Taylor Phinney en route to his 2016 US national time trial victory - without the sunglass shield on his Giro Aerohead helmet that he started with - Ben Delaney / Immediate Media
Phinney had the Zeiss shield in place just before the start - Ben Delaney / Immediate Media
While other sports have numbers sublimated onto the uniforms, cyclists have to make do with paper — which can present challenges when aerodynamics are of utmost importance. Here, Phinney pinned his as low as possible - Ben Delaney / Immediate Media
Professional coach and amateur acupunturist Neal Henderson pins Evelyn Stevens while adjusting her number - Ben Delaney / Immediate Media
Like many riders, Stevens used a cooling vest and bags of ice to keep her core temperature down. Unlike other riders, Stevens has a Mickey Mouse towel that she travels with - Ben Delaney / Immediate Media
The sticker may say Sufferlandia, but Stevens is often smiling - Ben Delaney / Immediate Media
Henderson sprays Stevens' arms, torso and legs with rubbing alcohol right before the start for its cooling effect - Ben Delaney / Immediate Media
Stevens had a trusty old Garmin Edge 500 on her Specialized S-Works Shiv - Ben Delaney / Immediate Media
Moments before he climbed up into the start house, Phinney put electrical tape over his SRM display. This way he could ride on feel and still capture the data - Ben Delaney / Immediate Media
Use for electrical tape #4: Consolidating cables for aerodynamics (on Tom Zirbel's bike) - Ben Delaney / Immediate Media
Use for electrical tape #5: Making an aero brake design a little more aero - Ben Delaney / Immediate Media
Use for electrical tape #6: Marking seatpost height - Ben Delaney / Immediate Media
Use for electrical tape #7: Perhaps the most common use of all, finishing off handlebar wrap jobs - Ben Delaney / Immediate Media
Team TIBCO-Silicon Valley Bank sport some flashy bikes, like this one belonging to Lauren Stephens - Ben Delaney / Immediate Media
Unusual casing on this Relix TT clincher, which Maxxis claims is its lowest rolling resistance model at 160g - Ben Delaney / Immediate Media
Stephens' Infocrank power meter with Praxis Works TT rings - Ben Delaney / Immediate Media
Extra-large CeramicSpeed pulleys on Stephens' bike - Ben Delaney / Immediate Media
Rally's Tom Zirbel warms up in an ice vest before his silver-medal effort - Ben Delaney / Immediate Media
Check out the setback on Zirbel's saddle - Ben Delaney / Immediate Media
Zirbel's littlest fan is his biggest supporter - Ben Delaney / Immediate Media
Red Bull for go time - Ben Delaney / Immediate Media
Some go for electrical tape to cover the disc valve hole. Rally takes it up a notch - Ben Delaney / Immediate Media
Zirbel pushes a 55t big ring with this lengthy crank - Ben Delaney / Immediate Media
VeloToze is a California company that makes these ultra-snug shoe covers - Ben Delaney / Immediate Media
Beth Ann Orton of Visit Dallas - DNA Cycling has her number spray-glued on - Ben Delaney / Immediate Media
Orton's flashy Orbea Ordu sports a 54t large ring with a Power2Max power meter - Ben Delaney / Immediate Media
The TR center-pull brake snugs up behind the aero frame - Ben Delaney / Immediate Media
Orton's enormous CeramicSpeed pulleys. The idea behind the large pulleys is that less bending in the chain means less mechanical resistance and therefore perhaps a touch more speed - Ben Delaney / Immediate Media
The Vision disc and team graphics make for quite the visual - Ben Delaney / Immediate Media
Lupus Racing's Michael Olheiser used a zip tie to tuck his cables up against the frame and out of the wind - Ben Delaney / Immediate Media
Olheiser's Merckx Stjeandemonts73 time trial bike features these unusual cut-outs in the down tube - Ben Delaney / Immediate Media
SRAM's new eTap remote shifters made an apperance at the US national time trial - Ben Delaney / Immediate Media
USA Cycling officials were checking bikes for the typical dimension requirements, including space between the frame and rear wheel - Ben Delaney / Immediate Media
After this bike's rear triangle was deemed too tight, a Mavic mechanic adjust the rear dropouts to provide a little more space - Ben Delaney / Immediate Media
Post-adjustment, the bike passed the 'can you slide a card through it?' test, which is how USA Cycling was doing it as well - Ben Delaney / Immediate Media
Most time trial bikes were in no danger of being under the weight limit, including that of Olympic gold medalist Kristin Armstrong - Ben Delaney / Immediate Media
Armstrong's Felt TT race bike, with a waxed chain, Rotor rings and SRAM eTap - Ben Delaney / Immediate Media
Speedplay's dimpled, one-sided pedals make for allegedly smoother airflow underneath the shoe - Ben Delaney / Immediate Media
