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ironman

Tri Talk

Keith Kibler

Iron Man. Just the phrase is enough to make anyone weak kneed.

DRAFTING
What do geese, NASCAR drivers and triathletes all have in Common? Easy, we
all know the benefits of drafting. Think about it. All those flying 'V's of
geese, the sling shot around the last corner for the checkered flag, all
count on the fact that we can go faster when someone else cuts through the
wind with us or for us.

At first drafting on a road bike is very unnerving. To get a benefit, you
need to be moving around 20 mph. at a minimum. You need to be within 8" to
12" from the bike in front of you. You simply must be a smooth biker and
know how to ride in a straight line. You must communicate with others around
you and all of you must trust each other.

When it works right, drafting is sweet. Really sweet. Once you tuck in, you

can physically feel your self being pulled along. With less effort your
speed increases 3-5 mph. You can rest every once in a while. It is
wonderful.

However, if things go wrong, it can be disastrous.

A few years ago I had such an experience in a draft line. It was the second
hard 30 miler in two days. We were pulling for all we were worth. The rider
two bikes ahead of me called back to the rider ahead of me and asked him to
count the number of gears in his rear cassette. I should have had red flags
go off in my head. I was tired and didn't pull off. My friend did pull off
without warning me. Our tires hit. Then they hit twice more. I was riding
with my hands on the brake hoods and did not get to the brakes. I launched
out in to the middle of Highway 13 and rolled through a flip in the air. The
fall broke my helmet and knocked me out. I came to staring into a blue sky
while one of my buddies was trying to pull me off the highway by one arm. I
can still hear him say "I think we killed Keith". They hadn't, but they had
given me a good war story.

Drafting is taboo for most of his tri folks. It is outlawed generally with
most of the rules stating that you are given a warning and a time penalty
the first time and disqualified the second time. It is legal in many races
in Europe and Australia. A strange thing happened. The U.S. Olympic
Committee made it legal for the Olympics. Why do you think they did that?

I think it was because one lone biker is boring on T.V. Two or more working
with and against each other has both beauty and is interesting.

Do you see my point here? We need each other in all kinds of ways on all
kinds of levels.

Think about it. As loners, we are pretty boring.

P.S.

It is time to sign up on line for Ragbrai. Go to Ragbrai.org and sign up.
The bike club that many of us in the River To River Runners Club belong to
in Iowa has openings. The Ride costs about $ 100. The cost is about $ 130 to
the have that club haul you to the starting line on the Nebraska border and
then haul your camping gear each day and find you a campsite. Email me at if
you have questions. We already have about 10 of us runner types going. Come
along with us, you wont regret it.

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