2010 Kilo Comparison at Kissena Track

Today 10/2/2010 I did a Kilo to see what happens if I go out faster in the acceleration phase. I then compared it with the one I did on 8/28/2010 to see how the pacing compared. The major equipment changes are noted in red below. Also the weather differences are noted in blue. Kilo #1 was done on a hot and humid day, the air is less dense on a hot and humid day, therefore you go faster as a opposed to a cold and less humid day as was the case for Kilo #2. It is very difficult to duplicate efforts, there are too many variables involved on any given day, but at least I was able to confirm what my pacing and gear selection should be in order to get closer to my target time. It gives me something to plan/program for and work towards over the winter.

Kilo #1: 
Time - 1:20.59
Gear - 48x14 = 92"
Avg speed = 27.8 mph
Avg cadence = 103 rpm


Equipment:
Tiemeyer bike
Aero bars
Karbona rear disk wheel

Mavic ellipse spoked front wheel

Long sleeve skin suit
Casco helmet
Gloves
Shoe covers

Weather:

Temp - 83F

Humidity - 63%

Wind - 5 mph

Pressure - 30.18

Sunny

Kilo #2: 
Time - 1.21.99
Gear 50x14 = 96"
Avg speed = 27.6 mph
Avg cadence = 98 rpm


Equipment:
Tiemeyer bike
Drop bars
Karbona rear disk wheel
Cane creek sprint 85 spoked front wheel
Long sleeve skin suit
Casco helmet
Gloves
Shoe covers

Weather:

Temp - 65F

Humidity - 39%

Wind - 6 mph

Pressure - 29.93

Sunny

Note the 200 meter split times in green above for Kilo 2:
000 -  200m = 18.96 sec = 23.7 mph avg = 84 rpm avg
200 -  400m = 14.44 sec = 31.1 mph avg = 110 rpm avg
400 -  600m = 15.00 sec = 29.8 mph avg = 106 rpm avg
600 -  800m = 16.12 sec = 27.8 mph avg = 99 rpm avg
800 - 1000m = 17.47 sec = 25.6 mph avg = 91 rpm avg

400 meter track:
Lap 1 - 33.40 seconds
Lap 2 - 31.12 seconds

Kilo #1 & Kilo #2 speed comparison = 1.4 seconds difference: 

Kilo #1 (Blue line) with Kilo #2 (Magenta line). As you can see I went out too hard in Kilo #2 (magenta line) and faded badly from the 500 meter mark. In Kilo #1 (blue line) I went out slower and started fading later at 600 meters. This resulted in a faster time. One big difference was I used the aero bars in Kilo #1 and drop bars in Kilo #2. The drop bars enable a very powerful start which resulted in faster acceleration but drop bars do not put you in an aero position, so I probably lost one second for not using aero bars. Next I will have to experiment by going out slower and trying to maintain a constant speed through out the Kilo effort - probably maintaining a speed of 30 mph from the 200 meter mark to the finish would yield a faster time overall. A Kilo like the Pursuit is a delicate balance between aerodynamics, equipment, pacing and fitness. I am still trying to get the balance right. I think the 96 gear is too big for Kissena track, I would need to use a 92 or 94 and work on my leg speed to spin these gears to maintain an average cadence range of about 110 rpms.