Victor Campenaerts reveals gearing options for Hour Record attempt
This is how the Belgian’s gearing will compare to that of Sir Bradley Wiggins
Victor Campenaerts has revealed the gearing options for his Hour Record attempt next week.
The Belgian time trial specialist is looking to beat the current record of 54.526km , set by Sir Bradley Wiggins in 2015.
Campenaerts has been documenting his preparation in a diary for his Lotto-Soudal team, with the latest instalment delving into the technical elements.
He is considering four possible gearing options for the attempt in Mexico, set for either Tuesday, April 16 or Wednesday, April 17.
Aerobar has been formed based on a mould of Campenaerts’s forearms
The gearings Campenaerts is looking at are 59×14, 60×14, 61×14 or 63×15 , which are huge gears to be turning for 60 minutes.
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But each selection comes with its advantages and limitations, as Campenaerts explains: “With the 59×14 and 63×15, I would have to maintain a cadence of 104 and as I am a road cyclist by nature, that turned out too high for me.
“So the 61 or 60×14 remained, being 100 to 102 revolutions per minute.
“That doesn’t seem like a bike difference, but it is.”
By contrast Wiggins used a 58×14 for his attempt, which meant he had to told a cadence of 104 over the hour.
This is the highest cadence of any modern Hour Record attempts, which Campenaerts says the Brit was capable of thanks to his track background.
As dates for the attempt approach, Campenaerts and his team are focusing on the smaller details alongside his physical preparation.
Communicating lap times is one of the practicalities that needs to be solved, as Campenaerts used earphones during preparation but these are banned in the actual attempt.
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Instead the team will be using a tablet placed around the track to let Campenaerts know his time.
Campenaerts added: “A final important part is keeping the right line.
“After thousands of laps on the track in Aguascalientes, I’ve become quite familiar with it so that’s fine.
“The coming days I will get into recuperation mode, all based on physical and mental rest, the final training stimuli and the right intake of carbohydrates.”