SRAM eTap Blip shifters on Armstrong's bike - Ben Delaney / Immediate Media
Many riders were right up against the legal extension length limit - Ben Delaney / Immediate Media
Wheel-off trainers are becoming more common at time trials, as they don't require a second wheel. This LeMond Revolution has clearly seen some road use - Ben Delaney / Immediate Media
Held on country roads well outside Winston-Salem, North Carolina, the time trial course meant a gravel warm-up area for many riders - Ben Delaney / Immediate Media
What this wheel bloc lacks in portability it makes up for in stability - Ben Delaney / Immediate Media
Second-placed Amber Neben was one of a very few riders to benefit from fans during her outdoor warm-up - Ben Delaney / Immediate Media
With heat and humidity in abundance, ice was the theme of the day at the 2016 US national time trial championships - Ben Delaney / Immediate Media
Winston-Salem, North Carolina hosted the 2016 US national time trial championships - Ben Delaney / Immediate Media
The little things add up in time trials, and at the US national championships, held May 27 in North Carolina, a bevy of interesting little things popped up as riders, teams and coaches tried to squeeze out every last drop of performance. Some details had been set long ago; some adjustments by riders before they rolled down the start ramp, including men's winner Taylor Phinney.
With heat and humidity a factor, most riders employed some method of cooling before or during the event. Loose ice and ice bags were tucked into skinsuits, cooling vests were donned, fans were blasted and pop-up tents for shade were erected. Right before her start, women's UCI hour record holder Evelyn Stevens warmed up on a trainer wearing a cooling vest, with an ice bag on her neck. As she climbed off to ride her time trial bike to the start, her coach Neal Henderson sprayed her arms, legs and torso with rubbing alcohol for the sensory if not actual cooling effect.
Henderson sprays stevens' arms, torso and legs with rubbing alcohol right before the start for its cooling effect: henderson sprays stevens' arms, torso and legs with rubbing alcohol right before the start for its cooling effect - Ben Delaney / Immediate Media
One interesting thing to watch at time trials is how veteran professionals make adjustments on the fly. BMC rider Phinney, for instance, called for electrical tape right before he climbed up onto the start ramp. With the clock counting down, he taped over the screen of his SRM PC8 computer, hiding the data so he could ride on feel but still capture the power and other data for analysis later. Why was this decision made on the line and not before? Phinney also changed his aero helmet setup pretty substantially while on the road. He started with the full Zeiss sunglass shield on his Giro Aerohead helmet, but discarded it mid-ride, presumably for heat management.
Moments before he climbed up into the start house, phinney put electrical tape over his srm display. this way he could ride on feel and still capture the data: moments before he climbed up into the start house, phinney put electrical tape over his srm display. this way he could ride on feel and still capture the data - Ben Delaney / Immediate Media
While some tailoring of the bike setups were expensive and time-intensive — such as Kristin Armstrong's wax chain treatment — many were simple and along the lines of Phinney's 'just tape it' approach.USA Cycling officials were on hand monitoring bikes and gear, forcing last-minute changes of everything from Armstrong's skinsuit — no stars-and-stripes on national race day — to the rear wheel spacing.For a detailed look at the the gear used at the 2016 US national time trial championships, click through the gallery above. For complete results, visit Cyclingnews.com.
Rally's tom zirbel warms up in an ice vest before his silver-medal effort: - Ben Delaney / Immediate Media
Ben Delaney is a journalist with more than two decades of experience writing for and editing some of the biggest publications in cycling. Having studied journalism at the University of New Mexico, Ben has worked for Bicycle Retailer & Industry News, VeloNews and BikeRadar. He has also previously worked as Global Brand Communications Manager for Specialized. Ben covers all things road and gravel, and can be found logging big miles in the Rocky Mountains that nestle alongside his home in Boulder, Colorado. He has covered the most important bike races in the sport, from the Tour de France and Tour of Flanders, to the Unbound gravel race, and specialises in tech content, showcasing what the pros are riding and putting everyday equipment through its paces.
This website is owned and published by Our Media Ltd. www.ourmedia.co.uk
