Is drafting cheating

Technically no but if you fail to take your turn pulling it is considered bad form. Especially if you are doing it with the intention of jumping out at the last second to win.

jhuskey said:

Technically no but if you fail to take your turn pulling it is considered bad form. Especially if you are doing it with the intention of jumping out at the last second to win.

so without the crutch of drafting speed and distance are reduced...sounds like a false sense of physical fitness and ability

Depends on which discipline it is.
In solo time trial and triathlon, drafting is not allowed.
In regular road riding, drafting is allowed, and part of the tactics.

dabac said:

Depends on which discipline it is.
In solo time trial and triathlon, drafting is not allowed.
In regular road riding, drafting is allowed, and part of the tactics.

dabac said:

Depends on which discipline it is.
In solo time trial and triathlon, drafting is not allowed.
In regular road riding, drafting is allowed, and part of the tactics.

I do time trials and triathlons….and I get irritated by the road riders bragging about their speed and distances they claim to do when I know they couldn't do it honestly on their own without the help that is drafting

rob nol said:

I do time trials and triathlons….and I get irritated by the road riders bragging about their speed and distances they claim to do when I know they couldn't do it honestly on their own without the help that is drafting

Why are you so anti drafting? Its a skill that enables cyclist to travel faster and work as a team. I ride mostly solo and aren't particularly good at drafting, but I respect those who are good at it. Personally, I like to either be at the back or in the front while riding with others. The middle of the pack can get dicey.

Edit: I can easily say the same thing about solo riding (trip/time trial). "I hate when people brag about speed when using aero bars and disk wheels, it gives them 5 free mph over us road riders"

Uawadall said:

Why are you so anti drafting? Its a skill that enables cyclist to travel faster and work as a team. I ride mostly solo and aren't particularly good at drafting, but I respect those who are good at it. Personally, I like to either be at the back or in the front while riding with others. The middle of the pack can get dicey.

Edit: I can easily say the same thing about solo riding (trip/time trial). "I hate when people brag about speed when using aero bars and disk wheels, it gives them 5 free mph over us road riders"

im not anti drafting just the attitude some riders have thinking they super fast and fit but when u remove the draft they are not any fast at all or not for very long...im a purist one mans abilities should be the result of one mans effort and not from the help from another

rob nol said:

im not anti drafting just the attitude some riders have thinking they super fast and fit but when u remove the draft they are not any fast at all or not for very long...im a purist one mans abilities should be the result of one mans effort and not from the help from another

Am I wrong about a TT/Tri setup adding 3-5 mph compared to a road bike setup? Isn't your stance a bit hypocritical?

Uawadall said:

Am I wrong about a TT/Tri setup adding 3-5 mph compared to a road bike setup? Isn't your stance a bit hypocritical?

3-5 yeah right ….those are some seriously magical disc wheels ive never had a disc wheel do that for me...optimum aero dynamics is what all bike riders long for it just tt bikes allow for maximum aero as opposed to the upright wind grabber that is ur average road riders position

rob nol said:

3-5 yeah right ….those are some seriously magical disc wheels ive never had a disc wheel do that for me...optimum aero dynamics is what all bike riders long for it just tt bikes allow for maximum aero as opposed to the upright wind grabber that is ur average road riders position

Yes, 3-5, I know many people who TT competitively that can average ridiculous speeds on a TT bike. Were taking about 26 and 28mph solo on a TT bike for 15 miles. On a road bike, very strong riders, but maybe 23 and 24 efforts on a normal setup. I don't believe i'm exaggerating.

Uawadall said:

Yes, 3-5, I know many people who TT competitively that can average ridiculous speeds on a TT bike. Were taking about 26 and 28mph solo on a TT bike for 15 miles. On a road bike, very strong riders, but maybe 23 and 24 efforts on a normal setup. I don't believe i'm exaggerating.

Try doing over 100 miles then run 26.2 miles its not the bike that does it its the rider....The use of superior equipment only makes a person faster.... the result of one mans ability and effort.... and not from the assistance of drafting somebody

rob nol said:

Try doing over 100 miles then run 26.2 miles its not the bike that does it its the rider....The use of superior equipment only makes a person faster.... the result of one mans ability and effort.... and not from the assistance of drafting somebody

I neve questioned a TT rider or Tri sport athletes ability. I'm questioning your premise when it comes to speed, theirs nothing wrong with a rider using to their advantage things that will make them go faster.

I don't ride for fitness, I simply ride because I enjoy it. I have a friend who did a full Iron last year and was quite impressed with his effort. Its something I don't think I could or would want to ever do. That kind of training would most likely make me enjoy riding less. I'm pretty decent at running, but not for long distances. I can take 6 months to a year off (while still riding) and average a 6:30-6:50 mile for a 5k. Running simply feels like work to me though. Besides that, swimming competitively with other riders was never something i'd want to do for various reasons.

Solo or in a group, a rider has to pedal.

Uawadall said:

I neve questioned a TT rider or Tri sport athletes ability. I'm questioning your premise when it comes to speed, theirs nothing wrong with a rider using to their advantage things that will make them go faster.

I don't ride for fitness, I simply ride because I enjoy it. I have a friend who did a full Iron last year and was quite impressed with his effort. Its something I don't think I could or would want to ever do. That kind of training would most likely make me enjoy riding less. I'm pretty decent at running, but not for long distances. I can take 6 months to a year off (while still riding) and average a 6:30-6:50 mile for a 5k. Running simply feels like work to me though. Besides that, swimming competitively with other riders was never something i'd want to do for various reasons.

Solo or in a group, a rider has to pedal.

I believe we were talking about how drafting makes slow riders faster and their efforts easier

rob nol said:

I believe we were talking about how drafting makes slow riders faster and their efforts easier

We were, it turned into something else. Just wanted to make it clear that I'm not downplaying TT and multi sport athletes.

My comparison was as simple as, Full blown TT bikes make riders faster by a great deal.

I think that when it comes to professional cycling, I probably wouldn’t consider drafting to be cheating. I mean I wouldn’t consider drafting to be cheating when it comes to motorsports either, so I wouldn’t consider it when it comes to cycling.

That being said, in a normal road cycling scenario, if you draft me I’m probably going to end up brake checking you. I believe there actually was a thread on here a while ago which talked about random strangers annoyingly drafting you on the road. I value my personal space and I’d rather not have some try-hard tailing me and ruining my joyride/training.

I think it's skills and team effort. Drafting helps the cyclist to gain their energy again by chasing and being close the the cyclist or team mates in front of them.

Uawadall said:

Am I wrong about a TT/Tri setup adding 3-5 mph compared to a road bike setup? Isn't your stance a bit hypocritical?

3_5watts of power maybe

I'm the drafter, my wife is the draftee. It's a perfect way to ride if one rider is stronger than another. In my youth (I'm 69) I was the draftee. My riding partner was a US Olympic Team member, so I drafted to ride with him. Of course, there were no speed or distance computers - just watches and maps.

Technically no but depends on which discipline it is.

Drafting is what makes pro cycling a team sport. Because of drafting, there is a lot more strategy involved. I would argue that drafting makes professional cycling a lot more interesting than if it wasn't allowed. If there was no drafting, then every day of the tour would be like an individual time trial. Boring! But I'd like to see more individual time trials up to mountain passes, in the tours.