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By Guillaume Judas – Photos: @3bikes.fr
Some regions are more exposed to the whims of the wind than others, or at least more often throughout the year. Thanks to weather forecasts, however, you can know the direction and intensity of the wind, and adapt a strategy accordingly, whether for a simple ride or a competition. Wind is indeed a difficulty in itself, an invisible force that slows you down without you being able to exactly materialize it, unlike a steep climb, for example. It is also very exhilarating to feel carried by the wind, especially when the training route has been well calculated, with a favorable return that allows you to finish full of good sensations. Wind can also be very dangerous for those who do not master and do not understand its effects. Dangerous for balance first, since a strong and gusty wind can cause a cyclist to fall. Perilous also on the sporting level and your potential to achieve the expected result, since a bad placement at the wrong time can ruin everything in competition, while poor effort management during training can drain you as much as a succession of several mountain passes.
Why it’s hard
When a weather report indicates wind speed (in km/h), it is taken at 10 meters above the ground. A cyclist can halve the actual effect of headwind on their progress. If the wind blows at 40 km/h according to Météo France, you actually feel it at 20 km/h at human height. This is enough to considerably limit progress if it blows from the front.
With a classic position with hands on the brake levers, you already need to produce 14 more watts to maintain a speed of 30 km/h to fight against a 10 km/h wind compared to the same effort without wind. Then 57 more watts if the wind blows at 20 km/h, or 129 watts at 30 km/h, 229 watts at 40 km/h, and 357 watts at 50 km/h. For some people, this is more than double the power they are capable of holding for only a few minutes, if they try to maintain that 30 km/h speed. They are then forced to slow down, or to expend much more energy.
Depending on the position adopted on the bike, between hands on top of the handlebars and a time trial position with hands on the extensions, the air penetration coefficient goes from approximately 0.43 to 0.25. In other words, you save 30 watts at 30 km/h in this configuration if there is no wind. Additional wind will also slow you down, but you can limit its consequences (255 watts “only” with a 50 km/h wind, compared to 357 in the previous example). Hence the interest of adopting the most aero position possible to ride faster and/or save energy.
The athlete’s raw power is crucial to fight against the wind, provided that the position on the bike is correct.
Unlike climbs where the power-to-weight ratio is essential for performance, here the power-to-penetration coefficient ratio is preponderant. The athlete’s raw power is therefore decisive in this case to fight against the wind, provided that the position on the bike is correct. This explains why light athletes are often disadvantaged against the wind (because they have less absolute power than heavy athletes).
Limiting the effects of wind
The other solution to fight against the wind is, of course, to ride in a group. Because by adopting the relay technique, it is possible to ride faster by breaking up the effort. When you are in the wheels, you save 20 to 30% of energy depending on your position in the group thanks to the protection offered by the preceding cyclists. The idea is that everyone leads the group in turn, with a relay duration that depends on the speed and power of the wind to be faced. Within a compact peloton, energy savings can even reach 50%. Protecting yourself from the wind in this way to then make the decisive effort at the right moment is part of the strategies deployed to win a cycling race. Conversely, it is irrelevant for time trial events or for triathlons where drafting is not allowed. In this case, you have to fight alone against the elements: some call this “the effort of truth”. A solo time trial is just something different from a peloton cycling race.
The relay technique A small, well-organized group consists of a rider who makes the effort at the front, then moves aside after a few tens of meters, easing off the pedals. They then rejoin the slipstream of the last rider in the group. The next rider makes the same effort, and so on. The faster you ride, the shorter the relays should be. When dropping back, you must remain vigilant to fall back into the last wheel of the line, thus avoiding an additional effort. For better group cohesion and to avoid jerks, the strongest riders in the group maintain the same speed, but by taking longer relays. The weaker ones simply pass and move aside quickly, without, however, letting the speed drop. We are talking about headwind here, but the principle is the same with tailwind (also a difficult exercise given the speeds reached and the air resistance to overcome, which is proportional to the speed). |
In training, with a little practice and self-knowledge, the wind is managed by integrating it into the difficulty of the chosen route and by relativizing its unfavorable or non-unfavorable effects. You can choose to start into a headwind and calculate to finish your loop with a tailwind, so as to integrate fatigue into the equation. Or to take wooded or sunken sections rather than exposed ones. The solution of riding in a group is of course always valid, but only if you agree in this case to do your part of the work by taking relays. Otherwise, you might not benefit as much as your riding companions from the outing, and at worst, you might annoy them.
A natural selection
During an event, regardless of the level, the wind can be far more devastating than a succession of climbs. The higher the average speed of the event, the more decisive a role the wind plays. But often, the power of the cyclists involved goes hand in hand with the overall average of the event. In short, knowing how to move within a peloton on windy days is learned more or less young, depending on whether you have been exposed to this kind of difficulty from your first rides. Young Belgians or Dutch learn very early how to organize themselves against the wind. It’s a matter of culture. The higher the level of the race, the greater the number of competitors who know how to position themselves and organize themselves in relation to the wind. The goal of the game is, of course, not necessarily to all arrive together under the banner. Almost all means are therefore allowed to try to break up the peloton.
To stay in the game, wind strength and direction should always be among your main concerns before the start.
