Originally Posted by
big john
It's pretty rare to find a 200+ pound rider who is a great climber. Especially within peer groups, like world tour riders. There are no 200 pound climbers who can go with the goats. Similar with recreational riders, if you're comparing similar experience and training levels.
There are more variables with headwind and sidewind. As a larger rider, I have been pushed all over the road by sidewinds. Seen a 230 pound friend get blown off the bike on a bridge. Some like to say the heavier riders have an advantage in crosswind but there's more to it than weight. Even the bike makes a difference in crosswinds, as well as the wheels.
The wind doesn't care if you are 40 pounds heavier than another rider. If you present a large sail you get pushed around. I saw boxcars flipped over by the wind.
Yep.
I've been using Elite level primarily because at amateur level the variables are vast. A big unit in road cycling at a high level is typically less than 200lbs with only a few exceptions - I think the heaviest I've heard of is 210lbs. The big sprinters are not going to climb, we know that. But big un's like WvA absolutely can.
Naturally, extremes are going to skew things a bit which makes this all very different at recreational level. If we compare a 250lb strong guy to a 100lb woman on a flat road then, yeah, gonna be tough for that woman. Extreme's. But take a strong, 150lb guy with a good natural CDa, good W/kg, can hold high watts because of other genetic factors...that heavy guy is in trouble even if he is physically stronger.
Similarly, look at Pogi, Vingegaard et al dominating the climbs at the TdF against pure goats like Quintana and Yates. We don't talk about Quintana and Yates as top time triallists but we can with Pogi and Vingegaard and Pogi can sprint too. Yet both destroyed the goats at their own discipline.
No hard, fast rules but we can make certain generalisations, I guess.
