BBS In The Media

Technical Skill Evaluation with Ryan Cooper

Coach Cast by TrainingPeaks

June 2021

Ryan Cooper knows something about everything, especially in the realms of swimming, biking and running. In this episode, Ryan and Dirk discuss everything from how wind direction should dictate when you eat and recover during a bike race, how to feel out a connection between heart rate and your personal RPE, as well as technical skill-building.

The Return of the Czech Chick

Slowtwitch

May 2021

Martinez uses Best Bike Split to model out an estimated time and performance she can expect given the weather forecast. He also uses it to determine how Richtrova should pace the race depending on the weather forecast and the terrain. In this way she will have guidelines when she may be able to push more or less power. Since their plan is more of a guide, Richtrova can make adjustments on race day if the weather forecast changes.

Best Bike Split, possibly the best app for managing effort in competition.

Triatletas en Red

February 2021

What is Best Bike Split? Undoubtedly, one of the best apps for the planning and management of the effort in the race. Use different algorithms to - taking into account your power data, bike, circuit characteristics and race conditions - develop a personalized plan so that you can set the best pace, and the best possible partial and finish times.

Zwift Giro Prologue: Your Best Pacing Strategy using Best Bike Split

Shane Miller - GPLama on YouTube

May 2019

Using Best Bike Split takes the guesswork out of pacing any course, even virtual courses! Here's a look at how you can use BBS to obtain your optimal pacing strategy for the new Zwift Giro 2019 Prologue course in Bologna.

Talking Cycling with Luke Durbridge

ridemedia on YouTube

January 2019

Luke Durbridge has won three Australian time trial championships - and a world title as a junior (2009) and under-23 (2011). He loves his cycling and is willing to talk about the lessons he's learned in over a decade committed to the sport he's passionate about. (Luke speaks specifically about BBS at the 2:47 mark.)

Cycling-Mathematician Ryan Cooper Will Make You Faster

FASTER Podcast by FLO

October 2018

Ryan Cooper from Best Bike Split is a math wizard who uses his algorithms to help Pro-Tour cycling teams get faster. In this episode Ryan explains how you can make better decisions when it comes to bike fit, pacing, and gear selection. Following the advice in this episode can save you 60 watts.

Optimal Bike Pacing and Best Bike Split Podcast

Scientific Triathlon

September 2018

Ryan Cooper, founder of Best Bike Split, chief scientist at Training Peaks and a world-leading expert on the physics of cycling joins us to teach optimal bike pacing in your triathlon bike leg.

"As a coach, Best Bike Split premium is one of the lines on my expense sheet that I would never get rid of, as it allows me to give my coaching clients so much additional value from being coached by me."

- Coach Mikael

Can predictive modeling be used to improve performance?

Coach Cast by TrainingPeaks

August 2018

In the summer of 2013, Ryan Cooper took a few weeks off of work to answer a question: could you accurately predict a cyclist's performance using a fast, easy-to-use model? Over five years later, Ryan is the co-founder and chief scientist at Best Bike Split, a tool that helps cyclists of all levels develop optimal pacing and training strategies using proven technology.

Dave Schell sat down with Ryan to talk about how Best Bike Split came to be, how athletes and coaches can get the most out of the software, and other optimal strategies to use before and during a race.

WATT Does It Take To Produce The Fastest Bike Split At The Norseman Xtreme Triathlon?

Torden Multisport

July 2018

Norwegian squad Pro Allan Hovda produced a stellar race this past weekend to take his 3rd victory at the Norseman Xtreme Triathlon. Having won the race 2x before, Allan came to the squad looking for some guidance to help drive his preparations towards the 2018 season.

So what did it take to produce the fastest bike split of the day, and coming into T2 with last years winner Lars Christian Vold? Thanks to TrainingPeaks and Best Bike Split, we can reveal the data Allan utilized in training and on race day.

Pacing, Crosswinds + More

TrainerRoad's Ask a Cycling Coach Podcast

November 2017

Ryan Cooper is the founder of Best Bike Split, Chief Scientist at Training Peaks, and an expert on all things aerodynamics and pacing. We met up with Ryan in Kona to discuss how to achieve perfect pacing, aerodynamic advantages in time trialing, and triathlon tactics.

