How far back you can be to still get a tow?

General cycling advice ( NOT technical ! )
LittleGreyCat
Posts: 1177
Joined: 7 Aug 2013, 8:31pm

Re: How far back you can be to still get a tow?

Post by LittleGreyCat »

Noting that in a strong cross wind all bets are off!

Also, you can't take up the whole road in a diagonal line like the pros do when you are out for a group ride.
mattheus
Posts: 5044
Joined: 29 Dec 2008, 12:57pm
Location: Western Europe

Re: How far back you can be to still get a tow?

Post by mattheus »

Audax67 wrote: 1 Oct 2021, 8:28am According to the report of a study I read ~20 years ago, the rider in front benefits from draughting as well: the turbulence that would normally hold him back moves to the back of the "bubble", so that the leading rider gets less drag and the back one less frontal resistance.
I believe that is the red line in CyberKnight's graph!
mattheus
Posts: 5044
Joined: 29 Dec 2008, 12:57pm
Location: Western Europe

Re: How far back you can be to still get a tow?

Post by mattheus »

Stradageek wrote: 1 Oct 2021, 8:46am This was OK until we hit a slight rise and my brother decided to get out of the saddle. His bike slowed so rapidly that we instantly had half a wheels overlap, I can see why pro cyclist have so many accidents :( and I now always slipstream a little further back and to the side.
There is a knack to standing up without throwing your bike backwards like that.

It's bad manners/technique to do it the "wrong" way in company. Unfortunately the wrong way is also the most instinctive/easy way!

(It's still a good habit to draft slightly to the side, cos you never know who is going to do this and when. Plus the wind is usually a slight cross-wind ...)
User avatar
andrew_s
Posts: 5795
Joined: 7 Jan 2007, 9:29pm
Location: Gloucestershire

Re: How far back you can be to still get a tow?

Post by andrew_s »

mattheus wrote: 6 Oct 2021, 3:52pm
Stradageek wrote: 1 Oct 2021, 8:46am This was OK until we hit a slight rise and my brother decided to get out of the saddle. His bike slowed so rapidly that we instantly had half a wheels overlap, I can see why pro cyclist have so many accidents :( and I now always slipstream a little further back and to the side.
There is a knack to standing up without throwing your bike backwards like that.

It's bad manners/technique to do it the "wrong" way in company. Unfortunately the wrong way is also the most instinctive/easy way!

(It's still a good habit to draft slightly to the side, cos you never know who is going to do this and when. Plus the wind is usually a slight cross-wind ...)
The bike and rider as a whole don't change speed at all - what happens is that as the rider changes position, the position of the rear wheel relative to the centre of mass is changed. It's the reverse of a bike throw at the finish line.
To minimise the reverse throw, you've got to remain over the back of the bike when you get out of the saddle. If you move forward over the handlebars, all you can do to help the rider behind is to change position more slowly.
Post Reply