Attack/drafting question

The teammates (or domestiques) aren't bringing the breakaway back, they are taking the peleton up to the breakaway by increasing the speed at the front of the peleton. All the others must match the increased speed or be "dropped". Being drafted does not slow the rider in front noticeably.

Actually, there's a theory that the lead rider can go faster if he's being drafted. It has to do with the presence of second rider affecting the air flow behind the first rider so there's less of a pressure difference across the first rider.

I haven't read that they've managed to measure the effect though, so it could be bs.

Thanks for the help

They can also bridge to the breakaway and refuse to work, discouraging the breakaway from dragging freeloaders, or making themselves available to help the leader when he bridges (as Johann Van Summeren was to do for Thor Hushovd at Paris-Roubaix), or they can disrupt the flow of the break and cause it to fail.

If the NASCAR model is viable then the trailing rider only needs to push the front rider and they both benefit from the lowered resistance on the trailing rider. Illegal far as I know... I have seen guys slingshot riders with handshakes or bottle handoffs - not sure if that is legal or not.

Riders can push or pull each other along. Grabbing a tow from a rider who doesn't want to give one is not OK, though.

On long fast descents riders do slingshot from one another's slipstreams for an overall net gain in speed.

rxter said:

If the NASCAR model is viable then the trailing rider only needs to push the front rider and they both benefit from the lowered resistance on the trailing rider. Illegal far as I know... I have seen guys slingshot riders with handshakes or bottle handoffs - not sure if that is legal or not.

Yea if ur going 200mph does that apply

Aero guru Chet Kyle has this to say on the topic:

We measured this in the General Motors Wind Tunnel in 1996, and on the track using the SRM crank dynamometers. The lead rider in a 4-man pace line uses about 2 to 3 percent less energy than they would if riding solo.The next in line needs about 71 percent of the lead rider’s power, and the third and fourth riders about 65 percent. See “Racing cyclist power requirements in the 4000-m individual and team pursuits”, Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, v31, no.11, pp 1677-1685, 1999. J.P. Broker, C.R. Kyle and E.R. Burke.

they are taking the peleton up to the breakaway by increasing the speed at the front of the peleton. All the others must match the increased speed or be "dropped".