To stay in the game, wind strength and direction should always be among your main concerns before the start. In a road race, it is imperative to locate the course on a map, as well as the wind direction. You must memorize or note the places where the main changes of direction will occur. A small plaster stuck on the stem with the main indications can prove to be a valuable ally. If the main idea is to stay sheltered as long as possible, you will have to proceed quite differently as you approach the main changes of direction. The larger the peloton, the more necessary it is to be able to position yourself in the first positions before turning, in order to be able to choose the best way to approach the difficulty. A technical difficulty that always occurs when the wind blows from the side.
Knowing how to position yourself If you are really strong, it is always possible to move back up by making an extra effort at the bottom of a hill. But most of the time, this is not enough on the flat when the peloton breaks up. You must therefore scout the course before the start, judge the wind direction, and always move up to the front positions before a change of direction. In cyclosportive pelotons, making the effort by taking a little wind to move up is largely sufficient. These efforts are not free, as they will be capitalized on by being part of the right echelon. The higher the level of the events or competitions, the greater the number of participants wanting to attempt the same operation. And it’s worse among pros since the advent of earpieces, as riders are directly guided by the sports director who warns them of every change in the race’s physiognomy. In other words, we quickly witness a scramble to try to gain places within the peloton. This is what is called rubbing shoulders, elbowing, feeling the right wave, not getting boxed in, just like when approaching a sprint. Some are experts in this art of balancing and “get out of my way”, even if bad moves are ultimately rare. You don’t move easily in a peloton when you have apprehensions, feel boxed in, and fear falling. For those who want to make a place for themselves in the middle of the peloton, there are a few rules to follow: |
The famous echelons
With a crosswind, three-quarters headwind, or three-quarters tailwind, the relay principle is the same as with a headwind, except that each rider shifts slightly from the one in front to protect themselves. You only have to observe migratory birds to notice their organization. But if in the sky, the width of what is called the “fan” can be infinite depending on the number of birds, on the road it is quite different since it is limited in width. If the lead rider positions themselves on one side of the road, the number of sheltered riders will therefore be limited, since each one will be offset from the other.
The unsheltered riders find themselves in single file in what is called the “echelon”. This single file is not of great help in terms of shelter behind the preceding rider, since the wind comes from the side. As a road is rarely completely straight, and the wind can blow in gusts, thus adding to the instability of the situation, and accelerations are frequent, an inevitable “elastic” effect occurs in the echelon for those who are far from the lead echelon. Breakaways are therefore inevitable if the speed is high at the front of the group and the riders in the echelon take turns. Unless they organize themselves very quickly by creating a second echelon, to maintain visual contact with the lead riders, until the course changes its physiognomy.
An inevitable elastic effect occurs in the echelon for those who are far from the lead echelon.
Even within an echelon, or this single file, some places are a little more desirable than others. It is enough to be placed just behind a clumsy but strong rider, if possible, who rides slightly offset from the single file itself very close to the edge of the road, to benefit from a very slight additional shelter. It is often observed, moreover, that one in two riders within this single file is very slightly offset, simply because there is no more room on the side, and because it is necessary to look at what is happening ahead. The art of the specialist will therefore consist in always placing themselves in this perilous situation behind a rider who is themselves slightly offset, even if it means voluntarily losing a few places to find the right one.
The double echelon To go even faster, the lead echelon can organize itself into a “double echelon”. This is actually the most common case. It consists of a line of offset riders who move up to take turns at the front and face the wind, and another line of also offset riders who have just taken their turn. This is called “rotating”, as everyone changes places very quickly within the double echelon. This kind of organization can prove to be very fast depending on the circumstances, as the goal is, of course, to break up the peloton, and thus to put the riders in the echelon in even more difficulty. |
There are many variations to this situation, depending on the wind direction, the stage of the race, or the riders present or not at the front. The riders in the echelon may, for example, consider themselves too numerous, and wish to eliminate some undesirables. They simply need to tighten their order of march, in order to put more riders in difficulty behind. This can also be the case for a very well-organized team, perfectly familiar with the terrain, which launches “a move” by accelerating all the riders together near a change of direction. The damage is often significant because no lead rider questions it.
Moreover, contrary to the generally accepted idea that you save energy by staying in the wheels, you always have every interest in collaborating in an echelon. On the one hand, so as not to disorganize it if you are lucky enough to have joined it, and on the other hand, so as not to be one of those undesirables that the other riders will try to put back into the echelon at the first opportunity. Of course, you must always remain vigilant, even within the echelon, because in the event of a new change of direction, if the road suddenly becomes narrower, there is no longer room for everyone! This is why some echelons dwindle over the kilometers.
A real challenge
It is rare to witness such feats of arms during a sportive or in amateur departmental races. The number of experienced cyclists is too small in such cases to truly play with the elements. However, it can be very important to draw inspiration from these situations, if only to take your place within the right group. The one that will allow you to gain several tens of minutes on a reference time. What must be remembered is that the analysis of heart rate curves in a race when the wind plays an important role shows a physiological demand equivalent to medium mountains. It is impossible to hide. These few explanations on good organization with and against the wind can be enough to better understand this type of event. Not being caught off guard and knowing why the wind is so important in the outcome of an event is already an undeniable advantage.
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