jonathanf2

I'm about 5'7", 150 lbs. and I'm curious for those who aren't gifted with height, do you ever feel like you're at a disadvantage riding with taller cyclists? Whenever I ride with taller cyclist (that have decent fitness) I notice several bio-mechanical advantages. In order to match their pace, I have to ride at a higher cadence and/or rely on my out of saddle strength. On top of that I read taller cyclists tend to have higher lung capacity. If we were cars, I feel like I'm a smaller 4-cylinder block utilizing higher RPMs just to match a big block car at lower RPMs. I might get the jump on the short term, but let's say on hill repeat climbs, I might be at a disadvantage exerting myself more than usual.

Anyways, I'm curious for those who are on the shorter size what are some aspects that you train in to maximize your physical potential? I know I can weight cut and increase my power-to-weight ratio, but being in my mid-40s I'm not sure dropping down another 20-30 lbs. would be exactly healthy. Plus I'd be sacrificing possible bone density and I've seen too many scrawny cyclists fall and break bones like brittle toffy. I've also been training to keep myself seated and spin at high cadences for longer periods of time. I also try to add in polymetric exercises, HIIT and weights.

I'm not training for any event or race, but sometimes I see these tall, skeletal looking cyclists and I get the urge to ride up next to them and attempt to drop them either on a sprint or hill climb. I know it's a bit adolescent, but this kind of competitive mentality keeps me motivated to push forward. Any advice from my shorter brethren on two wheels would be greatly appreciated!

MinnMan

On the flats, where speed is pure watts, a larger rider may have advantages. On the other hand, a smaller rider catches less wind, so there is some aerodynamic advantage.
In climbing, it's watts/kg and a smaller rider may be better off. Just look at all the great climbers on the world tour who are tiny. But that's weight, not height.

jonathanf2

I always like meeting other cyclists who can drop me badly, because I can learn from them especially when watching their technique from behind. Unfortunately the fastest cyclists I tend to meet are always taller than me and if I do meet a shorter cyclist they're usually ultra skinny young guys who are blessed with a youthful metabolism! Though in general, I just don't see that many smaller guys. Is it even possible to be a short all-arounder?

MinnMan

Height is likely not the chief issue here.

spelger

I'm only 5'6" and I don't feel like anything is holding me back. In fact this year I feel stronger than ever.

RCMoeur 

As a lifetime member of the Compact-American community, this thread did catch my eye.

Back when I raced mumblesomething years ago, I could climb strongly, but wasn't much of a threat in a bunch sprint. Of course, I only weighed 125 then and had low body fat - life has been good to me since but not good to my riding weight. I could descend like a maniac, though, and there it seemed like a wash - I had an aerodynamic advantage, but the bigger guys had a mass and momentum advantage. While racing, I could usually catch a decent draft off nearly anyone, with two exceptions - very short racers (small junior women, etc.) or really tall racers. I remember trying to draft Jim Elliott in a road race (he rode a 70 cm frame), and the wind flowing under him was nearly as bad as no draft at all.

These days, I see no great disadvantage to a lower-altitude cycling life. Frames now come in a much wider range of sizes, quality tires for smaller wheels are plentiful, and I've discovered I can spin anything from a 165 to a 175 crank comfortably. Any problems I have these days are probably due more to lung deterioration (scarring from my youth that is now having an effect), lack of training, and added mass than anything to do with height.

zandoval 

My friends wife is just at 4'-11" tall. She is a competitive runner even at 56 years old. All in all she has to take many more steps on a run then her competitors.

She does have a road bike with 700c wheels. She calls it her Great Equalizer!

terrymorse 

Marco Pantani was 5’7”

PeteHski

Also Remco Evenepoel.

Edit: ….and Tom Pidcock.

PeteHski

What size wheels are you using?

Trakhak

And Nairo Quintana is 5' 6".

RCMoeur 

Almost all my wheels are 26" / 559.

Speedskater

A smaller cyclist riding behind a larger cyclist has an advantage.
A larger cyclist riding behind a smaller cyclist has an disadvantage.

downtube42

Wow, as a 6'3" 200lb cyclist, I look at 5'7" guys with envy

Maybe my long lungs mean more potential watts, which was positive when I lived in flat Indiana and windy west Texas.

But watts/kg are what matter when there is terrain. OP in LA seems surrounded by terrain favorable to smaller riders. Head out to the hills and drop the clydes!

Iride01 

There are more than a few pro cyclist's with less height that are some of the best climbers and have won tours and grand tours. Don't think height is any excuse for you doing well or not doing well.

As for pacing behind a smaller cyclist. It's still way much better than no cyclist at all in front. The difference for me between larger or smaller in front has not been that many watts to be worried about anything. Maybe if it was competition with big prize money.

Climbing will take more watts for taller people that weigh more. The average shorter person should weigh less and not have to generate as much wattage to at least tie for that climb if not best everyone else. So just do what everyone else does to increase their power output and their ability to sustain their efforts at high power. Don't worry too much about height.

