The Bike Whisperer received my repaired 808 Powertap from Paligap and have fitted my new Aerojacket wheel covers. If you believe their wind tunnel data, these covers can be faster than disc wheels.
A covered wheel has dramatically lower aerodynamic drag than an uncovered wheel.
Disc cover performance is virtually identical to disc wheels through the entire range of yaw angles: 0-30 degrees.
A covered 81mm deep wheel outperformed flat disc wheels in every wind condition. The covered Zipp 808 has less drag than the fastest disc wheel tested beyond 10 degrees of yaw.
A typical 30mm training wheel with disc covers approaches the performance of a flat disc at 7.5 degrees of yaw, but exceeds performance of all disc wheels tested at wind angles greater than 12.5 degrees.
The lens-shape on a disc-cover’s non-drive side causes wind to pass around it like a wing, producing forward thrust. This effect is more pronounced on covered shallow wheels beyond 20 degrees of yaw.
I saw these twenty years ago in Mildura – all the rage among triatheletes. marketing and tech cyclees eh? I bet they do make your bike faster though. You using them in the 24? I’ll give you fifty bucks if you use them on both front and back wheels at the same time for the whole 24!
Disc wheels were around in the 1800s. Doesn’t mean they were good.
These seem a good way to save 3500 quid on a Powertap disc. They are not UCI legal though and most people prefer discs for some reason.
There’s a minimum amount of surface area you must have open on front wheel so Zipp 1080 for example, or front disc, is illegal for British rules.
Fifty bucks is fifty bucks though…
Does the UK penchant for 60’s culture mean that it’s race-legal to ride with extraneous Tupperware fitted to your bike? I assume you haven’t gone and bought it/got it fitted just for training.
3500 quid on a Zipp Disc PT… that’s pretty crazy. That’s a decent training camp somewhere with good weather. Go the Tupperware!
No idea why the rules differ. UCI change their mind about all kinds of crap. Level saddles ffs!
Decent training camp? ?3500 would buy a chateau somewhere!
I guess the advantage of that tupperware disc cover is that after a 24hr time trial, you could remove it, lay under it with you mouth attached to the hole for the hub, and have Mal pour liquid food into it. Not as steep a funnel as ideal, but it’d worth for protein shakes, sugary energy drinks, and ales.
Been to any tupperware parties lately? I’ve seen them selling the disc covers in white on ebay: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Tupperware-Covered-Lazy-Susan-Chip-Dip-Set-Vege-Snacks-Horderves-/200700408875?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item2ebaad342b