[Leica] IMG: La Vuelta in Jijona

[Douglas Barry]

Jim, the tyres are generally all the same, but the rims that hold them 
can be got in different aerodynamic profiles. The deeper the rim the 
more aerodynamic it is. The choice of the various profiles are left to 
the rider and varied according to the type of stage.  On a tough 
mountainous stage like the one shown in Nathan's pics, a slick profile 
is not that important if you're a good climber, but if you're not a good 
climber, but rather a brave descender, you can claw back time on steep 
descents, so a more aerodynamic rim might pay off a little, both 
psychologically, and in actuality. However, the shorter spokes reduce 
shock absorption and can make for a less comfortable ride.

Watch what happens at 1 min 15 secs in this video of yesterday's stage 
of the Vuelta to see why shock absorption is fairly useful!!  
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PS755VYjNTY

Douglas



On 21/08/2021 15:30, Jim Nichols wrote:
> Nice coverage, Nathan.  Why do some choose narrow tires, while a few 
> have larger tires?
>
> On 8/21/21 8:06 AM, Nathan Wajsman wrote:
>> The Vuelta a España bicycle race started last weekend. After a series 
>> of relatively flat stages, yesterday things got serious. Stage 7 
>> contained six mountain passes over 152 km, finishing in the mountains 
>> near Tibi, one of my cycling destinations. So I took the afternoon 
>> off to go and see the race. I planned to cycle to Tibi and catch the 
>> Vuelta at the top of the penultimate mountain pass of the stage. But 
>> the climb to Tibi is very tough, and inland temperatures were going 
>> to hit 40C during the afternoon. Driving was not an option (you go to 
>> see a bicycle race on a bicycle, or else you stay home and watch on 
>> TV). So instead, I cycled to Jijona, about 24 km away, and found a 
>> great spot with shade, shared with a nice local family. It was on a 
>> steep uphill, so the speed of the cyclists would be moderate (all 
>> relatively speaking, of course), and at that point the cyclists would 
>> have 120-125 km and four passes in their legs, so I knew the peleton 
>> would be nicely spread out, and it would take 20-30 minutes for 
>> everyone to pass. And so it was.
>>
>> What I like about cycling from a spectator’s point of view is that in 
>> no other professional sport can you get so close to the competitors. 
>> I could have touched the cyclists if I had wanted to. But I settled 
>> for photos, and a small gallery of 29 images is now uploaded. Some of 
>> the images are not technically perfect but I included them anyway 
>> because they show the effort and suffering of the cyclists. Where I 
>> could identify the cyclists, I have done so in the captions. It’s all 
>> here:
>>
>> https://www.greatpix.eu/La-Vuelta-in-Jijona/ 
>> <https://www.greatpix.eu/La-Vuelta-in-Jijona/>
>>
>> As always, comments and critique are welcome and appreciated.
>>
>> Nathan
>>
>> Nathan Wajsman
>>
>> Alicante, Spain
>> http://www.frozenlight.eu <http://www.frozenlight.eu/>
>> http:// <http://www.greatpix.eu/>www.greatpix.eu
>> PICTURE OF THE WEEK: http://www.fotocycle.dk/paws 
>> <http://www.fotocycle.dk/paws>Blog: 
>> http://nathansmusings.wordpress.com/ 
>> <http://nathansmusings.wordpress.com/>
>>
>> Cycling: http://www.crazyguyonabike.com/belgiangator 
>> <http://www.crazyguyonabike.com/belgiangator>
>>
>> YNWA
>>
>> "I’m not arguing, I’m just explaining why I’m right"
>>
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>