Alex Dowsett "No One Knows what 10 Watts Means" | How to Explain Aerodynamics as Race Outcomes 

See the full interview with Alex before his Hour Record attempt here, it is a good one : ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-rnJar4ZJQMo.html&ab_channel=LanterneRougeCyclingPodcast

If Alex isn’t working for a WT after he retires I will be most disappointed

I'm surprised Dan Bigham hasn't come on the podcast in a similar vein yet - he's really interesting to listen to

Great content. I listen to both of you and enjoyed this clip. I find any talk of aero gains and marginal gains fascinating. Probably because I'm still relatively new to this side of cycling. Thanks!

Absolutely fascinating. 1.6 metres faster over just 200m sprint

"I'm not interested in helping if you're not interested in winning" what a badass!

Huge gains in fuel efficiency has come from aero, ultimately we are moving through a fluid and that gets more pronounced at higher speeds

You have to love the professionals that go by facts (information minus emotion). I love how this content "motivates" as Alex did with his team mates. He really has a great personality to expose the ignorance in the sport. So many people are guided by opinions, looks or whatever other reason to ignore facts. Thanks for carrying the baton Lantern!

"and now you have an Italian wearing overshoes" I laughted hard at that

Patrick you are possibly the best sports analyst in the world from SDCaUSA thank you Alex helped his team with the hour attempt

I'd buy narrower bars, noticeable difference using my 36cm 20euro Rose Alu bars vs the expensive 44cm stupid expensive bars that came with my bike. Shocking if riders are doing it at Cat 3 / A3 level that some pros aren't.

fuck he's such a likeable bloke

Great insight to the limiting culture and mindset of traditional teams and cycling nations. Maybe explains the rare success of the traditional cycling powerhouses in the TDF over recent decades.

Fantastic Video Guys!! One tell. 2022 when we are watching the major tours we will KNOW when a team is putting their sprinter in the hunt for the stage win by the helmet and skinsuit!!

Love the content both of you guys put out so no surprise this interview was so great, super insightful! Keep up the good work!

I think new riders and lower category riders hearing this will be mislead into thinking the need to buy all the aero stuff they can afford. These marginal gains are only applying to the top echelon of the sport. At lower levels, you still have so many other things to work on before, say, a pair of aero socks are going to help you go faster. First and foremost is the willingness/ability to suffer. The mechanics of pedaling. Body weight. Race knowledge. Blah blah blah. Etc. This is fascinating talk, but save your money.

"I'm a lawyer"... excellent, good to see another RU-vidr with professional training of some sort... on the other hand it's never a good look to pat your own back and elevate yourself. There's a line there, no?

Really interesting clip, Alex has studied and seriously zoomed in on the advantages of Aero and I will definitely be looking to see if any other riders can convince team sponsors that this is worth investing in...FOR THE WIN !!! THANKS Patrick and Alex.

Aero is absolutely the most important factor because its exponential

reading between the lines from the comment about jumbo visma... did they get rid of Bianchi because Cervelo was more advanced in terms of aero engineering?

Coming from a long course triathlon background, I love seeing which pro cyclists take aerodynamics seriously and which are basically giving wins to others.

Really interesting. Anyone know the best aero (for aero) road helmet?

Thank you! Alex is one of my favourite technical cyclists.

I understand the aero gains, especially in TT, or in the velodrome or in any pro races - but for the vast majority of us mere mortals, lightweight is more affordable and easier to achieve (e.g. take a dump before your ride and you've already lost ~400g). Also taking into account we're only cycling on flat roads at about 25-40kph and not racing for wins/money/career (i.e. where aero gains are small and unnecessary since we're not racing), as opposed to the speeds that pros ride at around 60+kph (where aero actually does make a difference), and you can understand why manufacturers can't see the dollar signs when considering investing in aero products for the masses.

Loved this. Love your work bloke.

i love those kind of interviews - keep on "keepin on"

What a fantastic convo, thanks for posting!

I think we need to get alex on the podcast signing list

Really well put across that, thanks both

This was a fantastic interview, respect for Alex's analytical approach!

6:40 is the title

Super insightful, thanks guys!

I can see why sprinters might not want to wear a minimally-vented aero helmet for a whole Tour stage, but if you could get a helmet swap from the team car 5-10km out, why would you not take that advantage?

Politics in everything and everywhere even cycling. Did I hear "Aero socks" haha. Alex is so into nuance it's great.

Jan-Willem van Schip comes to mind. He seems to be a keen student of aerodynamics. Too bad he got disqualified for those Speeco handlebars.

This was Chris Boardman back in the 90s. He was ridiculed for wearing skin suit and aero helmet in road stages, now it's the norm.

Did he just said aero socks :D

Aero is super important, even at club races I see it adopted by many now using skin suits and aero helmets in criteriums

2 gents of cycling critique....journalist and athlete....mint

I do road races in a full fitted teched out skinsuit and a TT helmet. Aero matters.

Is riding naked more aero than any kit? How many watts does modesty cost?

It's crazy to me that there's some dentist spending more on aero and will have better kit than a pro rider. The argument always is that the dentist should just spend 5 minutes doing squats every day instead and save themselves some money. That these pro riders are spending huge portions of their life training to go faster but won't wear slippery socks is insane.

So the abus helmets aren't quick huh?

Great discussion!

That was a great interview

Great interview!!

Love the insight.

Had another listen to this (maybe out of nostalgia), but it is still one of your best rider interviews.

That was great!!

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How long till the full interview is up? Great clip though..

Disc brakes.