Topics covered in this episode include:

• Should you go hard or easy on climbs?
• How to properly pace a time trial.
• What cyclists can learn from triathletes.
• Are bike changes in time trials a good idea?
• How much faster one more watt and one less pound can make you.
• Which is better: lose weight, or gain power?
• How to calculate the effect of elevation on aerodynamics and performance.
• Are deep wheels actually better on a climb?
• When do aero helmets become worse than a standard helmet?
• Are aero road bikes worth the weight?
• Drafting rules and tactics in triathlon.
• How pros pace differently than amateurs.
• What intensity factor is best for a full or half IRONMAN?
• One thing you can do to make the biggest aerodynamic gains.
• and much more...

Data Nerds Will Love This Analysis of the Kona 2017 Pro Race

Triathlete.com

November 2017

The tape has long been broken, the champagne sprayed and champions crowned at the 2017 Ironman World Championship, but for the first time we have in-depth access to data that paints a new and dynamic picture of the day.

What we saw on the live broadcast on Oct. 14 didn't fully capture the strategies and pacing that played out on course on a day that resulted in a new course record and several new names making the podium for the first time in both the women's and men's professional races.

Recreating Routes in Your Living Room

Wahoo Fitness

November 2017

It's an common adage: practice makes perfect. But it's difficult to prepare for races when the actual route takes place halfway across the world. Or if your schedule doesn't give you appropriate time to hit the course.

Whatever the reason, indoor smart trainers (like the KICKR) have helped riders access unique training plans that can dynamically recreate courses and conditions in high detail. In conjunction with Best Bike Split, for example, riders can access a complex physics engine that takes into consideration power data, course info, and race day conditions to carve a perfect plan of attack.

Cycling app of the week: Best Bike Split

Road.cc

June 2017

The accuracy and wealth of information available on Best Bike Split really means you can get more out of your GPS device in real-time used in conjunction with the Connect iQ app. With weather analysis, predictions and real-time data available all in one place, it's a one-stop shop for number-obsessed cyclists.

My Secret Weapon: Best Bike Split

The Unhinged Cyclist

December 2016

It seems that my last post has created a bit of a stir so I thought it best to quickly follow up and share with you how exactly I "cheated" my way to the club records. My "something else" is a piece of software called Best Bike Split. I believe that this software is that good that it is tantamount to cheating. But, before I lose any more friends, let me say straight up that it is NOT actually cheating. It is legal, UCI approved and used by a number of pro-teams. In this post I will explain (in an obscene amount of detail) what it is, how I use it and why it makes such a difference to TTs. I will also share with you how to make it work effectively on a Garmin.

Cycling Podcast loosely based on Time Trials by Mark Florence

Cycling Time Trial Podcast

September 2016

The quest to combine hard mathematical facts with cycling athletic performance is here and we, as time trialists, have more tools than ever to help hone everything from aerodynamic position to the perfect pacing strategy.

Jan Frodeno's Power File

Quarq

October 2015

The Best Bike Split team was in Kona for the 2015 Ironman World Championship and after the race we were invited to review and help break down the overall champion, Jan Frodeno's power file along with Quarq and TrainingPeaks. Check out a video of the power analysis from Quarq and gain some insights into how Jan managed the race and pulled away heading into T2.

2015 Ironman World Championship

Best Bike Split and TrainingPeaks

October 2015

This year at the Ironman World Championship Ryan Cooper and Andrew Johnson sat down with Ironman to discussed Best Bike Split and TrainingPeaks. They talked about the features of both Best Bike Split and TrainingPeaks that are helping athletes at all levels perform up to their capabilities on race day.

How Fast Will The Pros Bike Tomorrow?

Triathlete.com

October 2015

For tomorrow's Ironman World Championship, Ryan Cooper took a look at a few of the top cyclists and made his predictions with a bit of weather and tactical context.

Ryan, the co-founder and chief scientist of Best Bike Split, uses an intensive set of data points to predict how fast an athlete will bike on a certain race course. Taking things into account such as power, course topography, weather conditions and aerodynamics, Best Bike Split has had some impressive results predicting bike times—and also for giving athletes a power plan for their respective races.

Scout Your "A" Race Course

Triathlete.com

June 2015

High-Tech Version: Create a detailed bike leg estimate using Best Bike Split, which will take your power data, course info and race-day conditions to give you a power plan to target your best bike split.

