69chevy

I used to compete in road time trials (years ago) and got out of it when my kids were born.

I recently put together some little road bikes for my boys who are now 9 and 10. They like it so much, we have been riding a lot and did a 36 mile ride this weekend. I was telling my oldest about time trial racing, and he really wants to train for it and race in the Junior cat this fall.

I have been searching for a tt bike in his size (he's right at 5 feet tall) and have only come up with a few options.

I'm thinking 650 wheels (lower head tube) short standover height, steep seatpost, and as light as I can get on a budget since he will outgrow it so fast.

His age bracket winner last year was a 15mph average for 13.8 miles. (9-14).

If I get him a tt style bike, I want it soon so he can get used to riding on his forearms. At his size, he probably won't be able to get his butt in the air and still crank, so i'm really going for as low of a front end as I can safely put him on.

These are the two bikes I've found.

Do any of you have any other suggestions?




I'm leaning torwards the Cervelo, but the sloped top tube may be in his favor since he's so short.

rpenmanparker 

I would have him compete on an all purpose road bike. The difference isn't great enough to matter at that level of competition.

CafeVelo

+1

HOWSER

I would agree with this.

I too have a son (10) that competes with me. He just uses his road bike on TT's. As short (distance) as they are, and with the speed these kids acheive, the aero savings are not big. As I tell my son, keep your head down and pedal hard.

Best of luck to your son!

69chevy

You may be right. He is like me with a long torso though. You don't think being in an aero position will help him? The over 20K distance is what makes me think drag will matter a lot. (minutes).

69chevy

Thanks!

Does he have any problems staying on the drops for the full course?

JerrySTL

At 10 years old, he could compete as a junior in US Cycling events. You might want to check out the gearing restrictions. Basically they don't want youngsters mashing large gears. When my daughter raced as a junior, she was limited to a 52x14 top gear on 700x23 tires.

Juniors Program - USA Cycling

Junior Gear Restrictions: Is Your Race Bike legal? - USA Cycling

Your boys could compete in the Juniors Nationals starting at the race age of 10.

69chevy

He wants to compete in the Alabama TT (USA Cycling).

https://www.usacycling.org/events/fl...ermit=2015-643

Thanks for the link. I will check his bike today. It is a 24" wheeled bike. If he rides his road bike, I think it will easily be OK. I'm very grateful for you pointing this out. I did not know of the gear restriction.

Thanks again!

HOWSER

No, he doesn't.

caloso

Road bike.

My 11-yo son is doing Nationals in two weeks (not because he's a national class rider but because it's relatively local). He'll be doing it Merckx style on his road bike. I suspect most kids in his division will.

HOWSER

This is correct. At a regional level you can block out his rear gears to meet the gearing restrictions. If you go to nationals you can't block out.

caloso

Re gearing restriction: Every junior has to have his/her gearing checked by an official before each race. I put a 45t big chainring on his bike because it allows you to use a standard 12-X cassette rather than having to hunt for a 14t cassette, which can be hard to find.

Elvo

CafeVelo

^that hardly seems fair^

69chevy

He is on a 24" wheeled bike. I believe his small rear cog is 14t already. Since he is on a modified big box store bike, I will need a different bike if his doesn't meet the 26' rule.

There are likely no parts to replace the gearing he has now. The rear is 8 speed and barely fits between the stays.

I haven't taken the rear hub apart, but I am sure the skinny cassette threads on.



This is him on the drops. I can lower the stem some, and have already raised the seat. I also have upgraded the tires to 23mm slicks. I'd really like to get him more "aero", but you guys are talking me down off of the "new bike" ledge.

He averaged 10mph on the 36 we did this weekend. The 18 mile down and back had a 900 ft elevation change, and his bike did very well.

69chevy

LMAO. I think I may be "that dad"...

Thanks for the visual. lol

caloso

You can go to one of the many online gearing calculators and plug in the numbers. I suspect that the bike is well within the limitation, given the small wheels. He looks great. I wouldn't worry too much about the aerodynamics yet. Focus instead on keeping a steady effort. That's the real physical and psychological thing that if he can start learning that now, he'll be able to apply it as he gets older/bigger/faster.

JerrySTL

One year at Junior Nationals there was a 10 YO with a custom LiteSpeed! The father said that he had two younger sons so the bike would be a nice hand-me-down.

Leinster

He doesn't need a new bike that he will soon grow out of. He looks plenty aero for his age group there, if anything, get him to bend his elbows a little more.

If you must get him a TT-specific upgrade, get him some clip-on aero bars, which he can keep for when he grows into a bigger bike. He might be better off getting comfortable on drop bars for another couple of years, though, before taking his hands away from the brakes.

rpenmanparker 

I'm not saying he shouldn't be trying to win, but it shouldn't matter enough to require a dedicated bike type. It is about his effort, not the eauipment at this stage.

69chevy

It appears that his top gear is 48-14. This would put him right around 20ft on each pedal rotation.

This cheapo gear-set allows plenty of speeds to get him over 15mph with a 90rpm cadence.

Another reason to stay with his bike I guess.

milkbaby

Already posted but without the requisite meme addition...

ColaJacket

It looks like he is on normal platform pedals. Maybe get him some toe clips, so when he gets to pedalling really fast, they'll help him keep his feet on the pedals. I don't know that I would suggest clipless pedals, as he'd probably out grow them so quickly, you'd be spending a lot of money there. Unless you got the clipless sandals that have more room for growth.

GH

Sidney Porter

An option if you go clipless is to remember that racing BMX bikes are clipless. So you might be able to find a better selection of kids shoes at the BMX sites.
https://www.danscomp.com/shop-SHOES/...BMX+Shoes.html

But the issue becomes is this his daily ride around town to his friends house bike? In that instance he is not going to want clipless.

banerjek

Not at the speeds he'll be riding at unless the headwinds are terrible. A decent position on a regular road bike should get him where he needs to be.

How hot will it be? That helmet looks like he'd roast.