Effects of wind on racing performance

[Hepmike]

Local road race last night- circuit, 2-mile closed track- wind gusting up to 15 mph. Me: 6'5", 195 lbs.
I know I'm big and I need to stay as aero as possible so I'm in the drops and trying be as strategic as I can within the field- hiding (!) on the inside as much as possible. But right away I can just feel my power getting sucked out of me- in a way that's different from climbing or riding in heat. I know what it feels like to ride in a strong fast group and really have to throw down the watts for 30-40 miles. But this feels different.
Is it psychological? Am I making excuses? I understand it's a different level of fitness/power I (obviously) don't have yet...but it's disheartening....

[Mark McM]

Of course wind makes a big difference in racing performance. At racing speeds, over coming air resistance takes up about 85% of total power output. Adding wind on top of that increases air resistance further.

Furthermore, air resistance power increases with cube of velocity, so there it takes 8 times more power to overcome air resistance at 30 mph than it does at 15 mph.

On the flip side though, air resistance has a smaller relative affect on a big guy like you than it does on a small guy like me. Air resistance is proportional to frontal area, but frontal area doesn't increase linearly with rider weight. So by proportion, you've actually got less air resistance for your size than a small guy does. You've probably noticed this on downhills - bigger guys usually go downhill faster, because they have proportionally less air resistance than smaller guys.

[MattTuck]

Don't under estimate the psychological aspects. If your mind is being taxed due to effects from the wind, it is going to make the riding harder. Raises the anxiety level of the whole group, as everyone is very focused on position and handling, especially a cross wind. Just makes it more fatiguing, mentally and physically.

[redir]

Yup it could be a combination of both. Certainly the wind has an affect, the psychology? Maybe.

I'm tall like that too. What I find is that it's always the smallest guy in the field who latches on to my wheel so if the break, for example, is rotating then after my pull he's up front and I got nothin' but wind

[Hindmost]

Originally Posted by Hepmike

...trying be as strategic as I can within the field- hiding (!) on the inside as much as possible.....

Wind increases the importance of bunch riding skills and decreases likelihood of successful solo efforts.

[shovelhd]

Originally Posted by Hindmost

Wind increases the importance of bunch riding skills and decreases likelihood of successful solo efforts.

Unless you use it to your advantage, i.e. attack on a downwind stretch. This has worked for me multiple times.

OP it's probably both. Stop thinking about your size and weight and focus on using your power at the right times.

[Gummee]

Originally Posted by redir

Yup it could be a combination of both. Certainly the wind has an affect, the psychology? Maybe.

I'm tall like that too. What I find is that it's always the smallest guy in the field who latches on to my wheel so if the break, for example, is rotating then after my pull he's up front and I got nothin' but wind

That'd be me when I'm racing: find the biggest son-of-a-gun in the pack and sit on his wheel.

If it's a training ride, I'll try and get the big guys together so they actually have something of a draft.

Why? 'Cause the burnout paceline at the Sandy Eggo velodrome had me sitting behind Mary H a lot. She's maybe 5'1" and tiny. Faster'n s--t, but tiny. I got no draft and the burnout burned me out fairly early

M

[Bentley]

Originally Posted by shovelhd

Unless you use it to your advantage, i.e. attack on a downwind stretch. This has worked for me multiple times.

OP it's probably both. Stop thinking about your size and weight and focus on using your power at the right times.

So this is exactly the opposite of a book or artlcle I read regarding wind. Basically, the strategy is to put a big effort "into the wind" because you can create a bigger gap, then with the wind at your back you get the benefit and can maintain the gap. Initially it seemed counter to logic, but it really makes sense since I notice that unlike hills, which are a different problem, wind is hard to deal with because its always there, until you make a turn or get a change in wind direction. I also note that cross winds are not good because if you are riding an up and back you never get the real benefit of the wind on your back.

Just my 2 cents

[Hepmike]

I found it extremely difficult to use it to my advantage for the reason that I was burning so much effort/power when I was riding into it, that I didn't have anything left for the subsequent charge that resulted when we would make the turn and have it on our backs. So I was always chasing. I got the sense that there were definitely people sitting (hiding) behind me since when I would flatline there was always a group that would attack off the back of me. That is until I was the last man at the back of the peloton, and dead.

I'd agree the psychology of it is not to be understated. The group was constantly fighting to stay compressed, so I know I wasn't the only one fighting to stay alive, even if I may have been one of the few to drop.

[Tandem Rider]

Originally Posted by Bentley

So this is exactly the opposite of a book or artlcle I read regarding wind. Basically, the strategy is to put a big effort "into the wind" because you can create a bigger gap, then with the wind at your back you get the benefit and can maintain the gap. Initially it seemed counter to logic, but it really makes sense since I notice that unlike hills, which are a different problem, wind is hard to deal with because its always there, until you make a turn or get a change in wind direction. I also note that cross winds are not good because if you are riding an up and back you never get the real benefit of the wind on your back.

Just my 2 cents

The wind is rarely directly head on or behind, almost always yawing one way or another. What this means is that an attack will be designed to accomplish a goal, meaning that a crosswind from the right means that the attack will be along the left side of the raceway, leaving only a gap big enough for the rider(s) you want with you or none at all.

In my experience, the race situation determines when to attack, wind determines how.

[MattTuck]

Jasper Stuyven in KBK 2 years ago.... that was a nice piece of riding in the wind.

[Ralph]

Originally Posted by Mark McM

Of course wind makes a big difference in racing performance. At racing speeds, over coming air resistance takes up about 85% of total power output. Adding wind on top of that increases air resistance further.

Furthermore, air resistance power increases with cube of velocity, so there it takes 8 times more power to overcome air resistance at 30 mph than it does at 15 mph.

On the flip side though, air resistance has a smaller relative affect on a big guy like you than it does on a small guy like me. Air resistance is proportional to frontal area, but frontal area doesn't increase linearly with rider weight. So by proportion, you've actually got less air resistance for your size than a small guy does. You've probably noticed this on downhills - bigger guys usually go downhill faster, because they have proportionally less air resistance than smaller guys.

I like your explanation. Been a while for me since physics classes.

[Hindmost]

Originally Posted by Hepmike

... I was burning so much effort/power... I got the sense that there were definitely people sitting (hiding) behind me...

Try doing what they were doing. Watch and learn.