The High-Tech Advantage: Pro TJ Tollakson used Best Bike Split to predict his time for Ironman Mont Tremblant. He had estimated that a 4:30 might require a 300 watt average but his Best Bike Split power plan showed he could average 279 watts and ride a 4:28. He ended up riding 4:26:55, averaging 278 watts, for a record setting performance.

Best Bike Split Used to Predict Wiggins Win

Universal Sports

September 2014

NBC's Universal Sports Network used Best Bike Split to analyze and predict Bradley Wiggins win over Tony Martin during their live broad cast of the 2014 UCI Road Cycling World Championships. The Men's Elite Individual Time Trial was held in Ponferrada, Spain on Wednesday, September 24th with commentary by Steve Schlanger, Dotsie Bausch and Todd Gogulski. Earlier in the week Ryan Cooper of Best Bike Split spoke with Dotsie about the top riders and gave some predictions based on models that Best Bike Split had run. According to Ryan, Wiggins would be about 17 seconds ahead of Martin in the time trial. The actual difference was about 26 seconds!

Trek Factory Racing Announces Partnership

Trek Factory Racing

August 2014

Trek Factory Racing is happy to announce a partnership with Best Bike Split. The Austin, Texas based company will provide the team with software to plan time trial pacing strategies, select the ideal equipment for race day conditions and determine other course specific tactical choices, in particular for time trials.

Jordan Roessingh, TFR's Technical Manager says, "Best Bike Split's software is very powerful and the team is going to benefit a great deal from it.".

A Tool To Help You Create A Power Strategy

Triathlete.com

September 2014

We were approached during the summer by Triathlete Magazine about doing a small write up on Best Bike Split and being avid readers of the magazine we were truly honored. This is very exciting for us, especially with knowing what the impact of being in such a great publication could mean for our little company.

Here's a little quote from the article. "All these ingredients yield a program that has the potential to enhance a race strategy and help you think about your power data proactively rather than reactively".

Best Bike Split Reviewed

Advanced Modeling for Triathletes, Cyclist and Cycling Teams

April 2014

Best Bike Split is a new web application that uses specific details about an athlete's power abilities and equipment to create a time prediction as well as a power pacing strategy for any upcoming race. The two creators of this site Ryan Cooper and Rich Harpel have spent hundreds of hours developing, testing, and refining their algorithms with the goal of making Best Bike Split the standard for predictive race modeling and analysis for triathletes and time-trialists racing with power meters. With multiple top professional triathletes and a World Pro Tour cycling team turning to them for help it seems like they are on their way. Best Bike Split has recently transitioned from it's beta phase to a member based web application. Standard members will have access to the core functionality of the site, but to unlock all of the features and benefits members will want to upgrade to a premium subscription. We were able to get early access to newest premium version of Best Bike Split to provide a review of it's features.

Introduction to Power Meters

The Future of Triathlon Cycling is Already Here

March 2014

Over the past 10-15 years the cycling industry has come a very long way. The study of the science behind cycling aerodynamics and the body's response to cycling has grown exponentially over this time. It can be argued that the rise of triathlon has been a primary reason for this explosive growth.

Aero vs. Weight - Follow Up

March 2014

We wrote a blog article at the end of January titled "The Great Debate - Aero vs. Weight". To write the article, we partnered with Ryan Cooper - the brains behind Best Bike Split - to simulate the effects of wheel aerodynamics vs. weight on some very popular bike courses. The goal was to determine what saved you more time, aerodynamics or weight. With the exception of climbing the Alpe d'Huez, a "heavy" aerodynamic wheel set was faster than an extremely lightweight but "non-aero" wheel set on every course. I'll add by a considerable amount.

The Great Debate - Aero vs. Weight

January 2014

What will save you more time? Improving the aerodynamics, or decreasing the weight of your wheel set? Jon and I have probably been asked this question hundreds if not thousands of times since starting FLO. When designing FLO wheels we focussed primarily on aerodynamics. We did that because in almost every situation possible, aerodynamics have a far greater impact on time saved than weight. However, I don't just want to claim that. In true FLO Cycling fashion, I want to do my best to prove that fact. To do that, I asked a VERY smart friend to help me out.