Road Bike With Aero Bars For Ironman
It really depends on your strengths as a cyclist and the depth of your pockets.
Road bike with aero bars for ironman. In triathlon they use aero bars as they lean forward and more pressure build up on the rather sensitive areas such as the groin and perineal area. Rick just completed ironman wales on a road bike with clip on aero bars and had no problems. However there is so much you can do to your road bike to get similar benefits you d. All aero bars pads are 60 mm and are placed 15 mm forward which puts you in the centerline of your bike.
If you are looking to buy a bike for ironman wales and this bike will be your only bike for training and racing then consider an aero road bike. It has a short nose which the main purpose is to avoid numbness and discomfort. Adding clip on aero bars can get you into a similar position to that of a tt bike but you also have more hand hold options for climbing and descending. You can definitely do an ironman on a road bike.
Maybe leading to more next year and potentially a full ironman. There was a good mix of both types of bikes on the day. Because of the geometry and the position a tt bike is more difficult to handle than a road bike. Bike handling skills.
I passed a lot of cervelo p3s and aero helmets on my road bike a trek emonda i d equipped with aero bars. These aero bars are cheaper than the ergo supersonic aero bars. Mainly olympic distance in the uk and the budapest half ironman this year. Instead of focusing on what bike to ride consider switching to tighter fitting clothes aero helmet and clip on aero bars for more significant time savings at the least cost.
Current thinking has been towards an aero road bike was thinking specialized venge but now eyeing up a canyon aeroad. There are pros and cons of both. The triathlon or tt time trial saddle is different from the standard road bike saddles. Aero bars sometimes called clip on aerobars triathlon aero bars or tri bars are handlebar extensions that mount close to the center of the handlebar and cantilever out over the front wheel.
I would definitely recommend aero bars and getting fitted for a more aero set up at the very least though. As the name suggests they allow you to get into a more aerodynamic position by lowering your upper body and bringing your arms in line with your torso. Each of the aero bars comes with five sets of adjustment holes instead of three so it can easily fit more bikes. There may also be some trips to the alps.
The major advantage of the tri bike is the geometry where the seat tube angle brings your hips forward to open the hip angles to allow you to get the same power in that position.