Racer vs MTB?

Andrewf20

Guys, im wondering how much of a difference the 700mm racer rims make when doing a race vs my 26 inch wheels? Has anyone gone from an mtb to a racer for races? What kind of time improvements did they make?

I do duathlon's & tri's on my mtb. Ive got a good set of mtb wheels (Shimano XT's with 1.75 tyres), but im wondering how much of a disadvantage the bike is on the flat. (I know on the hills the weight of the bike is a definite handicap).

Its been on my mind a while now.

Cheers.

Raam

Andrewf20 wrote: »

Guys, im wondering how much of a difference the 700mm racer rims make when doing a race vs my 26 inch wheels? Has anyone gone from an mtb to a racer for races? What kind of time improvements did they make?

I do duathlon's & tri's on my mtb. Ive got a good set of mtb wheels (Shimano XT's with 1.75 tyres), but im wondering how much of a disadvantage the bike is on the flat. (I know on the hills the weight of the bike is a definite handicap).

Its been on my mind a while now.

Cheers.

Assuming your races are on the road, then a road bike will be much more efficient at transfering your energy into forward motion. I can't give you statistics, but take it as given that an MTB is a huge disadvantage.

Killgore Trout

Get a go of a good roadbike and take the pepsi challenge.

IMO a roadbike makes a huge difference

blorg

I would say you should be a lot faster on the road bike.

There is quite a good calculator here to get some rough idea of numbers.

Sticking with the defaults I get:

Unsuspended MTB, 1.75" offroad tire
160 watts = 26km/h, 40km = 1:32:18

Unsuspended MTB, medium-wide high pressure slick
160 watts = 27.7km/h, 40km = 1:26:39

Racing Bike, hands on the drops, narrow racing tyre
160 watts = 31.1km/h, 40km = 1:17:10

Triathlon Bicycle, narrow racing tyre
160 watts = 32.9km/h, 40km = 1:12:57

Note the riding position is likely to have a lot more of an effect than the weight of the bike.

Your suspension, assuming you have it, isn't going to be helping either (hope you have front only and can lock it out?)

Andrewf20

Its a Specialized Stumpjumper hardtail so its not too heavy. Lock out included thankfully.