group got off to an organised start, riding out over the Samford range and onto Mt Mee via Dayboro. The race was on up Mt Mee as word on the street was winner takes all in the spoils of the Lifecycle bake off which had been held on the days leading up to the WW.  The bake off had been brewing with Blair cooking up a fruit cake the night before and Julie baking up some home made muffins.  Everyone wanted to be first up Mt Mee and the Wombles were so desperate they organised a road block in the form of a broken down dump truck in hopes of slowing the faster group.  Their ploy worked and they greeted the main group at the top of Mt Mee happily waving and munching on fruit cake and muffins.  Luckily Blair and Julie know how to cater and the Wombles are generous folk, so there was enough for all.   The re fuel stop was a massive hit with the party mix and mars bars being overlooked for the finer baked goods on offer as the choice of snack on the summit of Mt Mee. After the stop and snack the group was full of energy and it was onto Woodford with more hills and a couple of high speed descents with tight corners.   This got the groups adrenalin pumping and everyone was pleased to see Benny make it down a descent in one piece.

Muffin Stop 

All stops tended to revolve around food and at the 80k mark we popped into CJ's bakery at Woodford for a coffee and snack.  Another re fuel was needed to keep the legs turning over for what would be the last part of the day's journey, and the toughest. After a relaxing coffee and feed, Owen and Tony decided they'd have more fun on an all boys road trip, so they took over the wheel of the sweep wagon while Paul saddled up to ride the remaining k's on 2 wheels instead of 4.  The climb up the mountain range to Maleny proved to be quite a test for all and it caused major splinters in the group.  The front runners arrived at Tranquil Park at around 1pm with everyone else coming in at their own pace.  Tough nut Benny decided he wanted to sneak in a few extra k's than everyone else so he rode straight on past the finish and was looking as though he'd do the whole winter warmer, 240k's and return to Brisbane in one day. He went a little too far and was preparing to chuck the bike and lay down in fetal position when Melissa and big sister Lisa found him, saving him from this disgrace.   Benny's tip for the day: don't do extra k's and do eat/drink more than 1 Red Bull for breakfast.

Matt Hopper likes cake stops! 

After Benny's big rescue the WW riders settled in with their roomies and freshened up with a nice warm shower in preparation for the afternoons activities.  Everyone seemed to find their way to the bar ok and most enjoyed a drink and the food platters on offer. Strangely,  Laura decided to take a more unorthodox approach and drink from a waxy candle holder, she seemed to enjoy it though and didn't get sick so no harm done!  I'm not sure if the waitress thought it was so good but you can't please everyone!  The drinks continued flowing into the night and a big thanks from all must go to Officer Luke Stockwell who kindly called through a bar tab to encourage some hard core partying.  This didn't have the desired effected although things got fairly animated for awhile particularly when Toddy and his partner returned from their romantic dinner for two and  got into abit of swing dancing.  The rest of the crowd were happy enough to watch the Men's Olympic road race on TV and cheer on the aussie rider, Micheal Rodgers in a fantastic finish.  The night also saw us enjoy some good laughs and guest appearances from some of the  Lifecycle crew.   Josie and Corinne Loane arrived mid way through the evening as word got out that a bar tab was on offer!  

After a fun night and a good sleep the group rose for Breakfast at 7am. Everyone was famished and looking for a big meal and the hotel didn't disappoint with a large selection of cereal and hot food.  At 8 everyone gathered kitted up for the final day of riding which was another 120km back to Brisbane.  The trip home was a little easier as the first 20km was a descent down the range letting everyone ease into their saddle for the day.  The way home took us through the back of Peachester and then onto Wamuran were we supported the CJ's bakery franchise once again. Major Dave decided that cakes and coffee weren't part of his strict diet but a serve of hot chips from the take away down the road were.  This decision paid off for him about 10km down the road when the group came across the `worlds steepest driveway'.  A few daring riders took it upon themselves to attempt this feat and Dave and his chips powered up the driveway and stole the crown of `furtherest ascent up the world longest driveway' only narrowly beating Liam.  Dave's tip for the day: Hot chips appear to assist climbing ability more so than cake and coffee.

The group continued cycling on home and a sole rider nick named `Crouching T-Moore, Hidden photographer' (Tony Moore) would randomly ride off and later be sighted hiding in bushes as the unofficial WW photographer.  We're still waiting on those photos so at least thats what we're hoping he was doing!   As the ride came to a close, things got tougher and the sweep wagon was put under some serious pressure as cyclists bailed and jammed bikes, bags and bodies into the wagon.  By the end the wagon was chokers and some suffering cyclists had to bite the handle bars and continue on to the shop giving the sweep wagon riders the evil eye.  Most riders arrived in at 2pm and everyone refueled, enjoyed some coldies and reminisced over the past two days of riding.  This Winter Warmer would go down in Lifecycle history as one of the warmest and many a tale would be told for years to come of the 240k's from Bris to Maleny and return, all in the space of two days!

Congrats to all who came along and thanks to all those who made this great ride possible! 

Check out more cool photos in our `Latest photos' link.

If you're a Lifecycle club rider, you'll know its one of the greatest clubs around as you're able to ride with people of all standards from C grade all the way to Elite A and even Professional riders who travel and race all over the world. Its pretty cool wearing a jersey and being part of a team like this!

This year we've had more Lifecyle Club riders racing overseas than ever before. Riders like Jon Cantwell, Carla Ryan and Josie Loane have been racing all over the globe leaving their mark from Europe to America, with great results and team signings.

This year Jon Cantwell signed with the American Team `Jittery Joes', which has previous association with Lifecycle. Back in the good old days our golden child Luke Stockwell was the first Aussie they ever signed and Luke enjoyed several years of racing and getting jittery on caffeine from the many cups of coffee the sponsors supplied! Now its up to Jon in keeping the Lifecycle name in the team and drinking his quota of coffee and he's done a great job of this! Jon has just come away with the Yellow Jersey from one of the biggest 17 day International Cycling Classics in the World. With the help of his team, Jon won two stages in the 17 rounds of racing and placed so consistently over 17 days that he beat some huge international stars and Olympic hopefuls. This is a huge result for Jon and it'll be interesting to watch where this may lead him next year.

Check out Jon's website for more info and pic's of his yellow jersey!

www.jonathancantwell.com/id15.html

Carla Ryan has also had an awesome year with some great results in New Zealand and Europe with the AIS (Australian Institute of Sports) womens team. Her results over the past few months have lead to a signing with one of the world strongest womens teams, Lifeforce. She'll join Lifeforce for the second half of 2008 and will ride the Giro and other big tours as a domestic for Kristin Armstrong and their many other top riders. She'll also be racing to get more personal results to secure a spot in the World Championships which will be held in Italy later in September. Check out her bio in the following link and you can keep up to date with her results.

www.cervelo-lifeforce.com/eng_details_421/Carla_Ryan.html

Josie Loane has also returned from 4 months of racing in Europe and America where she helped the Australian womens team to some great results. Josie will be spending the rest of the year at home so we welcome her back home and to the shop.

We wish all our Lifecycle International stars the best in their races over the next few months and no doubt we'll be seeing them back in Oz later in the year once again joining the rest of our Lifecycle crew!