RChung

Going faster on a bike is about more power, less drag, and smarter tactics. You're probably not going to outpower larger cyclists, but you can have lower drag and ride smarter.

Caleb Ewan is 5'6".

Jughed

Most of the classics riders are big powerful guys. Wout, MVP - 6’3, 175# types, they have more drag, but a better power to drag ratio than the little GC type guys.

Very few of the smaller GC guys can keep up on the flat stages or TT’s. Some of the freaks of nature can - but most can’t.

terrymorse 

I've heard it explained this way:

• power increases with size, but not as quickly as body mass, so power-to-weight ratio favors smaller riders
• power increases with size, but more quickly than CdA, so power-to-drag ratio favors bigger riders

MinnMan

That's partly because the pressure envelope that gives the advantage of drafting is a 3-dimensional bow wave, which grows outwardly from its source. But a larger rider will create a bigger presure envlope because their front (their CdA) is pushing more air.

PeteHski

It’s all down to build type rather than height and they are two pretty independent parameters. Tall, thin riders can climb. Short, stocky riders can TT on the flats. The pro peloton is full of examples of both extremes and every combination in between.

Kai Winters

Your body type and physiology...genetics, etc. will mostly determine your specific abilities...this pertains to most athletic events...see the sizes of marathon runners vs 100 meter specialists as well as cyclists...rolleurs, climbers, sprinters, etc.
Twitch muscles, VO2 abilities, etc are all part of this and is one reason why scientific testing...for the pros, etc...is so valuable...it reduces the time periods and evaluations to in lab testing vs on the road testing using repeatable data in a very specific and confined element...no wind, etc. in a testing lab.
I'm 5'4" and weigh 140lbs/63.5k...I'm mainly a rolleur due to my physiology...My Threshold is 165bpm and VO2 is 52, my max bpm is currently 183 which is a PR for me in this period of my life...I'm also 68 years old...and I hit this number last evening in an ZRL race.
I can't sprint worth a damn...just can't get enough power out of my smaller body though I do try and when the sprint line has a bit of a grade to it I can do much better than the 'big guys' lol.
I can climb much better but I'm not really an 'angel' in the hills.
I can go for long periods of time at a very high bpm/power however...it's just how my body works...and I'm more suited to TT's...even took a bronze at the USCF...yep back in the '90's...in the New England District Championships in my age division...masters 35+.
But I do train to improve my climbing and sprinting because the old adage is true...train your weaknesses harder...this also pays off for my strengths...slow twitch muscles...I'm able to ride harder and longer because of the work I do on sprints and climbs.
My knowledge of myself and my strengths and weaknesses is from over 35 years of racing/riding, reviewing my training logs, reading books, etc. on the subject...Eddy B's and Greg LeMonds from way back in the day lol.
You have to know yourself in order to improve yourself...
Keep going, work hard, determine your bodies abilities and always remember Greg's most important quote..."It never hurts less, you just go faster"
Good luck and keep us informed.

Carbonfiberboy 

I'm 5'6". The only thing I've noticed about being a shorter rider is that there's a limit to how short a head tube can be and thus how horizontal one's back can be and still be in a relatively comfortable position. However negative angle stems work just fine. It's totally possible to have your drops in line with your front tire, solving the problem, if one is properly thin of course.

jonathanf2

Thanks for all the replies so far. It's good to hear a variety of perspectives. I usually ride solo, but on the occasional go-fast group ride, I'm always having to go toe-to-toe with taller cyclists, especially when it comes to friendly competition racing to checkpoint segments. I sometimes feel like I have to carry the short cyclist mantle because I never meet any other serious short riders! The one area where I feel most dominant is on the downhill, I can attack corners lower and more aggressively. In fact the only time I get dropped on the descents is from another cyclist who's even shorter than me (but that's the only area he excels in). Also I've been trying to climb seated more. I actually prefer riding out of saddle, but I've been looking to improve my aerobic conditioning. I notice many of the good endurance climbers I ride with, never go out of saddle. In fact the only time I can even get a jump on them is sprint climbing on steep segments to get ahead or bombing the downhill before a climb.

Anyways, I'm not training for anything in particular, but I do like keeping my mind/body competition ready. I see fitness as a lifetime routine like making your bed in the morning or taking out the trash!

Jughed

Try being 6' with the legs of someone 5'7" and the upper body of someone 6'4"...!!! No leverage and the aerodynamics of a brick!!

jonathanf2

I had a cycling buddy with similar body proportions. Even though he was taller than me, he could barely clear the top tube on the same size frame as me. How's your bike setup? I'm guessing you have a smaller frame, but extra long stem?

To be honest, your body type sounds perfect for Olympic weightlifting or powerlifting. Low ROM on squats and deadlifts and big upper body to bench press. I bet people at gym would be envious of your proportions! The grass is always greener on the other side I guess!