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Is there any simple facts and figures on this subject for the laymen?
I know my times and speeds are down this time of year.
Is this cycling specific or more, ahem, general performance issues?
Cycling sir, road to be specific.
I'm (more) shite when it's hot. Cold isn't an issue generally*, though mud/snow/ice are often around at the same time as cold.
(I don't like air that's below zero, mind - from a windchill point of view. A sore, or numb, face would slow me down)
I feel, having an age not far from you, that I can say; the years have played a much bigger factor than anything else on my performance. But clearly this cold spell has been responsible for my times current 'performance'!
Never seen anything scientific to prove it. Switching to my winter bike and putting on tights and other warm clothes certainly seems to slow me down. Maybe 1-2mph over an 80mile loop.
I assume it's down to my winter bike being much heavier, tights providing resistance compared to shorts andextra layers on the top creating drag. That an a large physcological effect.
On the club run everybody else seems to change proportionally as well. It's not like I've dropped down the "standings" so to speak, everybody else is proportionally slower too.
I posted something similar the other week
http://www.singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/how-much-difference-does-temperature-make-to-performance
Overheating is normally a massive limiting factor to me so cold weather actually improves my stamina. But getting the right number/type of layers is key otherwise sweat lingers and it all goes wrong 😡
Falling off on black ice today slowed me down!
I find I feel better after the ol' tubes get cleared out in the first 10 mins or so and speed then seems to be ok, but I'm only out for an hour so not covering loads of miles.
I've noticed that, as I get older, I seem to need more time to "warm up". Once going, I'm not really aware of any difference. However, as jonb says, clothing and bike/tyre choice also come into it.
I used to go riding on the road with an ex TdF pro round these parts. He was studying sports science at the time and he was riding with just a windstopper top and tights with no gloves or hat/helmet in around -10 degs. I asked him what the hell he thought he was doing and he told me that the body uses more energy to keep itself warm than it does actually turning the pedals and hence was an excellent way of losing weight.
My joints feel horrible in the cold.
Weight loss through amputation due to frostbite is cheating in my book, the sort of thing I'd expect from Johny Foreigner.
everyone knows......ex pro's are not right in the head.. 🙂 the cold slaughters me, but I'm old.
Cold air is denser than warm air and therefore has more mass.
So you have to push more of it out of the way - sorted 🙂